Lorrie Reynolds [00:00:07]:
Everyone who teaches ultra-competitive agility will tell you this: you can't be competitive in agility if you don't have running contacts. But today I want to throw a little "brutal honesty" out there and give you my best piece of advice regarding contacts. Unless you're aiming for world team, or expect to be a contender for first place at a national competition, running contacts may not be the best choice for your team. Yep, I said that out loud. I'm expecting to hear some pushback on this episode, but if you have an open mind, keep listening and let me explain. Thanks for joining me for this week's episode of the Maximum Fun Agility Podcast. I'm Lorrie Reynolds, owner of Maximum Fun Dog Sports. We help your agility team build your relationship, communication, confidence, and fun in training so that you can enjoy success on any course.
Lorrie Reynolds [00:01:02]:
In this episode, we'll talk about what you need for running contacts and stopped contacts in dog agility and take a look at whether running contacts are right for your team. One of the most important decisions you need to make before you start training the foundations for contacts is which type of contacts your dog will have. There are basically two options with some variations: stopped contacts or running contacts. People who are new to agility are reliant upon their instructor to help them make the decision. Hopefully the instructor will consider the needs of the team rather than just choose the method that they are most comfortable with. You may not know how much time and effort is required to teach each type of contact or whether you need equipment or not. Stopped contacts may not be the best choice for a dog who has a heavier build that will put additional stress on their shoulders by stopping, although good teaching methods will encourage the dog to rock back and not land heavily. Here's some advice on what to choose.
Lorrie Reynolds [00:02:07]:
First, let's talk about what you need for running contacts in dog agility. Solid, consistently successful running contacts require these things: First, frequent access to contact equipment once you're past the foundation stage. Unfortunately, once per week in class won't cut it if you want your dog to be proficient at running contacts. Second, you'll need lots of training time for repetitions, repetitions, and more repetitions. Third, running contacts require exceptional directional commands at the contact exit, or you need to be a handler who can keep up with her dog and cue them correctly as they exit the contact obstacle. Fourth, running contacts require a handler with a good enough "eye" to clearly see if the dog hits the contact and maintains criteria, and who will only reward performances that meet those criteria. So why is this important? Because most of us don't have either the time, dedication, trained eye, or access to equipment that will allow us to really teach running contacts successfully. I'm including myself in the whole "don't have time" category.
Lorrie Reynolds [00:03:19]:
That means that many handlers I know have spent years trying unsuccessfully to teach their dogs running contacts, becoming more and more frustrated as they throw money away at trials on non-qualifying runs. It's heartbreaking. And retraining when something falls apart is always harder than training something from the beginning. So back to my advice at the very beginning of the podcast, unless you have everything on that required list, I recommend that you teach your dog a solid stopped contact that can be transformed into a quick release performance after your dog is completely confident and distraction-proof and has gotten some ring time under his belt. Let's talk about what you need for stopped contacts and define exactly what stopped contacts are. Stopped contacts can take many forms. The most common is called 2 on/2 off, where the dog stops with his front feet on the ground and his back feet on the contact obstacle and waits to be released. Variations of stopped contacts can include 4 feet on the board, where the dog stops with all 4 feet in the yellow contact zone, or a couple of rarely used methods which are 4 on the floor, where the dog stops on the flat at the bottom of the contact, and 1 foot on, where the dog is taught to just maintain his position touching the contact zone with 1 foot.
Lorrie Reynolds [00:04:48]:
Solid, consistently successful stopped contacts require the following things: First, access to a mat, a Cato Board, or a similar item that is tall enough that the dog notices the difference between the two feet on the ground and the two back feet on the object. I use a foam balance pad for my training that's about 1.5 inches tall. Second, intermittent access to contact equipment once the end behavior is firmly established so you can transfer the behavior to the contact obstacle. A large number of repetitions isn't really required since the end behavior transfers from the mat or Cato board to the actual contact obstacle fairly easily. Third, you do need to have time and patience to build the foundations, but it can be in blocks of 2-5 minutes at a time wherever you are since you don't need full equipment. You don't really need to have an experienced "eye" for stopped contacts. It is very clear to both you and your dog that he either has stopped with his feet in the correct place or he has not. Now that you know what you need for each type of contact, your next decision is to pick which type you want to teach.
