And now you’ve added the stair step track to your repertoire

A big day for several today….we added a six turn stair step to your training repertoire! Congratulations, that is a huge step! Now….some ‘rules’ if you will.

1. While this is one of (or maybe THE) the most valuable tools I have given you, it should not be practiced to the exclusion of all other tools. Neither should it be skipped!

2. I really do strongly suggest 6 turns when you do this track. Six gives both of you plenty of repetition, and the opportunity to lay it as illustrated, so each turn works on a piece of the turn behavior/reading the dog behavior. If you are training TDX, it should be 8 turns.

3. If you haven’t established a training track rotation, now is the time. One day starts (4 Ls, ideally run at intervals to work age); one day articles (as described by Betty); one day duration (550 yards, 0-2 turns, prefer 0-1; TDX 1100 yards); and one day stair step. Rotate through them. Bad day on one? Don’t worry, continue through the rotation. Don’t get stuck.

4. Stair step can be modified—one day, articles can be on the turn. One day legs can be 50-100-50-100 etc. One day turns can be 90-open-90-open etc. For TDX, the ’top’ of the stair step can cross or enter or deny an obstacle.

5. I like many, many things about this track, and high on the list is that it isn’t a T or an X track—it’s a clear and specific way to keep turns sharp. Turns deteriorate gradually….until suddenly they are gone. This exercise should help you keep that from happening. Running T or X tracks doesn’t teach the dog anything….try to tailor your training to a specific skill….save the regulation or similar tracks for the test.