Flyball Training - Lesson 3

It is very important not to proceed to this lesson until your dog has completed and is performing the training requirements from lessons 1 and 2. Your dogs should now be enjoying the recall, ball, and the motivator. They should be driving to you as hard as possible every time, grabbing onto the motivator and not letting go until you are ready to end the game. If your dog is at this stage you are ready to move on to this lesson. If not, keep working on the games in the last lesson until you achieve the drive you need from your dog.

There are many schools of thought on jump training and below I offer two methods. Some people think that you should just let the dog, no matter the size of the dog, find their own stride. Others say that for smaller dogs you should position the distance between the jumps so that the dog can single stride the jumps and then increase the distance between the jumps over a period of time. I have tried both methods with smaller dogs and both methods seem to work equally well. I tend to lean toward the former method by just letting the dog find their own stride.

Large Dog Stride and Jump Training

Most large dogs will develop striding through the jumps on there own, but if you are training a small dog you may want to use the Small Dog Stride and Jump Training, below. However, if you know they will never be able to single stride the jumps, then just use this section.

1. Use baby gates for this exercise by placing the gates parallel to each other with the jump in between. Start with one jump by having someone hold the dog on one side of the jump and recall the dog over it. Use your motivator as a reward. Do not move on to the step 2 until the dog is running through the single jump.

2. Add a second jump and gating and proceed as above adding successive jumps as the dog is ready. If you notice a problem, go back to a point where the dog was successful and proceed from there. Only proceed to the next jump if the dog is ready. The gating should be in place to insure the dog goes over the jumps. This is to insure the dog doesn’t fail during these exercises.

Small Dog Stride and Jump Training

If you feel confident that your small dog should be able to single stride the jumps then continue with this lesson. However, if you know that the dog will not be able to single stride the jumps go back and use the Large Dog Stride and Jump Training above.

1. Use baby gates for this exercise by placing the gates parallel to each other with the jump in between. Start with one jump having someone hold the dog on one side of the jump and recall the dog over it. Use your motivator as a reward. Do not move on to the step 2 until the dog is running through the single jump.

2. Now mark a starting point and have someone, a spotter, watch your dog from the side doing a recall (without the jump). A video camera may be helpful with this step. Have a spotter mark the point where your dog has finished three strides. Set your first jump between the gating two to three feet after that point. Now recall the dog from the starting point through the jump. The dog’s striding shouldn’t change as they run through the jump. It should look as smooth as a recall with no jumps. Once you notice a consistent recall through one jump you can add a second one.

3. It’s now time to add a second jump but it must be the proper distance away to make sure the dog only takes one stride between the first and second jump. Again this may be a good time to use a video camera to watch where the dog lands and takes a stride after the first jump.

Once the distance has been established, add additional gating and the second jump about one or two feet from the point the dog’s hind legs take off for his next stride. Again, the striding should look just as smooth as a recall with no jumps. Then measure the distance between the two jumps and you will know where to add your third and fourth jumps to the sequence.

Don’t add more jumps until you see the dog striding consistently. Keep your sessions short; only do five or six recalls and then end the session.

Over subsequent training sessions, continue step 3 until the dog is jumping the required distance of 10 feet. This is accomplished by recording the jump placement distance and increasing the distance with each session being mindful of the dog’s stride. The stride of the dog should look as smooth through the jumps as a recall with no jumps. The gating should be in place to insure the dog goes over the jumps, and it will insure the dog doesn’t fail during these exercises.

Chute Training

Continue training from lesson 2 chute training by having the dog retrieve the ball from the chute, but rise the chute to the second highest position (see adjustable chute plans). Also, by this time you should know which direction your dog will turn so move the ball position to the correct side of the chute. Make sure that the small chute jump or flyball jump is placed in front of the chute. Start using the words “hit it” when you send the dog to the chute for the ball. Use your motivator as a reward or continue tugging on the ball if necessary. You will want your dog to do this in a very fast fluid motion. Complete this step before proceeding to the next lesson and be sure that the dog knows the “hit it” command and what it means.

Note: Use self adhesive Velcro for the ball positions on the chute. For a chute supply list and photos see links on the Flyball Training Manual page.

Training Manual Information

This is a series of articles that I will post about Flyball training. I would ask that you please try to keep your comments to the specific topic of the each article, for there will be many others. You can see a high level outline of the topic to be covered in future post by viewing the Training Manual. Keeping the comments specific to each article will help future readers.

Please keep in mind that there are numerous methods in use but these are the ones that I use and they are some that work for me. If you have others that you would like to share, please post your comments.

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