The Three R's of Flyball

Dog Training
Flyball
Three R's

Flyball is easily understood to be a series or "chain" of behaviors. These behaviors are trained seperately and then put together in sequence when the dog has demonstrated mastery of the seperate parts. How can we, as trainers, use this concept when developing a training program?

There are THREE seperate and distinct portions of the flyball run. A run begins with the "go-out" portion. For the sake of memory, let's call that "R" the retrieve. The dog is sent to get his ball so "retrieve" makes that easy to remember and it is accurate.

The second "R" to remember in the chain is the reverse, otherwise known as the box turn or swimmer's turn. Box turn and swimmer's turn describe what the dog is doing but, assigning the behavior a word beginning with an "R" makes it easier to rememember so I choose REVERSE. Besides, it is also accurately describing the dog's behavior and the purpose of that behavior: To catch the ball (retrieve) and change direction (reverse).

The third behavior we assign an "R" to is the recall. After the dog has has retrieved his ball and reversed his direction down the flyball course, we want a lightening quick return to his handler, thus choosing "recall" as the word we want to associate with this portion of the flyball run.

So, now we have three very easy descriptive words that label the three critical portions of the behaviors we teach a dog to perform flyball. No matter how much more we break down the behaviors, it is these three elements that make up the basics of flyball and where we begin each dog's lessons. We can also use these elements to evaluate each individual's progress in training or to analyze training issues. We can also use these elements to develop class structure and lesson plans for teams or training clubs. There is a never-ending list of possibilities that help us to organize our efforts to train and improve our flyball canines by using the three "R"s as a core curriculum.

I shall go into more detail in later articles how picturing the flyball run into these three basic elements saves time and effort and will result in a better trained flyball dog.

See ya at practice!

Using Target and Clicker to Teach the Swimmer's Turn

Dog Training: Swimmer's Turn
Box Turns: Introduction

When you put the target on the box... won't the dog just touch the target with both front feet? How do you get the back feet up there too for the swimmer's turn?

-Cynthia Blue

My short answer to the comment above was that it depends on how you set up the dog. When I thought about it, I realized that there are a lot of factors to consider about how to set up the dog for this exercise and what you must do to achieve a four-footed swimmer's turn.

Factors to consider:

1. Dog size. Big dogs have a harder time getting their back feet up on the box than little dogs. In between "big" and "little" there is every size imaginable! If your dog is medium to small build, the easiest swimmer's turn amounts to pouncing on the box and planting all four feet onto the pedal simultaneously. If your dog's build is too large for all him to actually "fit" all four feet up there comfortably, then you are going to have to teach him a two part swimmer's turn which will involve kicking off the box with the back feet after the front feet have made contact.
2. Temperment. Some dogs have a high energy level coupled with high "prey drive". They may be so motivated by the prospect of reward that it may be problematic to slow down their path on and off the box enough to pattern the back feet for a proper swimmer's turn. Others may have such a low energy level that they treat approaching the box like a walk in the park.
3. Maturity level. A puppy or a young dog may have a short attention span. You can't work very long before they are looking for something else to do, especially if they do not understand what behavior will get them their reward.

Every dog is unique in their genetic behavioral make up. I'm sure there are more factors then the ones I've listed above but I consider them to be the major factors.

Now, how do you set up the dog to illicit the swimmer's turn on the box?

• First, we assume the dog responds to the clicker.
• Second, we also assume you know which way your dog naturally turns.
• Lastly, we assume dog has learned to put his feet on the target with a word cue.

You will need at least two assistants for this exercise. One person stands on the box. Of course, there is no ball involved. However, the box will need bracing against the force of the dog jumping on it and also, you want to teach the dog to expect a human to be standing on the box.

The second assistant will be holding your dog for you until the proper time to release the dog.

