OB390: Picture Perfect Positions for Obedience, Rally, and More!

OB390 1.4 The Nitty Gritty Details of Position Changes 

During this lecture, I would like to discuss the little details of position changes.  If you watch your dog carefully, you’ll see there are different ways your dog changes positions.  So why can’t we just let the dog choose how to lay down or sit up?  The answer comes down to criteria.  It’s far easier to communicate to the dog “keep your front foot on this target as you lay down” than to say “lay down however you want but don’t come forward toward me”.   

There are two main points to keep in mind as we train positions.  First, the dog can’t come forward during the position change.  Second, the dog must do clean position changes without adding extra positions in between.  For example, if your dog is standing and you cue a down, the dog should go straight into the down, rather than sit then down. 

As long as your dog meets the two requirements of not coming forward and going directly into the position without others in between, it doesn't matter exactly how the dog executes the position change.  It is up to you to choose how you would like to teach your dog, but there are considerations that you should think about.  Let’s talk about specific position changes. 

First, there are three positions that this class will cover.  Those are: sit, down, and stand. 

There are six position changes that your dog will have to learn.  Those are: sit to down, sit to stand, stand to down, stand to sit, down to stand, down to sit. 

Complicating things even further, you will be teaching your dog position changes in front of you and position changes in heel.  The method that you teach may change depending on the location of the dog, in front or in heel. 

Now, let’s talk about the different ways to complete each position change.  I will show you videos of each example.  For the videos, I only demonstrated from the front so you could see what was happening easier, but pay attention to how the ear/shoulder area moves to determine what will happen in heel position.  Also, the lectures may cover additional ways and ideas to teach these position changes.   

Sit to Stand 

Dogs can go from sit to stand in two different ways: plant the front feet or plant the rear feet.  If the dog plants his front feet and stands, his rear end will kick back.  Therefore, we call this a kick back stand. 

You can also use a rear foot target to teach a kick back stand.  This can be helpful if the dog is not really kicking back much with his legs, which I felt was happening with Excel.

If a dog plants his rear feet and stands, he will walk forward one step to stand.  This causes the dog’s front end to move forward.

So let’s look at this from an obedience standpoint.  When the dog is doing position changes in front of us, our main criteria is that our dog should not move forward.  A kick back stand prevents any forward movement at all, and in fact the motion of the rear is backward.  A walk forward stand does cause forward movement from the dog.  A dog who takes one step forward into the stand but does not take any additional steps is never going to lose points, but it may be easier for a dog to continue moving forward.  It’s also easier for the handler to miss additional movement. 

When the dog does a sit to stand from heel position, it’s important to remember that heel position is defined as the dog’s nose to shoulder being in line with the handler’s leg.  Therefore, it’s best if we can teach position changes that keep the dog’s front end in heel position.  In the case of sit to stand, a kick back stand will keep the front end planted and therefore in heel position.  If the dog walks forward into a stand, he will be in a forged position.  Depending on the exercise and the handler’s expectations, this might be acceptable, it’s just something to note. 

Sit to Down 

From a sit, a dog can lay down two ways.  First, he can plant his rear end and lie down with his front, which causes his front end to move forward slightly.  

Alternatively, he can plant his front and kick his legs back as he either folds back into a down or drops straight down. 

A dog that folds back into a down will be less likely to creep forward, but will also end up behind heel position.  A dog that drops straight down in heel will remain in position, and a dog that plants his rear and moves his front end to lay down will end up slightly forged. 

Down to Stand 

The best way to teach down to stand is for the dog to plant all four feet and stand up.  For this position change, you really don’t want the dog to move forward or backward. 

Down to Sit 

Like with the other position changes, there are two ways a dog can sit from a down.  The dog can plant his front end and tuck his rear end under himself as he sits up. 

The other way the dog can go from a down to a sit is to push up into a sit by planting his rear and backing his front legs into the sit. 

A tuck sit will keep the dog into heel position but will possibly encourage forward movement out in front of the handler.  The push up sit will encourage backward motion out in front, but will cause the dog to end up slightly behind heel position. 

Stand to Down 

If the dog plants his front feet and leans backward into the down, it is called a fold back down.  The dog’s topline will remain level as the dog folds back into the down.   

There are a couple ways to achieve this fold-back down.  One is with a front foot target: 

And the other is with a rear target: 

Dogs can also drop straight down.  Generally the shoulder will remain in the same place, and the front paws will come forward slightly.   

A fold back down out in front will discourage forward movement, where as a straight drop will need to be carefully watched to ensure the dog does not move forward.  In heel position, a fold back will cause the dog to be behind heel position.  A straight drop allows the dog to stay in heel position.   

Stand to Sit 

Once again, the dog can plant his front feet and do a tuck sit, or plant his rear feet and do a rock back sit.  In front, a rock back sit would discourage forward movement.  In heel, a rock back sit will cause the dog to lag behind you.  This particular move is important for a few popular obedience and rally exercises.  The dog must go from a stand to a sit as the handler halts during the heeling pattern.  If your dog ends up behind because he does a rock back sit, you will lose points.  Also, anytime the dog finds heel position, such as during a finish, he will again lose points if he rocks back and ends up behind heel position.  Finally, during obedience and rally dogs need to recall and sit straight in front of and close to the handler.  A rock back sit in front will cause the dog to be too far away from the handler.  A rock back sit could be advantageous while doing position changes in front, however, since it eliminates forward movement. 

Tuck Sit - Front Foot Target: 

Rock Back - Plant Rear: 

Homework

Now, it’s time for you to think through this lecture and decide how you are going to proceed.  Which ways will you teach your dog to execute position changes?  Think through position changes in both front and heel, and pay attention to your dog’s tendencies.  If you know your dog is a creeper, don’t do forward moving changes in front!  If you do a lot of obedience and rally, don’t teach your dog a rock back sit!  List out what you’d like to teach your dog. Feel free to list a couple ways if you want to play with alternatives. 

Here’s my “ideal” list for an example: 

• Sit to Stand in Heel - kickback stand (plant front)
• Sit to Stand in Front - kickback stand (plant front)
• Sit to Down in Heel - straight drop (shoulder stays in place)
• Sit to Down in Front - step forward into down (plant rear)
• Down to Stand in Heel - plant all four feet and rise
• Down to Stand in Front - plant all four feet and rise
• Down to Sit in Heel - tuck sit (plant front)
• Down to Sit in Front - one of my dogs pushes into a sit (plants rear) and the other does a tuck sit (plants front)
• Stand to Down in Heel - straight drop (shoulder stays in place)
• Stand to Down in Front - fold back down (plant front)
• Stand to Sit in Heel - tuck sit (plant front)
• Stand to Sit in Front - tuck sit (plant front)

Your list does not need to match mine!  I also take into consideration what seems to be easier for the dog.  Sometimes dogs will be really stuck on a certain way to do a position change and I try not to fight the dog when that happens.  There are times when I can’t compromise with the dog though, like for rock back sits in heel or front position. But if my dog wants to do a push-up sit from the down rather than a tuck out in front of me, or vice versa, I’m okay with that.  As long as the end result doesn’t affect scores, I can work with what the dog offers.