Weave Poles

[phoenix]

how do you encourage a dog to weave through the poles, one of our dogs just cant get the hang of it even though i'm tempting him with liver cake, he loves the jumps and tunnels though. our other dog, will very slowly weave but refuses to jump, he insists on going under the poles no matter how low i put them they are both GSDs & equally awkward

[cabbagepatch88]

how do you encourage a dog to weave through the poles, one of our dogs just cant get the hang of it even though i'm tempting him with liver cake, he loves the jumps and tunnels though. our other dog, will very slowly weave but refuses to jump, he insists on going under the poles no matter how low i put them they are both GSDs & equally awkward

 

Hi,

 

2 common ways of training dogs to weave are:

 

-Channel weaves

- V weaves

 

Channels are where you create a channel for the dogs to run through using the poles, and as the dogs get more confident you move the poles inwards until eventually theyre in a straight line.

 

V weaves are when you place the poles at an angle either side so it looks like V down the middle, and the same principle applies - you get the dogs to run down the middle, and gradually move the poles more vertical until theyre in a straight line.

 

Ive found the weaves to be the most difficult obstacle to train because its not "obvious" what they have to do. It takes a lot of time so be patient If you've done clicker training you can also use this- send the dog in and click when it comes towards you so it learns the "weaving" movement.

 

Larger dogs also find it harder to weave because of their size - your GSD's may be struggling because of this - maybe place the poles a bit further apart so they find it easier until they get the hang of it?

 

Remember to keep training happy and upbeat otherwise they get bored - Monty thinks weaves are boring so I have to make an extra special fuss when he does them. I personally found that training with channels worked best for me, i'd suggest you try that first Keep them at the same width (about a foot) for a week and then move them in a couple of inches week by week.

 

Hope that helps

[Paula]

When they do the weaves in training always stop and make a huge fuss of them with a toy, treats or a play with you so they think weaves are the best thing since sliced bread and really enjoy doing them, you can phase this out when they get the hang of them and enjoy then but always every so often stop and play again.

 

Even at a show you can make a fuss of them with your voice after the weaves before going on to the next piece of equipment, say things like 'Yeah what a good boy well done' so they still think it's fun.

 

I hate weaves and I'm sure both Dudley and Suzi know this but I'm going to keep it secret from Thomas

[K9Fran]

how do you encourage a dog to weave through the poles, one of our dogs just cant get the hang of it even though i'm tempting him with liver cake, he loves the jumps and tunnels though. our other dog, will very slowly weave but refuses to jump, he insists on going under the poles no matter how low i put them they are both GSDs & equally awkward

 

I think I'd use chanel weaves rather than V's for this (Sounds like you're using V's?) as it sounds like his doggy brain is so focused on the idea of jumping, he thinks he's got to jump everything close to a horizontal. I would also start with just three poles to start with, so he doesn't get too phased by the whole thing. Maybe even look at the reward he's being offered - is he toy orientated? Could you keep one special toy for weaves?

 

Don't rule out physical problems making it hard for him, so maybe a quick vet check?

[dlmckay]

I teach it as a two part thing - a command to move away from you through two poles and then another command to call the dog back to you through the poles.

 

so: WEAVE = dog moves away through the poles and then DOG NAME to call them back to you. Our baby beginner class only uses 4 poles. Then you're just repeating the same thing over and over until you get your 12 pole weave.

 

For a while, I had this little two step dance going on to help Tui through the wands WEAVE, TUI, WEAVE, TUI, WEAVE, TUI Thankfully, I've moved away from that now as she's become more confident!