Soooo for the past 2 weeks i've been working on the competition heel with my girls....I divided the work in 3 big parts and those 3 split in parts.
1.- Attention
2.-pivoting and finding the leg
3.- walking while glued to leg and attention.
I started with 2 because the girls already knew the attention game (need to polish because they have a rough time while on my side, but already pointed to work on that).
We were doing great we went from stepping on the cookie can to pivoting both sides following me in front to pivoting to my left and right sides.
So when i moved on and started to vanish the cookie can; 2 or 3 rep with the can then only the lid of the can and no worries.
I worked with both sides again, the started to get them to find the position by themselfs and was when all the work came down....Havanna´s feet go waay to the front and stop pivoting to be on the correct position, she spins but not pivot. She lose control and try to go in front of me, back of me or sits to the side but far away from my leg...
I´ve already tryed to go to the can some reps but that seem to confuse more Havanna.
Sookie is only having troubles "finding the leg"...
Any advice would be really great...ill post a video of 2 days ago when i started to only put the can lid. Thanks in advice!
Have you taught a separate command for circle left and right while he's on the can lid?
Teach one direction first then the other before you get him to actually move into a heel position.
Lure her through the pivot while your in front of her and don't worry about being on your leg till the "left" "right" are solid.
Use whatever command you want to. The "left", "right" was just an example.
IMHO, JMO, this sounds a bit jumbled up and rushed. I was struggling with the same thing last year when we started training for our obedience pattern.
I only used the touch pad for pivoting and hind-end awareness. I did not use it to teach position. I taught and proofed position, or finding the leg ("au pied") by putting the dog in a down and then recalling her with the command to find the leg, INSTEAD OF a recall command. This meant that when she came to me, she had to find the heel position. If she was off or wrong, I used my IBs to guide her in position, not rewarding until she was in exactly the correct position.
Once I proofed that, I used the touch pad to teach her to swing her rear around. When she had that down, I changed position. With her in a sit and both front feet on the pad, I would move in and stand next to her with her head at my left knee. as soon as she settled and made eye contact, I would move around the touch pad, 90 degrees at a time, and give an "au pied". You have to step around the pad in order for the dog to remain on it. If she pivoted, but less than 90deg, I used my IBs to guide her until she was in the proper position. As she got better, I would change directions and vary the amount of turn. It only took one session to teach and two more to reinforce, and we proofed for a couple of sessions. I then removed the pad and started working on it without a reference.
The key for me was to not get too dependent on the touch pad. While it is helpful to use for many behaviors, I find that it needs to be removed as quickly as is feasible, or my dog focuses on the pad more than she does on performing a correct behavior.
ETA: Another exercise that helps to reinforce proper position is a step-off exercise. I put the dog in a "heel" and "sit", then I take a lead-off step with either the heel or far leg. If I lead off with the opposite leg and the dog takes a step, I let her know she's wrong, and we try again. Sometimes I step off with the heel leg, and I let her know she's right. I'll do about ten in a session, mixing at random between right and wrong.
When purchasing any product from Leerburg Enterprises, Inc. it is understood
that any and all products sold by Leerburg Enterprises, Inc. are sold in Dunn
County Wisconsin, USA. Any and all legal action taken against Leerburg Enterprises,
Inc. concerning the purchase or use of these products must take place in Dunn
County, Wisconsin. If customers do not agree with this policy they should not
purchase Leerburg Ent. Inc. products.
Dog Training is never without risk of injury. Do not use any of the products
sold by Leerburg Enterprises, Inc. without consulting a local professional.
The training methods shown in the Leerburg Ent. Inc. DVD’s are meant
to be used with a local instructor or trainer. Leerburg Enterprises, Inc. cannot
be held responsible for accidents or injuries to humans and/or animals.
Copyright 2010 Leerburg® Enterprises, Inc. All rights reserved. All photos and content on leerburg.com are part of a registered copyright owned by Leerburg Enterprise, Inc.
By accessing any information within Leerburg.com, you agree to abide by the
Leerburg.com Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.