I am not anti professional handler

It has been a while since I have written, but I am feeling very inspired to write this post!  On more than a few occasions, I have had clients say to me, "I know how you feel about handlers, but...".  It seems that I may have inadvertently put out there in the universe that I am against people using professional handlers in the show ring.  That's actually not the case, let me explain.

I am not anti professional handler, however I AM pro owner handler!  I am a huge advocate for people showing their own dogs.  It actually saddens me that people who train their dogs for competitive and very challenging sports such as agility or competition obedience automatically believe that they need a professional handler for the conformation ring.  Most of these owners would never dream of allowing someone to handle their dogs in agility or obedience, yet they are easily led to believe that they must use a professional handler for conformation.  That's just not the case.  People can learn to train and handle their own dogs if that is something that they are interested in doing.

Sometimes this apprehension comes from the owner's own personal concerns or anxieties about showing their own dog.  Unfortunately, many times it comes from other people.  I have heard people at ringside, other owners and even judges tell people that they should have someone else handle their dog.  That their dog would finish more quickly or "look better" with a professional handler.  To me, that is such an incredible insult to the owner handler trying to not only finish their own dog, but engage in an activity with their dog that they might enjoy doing.  For many of us, it isn't just about finishing, it is also about the journey and the relationship with the dog.  It is about competing in a sport with your dog for the fun of it.  Everyone has to start somewhere, and I encourage people to show their own dogs if that is what they want to do.  Please exhibitors, spectators and judges, do not insult people by telling them that they make their dog look bad and should get a handler if they really want to show their own dog.  Owner handling should be encouraged in the show ring, in my opinion.  Let's not forget that everyone has to start somewhere.

The other thing that may make it seem like I have an issue with handlers is that I work with a lot of show dogs, with issues.  Many of them are shy or fearful or just unsure and it is actually BETTER for them to be with their owners.  For many dogs, being handed off to someone other than their owner can increase their anxiety.  Some people will say, "Oh, he just loves his handler" or "He is much more comfortable with his handler than with me."  This can sometimes be the case, but not always.  When the owner is claiming this but the dog's body language says otherwise, I have to go with what the dog is telling me.  Dogs are incredibly honest.  If they are fearful or worried, they will say so.  This is who and what I listen to.

I think that there are some really good professional handlers out there that treat the dogs will care, compassion and respect and those are the ones you should seek out.  I support people using a good, caring handler if that is what they choose to do, but I will continue to support and encourage owner handling as well.

The bottom line is that if someone really wants to handle their own dog, they should do it and not be pressured into using a professional if they want to do it themselves.  Dog shows should and can be a sport that people and their dogs do together as a team!

Free Stacking Tips

Sometimes when I do a private consult, I realize that I do a lot of different things when training show dogs or showing show dogs. Today, during a private, I realized something that I do, without thinking about it, that might help people for free stacking. The client wanted help on how to keep her dog from moving around when free stacked in front of her. She showed me first and he was following food, moving around, etc. Then, I took her dog for her to watch so I could work him and we could talk about what I do. When I took him, he stacked in front of me and held it staying in position. We were able to determine what we were doing differently and how we could improve it for her.

Here are the changes that I made for her. When she moves him around and then gets into the lineup, she is

to stand in front of him (which is where she wants to be for his free stacking). She will also change the way she is holding the lead. When she moves him the lead is gathered up to pick up slack, as it should be. But, when she is free stacking him and standing in front of she is now holding the end of the leash at the handle with the slack loose. This will cue her dog about what they are doing and what he should do. When she changes the way she is holding the lead, it means that they aren't moving and he will be free stacking in front of her. More information and clear communication for him will help him succeed.

Next, she will hold the bait in two hands with her arms bent up so her hands are at her waist or so. Prior to this, she was, without realizing it, keeping the bait low so that he was just following her hand with the bait in it. This would be fine if her goal was to lure him into a position, but at this point, that isn't what we wanted to do. Bending both arms told him it wasn't a sit cue and it kept him looking up and interested in the bait.

She may ask him to step forward or back up if necessary, but once he is where she wants him, her feet will be together and remain that way.

Finally, he needs to have a lot of feedback that he is doing it right. He has a default sit and if he doesn't know what he should do, he will throw his head back playfully and sit, however, if he is given feedback and information, he knows what to do and is happy to do it.

Wither her permission, I am sharing a picture from today. We weren't actually being too picky about his stack as much as we were that he remain standing and hold still.

Continued Education

I have been working with dogs professionally for over 28 years and involved in dog training for almost 25 years.  It is frightening to me to think where I would be if I was still doing now what I did all those years ago.  I suppose I could have chalked up all these years of doing things inappropriately and from the dark ages as "experience", but how valuable is experience when you aren't doing the best best for the animals and moving forward in terms of knowledge and skill?    

