Thursday, September 6, 2012

Bases for a line out with nervous dog that won't do it naturally

M'Opus gets tangled every single time we start a run. She won't stay up front, bounces around and when I do get her to stop moving, she can't help facing towards me. I need to change that. Ideally she will stand strait looking forward and wait for a go command to bounce forward.

There a few things I want here:
-Stay still
-Dog on front of me and orientated in the same direction as me
-Looking forward
-Standing

Those are challenges for a stressed dog which feels comforted by visual contact.

I go step by step.

We have been working a simple stay, with me moving around Mopus. Staying is something that I got easily from her but except that she would spin on the spot as I moved around her. She really wants to keep that eye contact.

Once stay was understood as "stay on that spot". I started back with some stays with out moving as far from her. Actually, I would keep my legs almost glued to Mopus but move myself behind her, if she stayed in that position, butt end towards me I rewarded reaching on front of Mopus to give the treat in that same position with her nose pointing forward. At this point, I don't care if Mopus is sitting or standing, all I want is her back facing me.

On the next step, I do the same motion but take one step back, braking the contact between my legs and the dog. I make that short step back forward and reward. As the dog gets the gesture, I move more steps back.

Next, that's where the video is at, I move away, behind Mopus without staying glued on her. You can see there how she is having a hard time not spinning towards me but knows what I'm expecting. I don't really care at this point what direction she is facing, as long as when I am moving away from her she keeps her back towards me.






No comments:

Post a Comment