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  1. #1
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    Competiton healing...correcting lagging

    Abby has started to "lag" while doing her heeling. Any suggestions on how to correct this?
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  2. #2
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    There are a few things you can try. Make sure you are keeping it fun for her and not doing too much routine drilling - if they are bored, that can be a cause. Go back to doing just a few steps at a time and rewarding correct position. Also do lots of direction changes, speed changes, etc - keep her on her toes. You can also do a few games like heel a little and if she is in correct position, crouch and throw a toy or treat in front of you so she has to go forward to get it - be sure you crouch before you toss so as to cue her it's a game - you don't want her all of a sudden lunging forward while she's supposed to be in heel. Talk to her a lot in practice - even if you can't do it in the ring, keep doing it in practice - this sounds silly, but I talk to Chloe while heeling in practice, and then when we go in the ring, I say the exact same things but in my head, and she responds as if I had said them out loud - I suspect she is reading my body language.

    Lagging is usually a motivation problem, so anything you can do to make heeling more fun for her will help.

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    Labowner (05-29-2014)

  4. #3
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    I agree with Annette - go back to the beginning and ask for one step with head up while heeling. Then two, then three, etc.

    Make it fun and be unpredictable - with Abbey when we had this problem, I added toys back in. We would get three or four steps of nice heeling with her head up, then I would playfully "pinch" her side (not hard, obviously) and run away. Abbey thought this was really fun. Then we would do it again and I'd throw her toy for her after a few good steps.

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    Labowner (06-03-2014)

  6. #4
    Senior Dog Labradorks's Avatar
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    Check out bridgetcarlson dot com. Lots of videos including some videos working with a lazy newfie on lagging. She is great at getting her dogs excited and heeling beautifully using positive methods (food). She makes her dogs work for their meals, much like Ian Dunbar, but with heeling, retrieves, etc. I used some of her methods as well as throwing treats and then asking my dog to heel up while walking away with a higher-value treat in hand, and the toy throwing reward as mentioned above. I have a specific favorite toy for my dogs that they only get to retrieve while practicing obedience and as a reward after a run, and they only get to retrieve it a few times, then it goes away until next time.

    Using these methods, my adult boy, Sam, has starting giving me beautiful heeling whereas before I had to drag him around and literally beg for his attention. He practically prances while looking up at me with a smile on his face and tail wagging and LOVES to heel now. People have stopped their cars to comment to me about how happy and in love with me he looks. LOL! It took time (over six months) of working on the heel specifically for short periods (5-10 minutes) daily, lots of games, toys, treats, and lots of praise that made me feel like a crazy person. Always positive and if I was having a bad day or getting irritated with him I would either not train or I would end on a positive note, doing something I know he was good at.

    Heeling is the hardest part of obedience work, in my opinion.

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    Labowner (06-03-2014)

 



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