How Movement Works - Overview

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Mission

To provide animal training professionals the skills for shaping balance and precise movement to increase their animals' fitness and confidence and improve trainers' observation and training skills.

Vision

Animals who have physical and emotional balance are confident adapting and generalizing their skills across a variety of settings and situations. Trainers will be more effective observers and teachers, which will improve the welfare of animals.

Class Description

This class is about improving your skills observing and shaping behavior, as well as communication, connection, and training mechanics. These skills will improve our learner's balance, confidence, communication, and physical precision in movement. This class also provides a vehicle for finding joy in training. We will work on foundation exercises that benefit both you and your animals' skills.

We will focus on teaching a set of foundation behaviors through movement. These will be taught with primarily shaping with special attention on the process and not just the outcomes. The goal is engaged and eager learners during the skill acquisition process.

Lectures will focus on canines, however, this class applies to any learner. The majority of video examples will be of canines.

Objectives

• Provide details on how and why trainers can be even better trainers using precise movement.
  • Demonstrate foundation movement-exercises and why we are doing them.
• Show how our alignment and orientation affect our learner.
• Demonstrate and provide details of the weight shifts that need to happen in order to shape movement.
  • Explain and demonstrate active-stillness and how to teach it.
  • Show what physical balance looks like and explain its importance.
• Proprioception and why it's important.
• Explain and demonstrate the many aspects of reinforcement that are at play in precision movement.
• Identify the many areas of observation involved in training.
• Provide various ways of asking our learners if they are ready to work.
• Provide videos of foundation movement exercises (weekly).

Prerequisites

• Living and Learning With Animals by Susan G. Friedman, Ph.D.
• A solid understanding of operant teaching and learning. It will benefit you to have experience and an understanding of how to teach specific behaviors to your learner, i.e. experience with marker-based training using positive reinforcement. If you have any questions about this, please send me an email.

Supplies for Class

• Poles and cones (cavalettis) will be useful. See note 1 below on how to make or buy.
• Platforms: A platform or two that is 1-3" (2.5-7.5 cm) in height. You can wrap two 1-3" books in anti-slip material. You will need anti-slip material to wrap around books and/or platforms. See Note 2 below on how to make or buy.
• Anti-slip (shelving) material for wrapping books or platforms.
• You will need a non-slip flooring surface to work on, e.g. a yoga mat or rubber flooring.
• If your dog is on the aging side of life, you'll probably want to get a Balance Pad or two. These are the same whether for people or dogs and an inexpensive option.

Note 1: If you don't want to purchase a set of cavalettis, you can make them with mop handles, PVC, or agility-jump-poles and painters-tape. Rest them on top of cans at various heights (tuna cans are the lowest height and big cans of tomato sauce are the highest). Tape them to the cans or the floor with painters tape.

Note 2: You can wrap a 2-3" high book in anti-slip material. Or you can use a human aerobics step (got mine via Amazon), a Klimb (4.5 inches high so best for medium and large dogs), or a platform you build (search online for ideas). Or you can purchase a platform via http://platformsplus.org/index.html You'll likely want to add height to your platform, depending on the dog.

Note 3: You can purchase Balance Pads, intended for humans, via Amazon and other online retailers. Balance pads are great, especially for older dogs.

Physical Requirements for the Learner

If your dog is recovering from or has an injury you'll need to work with your canine rehabilitation professional or veterinarian before taking this class. I will assume your dog is healthy enough to work on these exercises and that your veterinarian/rehabilitation specialist has given you the okay to do exercises for strengthening.

We will not be physically placing dogs or other animals on equipment or in position.