A. No, you did not start too young but you say he got bored looking up at you after a minute. What you must realize is that just looking at you when he is learning to work at heel would be boring - he will need tasty food or a toy, whatever he likes best, held in the hand in a position which encourages him to watch but not grab or jump and he will then be rewarded for getting it correct. The more often the reward comes in the beginning, the quicker you will succeed.

I would also start off in a big right circle so that he has to make the effort to stay with you and you will not be able to walk into him, which would make him lose confidence in you and look straight ahead.

If you did get good attention at heel, it would help to link your fun moves together and make sure he would not miss your signals.

Q. We are great fans of yours. We have always had dogs from puppies and found no problem with training but have taken on a 15 month old Labrador who is adorable and extremely good indoors. However, for several months we have tried to teach him to walk to heel and not to jump up at visitors - unfortunately we do not get many strangers at home so that will take us a long time - but we are persevering with the clicker. Bailey is great and we wonder if you have any training days in your area, or can you give us any additional help. He sits, stays and whilst a lively puppy he is very good apart from the lead which is not his fault as his previous owners did not teach him anything. Many thanks for many many hours of pleasure. Lyn, Norfolk

A. When you are walking him on the lead and he pulls, stop when the lead gets loose, click and reward. He will soon understand what he is getting clicked for, ie a loose lead.

As for training courses, the best thing to do is keep checking on my web site as all the latest information is kept there.

Q. I have a 9 month old Border Collie. He has been going to obedience classes since he was 3 months old but the last four weeks he has been getting very excited and is biting my daughter and I when we get there. I was wondering if you had any advice about how we can stop him biting.

Elizabeth, Devon

A. If you are going to a dog club, I’m surprised your trainers have not helped you with your problem. Certainly, collies will come up with all sorts of problems because they are bred to work and work with their eyes, therefore they can find the atmosphere of other dogs and people moving about and training very exciting. It is always easier to stop any bad behaviour before it becomes a habit. Keeping them interested in you and your rewards is the kindest way but if the problem becomes far more interesting than any reward you have on offer, then I’m afraid the answer has to be a negative enforcer, eg either a water spray or rather a sharp squirt in the face or a noise such as a tin with pebbles in it that you shake! However, be warned as the second option is not a good idea near other dogs because lots of dogs are sound sensitive and you may worry others.

Q. It has taken me a long time to find your web site but it was worth the wait. All of your dogs are beautiful and look like a pleasure to be with.

I have a problem with my 16 month old Border Collie Max. He is fantastic in the house and always obeys his commands but when he is outside he just doesn’t seem interested in his training. I’ve tried everything from food to play toys but he just loses his concentration. He is also quite aggressive towards other dogs. It seems like rough play or just him asserting his dominance but I am getting increasingly worried about his behaviour. He may run up to a dog barking in a friendly way and wagging his tail but then he growls and sometimes nips the dog’s behind. Then he runs back to me and carries on as normal. He met one dog that barked back at him and he just stopped in his tracks and played with the other dog for nearly half an hour. Is this a dominance problem? He is my first Border Collie and I love him to bits but I don’t want him to turn into a bully in the park!

Some dog trainers I know have said that I should get him castrated, but they do not own Border Collies and I’m not sure if it would help him with his problem. Do you think I should try re-socialising him?

Thank you for reading my e-mail and I would appreciate any information. Josie, Essex

A. If you are not going to breed from him there is no reason to keep him entire, even if his problem is not sexual. It may be a dominance problem in that the dog he was playing with was at least equal or higher than him. Have you tried a muzzle as you could use one when you know the dogs he approaches are of good temperament and not likely to attack him. He could then socialise and you need not worry.

Q. I have a 6 month old Border Collie puppy. He is being trained for obedience and his training is progressing very nicely. I am also a clicker user but make full use of food, toys and lead (for gentle guidance) when necessary.

I have applied your theory of starting the dog off out wide in order to establish the trot and to allow a balanced and constant gait to develop and now I’ve begun to bring him in to the close heel position.

When I bring him in I find that he crabs. I know this is entirely normal in puppies because their bones are developing and they don’t have rear end control yet, but do you have any tips or suggestions for how you should help the dog to learn to keep parallel on right-handed circles without incorporating shoulder signals etc?

