For more on running contacts, it's best to join running contacts class or get a Running Contacts DVD. This page is meant for those who just have a quick question or want to show their finished product - you are very welcome to do so, it still brings a smile to my face when I see a beautiful running contact, it's something addictive about it. It is on times frustrating as well... - but it all makes the end result even sweeter. So... Happy training, everybody!
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The classes you can join at the moment: Beyond Foundations and the two Handling classes (all without time limitations – you can join and finish at any point). |
 Silvia Trkman is known for bringing every dog, from her first dog on, to the very top of the sport. Her dogs are known for great speed, tight turns, running contacts and long and injury-free careers. Silvia is in agility since 1992 and is– 3x World Champion (with two different dogs)
– 5x European Open winner, with 4 different dogs (Lo, La, Bu, Le)!!!
– National Championships podium and World Team member with every dog she’s ever had – National Champion for 22-times (with 5 different dogs of 3 different breeds) – World Team member for 19-times (mostly with at least two dogs at the time – sometimes four 🙂 ) |
Dori on a full Dogwalk (what do I need to fix?) She does not seem to be striding out all the way, not sure if this is because she is so new to the dog walk.
Dori on lower board, is she stretched out enough?
Thanks!!
But… Why are you doing full height DW if you’re still on a low plank??? I think you’re jumping steps, you need to progress with height slowly, build more forward focus and then start with low DW, not full-height. Also, your food bowl is too close and she is not interested anyway, you need a toy and I would throw it in advance for now and only start throwing it later when she has better forward focus.
Thanks!!
The plank was from a while ago. We have since then done a lower dog wlak, I just did not have it on tape. I thought the same thing and switched to a toy and started doing more back chaining -- working on that video now. Thank you Silvia!! I dont have access to a dog walk at home, so its harder working it daily. I am working on building one next week!
Better?
Well, I would still like to see better hind feet separation and reach forward… She doesn’t cover much ground with that leapy style… See this dog:
Her front feet hit at the same spot as Dori’s, only that with Liryk’s hind feet separation and reach forward, things look much better… Less leapy, more running, safer and deeper. In your first video, you had this too, I still think you lost it because of jumping steps.
Thanks Again Silvia! We will go back to a low dog walk for a bit and get the reach a little better. I want to sign up for your running contact class, I am going to try, just need to make sure I dont spend all of my dog budget at trials! 🙂 Thank you again!
🙂 Have fun!
OK -- I went back down to the lower dog walk -- I think this is what you want 🙂 BUt I could be wrong! 🙂 Thank you!!!!
Yeap, I like this much better 🙂
YAY! Click and treat for me! 🙂 OK -- I will just slowly raise it from hear and keep working. Thanks again!!!!!
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Hi Sylvia,
My name is Elise Lynch and I am posting for the first time. Here is my 5 month old Papillon, Chirp, doing her first running on a carpet. I think I have included the video. As I have never done this before we shall see if it comes through. Any comments will be appreciated.
Cool! Keep working like that, make sure you throw early and far enough (not like in 6 or 7) and jackpot the best ones (like 2 or 3).
I have just started plank work and while teaching him to run I am getting some jumping, is this ok/normal in the training process? I’ve been using posts at the end of the board to teach him to stay on the board (not coming off the side).
Thanks
Depends how much leaping you are getting? Some is o.k. as they can learn the difference that way. Too much is not good. I prefer wider plank vs. posts at the end, those can actually provoke jumping.
Hi Silvia. My dog was tought running contacts through your method and has a wonderful dogwalk. However, he regularly misses his contact on the dogwalk when highly excited or when repeating more than twice. He is a border terrier (3 years old), and as most terriers, he doesn’t like repeating and looses his concentration as he already knows what to do.
What can I do to solve this problem?
Well, if he is missing it when highly excited, it means you didn’t train it with enough of excitement… Did you do throwing of a toy in advance and all that? And he is fine with that? Also, when you say he is missing it when repeating, do you mean when repeating 3 times in a row or when using DW more times in courses when you train courses?
He is ok with throwing a toy in advance. As for repeating, it depends. He can miss his contact when repeating 3 times in a row but also when in a trial, we do exactly the same passage on the dogwalk (same way, same handling). He knows where to go, so he loses concentration.
I still don’t understand… He starts to miss when he knows where to go after DW??? But he never knows where he is going after DW in a trial as it’s always different, no? And you can go somewhere else every time in training too? So in a trial, the first DW is good and the other two aren’t?
That is. On training, if I repeat the same handling 3 or 4 times, the DW begins to be missed. In trial, he rarely misses it. However, we had once a trial where on 3 courses we had to handle the DW the same way, and the 3rd DW was missed and I realised he lost concentration. He tried to go to the same obstacle as on the previous course. That’s why I think it’s a problem of repeating…but it can simply be a problem of training… If I change handling on each passage of the DW, he could lose his mechanisation… as you suggest it…I’ll try…thanks.
Yes, just do something different every time if it helps. Very strange problem though, never heard something like this before, especially if it’s true even for easy, straight ahead exits???
Hi Silvia,
after quite a long time I would like to post another video of our running contacts. Now we are at a hight, where I can´t let Fame jump on the plank anymore. So I let her wait infront of the plank (on a table) and let her run down into a tunnel which is behind the plank. Would do you think about our RC and especially about her hind feet seperation? Is it to less seperation or enough for not running before beeing on the top of the plank? What do you recommand me? Continuing the same way in putting the plank higher and higher or do you think it would help Fame if I start letting her run over a small dogwalk (same hight as we are at the moment with just our plank?) Do you think it than would be good letting her start with a tunnel before doing the dogwalk so she has more speed?
Thanks in advance for your help.
Simone & Fame
…. oh unfortunately it didn´t work to post the video -- here another try:
Low DW (or at least ramp-table-ramp set-up would definitely be better as the speed will be more realistic. You can of course also set a tunnel before it to start her in a tunnel. Otherwise, those were nice hits, but yes, hind feet separation could be better.
Hey Silvia,
thanks for your tip -- I am going to check, if it is possible to lower our dogwalk to the hight we are at the moment with just the plank. Otherwise I will try to put a plank infront of the table and behind, so we have something similar to a dogwalk. But I have another question -- what do you think, when can I start practising tiny turns? Should I continue throwing the toy ahead or should I already start in small steps to ask for turns? Or should I first concentrate on better hind feet seperation by letting her run over a low dogwalk?
I think I would first focus on getting to real DW and forward focus (also without a toy later on) -- and then maybe away from that training work on turns on just a plank.
Ok, I will do it the way you suggested and let you know, how we´re getting on.
Thanks again.
Hi Silvia,
here is a video of our second try on a low dogwalk. The first run was much to slow, so I startet throwing the ball earlier. I really love Fames running contacts for the second time on a dw……but what do you think as a profi?
Looks good! 🙂