Fenzi Dog Sports Academy - OB385: Precision Without Pressure: Achieving Accuracy and Joy

Course Details

Train for precision without losing the joy that makes your dog want to work.

Are you ready to improve your dog’s precision without losing the confidence, attitude, and joy that make them want to work? Precision Without Pressure is designed for obedience, rally, and sport dog teams who want accuracy and reliability, but are struggling with dogs that lose enthusiasm, shut down, or become stressed as criteria increases. Whether you’re refining skills or working toward the ring, this class will help you build accurate, reliable behaviors without losing your dog’s attitude.

Precision and joy can, and should, go hand in hand. Through clear structure and step-by-step progressions, you’ll learn how to introduce challenges without creating conflict, build understanding without frustration, and use reinforcement strategically to maintain enthusiasm. This class focuses on building accuracy and understanding while keeping your dog engaged, confident, and happy, even as expectations increase.

If you’ve ever started asking for more and your dog’s engagement or attitude changed, this class was made for you. You’ll learn how to keep both accuracy and attitude strong so your dog can stay confident and willing as training progresses. You’ll finish with a stronger partnership, a dog who loves to work, and skills that hold up in both training and in the ring.

Here’s what makes this class a must:

Build Precision Without Pressure: Learn how to improve accuracy through clarity, thoughtful progression, and strategic reinforcement placement
Keep Engagement Strong: Maintain joy, confidence, and focus while increasing criteria and expectations
Train Thoughtfully: Recognize and manage pressure in your training sessions so your dog can stay successful and motivated
Create Fluent Behavior: Develop skills that flow smoothly without frustration or hesitation
Prepare for Real-World and Ring Success: Help your dog handle increasing challenges with confidence and transition from training to reliable performance
Strengthen Your Partnership: Build a dog who stays connected, engaged, and happy while performing accurately

There’s no need to feel like you have to choose between precision and a happy dog. This class is designed to be supportive, practical, and easy to apply. You’ll leave with a clear plan for your training sessions without losing your dog’s attitude along the way.

Step into your training sessions with more clarity, more confidence, and a dog who truly loves the work. Let’s build precision without pressure, one step at a time.

Teaching Approach

Lectures are released on the first day of each week and include step-by-step written instruction plus short demonstration videos. Most videos are between 20 seconds and 2 minutes long, making them easy to fit into busy schedules. Videos are designed to be understood even without sound; if speaking is important, the lecture will clearly outline what is being said. Homework is included at the end of each lecture so you always know what to practice. Supplemental lectures and videos will be posted as needed.

This class will have a Teacher's Assistant (TA) available in the Student study group in the class forums to help the Bronze students!

Syllabus

View Full Syllabus

Week 1: Building Clarity and Predictability
Lecture 1.1 – Precision and Joy: Setting the Stage
Lecture 1.2 – Designing Training Sessions Your Dog Can Win
Lecture 1.3 – Clean Training: Markers, Timing, and Reinforcement Clarity
Lecture 1.4 – Handling Mistakes Without Adding Pressure

Week 2: Raising Criteria Without Raising Tension
Lecture 2.1 – What Is Fluency, Really?
Lecture 2.2 – The 3 D’s: Controlling Difficulty Intentionally
Lecture 2.3 – Increase Criteria = Decrease Difficulty
Lecture 2.4 – Watching for Subtle Enthusiasm Drops

Week 3: Teaching Cues to Stand Alone
Lecture 3.1 – Generalization: Why It Falls Apart Outside Your House
Lecture 3.2 – Breaking Context and Treat Dependence
Lecture 3.3 – Introducing Distractions Thoughtfully
Lecture 3.4 – Splitting vs. Strengthening: Diagnosing Breakdowns

Week 4: Understanding and Reducing Pressure
Lecture 4.1 – What Pressure Looks Like in Performance Dogs
Lecture 4.2 – Spatial Pressure: Walls, Gates, and Corners
Lecture 4.3 – Handler Body Awareness and Accidental Pressure
Lecture 4.4 – Rebuilding Confidence with Smart Setups and Targets

Week 5: Reinforcement That Builds Independence
Lecture 5.1 – Reducing Reinforcement Without Losing Sparkle
Lecture 5.2 – Separating the Behavior from the Food
Lecture 5.3 – Delayed and Remote Reinforcement for Ring Readiness
Lecture 5.4 – Chaining Fluent Behaviors Without Creating Pressure

Week 6: Ring Integration and Performance Confidence
Lecture 6.1 – Preparing Your Dog Before You Ask for Precision
Lecture 6.2 – Ring Simulation and Ring-Specific Pressure Points
Lecture 6.3 – Using Fun Runs as Training Opportunities
Lecture 6.4 – Mental Prep, Video Analysis, and Filling in the Holes

Prerequisites and Equipment

Prerequisites

This class is designed for dogs and handlers who are actively training and want to improve the quality and success of their training sessions.

Dogs should:

Be comfortable working for food or another form of reinforcement
Have a basic understanding of at least a few simple behaviors (sit, down, hand touch, etc.)
Be able to work in a low-distraction environment to start

Handlers should:

Be willing to adjust their training based on their dog’s feedback
Have a basic understanding of using markers and reinforcement
Be open to keeping sessions short and focused

This class is appropriate for a wide range of teams, from those just getting started to more experienced handlers looking to clean up their training approach. Exercises can be scaled to match your dog’s current skill level.

Supplies Needed

Most of the exercises in this class are simple and can be done in a small space like your living room or kitchen.

You’ll need:

High-value treats that your dog is excited to work for
A reward marker or reinforcement cue
A small, quiet training space to start

For some exercises and later lectures, you may also want:

Access to a larger space (yard, training building, park, or similar)
A few mild distractions (toys, food on the ground, household items)

The focus of this class is not on equipment, but on how you set up and adjust your training. Keeping things simple will make it easier to stay consistent and see progress.

