AH-HA!

Handler focus.  I has it.

Handler focus. I has it.

For the past several months, I’ve been working on Risa’s fundamentals. Mainly positions (left side heel, right side heel, and front) and working on focus. These are her main sticking points and the biggest issues I have with her when it comes to competition (besides the fact that she’s fearful and dog reactive). I’ve been using platform work to really hone those skills and it is working really, really well. I’m so happy with platform work! I only wish I had started her with it rather than needing to use it to brush up her skills. It’s a lot harder to add in a word for the behavior when the meaning of the word itself is unclear to her. (Certainly, I could have started with a new word but I chose not to.) She’s really starting to get the idea that these words mean “be in a specific position.” I couldn’t be happier.

I decided to watch the DVD of our private lesson with Michele Pouliot from November the other day. I thought getting a refresher on using platforms would be ideal and even better since it was specific to my dog. 😉 We had also worked on focus since Risa tends to wander off during sessions and she definitely did that day.

It’s been a while since our session and I’d forgotten a lot of what was said. One of the things Michele mentioned really clicked with me when I watched our DVD. Risa has great focus when she knows she is supposed to be paying attention. The light bulb went on. When we’re training, it is not that Risa doesn’t know how to focus on me. It’s not just that she is hyper vigilant and feels the need to check things out (though both of those things are true). The main issue is that it is not clear to her when she needs to be on and focused on me. She’d been getting better about that even without me actively realizing that was the true issue. Now that I know that’s what the real problem is, I can make certain to work on it. I’m making it very clear to Risa when she’s “on” versus when she’s “off” so that she knows when she’s expected to perform and be with me and when it’s okay to wander off.

Now that I’ve had this Ah-ha! moment, I think she’ll improve even faster. I just wish I’d gleaned that nugget of information sooner!

About Jamie

I'm just a traditionally-trained artist with interests in dog training. I currently teach classes at the local obedience training club (tricks, freestyle, and Rally-FrEe) and I also teach classes professionally for an organization who helps veterans train their own service dogs.
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