TR101: Foundation Tracking 1

Teaching a Reverse Send

Description

A reverse send is the term I am using to describe the behavior of a dog turning 180 degrees to be sent onwards towards another task. This is a part of the TEAM 3-7 test when the dog is sent 10 feet to a target (whereupon he most likely turns to face the handler for more information) and then is cued a reverse send to continue on his original path towards the jump & cone.

The goal of teaching this behavior is to further increase the dog's distance skills. More specifically, it is extremely useful when combined with other advanced exercises in order to condition the dog that he may be sent backwards and will not always be called towards the handler again. Exercises where I commonly use such a skill include:

• Go outs for Utility: once I interrupt the dog's final nose touch behavior to the gate by cuing a sit instead, I often follow this sit by asking the dog to continue to the stanchion to touch instead of directing the dog to take one of the jumps coming back towards me.
• Drop on recalls: Come-down-reverse send back to a cone (or reward) reduces some temptation towards traveling on their down if the dog expects to be sent backwards.
• Position changes: With an advanced dog who is practicing the signal exercise (or any position change exercise) I might send them back to a cone or another target after performing a position.
• ANY behavior where I want to reduce the dog's tendency to travel forward after performing a cue at a distance from me. A reverse send can be to a cone, target, retrieve item, or even just their reward placed behind them.

Note: You will hear me use a variety of cues in this lecture!  I had a REALLY hard time deciding what I would call flipping the dog out away from me (or just relying on the signal!) and what cue I would use to cue the send to target or wrap.  This will be expanded upon in the 3-7 #2 lecture.  But essentially I now use "Switch" to cue the turn in addition to my hand signal (my dog's know this as a "turn away from me/rear cross cue in agility) and I use "go" to cue running away from me in extension to do another task. 

Step 1: Turn Around to Send to a Reward- Teaching a Signal

You've likely already started this first step without paying much attention to it. In TEAM exercise 2-10 you placed a reward on the ground behind your dog while you left him on a stay. When you returned to your dog's side you then cued your dog that he could release to the reward behind him!

Now you're going to repeat that exercise but this time after you place the reward behind your dog you are going to step in front of your dog to face him. Remember to make it obvious that the distraction is the reward- I usually put food in a zen bowl or on a target so that my dog doesn't have to wonder if a release is towards me or towards the distraction. A separate cue to tell the dog where reinforcement is coming from is even better! I use the cue "cookies" so my dog knows they can get food from a container on the ground.

Notice: Which way does your dog like to turn?? If you use just your verbal "cookies" cue and no arm, which way do they go?

This hopefully will be incredibly easy for your dog to do, you can start adding a hand signal right away. This new signal will tell your dog to flip 180 degrees and head in that direction towards another task- in this case, their task is simply eating the reward. Keep in mind that your hand signal should look different than your signals. If a raised right hand means down to your dog than consider using your other hand or using a lower signal more like bowling your dog in that direction.

Which way did your dog turn when you were just using the verbal cookies cue?  For most dogs, I'll add the arm to support that direction. Ex: Use my right arm to turn the dog counter clockwise, to my right and left arm for the other direction. 

Here is Yummy's first session in learning to flip to a reward behind her.  I am using her "cookies" reward marker cue at this stage.

When your dog is pretty happy about turning around to get his reward you can start adding distance.

1. distance between you and the dog
2. distance between the dog and the reward behind him.

Don't increase both distances at once!  But hopefully this is an easy and fun step for your dog!

Step 2: Send Back Towards a Target

At this step I exchange out the obvious reward for another target to send the dog to. This should be your dog's favorite target- a perch, platform, mat, or even a cone. In the TEAM 3 test they will be sending back to a cone, but starting with a foot target is often easier.

You can want to add a verbal cue at this stage that supports your hand signal and tells the dog specifically what task to do or just generally tells the dog to run in that direction until they hit the obvious/implied task in their path. I have chosen to use a cue "switch" that tells the dog to turn away from me and continue in that direction.  

If you need to step in towards your dog to send them that is ok to start with! Gradually work on standing completely still as you give your signal. If you're having problems, stay very close to the target!

Here is a video of Lance who knows this skill well, but I am demonstrating using my arm signal in a very obvious manner to turn him backwards. Lance actually goes pretty wide to his target because my arm flips him out so far!:

Build up your distance a foot at a time until you reach 10+ feet. Remember, you need to work on

1. Distance between you and the dog
2. Distance between the dog and the target behind them.

Step 3: Target to Target/Cone

When you have some distance on your reverse send you can start to add in a position target that your dog is standing on at the start before being flipped away to send to their target (or cone). It is surprisingly hard for a dog to leave 1 target and go to another! Many are reluctant to leave the target they are standing on!

Start directly in front of your dog with his feet on your first target with a second target or cone located just a few feet behind him.  If your dog finds it easier to send to a foot target, use that instead of the cone for now! 

