Scoop learns the alphabet
While I was working on proofing the pages for the Alphabet Book, I realized that there are so many of the letters that I still need to train with Scoop. I have decided to systematically go through each one of the original Alphabet drills over the next month, starting with some of the most fundamental exercises and progressng to the more difficult patterns and drills. Yesterday we started with the letter O. I love this simple setup. Here’s a couple of the drills I did with front crosses at the side change.
Scoop was really good. The first order of business was just to do the full circle a few times in both directions. He got into a nice rhythm with his jumping. Once I released him from my side to start the circle I just moved parallel with him in the circle, not giving any verbal commands. I wanted to see if he would travel around the circle with minimal cues. Then I started putting in a front cross back to the inside of the circle to go in the opposite direction, like the top drill, and then I worked on putting the front cross after three jumps, and I took him to the outside of the circle and then right back around to another front cross after three jumps. Bottom drill. That is also a good one to do with rear crosses.We also trained all the clover leaf front crosses, and worked one of my favorite exercises, front cross to rear cross.
Pull out your old Clean Runs and follow our progress with your dog. There have been some changes since the original publication, there are some new drills in the book, and some old ones removed. Not everything has been changed though. I didn’t want to totally rewrite each and every exercise. I AM trying to be more careful about where I put my handlers and the lines I show in the drills. When I first started the articles I wasn’t as careful on handler placement, and I wasn’t careful to proof where the editors might have changed things slightly because of all the crowded lines and dogs and icons:)
Have fun with the letter O if you get a chance to run it soon. Right now it’s my absolute favorite letter!
NJG
Please do post on the blog when the book is ready – I’m another that would love to have them all in one place… I’ve actually dismantled a few CRs to put in plastic sleeves so they can safely go outdoors to train with us! Thanks for posting – can’t wait for snow to melt- you can only do so many outdoor reps in 8 inches 🙂
Would love it as you do these we can follow along, can you put the month/year in your blog if you do any more alphabet drills?
I want to go out and do the letter O now! Thanks!
AWESOME!!! I want this book! I also subscribed too late for CR and missed out on these drills. What CLEVER & FUN exercises!
Thank you Scoop for test driving ‘O’.
Tara, Hermes & Leda
Well you will have them soon! NJG
I started subscribing to Clean Run right at the end of the alphabet drills and have always wanted all of the letters! Looking forward to the book 🙂
I will ask CR if I can give a date publication estimate.
Glad you like them, I do too! NJG
Love the alphabet drills. When is the book coming out.
Alphabet Drills were published from February 2005 till April 2007. The letter O was published June of 2006.
NJG