BOUNCE © 2004 Copyright of Sally Hopkins

BOUNCE - HOME PAGE

SUMMARY
of Bounce to
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Bounce builds on the exercises learnt in Recall and introduces the dog to jumping 8 inch/20cm high jumps. A full Bounce run is when the dog does a restrained recall at the 51ft/15.3m marker, jumps four small jumps (each 10ft/3m apart) and returns through the poles to its handler. The handler instantly rewards the dog for doing the Game correctly. Bounce training stages are exactly the same as those in Recall except that the small jumps are introduced one by one as the dog moves further away from the finish poles. Any type of jump can be used to do this Game (eg. flyball or agility jumps) as long as the jump height is approximately 8 inches/20 cm.

The handler learns -

Dogs are not natural jumpers - they only jump over an obstacle if there is something really worthwhile on the other side which can be got quicker by jumping over rather than running around it. Therefore, we need to give a dog a high enough reward for going over the hurdle so that it eventually want to jump just for the pleasure of doing it.
How to help the dog jump over the hurdles rather than run around them by carefully planning where they should be on the finish line.
That they need to be even more consistent with their commands and body language in this Game than Recall - their hands, the motivator and/or their body movement can distract a dog and cause it to run around a jump.
Not to say "Come" when they want their dog to go over the hurdles towards them; "Come" usually means "stop what you are doing and get here as quickly as possible", not "jump what is in front of you" - just call the dog's name.

The dog learns -

That although it seems less effort to go around a hurdle rather than over it, jumping these hurdles is so rewarding for the dog that it eventually actively seeks out and jumps any similar hurdles it sees. Once a dog understands the principle of going over obstructions rather than run around them, many other opportunities for the dog and handler to have fun together are suddenly more achievable (eg. Agility, Flyball, Dog Dancing etc).

This website describes kind positive training methods that encourage both the dog and handler to learn more about each other whilst having lots of fun together.

The training is broken down in to 4 separate Stages, which are non-competitive and have no restrictions on the speed of the dog. Every Stage has certificates, rosettes, and at Platinum a trophy, which are given in recognition of the achievements of both dog and handler.

Always begin training at Starters and progress from there. It is not compulsory for dogs to do all these Stages - they have been provided so that each dog can train to its own ability. Dogs must not be pushed into situations that they cannot cope with (eg running too close to other dogs in Silver) and handlers and trainers must respect the dog's imitations. Some dogs and handlers work steadily through most or all of the Stages of Bounce before trying a new Game, while others reach Bronze or Silver Stages of this Game and then try another Game (returning to the higher Stages of Bounce when the dog is more confident, experienced or older).

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