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Chaining Table Training

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Training the Pause Table  - Part 6

Chaining the Table Training

By MS du Toit

You have now gone through all the different steps of training Fido how to perform the pause table in agility. You have trained him to run with enthusiasm to the table and to jump onto it. You have trained him to do a very fast sit or down, whichever the judge would decide on. You have trained Fido to perform a very secure stay, even when you run away from him. And you have also trained him to break his secure stay the moment you give a release command.  But you have trained these steps separately and it is now time to combine them through a process called chaining.

Because you have taken the time and laying a solid foundation by training each step thoroughly, you should experience no difficulty chaining them up. I would suggest that you use back chaining, but you actually start in the middle. Take your dog to the agility course where you must have three obstacles arranged in a triangle. You can have a jump, the table and the tunnel. Let your dog jump on the table and let him sit or down on the table. Give the stay command, move away to the tunnel with your hand outstretched, wait a few seconds and release. Click as he jumps off, let him run through the tunnel and give a treat. Repeat many times. Sometimes you should wait at the jump. You should also vary the duration, sometimes you should wait five seconds, sometimes ten seconds and sometimes even longer. Also remember to call him to different sides, not just always to your left or right side.

At another training session you should send the dog to the table and as he jumps on, give the sit or down command. Send him over the jump to the table or through the tunnel to the table. Click and treat if he responds. Also give the stay command. Click and treat him on the table as he stays there. You have now reduced the four steps into two steps. Now at last you can combine these two steps to have only one flowing sequence. In other words you send him over the jump to the table, give the sit or down command as he jumps onto the table. As he goes into the sit or down position, give the stay command. Run to the tunnel to position yourself there, but do not take your eye off of the dog. Keep your hand outstretched. Wait a few counts and give your release command. Click as he jumps off, send him through the tunnel and treat. If he gets the whole sequence right, throw a party. Praise and give him a jackpot. Throw the ball and play a bit. Then repeat it one more time and stop for the day.

If your dog experience difficulty in grasping this whole sequence, you should back up a few steps and progress slower. Following these step by step guidelines of training your dog to perform the pause table, you will end up with a very reliable and confident dog knowing exactly what is expected of him.




MS du Toit has been training dogs for ten years. Please visit her Dog Training Review Page.
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