Sample Lecture

Lecture 1.2: Designing Training Sessions Your Dog Can Win

Why Session Design Matters

One of the biggest differences between training that feels frustrating and training that feels smooth and productive comes down to how the session is set up before you even ask for a single behavior.

It’s easy to look at mistakes and think the dog is struggling with the behavior itself. But more often, the issue is that the session wasn’t designed for success in the first place.

When we take the time to set up thoughtful training sessions, everything changes. Dogs learn faster, stay more engaged, and offer better effort. Handlers feel more confident, and progress becomes much more consistent.

Your goal is not to “get through” a training session. Your goal is to create a session your dog can actually win.

Reading Your Dog Before You Start

Before you begin training, take a moment to look at the dog in front of you. Not the dog you had yesterday. Not the dog you hope to have next month. The dog right in front of you.

Ask yourself a few simple readiness questions:

Can your dog eat?
Can your dog hear your reinforcement cues?
Is your dog able to focus on you?

If the answer to any of these is no, that’s important information. It means your dog may be over threshold, distracted, tired, or unsure, and the session may need to be adjusted before you begin.

That’s your cue to make a change before you start.

You might:

Move to a less distracting environment
Lower your criteria
Start with an easier behavior
Take a moment to help your dog settle

Starting without checking in often leads to frustration on both sides. Taking a few seconds to read your dog can completely change the outcome of your session.

Setting the Right Level of Challenge

One of the most important skills you can develop as a trainer is setting the right level of challenge.

If something is too easy, your dog may get bored or disengaged. If something is too hard, your dog will start to struggle, make mistakes, or check out.

We’re looking for that middle ground where your dog is thinking, engaged, and successful.

A good question to ask yourself is:

“Does my dog understand this well enough to succeed right now?”

If the answer is “maybe” or “not sure,” that’s often a sign to make it easier.

You can adjust challenge by:

Reducing distractions
Lowering duration
Shortening distance
Simplifying the behavior
Increasing reinforcement

Training is not about proving what your dog can do. It’s about building what your dog can do next.

Keeping Sessions Short and Productive

Short sessions are one of the most powerful tools you have.

Most dogs learn best in brief, focused bursts. Long sessions often lead to mental fatigue, lower-quality responses, and decreased enthusiasm.

A good session might be:

1–3 minutes of focused work
A short break
Then another short session if your dog is still engaged

Pay attention to your dog’s energy and effort. Are they getting faster, brighter, and more engaged? Or are they slowing down, making more mistakes, or losing interest?

Short sessions help you end on success more often, which builds confidence and clarity for your dog.

Knowing When to Quit

Knowing when to end a session is just as important as knowing how to start one.

A common mistake is pushing for “just one more rep.” Sometimes that works. But often, that extra rep is where things fall apart.

Instead, aim to end your session when:

Your dog is successful
Your dog is still engaged
Your dog would happily do more

Ending on a high note helps your dog look forward to the next session. It also prevents you from accidentally reinforcing frustration or confusion.

If things are not going well, that’s information too. You don’t need to push through it. You can:

Make the task easier
Switch to something your dog knows well
Take a break
End the session and reset for next time

Quitting is not giving up. It’s being strategic.

If It’s Not Working, Change Something

If your dog is struggling, repeating the same thing over and over rarely fixes the problem.

Instead of asking, “Why isn’t my dog doing this?” try asking, “What can I change to help my dog succeed?”

You can change:

The environment
The level of distraction
Your criteria
Your reinforcement
Your position or timing
The difficulty of the task

Even small changes can make a big difference.

Good training is flexible. The best trainers are constantly adjusting based on the dog in front of them.

Key Points Summary

Training sessions should be designed so your dog can succeed, not struggle
Always check readiness: can your dog eat, hear your marker, and focus?
Keep sessions short to maintain engagement and quality
End sessions while your dog is still successful and wanting more
If something isn’t working, change something instead of repeating the same approach

Registration

Next session starts: April 1, 2026
Registration starts: March 22, 2026
Registration ends: April 15, 2026

Registration opens at 11:30am Pacific Time.

SILVER LEVEL Testing Project for April 2026 - In this session students will be permitted to submit ONE 90 second video per week when registered at the silver level. All "your dog" specific questions must be accompanied by video so the instructor can assess video and questions together. Silver students may also ask generic questions and participate in discussion forum threads.

OB385 Subscriptions

Gold

Silver

Bronze

Tuition $ 260.00 $ 130.00 $ 65.00

Enrollment Limits 12 25 Unlimited

Access all course lectures and materials ✔ ✔ ✔

Access to discussion and homework forums ✔ ✔ ✔

Read all posted questions and answers ✔ ✔ ✔

Watch all posted videos ✔ ✔ ✔

Post general questions to Discussion forum ✔ ✔ ✖

Submit written assignments ✔ ✖ ✖

Post dog specific questions ✔ With video only ✖

Post videos ✔ Up to 2 ✖

Receive instructor feedback on

Questions

All videos

Questions

All videos

✖

Find more details, refund policies and answers to common questions in the Help center.

	Gold	Silver	Bronze
Tuition	$ 260.00	$ 130.00	$ 65.00
Enrollment Limits	12	25	Unlimited
Access all course lectures and materials	✔	✔	✔
Access to discussion and homework forums	✔	✔	✔
Read all posted questions and answers	✔	✔	✔
Watch all posted videos	✔	✔	✔
Post general questions to Discussion forum	✔	✔	✖
Submit written assignments	✔	✖	✖
Post dog specific questions	✔	With video only	✖
Post videos	✔	Up to 2	✖
Receive instructor feedback on	Questions All videos	Questions All videos	✖