If your dog turns to his left, have your assistent hold your dog on the right side of the lane. (Dog's right.) You should have your left foot planted in front of and center of the box. You should find you are semi-facing your dog. You should have your dog's "motivator" ready to guide his path on to and off of the box. Your dog should only be one step away from you as a starting point. You should have placed the target onto the box where you want your dog's front feet to make first contact with the box.

When the dog is released, you must be prepared to use your body to help guide the dog from your right side, onto and then off of the box, and then back down the lane on your left side. You will do a "half pivot" right in front of the box with your dog jumping onto and then off of the box in a half circle around you. You shouldn't need to move more than one step away from the box while doing this exercise. Your dog should get a click every time both his front and his rear feet touch the pedal. It might be helpful to have your box assistant do the clicking so you can concentrate on guiding your dog's path.

If your dog turns to his right, you will set up the exact opposite way. Your dog will begin from his left side of the lane. You will place your right foot in front of and center of the box, etc.

Anyway, when you, your dog and your assistants are ready, offer your dog's motivator (food or toy), call your dog's name and use your word cue for "target". (Could be "PUSH" or "HIT IT", whatever you choose) Your assistant should release the dog the moment the dog is focused on you, the target and the motivator. In one smooth motion, pivot in front of the box and guide the dog up and then off while using the motivator. Lavishly praise your dog for any effort to get his feet on the box. Eventually, raise the criteria for a click and reward only the best turns.

What if your dog consistently "misses" putting his rear feet on the box?

Then, it is time to use a "jump board" in your training as part of your set up. A jump board is a training aid designed to guide your dog's feet onto and off of the box. It is placed a few inches in front of the box. It is usually 6-7 inches high with only one upright to hold it in place. The distance between the jump board and the box is determined by what will make the dog clear the jump to reach the box.

A jump board is especially helpful for the big dogs who have a "two part" swimmer's turn. You can use the jump board even in the "introductory phase".

That's how I set up introducing the swimmer's turn using clicker and target. Does anybody have a different method? Tell me about it! ....and, in the meantime,

See you at practice!

Which Way Does My Dog Turn?

Dog Training: Box Turns (Introduction)

Before you introduce your dog to the box, you need to know which way your dog turns. Does this really matter? Yes, it really matters. In order to teach the "Swimmer's turn" on the Flyball box, it is crucial to know ahead of time which way your dog naturally turns since the swimmer's turn puts the dog at an angle on the box in the direction of his "turn".

More races are won or lost at the box than any other element in the race. A swimmer's turn not only saves "time" at the box but, decreases your dog's chances of injury at the box. A properly taught and properly executed box turn dissipates the energy built up by a dog's speed and inertia hitting the box. A "straight on" approach puts a lot of stress on a dog's front musculature, particularly the neck and shoulders. A lot of dogs also suffer "impact" injury to their face and mouth with a straight on approach. Once a dog learns this approach, it is nearly impossible to re-train proper technique so, our goal is to never allow your dog to hit the box the wrong way!

Some dogs always turn the same direction no matter what and its easy to determine if they are lefties or righties. Others are more "ambidextrous" and may require some experimentation to learn if there's a preference.

The test is simple. Use a room with lots of floor space. While holding your dog, get your dog's attention on a ball or some other toy. It should be something they like alot so they are not thinking about how they turn. Roll or toss it a few feet away and then let your dog get it. Observe which way they turn. If after several tries, your dog seems to turn both ways, keep a score. Try this over several days. Eventually, one side will win out over the other.

A more formal approach is the dead ball retrieve. You may use jumps or not depending on your dog's age and development. You do NOT need a box or a slantboard for this. You also don't want a lot of speed with this exercise. Your dog is simply picking up a ball off the floor.

Have your "box loader" at one end of a lane. You and your dog at the other end. Have the box loader draw your dog's attention to them by calling your dog's name and waving or bouncing the ball. Once your dog's attention is on the ball, let him go to retrieve it. The box loader should place on the floor a ball for the dog to retrieve. Since there is no "box" your dog has to slow down to pick up his ball. Once the ball is picked up, both you & your box loader need to note which way your dog turns. Although your dog is learning to retrieve balls, you must prepare for his next lesson as well as the one he is learning now.