Here is Vaughn's lesson on being sent to a target behind him. He is NOT ready for this step as Vaughn is not fluent with being sent back to a single target, let alone leaving the one he is standing on. But Vaughn nicely volunteered to get video of a dog in the learning stages:

If your dog is struggling you can also try briefly going to the side of the targets so that it is a similar picture to the directed cone/target sends you have been practicing.  Here is a picture showing the handler starting closer to the 2nd target, then in front of the dog, and finally working their way closer to being in front of the dog (yes he's totally doing a handstand in the last one, talented!).

Here is me standing to the side with Lance (the middle step above) and then going in front:

Distance needs to be built just like in the previous steps.  Distance from the dog to the 2nd target, and then the distance of you to the dog. 

Here is a game I was working on with Lance for reverse sends. I apologize to him again for my lack of consistency in cues. For the most part the go tells him to run in a straight line and my signal is what turns him around. I generally use different cues for the target and the cone but I'm sure Lance doesn't pay attention to that at all:

Switching a Target for a Cone

Sending your dog to a cone behind them instead of another target can be done at any time.  The cone slightly complicates things as your dog may not know which side to send around.  Generally, if you use your right arm as a signal then the dog will likely turn counter clockwise and continue around the cone counter clockwise.  If you use your left arm the dog will likely turn to their right and go clockwise around the cone.

However unless you plan on using a reverse send for a different sport (gun dog work) the direction the dog turns from you and turns around the cone doesn't matter.  I let my dogs choose which way is comfortable.

 Here is Zumi working on this skill of doing a reverse send from a target to her "cone." You will see that at 53sec she vocalizes with the added distance.  Since she hasn't been doing that before, I take it as a sign to make things easier for her.  I give her several cookies on the ground to help calm her and then move the target in closer so that I can still be further away but she doesn't have both distances to deal with:

 Homework Review:

1. Send to their reward behind them!  Introduce your hand signal for the turn away

2. Send to a target behind them.  I usually start with a foot target, not a cone.

2A. Increase distance of target behind dog.

2B. Increase YOUR distance in relation to the dog (target back to being close to the dog)

3. Target to target/cone

 4. Target to cone if you haven't done so already!

Backing Up - TEAM Level One Sample Lecture

By Laura Waudby

Purpose:

The goal of this exercise is to teach the dog to back away without any forward motion from the handler into the dog's space. This skill is extremely useful to add into other exercises where the dog has to perform at a distance. If the dog starts to expect going backward after performing (ex: down signal followed by backing up) it will lessen the dog's natural tendency to want to creep forward. In TEAM this skill will show up in more advanced levels to proof the dog's ability to think instead of anticipating what is coming next.

Training with a Back Foot Target

The most common way to teach an independent backup is through the use of a target behind the dog. A target gives the dog something to aim for and naturally encourages the dog to reach with their back feet to find it. Common targets include the dog's platform he's used to putting all 4 feet on, or a foot target the dog is used to targeting his back feet to (the 2on 2off position for agility handlers).

If you haven't taught your dog to immediately offer whatever position you chose on their target then first spend some time teaching the position. You want this position to be a strong automatic behavior for the dog.

While many dogs will use 4 feet on their platform for this exercise, here is a clip of me teaching a back foot target to Molly. Some dogs have an easier time learning backing to a back foot target as it emphasizes the importance of moving their back legs.

Step 1: Stretch the Dog

At this first stage, we're not doing any backing up! Our focus is on stretching the dog from the target so that both back feet remain on the target as their front feet get further and further away.

Give a cookie while your dog is on the 2on/2off (2o2o) position. Then give another cookie just an inch further. And then another cookie another inch further away. Keep giving your dog treas further and further off the target until the back feet come off the target. Pause, and then help your dog do a Uturn back into the 2o2o position.

At this stage, you're looking for the dog to try really hard to keep their rear feet on the platform even with a tempting cookie!

Here Splash is working on this early step of keeping his back feet on the target while I feed further away. You can see that he's already showing some stretching, but does come off pretty easy still. You can see at this stage he's still going to do a U turn to get back onto the target! I'm happy he's showing those signs of knowing getting back onto the target gets the cookies to come again!

You can see in this video how with a back foot target, teaching the dog the concept of stretching is already getting some backing up:

Step 2: Tiniest Backup

At this stage, you're seeing the dog really stretch to keep their rear feet on the target.  When the dog comes off, they turn around to get back onto the target themselves.

Now you're so close to getting just 1 tiny step of a backup! 

Try to do your stretching so just 1 paw is off the target if you can arrange it.  When the dog is off from their 2o2o position you will pause and wait. Let the dog think! If the dog backs up the 1 paw required to get back into position then reward!!! If the dog moves forward and circles around back to their target you can reward this in the beginning but soon only reward for actual backing up. Do not add in your backup cue at this stage as the dog is focusing more on their target than what they are actually doing to get there.

