Class Resources
As an agility student, I would sometimes find myself getting ready to practice at home and going "what was that exercise again?" As an instructor, I want to try to help you guys be successful while working at home between classes. I have been trying to put together a few short videos of some of the foundation exercises we cover in class.
Please note that while I was filming the foundation jumping series of these videos I had a back injury and had to bend a bit out and to the side instead of just down by my side. I will re-film these (with additional angles) in the spring once the snow melts so stay tuned for updates. If you are in my classes you know what proper reward zone is :0)
Choose To Jump Step 1 - Neutral Position
Start by sitting in a neutral position at one side of the jump. Your body should be in the middle of the upright facing the same direction of the jump bar. You will want lots of treats in both hands. Start by tossing the treat out over the bar on the opposite side your dog is on so they cross the bar when going to get the treat. Do this a few times until your dog is readily going back and forth over the bar to get the treat. Then you will wait and let the dog choose to start going back over the bar before tossing the treat. Some dogs will go right back over, some may take a few seconds to figure it out. Ideally the treat will be tossed quick enough so that your dog keeps driving over the jump and looking ahead for the treat on their line without turning and looking back at you.
Once your dog understands the concept you can go from a sitting position to a standing position.
Tip - if your dog is not heading back over the bar and seems to be getting frustrated you can toss a treat behind them. When they go to get the treat it will get them back in motion and this will help them to head back towards the bar when they come back in your direction. Also, if you are doing this in grass, you will want to use light colored treats (cheese, puff balls etc) that are easier to see so your dog doesn’t lose focus “searching” for the treats.
This video is from when I first introduced this exercise to my 16 week old puppy Bindi. She has had a lot of shape training so picked up on the concept right away but it may take some dogs a couple sessions for this to “click.”
Choose to Jump - Step 2
For step 2 we remain in a neutral position but start throwing our treats out at various angles. This helps to build value on the jump for taking the bar at diagonal/slice as well as straight on.
Here is Bindi’s first session of step 2.
Choose to Jump - Steps 3 & 4
Here is where we get to start testing the value we have built on the jump by stepping onto both take off and landing side positions.
Once you get your dog going back and forth over a jump, toss a treat over the jump and take a side step out of the neutral position to the landing side of the jump. Make sure you are just side stepping and not moving forward, otherwise you will end up in your dog’s path. Now when the dog takes the jump they will be heading towards the same side you are on.
Now is the true test of how much value has been built on the jump as to get the next treat your dog will need to turn and go away from you to the landing side of the jump to get the treat.
Here is Bindi’s first session with working on steps 3 & 4. You can see her think a bit about going away from me but she catches on quickly.
Recall to Heel
The dog is perpendicular to the jump on the take-off side. The handler is on the landing side of the jump facing the dog. When the dog is released they should take the jump and then turn and land parallel to the bar with a 90 degree change of direction.
Extension Exercise
The dog is again perpendicular to the jump. The handler is on the landing side facing forward. When released the dog should come right to your side with no change of direction. Adding more distance between your dog, the jump and you will increase the difficulty of the exercise.
Serpentine Slice
The dog is setup on an angled approach to the jump. The handler is on the landing side facing forward away from the dog. When released the dog will jump diagonally and come into the handlers side.
270 - Foundation Steps
This is the first step in teaching an independent 270. The dog is parallel to the jump. The handler is on the landing side perpendicular to the jump facing the dog. When released the dog will move in an "L" shaped pattern to take the jump and come in to the handlers side.
Backy-Uppy
The dog is set perpendicular to the jump on the takeoff side facing the jump. The handler is also on the takeoff side of the jump, perpendicular to the bar but with back towards the jump facing the dog. With this queue when the dog is released they should jump, turn/wrap the jump and come into the handlers side. This is a complete change in direction to the dog which is useful to create a tight turn, keep dogs off wrong course obstacles and allows the handler to get a few strides further to the next obstacle.
Here is a link to a great article by Linda Mecklenburg regarding heel position (reward zone) http://www.awesomepaws.us/pdf/Reprint_UsingHeelPosition1.pdf
We also reference Linda's book Mastering Jumping Skills in class. If you are interested in checking it out you can click the picture below for more information.
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