# Intermediate Obedience Workshop



## snow0160

I wish we had a facility like this close to us but sadly we don't. It is hard to find a good open space that is also indoors. It is very hot in FL this time of the year. I train Lucky at the Home Depot or the hallway of my home. There is one school like Top Dog here but they require you to take all of their courses starting with the puppy/ beginner class and it is quite expensive to run through everything. I do appreciate the fact that we have our AKC training club pretty close to our home and we meet our private instructor every other week. I really do wish there was an all in one large training school that does everything. I have been working pretty hard with Kit lately on passing the CGC and she is easier to train in public and in strange locations. She will likely do much better with public access than Lucky because I've never seen her afraid of anything so there is less time spent on counter conditioning.


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## Johanna

*Obedience workshop*

Sounds like a wonderful workshop - hope Javelin wakes up in time for dinner!


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## lily cd re

Johanna said:


> Sounds like a wonderful workshop - hope Javelin wakes up in time for dinner!


Javelin never misses his dinner, or for that matter a shot at stealing Lily's either! He ate well despite all that he got fed during the day that he normally doesn't have.

snow if you have a not for profit obedience club then you have one of the generally better kinds of training resources there is. The interests of the people who are members and instructors in those clubs aren't motivated by money over dogs.


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## Skylar

lily cd re - I really look forward to hearing the details of this workshop. Are all 30 dogs in the ring and working the exercises together? I can't imagine working with that many dogs. Or have they broken you up into smaller groups?

snow0160 - I envy you having an AKC club nearby - I'm driving an hour to the ones I go to.


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## lily cd re

Skylar we are divided into separate working groups and for a couple of things we have worked just one or two dogs at a time. For example this afternoon we took individual turns working on the retrieve on the flat and the work was tailored to the level that each dog was at.

Today we worked on getting good drops and were shown ways to work the drop outside the context of the recall. The games we worked on would be easily done while still getting ready for novice. Many people don't like to teach drops before they have finished the CD, but then you end up stuck waiting to get it in shape for open and have a gap in trialing readiness. The other problem that I now appreciate because of how hard Lily and I are struggling with utility is that you should teach signals long before you are trying to get into the ring.

The morning was all work on drops and the afternoon was all work on the dumbbell. I definitely feel like I have a better handle on how to proceed with both of those exercises now. It is especially important to get back on track with the retrieving since until the dumbbell is good, my private trainer doesn't want us to work on the gloves or articles. As I said yesterday I will go through my notes after I get home and describe specific techniques and tips after I have processed them. My head is very full of new information that I don't have total ownership of yet.

Javelin did well with the crate again during the lunch break and even when I didn't leave him alone there he was happy to settle in it with the flap open right next to my chair. He has been great around all but one of the other dogs, a border terrier who must be giving a bit of a weird vibe and seems like a nervous little dog. He had a really tough time and kept shutting down during the dumbbell work. Javelin took a small lunge towards him when we passed them in the morning and then charged out of his crate when they walked by in the afternoon. I apologized as sincerely as I could, but I think the handler has decided she doesn't like us and/or that I am unconcerned (which couldn't be further from the truth). After that I stayed totally on top of every glance that Javelin gave to any nearby dog. I believe he has gotten the message.

We had almost the whole group go out for an early dinner this evening at a lovely restaurant. We had lively and interesting conversation about teaching training classes at the end of the table where I sat since five of the seven of us there all either teach at a club and/or do private training.


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## lily cd re

Here are a couple of pictures from yesterday and today. Given how many dogs are close by, he is doing really well (aside from the border terrier).


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## Skylar

Javelin is looking happy to be there with you. I can't wait to hear all the details. I wouldn't worry about the border terrier. I bet she had similar responses from other dogs too. It is embarrassing though when you want your dog to remain nicely settled and non-reactive 100% of the time. 

I realize too that you're swamped with a lot of new information that you need time to process it. 

We're also working on the drop and doing all kinds of things that will help when we put the pieces together but I'm staying far away from teaching her to drop in the middle of a recall. It just makes so much more sense this way, at least to me. Same with dumbbell. She does everything great except she needs to jump 16" and we're still at 8". And she's not good with the hold before she hands it to me so we're working on hold separately too. I'm reluctant to use the latest reincarnation of the forced return training. This way I have plenty of time to train a better hold and move the jump up and get the drop on recall together. I can't imagine teaching only one level at a time. 

I've also seen that warning not to train articles until you have the dumbbell. But other people say go ahead. In the meantime we've been working on the send out.


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## snow0160

Javelin looks so happy in those photos! I really love all the obedience threads. It inspires me to do more with my dogs, which has been paying off lately. Training two dogs at the same time is a lot more work than I had thought. I take Kit to private lessons and CGC class and then drive 2.5 hours for Lucky's agility class. To be honest, most of our training is done at home and it is a rinse and repeat process in short intervals like conditioning at the gym. This gives me greater appreciation for all the things my parents did for me.


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## lily cd re

Skylar we are learning tons of useful stuff that I will share with you as soon as I can process through it. Today we worked on aspects of teaching the various parts of directed jumping (including go outs) and scent articles. 

In the morning we used cookies to send the dogs over the high jump and then worked at making sure they came back over the jump in the fashion that will be needed for the open retrieve over the jump, but also will be useful for utility jumping in making the dog understand that their path to you has to go over the jump. I think that what we did today will be helpful already with the issues I've been having with Javelin wanting to go around the broad jump.

After the jump work was done we had a very good explanation and one team as a demo team for the around the clock method for teaching the scent articles. Look it up and you will find written descriptions along with videos. If you add the name Janice DeMello to your search it might help. I did not do this with Lily, but I will do it with Javelin. I can see that it will work very well.

