Dogs love agility equipment and if you have ever watched an agility dog competition, you can see how excited canines are as they zoom through tunnels and waves, jump through a tire and navigate a-frames. While most of these obstacles are just plain fun, the pause table is probably not likely to be your dog's favorite obstacle. However, it is highly important because using this table can be a perfect way to improve the obedience level of your dog.
For the uninitiated, a pause table is a dog agility obstacle that is found in all agility competitions. The dog must jump onto this elevated table and then follow the owner or trainer commands and sit, stay and go down. They must sit or stay down for a number of seconds before they can get up, jump off the table and continue through the weaves, jumps and other obstacles. They are not supposed to move until they have received a signal from their owner.
Keep in mind, dogs obviously compete without a leash, obeying a variety of commands. Once you get to the point where your dog is ready to compete, they have become a very obedient animal and this is a very good thing. After all, we want them to sit and stay on command with having to use a leash or treats. This is often for their own safety, as well as the safety of others, so the skills taught on the pause table are truly some of the most important lessons your dog will learn.
While most agility equipment should not be used with very young animals, a low pause table or pause box can be used fairly early on in the dog's life. They need to be taught to sit, stay and go down as soon as possible. Obedience training can and should begin during those puppy months, once the dog is weaned. Obedience not only makes an animal easier to handle, it also truly improves the bond and trust between the owner and dog.
Once your dog can sit and stay on the table for four or five seconds without the use of treats or incentives, it is time to increase the level of difficulty. All you need to do is use the same commands or signals but from a couple of feet away. At first, your animal might seem a bit unsure, but soon they will obey. Then keep putting more distance between you and the dog and eventually you will be able to be quite far away.
This training is not just a fantastic way to teach obedience and distance training; there is another reason why the pause table is a great agility obstacle. Without a pause during the course, dogs can lose focus easily and lose points because they have skipped something or because they are going too fast or they don't handle an obstacle with a high level of precision. By pausing and taking a quick break, they regain their focus. If you are ready to purchase a pause table or any type of dog training equipment, check out the products at Carlson Agility. They have everything from dog tunnels and chutes, all kinds of dog agility jumps, teeter-totters, agility dog walks and everything else you need to get started.
For the uninitiated, a pause table is a dog agility obstacle that is found in all agility competitions. The dog must jump onto this elevated table and then follow the owner or trainer commands and sit, stay and go down. They must sit or stay down for a number of seconds before they can get up, jump off the table and continue through the weaves, jumps and other obstacles. They are not supposed to move until they have received a signal from their owner.
Keep in mind, dogs obviously compete without a leash, obeying a variety of commands. Once you get to the point where your dog is ready to compete, they have become a very obedient animal and this is a very good thing. After all, we want them to sit and stay on command with having to use a leash or treats. This is often for their own safety, as well as the safety of others, so the skills taught on the pause table are truly some of the most important lessons your dog will learn.
While most agility equipment should not be used with very young animals, a low pause table or pause box can be used fairly early on in the dog's life. They need to be taught to sit, stay and go down as soon as possible. Obedience training can and should begin during those puppy months, once the dog is weaned. Obedience not only makes an animal easier to handle, it also truly improves the bond and trust between the owner and dog.
Once your dog can sit and stay on the table for four or five seconds without the use of treats or incentives, it is time to increase the level of difficulty. All you need to do is use the same commands or signals but from a couple of feet away. At first, your animal might seem a bit unsure, but soon they will obey. Then keep putting more distance between you and the dog and eventually you will be able to be quite far away.
This training is not just a fantastic way to teach obedience and distance training; there is another reason why the pause table is a great agility obstacle. Without a pause during the course, dogs can lose focus easily and lose points because they have skipped something or because they are going too fast or they don't handle an obstacle with a high level of precision. By pausing and taking a quick break, they regain their focus. If you are ready to purchase a pause table or any type of dog training equipment, check out the products at Carlson Agility. They have everything from dog tunnels and chutes, all kinds of dog agility jumps, teeter-totters, agility dog walks and everything else you need to get started.
About the Author:
Cheng Bernhardt enjoys dog agility training. To discover an agility equipment for dogs, or to find additional agility dog training equipment such as obedience jumps, please visit the Carlson-Agility.com site now.
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