# Front to Left Heel position



## Jason L (Mar 20, 2009)

How do you begin to teach a dog/pup to move from front to the left position like this (first 4 seconds)? How is the luring done? 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A2Erh-mH9hw&feature=related


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## Elaine (Sep 10, 2006)

Hold the food or toy right in front of the dog's nose with your left hand. Take one big step back with your left leg at the same time as moving your left hand around and all the way back to get the dog to move; and then take a couple of steps forward while moving your left hand to your side.


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## BuoyantDog (Aug 21, 2009)

Are you specifically regarding the "flip" that is done? We have a left and right finish, but they certainly aren't clean and "flippy" like that. I think you would want to start with perch training and proceed from there. I don't really care how Glory goes to the left side, though, it doesn't have to be exactly like that. Just as long as she does it, it's cool with me. Our commands are "left side" and "around back". She ends up on the left, ready for a heel, in either case. I'm sure others will guide you towards perch training to get that kind of perfection....


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## Jason L (Mar 20, 2009)

I do what you said right now with Ike to teach him to find the leg. So he goes back, circles around, and then follows my left leg back up to heel position. But in the video it looks like the dog is not actually going behind the handler and then circling back. He is just pivoting his butt counterclockwise from 12 o'clock position to 6 o'clock. His head and the front part of his body barely moved. Does that make sense?


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## BuoyantDog (Aug 21, 2009)

Yeah, I'm not sure how to get such a clean pivot like that. The only pivoting we know about is perch training, and Glory is a sad case......


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## Castlemaid (Jun 29, 2006)

Start luring him with the step back, turn around move into position. He will get that Finish is the position more than the move. Once he understands what the Finish is, get him amped up in drive and he will be jumping and flipping around to get into position as fast as possible.


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## Jason L (Mar 20, 2009)

Ah, Lucia, thanks! I never thought of it like that but it makes sense that once he understands when he needs to end up he would just start taking the shortest route possible to get there.


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## BuoyantDog (Aug 21, 2009)

Cool, thanks Castlemaid! I never thought that you could just move with them for awhile until they get it! So, it isn't magic, Jason! Magic was my next guess....


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## Jason L (Mar 20, 2009)

My next guess too. Of course all this is down the road. Right now if Ike does not manage to give himself a concussion jumping around while we "train" obedience I consider that a good session!


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## Achielles UD (May 26, 2001)

Another option, I have the dog on lead. Dog is in heel not in front.
Leash is held in right hand, food in left.
The leash is taught across my legs. I teach a left pivot/doodle and the dog has to learn to scoot her rear back to remain in position during the pivot/doodle.
With the leash taught, I take a step with my right so that it "T"s in front of my left foot as I keep the dogs head turned out away from me causing her rear to move in behind me and back into position as I complete the pivot.
Throughly confused you yet? 

Best way that I want to attempt next though is with the perch







Working on the perch with my puppers now ... should get this type of finish using the perch too.


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## Samba (Apr 23, 2001)

Okay, I am going to give this a try with my dog and see where I get in a week. Since Jason asked it got me wondering how I would get it. 

Soliel is working on her go to heel. I had to start out with pretty large motions and luring to help her learn to get up move, get your rear back, etc. So it is going to take some repitions just to get the dog to understand the action. She has that pretty well.

Just now, in an attempt to get this. I put a handful of soft treats over her head in front position, luring her head upward and just a bit toward my left front hip, but not enough to get her body to move. Just a neck crane over there. I let her start munching on the food. I said, "heel" and her head stayed at my hip looking upward and chowing the food from hand while her butt pivoted around to heel. Maybe this will get it. I will give it a go for a few days and see.

She already has some "get it in" skills with her rear from me teaching her to move her hiney like on the perch. This skill would need to be there first.


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## Jason L (Mar 20, 2009)

In this video the guy (who has the spitting technique down to an art btw) simply walks into the dog and makes the dog yield the space to him.

This occurs at 0:41 seconds. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7KS_bQHye_4

The dog comes from the same kennel as Ike! We're so behind LOL!