I feel it would be easier if I could help him to keep it in from the beginning rather than having to adjust or correct the position.

I hope to hear your comments. Margaret, North of England

A. My dog crabs as well!

Teach him how to find the close position on the spot, which would teach him how to use his back end, walk forward and left turn teaching him to square off on the spot when he has got the idea, then left turn and walk out. Next go in a left circle. Can he maintain the trot, especially on the bends? If he can, it means he is now understanding how to use his back end.

When you then do a right circle, as his back end swings out too far you can change to a left circle and make a pattern like a slalom. Also, start going in straight lines and about-turn; if he overturns, stop after completing the turn and ask him to get close.

I have had the same problem with my pup and found that her position improved when I had her on a lead.

Q. I am 13 years old and have a Border Collie that I am doing agility and heelwork with. I think what you do with your dogs is absolutely amazing! I have some questions to ask. How do you get your dog to concentrate on you when you are in the ring with flashing lights and hundreds of people? Do you do anything to expose your dogs to that sort of experience?

I also have some questions about agility. My dog is brilliant at it but she tends to go too fast and then look round as if to say ‘well, come on then!’ Do you have any tips on how to get her to concentrate on the obstacles rather than the piece of cheese in my hand or any distractions? We’re hoping to compete in our first show soon. Laura, West Midlands

A. They are socialised at dog club and obedience and agility shows so concentration is built up over many months. However, never expect them to work for nothing until they enjoy what they are doing as much or more than their reward.

To get a dog to focus ahead rather than on your hand, I would put or throw the reward ahead. When I am teaching jumps, for example, I would start with one low jump and send the dog over to a toy or treat onto something visible and then back-chain two jumps then three etc. I introduce the command to go on and then I do the same over contact obstacles. For weave poles, I throw the toy or food as they complete the last pole. When they have learned to weave, I place the toy or food but make sure it is in a straight line from the last pole so hopefully they don’t pull out too soon.

Q. I have dusted the rust off the clicker that I never had the confidence to use before and started playing about! Now I have a young dog totally offering the same behaviour again and again whether the clicker is to hand or not. He is totally obsessed with wave left paw, big wave right paw and beg (which I call ‘up’). I was delighted with all this until last week at the club my instructor told me to leave him in the sit for DC which I did then turned round to find my dog giving the longest beg you could imagine! After we had fallen about laughing and got it sorted, the next exercise was the retrieve, when my instructor told me to place the article and stand beyond. When I turned round, what did I see but another perfect beg! Although I’m delighted with the progress with my clicker and don’t want to lose these behaviours, how can I stop him doing it when other instructions are so clear, ie control! I must admit that I’m enjoying him whatever we are doing so this mail is somewhat tongue in cheek!
Pam, North of England

A. The last thing you taught or they learnt for themselves with the clicker will be in them fairly strong, especially if they enjoy it. You say that you call the beg ‘up’ so I assume you have got the behaviour on command which is what you need. Sometimes if they learn something for themselves, I forget to put a command on it. What he must learn now is the wrong command, so the easy way to explain this is if you tell him to sit and he then offers you a beg, tell him ‘wrong’ then sit when he sits, click that and reward. Although the wrong command may mean nothing at this point, it is worth saying before you re-command him to sit so he will learn the meaning of it. You will know when he has learned the wrong command by trying it on its own. For instance, tell him to sit, he sits then begs, say ‘wrong’ and if he sits you know it’s working. So whenever he gets mixed up or does his own thing, get him to do what he should be doing and click that.

It’s so easy for them to get confused because if we want them to beg we get them to sit first, or if we want them to roll we get them to lie down first. So really they are only anticipating what may follow from sit, down, stand etc. Once they have learned moves, it is better to drop the down command, for example, and just tell them to roll.

I’m not surprised you are enjoying him - he sounds mouth-watering!

Q. I have been doing agility with my Labrador for about a year now and will soon be competing with her. However, how do I keep her motivated to complete a course as she seems to slow down or become disinterested half way round? Do I need to stop and praise more often or make it more of a game?
Sue, Midlands

A. Often dogs that are not motivated enough for agility usually do the second half of the course faster because they like to finish it.

If you are sure she is physically fit and nothing is hurting her after doing so many obstacles then yes she will need motivating by playing “tuggy” with a toy or feeding her. You could have a pot of treats somewhere on the course, run to it and then feed her.

