Chapter 10. Front and Finish

Front and Finish are two performance components that are required in several Obedience-trial Exercises. In these competition exercises, the dog first does something away from you, then completes the exercise with a Front and Finish. Even if you are not an Obedience buff, Front and Finish is another fun game that you can teach your dog to do.

The "Front" component of Front and Finish covers the performance: come-in to front of you and sit close facing you. The "Finish" component comprises the movement that the dog makes as he goes from Sit-front to the left side of you, where the dog again sits and remains until he is required to do something else. Your dog will be doing automatic Sits when he comes Front and then goes to Finish at Heel.

After you complete six training steps in this chapter, do the practice drills, Finish and Front and Finish, as described in "Maintenance-Practice Trials (it follows the Step 6 section). Continue these practice drills simply as fun exercises for your dog, or as an exercise that you might prepare for the Obedience ring.

"Front and Finish" is organized into the two training parts, "The Front" and "The Finish." Later, they are combined to become the "Front and Finish" Obedience exercise.1

The Front

Continue the work in section, "Automatic Sit when the dog comes front" in the "Come when called" chapter until you are ready to complete "Front and Finish" exercise (Step 6, below).

The Finish

The Shaping of Behavior. "The Finish" is a performance2 that the dog doesn't normally do without training. However, he can be taught it by means of a "shaping" procedure. Shaping, in the training sense, is comparable to clay sculpturing: At first, the clay is a featureless mass. Then, little by little, it begins to take the desired form. It is the same with response shaping: The beginning performance in this process is one that the dog can normally make, and which may little resemble the end performance—but it is one that clearly starts the dog off in the direction of the desired one.

You begin with a response that the dog can presently make. The initially selected response must eventually lead, via the shaping process, to the desired "Finish" performance. By reinforcing the first-selected response with the GOOD sound every time, you can increase its rate of responding. As the dog responds increasingly more often, you may see an occasional response that is closer to the one that you want. Then you'll select only the better response for reinforcement; any responses that are not up to the standards of the newly selected one are no longer reinforced. As training continues, you will be choosing increasingly better responses for reinforcement. By this procedure, you put ever-greater demands on the dog's behavior until you finally get the behavior you want.

Do about 12 tidbit deliveries per session. On the last trial of the session, substitute the Grand-reinforcer, OUT, for the reinforcer, GOOD, and deliver a more substantial reward.

Shaping "The Finish"

A closed-loop performance is said to be one that's done in a ritual fashion, repeatedly, until interrupted by will or outside intervention. Looping is also done during Down training (see Chapter 13). In that work, the downed dog rises from the Down to get a food tidbit from your outstretched hand; the dog downs again; rises to get another tidbit; etc.

The first established loop (see Step 1, below). The beginning training step of the present exercise results in a simple closed loop. The dog comes close to you in front and touches your hand, then turns away; goes directly away from you to pick up a piece of food, comes back to you, touches your hand, then goes away again to pick up the food, etc. In this fashion, the behavior is made to recur in a closed loop. You say nothing to the dog, except GOOD or OUT. It is said when the dog touches your hand, and just before you throw the food.

More complex behavior loops as training progresses. A more involved loop is formed at an intermediate training stage: when the dog moves toward you, continues around your right side, around your back and left side, and, without stopping, goes on out to get the food. The dog then returns to begin the loop-sequence over again. The response-loop appears "pear" shaped—the pointed end of which is made away from you, at the place where the food is picked up; the fat end of the loop is made close to you.

Ending the Behavior Loops. Looping ends with Training Step 4, below, when the dog's movement is interrupted at the Heel position. It is there that the dog is made to stop for a moment, before he is allowed to go out again. In another training step, the dog must not only stop, but must sit when he comes to Heel. Finally, the loop gets another interruption at Front, where the dog is made to sit and stay, before he is signaled to move to Heel.

Food Tidbits and their Method of Delivery

In this training, tidbit food is delivered a new way: Rather than hand a piece of food to the dog as you did in previous exercises, you will throw it out in front of you. The throw is done for all but the end training steps. The throwing of the tidbit helps to get the dog in the correct position for making his approach to you and, finally, the U-turn around you.

Use popcorn to reward the responses of this exercise, because the dog can see it better where it's thrown—better than most any other kinds of food tidbits. Before training begins, let the dog sample the popcorn to see if he likes it. You can prepare the popcorn with polyunsaturated oil (safflower, for example). You don't have to add butter or salt after popping—but you might if you're making some for yourself. You can also buy the tasty ready-popped.

The Free-response Method of Training

Training begins in the Free-response style (see "The Free-response Model" explained in Chapter 2—see also as it is used in Down training). The dog is permitted to do whatever he wants within the enclosed training space, though he will undoubtedly begin attending quite strongly to your new way of food delivery.

Preliminary procedure: The dog learns where food can be picked up. Take a small handful of food in your left hand. Place one piece between the index finger and thumb and throw it out underhanded. At first, keep the throws short—have the food land in front of the dog or to his right side. In this way, the dog will soon make the connection between your left-arm movement and food leaving your hand. If the dog has trouble catching on, i.e., he does not retrieve the food, the dog may be too close to you to see and make the connection between your forward arm motion and the availability of food "out there." Say GOOD before you make each throw.

