When initially teaching Falcon down and sit, I was okay with the casual form, ie: legs to the side/sitting on a hip variation. I'm now trying to teach the platz and am not getting something right.

I'm trying to use the marker method, but even when I lure Falcon with a treat, he immediately lays down with his legs to the side; I'm not able to catch him in a platz position to mark.

I'm having better luck with the "formal" sit since he always hits that position before relaxing on a hip, so I've just added a new word for this one.

Any ideas?

Hi Barbara,

Are you using two separate commands for platz? I take it your training for competition and want a good “non-casual” platz.

Are you using Drive and Focus exercises with him (I thought I read somewhere in the past you had the DVD)? I will get a “casual” platz when not in drive, which is fine for me. But when I need the speed and focus, I will put her in drive and get the results I want. I love marker training and use it all the time to teach an exercise, but I see a big difference when working in drive, when my dog is in drive and focused she is not in a “casual” state of mind. For me, and I am a novice handler struggling through things daily, marker training is relaxing “OK, if I do this I get a treat” vs. “I want that orbee and I am going to do anything to get it and I will be ready when he releases me!” Just my ideas and also I should note my dog has good prey drive and medium low food drive. Again I am a new handler; I hope this is not bad advice!

PS How’s the biting going ! I read your post from a while ago about Falcon getting a little nippy.

What is platz?

 Quote: Anna Anderson

What is platz?

German for down

In case you are interested:

http://leerburg.com/commands.htm

I don't know about Falcon but if we are playing fetch or some other fun game with a toy and I want him to down he downs in the more ready to jump up less relaxed down. I'm assuming that is what you mean by not a causal down. So maybe you could try downing him while playing fetch or something where he associates having to get right back up and then mark when he gets down there the way you want him to.

It may take him a while to realize not to get into the casual down but a couple scrables to have to get his legs out from under him should be enough to make him want to stay ready the next time.

Don't know if this will work just a thought.

A few things...

Fist, Juliana and Scott are 100% right. A dog in drive is more likely to hold a correct platz. I would consider training this particular command with a tug or an orbee ball, rather than food rewards.

Second, the placement of your food reward, when you do use food, can help keep him from resting back on his haunces and flopping his hip. Try rewarding him just a tad forward, so he has to shift his weight more onto his elbows to reach the food.

Last, a negative marker is a huge help in this. Letting him know the instant his hips flop that he isn't getting it right.

Danke did this for quite awhile, for exactly the same reasons. I didn't start out to do Schutzhund, so my focus was a reliable down, not a pretty one.

Fixing the floppiness was a matter of training in drive, a little bit of luring and lots of patience.

Thanks Scott. Guess I need to learn some German.

Try not to laugh too hard at me when you figure out what my dog's German name means though, okay?

Ok, I give up...what does it mean?

Danke is Deutsch for "Thank you".