To me, it is critical that anyone who calls him or herself an "expert" be committed to continued education.  Continued education should include being aware of the most current information available to us, continuing to build and improve our mechanical skills and actual training "chops" and trying to grow and improve in general.  If I, or someone else, is taking someone's hard earned money and presenting myself as an "expert", I darn well better know what I am talking about.  I have a responsibility as a professional to be committed to learning everything I can and most importantly, staying in the loop about new information in regard to how animals learn, training and behavior and new information about dogs in general as it becomes available.

If you want to know if a trainer, behavior consultant, handler, breeder or anyone who presents him or herself as an expert is committed to continued education, ask them the following questions:

What seminars on animal behavior or training have you attended in the last 2 years?

What books have you read in the past 2 years?

What certifications or credentials do you have?  Do those certifications require Continued Education Units?

How do you stay current on the latest in dog training/behavior?

To be involved in dog training and behavior and not be interested in the most current information available to us is irresponsible.  To be presenting oneself as an expert in dog training and behavior and not interested in the most current research and information available is just plain unethical.  Our field has changed and evolved so much over the past 15-20 years.  Just doing it for a long time is not good enough, we must want to learn more and not be willing to settle for less.

You can do it!

As a professional dog trainer that specializes in positive training for show dogs, some of my happiest moments are when I convince owners to show their own dogs.  I understand the purpose of dog shows and I understand that people want to win, but it is possible to have success in the show ring showing your own dog.

To be clear, I am not against people using professional handlers and I am certainly not against good professional handlers.  The criteria with which I determine whether or not a professional handler is "good" is a subject for another blog, but I do think that there are plenty of good handlers out there who treat the dogs and their clients with kindness and respect.  This isn't about whether or not to use a professional handler.  This is about people who enjoy training and competing with their dogs and want to handle their own dogs.

I work with a lot of clients who have show dogs that they would like to show themselves.  Many of them really enjoy training their own show dogs and feel like they would like to try actually doing the showing as well.  What makes me sad is that many of these people have their confidence crushed by other people who believe that the dog has a better chance of winning if someone else handles him.  This may be the case, but for some people, they are okay with that and would prefer to take their time doing the training, showing the dog, learning the ropes and finishing their own dog.  For some people, it isn't about finishing the dog quickly and just getting it over with.  Some people actually want to learn to show a dog, specifically their own dog and the only way that they are going to get more confidence and skill is by doing it.  Being rushed at ringside and told everything that they did wrong and how they blew it for their dog does usually not build confidence, but breaks it down.

So, if you are a show dog owner with a dog that you want to show yourself, I say "go for it"!  Frankly, showing a dog is not that difficult once you understand how to do it and if you have trained and competed in obedience or agility, you sure as heck can learn to exhibit a dog in the show ring.  Do handlers have an edge?  Yes, they do this for a living and many are very skilled at it but they all started out not knowing how to do it either.  This is one of the only sports where amateurs compete against professionals and you won't always win, but I can tell you that sometimes you will.  I finished my first show dog owner handled all the way.  Did it take longer?  Yes, I am sure it did, but I did it!  There is really nothing like finishing a dog owner handled.  If this is what you want to do, do it!

If you are a breeder, co-owner, handler or just a friend of someone who wants to show their own dog, support them and encourage them, but don't put them down and don't tell them, they can't.  Remember, we were all there at one time.

My Blog My Way

I haven't written here for a while.  I think the reason is that I was starting to feel frustrated with people who are not positive reinforcement trainers reading my blog and then getting mad at me for putting down the use of positive punishment, aversives and painful equipment.  Well, this blog is about my thoughts and opinions on training show dogs and that includes the promotion of positive reinforcement training and non-aversive, dog friendly equipment.  There are plenty of other websites, blogs and trainers who recommend and discuss the use of aversives, but that isn't what I am about so it's not what my blog is about.  If you want to read about positive training for show dogs, you came to the right place!

Training Venom

I haven't blogged for a little while.  After bringing home Venom, our new Dachshund puppy, I have been kind of busy!  However, since part of what I have been busy with is his show ring training, I figured I might as well share it.  Since Venom came home 6 weeks ago, I have bee working on quite a bit with him.  I practice scent work (tracking) with him, I have started him on K9 Nose Work box work, we have started working on sit, down, name recognition and come here and I have been working on stack training and gait training.