The people running this clinic always use cookies as part of teaching the go out. I started Lily this way several different times and was never able to have her think that go out was about anything other than looking for cheese, so I have not been using it in teaching Javelin, who does actually already have better go outs than Lily, so I opted out of working their method for starting go outs, but did find it interesting to watch and took notes so that I have the method in my tool box even if I don't use it myself.

A useful thing we did related to the turn and sit part of the go out was an activity using broad jump boards to make a chute to promote tight spins into the sit. I worked on this with Javelin and even though he already has the foundations of a good turn and sit I think this will improve them. You use a six foot leash and a cookie held above the dog's head. If your dog turns to the right to sit, hold the leash and the cookie in your right hand but start with the dog on your left. Send them into the chute and get them ahead of you. Say the dog's name and as you do that lure them to turn and as they do so tell them to sit. Make sure the dog does not move forward towards you in the chute by keeping your right arm out in front of you and the cookie above the dog's head. When they sit, deliver the cookie with them as far away from you as possible to discourage the dog from thinking they should come to front.

Sometime this morning I was getting ready to take Javelin outside to potty. I saw the border terrier lady coming in with her dog. I moved Javelin quickly to my right side and made him sit under the table we were walking past. She saw us and out loud said "oh s&*t" and turned around and disappeared behind a corner as she picked her dog up. I stood there for a few seconds and when she showed no signs of reappearing I called out and said I was waiting for her to pass by. She sneered at us as she carried her dog by. What an idiot! Clearly even yesterday she had many chances to see that I was working to keep Javelin away from having a chance to even notice her dog. Payback came at lunch time. I sat down at a table with one person who indicated that she was saving a couple of seats for friends. I said no problem that I was happy to dine with anyone and guess who one of her friends was? I was sitting at the end of the table and one of the saved chairs was to my right. This lady sat there I think before she realized who I was. She actually moved her chair away from me several times while we were all there. I just ate and talked a bit with the woman who I originally sat with, ignoring all the drama from the other person. Sometimes it is better to kill bad chemistry with neutrality or kindness than confrontation. I don't recognize any of the three people in this little group of friends, so it seems unlikely I will encounter them very often in the future.

snow I wish more people would do more with their dogs. Exercising the brain of a dog does much more to make them contented than running around like a lunatic with them. Javelin is out cold here in the hotel and he really did not do a lot of physical exercise (as evidence by my fitbit telling me I have only taken 2.7K steps today), but he did tons of thinking.

One other really good opportunity we had today was to have a really good measurement for his dumbbell done. I don't like any of the dumbbells I have for him at this point. One has a good length and diameter on the bit, but the bells are too small and another has a bit that is way too long. Now I can order a new dumbbell (or maybe two) with confidence and possibly a set of leather articles since I am not sure that the ones I was planning to start him with will be good either.

After lunch and before we started working


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## lily cd re

We got home about an hour ago and I thought I would check in while we are waiting for our Japanese food to arrive (no way was I going to cook tonight). This was a great great weekend. Today we worked on heeling with distractions, signals, moving stand, gloves and the broad jump. We covered all of the exercises of open and utility in depth in four days. I have a ton of notes to go through and get organized to share as much as I can with you in the next week or so. then it will be time to turn around, repack the truck and hit the road with Lily for the advanced version of this workshop.

That's all for now since dinner will be here soon and then I am going to join Javelin in hitting the hay. He is exhausted and I am pretty sure his little brain hurts big time.

BF survived dealing with the chickens and Lily and Peeves were both happy to see us when we got here. My teenagers now really look like pullets and they are starting their first soft molt to get rid of feathers that will soon be way too small for their growing bodies. My littles are starting to look like teenagers and this week in addition to processing my notes from the clinic I will be getting Phoebe, Hannah and Miriam integrated with Sarah, Rachel and Ruth in the big house. I will also start taking the littles outside during the day when I can watch them.

Have a good night everyone!


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## lily cd re

*Formal Notes, Part 1*

I started reviewing my notes now that I have finished the grades for my second summer session class.

It is going to take time to get all of it converted into presentable form, but here is the first installment.

*Day 1 Introduction*


Attention Exercises should start every training session.

Be consistent with a *Three Word Marker System* as follows:
“YES” ends the exercise and means you did a great job, here’s your reward (cookie or play);
“GOOD” means you are doing a nice job but keep going, no reward just yet as a useful way to chain together the smaller parts of complex exercises; and
“NO (uh oh or oopsie)” tells the dog this was wrong, it is important to mark mistakes consistently so that dog gets an understanding that if you don’t say anything the behavior was correct.

After a mistake release the dog and then work to help the dog to be correct several times then play and go back to the exercise where the mistake first happened with the original set up. Be careful not to reward responses to corrections.

Don’t put too much stock in the concept of “ending on a happy note.” If the dog has given a series of incorrect responses followed by one correct behavior it is much more likely that if you stop after that one good response the dog will remember the incorrect behavior more strongly than the correct response. Make sure you get several correct responses before stopping work on that exercise. Making sure the dog gives many correct responses builds the dog’s confidence.

In trialing, the biggest mistake most people make (especially for utility) is entering too soon. To assess whether dog is ready for trials make sure they can do qualifying performances in matches treated like trials at several different locations. Once they can do this they are telling you they really understand everything, feel confident and are ready to do the work in trials.

Three Attention Activities: stationary attention; moving watch/with me and formal attentions with corrections (at heel with distractions—step away).