Here Quill is right at the stage where he's offering the tiniest 1 step backup!:

If your dog still struggles and is just not offering any bit of backing up, you can encourage the dog to at least back up their front feet after some stretching.

Feed out a few times, then lure the dog back with their front feet BEFORE the dog's back feet come off.  Think of it like an accordion!

Here I'm demonstrating this accordion feeding style with Splash:

Step 3: Distance of Backing

At this stage the goal is to increase the distance your dog can back up to their target until you reach about 3 feet. I typically want to switch to a LOWER target after just a few sessions. Too tall of a target often leads to the dog reaching too high with their hind feet and you get some awkward backing! My ideal backup target is just an inch off the ground.

For many dogs, this is a difficult step. Increase distance very slowly and always mix in easier repetitions so that it is not always getting more and more difficult for the dog to perform. A verbal cue and/or hand signal can be used once the dog is consistently backing up, not turning around, and some distance is worked through.

Here Cougar is starting to get pretty consistent with a distance of 3 feet. Note that the movement is still very awkward for her and not at all fluid! I should have switched to a lower target before building to this distance:

Speck is working with a low target and a small distance.  He's kinda hoppy with his backup motion still.  

If Speck doesn't start to do more stepping instead of hopping in the next few sessions, he would be a good candidate to combine some of this rear foot target work with the channel method listed below.

Crookedness???

If the dog is backing up crooked but still makes it to their target then this isn't something I worry about at an early stage!!  The target itself will tend to correct the dog if you're only paying for the dog making their rear feet to it!

Here's a visual example of how the farther away you get form the target, the narrower the dog's options are for the angle they take.  If you're 2ft away from a large target, the dog has a big range (and that's ok!).  And as you get to 6ft then their angle for being correct naturally gets smaller.

But what if the dog is missing a bit and chooses to self correct to get back on?  That's ok too!  As long as the dog moves sideways instead of turning around, I reward.  I want the dog to know that the target matters!  However, don't progress on distance if this is happening lots!

Here is Wren who shows a strong preference for backing off crooked to my left.  Since she's still in the early stages, I'm letting her self correct her angle and I'm occasionally helping with her reward even if she only gets 1 foot on (I'll stop doing this as she progresses.)  I'm also purposefully setting her up so that more of the target is to my right and the space she has is narrower to be accurate.  This is drawing more attention to her crookedness and force her to think about the target more!

If your dog is not figuring out how to move slightly sideways to self-correct, you're close to the target, and you're just not having success, let's look at a few other ways you can help your dog:

• Taller target.  Is your dog really noticing the target and caring about it?  Taller isn't great once you want distance, but it's helpful to draw attention to the target in the beginning!  Most crookedness errors I see are because the dog doesn't have enough value for getting to that 2on2off position!
• Using a barrier on one or both sides. Place your rear foot target near a wall or couch on one side to apply light pressure and prevent crookedness in that direction!
• Look at how you're rewarding the dog.  Is the dog automatically eating and turning crooked before they even start backing?!  Try feeding back between your legs a bit so your legs become a small guide to start the dog off right. Or sit on the floor and stick out your legs in a V (or use gates!) to get that initial angle started!

As Wren's backup progressed, that little lean to my left/her right went away! But a more persistent starting angle to my right/her left started to come.  You can see in this video that it's a small lean that is hugely exaggerated by her start angle.  She was self correcting, but we were struggling with her start angle.  I first tried using my legs to try and set her angle but this greatly confused her so I went to using some light barrier pressure to try and prevent her from starting off crooked:

Alternative Method: Channel

Some dogs will also benefit from learning with a channel to help guide their body and create a more fluid backing up motion than a target method can train. For this method the goal is still to create an independent backup without the handler having to move into the dog. You will need to create a channel for the dog to walk into but one that has a small enough width that turning around is difficult.

Get the dog in the channel (and possibly stand in it with them) and then show the dog you have treats on the other side. To get the treats the dog will have to back out. Mark while the dog is backing up and move to toss the treat to the dog. You may need to start with a 1ft backup distance before progressing the length of the entire channel.

Here is Molly's first session with the channel. She takes to it easily. Some dogs may first try experimenting with jumping on the channel before attempting to back up!

Here Wren is being setup in a channel for the first time. I make sure she's comfortable with it by having her chase treats back and forth. We had treat tossing issues here!

She figured it out, but you might have to try a shorter channel, setting the food in a bowl on the ground, or having a helper call the dog out to them if your dog is too polite to experiment with getting the food from your hand!

While this method can work independently of any other method, I strongly recommend trying a foot target method as well. The channel is great for getting the concept of backing across but you have to very slowly fade its presence.

