[NAGDU] pace and pull

[Tracy Carcione]

I had a lot of trouble with Krokus being extremely slow for quite a while.  I used to call him poky Krokie.  There were times in training I swear he would move an inch, then another inch ... made me feel like crying.  
What finally got him going was this:  First, be sure I'm keeping a reasonable tension on the harness handle, so we both feel some pull.  I don't want a hard pull, but I want some.  Next, say Hopp up in a positive way.  If that doesn't work, say it once more in a stern way.  If that doesn't work, flick the leash forward, so he knows I'm not fooling.  For a while, this would get him to move a bit, then slow down again, and I'd flick the leash again, so he knew he had to keep moving along.  It took a while, but he got the idea, and now he moves along well most of the time.  It's not fast, but it's comfortable.  I think Krokus is a bit lazy.  He will do what's required, but if he can get away with less, hey, why not?  

A different thing that worked with other dogs who weren't as poky as Krokie was to reach down and pat their side or back end.  They took it as encouragement, and would step it up a bit.
HTH.
Tracy


-----Original Message-----
From: NAGDU [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Susan Jones via NAGDU
Sent: Friday, May 24, 2019 8:21 PM
To: 'NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users'
Cc: Susan Jones
Subject: Re: [NAGDU] pace and pull

Jean,

I received a dog that was very slow at one time.  One thing I did was walk doubles with someone who had a really fast dog.  That helped some, but she was always very slow.
Turned out, she was one of my very best dogs!

One thing you might try when she slows down due to congestion is back yourself up an inch or two, and be very diligent about following her lead.  Allow her to get the sense that she is leading you, albeit slowly.  

I hope this is helpful.

Susan 

-----Original Message-----
From: NAGDU [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Jean Menzies via NAGDU
Sent: Friday, May 24, 2019 7:21 PM
To: NAGDU
Cc: Jean Menzies
Subject: [NAGDU] pace and pull

Hello all. 

I have been home with a new guide for three months now. This dog has some wonderful traits, but so far we have had to have a home visit to work on inconsistency. I won’t go into those details, except to say that I am now taking him back to kindergarden and using food reward and praise at every curb and whenever he responds positively to what I ask. After things appear solid, I will be slowly decreasing food reward and hoping that consistency stays. 

I mention that only to say that I am working on that first and foremost. However, once that is fixed, and I hope it will be fixable, then I need to work on pull at slower speeds. 

My normal pace when things are clear is fast. I like a nice solid pull, and this dog does well at both pace and pull at faster speeds. When streets are busier, though, with pedestrians, shop doors possibly opening, etc., his pace is much slower. I accept that the slower pace is appropriate for those situations, but the problem I have is that when he walks slow, there is absolutely no pull in harness. I feel like a ship without a sail, and it takes a great deal of concentration to feel his movements and even sometimes trust that he is working. The lack of pull at such slow pace makes me feel vulnerable. 

For those who have trained their own dogs or worked with this kind of issue before, how can I increase his pull at slower speeds? I understand pull can be taut to some degree. Note that he also has some body sensativity, and when I add a slight back pressure either on purpose or accidentally at slow paces, he might just stop or maybe side-step left. He has no problem with pull at faster speeds or when he decides to pull. 

Ultimately, if the bigger inconsistency problem resolves and I am able to back off on food rewards, I then need to work on pull at slower paces if I can. Does anyone have ideas on how to do this? One thing at a time, but I’m wanting to have a bit of a plan going forward. 

Jean and Boomer
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