Clean Run - September 2014 - 40

by surprise with what the dogs look for
when they approach a jump. Every now
and then you see dogs taking off for the
double jump from way too far away. Some
dogs don't perceive the double jump as
three-dimensional, but instead see it as
two bars on top of each other. The dogs
that perceive the double jump like this will
correct their jumping arc on a second try.
Some dogs don't look at the bars at all.
Their decision on how to approach and
take off for the jump is made by looking
at the wings. How the dog perceives a
double jump can be tested by doing the
"double jump test" with several sets of
extra wings. This test was introduced in
a previous Clean Run article we wrote on
the OMD basic training. Dogs that jump
based on looking at the wings also often
jump over the obstacle with the same
jumping arc, even if the bar has already
fallen to the ground before they take
off for the jump. We have also observed
that this type of dog frequently takes off
from farther away the larger or wider
the wings are. We assume this is one of
the reasons these dogs have problems
clearing the wall jump consistently.

SAFETY MATTERS!

There Is a Reason
Janita's female Border Collie Hitti had
always cleared the long jump without
any problems. Then a few years ago,
while competing abroad, Hitti knocked
the last piece over in three courses.
Janita was puzzled as to why Hitti made
the same, extremely uncharacteristic
mistake, not once, but three times in a
short span of time. Back home she practiced difficult angled approaches, turns,
approaches with full speed, different
handling techniques, and different obstacles after the long jump, with a consistent outcome. No matter what Janita
did with the long jump, Hitti cleared it
perfectly every time.

problems they had in the trial abroad
and wondered if the placement of the
poles could have been the reason for
Hitti's problems clearing that long jump.

Janita forgot the whole episode until a
few months later when she was giving a
seminar in another city in Finland. While
setting up the course, she was about
to place the corner marker poles of the
long jump when she noticed something
unusual. The base was constructed so
that when it slotted in, the corner marker pole was in the middle of the last part
of the board of the spread instead of the
outside corner. Janita remembered the

Here the "corner" marker poles are set in the middle
of the first and last board of the long jump.

Here the corner marker poles are set in
the outside corners.

Agility Wing Jump

* Highly visible wings
* Made from durable UV-stable polypropylene
* Lightweight & flexible wings absorb shock and fall away if a dog hits them
* UV-resistant synthetic rubber jump cups are strong enough to support the bar,
but supple enough to bend away if hit by a dog
* Large molded-in numbers make changing jump heights easy
* Feet snap on an off easily so they can be removed for transportation and storage
* Six great colors
* $109.95 - Buy 4+ for $99.95 each

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Clean Run - September 2014

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