Well, now I have no excuses not to be able to train Bosley for Open Obedience, since I now have a regulation size panel jump and broad jump. I still need to cut and paint one more board for the panel jump (apparently I am not good at measuring and I cut one 8" board about 4 inches too short).
There was a time that I thought Bosley would never get in the Open ring - he would not retrieve. Less than a year ago, Bosley would not even look at the dumbbell, but with a lot of clicker work he is now very excited to get his dumbbell and is getting very consistent in his retrieve. We still need to work on a lot of the details (eg. straighter fronts), but now I can actually picture us competing in Open.
Bosley had fun today retrieving his dumbbell over the high jump.
Bosley has no idea about the broad jump, but I have some good ideas (at least I think they are good) to teach him to jump across the broad jump and not just walk on it.
I probably won't focus too much on Open Obedience exercises until the fall, since I am trying to get lots of draft work in right now, but if I can work Bosley a couple times a week, I will be happy.
those look great Kim! I have lots of good ideas about the broad jump- let me know when you are ready for them!
ReplyDeletenice job Kim!!
ReplyDeleteyou know what, Tate had never ever seen a broad jump..then when I went to a rally match here in Lethbridge there was one, I just said over & he jumped it...I'm sure Bosley will have no problems!
Sounds like you have a good plan! Do you know at what age is it recommended to start training dogs for draft work and/or obedience exercises? I hope to do something simliar with my pup in the future! Looking forward to hearing more! :-)
ReplyDeleteHi Shellmo,
ReplyDeleteIt is never too soon to start Scout doing obedience work. Even very young puppies can learn to sit, down, front and of course, come when called. They also begin to learn that working with you is fun - which is what any dog sport is all about. A strong obedience foundation is important for any other dog sport you want to get involved in. You can train draft foundation work (back up, right and left turns, slow commands, etc) from a very young age, but Scout should not pull any weight until she is mature - for a Bernese this is around 18 months old.
Those are nicely made! I can't believe Bosley is already starting to learn Open stuff. I managed to learn all of those in Open within a month. They all were easy oh but except the scent detection. Haven't learned that one yet.
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