Since the remote collar dog training that we do at Sit Means Sit focuses on having the ability to communicate remotely (at a distance) to our dogs and help attain attention in the face of high excitement and distraction, it offers many positive things which can make our dog training goals more clearly defined to our dogs.

In Phoenix Arizona where I live, we have all levels of agility enthusiasts from the novice pet owner all the way to national top competitors. There are many schools and clubs in our valley that offer training techniques and different styles of handling to meet just about everyone’s tastes and needs.

By far the most prevalent behaviors that I have referrals for in the agility community in my area are:

A. The dog won’t come when he’s called reliably or he runs off and forgets his job. The handler can’t compete with his dog or has been asked to not come back to class until the problem has been fixed.

Or

B. The dog gets over stimulated by the activity and commotion of the other dogs and acts inappropriately out of play or aggression AND he will not come when he’s called. The handler can’t compete with his dog or has been asked to not come back to class until the problem is resolved.

In reality these two behaviors stem down to one thing and the most important element to dog training in general; Attention. The dog that can’t put his attention on what the handler asks is bound to get in to trouble somewhere and at higher levels as an agility enthusiast because he if off leash and running free! After all what can be better than this….If it is controllable of course.

These two behaviors are generally our focal point for the agility handler that enters into our program. Some of our clients are thrilled after a few sessions and are happy to just focus their time into maintining excellent attention to come and find most of their main goals are met just instilling the foundational skills we teach them. However, other’s in the program choose to take advantage of the “Full Monte”, and these clients are able to gain further achievement with learning the versatility of the ability to direct their dogs at a distance and keep obstacle focus and handler focus in balance.

Below are the Top 10 ways that make it easier to work remotely in agility using the Sit Means Sit Dog Training System :

1. Working at distance ;

In agility it is important for the dog to learn to work towards the obstacle he is directed to and to work at a distance. Very quickly we can teach our dogs that our cues mean the same thing when we are close by and we can wean more quickly to the goal of the same behavior at a distance.

2. Keep the dog focused on his job;

Since not all dogs are as motivated as we would often like, we can help keep focus more easily and at distances with the cue or our training aid.

3. Recall with reliability;

In agility, teaching the dog to come towards you is used to change the dogs direction from the obstacle in front of him. A reliable “come” or “here” will redirect the dog to look in the handlers direction at which time the handler can show the dog the new direction he wants him to take.

4. Directs through excitement ;

Distractions in the training environment can be anything from noise, fast movement, an enticing smell, a judge wearing a hat or discrimination from one obvious obstacle to a less obvious one, food dropped on the training floor, a favorite toy and also stress can cause the dogs focus to leave his job. With our communication we can calmly talk to the dog and help keep him on track through distractions so that he learns to be more capable of handling distractions with less and less aid until he can do his job realiably without the aids.

5. Sit’s and Down stays away from the handler;

The Pause table can be tough for some dogs. Fast moving dogs think it is rude to ask them to stop when they have 4 to the floor in high gear. Shy dogs can get de-motivated by being asked to slow down. Smooth and thin coated dogs such as Italian greyhounds may not find the surface very comfy. Fast dogs with high drive can benefit from learning to control themselves while shy and slower dogs can have their confidence and speed encouraged enhancing their performance without the handler having to yell, or hyperventilate trying to motivate performance.

6. Start lines allowing the handler to lead out on course;

It is a disadvantage if the handler can not take a lead out on the start line if he chooses to because the dog can’t hold a stay until he is told to go. Teaching our dogs a remote stay is one of the first things our clients learn. Even the drivey dogs that shake at the start line with their muscles quivering can get better at holding a stationary position on the start line.

7. Contacts as boundaries are more clearly defined;

There are many schools of thought on teaching contacts. Teaching running contacts can be broken down to teaching a contextual surface while on the move. Cueing the dog to learn to touch a smaller area breaks down to teaching a clear boundary. The remote collar again gives us remote directability once the behavior has been taught close in to the dog.

Teaching the contact as two on two off, or a rock back down on the edge of the contact is a more simplified version of teaching the dog to touch and stay put in a certain position using a contextual surface. Although there are many other things to consider when teaching contacts, specifically head position, we can utilize a remote cue to help make our picture clearer to our dogs.

8. Obstacle discrimination;

The more clear and timely both physical and verble cues are to the dog the more quickly he can get the information on direction away from the obvious obstacle to the less obvious. The remote collar gives us the ability to remotely add a physical cue to the timing of both and to give the dog a prepatory cue .

9. Aggressive tendencies;

Aggression and tendencies to be aggressive have many triggers with motion, fast movement and chaotic energy being a top contender for set offs. Using the remote collar cue to help gain and maintain focus in the height of distractions has proven helpful to keep the dogs attention when in a stimulated state

.

10. Aids in weaning away from other training aids such as toys and treats;

The end goal to teaching an agility dog is of course to do all the behaviors without any training aids. The remote collar as an aid will have to be faded as well. Using the remote collar you can more quickly fade from some early aids such as food and toys until you have set your patterns well enough and long enough that they become habits and patterns. At this point the remote collar would begin to fade as well.

– Although no one tool can create the perfect dog and we certainly don’t want robots, most agree that both the handler and the dog have more fun together when the dog is listening and as a pair you can work together. We feel that training with the Sit Means Sit remote training program, we can help clarify information and help get the dog to the stage of working off leash with a high level of success.

Sit Means Sit dog training holds our annual ‘Main Event’, which is a gathering of the Sit Means Sit dog training business owners from around the country. Everywhere from San Diego California to New York City and in between, and this year our Australia location owner was in attendance as well!.