What is also hard here is reward placement.  The dog wants to turn to chase the cookie behind them (or come get a cookie from your hand) and neither is ideal for rewarding a backup!  You want to toss the cookie to their mouth before they turn around. This is also one reason why I would also add in a foot target so that the dog is paused at a distance and you have plenty of time to toss it to their mouth or walk up to feed!

Goal Overview:

1. Start with the dog in their 2o2o position.

2. Try to feed the dog several cookies while they keep their rear feet on the target.  Gradually move your cookie hand further for each reward. Try to get at least 3 rewards in before they come off!

3. If the dog moves off the target, reset them back onto the target.

4. Over several sessions, see the dog start to stretch to keep their feet on the target!!  At this point you might see occasional 1 step backups!

5. Once your dog is consistently backing up to the target, make sure you start to reward them for the 2o2o position, but then also release them to a cookie in your hand at a small distance so you can set their start point.

Teaching a Mark- Look Ahead

Description:

Marking* is the act of a dog looking forward out towards another object.  The dog can watch a thrown retrieve item and mark the location of the landing (especially useful if thrown into long grass!) or the dog can be given a mark by the handler which tells the dog when and where to look.  This second part will be the focus of this lecture as it is not a natural behavior for the dog.  Dogs have to be trained to follow a point and while they readily pick up on it (compared to wolves!) their first instinct is still to stare at your hand vs following the invisible line you are pointing out to the object. 

Teaching a mark is a useful skill for directing your dog to retrieve something they didn't see thrown and for directing your dog to a specific item/cone when there are multiple choices for the dog to pick from.  It can also be used to point out the next task your dog is to do such as looking ahead to mark their go out location in utility, or the first obstacle in agility. 

 Here is an eventual goal behavior of Vito working in utility.  I mark him to look forward to his go out location so he knows what to expect, and then stand up straight waiting for the judge to start the exercise and tell me to send my dog.  I want my dog to continue to look where they should be going next:

And here is final picture for the TEAM 2 test- dog looks at you when you return (a cue is allowed, but I would suggest that you train the dog's default to be looking at you unless told otherwise), pause, cue the look forward and remove your hand, pause, then release forward:

*Note that the term Mark is also used in dog training to refer to the reward cue we use to bridge the time between the dog doing the behavior and getting their reward.  The clicker is just one example of a marker in the reward cue context.

If your dog struggles with this first step, switch to tossing the reward in front of them vs placing it.  As your dog watches the throw you can release them before they have the opportunity to look back at you! You may also want to be out of heel position for this exercise as your dog likely has a strong foundation of keeping eye contact in heel! Move to the right side of your dog, a foot out in front of your dog, or even try having your dog between your legs!

A tossed cookie can be easier if you can get it into the dish!  (Those bigger collapsible plastic dishes are nice as cookies don't bounce out of them!).  Here with Grace I place a cookie in the dish just in case she looks before I toss, and then I toss one in.  Right before I toss I give her my mark signal so that will come to predict that the toss is going to happen. I release her with "cookies!" when she is looking at the motion of my toss!  She's a bit hesitant to release on the cue here even though she has a lot of practice already in knowing that "cookies!" means run to the dish!  

Here is Yummy whose polite nature and auto leave it training made this difficult!  I step out of heel position and try to send  her as she watches the food fall into her bowl, before she looks up at me.  I also experiment with grabbing her collar as many dogs will naturally lean forward with the opposition.  A chest hold might also work for some dogs!

Here Ira has also struggled with not looking at the dish.  Mom slides it forward so the dog is looking at the MOTION of the dish. On the first one hear she isn't quite sure yet, but the next 2 she nails the focus forward!  Mom is just starting to delay the release to the dish until after the dish has stopped moving!  She's also adding in a chest hold here as a reminder of oppositional reflex/restrain games, this could actually stick as the dog's eventual cue to look ahead:

Still struggling?  Look at changing your position so you're not in heel!!  Here with Wren I start her between my legs!

Here is Nala who also has a very strong foundation of giving eye contact with the zen bowl!  I discover with her that she remains looking at the bowl while I'm setting food in it, it's the start of my standing up that makes it hard.  So I quickly send her a few times with my hand lingering at the bowl.  When I realize that this can start a hand signal I try switching to my other hand (the one closest to her).  I release with the marker cue "cookies":

This is Candy's first time seeing me add a hand signal.  You can see in the first rep she is already expectedly staring at the bowl, but as soon as I add my hand she mobs it thinking I have a cookie in it.  I try to keep my hand still and wait for her to look at the bowl again.  My hand is way too low here and makes it harder for her to look away from my hand.  This is a pretty old video without a clear marker cue to release.

Note that I mark the dog for looking forward and always reward them by letting them go to what they were looking at.  While the technique of marking the look and feeding the dog from your hand can be successful, it is not one I recommend at this stage.  Often a dog could inadvertently learn to face their nose forward but they are still thinking about what the handler has vs actually applying their full focus forward.  The technique of rewarding from your hand would be best for a dog who already has very strong focus forward and needs to learn to relax a bit before being sent. 