The stacking is going really well.  I have been experimenting and using my Staxrite table to work on his stacking.  The Staxrite table is a little table that has sliding wood strips so that you can adjust it to the length of the dog.  It raises the dog off the base but only by a few inches.  This is the first time I have used it from puppyhood to train a dog and so far I am really liking it.  Tools like the Staxrite or the Happy Legs can be really helpful, unfortunately, I have seen so many people abuse them and practically use them as torture devices.  I once saw a miniature wirehair Dachshund at a show who was put on a set of Happy Legs on a grooming table with a leash tightly attached to a grooming arm for over an hour.  This is obviously not humane and not how they should be used.  We don't want to cause fatigue and pain, we just want them to learn to hold the stack for a short time.  I will stack Venom on there, ask him to wait and then feed treats as I praise him.  He is probably on there for 20 seconds at the most, then we take a break.  Of course, I also practice stacking without the Staxrite.

His gaiting practice is going really well.  We usually practice on the driveway in front of our house. On a show lead I begin to walk him slowly and click and treat him for not hopping or skipping.  He gets reinforced every time he makes the right choice.  It is important at this age and in the early stages of training that he gets reinforced often so that he can learn exactly what the behavior is that I want.  At this stage, I am very happy with how he is doing on this.  And, he is just so darn cute...

Being smart about those first dog shows

By now, you have figured out that I am all about making sure that dog shows are fun for dogs.  It's only fair that if we are going to ask our dogs to participate in a sport with us, that we make sure that they enjoy it.  Not only is it the only ethical way to approach it, it's also the only realistic way to approach it.  If a dog is not having fun, he is generally not going to be competitive.  So, whether you are starting out a new puppy or an adult that is new to the show scene, it is critical that you go about it the right way or you risk ruining dog shows for your dog forever, or at least for a long time.

Dogs, like other animals, can experience "single event learning" which means that some experiences, particularly very frightening ones can have a lasting effect.  If your dog goes to a dog show and has a very frightening experience or a very stressful or upsetting one, he may associate dog shows with bad things.  If we want our dogs to win at dog shows we have to make sure that they have fun at them and that they enjoy showing.  We want all their dog show experiences, especially their early ones to be fun and rewarding.  It is really critical that your dog doesn't experience any really scary experiences at his or her first few dog shows.  It is doubly important if you are working with a puppy under a year old or a very sensitive dog.

Since the first and most important thing to do is to make sure that your dog has fun at dog shows it is up to you to set it up to ensure that this happens.  Bring high value treats and toys to dog shows.  Realize that the first few times to a dog show can be very overwhelming so it's important that you are prepared to set your dog up to have fun and enjoy himself.  Bringing toys and treats will help him to associate dog shows with fun things.

Consider going to some shows just to hang out with your dog without entering.  A lot of people have a difficult time with this and figure that it's a waste of time to go without entering.  Not true!  It's actually a really good idea to take your dog to a show or two without entering so that he gets used to the sights and sounds that he will be exposed to at a dog shows.  Unless you have practiced in a LOT of different environments with a variety of different distractions you have no idea how your dog will react and how well he will be able to perform at a dog show, unless you attend a couple first to see how he does.  Dog shows are fun for people but they can be extremely overwhelming to some dogs.  Dogs that are easily aroused or shy or timid really need  to be desensitized to the dog show environment before being expected to perform reliably at one.

This next recommendation is a really important one and one that a lot of people take very lightly, unfortunately.  I recommend that a new show dogs first shows are one day gigs.  I would never ever start a puppy at a two day show and I would certainly never take a new show dog or a young show dog to a three or four day cluster.  Even with a very well trained and experienced show dog, three or four days is a lot.  I have seen many very stable dogs that seem to enjoy dog shows get really burned out on the third or fourth day of a long show weekend.  It takes a lot for a dog to work up to being able to cope with that, and in my opinion it's simply not fair to expect that from young or inexperienced dogs.  So, start them out nice and easy with just one day.  If you do enter a four day cluster I recommend you pull the dog if you start to see signs of stress or fatigue. 

Finally, please make sure that your dog is ready to attend a dog show before entering him.  I can't tell you how many people contact me a week or two before a three or four day dog show because they entered their untrained, unprepared dog and now they are panicked because the show is in a couple of weeks and their dog is not ready.  It is unethical in my opinion to enter a dog in a show when they are not prepared for the show ring.  Even a stable dog will experience some stress at a dog show, especially their first shows, but if you also have a dog is not trained and has no idea what to do or what is expected and it's a recipe for disaster.  It's simply not fair to the dog and a great way to teach your dog to dislike dog shows because they view them as overwhelming events where they are confused and don't know what to expect.

So, take your time, plan well and be smart.  There will always be another dog show, so if your dog is not ready don't enter yet.  If you do enter, take your time to ease your dog in so that they can slowly and honestly get used to the dog show scene so that they learn to love dog shows!