1. Stationary Attention: the five cookie exercise as I have described elsewhere; but briefly here: have 5 small cookies in your left hand and have dog sit at heel, show first cookie above their nose without letting them nibble, dog should look up and make eye contact for 3 seconds without looking away. Feed first cookie and show the 2nd one while making sure the dog keep her head up and maintains eye contact. Repeat until you give the fifth cookie at which time you will release the dog to a jump up or a toy. As the dog gains profieciency ask for longer eye contact before feeding and add distractions.
2. Moving Watch/With Me: put a cookie on the dog’s nose when they are facing you and back away from them. Feed the dog as they follow you and maintain eye contact. Add distractions. Once they are always moving with you, fade the food and replace with a release to play.
3. Step Away** from heel for formal attention: have dog at heel and moving. Dog should maintain heads up eye contact. Have distractions around (ideally a person, but if you are working alone toys or food or even bits of tissue on the floor, chalk marks, etc). If dog takes to the distraction, step away from the dog far enough that they feel a small leash/collar correction and return to heel.

**Teaching Step Away Correction: Have dog sitting at heel and have a toy of food in your right hand. Step away from the dog to your right and use the toy or cookie to lure the dog to reconnect to you. Once this has been taught you can use it for any time the dog should be giving head’s up attention and turns their head to look away. If the dog gives an eye flick towards a distraction just give their attention order (look, watch me, eyes up or whatever works for you).

In terms of distractions remember that at trials the two major distractions will be other dogs and pressure from judges so in training other dogs and people in the position of the judge are very important. Working on attention is a process that should be continuous through the life of the dog. Don’t expect your dog to attend to you if you don’t attend to your dog. If you want the dog to be at attention make sure you keep up your end. If you are in a class, match or trial don’t look at your instructor or judge. Listen and nod or talk to indicate your readiness or understanding. If you need to really watch your instructor in class then put your dog on a relaxed down stay to tell them they are off duty and do not have to attend to you just now.


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## lily cd re

*Formal Notes, Part 2*

*DISTANCE ATTENTION*

Keeping the dog’s attention while they are not close to you is essential for the drop on recall, utility signals, moving stand and for the turn and sit at the go out. Use games as much as possible for distance attention. Work on attention at distance with the dog in all positions (sit, down and stand). Install wait as a command for stay her in this position and watch me until I tell you something else to be able to do games for attention at distance. Start close to dog and add distance as they get better. Make sure dog pays attention all the time. Don’t use a “no” verbal for lack of attention or it will become a cue to pay attention and the dog will be less likely to attend continuously. Give a correction (physical) and then continue the work in a way that will make the dog successful (reduce distance to dog, reduce level of distractions). 

Even for the novice stand it is important to work on the attention of the dog since it provides an extra opportunity to use it in the ring.

Distance Attention Games: Use a flexi leash for all of these activities. Work to keep the dog guessing about when the reward will come and they will learn to always be watching you.
1. With the dog on a flexi leash leave the dog on a sit, stand or down wait and walk away they way you would for a group stay or a recall (move with purpose and your back to the dog. At varying distances release dog with a “yes” as you throw a cookie ahead of you without turning towards the dog. Make sure dog sees the cookie and moves quickly to get it. Once they are eating and just about finished call their name and get them to move towards you. Ask for a jump up or play with a toy to celebrate before doing the game again.
2. Set up as above and walk away but now turn and face the dog before releasing the dog with a “yes” and a tossed cookie (vary where you throw the cookie). Once the dog is about to finish the food use the dog’s name to reorient him towards you and finish with a celebration as he returns as above.
3. Set up as above and walk away. Turn and face the dog and recall them to you with a “yes” and a cookie tossed between your feet or otherwise just behind you.
4. Vary the pattern of the above games as much as possible by rotating through leaving the dog at a sit, stand or down; showing a different picture in terms of what you do after you leave; where you throw the cookie and what the end of the game is (jump up, toss a toy, play tug or give another cookie).


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## lily cd re

TEACHING FRONTS

The goal is to have a tuck sit and the dog keeping its head up.

Use a food lure held directly in front of the center of your body (think about holding it in both hands). Do not keep food in your pocket, but instead hold it in your mouth and deliver it from your mouth by hand or by spitting it.

Hold a short leash in your right hand with it coming under the dog’s chin from the collar and keep your left hand (palm down) under the dog’s chin to help her keep her head up and maintaining eye contact.

Start by backing away from the dog to bring him to front and tell him to sit. Once the dog can front well this way stop moving away from the dog. Sit the dog at arm’s length in front you and show a cookie right above their nose and move the cookie towards your body (on center) still with the leash up under the dog’s chin to keep their head up in conjunction with the cookie. Then set the dog up in front of you on a sit and hold the cookie at center against your body and tell the dog to come to front. This makes your body the target for the dog to front to and they will come in close and tuck. 

Make sure you help the dog to be correctly centered straight at front and close in without you moving to adjust to what the dog has done. 

As you are ready to add distance for the call to front, use broad jump boards to make a chute that will keep the dog straight as they come to you. Use a long leash or flexi (better) to keep the dog moving through the chute and sitting directly in front of you. As the dog becomes proficient at coming straight to front introduce full distance recalls and off center recalls to proof the dog’s understanding of the straight front.

To maintain good straight fronts you can use “flippers,” little finger flicks to get the dog to adjust as they come in. For example if you see that the dog will be crooked to your right use your left hand held at your side to point the dog to move to the left. Do the opposite if the dog will be crooked on your left. If the dog is coming straight, but off center of your body (e.g. will be straight in front of your right leg) put your hand out on the off center side to get the dog to adjust to center. So if the dog was coming to the right put your right hand out in front of your right leg (keep your hand low) to make the dog move to the left and closer to center.

If you like tools for your training you can buy (or make) front sticks that can be used like extensions of your arms to give the dog a runway for his approach. I bought the sticks that the facility running the workshop sells. They are Lucite plastic rods about three feet in length and have slip rings put through a hole drilled near one end. The slip rings would let you hook the sticks to something else if you wanted to use them a different way (e.g. for go outs). Pictures of the sticks showing how long they are and the slip rings are attached. They are leaning against my kitchen base cabinets for scale.