Build until you have 3-5 seconds of your dog looking forward to where you are directing with your hand and a minimum of 6 feet.  

Here Wren is working on a tiny bit of duration before the release!  I occasionally have to re-mark her before sending.  (and note I'm also working on step 3 of focus first):

You may also wish to add a verbal cue at this stage.  I cue "look" right before my hand moves down to give the signal.  While a verbal look cue isn't allowed for every exercise at higher levels, it is allowed for some!

Step 3: Focus First 

Now that your dog is eagerly looking forward and isn't confused by the presence of your hand we will start to teach him that looking forward is only to be done when given the cue.  Contrasting an auto watch me (this will be the dog's default behavior) with look ahead (only on cue now!) may be initially confusing but will start to cement the concept that your hand going down actually means something!

Here is Puppy Zumi working on this concept.  I review the mark and then start to add in rapid reinforcement for looking at me before marking.  This is where a marker cue like "Yes" or a click that tells the dog food is coming from your hand is important!   For Zumi, with low valued food on the target the challenge for her wasn't difficult.  You can see a little bit of difficulty with going back to marking and with moving off as soon as my hand goes down. In this older video my release cue also isn't super clear! Now I would release her with "Cookies!"

If you are struggling to get your dog to actually look at you, review our automatic leave it homework first from TEAM 1. You may need to back up to holding the dish in your hand and getting eye contact!

Then review placing the zen bowl on the ground and encouraging your dog to follow you as you back away until you get a far enough distance away that your dog is capable of making eye contact.  Reward lots from your hand!  Take a step forward and reward if your dog maintains focus on you.  Work on being able to heel away from, parallel to, and slightly towards the reward until the dog remembers that rewards are gained through focus on you! 

Alternatively, try doing an around the clock game with a zen bowl.  Start with teh dish behind them where it should be easy to look at you, and gradually work that dish out in front.  Instead of marking the dog to look at it before sending, send the dog only when they are looking at you for at least 1 full second.  Your "cookies" cue will reward the focus on you.  Don't transition back to telling the dog to mark/look at the dish until that eye contact is easy!  

Here Marina demonstrates working on this skill. You can see her trainer does 1 test mark of looking at the bowl towards the end, but the next rep she makes sure to reinforce Marina directly for the eye contact:

 Some dogs will have a harder time transitioning from handler focus to object focus.  For these dogs, stay close to your zen bowl and after giving your dog a cookie from your body for eye contact, go back into the encouragement position you used in the very first step. This may mean crouching into a track start, looking forward at the object yourself, and possibly putting a hand on your dog's chest to raise excitement levels!

Step 4: Fading Duration of the Hand Cue  

The goal of both the verbal cue to look and the hand signal is to give the dog a cue to look forward in a straight line for something to do.  Like all other cues, you don't want to have to hold the cue constantly for the dog to do the behavior.  It should be a quick action and then your hand should return to your side while the dog continues to do the behavior of looking forward. 

Your hand being removed might be difficult for your dog to keep focus without looking back at you.  Having a strong verbal cue can help with this!  Don't hesitate to mark and re-mark.  As your dog gets used to doing 2-3 marks before each send the desire to look back at you in between should decrease.  

You can also try making your hand signal smaller so it's easier to get rid of.  Instead of bending over completely, try a tiny bend!  Or instead of pausing as you mark, lower your hand and then smoothly continue moving it down to your side.

Here Lina does a great job of responding to Mom's continuous signal!  (Note she occasionally has to re-mark her and that's due to not always having food out there as she works towards a later skill of sending to targets instead of food!)

And here Grace is struggling a bit with her owner in being distracted by the hand motion.  While Grace does look back up, mom is trying hard to send her as soon as she's looking forward, even if she isn't quite taking her hand away yet!

Lecture Overview:

1. Reward your dog for looking at a dish with food in it!  Release them with a special cue such as "cookies," do NOT click or say "yes" as that will mean they get a reward from your hand!!

2. Add in a hand signal if you haven't already been using one.  Typically this is your left hand lowered down to right at their head level.  You may also wish to add a verbal "look" type cue right before your hand moves if you want!

3. Get focus on you!!  You may need to warm up with the dish in your hand and getting eye contact!  And/or practice pivoting away from the dish and then sending the dog only when they are looking at you before going back to the mark!

3b. After the dog is looking at you, give the cue to mark the dish, then release to the dish on your "cookies" cue.

4. Remove your hand.  Dog should be looking at you- you give the mark signal- remove your hand- (dog is looking forward still)-release to the dish!

FLY AWAY - Going Out & Around A Cone (obstacle)

Exercise:  On cue, dog goes out and away from handler and circles the obstacle and returns to the handler.  This exercise is not only the beginning stages of teaching your dog it's OK to work away from you, its also a great, fun way to relieve training pressures and insert some energy or fun games into your training session.  We usually work so hard on keeping our dogs focused on, and connected with us, that for some dogs being sent "away" can be quite daunting.  If you have already played with some target training either close up or distance the fly should be a fairly easy transition for your dog. 

