Tunnel Love
November 2nd, 2008 Posted in training
Dancer emerges from the tunnel
Dancer is 25 inches at the shoulder. The agility tunnel is 24 inches in diameter. So one of the things Dancer needs to do, for a fast tunnel, is duck and run through stretched out. The tunnel was one of the very first obstacles I taught her, with the goal of having a fast tunnel. Elly has tunnel problems–it took quite a while for me to realize that it’s a difficult obstacle for a tall dog–most agility trainers just assume that “all dogs love the tunnel.” Nope. Not if they’re tall. If they’re tall, they have to be taught to love the tunnel. I play the “come game” with both dogs, through the tunnel, to encourage them to think it’s fun.
As a result of working with Mary Guttknecht and Andrea Dexter, I have been thinking a lot about speed. Mary likes to throw a toy ahead of the dog to encourage speed; so does Andrea. With Elly, that just wasn’t possible–I needed to keep her focused on me. Dancer, not so much. She’s pretty much always interested in working.
So I’ve been throwing a toy for Dancer, to encourage speed out of the tunnel, and enthusiasm. I think it’s working.
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