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## lily cd re

FIGURE EIGHT

Start by practicing your heeling without your dog. Make your footwork very consistent. Break down the complete figure eight into its component parts. It is two semicircles connected by two short straights with two right turns (with dog on outside) and two left turns (with dog on inside). Help cue the dog by pointing your toes into the turning of the semicircles and the turns at the point you enter the straights. Keep your number of steps on the semicircles consistent at six steps adjusting lengths of steps slightly if needed but keeping very consistent pace. Remember you are supposed to maintain your pace and the goal is to have the dog adjust their pace to remain in proper heel position whether they are on the inside (going slower) or the outside going faster.

To start with dog, set up two sets of six cones in circle pattern with about five feet in between each circle. Heel onto the first circle going around to the right with the dog on the outside. Leave that circle and enter the second circle going to the left with the dog on the inside. While doing this practice make sure the dog stays in proper position and keeps heads up. Once the dog is good at the circles then do large figure eights (start 12’ between posts). Once the big figure eights are great then make them 10 feet on center before moving to the regular figure eight size of eight feet between the posts.

I will attach photos of my drawings of the set up for the cone circles and the correct final scheme for the figure eight.

As a side note everything I’ve explained up to now was on the first day of the workshop! No wonder both Javelin and I slept like the dead each night. We worked really hard every day.


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## lily cd re

*Day 2*

DROPS FOR RECALLS AND UTILITY SIGNALS

The goal is to have the dog go from moving forward on a recall or from a stationary stand to a full down with a flat top line drop or putting their front end down first then dropping their hind quarters. If the dog goes down at the back end first you may end up with the dog frequently getting stuck at a sit rather than having a drop.

Keep in mind that if you get 2 or more incorrect responses without fixing the mistake then the incorrect behavior is what the dog is being learned. Repeating the mistake allows the dog to learn the mistake. 

Don’t wait until after titling in novice to start teaching the drop. Just teach it outside the context of recalls.

The teaching of this behavior should be broken into many small increments. Do not skip any steps. If you move ahead and get consistently poor responses go back to the previous step and make sure the dog really understands that part before going forward again.

DO STEPS 1 – 3 KNEELING AT THE DOG’S RIGHT SIDE FACING THE DOG.

1. Using a cookie held in your right hand and on the dog’s nose and with your left hand under the dog’s belly lure the front end of the dog down with elbows on the floor. Then move your left hand to be above the dog’s shoulders. Don’t apply heavy pressure with your left or you will generate oppositional reflex. Use your left hand to guide the hind quarters to the down.
2. Hold the leash close to the snap in your right hand under the dog’s neck. Give a downward pop on the leash to start moving the dog to the down. Give a cookie after the dog has completely dropped. This is the start towards getting the cookie out of your hand and not luring for the drop.
3. Once the dog understands the down pop use it to start the dog to the drop. The dog will indicate its real understanding of the set up by starting to drop before you start to pop the leash. Give the cookie from your mouth once the dog is completely down.

MOVE TO KNEELING IN FRONT OF THE DOG FOR THE NEXT STEP

4. Now add the signal. Kneel in front of the dog with the dog on a stand. Keep your left hand on the leash near the snap and collar to be able to give a down pop at the same time you give the signal (think school crossing guard stop signal) and say the word you use (down or drop).

NOW MOVE TO STANDING IN FRONT OF THE DOG

5. Repeat step four but stand in front of the dog.

IF THE DOG STARTS TO ANTICIPATE THE DROP THEN BE SURE TO REWARD THE PREVIOUS CORRECT BEHAVIOR (IN THIS CASE THE STAND).

NOW ADD MOTION TO THE EXERCISE

6. With the dog at your left side, hold the leash loosely with your left hand on it low, closer to snap and collar and the loop end of the leash in your right hand. Take a step or two forward and then turn and stand yourself into the dog’s path at the same time giving the signal and a down pop on the collar. This will help the dog to understand that the signal means they are to stop forward motion.
7. Install a negative reinforcer to use for failures to drop at distance. Do this in one or if needed two sessions. Most dogs will get it in one session though. As you are giving the drop signal you will drop a small beanbag onto the top of the dog’s head. You will look for the dog to give a mildly offended/aversive response to the beanbag falling on their head in association with the behavior of dropping. Now you will be able to use the beanbag at the time you give the signal if you don’t get the correct response (slow drop, incomplete drop). Your decision to give the correction has to be fast (just as you finish showing your signal, timing is critical). Later you should keep the beanbag in your right hand to be ready to use any time. It can be used from distance to give a correction for failure to do the drop in the utility signals.
8. Now start to work on speed for the drop on recall by doing a fast pace with the dog at heel and turning in front to drop them. Do on a six foot leash still.
9. Now make the drop a moving drop while you move backwards away from the dog facing them. Do on a six foot leash so a quick correction can be given if the dog is slow or otherwise incorrect. Use beanbag if needed.
10. Switch to a flexi leash to add distance. Gradually move further and further from the dog. You will still face the dog and back away as you call dog and then give signal. Always keep the beanbag in your signal hand ready to use if needed. If you have to take the time to take the beanbag out of your pocket you correction will be way too late and therefore meaningless.
11. Add drops into your “get it, get it” game (if you are not familiar with this game look at my Javelin’s road to ring ready thread). When you start give your signal, a verbal order and take a step towards the dog to help them to be successful since adding the drop changes an established game.