Lorrie Reynolds [00:06:07]:
You'll want to be honest and ask yourself, does my dog need running contacts to reach the level of success I have planned for us? Here's a fun fact: during the 2 years that Pixie took 3rd place at NADAC Championships, only one of the top 3 dogs in my class had running contacts. Pixie was not that one. You can succeed at national competitions without stopped contacts if you have a consistent, relatively fast dog. Will you take 1st place? It depends on how consistent your competitors are, not just on contacts, but also on the rest of the course. There are many more places on course to make mistakes that running contacts would have no effect on. The first place dog both years in Pixie's class also had stopped, quick release contacts. Let's talk about why I think that stopped contacts are the better choice for the majority of the agility teams out there who are not interested in world team. My biggest point in favor is that stopped contacts are very clear for the dog.
Lorrie Reynolds [00:07:12]:
Two back feet on one surface and two front feet on another is extremely clear criteria that a dog can easily understand even when they're very young. Dogs can understand to run through boxes or hit mats as they are running or stride over stride regulators, etc., but the criteria is not as easily discernible for the dog. The second point is that the criteria is easy for the handler to understand, and the stop makes it simple for the handler to determine whether the dog should be rewarded for the performance or not. You don't need an experienced eye to see if a toenail got into the yellow on the dog's way through. That makes it easier to reward correctly and helps the dog learn faster. The foundation training for stopped contacts requires equipment that is easy to transport or adapt. My training tool of choice is a small square balance pad, but I've made do with many other options that I easily found around the house. Equipment required for running contacts varies depending on which method is being used, but can vary from mats to PVC boxes to entire planks.
Lorrie Reynolds [00:08:27]:
Contact foundations for stopped contacts can be taught to very young puppies. As long as whatever you're using is only an inch or so high, even young puppies can navigate it and learn to stop. For my dogs, I also have some concerns with the high number of repetitions running contacts require. I teach all of the distance skills and do all of the proofing for my end contact behavior while my dog is still working on the mat, greatly reducing the number of repetitions required on full contacts. I also feel that it reduces the potential for injury for a number of reasons. Dogs who are taught to navigate the contacts expecting to shift their weight back at the end are not running full tilt across the dog walk, for example. I know many people who are aiming for high-level competition would see that as a drawback rather than a benefit.
Lorrie Reynolds [00:09:19]:
But I like the fact that my dogs are a bit more controlled going across as they prepare to stop at the bottom. I know the arguments that stopped contacts are hard on the dog's shoulders, but if you teach the weight shift to the rear, there is no sudden jolting stop to damage shoulders when they reach the bottom. You also want to teach them to stop where their back is relatively flat and their back feet are near the bottom of the contact. It's nice that you don't have to have multiple commands at the end of the contact, although you certainly can. My release word is immediately followed by the next cue to tell my dog which way to turn. I also truly believe that a bit of lost time on a contact obstacle is easy to make up in other areas like efficient turns, good lines between the obstacles, and fast weaves. At the level I hope to reach, which is national competition in venues like NADAC, ASCA, or CPE, consistency is just as important as speed. I am in no way denigrating running contacts.
Lorrie Reynolds [00:10:24]:
I have many friends who have taught their dogs running contacts with varying degrees of success. If you have the time, equipment, and experience to make running contacts work for you and your goal is the highest levels of competition, that is a great choice. However, I believe that stopped contacts are the best choice for 80% of agility teams and a higher percentage of inexperienced teams. You'll be more successful and get to the top faster with consistent stopped contacts than you will with hit-or-miss running contacts. Do you have a different opinion? I'd love to hear from you about your experience, especially if you have taught beginning teams. Thanks for listening to this episode of the Maximum Fun Agility Podcast. If you found it thought-provoking and enjoyed listening, please consider leaving a review or sharing it with a friend. That will help more agility people find the podcast and benefit from it.
Lorrie Reynolds [00:11:24]:
Happy contact training!
