AKC Premier-ish Seminar Sequences
20 Aug 2023
I’m sharing four AKC Premier-ish seminar sequences I’ve used this year at a couple facilities with smaller spaces. I like these sequences, the challenges, and the teams got a lot out of them. But, dues to their small size, you have to be careful when you set them up to make sure they are safe. I’m using every inch of space and the distances between some obstacles can be shorter than legal as are the distances to the edges of the ring. So if you have more than a 40’ x 70’ space definitely spread out the obstacles.
Skills
These sequences let you work on challenging weave entries, jump wraps, 270s, bypasses, back side slices/wraps, and threadle slices/wraps.
Setup
The obstacle locations in the four sequences are roughly the same, but with slight obstacle movements/rotations.
I’m not including setup diagrams with dimensions because I want you to carefully check the obstacle spacing, rotation, and alignment and your dog’s path as you build these courses! At seminars I carefully “tweak” obstacles to keep everyone safe.
Sequences
The first sequence contains a bidirectional weave entry, which I only recently learned was allowed in AKC Premier:
Handling notes:
- Strategy-wise you might choose which way to weave by which makes taking 7-8 easier/fastest. So wrap 5 and then cross on entry or exit of the weaves to take 7-8 in a straight line.
- I did find, for fast handlers, you could handle dog on left 1-5 and then continue to the “top” weave entry and blind cross to turn your dog into weaves with your dog on your right. It was fast because the dog stays in extension the whole way. Then push to back for the wrap at 7.
- 8-9 is a 270 with off courses.
- Some running on the serpentine 9-11.
- Practice tunnel bypass cues 11-12 or run and cross on the landing on 11 to show the dog the proper entry.
- 13-14 send dog to back side and handle weaves with dog on right? Makes 15 easier…
- 14 with dog on left then work push to back side on 15 out of the weaves or cross the exit or threadle wrap to the other side 15. So many options!
Handling notes:
- Can you handle jump 4 from either side? Does that decision change which way you take jump 5?
- Cue a tight turn out of tunnel 7 - the weaves are close…
- You need to cue your dog to your side 9-10 or you’ll get the back side of 10.
- Play around with combinations of back side slices and back side wraps 14-16!
- Take 17 whichever way is safest if you are near a wall (or leave it out!).
Handling notes:
- The line from 1-2 can be toward the edge of the ring/wall. To keep dogs safe, I asked handlers to work on wrapping their dogs to the right at jump 1 - it is also a good skill.
- Cross (blind) 3-4 to put dog on right to back side slice at 5 or handle all on left and threadle wrap (might be slower).
- Handle weaves on either side.
- Can you push to back slice/serp 9 to 10?
- Push the long way across jump 11 to handle 12-15 dog on right.
- Front/blind cross 15-16
- Dog on left 16-19 (kind of boring). Make 17 front side for a threadle?
Handling notes:
- Cue a tight turn out of tunnel 1.
- Front cross 3-4 to put weaves on right to 5.
- 5-8 same as prior sequence.
- Push to back to blind or push to back to shoulder pull 8 to put dog on right to 9.
- 9 I link push to back slice to blind and again at 10.
- Again push to back slice at 11 (phew!).
- Serpentine 11-13.
- Push to back to front cross 17 to put dog on left to 18 (adjust angle of 7-9-18-20 so line from 19 is easier than shown).
- Push to back 19 and dog on right 20-21.
I ran these sequences at home with the boys before “taking them on the road” and there are lots of ways to handle them and some interesting handling combinations!
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