Clean Run - August 2019 - 8

When you reach your stopping point, you should
stand still. Do not run in toward the dog before they
come	to	a	stop	or	meet	them	at	the	end	as	they	finish.	
Once the dog stops, continue standing still as you
give	them	a	"Good	dog!"	And	then	run	in,	licketysplit, and give them their awesome reward event.
This technique ensures that you are creating lateral
independence while supporting your dog and keeping
their	confidence	high.
How	lateral	should	you	be	on	each	repetition?	It	is	never	a	
good	idea	to	increase	the	difficulty	every	time	you	do	this	
exercise because it will cause questions and hesitancy.
Mix	easy	or	confidence-building	repetitions	in	with	the	
challenging	repetitions.	I	define	a	confidence-building	
repetition as a rep with a lot of speed but little lateral
distance (1-3 feet), the goal being to create the best
performance	possible	to	keep	my	dog's	confidence	high.	
So, a progression of reps might look like this: 2 feet, 4
feet, 1 foot, 2 feet, 5 feet, 2 feet, 3 feet, 7 feet, 1 foot.
Your exact progressions are going to be based on
the	skill	and	confidence	you	see	from	your	dog.	If	you	
don't like your dog's speed or if they are struggling with
understanding,	then	you	should	do	more	confidencebuilding repetitions. Watch your dog closely as they run
across the contact so that you can assess their progress.
Should	I	repeat	that	distance	until	it	is	stronger?	Make	it	
easier?	Make	it	more	challenging?
Also,	you	don't	have	to	reward	every	repetition.	Get	
used to rating each repetition as the dog performs it and
reward or don't reward accordingly. Was the effort fair,
good,	great,	or	freaking	amazing?	I	will	reward	a	fair	
performance	if	I	have	just	added	difficulty	while	I	wouldn't	
reward a fair response on a distance that I believe is
easy for my dog. You do need to consider the level of
difficulty	as	you	access	your	dog's	performance.	As	they	
get better at their skills, you can raise your standards.
Follow this same procedure to work on lateral distance
on	the	A-frame	and	the	teeter.
Peeling Away Laterally from the Dog
You are going to follow the same training procedure as
you did for running a parallel track except that you are
not going to run in a straight line. When you lead out,
you	will	begin	1	to	5	feet	lateral	to	the	contact.	After	you	
release your dog, as soon as you see that he intends
to get on the contact, begin to peel away to whatever
lateral distance you have designated for that repetition.
For instance, start 2 feet lateral to the dogwalk and end
up 10 feet lateral to it as shown in Figure 2.

2

Handler stops
no more than
1 shoe length
past contact
Handler is 6"
ahead of dog
at sweet spot

Handler starts
close to dog
and peels
away laterally

Start to peel away laterally as soon as your dog
exhibits an intent to get on the obstacle.

Keeping the Dog Straight at the End
of Contacts
The secret sauce for teaching your dog to stay straight at
the end of the contacts is your ability to throw a toy before
they come into their end behavior and have them maintain
criteria until released. This works far better than rewarding
your dog at the end of a contact. You can release the dog
to the toy and then move in and have your reward event.
When I am training a pup from the ground up, I start this
training when they are still on the contact trainer, but it
can	be	learned	at	any	time.	Here's	some	foundation	work	
for developing the skill.
Put your dog in a controlled position (sit-stay, down-stay,
or stand-stay) and gently place their toy (it can be a food
toy) on the ground in front of them, a few feet away. If
the dog gets up, pick up the toy and begin again. Do not
make this game a bummer! You can lower your energy
level if the dog is too excited, or use a less exciting
toy, but don't correct him. The lack of reinforcement is
enough of a correction.

Use	the	same	formula	of	mixing	easy	and	challenging	
repetitions to build lateral distance gradually.

When the dog successfully maintains his position,
release them enthusiastically to their toy.

Follow this same procedure to work on peeling away
from	your	dog	on	the	A-frame	and	the	teeter.

Once the dog can tolerate a placed toy, gradually add
difficulty:	drop	the	toy	in	front	of	the	dog,	drop	the	toy	
harder, toss the toy lightly so it lands only a foot from

8

Clean Run | August 19
Clean Run - August 2019

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