Clean Run - September 2014 - 21

Recipe for a

SUCCESSFUL
By Dawn Wasicek, photos by author

everal years ago, at an
agility trial, while waiting for my turn in the
other ring, applause
suddenly broke out
among the spectators.
I watched a dog and handler
run their celebratory MACH lap
around the ring. Cheers of congratulations, hugs, and good
wishes fell on the handler as she
exited the ring. The next handler
and dog team had a flawless run.
The team crossed the finish line
to more cheers and applause.
Although this clean run didn't
complete a title, the applause
was a little more than the typical
respectful clapping for a course
well run since the crowd was still
invigorated by the MACH.
Upon hearing the applause, the
dog took a jump bar off the last
jump and ran around the ring with
the bar in his mouth. Of course everyone laughed at the silly dog running around the ring with a jump
bar in his mouth. His handler was
laughing at first but became not
so amused when she could not get
control of her dog. Eventually she
September 14 | Clean Run

FINISH

received the dreaded whistle, losing the clean run to an excusal.
The dog running away from the
handler at the end of a run is not
only embarrassing, it can also
cost you a qualifying score, especially if the dog runs out of the
ring off leash.
Running away from the handler at
the end of a run can be prompted
by many things. The dog can be
excited by the trial environment.
Running agility in a new place
with new distractions (such as
other dogs running in the ring or
walking past the exit of the ring)
can be exciting, stressful, or both.
Excitement gets the adrenaline
pumping, leading to arousal,
which can cause the dog to zoom
around or run past the threshold
of the ring, especially when the
last obstacle is lined up near the
exit. The trial environment is worrisome for some dogs. Worried
dogs can disconnect from the
handler and wander off to sniff.
In most cases, dogs that run from
the handler will be evasive and
difficult to catch.

If you have a dog that runs away
at the end of a run, adding Control Unleashed® (CU) games to
your agility training can help
teach your dog to relax and focus,
even during times of stress and
arousal. Once trained, the games
are "portable" and can be practiced in trial environments to help
eventually prepare you and your
dog to run successfully in a trial.
If your dog has not completed
the foundation exercises and principles core to the CU program
(see the book Control Unleashed:
Creating a Focused and Confident
Dog by Leslie McDevitt), it is best
to teach these first and then try
the exercises in this article.

Reorienting to the Handler
One of my favorite principles of
CU is "reorienting points." Reorienting points are physical thresholds that transition your dog from
one space to another; some examples are coming out of the crate,
coming out of the car, entering
a training space, and entering or
exiting the ring. When moving to
an exciting environment (such as
21
Clean Run - September 2014

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