This technique will help to prevent your dog from getting into the habit of cutting the corner of the broad jump. It will also give your dog more arch on his jump and ensure he takes the middle of the jump. It is a great teaching and maintenance tool to help your dog develop the muscle memory of how the exercise is to be done.
Building the V
Required components: Power drill with a large bit, 2 dowels (clear dowels are preferred as they are less of a visual obstruction). Length of 2 x 4.
- Start with a piece of 2 x 4. Length will depend partially on your size of the dog but in general, longer is better as it makes the “V” more stable when training on grass.
- Hold your dowel at the angle you want and pencil in a line for the drill to follow. Use a drill bit that will make a hole big enough to put the dowel in. Drill a hole at the same angle make it at least an inch deep so there is enough hole to hold the dowel.Tip: You can drill a number of hole pairs at slightly different angles so you can raise or lower the V if needed.
Introducing the V to your Dog
- I start by introducing the V on its own and lure my dog back and forth through the V a few times to get them comfortable with it. Once they are comfortable with being lured over the V, I will play a game where I toss a treat and have my dog jump back and forth over the V.
- Next, I will use a target plate and send my dog to the target plate over the V.
- Then, I will start to include the broad jump by adding in a single board and do more practice, gradually building up to where I have the official size of the broad jump laid out. I typically position the V between the last two boards but you can put the V where it works best for your dog.Note: I don’t use the V on every training session typically every second session or so.
If you would like to learn more about training the broad jump I cover that in my Step-by-Step Open & Utility DVD or Step-by-Step Online Streaming Video
Happy Training & Stay Safe
Janice Gunn
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