Retrieving the dumbbell free

The first few times that the handler takes his dog off the back tie for retrieving practice, he proceeds very cautiously. Using just a leash and correction collar, he has the dog take the dumbbell first from his hand and then from the ground. Only if everything goes without difficulty does he pitch the dumbbell out a few feet in front of him and let the dog go after it.

Initially he walks the animal through each retrieve, stepping out toward the dumbbell with the dog and then walking backward a few feet so that the dog can come‑fore and deliver the dumbbell. He stays alert and remains close to the dog, ready to correct at any moment if the dog refuses.

If the dog proves absolutely reliable on these walk‑throughs, the handler then throws the dumbbell and sends the animal out alone to retrieve it for the first time. Initially he makes the throw no longer than the length of the leash. As training progresses he throws farther so that, eventually, he must drop the leash and let the dog run out by itself.

GOAL 2: The dog will retrieve over both the hurdle and the climbing wall cleanly and with confidence.

The obstacles in Schutzhund are not particularly demanding. Any reasonably athletic dog can easily negotiate them. However, in order to do so the animal must be a little “in spirit.” If it feels inhibited or nervous, the dog will jump badly. If it jumps badly it will continually hurt itself. As a result the dog will hate and fear the obstacles and possibly the retrieve as well.

Therefore, the obstacles are taught in fun and play, and absolutely separately from the forced retrieve. Only when the dog is easily and joyfully negotiating the full height on both obstacles and retrieving reliably do we bring the forced retrieve and the obstacles together.

Important Concepts for Meeting the Goal

1. Jumping the hurdle

2. Scaling the climbing wall

3. Retrieving over the hurdle

4. Retrieving over the climbing wall

Jumping the hurdle

The training hurdle must be a board jump made with planks, so that it is possible to raise the height gradually from a point very close to the ground.

The handler begins by setting the hurdle up with just one slat of perhaps twenty centimeters (7.8 inches) in height. He starts the dog on leash from one side of the jump with the command “Hup!” and excitedly runs the dog over it and back, jumping with it each way, and then praises the animal and plays with it with the ball.

The animal will think that this is a wonderful game, and we will stay at the lowest height of the hurdle for a while until the habit begins to sink in that the dog will always go between the standards of the jump (that is, over the hurdle) and never around them, and that when it jumps out it always jumps back. Then the handler begins to gradually raise the height of the jump in five centimeter increments until it reaches the full height of one meter (39 inches). When it becomes too high for him to jump with the dog, the handler runs alongside instead.