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Do you call jumps?


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Yelling each obstacles out though would never work for me since teeter/tire/tunnel/table are all interchangeable for me.

 

We only have 2 T options since the teeter is a seesaw to us and we rarely see a table but getting tunnel and tyre mixed up between brain and mouth is quite common. I'm sure we've all found that if there is a conflict between verbal and physical cue most dogs will go with the physical.

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I got a lot of flack not all that long ago on the NADAC list when I complained about how god damn annoying it is when people go around the course shouting the name of every obstacle they wish their dog to take, usually in a fairly high-pitched tone of voice.

 

Even worse is watching these handlers on a Hoopers course -- I want to stick a fork in my ears when I hear them HOOTING out, "Hoop! Hoop! Hoop! Hoop!" Come on, there are 22 hoops out there in the ring with you. Do you really think that your dog needs to be told, "Hoop!" when there are no other obstacles to take??

 

Once the dog has a basic understanding of agility and handling, they should know that the name of the game is to follow the path that the handler gives them and to take any obstacles which end up in that path.

 

The more words we throw that them, especially if those words are fairly meaningless to the dog, essentially trains them to tune us out. How is the dog supposed to differentiate between the mundane (Jump! Jump! Jump!) and the truly important cues (Come! Turn! Switch! Out!)? If you eliminate the pointless stuff, the important stuff has more of an impact on the dog and they don't have to concentrate so much on trying to figure out if you are actually giving them an important directive.

 

I will occasionally name the tunnel on course because my dogs find it motivating and it can give a boost in speed. I name the teeter so they know to put on the brakes and not go flying over it like it's a dog walk. The weaves are named so that they collect as required to make the entry. Dog walk and a-frame are both "up" and I will almost always use that cue, if nothing else to solidify the obstacle name for times of discrimination.

 

But to sit and call out every jump on course... Well, I just find it annoying. Not enough to do anything about it, but I tend to inwardly roll my eyes when I hear it. Mostly because I just think it's pointless, and in the case of many teams I see locally -- Not helping their cause at all.

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When I started out I was one of those annoying novice handlers who said over over over tunnel over over ........ At my first trial I was so impressed by the silent handlers that I vowed I was going to that. Now the more I have learned I have realized silence is not always best, I do use over when I feel he needs some more direction, but I would feel silly saying over over over when what else would he be doing when we are staring right at a jump.

There is always the reality of the fact I am just trying to remember the course, and run fast enough to get my crosses in, remember what my arms are supposed to be doing, and all the other things I have paid trainers to teach me, that actually speaking coherent words is usually the last thing to happen.

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OMG that is too funny! PLEASE DO IT and be sure to post a video for us!!!! :D

I double-dog-dare ya!!

 

Hahaha. I will sometime. After Tessa gets a little more experience under her belt. She hasn't even done a Jumpers course yet in CPE, but once we knock some more of the green off, we'll do that sometime. :D :D :D

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My old instructors called every obstacle and my new one does not. It's been an adjustment for me since I tend to talk TOO much during any kind of training. I really think your body language and sending the dog to the right obstacle is clearer to the dog than screaming 'Mia jump! Mia jump! Mia teeter!' Yes, I was one of those obnoxious people. ;)

 

My dogs aren't border collies though so that doesn't answer that question.

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We do a really fun "silent night" course at our club's end of year/Christmas function. On course you can't say anything, or clap/click/stomp etc, everyone is always so surprised when the dogs go clear for the most part!

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  • 2 weeks later...

I don't call jumps with my BC mix. I found if I talked too much it confused her and she's keep turning to me. When I'd try calling jumps she would crash them as she tried to turn midair. Now if I just RUN and use body language, she stays with me and takes the jump.

 

I only use my voice to call her out of tunnels, tell her to "touch" on contacts, and I'm working on a teeter command as she doesn't seem to differentiate the teeter from the dog walk upon first coming to it (she runs all the way up the teeter before it started to move and then frantically hangs on as it falls).

 

Apparently I say so little that one judge was prompted to come over and ask if my dog were deaf, which cracked me up. But we're just at level 1 and it was a pretty easy course so I didn't have to say much.

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I did think of one instance where I call jumps and it was from a team snooker course at regionals this past weekend. I spent one part of the course just telling my dogs what not to take, when I finally got them lined up to the correct jump, I did tell them to jump it! lol

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