So what does this Fly actually do for you? 

1)  In traditional obedience, it can be applicable to the Go-out send for the Directed Jumping or the Directed Retrieve (3 gloves).  Within the more advanced levels of TEAM, for instance, Level 5, you can substitute 3 cones or poles to act as a replacement for the 3 gloves while you work through the direction & energy of the send away.  When you have achieved the desired direction and energy, adding the gloves as part of the retrieve portion becomes a fairly easy introduction.

2)  Great way to introduce jump stanchions

3)  Option for encouraging straight jump & distance on the broad jump

4)  Send a fly to relieve pressure or inject energy in an exercise (i.e. heeling, fly, re-connect heeling)

5)  Re-setting your dog for another attempt at an exercise

6)  Allows you to work on components of an exercise without worrying about other criteria of that exercise.

My own preference for equipment in this exercise is a large traffic cone, mainly because they are heavier & taller so less likely to be knocked over by my dog's body or feet, but any upright object will work.  You can use a jump stanchion, a garbage can, post in the ground, stool or one of those mesh collapsible laundry buckets or leaf collection buckets.  Heck, you could even use a tree or telephone pole but the problem is moving it to a new location.

I like to teach the dogs to go both directions - variety/versatility is fun after all and is a big help if you're thinking about agility or other sports that require multi-directional sends.  This also keeps the dog flexible and balanced.  All dogs have a dominant directional preference that they find easier to complete.  Teaching them to go both ways helps to keep them balanced.  I will also typically use both arms to indicate direction.  The cue you use is your choice - I have opted for a verbal FLY with using an extended arm on the side I'd like the dog to approach the obstacle from.  For instance, left arm sends the dog (as they're facing the cone) to the right (clockwise) around the cone and my right arm would send the dog to their left (counter clockwise) around the cone.  If I want to get really fancy, I can also the add direction my torso/arm are pointing i.e. dog on my right, right arm and torso point in the direction for the dog to go clockwise around.

Starting your FLY: Your options, of course, are to shape, which can be fun, lure or bits of both shaping and luring.   Luring requires that you initially keep your hand lower (where your dog naturally placed their head just standing) as you take the dog around the cone.  Holding your hand higher means there's less connection to the obstacle and you may find the dog tripping over the cone more than going around it because they're totally focused on just the hand/reward and where it's going.  If I'm luring the dog who is on my left side already, I'll use my right hand to nose lure them around clockwise and vice versa going counter clockwise.  Remember you'll want an obstacle that you can reach around easily as you move the dog with the lure.  Once they've got the idea you can switch it up to other types of obstacles.

Here I'm doing just doing some armchair training with Piper, clicking for any interaction with the Cone in any manner.  This helps to create value in the cone.  Notice how I can create direction by where I throw or give the treat.  I can get variety in approach for later on.  Even in this video, she is developing a directional approach preference.

In this video, I played armchair training again to create value for the cone.

This video shows the first session of Piper learning to leave me to go around the cone. Her shaping prepped her for going around. At one point you'll see me not Click because I was wanting an additional step rather than constantly clicking at the same point.  This caused a bit of confusion for Piper.

Here I begin adding the verbal cue & hand signal but Piper was distracted & sirens happened.  But you can see how I turned her before sending and also waited for her to look at me before sending her. 

An option to create even more value for the cone while also creating variety is to train multiple circles around the cone. This can be achieved either by shaping (changing where you mark/reward) as well as taking advantage of your reward placement; both to encourage an additional circle or set-up to perform the next send around.  For multiple circles:  if your dog is going clockwise as he starts to wrap the cone mark and then use the lure in your left hand and draw the dog around and to the 9 o'clock position before you reward. This puts your dog in the position to continue the next wrap where you can mark at the 3 o'clock position and then place the lure with your left hand to draw the dog again to the  9 o'clock position.

Get ready for next send around:  as the dog goes around cone mark and as he returns to you, draw the dog past you and turn them so they are again facing the cone and release the reward.  This can be done if you're sending either clockwise or counterclockwise.  It's an easy way to achieve set-ups for alternating between clockwise and counterclockwise one after the other.

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Adding distance and Return energy
So far we've been working fairly close to the cone but eventually, we want to create a nice distance send as well as a quick return to the handler.  Return to the handler is good to start from the beginning because there can be instances when working the fly, that your dog will get stuck on staying by the obstacle when you mark waiting for the reward to come to them.  Only when your dog has grasped the idea that his job is to go out and around the cone will we add greater distance or introduce handler movement to create energy.  If we introduce handler movement too soon, such as a chase game, we run the risk of the dog backing out of the send around the cone to chase you instead.  

