Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Nancy Geddes on December 9, 2011 at 9:39pm

Hi! I had EXTREME issues at the beginning with Bear on the teeter!  Sometimes it took more than five minutes to get it.  The trainer, Laurie Skinner, was excellent.  A couple of points she made to me were:  keep your body immediately against the teeter which prevents the dog from jumping off and will offer a early sense of security.  Step away as training advances.  Tapping treats (three varieties), OF AN INCREASINGLY DELICIOUSNESS NATURE, as progress is being made across the teeter.  This may take an long time.  If possible, in the beginning, work with a second human partner who will dampen the thud.  This may take many times.  The second human partner may also come in handy if said corgi is thinking of jumping.  Don't use the dog's name.  Use a command such as "teeter" upbeat in tone.  At the completion of a "teeter" exercise, even with a training partner who is buffering the teeter's descent, PARTY LIKE THERE'S NO TOMORROW!!!   Take your time.  Remember you are the leader.  Repeat, repeat.  This is, of course, much easier if you are not part of a large class!!!!!!!!!!

Permalink Reply by Beth on December 10, 2011 at 6:52pm

I can't really help.  I have the opposite issue; Jack loves the teeter and will sometimes go to it when it's not the next obstacle in sequence.  He takes it so fast that we have to refresh what to do by periodically going back and doing jackpot treats at the fulcrum point (where it tips down).    

How we introduced the teeter may have helped, though.  In the beginning our instructor does all contact obstacles by going up just a few inches then turning around and coming back off.  The first few times up the teeter for real she holds the other side so it does not bang down while you (the handler) gives a TON of treats at the center where it would start to swing (stand there and treat for a minute or so, which might be 15 or 20 little treats).  She then lets it down gradually so it doesn't hit the ground hard.  By the time the dog is ready to make the teeter drop on his own, he is conditioned to think the center of the teeter is a fabulous place to be.  I DID notice Jack crouches down into a squat when the teeter drops and thought it was nerves but then read many dogs instinctively do this because it reduces the shock and the chance of them bouncing.

Last time we had teeter in class he came down so fast he bounced himself right off so back we went to treating at the fulcrum.  

So I guess the moral is, my best advice is to pair up with someone and have them control the swing down for awhile so that it doesn't drop and bang. 

Permalink Reply by Jenny, Tucker, & Zoey on December 10, 2011 at 7:13pm

Hi there,

We were just introduced to the teeter in our class a few weeks ago. Our trainer set it up so that it comes down onto the stay table. It's only going to drop halfway down and she also gives treats in the middle and at the end. She manually pivots the teeter onto the stay table, depending on how confident the dog is. Tucker is very eager to do it, so she lets it go faster for him.. she takes it slow for the timid dogs.

Permalink Reply by Brelee Miller on September 28, 2013 at 9:54am

Our trainer had us stand about 20 feet away from it while she dropped it to make the loud noise...every time it made the noise, we gave a treat. Repeated about 20 times until we got closer and closer without her even acknowledging the noise. Then she was over being scared when it dropped.