WEEK 7: Acceptance
Always end on a high note of success!
Never end on a failure.
Never end on a failure.
The dog remembers the last thing it did,
so always end with a positive 🙂
LIGHT LINE HEELING & PATTERN TRAINING
Material for Light Line Heeling
Can be found at most major hardware stores
- Braided (not twisted) Nylon Mason's Line or 550 Parachute Cord
- You’ll need about 20 ft. of line
- It’s recommended to use a color that will show up easily on ground (dirt) or grass
- It’s NOT recommended to use neon colors as they never soften and become flexible like the regular colors
Start each training session working on Week 6 exercises and reserve the last 20 minutes of your training session for Week 7 exercises.
Terms to Know
Days 1 & 2 will familiarize you and your dog with the light line and the concept of pattern training. These will be used to produce reliability beyond contention in your dog.
*IMPORTANT* DO NOT try to use the light line as a leash!!
If the dog bolts and you grab the line like a leash, it is going to melt your skin!
Pattern Training
- Up until now, you have constantly changed up your heeling patterns so the dog did not anticipate what you were going to do next.
- This week is different - you will do the SAME EXACT PATTERN during EVERY training session.
This is the introduction to off-leash and we want the dog to be successful. We NEED the dog to be successful in order to move forward with the lessons.
During Training Sessions
- Attach the large loop on the end of the light line to the Tab (see video for how to do this).
- Make sure you have a bridging link (smaller loop) in the light line about 18 inches down from the large loop on the end.
- When the dog is in heel position, the light line should always be between you and the dog. It will just drag on the ground.
- BE CAREFUL and WATCH YOUR STEP so you don’t get caught or tangled in the light line while walking or turning.
- Verbally encourage your dog EVERY time you move forward (“Heel”) and for EVERY turn!
- Days 1 & 2:
- Light line is attached to the Tab
- Work with leash attached to collar like normal (on-leash)
- Days 3 & 4:
- Light line is attached to the Tab
- On-Leash
- Bridging Link
- On-Leash
- Days 5 & 6
- Light line is attached to the Tab
- On-Leash
- Bridging Link
- Off-Leash (leash attaches to your pant leg like when working Fido)
- Bridging Link
- On-Leash
Recommended Training Sequence
-- Do this over and over using the SAME EXACT PATTERN during your training session
NEVER LET A DOG LEARN THAT THEY ARE NOT IN YOUR CONTROL NOW WITHOUT A LEASH! THE DOG MUST BELIEVE YOU STILL HAVE CONTROL AS YOU TRANSITION TO OFF-LEASH.
BE AWARE! THE LIGHT LINE IS NOT A LEASH! IF YOU ATTEMPT TO USE IT LIKE A LEASH, WHEN THERE IS ENOUGH PRESSURE, THE LINE WILL CUT OR BURN OR MELT YOUR SKIN.
- Use all the other tools in your dog training tool kit you have learned to keep your dog in heel position.
Verbally encourage your dog EVERY time you move forward, "Heel" and for EVERY turn.
Pattern training is your friend and it will greatly benefit your dog!
DO THE SAME EXACT PATTERN DURING EVERY TRAINING SESSION.
REMINDERS!
🠊 It is your responsibility to keep your dog in heel position within 6-15 inches AT ALL TIMES.
🠊 If your dog is struggling, do Halts/Auto Sits so your dog can Sit and be praised.
🠊 If your dog is lagging or going wide, do an immediate Left About Turn (TC in right hand) and drop the TC on their butt as you pass them and command "Heel".
🠊 If your dog is forging slightly, simply drop the TC on their butt (TC in left hand) and do a quick Auto Sit.
🠊 If your dog is not paying attention, do pace changes.
🠊 If your dog bolts ahead of you (they shouldn't after just doing Recalls with TC in Week 6), step on the line and do an immediate "Fido, Come". You should have TC in hand in case you need it.
❖ IF you are nervous about working off-leash, work in an enclosed or semi-enclosed area such as a tennis court or anywhere with a fence or wall or boundary.
❖ IF the off-leash ISN'T working, switch immediately to the leash and do some very brisk leash handling, pace changes, turns, Auto Sits, etc.