When is your dog ready to learn the box? I usually think about introducing the box when my dog is doing dead ball retrieve consistently over jumps and a dog is working in the opposing lane.

See you at practice!

Dog Training: Runbacks

Dog Training: Runbacks

"Runbacks" are a link in the flyball chain that we can introduce without jumps or a ball. That makes it ideal as another puppy training technique that is virtually "no-impact" on soft, growing bones and yet, if done properly, encourages a dog to return to you at top speed.

Begin by identifying your dog's motivator. I like a tugging dog so find a tug that really turns your dog on. Some have squeakers in them. Some are hard and some are plush. Some even have a ball or kong or some other toy attached. Plush might be better for a puppy who might be teething and has tender gums.

Get a helper to hold your dog until you are ready. Before you walk away, make sure you have your dog's attention on you. Step only a few feet away and then call your dog and tease him with your motivator. He should be excited and run to get his tug. If not, look for reasons why. Is your dog distracted by something? Remove the distraction. Is your dog thirsty and looking for water? Provide him water but, not too much. Some dogs exhibit thirst when actually they are "stressed" possibly because they know you want something (a behavior) but they aren't sure what it is.

Repeat this exercise several times always looking for an excited and enthusiastic return to you. Whenever you get that, reward lavishly. Make this tons of fun for your dog. Remember to let him "win" the game of tug with you!

Introducing Jumps

Before introducing jumps, you should have a fast, enthusiastic and reliable recall on your dog. Your puppy should be developed enough to safely hop over a 6" obstacle. If all this is true, you are ready for introduction to jumps.

Remove all jumps from the lane except one. Your helper should be standing close enough to that jump with your dog that your dog has no other choice but to jump that jump in order to come to you. Everything else is the same as before.

You should practice at least a dozen or more times at this close an interval before attempting to start the dog any further away. You are attempting to teach the dog that jumping jumps is FUN and part of the game. Don't move back too soon or your dog may learn that it's ok to go around a jump occasionally. That is a huge "no no" and it's best to not allow the dog to err in the first place.

Once it is clear that the dog knows to take the jump, introduce a second jump. Start as close to this second jump as you did when introducing the jump for the very first time. Take these steps s-l-o-w-l-y. By establishing early on that the jumps must be taken, you will have a dog that will choose to take the jumps during the excitement of running a race, even if he finds himself out of alignment with the jumps. This could make all the difference between winning or losing a heat, a race or even a placement.

Drag Racing

Double runbacks or "Drag Racing" as we sometimes call it is when two dogs are doing runbacks to their owners side by side in each lane. This is a good way to introduce the concept of another dog in the opposite lane. In the beginning, you will want to put up gating or some other barrier to prevent crossing over. If your dog seems to be ready to stay in his lane while racing another dog, take the gating down and station people in the middle as a precaution. Every dog is different and every dog will make a mistake at some point.

Should your dog be ahead or behind the other dog? That is a judgment call based on your experience with him. Pay close attention to the circumstances around your dog's mistake when he made it. If the dog was ahead of him, try to start them evenly or even start your dog ahead of the other dog. The reasoning is that some dogs that are clearly racing the other dog will "blow the jumps" in order to beat that dog. That's why you will allow him to beat that dog in a practice situation in order to stay on the jumps.

Some dogs will "crossover" when they are ahead in the race in order to cut off their opponent. In that circumstance, you will do the opposite. You will let the other dog get ahead before releasing the dog that likes to cross. Eventually, you will let them go closer together untill they can start together without a mistake.

Conclusion:

This is how you do runbacks and gradually work in taking jumps and racing other dogs. We will look at ways to troubleshoot dogs that seem to have issues with jumps and or crossing over later in this series. Until then,

See you at Practice!

