BusyDog

Teeters

Besides the weaves, the teeter is probably the second hardest piece of agility equipment to teach a dog. Often the dog will do the teeter once or twice successfully then suddenly decide that it is “scary” and refuse to do it at all. Some dogs go as far as not wanting to even go near the teeter. This can be very frustrating, as any efforts to convince the dog that the teeter is “ok”, usually are fruitless.

If you are in the situation where you are teaching a dog the teeter, I highly recommend using an adjustable teeter. (Note: www.max200.com is a good source for adjustable teeters.) Adjustable teeters can be lowered so the pivot point is all the way to the ground. I start dogs on a teeter that is lowered all the way to the ground. Typically, the teeter will still �pivot� even when completely lowered, but the ends of the board only move an inch or two up and down.

If you don�t have access to an adjustable teeter, you can make a �mini� teeter by attaching a piece of PVC to the underside of a long plank. If you use a piece of 2� PVC that is the same length as the width of the board, you can make a �mini� teeter.

My goal for teaching the teeter is to reward the dog for making the teeter board move. Usually when teeter issues arise, it is difficult to resolve them because the handlers are aiming to get the final performance right off the bat. The handlers try to make the dog go up and over the teeter. That is a complex behavior that should be broken down into small behaviors when starting a dog. If your goal is the final �perfect� behavior right from the start, your chances for success will be diminished. Instead, you should focus on the building blocks that contribute to the final behavior. Work on the �small pieces� that comprise the final behavior. Use those small pieces as your goals each session.

I like to break the teeter down into small parts and reward for each one. For a timid dog, first I reward the dog for touching the teeter with any body part. If the dog will approach the teeter and put a paw on, he gets a cookie. Next I stand near the �up� side of the lowered teeter. When the dog puts a paw on the �up side� and pushes it down, I give him a cookie. I want the dog to learn that if he pushes the teeter board down, he gets a cookie. Since I am breaking the performance down into small parts, I am simply rewarding for any effort by the dog to push the teeter board down (or cause it to move). If the dog accomplishes this task by standing next to the teeter and pushing the board down with his front paw, that�s fine.

Continue to reward the dog for pushing the board down until the dog is very comfortable with it. Slowly raise the criteria to reward the dog for pushing the board down and keeping a paw or two on it. If the dog seems confident you can slowly change the criteria so when the dog pushes the board down with a front paw, he has to step across the end of the board to receive the reward. Then you can gradually shape this behavior into a 2 on 2 off contact.

If the dog simply refuses to make any attempts to push the teeter down, I suggest enlisting the help of a doggie friend. You can use an experienced agility dog and work the two dogs together. Make sure you have very good cookies and reward the experienced dog for interacting with the teeter. Usually this will make the novice dog jealous (especially if they know each other well.) Often, the novice dog will see that the experienced dog has no fear of the teeter and his jealously and desire for the cookie will give him added courage to try the teeter.

When the dog is very comfortable pushing the board down with his paw and then stepping onto it for a 2 on 2 off contact, you then can ask him to walk the length of the teeter and ride it down. If you have shaped everything described above properly, if the dog is comfortable with each �stage� of the progression before you ask for more, it should be easy for the dog to walk the length of the teeter when finally asked. If all the previous steps were done correctly, the dog often will offer it before even asked for it.

Of course, when you finally ask the dog to walk the entire teeter, it is still at a very low height. Once the dog can successfully walk back and forth on the teeter at the lowest height, raise it a few inches. When you start raising the teeter, do so slowly. If the dog notices and becomes afraid again, then go back to work on just pushing the end down with one paw. Or you can lower the teeter back down an inch or two. The dog should be challenged enough to think but not enough to quit. If the dog starts to quit on you, you have gone too fast and need to take a few steps back.

When I�m working a dog on the teeter, I ask him to go back and forth across the length of the teeter. If the dog holds a 2 on 2 off contact, I will have them turn around and do the teeter again. One benefit to this is that the tipping point of the teeter is dramatically changed (since the dog is doing the teeter �backwards�). This helps the dog to become accustomed to teeters that tip differently.

Once the dog is comfortable doing the teeter at home, it is important to expose him to other types of teeters. All teeters are different. They tip differently and all require different amounts of �push� to make them tip. Some are �slow� some are �fast�. Dogs need to be able to confidently handle all kinds.