🠊 If your dog is struggling, do Halts/Auto Sits so your dog can Sit and be praised.
🠊 If your dog is lagging or going wide, do an immediate Left About Turn (TC in right hand) and drop the TC on their butt as you pass them and command "Heel".
🠊 If your dog is forging slightly, simply drop the TC on their butt (TC in left hand) and do a quick Auto Sit.
🠊 If your dog is not paying attention, do pace changes.
🠊 If your dog bolts ahead of you (they shouldn't after just doing Recalls with TC in Week 6), step on the line and do an immediate "Fido, Come". You should have TC in hand in case you need it.
❖ THINK. Be prepared with your TC in hand, pick an area of LOW distractions, and an environment where your dog has the greatest opportunity to succeed.
❖ IF you are nervous about working off-leash, work in an enclosed or semi-enclosed area such as a tennis court or anywhere with a fence or wall or boundary.
❖ IF the off-leash ISN'T working, switch immediately to the leash and do some very brisk leash handling, pace changes, turns, Auto Sits, etc.
The point of this week is to transition to off-leash. THIS IS A HARD WEEK - there are a lot of things happening all at once and it is initially confusing.
Learning to handle the leash, the dragging line, keep the TC’s in hand, remember to verbally encourage, compensate for whatever your dog does, AND help your dog remain within proper heel position while heeling.
-- Will you have challenges? YES.
-- Will you have unexpected distractions? YES, they always show up.
-- Will you be confused at times? YES.
So, wherever and whenever you do the light line work, be sure to make every effort to help your dog succeed. YOU NEED TO FOCUS 100% ON YOUR DOG AND YOUR HANDLING.
Less done well
is FAR, FAR better than
more done poorly
WALK AWAY STAYS
Training Area
- A place with some distractions
- Somewhere with 100 yards of straight distance and the ability to back-tie the dog
- A football field works great because it has lines 10 yards apart for you to use as markers. (This will be the point of reference in this document)
Materials Needed
- 15 ft. Longe Line - Used to backtie the dog.
- Helper - Someone who has been “dehumanized” to represent no more than a fixture of the routine.
- Front Place Board - For stability for the dog to hold its Stay.
You will also need a way for your helper to communicate with you while your back is turned, should the dog break and you need to correct. Find a way that works best for you, but some ideas include:
- Walkie-talkies
- A flag of some kind raised by the helper with you wearing a pair of the glasses that cyclists wear with a little outboard mirror
- The helper makes a sound/noise that is not familiar to the dog - just make sure you can hear it at 100 yards away
- Sending a text message
Your helper shall never be more than thirty feet from the dog and shall always be able to see the dog’s front feet, as well as the dog’s head position.
‘Starting Position’
- Bring the dog onto the football field and place into a Sit/Stay about 5 ft. in front of the goal post. (Remember you can use a front place board)
- Leave the dog on a Stay and then back-tie them to the goal post.
- Do a Return to Your Dog and an Exercise Finish.
- Take small steps, as you only have about 12 ft. of slack in the line.
- You should now be in heel position with the two of you looking down field 100 yards at the other goal post.
- The helper is about 20 ft. to the left of the dog and standing at about the 10 o’clock position.
Sequence
- Begin in ‘Starting Position’.
- The helper says: “Sit your dog” (pause for about 8 counts) “Leave your dog”.
- You command, “Stay” with the signal then leave your dog, RIGHT foot first, and walk directly toward the other goal post.
- DON’T LOOK BACK … DON’T YOU DARE LOOK BACK.
THAT DEFEATS THE WHOLE PURPOSE OF THIS EXERCISE. - Walk out to the 10 yard line, turn and face your dog, wait about a minute or so, then return back to them.
- You’ll start with 10 yards then increase the distance each day.
- Once you successfully return around the dog and are back in heel position, the helper will pause for about 8 counts then say: “Exercise Finish”.
The Distances
*NOTE: The helper has three jobs.
- To monitor the dog and to signal you if you need to come back to make a correction.
- To ‘run interference’ for you in the event that a loose dog should challenge yours or other people attempt to engage and disrupt the training session.
- To become a reference ‘fixture’ which will serve a motivational cause and a legal effect. This reminds the dog that a human is still present and will reinforce any disobedience.
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