Course Details
Taking Turns - Build your dog's skill for watching another dog work.
This class guides you on how to make turn-taking easy, clear and rewarding!
For dogs who love to work or play, it's hard to watch another dog take a turn to perform.
But we need that skill in a few ways:
- Indoor Arena sport training
- At home - alternating play
- Field Training - 2 or more field dogs taking turns
- Honoring in a Retriever Test - watching another dog run to a retrieve.
- Steady for another dog to flush birds from cover
- Actual hunting in a duck or goose blind with another hunter and their dog.
This technique is great for anyone who wants to teach their dog to joyfully take turns with another dog for play or for work.
The secret is knowing this - it's not about tamping down arousal or drive. Instead it's about the dog's clarity on what happens next and how to earn the release or reward.
If you struggle with any type of "steadiness" or waiting for a release word, this class is also for you. It all boils down to the same formula.
How it works:
It's not enough to have a great sit cue or "leave it". Dog's will whine, creep forward and even run in when another dog gets to do the fun thing. Especially when the fun thing is running, chasing or catching something, outside.
If you've been trying to fix this problem by hovering - bending over them to say "I'm going to interrupt you if you even move a muscle!" Or hoping that your sit cue will work - That's making it worse, and it's super frustrating when it fails.
Both dogs feel it when we're frustrated and the value of the training session goes down the tubes.
What we do in this class is different. It has 4 parts:
- Learn the choice formula
- Apply the choice formula to Taking Turns in an easy environment
- Create reward placement that works for the end result
- Level up to the field with a strategy
The result - clarity leads to competence and that = CONFIDENCE!
When you teach your dog the formulas in this class for watching other dogs work, you will feel confident in it's power to hold up even in test scenarios.
You will gain an honoring cue that tells the dog what's about to happen, and what to do to earn the reward sequence or another turn to work.
We will never tamp down their drive or desire to work. Instead we'll teach them how to turn on by offering us control. It's an exhilerating feeling to win at this in the field, with truly joyful training techniques.
Teaching Approach:
This class welcomes people from any sport or breed wishing to master turn taking or watching another dog perform. Although, I will be highlighting how this is applied to field dog performance.
Each week you will get a new set of video lessons and brief written instructions.
The lesson videos will be 3-6 minutes long, typically. And they will cover bite sized training skills. Each lesson will build on the previous one and set you up for the next.
When you post your training videos for review, I love to highlight what is going well for you, as well help you level up from where you are!
SAMPLE LECTURE
What Success Looks Like and How We Get There
Let's get started by taking some action!
This lecture is a mini-work book. We are going to take several small action steps here to chart the path to your end goal for this class.
The first thing to do is choose your outcome.
Close your eyes and imagine your dog being perfect while another dog takes a turn - what does that look like?
Where are you when it's happening? What is the other dog doing? Playing tug with you, chasing a ball or bird, learning the weave poles, working with their person?
How do you want your dog to feel? Calm and low key? or Alert and ready to do what's next?
Before you jump into your action steps below, take a look at this short video...
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Action Step: Your outcomes
Answer these 4 questions and post them in your Gold, Silver or Bronze thread in the class forum.
- What is the other dog or person doing as your dog waits her turn? chasing a ball? playing tug? working with their person?
- Where are you both? inside the house? in a duck blind? in the field? agility barn?
- What do you want your dog to be doing? Sitting at heel? Stationed on a platform? Lying down?
- How do you want your dog to feel? Alert, ready to take a turn? Calm? Certain about how this works?
No matter which details are in your scenario, they all have the same key ingredients.
Key Ingredients:
- Your dog is willing to hold back and is choosing to stay in position
- A start cue that makes it clear it's the other dog's turn
- A finish cue that releases your dog from holding back.
- A valuable reward that is placed strategically to fit your scenario
Here's a quick example to set us up for your next ACTION step.
Taking my 2 retrievers for a break at lunch time. They both want engagement. We love to play tug and chase bumpers. But young Harry will outrun 12 yr old Atlas every time!
So here's what I want:
To give Harry a verbal cue that means "watch this dog take a turn".
For Harry to watch the turn until I give a new cue that releases him to a separate reward.
And for Harry to be alert, in work mode as he waits, and crystal clear that he is earning a valuable reward by doing so. This is the part that eliminates frustration. More on that later.
Action Step: Your Cues and Rewards Answer these questions and post answers in your thread on the forum.
- What position or station will the dog be in for turn taking? A sit, a stand, a platform? Heel position?
- What cue will you use that it's another dog's turn? "Honor"? "Linger"? "Line up"?
- What cue or action cue tells the dog she's done and the reward sequence is beginning? This will depend on your goal scenario and where the reward is located
- What is your reward? And where is it located?
Please post your answers in the forum by doing the following:
Gold Level - Go to the Gold Homework forum, create a thread with your name and write in your homework answers.
Silver Level - Go to the "Discussion Forum" read the working silver instructions to start a thread with your name and write in your answers. I will be looking over each of them, but not responding to it, unless you include a video with a question. If no video, this will be a freebie post for you, but no teacher response.
Bronze Level - Go the "Study Group" forum and read the guidelines post. Then create a thread for yourself to track your class homework for the next 6 weeks. Take a look at the other students' threads as well to collaborate. I will not be responding to these threads or posts.
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