This Video is a montage of clips from our 3 day event that covers lots of training to keep our trainers constantly on the cutting edge of our results oriented dog training businesses. We even got to tie in a very fun dock dogs event!

For those of you wishing to become successful professional dog trainers, we hope to have you next year at our annual ‘Main Event’, and look forward to welcoming you to our family!

Dogs jumping is an exciting thing to watch. The actual dog jumping behavior shows the true athleticism in a particular dog and especially in the Belgian Malinois breed that you see in this
video. You will see the dog jumping up and over a person seated in a chair. You may not like a dog jumping on you but watching them jump over you might be a different story.

Training your dog to jump using the Sit Means Sit Dog Training system would obviously make things easier since most jumping behaviors involve the dog being away from the owner,
and keeping a line of communication open often comes in handy during the training phase of a dog jumping whether he is jumping in water, jumping in snow, jumping over a barrier, or any
dog jumping games he may be playing.

The Sit Means Sit dogs that are seen jumping in this video are ‘Rex’ and ‘Bo’, both Belgian Malinois’ and this was done in the midst of some demonstrations that were held at a ‘Broomfield days’ event
in Denver Colorado. ‘Rex’ was 15 months old and ‘Bo’ was 22 Months old at the time of this video.

To learn more about how to teach your dog to jump safely, find a Sit Means Sit dog trainer in your area, or subscribe to our
free daily videos.

Ashton Fitz-Gerald, Alfredo Rivera, and Lianne Hassen are shown here performing at the 2008 Pet a Palooza in Las Vegas, and show why Sit Means Sit dog training is such an exciting and entertaining dog training company to watch! Start an incredible new dog training career with Sit Means Sit!

Sit Means Sit Dog Training is the world’s leader in dog training business. The Sit Means Sit philosophy of The “No Excuses” dog training company, makes it so the general public will raise it’s bar to actually see how well the dogs are getting trained, and how easily that training will be transferred over to the owners. It is always seen in visual picture of the dogs, because the proof is always in the dog training portfolio. Talk is cheap, we SHOW you! In this dog video, you will see very motivated and animated dogs performing in a highly distracting environment with lots of food, dogs and people around, and all being done off-leash, and without the raising of voices. This dog training has been brought to the forefront by using the revolutionary “Sit Means Sit Dog Collar“, with it’s lifetime warranty……..yes, even if your pet elephant steps on it, Sit Means Sit will replace it free of charge, except shipping of course. Look for the Sit Means Sit collar, and find a Sit Means Sit dog trainer in your area. Learn more about the Sit Means Sit dog training schools.

This is a video clip of Toni Drugmand and her great little dog Stuff from our Phoenix Dog Training location. This was a recent trial where they had both tunnels and weaves/tunnels. Little Stuff actually came in first place in all 4 of the events that he entered on this day, and all 4 runs are caught on this video. Toni Drugmand is one of the world’s leading authorities on teaching remote collar use to agility dogs. The Sit Means Sit method of dog training has tremendous obvious advantages in anything that is an off-leash event, and being able to quickly refocus your dogs to a variety of obstacles and have them pay attention, but yet with speed and enthusiasm is what makes Toni’s dogs always fun to watch, and makes her remote training in this sport amongst the elite. Toni Drugmand, along with Fred Hassen actually conducted the very first remote collar seminar ever done in the United States a few years ago exclusively for agility dogs. Stuff has been on a remote collar since he was about 9 weeks of age. To find out more about remote collars for agility dogs, and Sit Means Sit remote collar training in Phoenix Arizona, you can contact Toni Drugmand at tdrugmand@aol.com To keep up with the latest in Sit Means Sit dog training advancements throughout the world, stay informed with our free newsletter at http://www.sitmeanssit.com/newsletter-signup/

Toni Drugmand from our Sit Means Sit Phoenix Dog Training location, is seen here in 3 different runs at a recent agility trial with her dog ‘Stuff’. ‘Stuff’ took 1st place in all 3 of these runs. Training aids of any sort are not allowed to be used during competitive dog training. Dog Agility is a fun, action packed dog sport, that requires off-leash obedience.

Our Sit Means Sit Phoenix dog trainer Toni Drugmand, is seen here with her dog Stuff at an agility trial. Stuff placed first in this agility dog trial. Stuff has been trained using the Sit Means Sit dog training method since he was a puppy. Being able to control your dog remotely makes the Sit Means Sit dog training system the most successful system, whether you have a pet dog that you will want to have more control and freedom with, or whether you are a competitive dog person in agility, or any other sport person for that matter. Toni Drugmand’s Sit Means Sit office in Phoenix Arizona can be reached at (602) 992-8743

This is Toni Drugmand and “Stuff” from our Sit Means Sit Phoenix Arizona dog training location. “Stuff” started with his Sit Means Sit training from about 9 weeks of age, and is just a quick little attentive dog with a boatload of personality. Sit Means Sit dog training proves time and time again about their dogs reliability by having a number of people that are competitive dog trainers, and during competititions, no equipment at all is allowed to be worn at the trial, as it should be. “Stuff” and Toni took first place in this competition. Live in Phoenix Arizona and want to have your dog off-leash reliable and a lot more freedom? Give Toni Drugmand a call!

Toni Drugmand with “Talon”, doing an agility trial. First place on this particular day.

Dog Training at Nellis Air Show – Las Vegas, NV

Sit Means Sit Dog Training staff at the 2005 Nellis Air Show (Las Vegas, NV). Demonstrating their dogs and dog training in obedience, agility and protection.