DS260 Best in Show: Stand Out in The Breed Ring

Week 1

• A. Review Hand Stacking Rules
• B. All about the Free Stack
  • a. What goes into this
  • b. How we will approach training this
  • c. Equipment needed – 2 individual foot targets and 4 individual foot targets
• C. Transitions from ground to table and ground to ramp strategies.

Week 2

• A. Handler Mechanics
• B. Handling corners in the ring
• C. Continued working on stacking.
• a. Weight shifting exercises for building strong muscular structure for our show dogs.
• D. Rear Foot Targeting 101

Week 3

• A. Dissecting the Diagonal
  • 1. Turns matter here. Let’s break this down!
• B. Adding more criteria to our balanced stacking stands on props.
• C. Growing our rear foot targeting skills
  • 1. Exercises for building rear muscles to support our dogs in the ring
  • 2. Cavaletti poles for rear work, front work

Week 4

• A. Confidence during the judge’s exam. How to handle lacking and ways to build confidence specific for the show ring.
• B. Catch up week!
• C. The beginning to Graduating from 2 foot props to 4!
• D. Rear foot targeting
  • a. Backing up on the flat

Week 5

• A. Cavaletti work for that eye catching topline!
• B. Installing free stacking push buttons
  • a. Using your lead to support forward and backward movements
• C. How to start fading our individual 4 foot targets
• D. A workout routine in a small space to take on the road, keeping our show dogs fit and mentally stimulated matters!

Week 6

• A. Supporting your dog during the judges exam in the ring.
• B. Transitions from hand stacking, gaiting, free stacking
• C. Proprioception exercises to maintain a dog that uses their bodies accordingly.

Hand Stacking

Let’s review. Hand Stack – sometimes called “hard stack”. This is where we physically place our dog’s feet into the proper placement and the dog remains standing.

Lecture Video

Free Stack (Free Baiting)

The Free stack is mostly required for the end of the down and back or a pattern. In group or best in show, you may be asked to “showcase your dog” and you will need a free stack. This can often be a determining factor.

A free stack gives you a chance to really stand out in the large line up or while waiting for the exam. It’s an extra tool to have a lasting impactful impression on the judge.

As an owner handler, having a flawless free stack shows your dedication to your dog’s training and conditioning program and sets you apart. Trust me, it really adds some sparkle!

This is when we gait our dogs into a stacked position, but we do not use our hands to place the dog’s limbs. The dog uses muscle memory to get into this stacked position.

Any dog can learn how to free stack regardless of the breed.

Everything starts with our hand stack and teaching our dogs muscle memory. Is your stacking box sitting in your garage? They still have use, trust me! All my dogs are taught free stacking with a stacking box since it teaches muscle memory.

Your dog must be familiar with being hand stacked and holding the posture before you can train a free stack. Please read that again  We cannot skip the hand stacking portion. Your dog must know what a stacked stand feels like, in order to, recreate it on their own.

Even dogs that are traditionally shown with free stacking must be taught how to hand stack first.

We will be using bait for this skill. This needs to be high end bait, something you dog will want. As your dog is focusing on the bait, you can step into your dog’s space and out of encouraging them to step forward to backwards with just your body pressure. Once the back feet are in place, you can use the bait to help your dog get balanced on their front.

Training sessions for this skill need to be short and energic on your part! This needs to be fun to help bring our expression and character in your dog.

Your dog needs to be able to hold their stack for 1 minute. Your dog can ideally hold this position while you move around them, go to the front, go to the side. We always want to find places where we can just have the dog’s profile be seen. You should always be hand stacking for the judge’s exam.

Even breeds that are shown with a free stack, ie collies, shelties, cavaliers etc. still need to be taught a hand stack. Your dog standing “naturally” is not good enough for the show ring, we have to teach our dogs. Rewarding your dog for just standing

Remember the end goal, don’t be to picky with our dogs learning how to do this. We won’t get perfection the first time out ;)

Put the bait where you want the head placement to be. This is breed specific.

Head placement can use a target stick to help create and train that.

Hand stack

Look at bait

Incorporate this into everyday life.

Sessions must be short and fun

Don’t over train and don’t make it boring.

Reinforce the dog for just looking at the bait!

A timeline reference, remember each dog is different but this will help you align goals.

Week 1

• Consistently looking at the bait with a verbal cue.
• Looking at the bait with good posture.
• Hand stack then holding it looking at the bait. Handler starting to weight shift away from dog. Happy legs
• Giving and holding tail placement and or ears.
• Holding the correct posture while also giving ears and tail with handler taking a big step off the dog.
• Holding the position with handler moving to the front and or side.
• Creating the outline.

It matters how our dogs stand when they stop naturally. If we work their muscles on foot props and reward them for standing in the stacked position, we will develop muscle memory for the desired profile.