Q. I’m doing Freestyle with my Sheltie and I’m having difficulty phasing out food treats. If she isn’t rewarded frequently, she tends to lag behind and isn’t so enthusiastic. Eventually I would like her to do work without food treats. Can you help?
Lauren, Australia

A. Leave your treats in a place, work her away from them then return to reward her. Start off with something she really enjoys and run back to your treat pot with enthusiasm. Always keep her guessing, although if you’re talking about heel work you may do just a few steps then add on a couple of turns, then just one step etc.

Q. I have always admired the way you get your dogs to trot with their feet up. How do you start to teach this? Joanne, Lincolnshire

A. I will try to explain more about the trot.

I like all dogs to trot when they are performing normal and fast pace heelwork. Why? Because my second Border Collie Pepperland Hot Chocolate (Whiz) was a pacer, not that I realised at the time. By the time he was in Class ‘C’ he became very lazy and his pacing was so ingrained that I couldn’t change it. What made me aware was owning my next dog Ob.Ch. Red Hot Toddy (Toddy). He was a very special boy and did a high step trot from a puppy, my only one that has done this and why, because at 12 weeks old he did very good heelwork and held a nice position and attention as if he had been here before.

Obviously, I wanted this movement again. My next pup was a Belgian Tervueren Ob.Ch. Minack Red Aral. Now although she did not high step, she always maintained a trot and was the best heelworker I will ever own. All my other pups have never high stepped until they were at least six months old. By just being aware that the dog is trotting and helping to maintain it, for instance by not going on a left circle if it doesn’t know how to bend the back end in yet, and running away for fun backwards so the dog is in front turning back into heelwork away from the dog so it doesn’t break its rhythm (the big mistake here is to go forward into the dog that is coming towards you and will just break its movement because it will have to get back out of your way to the real position).

When it has learned the correct heel position, motivation should encourage it to come up rather than forward. If you think about it, a show dog has to be shown at a trot for the judge to access the dog’s movement. Obviously this is easier for the handler to see as the dog is away from you and because the head of the dog should be level, it will trot without lifting its feet.

The beauty of the clicker and the target stick is that you can teach your dog to trot much easier as you can see his movement then click at the right time to get an extended trot, keep the target stick lower and the dog’s head level. For a high stepping slower trot, keep the target stick high. If they jump, put the target stick higher and only click when the jumping stops. Change the click from touching the target stick by giving them the chance to make contact just looking at it.

When I was young, I may have wanted a bigger bust. I can’t speak for Dave but I’m so glad they didn’t grow as I’ve always been able to see what my dog’s front feet are doing and it took me a long time to realise that some of my friends could not tell whether their dogs were trotting because their big boobs got in the way and made it impossible for them to see their dogs feet - ha ha!!



Q. I have a question about teaching a small dog like your Gypsy a good heelwork position, For a larger dog its quite easy to maintain the correct heel position because the head is about the height of the femoral. So this part of the leg does not move very much forward and backwards, But a little dog, Where has he his orientation point? The heels are doing a much longer way so they cannot be glued there, Are they? I am very interested how you manage that Claudia, Switzerland

A. As I train puppies of bigger breeds to do heelwork they are then the same size as a small dog and I go about it the same way, I do not expect them to work close at first, just to look up and watch as I walk, watching food or a toy in my hand, initially they may try and jump to get the reward but if they are only rewarded when their feet are on the ground they very quickly realise what they are getting rewarded for “i.e trotting”

I teach the heelwork position at the sit on the spot and I will lean over to help them follow the food giving the close command to get it right, when they have learned this I will stand straight hold the hand with the treat in to the side/front of my thigh and give the close command and wait for them to get it right, when I want them closer while moving I may ease them in closer with the use of my lead.

If you use a clicker you can target a patch on your trousers where you want their nose to touch and don’t forget to be very careful with your footwork with a small dog because its harder to keep them close.

