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This week we have moved our lessons into the training field.  This paddock is a busy rabbit feeding area and smells very interesting so I wanted to get a solid short stay in place in the yard before introducing the exercise on grass.

Out in the field,  I started from scratch again,  with stays of only a few seconds,  and just a few steps of heelwork in between sits.

keeping a nice tight position.......

Tess is coping well with the distractions of the strongly scented ground and we made good progress this week,  with heel and sit, quickly building back up to  30 seconds stays sitting at my side,  and up to ten seconds when I back 5 steps away. 

I also added some variations where I walk away a few steps and move from side to side,  or turn in a circle, move my arms around etc.  I just want her to begin to understand that she must sit still even if I am doing something unexpected.

At the moment I don't remove the lead when I move away from Tess,  but just drop the end on the ground. 

Frequently, when Tess is keeping nice and tight up against me,  I praise her, sit her up, and sometimes give her a tiny piece of kibble or cheese.  This encourages her to focus on me and concentrate on keeping close to my leg.

So far I haven't had to correct Tess at all during this exercise and I am continuing to stretch times and distances just a little each day.

 ....what shall we do next?

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TRAINING TESS

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