Creating Distance:  You will gradually take small half steps back from where you send the dog to the cone. I stress small half type steps, not giant steps backwards. 

1) Set the dog up facing the cone and send. 

2) As the dog commits to circle the cone, mark and step back one step, as the dog is coming towards you for the reward.

3)  Repeat 2-3 times at this distance, then move again, gradually increasing the distance away from the cone.  For TEAM Level 1 that distance is minimum of 5 ft.  I like to always opt for a bit more than I really need as you'll eventually require more than the 5ft distance for other competition or team exercises.

*** In the video above, I discretely add distance by taking a step backwards either as Tag's back is facing me or as I throw the treat past myself. 

Injecting return energy:  Here we're going to use handler movement to create energy on the return after circle to handler.  Initially it is best to stand still as you send your dog. The reason - we don't want the dog to cue off of and be reliant on motion from you. So don't look like you're sending and then about to race off.

1) Send the dog to circle the cone

2) Wait until the dog is committed to circling the cone, mark it

3) Take off running away from your dog by either:
            - turning and running straight away from the cone
            - turning to left or right (depending on direction of send) and run away

NOTE:  if you're sending the dog to go clockwise from the left, you would take off running after they have committed to the left, this encourages a tight wrap
Here I'm adding a bit of movement to encourage faster return from Piper

Using the cone to encourage the dog to stride out after a jump & at the same time encourage a tight return.


Here I use the cone for a bar jump send; stride out and tight return.

Motion added by the handler injects fun and capitalizes on the chase instinct our dogs have.  The direction you run can sharpen your turns, keeping them tight to the cone, which helps keep the dog from going wide as they make any type of turn.  So change up which direction you get your dog to chase you - variety keeps them focused.

Keep in mind that many of the regular obedience exercises which incorporate a send, require you to be still on the send.  So if you've added a forward step motion to your send, you will eventually want to also teach the dog to be sent away WITHOUT your forward movement.  Using the chase after send helps in this area.  Again change it up - keep the dog guessing as to what you're going to do next. 

Keep building the distance you are able to send your dog, either with handler motion as you send (think heeling then fly then back to heeling or jump then back to the handler)  or handler being stationary as you send.

OTHER SPORTS NOTES:   If you're competing in other dogs sports that require directional cues keep in mind the exercises that may be similar in nature.   You'll find it advantageous to keep your hand cues consistent between sports not only for precision but because it can be less frustrating for your dog.  Agility is one sport that comes to mind that has a tonne of directional cues that rely on both body turns & directional arms.  Considering this from the start helps you clean up your cues for both sports.  

LEFT & RIGHT FINISHES (otherwise known as Around or Swing Finishes)
Depending upon where you hail from there may be more than these two "official" finishes; usually, a come to heel from the front going either left or right. However, I'm going to be dealing with two that are the most common. 

Firstly we have the left finish - often referred to as the Swing or Get Back; this has the dog going to the left of the handler swinging their rear to end up in heel position.  he right finish, often called an Around Finish, has the dog going clockwise around the handler to end up in heel on the left.  In most sports, the final heel position ends with the dog in a sitting position. 

(Note: TEAM Titles does allow the handler to choose a default stand if it is noted on the video test submission and the dog remains consistent in either stand or sit within the exercise).   

Right Finish:  Around (dog goes around clockwise and into left heel position) 
You can start with the dog in any position in front of you but standing position does make it easier to entice the dog to move and is the position I begin with. Being correctly or squarely in front doesn't matter at this point of the learning phase. 

You have the option of using a lure or if your dog has a target to hand, using the hand. With a cookie in your right hand, put it to the dog's nose like a magnet and draw your right hand (with dog) backwards behind your back and encourage the dog to follow it, as the travels around behind you, transfer the cookie over to your left hand and finish bringing the dog around and up to heel.  Remember to initially hold your right hand behind your back until after you have caught the dog with the left-hand cookie. If you drop your right hand too soon, your dog may follow it back and not continue around your body.  As the dog starts to understand that there will be that transfer cookie, you can start to drop your right hand back beside your body.

Here's PiPER's 1st session of go around.  Notice that my hands are high on the treat transfer, this helps to keep Piper's head up high as she goes around. Nothing formal yet.
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Here you'll see Piper getting more comfortable going around and I'm starting to use my right hand as more of a signal.

As the dog progresses, use your right hand only to signal the finish and keep the cookie in your left hand.  You can still bring your left hand behind your back as needed to help the dog come up to heel. However, you will want to release the treat in heel position.

The biggest problem with this finish, is the dog's tendency to keep rotating and end up with their butt too far out and angled.  Another problem is a slow go around which occurs when the sit in heel portion of the finish is added too quickly.  The sit should be the last piece added. 

For the butt out you can use your pocket hand or reward hand to catch the dog's nose and stop them nice and close to your body and rotate the head ever so slightly to the left as they come parallel either in stand or sit.