Always play lots of games during the training of drops. Rather than doing the second part of the recall use “get its” as releases from the drop to keep up enthusiasm and speed. This will also help avoid patterning an anticipation of the drop and the front order for the recall. Use chutes for recalls and drops to keep the dog moving straight. Use broad jump boards and shorter distance at first. Once the dog is proficient with the jump boards they can be replace with pieces of plastic downspouts cut to manageable lengths and then you can use skinny molding strips cut to manageable (3’) lengths. Don’t be fast to fade using a leash. Once you need something more than a six foot leash use a flexi leash. You can give corrections by putting your thumb on the leash lock and giving a small pop. For example if the dog is recalling to you and leaves the chutes give a pop to remind them they should be straight. The workshop leaders whose dogs are OTChs continue to use flexi leads throughout the dog’s working life span to keep things fresh and crisp. For those who think the leash pops as corrections or the beanbag as an aversive correction are harsh I have to let you know that the demo dogs were enthusiastic throughout, tails wagged continuously and they loved interacting with their handlers through all that was asked of them. All of the dogs were willing to work for either of the handlers. The demo dogs included a Chihuahua, border collie, golden retriever, lab, and a welsh springer spaniel.


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## Skylar

I've copied everything out and will carefully go over it and incorporate it into our training. I really appreciate that you took the time to type all of this out - so helpful.

I like those lucite sticks - some people just use wooden dowels. Please don't laugh - I was using a very long plastic shoe horn from Ikea at one point. Those lucite sticks are more practical and stylish.

Right now I think the most difficult is the drop on recall - every time I see a dog doing it correctly I'm just amazed. We're working on the components - but we won't put it together until we've finished Novice because I don't want to mess up the Novice recall.

I'm surprised with the use of a flexileash. I bought one in Target when I first got Babykins but I couldn't control it so I returned it- my daughter has a friend who had a serious hand injury using one. Are you using one in your training? I haven't seen anyone in class using one. Is one brand better than the others?


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## lily cd re

I personally never use flexi leashes for walks. I do have two, a lighter and a more heavy duty one. I originally got the first one so I could play ball with Lily when we were away at trials without having a problem with an off leash dog on show grounds, etc.

I have never used a flexi for Lily in training, but do for Javelin. It takes some practice to get used to controlling it, but once you do you can use it to better advantage than a regular long line. Mine are original brand Flexis and both are 23' long.

The lucite sticks are great because they are not so conspicuous that they will become target objects. I think they would be very easy to make yourself if you wanted to.

For the drop on recall training I would not worry about teaching the drop as long as you keep it out of the context of recalls, just use it in games and in the context of the utility signals and you will have no problem with the straight recall in novice. The other thing you can do to distinguish straight recalls from drop on recall is to use separate orders. For Lily, and this is what I will teach Javelin also, I say front as her order to do a straight recall. Drop on recall is come-drop-front. Front means exactly that come all the way to me and sit in front. Come means I will probably tell you something else to do on the way back. At home when I want them to come to me I just call their names and say let's go or inside if I am calling from the back door for them to come in the house.

Stay tuned, there is lots more to come.


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## Caddy

Lots of great information, I'm going to copy it too! Thanks


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## lily cd re

I am going to try to add some more later today, but also Lily and I will be going to an advanced workshop/clinic given by the same people tomorrow, so I will have tons more info once I am done with that one too. I feel very lucky to have the opportunity and means to go to workshops and seminars like these. I know for some people they are not in reach geographically so I think it is important to spread the word.


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## Skylar

lily cd re said:


> I am going to try to add some more later today, but also Lily and I will be going to an advanced workshop/clinic given by the same people tomorrow, so I will have tons more info once I am done with that one too. I feel very lucky to have the opportunity and means to go to workshops and seminars like these. I know for some people they are not in reach geographically so I think it is important to spread the word.


You make an excellent point about how some people don't have access for many reasons to attend these workshops can benefit from reading about them.

My trainers have often referenced ideas that they have learned in workshops and I look forward to attending the one that my club has arranged.


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## lily cd re

*Sorry to have left this dormant for so long*

Anyway, I realized when I came across my notes that I left things hanging. The next topic is retrieve work. This post will deal with foundation work that will lead to good and reliable dumbbell and glove retrieves along with the marking behavior that you want for the go out.

*RETRIEVES/FORCED RETRIEVE*

USE THE FORCED RETRIEVE TO TEACH THE DUMBBELL, UTILITY ARTICLES AND UTILITY GLOVES.

The method of teaching retrieves that I will describe here is a forced retrieve that uses an ear pinch. Before I explain the methodology I will take an aside to describe the history of forced retrieves and ear pinch. 

Back in the dark ages ear pinching was done by having a second person as an “assistant” who would actually pinch one or both of the dog’s ears with pliers until they opened their mouth and the dumbbell was put in the mouth and the handler would then hold the mouth shut onto the dumbbell. Needless to say this was barbaric and has long since disappeared from the training toolbox. I have never seen nor heard of a person doing this and I certainly never would have resorted to such a method. 

A more modern evolution of the ear pinch method involved holding the loose end of a chain collar and the base of the dog’s ear leather near the head as the filling of a sandwich between your thumb and index finger. You would apply pressure to get the dog to take the dumbbell and release the pressure as soon as they had it firmly in their mouth. I tested how this feels by holding a chain collar and the webbing between my thumb and index finger of one hand. I gave myself a pretty firm pinch and found it annoying and uncomfortable but not painful. I was, at the time, having a hard time getting Lily to front with her dumbbell because I had taught her to put things down when she brought them to me as a puppy. She was wild with trying to grab things back, but loved to fetch and I was tired of having my hands shredded. Because she had learned very well to drop things she was a dog with a beautiful and enthusiastic pick up, but 0% success with returning to front. She always dropped the dumbbell about 6 feet away from me. There was no approximation of a correct response to use to shape the return to front. On the basis of my test on myself I decided to use this version of the ear pinch to teach Lily to hold the dumbbell sitting at front and then taking just a couple of steps to get to front. Within about a week she had figured the whole thing out and now has a retrieve that many lab and golden owners are envious of.