Q. "I am amazed at how you can achieve success in Agility, Obedience and Heelwork to Music. I lot of people I know say that you cannot train more than one discipline as it mixes up the dog. How do you manage it?" Ron, Southend

A. Dogs, especially Border Collies, are very intelligent and contrary to what a lot of people say they can tell the difference between the different disciplines themselves. I obviously do try to be careful to use different commands in my Heelwork to Music to what I use in Obedience. I have only had one slip-up which happened in a very public way at Crufts - in fact, it was so public that it was on television. That was when Kizzy was in the Obedience Championships and I sent her out for the scent and when she got to the first scent cloth, she then backed up towards me, much to the amusement of the audience! When I watched it afterwards on television, you could see that when she got to the first cloth, she cocked her head to one side and obviously thought she had heard a command. Problem was if she had got a clear scent she would have won 4th place !!!

Q. "You are very well known for your brown and white Border Collies but you have also achieved success with a Belgian Shepherd. Are you going to have another Belgian or any other breed?" Lorraine, Leicester

A. I certainly still like Belgian Shepherds and I would like a Malinois. Some of the ones I have seen abroad and ones that I saw the Met Police demonstrate with at Discover Dogs were stunning but my husband Dave is not keen on me having another one. We do have a re-homed Sheltie called Gypsy who does a bit in Heelwork to Music and has won some places in Obedience and Agility. Also I run a friend’s Sheltie called Tina in Agility and she has qualified for the Pedigree Agility Finals and won a Reserve Agility Challenge Certificate, so at the moment we will be sticking to Border Collies and Shelties.

Q. "I have a male Border Collie aged two years who was recently castrated but he and every dog in his litter are excessively nervous and it seems to come from the father. I can’t even walk to the shops and I’ve been trying to settle him for two years. I am at a loss at where to go from here. It is sad to see a dog fall apart in front of you at the sight of a truck." Lisa, Australia

A. One of the worst problems about this is that your older dog could pass it on to your puppy. The best thing to do is to try borrowing someone else’s dogs and walking your own amongst them to give him some confidence. If I take my new puppy for a walk on her own and she spooks at something, I then take her out with one of my older dogs who is sound and this gives her the confidence not to get upset about anything.

Q. "When I have seen you working your dogs at Obedience Shows, one of the things which impresses me is the consistent way that your dogs trot with style. My own dog is also able to do this but not consistently. Could you offer me any tips?" Karen, Surrey

A. The trot is a very tiring movement for dogs, so build up the time you work him gradually. They will tend to lose the trot doing left work and coming out of turns. So to avoid this, go in a left circle and if he loses the trot turn immediately into a right circle and click him when he breaks into a trot. Also, teach him the word so that he knows the difference and when coming out of a turn go into a fast pace for a couple of strides using an exciting verbal command then go back to a normal pace but still use the word and see if he maintains the trot. If you are always aware of the difference between pacing and trotting, you should be able to get success quickly. You must be aware that in the competition ring small stretches of heelwork and always being told to turn will encourage pacing so don’t slow down as you come out of a turn and make the dog work to you.

Q. "Do you do all your training with a clicker now?" Margaret, Cheshire

A. I always view that there are two types of clicker people - clicker trainers and clicker users. Clicker trainers believe there is only one way of training a dog, which is with a clicker and they will not accept now that there is any other method. Clicker users use several methods of training and the clicker is just part of it. I am a clicker user - I also still train using my lead, toys and treats. I am definitely not one of the “pull and grab” brigade - I do believe in hands-off training and always have. Neither do I believe in choke chains.

Q. "Can clicker training be introduced to a dog at any age as successfully as to a puppy or is my five year old dog too old to start?" Tricia, Glasgow

A Yes, it can be introduced at any age, if it has already been trained, it will be what is called a cross-over dog. They sometimes take a little longer to start thinking for themselves – on the other hand, you can still use the clicker without ending the behaviour, e.g. if the dog already retrieves, he will not drop the article so can be clicked for a good pick-up or not mouthing etc.

Q. "In your experience, how long roughly would you expect a dog to work in Novice Obedience before moving up to ‘A’, then ‘B’ and through to ‘C’?" Mary, Northampton

A. Every dog is different in the time they take to mature. Certainly, with a young dog I would not work it in ‘A’ until it has won its Novices. I like to ensure they have confidence before working without commands. They may reach ‘C’ at 3-5 years old but one thing is for sure – they are there for the rest of their working lives so there is no hurry and as ‘C’ can make or break a dog, the more mature and confident they are the less problems that will occur.

