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TRAINER'S FORUM

From Clean Run Magazine, February 1998

While most dogs are "tunnel happy," there do seem to be dogs that are very slow through tunnels or even come to a stop in the tunnel. What suggestions do you have for solving these problems?

Bud Houston

A dog's motivation to perform the tunnel, indeed, the motivation to perform any obstacle, can be traced to a number of factors.

I would prefer to focus on the method used to first introduce the dog to the tunnel. Remedial steps are identical so long as the dog has not been completely traumatized by the training method. Remedy is always more difficult than doing it right the first time.

We've all seen dogs in an introductory class that view the tunnel as a dark and forbidding place. Ho we, as trainers, deal with that moment of confrontation shapes the dog's relationship with the obstacle for a long time to come. We can a) compel the dog through the tunnel, shoving him rudely from behind or dragging him from ahead, or b) coax him through with delightful chatter and liver treats. Draw your own conclusions as to which method results in the most positive learning experience.

As the dog is learning new agility obstacles, you want to foster an atmosphere in which the dog really enjoys the process. He should be thinking, with each new step, with growing confidence and delight, this is great! This is Great! This is GREAT! You are not going to get there by force, by intimidation, by threats, or by punitive measures.

It is important to make the dog understand the performance before introducing progression to the exercise (that is, lengthening and shaping the tunnel). The performance: Get in the tunnel, and go through. To facilitate this understanding, the handler should adopt a variety of handling positions relative to the tunnel. Work the dog on the right. Work the dog on the left. Call the dog through. Send the dog ahead. Reward each successful performance with enthusiastic praise, and a food treat or toy. At the same time vary the dog's angle of approach, encouraging the dog to seek out the tunnel, get in, go through, and earn the reward.

Progression in the difficulty of the exercise is an important factor in shaping the dog's performance. With a tunnel the progression is obvious, but not exactly simple. You start with a tunnel that is completely bunched up so that it is little more than a hoop, sitting on the ground. You gradually lengthen the tunnel like a straight pipe through which the dog can see daylight. Then finally you introduce a curvature to the tunnel, gently at first, and more severely later. With each progression in difficulty the handler must remember to vary handling positions and approaches to the tunnel.

As I said, the training progression is not simple. The trainer should not advance the dog until the dog is showing great enthusiasm and understanding for the current step in the progression. This means that the trainer must have a keen eye to the dog's motivation. The trainer must not be in a hurry. If the dog balks at the tunnel, then the handler must immediately backtrack to an earlier step in the progression. Ideally the progression happens so gradually that no refusal occurs.

It's clear that in structured classes teaching basic obstacle performance is sometimes an impersonal process like a mass production or an assembly line. In the group setting, it is too easy to lose sight of the fact that different dogs learn at different speeds. The progression exercise should be suited to the slowest learner in the class; or the progression should be split into multiple sets that accommodate both the slower learners and the quick learners. These kinds of divisions often play on the egos of the individual handlers. So, the instructor has to take care that the progression takes place to suit the dog's learning, not the handler's ego.

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