The version of the ear pinch force retrieve that I have learned to use for Javelin and will teach to all of my students only uses two fingers on the dog’s ear and with just finger pads on the dog’s ear all you can apply is pressure. It is very mild and really is just a cue for a behavior that you will teach to the point of not needing that cue. If you do teach it properly though it will give you a way to correct an incorrect response by a dog that understands the ear pinch. It can be applied to the dumbbell, scent articles and utility gloves. 

The other important part of any retrieve work (and also important for the go out) is to teach the dog to mark. A mark order is a direction to the dog to look and wait. It can be given with a signal where you will use your left hand to point to the dumbbell or the correct glove or the go out. The final appearance of the mark order and signal is to bring your left hand alongside the dog’s head while they sit at heel with your hand flat and thumb close to your other fingers. Your fingers should be directing the dog’s attention to where they will go. You will know the dog is properly marking when they lean forward and drop their head to fix their gaze on the target.

Here is how to teach the mark behavior. Start with your left hand in the dog’s collar. Show a cookie with your right hand and when the dog looks at the cookie drop it and say mark. Use your left hand to move the dog towards the cookie as you say get it. Make sure you have a second cookie at the ready in your right hand and as soon as (s)he has picked up the first cookie (still chewing) put the second cookie on the dog’s nose and use it to lure them to turn around to face you as you say come. Once they are facing you give the second cookie. As the dog gets good at this over the distance you can drop the cookie from you, you will toss the first cookie instead. Initially keep the dog on a 6’ leash, but switch to a flexi as this gets easier and easier up close. Eventually this will turn into the “get it get it” game that I have described elsewhere.

ETA: Once again I have to give credit for this workshop and the material to describe these exercises and how to teach them. Thank you to Top Dog Obedience School and its owner Betsy Scapicchio and her working partner Linda Brennan for their generosity in doing the workshops and making such comprehensive support for all the participants available.


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## lily cd re

Now that I am on winter break I will work on getting the rest of the notes up here for this workshop.

Here is the rest of the information for retrieving.

While you are teaching the dog to mark you can also work on the dumbbell hold with the ear pinch. Start by sitting on a chair or kneeling on the floor with the dog facing his head towards your right. Put your left hand through the dog’s collar and hold his ear between your thumb and index finger. At the same time hold the dumbbell just in front of the dog’s nose and use your left hand to push them towards the dumbbell. If they open their mouth and take it immediately take the pressure of the ear. Take the dumbbell out of the dog’s mouth before they drop it and give a treat with praise. The order for taking the dumbbell will be get it so it is relatable to the get it game. Gradually increase the duration of the hold and lower the dumbbell to the floor for a pick up.

Once the dog can hold the dumbbell while moving, while being petted and while you move then you can add in the retrieve. Throw the dumbbell short distances at first and into a corner to work on getting the dog not to run past the dumbbell, pounce on it or otherwise paly with it. Keep the dog on a flexi and call them to front if you need to. Once they are making nice clean pick ups and coming to front over short distances then you will gradually move to further throws and throws to places out in the open. Once the dog has really reliable pick up you will stop pinching the dog’s ear unless they fail to retrieve. After you have reliable retrieves of the thrown dumbbell you can add distractions to proof the pick up of the dumbbell by placing other objects near it on the floor or later throwing it to a place where there are distractions on the floor.


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## lily cd re

Well believe it or not the material above is just two days worht of the workshop. We started day 3 with working on jumping for the retrieve over the high jump.


JUMPING 

Do not jump a dog that is not skeletally mature. For larger dogs this will generally be between 18 and 24 months of age, sooner for smaller dogs. You can have a vet x-ray long bones to make sure the growth plates are closed if you want. Even once jumps are introduced you can set them at lower heights than the dog will compete at for most training work. For example both Lily and Javelin are 16” jumpers for rally, 24” jumpers for agility and Lily jumps 22” for obedience while Javelin will be a 24” obedience jumper. I generally practice with jumps at 16” and have never had Lily knock a bar or tick a jump because she wasn’t prepared for it to be at full height.

For the retrieve over the high jump you will teach the jump separately from the retrieve. You need to make sure the dog understands that the correct path is to take the jump both going out and coming back to you. Start by setting up just jump stanchions with a bar or pole on the ground. Have your dog on a flexi leash and set them up at heel. Mark the jump and then send your dog as you toss a cookie past it. Once they get the cookie call them back to you. Don’t worry about a formal front but make sure to reward the dog for coming straight back to you between the stanchions. After this becomes reliable then put the bar up on the jump but at a low height and repeat with gradual additions of height to the point where the dog jumps out and back rather than walking over the bar. If the dog stops wanting to return over the jump at any point follow him out so that you can tap the bar to show him where to go to get back to you as he turns after taking the cookie. Once the dog is good at getting a cookie thrown straight over the jump throw it off to both the left and right sides of the jump to teach him that the path to the cookie is over the jump no matter where the cookie is.

Once the dog is reliably doing cookie retrieves and returning over the jump you can add the dumbbell. Start by giving your dog the dumbbell and leaving him holding it. Walk to the other side of the jump and recall the dog with the dumbbell. Again don’t worry about fronts but often encourage jump ups so the dog presents the dumbbell to you with his head up. Make sure that you teach the dog a good take off by giving him the right take off distance. You want the dog to take two strides at a canter before they take off. For a typical 24” jumping dog to do this the correct take off distance will probably be between 10 to 12 feet. Most small dogs can start at the minimum 8’ distance with ease. I start Lily at about 10 feet for the retrieve over the high jump.

