Upside of the A-frame

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I am training my dog for a running contact on the A-frame. He can get the downside contact if he stutter steps to make sure he get a paw or two in, but he really has to work at it. When I watch videos of other dogs with a running contact on the A-frame, it looks so effortless - one hit high on the upside, then another hit on the downside about t6-12 inches from the top, and the third hit in the yellow. It appears very natural.

 

When I watch my dog, he consistently will take 2 strides on the upside (one in the yellow (go figure ) and one near the top) which means that his first stride on the downside is about halfway between the top and the yellow followed by the fact that he naturally wants to jump the contact in order to keep his momentum.

 

I have been concentrating so much on his contact behavior that it has taken me a while to examine his striding before he gets to the contact. I am thinking that if I can alter his striding to achieve the one hit on the upside, he may have a better chance of just naturally striding through the yellow on the downside.

 

Does this seem like a reasonable assumption? If so, I would welcome any suggestions as to how to get him to catch the upside of the A-frame farther up the upside. i.e. I have heard of stride regulators, but have never seen one in use (except on the flat). Other suggestions?

 

Or maybe I just have to keep working with him to make sure he gets a paw or two in the contact?

 

P.S. I should add that I have done some jump grid work suggested on Rachel Sanders DVD. Perhaps I should go back and re-work that exercise?

 

Thanks for advice,

Jovi

[dmadrid]

I am training my dog for a running contact on the A-frame. He can get the downside contact if he stutter steps to make sure he get a paw or two in, but he really has to work at it. When I watch videos of other dogs with a running contact on the A-frame, it looks so effortless - one hit high on the upside, then another hit on the downside about t6-12 inches from the top, and the third hit in the yellow. It appears very natural.

 

Jovi,

 

If you are training the Rachel Sanders method, then you should actually be aiming for two hits on each side of the a-frame. I'm sure that there are some large, powerful dogs that could do only one hit on the upside of the frame, but most dogs i know do two - one hit lower to the ground, and then a second hit up closer to the top to propel them over the apex. You didn't say which agility venue you compete in, but if you are competing in USDAA, you will have to hit the contact zone on both the up and down sides of the contact.

 

 

I have been concentrating so much on his contact behavior that it has taken me a while to examine his striding before he gets to the contact. I am thinking that if I can alter his striding to achieve the one hit on the upside, he may have a better chance of just naturally striding through the yellow on the downside.

 

Does this seem like a reasonable assumption? If so, I would welcome any suggestions as to how to get him to catch the upside of the A-frame farther up the upside. i.e. I have heard of stride regulators, but have never seen one in use (except on the flat). Other suggestions?

 

P.S. I should add that I have done some jump grid work suggested on Rachel Sanders DVD. Perhaps I should go back and re-work that exercise?

 

Again, I don't think you should be aiming for 1 hit on the upside. It sounds like your dog needs more practice learning how to adjust his stride to get in the contact zone. Question: How high is the a-frame? Did you raise it gradually to the height it's at now, or in large jumps? Also, you said you've worked "some" using Rachel Sander's jump grids... how clear is your dogs understanding of your criteria to jump in and out of the pvc box? Is he better when the A-frame is lower? Are you using it on the a-frame?

 

I would definitely work more on the jump grid. Many problems that you experience on the a-frame can actually be fixed on the flat. if your dog is successfully performing the jump grid (getting all four feet in the box, with you in various handling positions), then you should be able to put the box on a low a-frame and gradually raise it up.

 

Happy training!

Danielle

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Jovi,

 

If you are training the Rachel Sanders method, then you should actually be aiming for two hits on each side of the a-frame. I'm sure that there are some large, powerful dogs that could do only one hit on the upside of the frame, but most dogs i know do two - one hit lower to the ground, and then a second hit up closer to the top to propel them over the apex. You didn't say which agility venue you compete in, but if you are competing in USDAA, you will have to hit the contact zone on both the up and down sides of the contact.

 

Again, I don't think you should be aiming for 1 hit on the upside. It sounds like your dog needs more practice learning how to adjust his stride to get in the contact zone. Question: How high is the a-frame? Did you raise it gradually to the height it's at now, or in large jumps? Also, you said you've worked "some" using Rachel Sander's jump grids... how clear is your dogs understanding of your criteria to jump in and out of the pvc box? Is he better when the A-frame is lower? Are you using it on the a-frame?

 

I would definitely work more on the jump grid. Many problems that you experience on the a-frame can actually be fixed on the flat. if your dog is successfully performing the jump grid (getting all four feet in the box, with you in various handling positions), then you should be able to put the box on a low a-frame and gradually raise it up.

 

Happy training!

Danielle

 

Thanks for the advice Danielle. I do not compete in USDAA and did not know that they required a hit in the yellow on the upside, but I guess my dog did. I obviously need to go back and review the part of the Sanders' DVD on the jump grid and then practice more. My dog is quite good at hitting the box on the flat when I am in different positions, but I did not transition to a low A-frame first. My bad.

 

Thanks again,

Jovi