Dog Training: Stand for Measuring

Dog Training: Stand

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Many people stress out when it comes to standing your dog for measuring. There is no need because teaching the "stand" is easy to do. The results will be a dog that not only stands for measuring in flyball and agility but, should easily allow children to pet him or a veterinarian to examine him.

The "stand" is actually two commands. One is for stand itself. The other is the "stay" command. Stay will be used for sits and downs in formal Obedience but, has no counterpart in Flyball.

Slow is Fast so don't rush any of the steps. Begin by examining your dog all over his body. Be soothing, almost like a massage. Encourage your dog to stand on all four feet as you do this. You are building trust with your dog so, I repeat, slow is fast.

After several times of doing this, if your dog seems to stand solidly without moving as you examine him, try picking up his feet one at a time and place them back on the floor. The goal is to get your dog to allow you to re-position his feet without any movement at all on his part. While being measured under a wicket, you will likely have to re-position his feet so that your dog's weight is evenly distributed so being able to re-position his feet without fussing is crucial.

Assuming you have reached the point where you can give your dog the "stand" command and he is standing on all four feet and then you tell him "stay" and your dog knows he is to stop moving, now is the time to introduce the concept of a wicket. Lightly touch your dog on the shoulders for a moment, praise and treat. Gradually, build the time you have your hand on your dog's shoulder. Continue to touch his shoulders and move down his back towards his tail. Slow is fast. You will not be doing this all in one training session. Eventually, you will have a dog that will "Stand/Stay" for several minutes reliably.

Finally, have some family members examine him while doing "stand/stay". Eventually, you should have some strangers examine him as well.

Remember to keep it fun. Training sessions should be short in duration and, if possible, several times a day. I think every dog should be taught to do this, not just little dogs that are destined to become "height dogs".

See you at practice!

Flyball: Dog Training

Dog Tag= Dog Training!

What makes a good flyball dog? Good dog training, that's what! ...but, how do you get that "super-smooth, super-fast" dog trained?

Let's start from the very beginning!

Good dog training begins the moment you pick out your dog! Most of the time, this will mean starting out with a puppy. ....but, not always! Sometimes, a full grown adult dog will join your household. I will attempt to include articles that may be applied universally to both dogs and puppies. I may use the words "puppy" and "dog" interchangeably.

Training a dog for a unique sport such as Flyball needs to utilize and tap into the dog's own natural instinct to chase and to bite. To begin, you need a "motivator". That's dog trainer's talk for a dog toy!

It can be a squeaky. It can be hard or plush. It can be a ball or frisbee. One of the most popular is simply a long, braided piece of cloth called simply a "tug".

Offer your dog the dog toy and call out his name. He should respond and want to bite the toy. Give it to him and engage in a little game of tug. Call his name often and praise him while you play tug.

Is this really "dog training"?

• The answer is "Yes!" You are teaching your puppy his name.
• You are teaching your puppy controlled play.
• You are teaching your puppy what his "reward" will be in the future.
• You are giving your puppy a reason to work for you & with you.

In return, you are learning how to read your dog. You are learning what your dog responds to and also, what he ignores. Pay attention to these kinds of things. Being able to properly "read" your dog's motivation will help you move quickly to a well trained flyball dog!
How do you end the game? First, look for signs that the puppy is tired. Use this natural loss of focus to take the toy out of the picture. You do not want to "force" your puppy into relinquishing the motivator. You simply do what it takes to control your puppy. It may be grabbing hold of his collar or harness. It may be picking him up off the floor. Whatever works for your puppy, use it to control when the play session ends.
See you at practice!

Flyball: Dog Tag

Hello!

Welcome to my flyball dog training blog. Here you will learn about training your dog to compete in flyball.
Flyball is a relay race for dogs over jumps to fetch a ball. Hence, the name "Dog Tag" added to my blog name.
I hope you enjoy learning tips and tricks to have a better trained flyball dog!

See you at practice!

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