While teaching this exercise after you have a reliable recall over the jump make sure you pay attention to the orders you give. Make them consistent and consistent with what you plan to do in trials. Set up at the correct take off spot lined up straight to the jump. Tell the dog to wait (they should be giving focused attention until you give the wait order. After that they can mark the jump on their own. If the dog doesn’t mark the jump themselves you can help him at this point (although you won’t tell them to mark after the wait order in a trial). Throw the dumbbell and wait a second or more to send the dog to get the dumbbell. You can either say get it (as for retrieve on the flat) or tell the dog over. Initially you should follow the dog and when they have picked up the dumbbell and turn to return, tap the top of the jump to show the dog the path to take to return. You can also call the dog while teaching, but fade the recall order as they become confident in the return pathway being over the jump. If there are distractions around at this point use them as an opportunity to remind the dog that remaining focused on you is a better choice. As an example if I have a large open class I will have two people working on jumps at the same time, one doing retrieve over the high jump and the other doing the broad jump. This is an excellent proof for situations where you might be at a multi ring trial.

Train a plan for what to do if you will be asked to throw the dumbbell a 2nd time (went out of the ring or didn’t land at least 8 feet past the jump). Most judges will give you a visual cue that they are going to have you re-throw and will say “exercise finished.” The orders exercise finished give you a chance to reset the dog for the new throw. A good plan would be to back up a couple of steps and call the dog to front. You can then say with me or give your set up order if you don’t have too far to move and go back to your throw spot and set the dog up for the new throw. Make sure you have a good sense of what the dog will do on a 2nd throw. Is he likely to anticipate or not go on the second try? Train accordingly. If they are going to anticipate make sure you do a number of retrieves over the jump in succession and really work at making the dog wait for the orders. If the dog is likely to get stuck not wanting to go on later throws then you need to play motivational games for the subsequent throws.

Make sure you pay attention to all parts of this exercise in training it. Don’t skip over making sure the dog knows to wait for orders to jump and retrieve, make sure they mark the jump and make sure they have a good clean pick up. Finally make sure you set up at the right distance from the jump for a good take off. If the dog’s front feet tick the jump going over you are too close to the jump and if their back feet hit you are too far away.


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## snow0160

I am really slacking with Lucky’s training. This thread is a super great motivator to get back in the game. I really enjoy training Lucky bc he makes it fun. The busy holiday season knocked me off schedule.


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## lily cd re

Aww the holidays do take a lot of time away from training, but I am always happy to get to this week since it gives me a fairly free three weeks where I can get a lot done before spring classes start.


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## snow0160

I did a lesson yesterday with all of my dogs. Your thread really inspired me. Lucky is by far the easiest to train. He is just easy going whereas the others are more reluctant. Kit, however, is so much better behaved after two consecutive CGC classes. Kit picked up phone alerting yesterday! Lucky's response time is 100x faster than hers but Kit is an independent thinker and less motivated to please. Some people confuse this with the dog being lazy but in reality, LGD are bred to think for themselves rather than look to their owners for instructions. 

I had to stop going to Lucky's agility class because of the three-hour block, which includes a 2-hour roundtrip drive. I think we are probably just going to stick to private trainers who are able to fit into our schedules. I think 90% of the time, it is just about consistency and doing 15 min here and there whenever I can.


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## lily cd re

Even five minutes here and there is worth it. I think a lot of people think that training means you need a dedicated hour to working with your dog. I build all sorts of training into almost everything we do together. Lately I have been throwing the dumbbell for Javelin little short tosses in the house while we are watching TV. It keeps me from getting annoyed watching commercials if I am watching something "live" rather than streaming or on DVR.


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## snow0160

I wish I could train them during TV commercials. My parent’s dog has been residing with us and he has been driving me insane. He barks all the time ...when the tv is on ..when the tv is off.. when he wants things.

The little dude also bit me when he first got here a few weeks ago. I tried to shave this mat off from his face and he bit down pretty hard. You could hear his teeth snap and I couldn’t feel my finger for a few days. Have no idea how a 9lb dog could have such jaw strength. There are times when I consider boarding him because my family don’t come back until late spring. He has a barking tantrum whenever he gets left out and I am a little bit afraid of him because he is super grumpy and growls all the time. He growls whenever anyone plays too close to him and he has resource aggression. He will mess you up if you try to take away used Kleenex or paper towel of any kind. 

I have to put him on the other side of my home when I train others. He would bark during that whole time because he wants to be with the gang. Man do I wish my parents could have brought him to China with them! All dogs are subject to a lengthy quarantine period even with all the shots. I wish it was Europe and things would be much easier with the pet passport. 


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## lily cd re

It sounds like time to try to make lemonade out of lemons with your parents' dog! Maybe you can train a better leave it and the like with the little stinker and give them back a nicer dog when they get back to the states. But if you need a holiday from him I don't think a weekend away from him is such a bad idea.


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## snow0160

I worry no boarding facility is not gonna like him and mistreat him. He does get away by being cute but if he bites someone that is a huge liability. 

The Maltese is named Wicket. One of my friends from high school named him! The name is from Star War’s Ewok named Wicket. 










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## lily cd re

SCENT DISCRIMINATION/ARTICLES

Before you start you should make sure you have a reliable forced fetch so you can correct failures to pick up articles. You will need squeeze cheese (cheese in a can) for the method taught here. This is also much easier if you have a helper. I will not describe the steps in detail since they are easily found online. What you will want to look up is the “Around the Clock Method of Scent Discrimination” by Janice DeMello. There is a DVD for it and I believe you can find sites where you can rent the DVD rather than buying it, but there may also be YouTube videos posted by people other than Janice. Here are some tips related to the Around the Clock technique.

