We played obstacle discrimination between tunnel and A-frame at the start line today.
Pearls when cueing tunnel versus A-frame from the startline:
- Tunnel when it is furthest out from the handler: face your entire body perpendicular directly toward the dog's line with your cueing arm bent at the elbow, verbally cue "Break! Out! Tunnel!" while straitening your arm out in front of your body with your hand up in a stop sign position while stepping forward toward the dog's line into the tunnel
Straighten your arm out in front of you with your hand up while stepping forward toward the dog's line into the tunnel:
- A-frame when it is closest to the handler: face your body and feet forward parallel to the dog's line; put your arm straight out from your shoulder, elbow locked; verbally cue "Break! In! Feet!" and when you say "In!" draw your straight arm in and down into your body along your hip to indicate the dog to come in toward you; then point your hand and arm to the A-frame indicating to the dog her line of travel "Feet!"
Handler's body and feet parallel to the dog's line with arm straight out from the shoulder is a clear visual signal that the dog will come to recognize:
Draw your arm straight in to your hip to indicate the dog to come in toward you:
Point to the dog's line of travel indicating the A-frame contact:
- Be decisive and confident when cueing and directing your dog's line
We also played a mini-course of tunnelers.
Pearls:
- When doing a front cross, always turn toward your dog
- Cue tunnels early, while the dog is in the tunnel or often even before the dog enters the tunnel
- When cueing tunnels, give the directional cue, for example "Go!" for straight ahead or "Here!" for a turn toward the handler, the obstacle itself in the line of the dog's path that you are directing becomes the cue to take each tunnel
Jackie learning Tunnel versus A-frame discrimination for the first time, and playing a tunnelers mini-course:
