Who can offer some tips re BH on trial day? - Page 1

Hello.  This will be my first trial and first BH.

I know the "rules" but who has some "tips" or techniques?  By that I mean things like repeating a command (and other things)

Say I call to come and then to fuss but the dog doesn't quite fuss or is crooked.  Do I repeat command?  Can I pat my left leg?  If so, how many points do I lose?

How many points are lost with owner "help" or cheating? 

I am just hoping that someone can give me some tips if my dog does something a mite unexpected.  I don't just want to stand there like a robot.  I would rather lose a few points then fail the exercise completely.

So, any tips?

Here is the best article I've ever seen written on the BH.

http://www.bigskyschutzhund.com/bhbook.htm

animules, that is a nice site, i used it with my first BH. I also had to take a test on my first BH day of the trial. i guess talking to your dogs is a no no depending on the judge. I talked to my dog a couple of time but it just came out. opps.i've seen the judge even come up to a dog that would not do the recall and push him with his foot to get him going and still pass. really i'm not sure how much you can get away with and pass.

If you have to cheat make sure the judge doesn't hear or see you do it. I wouldn't recommend it myself tho. You do get points knocked off , but I don't remember how much. Just make sure what ever you do, don't be so nervous that it reflects down the leash onto your dog. That is the worse thing I did, but needless to say we did pass, thanks to the judge we had.

If you have to cheat make sure the judge doesn't hear or see you do it. I wouldn't recommend it myself tho. You do get points knocked off , but I don't remember how much. Just make sure what ever you do, don't be so nervous that it reflects down the leash onto your dog. That is the worse thing I did, but needless to say we did pass, thanks to the judge we had.

Gunshot has now been removed from the BH

Why was the gun fire removed from the BH? If you don't mind me asking?

Great article!

I would say that if your dog comes to you and is crooked - let him be crooked, do not correct him, give an additional command, or lure him into position. Otherwise you will loose points for him being crooked AND for giving him additional help/command.

If you feel you are loosing your dog (he is wandering away from you, or you feel he is confused and is loosing concentration), then repeat your command (heel), tap your leg even - it is better than to loose your dog. Do not grab your dog by the collar.

If you feel that encouragement will help your dog's performance, go ahead and pet your dog, even let him jump up to take some tension off.

For me, the most helpful thing before doing my first BH was going to other trials and watching others' BHs. When I saw dogs passed who were just lagging behind their handler with multiple additional commands, etc, it gave me a lot more confidence to try for my own BH - I felt my BH wouldn't be the worst ever. Also, seeing that people who failed did not just go straight to hell helped me a lot too : )

Good luck!

Keep them coming folks.  I appreciate it.  I know some of you MUST remember how nervous you were before your first one. 

Ah yes, and for the traffic part too?  What if my dog is "curious" and "happy" but not aggressive?  Should the dog be heeling or not?