When your dog is comfortable with the action of going around,  you can insert the use of a platform in heel position to help assist in teaching the dog the concept of sitting/standing straight after going around behind you.  Then gradually reduce the use of the platform/target. 

This is the finished picture on Tag's Around Finish. Notice that I feed his head straight. If I were to feed at an angle closer to the center of my body, it would draw his front end forward to the right and cause his rear to swing out.

Left Finish: Swing, Set-up or Get In
This is where our work on pivot in heel carries over, and flows naturally into a left finish.  If you have been doing the find heel exercises with the pivot pot then you've already been working on this skill and it won't take much to perfect! In the pivot the dog more or less, plants their front feet in heel and swings their rear around straight and then sits.  I like the swing, especially if you have a "social" dog who likes to see or get distracted by what's going on around them i.e. that child standing there with the ice cream at nose level.  The reason it works so nicely is that the head doesn't disappear very far past your body to gawk, just the dog's body swivels.

This is TAG's swing finish a couple of years ago, you can see he moves quite easily into heel and is quite precise. Again I feed with head straight out.

TAG doing his version of the swing now.  He has a bit of difficulty due to a muscle issue with his right rear leg that doesn't allow him to be as precise in his final placement but that's okay.
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This is OLLIE doing his version of a swing or get-in from the side. He was very quick so I've done it in slo-mo so you could see. Yes, he's a bit over-rotated but that's okay and due to his enthusiasim with the get-in game.

Another alternative is the left "C or U" finish. This can be done either using a target hand or a lure.  To start you're going to do what I call the T' Da move or the "this way please".  Start with feet together, dog standing in front.  Place lure magnet on the dog's nose, step back with your left leg  and turn so your body basically now opens sideways to the left.  Your left hand with dog attached will swing out in a slight arch (C) AND back far enough that your dog will have enough room to fully turn and be on a relatively straight course when coming back up into heel.  Once the dog has begun to turn, you step forward with your left foot so your feet are together as you draw the dog up into heel.  NO SITS required at this time. This is just about teaching position for the dog.  Once you get position and speed, the sit is easily put into place.

Depending on your dog you may find it advantageous to break this skill down even further into two pieces:  
1) just getting the dog to move past you  AND  2) then adding the turn around to come back into heel.  The treat is given at the farthest point of 1) and the then when you add the turnaround the treat is then given 2) when their head is in heel.

While you are initially teaching the "C" or "U" turn, you continue stepping back with your left leg or you may find your dog not going far enough back.  Treating at the back turn can also help to drive the dog back farther so they have enough room to turn.  Once your dog is nicely, doing your left finish you can then delete the stepping back with your left leg and your cue will just be your left hand.

Piper learning the U Finish - My preference will be for her to use more of a pivot swing as that keeps her head from wandering. This would be where she basically plants her front feet as she pivots into heel facing forward.



Breaking down the C or U finish into two pieces

Go Through Finish - Alternative (think twice about this one) 
I don't normally use this as a regular finish but for those who would like to know how to do it or start, I'm happy to accommodate.  The reason, I personally don't teach the Go Thru Finish, is that I use going thru my legs mainly for working straight fronts and I also have a "Place" position of dog facing front from the rear through my legs that I use for energy pullbacks & sends.  I'll also use the forward thru as a tight turn and come up to heel. The Go Thru Finish is definitely a fun exercise to play with to develop a tight heel or energize your dog between exercises as it's basically a just leg weave with a tight close sit.  BUT if your dog is inclined to sit butt out, it can exacerbate this so you may initially have to use your reward to strategically feed the dog so the butt is corrected inwards.

  
If you decide to tackle this finish from the front remember that some dogs will initially be reluctant or even quite nervous about going through your legs.  It's best to start with your legs as wide as possible, with dog immediately in front or behind you, you can either lure or just toss a cookie back and forth through your legs.  If tossing the cookie don't throw it too far or your dog may initially just deek around your legs.  In the "go thru legs" learning stage there is no asking the dog to come to heel, it's just straight back and forth thru your legs from up close and then farther away.

Once the dog is comfortable going through your legs, begin to strategically drop or toss the treat so it lands more to your rear left side.  As you do this drop your left hand down and slightly back behind your left leg.  The straighter you can drop your hand down the easier it can be to catch your dog's attention and lure the dog tight to heel by following the arm up into heel position.  You can also add your pivot pot to heel position as an additional help cue to the dog.

Here's some video examples of Piper and Tag coming into "PLACE".  Plus a couple of Thru & Come To Left Heel.  I have to be careful with TAG because as you can see I'm not tall enough for him to fit comfortably thru my legs and I can get tossed over easily. Piper is learning to sit straight on left.

TAG

Piper - As you can see Piper loves her Place cue and is much smaller that Tag so fits nicely between my legs.