Hi everyone,

Just a little video on how we are going with the added movement in heel.

I have noticed that when I click Tango brings his head back and up a bit, predicting that the treat is going to come from my left hand. He does this on the platform too. So I think the way to solve this is to reward forward more often - either releasing him forward to chase a treat or forwards and upwards.

I have also noticed that when my hands are behind my back, his position is more back than it should be. I catch myself then bringing my left hand out to lure him forward. What I think I should be doing instead is have the lure hand there ready to catch his head before he makes the mistake.

I have done a little work with the toy but not much. His energy can be a little manic when there's a toy in the picture and I am really keen to get that to work in my favour. This morning I just tried dropping the toy out of my armpit when I was happy with his stationary position... I should have filmed it, it was full of failed catches!

I just realized the above may sound like a suggestion or critique when really I just saw your skill with the clicker and was thinking wow that would be so cool to see ( I saw it in :18) and it got me all excited, I am playing with it with Elsa but seem to miss my timing when I review my video.

Thanks Reanne : )

I also think I need to do more marking and rewarding for eye contact, and need to make an effort to reward it more when he just offers it on his own.

His understanding of the static position and where his head should be, where he's meant to look, etc, is not as strong as I'd like it to be for the moving work, like you I'm finding all these little mistakes from what I've filmed! 

Great discussion on this thread. Maelyn, in your first paragraph you mention that Tango brings his head back and up to meet the predicted food delivery point. This is exactly the affect of this reward placement work. For dogs that express forward very readily, or for dogs with a history of forging in heel or carrying their head low, this is a very effective strategy to bring their position back and head up. This you know. If you're finding that it is having too strong an effect on Tango, your considerations for problem solving are good ones. One thing which you touched on in your feedback to self which will also greatly affect the dogs position is a clear understadning of a focal point. If Tango isn't completely clear or proofed on this, and you're using an 'upward outside left' reward placement... you're sure to see some lagging or deviation in position. Really proofign his understanding of the focal point will ensure that his position stays strong and correct despite the 'magnetiIng affect' of the left hand. And this particular placement can still be used to keep head eye, without fall out in body position. Just wanted to offer some thoughts on that... Honestly though, this work looks great. You're so detailed, and so considerate, and Tango just loves the work. The move you do at :33 - where you bring your left hand out from behind the back to his outside left - to me it looked like you were bringing reward into place. But when i turned the volume up I realize you hadn't clicked. It was a pretty swift hand movement out to the side and I can see how he thought it may have appeared to present reward. To me, this is a proofing issue and one you can do from static position (bucket) before adding movement. If your mark is clear, and he's been thoroughly proofed to all pictures (hand movements, gestures, speeds) from static, then he'll not fall for them in movement. One thing you can try when putting your hands behind your back and heeling is to heel on a right circle. If you drive right in your heel work, and if Tango is proofed on the focal point, he'll work hard to stay with you and your face... this will also cause him to mentally 'let go' of the hand more due to effort to stay in position and focused. Driving right creates a bit more distance between the focal point and the attraction of the hand, and also force the issue a bit of his desire to stay back. Driving right increases speed and energy required by the dog to keep up, meaning no time to hang back. Give it a try and let me know what you think. I find it particularly useful as a proofing stategy for dogs who are hanging back to be closer to the toy or food as it hangs behind and to the outside left of their head. I'll even lean forward a bit at the waste to create more distance between focal point and reward - to really ensure they're watching face. Be sure to keep clear separation between your click and the presentation of the reward hand. At :55 it looked a bit close together. Really glad you captured that awesome moving repetition at 1:02! And great reps beyond, too. The work is lovely. If anything, I'd recommend you head back to the perch with the clicker and this training picture and really proof him off the hand. Secure with absolute certainty that commitment to they face, despite the hand, and you'll find more control and consistency in the movement.

Apologies for the block of feedback, Maelyn. It was more cooperatively formatted before sending but in the transition of posting it turned to this! Something with my tablet I assume. My laptop is in for repair and should be back soon.