# New trick--how to teach?



## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

I would ue really good treats to lure back feet on. You might also try putting one of your feet on on edge to make it so it doesn't move at first and then as you keep their attention on a nice treat lift your foot and let it take a little wobble and put your foot back before they jump off so you can reward the remaining on through the wiggle. If you can get them to do the balancing with four on there it will do great things to improve their core strength. I have a FitPaws peanut and when I was really working Lily on it very regularly she almost fell off a dog walk at my trainers. She was running across the top at breakneck speed and put one back foot down into thin air. She went down onto her chest and elbows with her right back leg dangling in thin air, but she kept herself on the dog walk. Both my trainer and I were really impressed with how good her sense of balance and her strength to hold herself on the board were.


----------



## Sammy the spoo (Jul 7, 2016)

Sounds like a really neat trick! 

If I were to teach this trick, I'd go back a few steps. How are they about backing up onto a solid platform with their hind legs? I may start with a box or a platform and letting them used to backing their hind legs onto it. Then I'd move onto all four legs onto the solid platforms. When they get comfortable with that trick, I may move onto the exercise equipment. 

Usually when they are not "getting it", it means that your criteria jumped a few steps. I'd break the task down some more or use alternative tools before we go onto the end goal.

Sent from my A0001 using Tapatalk


----------



## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

Sammy that is a good idea too! Hind end awareness is a great skill to help you r dog with. It is also important to remember that when a dog does not give a reliable response to an order it means they don't fully understand what you are asking them to do.


----------



## JudyD (Feb 3, 2013)

I knew I wasn't making clear what I wanted them to do. They're both quick to learn, so... my bad. The biggest problem, as far as I can see, is that all four feet are going to have to be close together and centered under the body. Not a normal position. I'll try working with the back feet. Thanks!


----------



## Skylar (Jul 29, 2016)

To teach them to keep their feet close, start teaching them to get into a large box. Then slowly use smaller and smaller boxes. You won't believe how tiny a box they can eventually get into. If they are comfortable with their feet in a small box then they should feel okay with doing it on the exercise ball. See if that helps.


----------



## galofpink (Mar 14, 2017)

It is quite amazing how small of a box they can get their feet in and that would certainly help with the back feet awareness and teach them positioning for on top of the ball. With the box training, Shae took a very long time to realize she had back feet (our puppy class trainer said that's typical, but it's very important to teach them where their back feet are and that they work independently from the front).


----------



## JudyD (Feb 3, 2013)

Using progressively smaller boxes sounds like an excellent idea. I'll give that a try. 

Trying to get them to back up didn't work well at all. 

Not sure why, but Jazz has always hated the "back" command, to the degree that now she just shuts down if she hears the word "back." We don't ever practice it, and in training class I completely skip any rally signs that require it. I understand in a trial as long as you make an effort at a sign, you'll lose big points but won't be NQ'd if the dog doesn't complete it properly, so that's my default--"Jazzie, back" (spoken in a whisper, so she can't hear), then "oops", and we'll move on to the next sign.

Anyway, I put Jazz in a down-stay and worked with Blue, figured it wouldn't do any harm to let her watch. Blue usually picks up something like that pretty fast, but his hind feed skipped off to the side as soon as he felt the dome behind him, so after several tries, I decided to go on to something else, looked around, couldn't find Jazz. She had slipped off to hide on her bed in the bedroom, was most reluctant to come to me when I called her for fear she'd have to back up. 

In the interim, I've taught them to do high-fives. Pretty cute.


----------



## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

Oh dear, I'm sure it didn't feel funny but that is pretty funny that Jazz decided to leave on thinking she was going to have the back up order. Do you have any idea why she dislikes it so? Lily didn't understand it well early on and I actually got her rally excellent title and a few leg of RAE with no functional "back up three steps dog remains in position." I would just go up to the sign, take my three steps back while saying back and Lily turned in place to watch me go backwards. I then said oops let's go and we took our -10 points IP and went on.


----------



## JudyD (Feb 3, 2013)

lily cd re said:


> Oh dear, I'm sure it didn't feel funny but that is pretty funny that Jazz decided to leave on thinking she was going to have the back up order. Do you have any idea why she dislikes it so? Lily didn't understand it well early on and I actually got her rally excellent title and a few leg of RAE with no functional "back up three steps dog remains in position." I would just go up to the sign, take my three steps back while saying back and Lily turned in place to watch me go backwards. I then said oops let's go and we took our -10 points IP and went on.


Oh, that's right--I, at least, have to make an attempt, don't I? 

Well, I feel better, if even Lily had trouble initially. I have no idea why Jazz hates it. It came up in one of her basic obedience classes several years ago. We worked on it occasionally for a couple of weeks. I tried it standing in front of her, and that was a complete washout. Then I tried with her in the heel position. No go. Then I tried in heel position against a wall or a car. Even worse. I wasn't forcing her, I wasn't annoyed with her, I just couldn't get her to do it, so eventually I forgot about it. It isn't something we need or feel the lack of, no big deal. 

It resurfaced in an advanced rally class last spring. She resisted in the middle of the room, on the course, so the trainer had me take her to the back wall and try there a couple of times. Absolutely not, and even worse, the next time we went to class, she had to be coaxed out of the car, was very anxious when we went into the building, and WOULD NOT go near the evil and wicked back wall. Took weeks to get her to enjoy class again. Nothing harsh has ever been made of that particular command, she's never been scolded or forced to do it. It must have triggered a really scary memory, or...something. I have not idea, but I promise she'll never have to back up if she doesn't want to.


----------

