RA500: Foundation Skills for Rally-FrEe and Musical Freestyle

Circling the handler is a foundation skill and a primary transition behavior.  The circle behavior is also foundation in creating interesting variation behaviors for either Freestyle or Rally-FrEe.  By building strength in the foundation, your variations will be easier and faster to train and you’ll have greater reliability and response from your dog.

The circle behavior should be taught in both directions from both the left and right side.  In Rally-FrEe, the foundation circle behaviors are signs #15 and #16. 

Note that the signs look very similar.  The position the dog is in at the start tells you the direction they will travel. If the dog is in left heel he will travel clockwise. If he is in right heel he will travle counter-clockwise.  You will never be "tricked" on a Rally-FrEe course. Your dogs position on approach to the sign indicates the direction of travel for the circle.

Below is a clip of what the foundation skill looks like when properly executed.

Some of you are probably saying “but my dog already knows that behavior.”  Before skipping steps, ask yourself a few questions and ask about both the clockwise circle from your left side and the counter-clockwise circle from your right side:

1)  Does my dog always start and end in a precise position?

2)  Is it as fast as I would like?  

3)  Is it as tight as I would like?

4)  Is my dog as responsive as I would like?

5)  Does my dog show confidence and fluency?

6)  Does my dog respond to a verbal cue without the aid of a hand signal? 

Why Use a Prop to Train Circles

By using the training gates to train the circle behavior, you now have an easy context without hand cues to train other behaviors (such as circling a cane or other prop) faster and with a greater degree of understanding in the dog.

Exercise:  Set up your training gates in a single, round circle, or pen.  Make sure the circle is wide enough for you in the middle (think of yourself as the hole in the donut) and your dog to move comfortably around you in a circle but not so wide that your dog can turn around. For most dogs a single gate will suffice, but for some large or giant breeds you may need to use two lengths of gates to create the appropriate size pen. 

If your dog seems worried about the gates, walk him around the outside, as close as he seems comfortable, treating every couple of steps until you see him relax. 

Some like to use a mirror in front of them to be able to see the dog even when he is moving behind you so if this is helpful to you set that up too.  Mirrors are also a great aid in helping the handler maintain a straight posture, with hips and shoulders forward.  In training many of these behaviors, but especially the circle behavior, you may have the tendency to want to “help” your dog through twisting or other body english.  Work hard to avoid this as it will only hinder the dog’s ability to find value in your verbal cues.

With your dog on your left or right side (you’ll be training both, so choose which side you want to start with) walk into the round pen.  Be ready to click.  As soon as you move into the pen, your dog is likely to move forward.  That is your first click and treat (hereafter C/T).  Place your reward about 2 inches in front of the dog.  Don’t withhold it, but place it so your dog needs to take a small step or stretch of the neck to get it.  This will help reinforce forward movement.  While the dog is eating his first treat, you can close the pen.  

Here is a clip of Sharon and Finn. This is their first lesson in the gates for circles. Notice the smallest movement forward earns c/t.  At the time Sharon used alot of luring in her training so you will see how difficult it is for her to keep her shoulders and head straight and not twist in an effort to prompt Finn.

Here is Phee learning circles - note how when I walk her in I am leading her in the direction I want her to travel. That action, moving along the gates is the first click.  Note how I place the food forward of her just a little to help encourage and reinforce continued forward movement. 

Below is Alyssa and Jetta. Note again how Alyssa moves Jetta in heel along the gates and clicks as she turns to face forward. 

Stand straight, with your hips and shoulders squared and always facing the same direction.  Again, avoid turning your body, or trying to lure with your hands, arms or shoulders.  Look where you want the dog to go, rather than at your dog. Giving your dog a release cue is often enough to get them moving. Keep your criteria low at first, i.e. any single step or small movement forward earns a C/T. 

As the dog begins to show understanding that a step forward earns the C/T, raise your criteria to 2 steps forward before the C/T.  Continue to gradually raise your criteria (your dog will often make these shifts himself) until the dog does a full revolution around you and returns to the position he started, either right or left heel position.  Give several treats in a row here with lots of verbal praise to add value to getting back into this position. 

In most cases, if your dog understands the C/T relationship, it will take only a couple of sessions for the dog to start to show confidence in moving in a complete circle around the handler.  This of course, depends on your dog’s experience with shaping, the value of your reward and the comfort level of your dog in the gates, as well as the usual - timing of your marker and clean handler mechanics. 

Be sure to read through the "Trouble Shooting for Circle Behaviors" Lecture.  This will help you solve some issues you may run into during the process.

Transferring the Skill: This process applies to not only circling the handler but circling a cane, or other props that can also be used in a freestyle routine.  In the below video you'll see how a dog with understanding of circling the handler in the gates can learn quickly how to circle a cane without the use of hand signals, which means we don't have to take the time to elimnate them, we just add the verbal cue once we can predict the behavior.  More on verbal cues  next week  Feel free to try the below skill as well, but start with circling the handler in the gates for context.

Below is a fun clip that shows the entire process of training the foundation circle behavior.  We'll start working on eliminating the gates next week after placing the behavior on cue.

There are several other circle signs that add handler movement to allow the dog and handler team to change direction.  Here is a link to all of the Rally-FrEe signs and their descriptions. Many of the signs are linked to vid clips of the behaviors.

http://www.rallyfree.com/rally-free-signs-2016/

Gold Level students, when submitting your videos please be sure to show the whole dog and handler in your videos so that I can view not only the dog, but the handler as well.  Okay!  let's go train! Remember to look to your dog to drive the process and most important have fun with this!