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## Samba (Apr 23, 2001)

Yes, stepping into them can get them moving fast to get out of the way. I don't step into them until I know that they know the behavior. If I wanted the pivot finish and didn't know for sure that the dog would perform that type when I stepped into him, it's too soon to step in. I guess I am saying I use the claiming real estate move to add some speed and anticipation, but I want to be pretty sure of the finish I am going to get when I do it. It is a bit of a correction to my way of thinking, so I don't add it until the correction phase. 

Ugh, if that pup is 7 months old and heeling that much, I am way behind too!!! But I will just claim that I am going for quality of behavior rather than quantity with my pup!! That's my excuse any way.


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## BuoyantDog (Aug 21, 2009)

Pretty sweet video!


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## Liesje (Mar 4, 2007)

I start this by luring with treat or ball, and I step backward and then forward. It is slow at first, but as the dog progresses, they naturally begin to "flip". Kenya even does the kind where she leaps way in the air as she flips her butt, and I never taught her this specifically it just morphed into that. If the dog is not averse to some physical pressure, I will hold the collar to keep the dog's head at my side. Nikon progressed to the flip much more quickly than Kenya because I could hold his head into place. She doesn't like any physical cues like that.


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## Cassidy's Mom (Mar 30, 2003)

> Originally Posted By: Jason LinIn this video the guy (who has the spitting technique down to an art btw) simply walks into the dog and makes the dog yield the space to him.
> 
> This occurs at 0:41 seconds.
> 
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7KS_bQHye_4


Halo doesn't heel anywhere near that good, but I taught her tight left turns by walking into her like that. I'd say "turn" and then walk into her, and after doing that for a short while she started turning on her own as soon as I gave the verbal cue.


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

i had my dog sit in front of me. i had a treat in my right hand.
i said "heel". then i would reach out and take my dog
by the collar and lead him around me to my left side.

i had the treat in my right hand so i could
tempt my dog to follow the treat. i put my right behind my back.
at some point i placed my left hand behind my back. when i placed my left hand behind my back it was so i could take the treat
from my right hand and continue the motion to my left side.

so i have my dog following the treat around my right side. i put my
left hand behind me and take the treat from my right hand continuing the motion with the treat in my left hand to my left side.

once your dog is on your left you can finish with a "sit".


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## Chicagocanine (Aug 7, 2008)

I have seen some dogs where they practically leapt up in the air from a "front" position and landed in the "heel" position but I have no idea how you get that sort of a movement on cue!

When I taught the 'swing finish' to my previous dog I just used a treat to lure her into a "u-turn" at my left side. So, it wasn't a pivot like the dog in the video but rather more of a walking a bit past my left side and then turning around towards me so she ended up in the heel position. Pretty much similar to the right side/around type of finish except it was all done on the left side.


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## Jason L (Mar 20, 2009)

Well, just for fun I tried the walking into the dog thing last night. At first I just made the starting motion of walking into him but Ike being Ike he just sat here and grin like a doofus and didn't move at all. So I said "Ok, I am going to walk into you" and BAM!, sure enough, ran Gomer over a few times. After the 5 or 6th time, he started to move out and give away and we have a semblance of the finish. Of course this is all against a wall so he really does not have much choice.


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## Samba (Apr 23, 2001)

I tried the walk into method with Hogan today. He moved out pretty good. But he already knew to get up and start moving on the finish command. I think it helps to have lured the finish enough.

I am holding the dog's head at my hip by holding food over head and letting them nibble. With the command or the "step into" the rear is rotating around the head. Their head is just moving the small amount needed from front to heel. I would like to get a faster pivot.... but will come with fluency of the behavior. 


Soliel is sometimes kicking her entire rear out and turning in the pivot. The Catahoula is remaining almost seated and pivoting fast in a near sit. The Cat has rear structure more like the Mali. I think the Shepherds will get faster but with additiional angulation there is more to learn to move.


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## Liesje (Mar 4, 2007)

> Originally Posted By: SambaI think the Shepherds will get faster but with additiional angulation there is more to learn to move.


My TD says if we ask which to train he does a flip with a Mali and around with back with a shepherd.

Too bad my dogs have to know both for rally novice!


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## Jason L (Mar 20, 2009)

RN > SchH


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