Hello my 11 month old GSD really goes down in drive while on the back tie. He does well on puppy tug when dragging the long line though. Any thoughts? Should I continue to do tug work on long line or only on back tie. (waiting for my drive/focus DVD to get here) cant wait.

David,
Are you doing the agitation while he's on the back tie or is someone else acting as decoy?

I am the one playing tug with him. Like in the bite training puppies VHS, before the introduction to the helper is made. He did go out to the club and had zero interest in what was going on. (he was on the back tie) Possible avoidance. So I have taken a step back and started doing more tug work with him an socializing him more and more each day.

david, i like to use a long cotton line with the snap end hooked to the dog's collar and the loop end attatched to a kitchen towel, chamois, puppy tug, etc. if the cotton line is long enough you can make great prey for the dog with lots of action, then when the dog grips you have control over both the item and the dog so you can run and carry, play tug or whatever is appropriate for what you're working on. the thing i don't like about working a dog on a backtie whether i am the helper or someone else, is that its really hard to run with the dog. when timing is often all important, a couple of seconds lost by not keeping pressure on the item, tripping over a line, or unsnapping the backtie line can cause frustration for both handler and dog. i've found by utilizing both ends of the longline that i can actually drive the dog similar to what you'd do with a horse on a longline, but you also have the option of moving up or down on either end of the line as needed.....too reel the dog in, let them out or make action with the item and keep pressure on the line.
this is just what i like to do, but who knows, you might like to use it as well.