Start as described. Make sure that when you get to week 6 you stop using cheese cold turkey. Allow the dog to sniff the article that you have scented before it gets put into the pile for weeks 6 and 7. Additionally during weeks 6 and 7 make sure you encourage dog when he is correct. As soon as he has indicated the correct article tell him “good find, get it (or whatever your retrieve order is).”

After you are finished week 7 you will start using a tie down mat. You can buy a tie down mat from places like J & J or you can make one yourself using screen door screening. If you want to make one you need a 3’ square of screen material and long zip ties (white if your articles are light in color, black if your articles are dark). If your dog is likely to drag the whole screen to you with an incorrect article then consider using peg board instead of the screen or mat. You will tie down all but one of each article type you are using. Keep one pair of articles that is your consistent working pair. Once you transition to using the mat be ready to stop helping the dog with verbal encouragement ASAP. As you make the transition to the mat you can also add in marking the pile and the pivot. If you have a helper they can encourage the dog to mark the pile by having them bang articles together as they put them down and by having the helper toss cookies from inside the pile (it will make the dog think the pile is a great magic cookie fountain).

For this exercise you are allowed to talk to your dog while you are scenting your article. You cannot talk to them once you tell the judge you are ready so while you are able to do so help the dog to know what they are doing by talking. For Lily I tell her she is going to “do sniffies” and I make a point of holding the article I am scenting in a place where it is in her line of sight while still keep her looking up at me.

Since you want to have the dog go straight to the pile and not make a banana run out you can put a broad jump board laid on its long side to your right before you turn and about 2 feet away from you to serve as a chute when you pivot. Another way to teach the dog to stay close to you on the pivot is to teach it with food separately from going to the pile. Set up with your back to the pile, do the pivot and feed the dog in position at heel, repeat this a couple of times with food and then when the dog is doing a decent pivot set up again, pivot and send the dog to the pile to complete the exercise. Make sure you mark the pile by looking at it before you send the dog. The above applies if you are going to do a turn and sit then send. I recommend starting with turn and sit. You can change to send direct later if you want. I do a send direct with Lily at this point since I think she finds the extra sit to be demotivating, but she learned to do articles with a turn and sit.

NEVER NEVER NEVER put anything other than articles in the pile. If you put food or other goodies there as a way to lure the dog to the pile after you stop using the squeeze cheese the dog will think the pile is just a place to go on a treasure hunt and they will forget why they are there.

While you still have your articles on the tie down mat add distraction proofs near the pile but not in it. You can put toys or treats, bits of paper, fluff from destroyed toys, chalk or tape marks on the floor. Judges often put chalk or tape marks to show stewards where to put the article pile or where the set up for the gloves will be so your dog should be able to ignore these while doing articles. Another thing to do while still using the tie down mat is to do motivated sends to the pile. To do this you will allow the dog to look at the pile and you will kneel down next to them and talk to them animatedly saying “do you want to go sniffies or are you ready to go find something?” While you are doing this restrain them from going by holding your arms across their brisket while seated next to you. When you feel the dog straining to get to go, let them leave as you say your proper order “go find” or “go sniffies.”

Once the dog is doing well with the articles tied down then you can transition to off the mat, but if they start making lots of mistakes as you do this then go right back to having the articles on the mat.

The critical thing about the scent articles is that the dog is confident in their work. Since we don’t know what they smell and we can’t really assist them we have to make sure they are happy and sure of themselves. Don’t get mad at them and don’t correct them in the pile.

Good proofs for articles aside from distractions near but not in the pile include putting the articles out in distinct patterns like lines, Xs, Ss and boxes as well as putting articles up ended. The patterns will encourage the dog to be methodical in checking for scent. Having articles on end will help in the event that the stewards don’t lay all of them flat or in the event the dog up ends one during the first article and it is still sitting that way during the second article.

One other thing I will share based on my experience with Lily is to pay attention to what the dog is telling you about the materials. I started with aluminum metals and Lily hated them. She never picked one up voluntarily but would take and hold them. She clearly indicated the correct article and readily did leather so I knew she understood the exercise. But she would sit there holding the aluminum articles I gave her with her teeth chattering on it and looking at me with an expression of “why are you trying to kill me?” I had my vet check her teeth and he found nothing. Then a friend suggested she might be having a galvanic reaction to the aluminum, so I switched to mason jar ring articles that I made. They are steel, not aluminum and within two days of switching she was reliably doing the metal and leather articles. It was still clear though that she didn’t love the metal so when AKC started to allow wood articles I made a set of wood articles. She is even happier now doing wood and leather although leather is still clearly her favorite. For Javelin I will train him using all three and then settle on the two he likes best once he shows me which he prefers. If your dog has a favorite then test whether it is better to do the favorite first or the less favored first. With Lily I do wood first. She is happy to do it, but happy to have it done. Doing the leather second then becomes her reward for the wood.

Since articles are expensive make sure you get good measurements for them before ordering. You can base the measurement on the correct size dumbbell or if you want make the bars slightly longer for the articles than the dumbbell. Make sure the bells are large enough that the dog doesn’t hit their nose on the floor to do the pick up.


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## BabetteH

Thanks for writing this up! Very helpful.


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## lily cd re

BabetteH you should think about the Top Dog workshops.





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Top Dog Obedience School






www.topdogobedience.com


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## BabetteH

I signed up last week already


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## lily cd re

BabetteH said:


> I signed up last week already


You will get a lot out of it!


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## BabetteH

The foundation workshop is this weekend. I'm super excited. Especially since we haven't been able to train outside of our living room for so long.


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## lily cd re

Wonderful.. You will find it to be a great way to return to the world.


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