by Nancy | Sep 26, 2024 | Competition, Obedience, Trial Preparation
When you are working on heelwork training to prepare for trials, here’s a fun drill you can try that will make your training more enjoyable and also help you identify training or handling issues. Plan your heeling pattern before you train your dog. Don’t...
by Nancy | Sep 24, 2024 | Competition, Obedience, Reinforcement
Reinforcement procedures can make or break your dog’s heel position. The method you use to reward your dog for heeling should be designed to ensure that potential issues, like forging or wide heeling, are not unintentionally built into the performance....
by Nancy | Sep 22, 2024 | Competition, Obedience
I was an AKC obedience judge for over 22 years, and I’d like to share a few heeling tips from the experience I’ve gained as a judge and a top competitor. Heeling Tip – In the obedience class I teach locally, I am constantly reminded that exhibitors...
by Nancy | Jul 19, 2024 | Agility, Competition
Agility competitors, are you frustrated with your dog’s start line? Do you feel like getting your dog to stay in position is a constant battle? Does your dog remain in position at home and in class but never at the trial? Are you confused because your...
by Nancy | Sep 9, 2023 | Competition, Obedience
This topic came up in a question from Amy Cook’s small dog webinar at the end of August. Unfortunately, I could not attend the webinar, but I was asked about my opinions later, giving me an excellent opportunity to think about it more. The question was...
by Nancy | Jul 21, 2023 | Agility, Competition
If you’ve been doing agility long enough, you know how fragile the start line is for many dogs. If you’ve never had an issue with your dog’s start line, consider yourself lucky. In this post, I want to discuss the less-known start line issues –...