Q. "Have you ever met a dog who did not respond to clicker training?" Helen, Northamptonshire

A. No. Most dogs will respond, it will just be harder if a dog is a fussy eater and does not play.

Q. "What sort of food do you use when training?" Bev, Warwickshire

A. There are a couple of important factors when deciding what food to use. Firstly, it has to be very tasty and secondly it shouldn’t be crumbly. What you need to avoid is the dog sniffing around the floor for the bits that broke off. I use cheese and sausage. The cheese is just plain, mild cheddar diced fairly small and I normally buy the cheapest economy sausages and roast them off in the oven. Once they are cold, again they dice up nice and small. At one time, I did use tinned or bottled frankfurters but I did find them very wet and sloppy to use. Although you will probably take your diced treats in a tub to where you are training, I do find it handy to wear a bum-bag so that I don’t have to keep going back to re-stock on treats and risk pieces dropping onto the floor.

Q. "I am thinking of getting a second Border Collie with a view to working them in HTM together. Do dogs work differently with bitches and what would be the best for a harmonious partnership?" Jackie, Yorkshire

A. This will depend on who is dominant or jealous. All my dogs get on well together but Kizzy gets jealous so tries to push Quincy out of the way and do moves quicker herself when they are both working in a routine. So there is a little competition there. As my dogs show no aggression towards other dogs, I never worry about bringing in a dog or a bitch but if I did then I would buy the opposite sex.

Q. "Do you prefer dogs or bitches?" Diane, Fife

A. This is a question which comes up very often at my Cabaret Nights. I have no preference to working either really but you definitely have to have a different outlook on their training. With bitches you have to ask them to do something (just like women) and with dogs you have to tell them to do something (just like men). What more can I say?

Q. "Which part of dogging do you like best - Agility, Obedience or Heelwork to Music?" Sue, Lincolnshire

A. I actually love them all in their own way. The very fortunate part of competing in three disciplines is that there is always something different happening. My biggest problem is always time. Most weekends during the season I could do with being at three different shows on the same day!

Q. "I recently purchased the latest ‘Cabaret’ video which I thought was fantastic. Will you be bringing out any more?" Jane, West Midlands

A. Yes, I intend to make three more videos which will pretty much complete the set. Hopefully, two of these will be out by the end of 2003.

Q. "Do you have your own training facility at home?" Nicky, Naples

A. No, I don’t. In fact, I live in a terraced house but I am fortunate in that I have a large piece of public amenity land outside my back gate so during the Summer I can train out there and in the Winter I can hire and use my local village hall which is not used at all during the day. I am also Head Trainer at Rugby Dog Training Club and all my agility training takes place at the club facility.

Q. "Have you had experience of training any other animals?" Kathleen, Montreal

A. Apart from the fact that I did have a pet lamb which walked round the village on a lead when I was a youngster, before I got into dogs I was big into horses and Dave was a really “happy chappy” when I finally gave up all the horses to just concentrate on dogs. It meant that he didn’t have to go out at night with the feed and the hay during the Winter!

Q. "Are your dogs kept in kennels outside?" Pauline, Ireland

A. No, all our dogs live in the house. Not having children, our dogs tend to be treated like kids so I would not want them to live out. One of the reasons that our house is good for the dogs is that we have an extremely large utility room so when they come back from their walk dirty or wet, we have somewhere to clean them up and let them dry off before they come into the house where they spend most of their time. In saying all this, I do understand that people do have different circumstances and I’m not critical of people who do keep their dogs kennelled outside.

Q. "I notice that you have judged and taught in many countries throughout the world. Don’t you find this extremely difficult as the rules seem to be different everywhere?" Alex, London

A. The only difficult part is sometimes the language although most people who are hosting a seminar would provide an interpreter, but it amazes me how many people abroad do actually speak English. As far as the difference is concerned, Heelwork to Music/Freestyle is the same all over the world, Agility is pretty similar - it is only some of the dimensions of the equipment which may be different, it is Obedience where the rules can be very different. Throughout Europe, it is FCI Obedience, in Australia it is American type Obedience although New Zealand is British Obedience and Singapore is influenced by the Australians so that would be American type Obedience. However, it doesn’t matter if the exercises are different as training methods are universal and dog trainers worldwide are a smashing bunch of people.