Ideas for Directional Work

Directional work provides exercises which help learn your dog to listen to your body language, which in turn can help you both become more aware and in tune with each other.

I start off with the basic stuff of sit, down, stand & hand targeting the first steps towards recognising and listening to hand & body signals. These are progressed on to learning the hand signals for left and right.

In the vid i include.

Cone work - excellent tools for helping the dog to learn to work away from you, to come in, go round an object, go left or right. You can vary the amount of cones you work with and how they are placed.

Mat/Towels - again fantastic for learning to work away, stops, and directional distance work.

And of course anything you see on walks..use, dogs so love interacting with you and the more you do with them the more responsive and happier they become.

In this vid i show how i use: Trees & empty cattle feeders, be observent at all times when walking you might find something else that is useful to use

Another simple way to give directional training is play the scavanger hunt game...here i throw out a handful of treats to the left, right or away. This exercise helps to learn the dogs to be observent and follow my arm signals. This is a great game cause it also stimulates and satisfies a dogs hunting and scavenging instincts. It also helps to keep the dog very attentive and focused on you.

Directional work is so useful in every aspect of dog training but especially fantastic for agility and gundog work.

The more you do with your dog in a positive way of course, the more it becomes in tune with you and understands your body language and what you want, I swear my choc sprollie can read my mind..she just seems to know what i want.

All my animals are trained with the clicker method, i either use the clicker or if it is not convenient to use one i use a conditioned word like, good or yes.

Postive training = HAPPY responsive, trusting, confident fantastic pets:)

Many thanks to Elaine for letting me use her fantastic large garden for some filming:)

Category:

Pets & Animals

Tags:

• Directional work
• learning left & right
• cone work
• mat/towel work
• agility work
• front cross
• rear cross
• Barney
• Inca
• Jaffa
• Scavanger hunt
• heelwork

[drumcafe8]

This is a wonderful video, MultiAnimalCrackers! ...You have given me all sorts of great training ideas here. All of your dogs are clearly thrilled to be working with you. Well done!

[MultiAnimalcrackers]

@drumcafe8 Thankyou so much for your lovely comment. glad you liked it x

[LineRocketPocket]

Wow! That's very inspiring! You seem like a great owner and trainer!! And your dogs look so happy while performing! Subscribing right away!

[MultiAnimalcrackers]

@LineRocketPocket Thankyou how kind. oh yes my dogs, ponies, cats and donkey love having fun and are always so very happy:) hope you enjoy my vids..i have lots and yet more to come. a lot of donk ones at the mo but there are some dog and cat ones ready to video soon:)

[k9partnership]

Nice job. 

[MultiAnimalcrackers]

@k9partnership Thankyou:))

[MultiAnimalcrackers]

@plumwoodposse your welcome...Thankyou soo much for commenting, yes i love having fun and so do my dogs:))

[plumwoodposse]

more Clicks to Inca, Barney, Jaffa and Kath! Loved the cone work! (and trees then later the jumps.) VERY fun and great exercise for the dog, mental and physical! indoor work was great too. Thanks for more smiles!

[pamelamarxsen]

Well, it is probably better that you do it just for fun. Sometimes I get frustrated when I forget a piece of a routine or an agility course and when I mess up something in a routine and sigh or make an irritated sound, they think I am irritated with them. :( So, sometimes I think that fun is just the best way to go! No pressure on you or your dogs!

[MultiAnimalcrackers]

@pamelamarxsen Thanks Pam. No nothing round here, I teach my dogs different moves but would have no idea how to put it together successfully to music. Everything i do with my dogs i do purely for fun!