Category: Performance Events ¤
  Author: Linda Lundgren ¤
   Title: The Pivot Left Turn ¤

>The big question is: how do you 
> all go about shaping those nice left turns were the front
> legs stay in place and the back legs move round to stay
> in position ???
 

This turn is easily taught - but not quickly! Your dog may
get the concept in the three weeks before you show, but I
wouldn't really expect to see it fully implemented. 

The actual action on the left turn is as follows:
1. handler cues left turn
2. dog stops forward motion
3. as handler turns and steps around the dog, the dog
plants his front feet and pivots the rear around 90 degrees
4. when both dog and handler are facing the new direction,
the handler steps out.

If you have never played "People-People" heeling, you
should. You should play the part of the dog, and try this
turn. You'll see where the dog needs to stop and how he
needs to move the rear sideways to stay in heel position.

There are a couple of different ways to approach it - the
easiest for me is to first teach the dog to walk backwards
(staying in heel position) while the handler is stepping
backward in a straight line. Until your dog can move
straight back with you for two or three steps, don't do on.
Backing, incidently, is easiest taught at first while the
dog in standing in front, and then transferred to backing
in heel position.

When your dog can back in a straight line, start to teach
him to back while you pivot AROUND him . Envision a
straight line that goes down the dogs front legs - the
handler has to pivot around that point while the dog's
front legs stay on the same point. Usually in training the
dog is asked to move around the handler - this is the exact
opposite. Easier to demonstrate than describe. <G>  To
really do it well, the dog's rear legs have to actually do
a "crossover." 

I put a back command on it about this point, BTW.

Now, to put it all together, I physically cue (with my
feet, head and shoulder) the left turn. At the same time, I
give the verbal cue "back." As I turn, the dog pivots on
his front legs. Then, to reinforce the backing behavior, I
actually will take one or two backward steps (remember -
the dog already knows how to heel backwards.) This ensures
the dog is straight in line before I step forward. 

Some trainers will use a dowel to gently tap or push on the
dog's outside flank to get the rear to pivot - I don't like
a lot of physical aids, so I don't use that method. If I am
working with a dog and I am having a lot of trouble getting
the idea of moving a rear foot sideways (since that's
really what a crossover is) I will sometimes put a little
bit of pressure on the dog's muzzle - pushing the head out
around and back (toward the tail.) This will almost always
cause the dog's rear to move sideways (to line up with the
head), which gives me an opportunity to click the rear
motion. 

This type of pivot turn ensures that the dog stays in heel
position while the handler is making a real right hand
turn. It also, to my mind, looks really sharp! And it's a
great way to start training some freestyle moves! The small
half circle turn (or "Frisbee" turn, as I call it) you
might see in the obed ring sometimes results in a deduction
for not being a real right turn. At the upper levels of
competition, every 1/2 point counts. 

Now, just for fun <G> think about this same motion for the
outside turn of the figure 8! (we're working on it..)

Linda Lundgren
and the Skoof Shelties

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