As these association trials progress, gradually increase the distance of your food throws to between 6-8 feet. When the dog consistently goes out to retrieve the thrown food, or just stands out there waiting for the next throw, begin Step 1. In this step, the dog will learn to turn on the GOOD (or OUT ) sound by touching the back of your right hand.

Step 1. The dog's nose touch response

The dog learns some complex moves in doing the "Finish" part of the Recall exercise. You can help him make these moves by getting him to follow the motions of your right hand. A good hand-following response by your dog comes about when his nose-touch of your right hand is made a condition of turning on the GOOD or OUT sound. In this step, you want the dog to go wherever your hand goes, in his effort to reach it and make the touch. The nose-touch response is an early training aid, which is then eliminated from use as soon as practicable, in a later step.

1. Say READY. Then prepare your training aids for the training session.
2. Place about 8 popcorn kernels in your left hand. Place one piece between the index finger and thumb. Hold your food-containing left hand close to your side.
3. Stand still, facing the dog. The dog should already know to Stand-stay and look up at you. If he isn't standing, tell him to RISE, then help him do it. If the dog is standing too far away from you, go to him and begin the short wait period.
4. Wait a second or two. Then, bend forward slightly and extend the back of your right hand toward the dog. This is an inviting situation for the dog to sniff your hand. Don't be concerned if the dog does not willingly touch your hand first.

If you need to, touch the dog's nose (a light touch made with the back of your right hand).

5. Say GOOD immediately after you or the dog makes the touch.
6. Throw a piece of food straight out, underhanded, with your left hand. Don't start your food throw before you say GOOD.
7. Get another piece of food ready in your left hand, and begin another nose-touch training trial.

Do the Nose-touch with your right hand; Food-throw, with your left. After a series of such conditioning trials, the dog cannot escape connecting the GOOD sound with the "feel of your hand on his nose." He should then begin to make a nose-touch response on his own, without assistance.

Test occasionally to see if the dog can make the nose touch response by himself. Extend your hand to the dog, as before, but stopping about 1 inch short of his nose. If the dog moves his head forward to make the nose-touch, it is clear that learning of the response has occurred. Don't be too quick to have the dog make it without your help, though. At the end of this step, the dog should consistently come to the stationary outstretched hand to make the touch.

Step 2. Dog does an orienting response.

In this step, you'll want your dog to go to your right hand no matter where the hand is positioned and touch it.

1. Start the session preparation with the READY sound.
2. Begin these trials by positioning your right hand in front of you, about 18 inches away, with your body bent slightly forward.
3. As trials progress, start as you did in Action 2, but then, when the dog's nose gets close to your hand, slowly move the hand several inches back or to the side, but always in sight and within easy reach.
4. When the dog follows the hand and touches it, say GOOD, and follow with a thrown tidbit.

Don't make too large a hand movement for the dog to follow, at first. Make a larger shift only when he's making a strong hand-orienting response. If, at any time, the dog appears confused, make it easy by extending your right hand to his nose and touching it if you have to.

5. You are finished with this step when the dog follows the hand through your right side and slightly to the back of you—when he does this quickly and consistently.

In the next training step, the loop will be made around you.

Step 3. Dog moves completely around you

1. Begin the session with the READY sound.
2. Proceed to make your training preparations.
3. Warm-up the dog by doing the Step 2 procedure for the first couple of trials.
4. Extend your hand outward toward the dog, as you did before.
5. In the new procedure: As the dog comes in, move your hand close to your front.
6. Then, without stopping, swing your arm around your right side, and follow around your backside. Keep your hand moving at the speed of your dog, just out of nose-reach. If, at any time, your dog fails to follow your hand movement, shorten the shaping steps to get a strong hand following (Photos, when available, will clearly show how to do the actions 4 through 6).
7. Say GOOD when your arm is as far back as it will go, and the dog's head is at the middle of your back.
8. Lift your right hand out of the dog's way. The dog no longer has to touch your hand.
9. Follow the GOOD sound with a food throw.

As you throw, take a short step forward and to your right so that the dog can easily complete his movement around you. This gets the dog to continue in a forward direction, rather than back up when he hears the reinforcing sound. Make your body moves, as necessary, to get the dog around you, but eliminate these moves as soon as you can.

In about a dozen trials at this step, your dog should be making the movement around you in a smooth motion. Then, begin to stand still during the trial. However, continue to move your right hand in a sweeping motion from in front of you to around your back—staying just ahead of the moving dog's nose. Continue to run the sessions in this way until you get the dog to make a fluid movement around you every time.

Step 4. The Dog Stops at your Left Side.

First Session:

1. Warm-up the dog by doing the Step 3 procedure for several trials: The dog moves completely around you and goes outward to fetch the food tidbit.
2. In the new procedure: As he moves past your left side on his way to the food, brush the dog's breast lightly with both hands. Keep your hands still, while the dog brushes through them.
3. Continue this procedure for the remaining trials in the session.

Rest of Sessions:

1. Warm-up the dog for the first couple of trials, by doing Action 2 of the "First session," above.

On the remaining 10 trials of this step, continue to cue the dog around you with your right hand.

2. When the dog reaches the Heel position, halt him. Do this gently by wrapping both your arms around the front of the dog's chest. If you have a small dog, you may do these trials while kneeling—in other words, make yourself comfortable.
3. When dog halts, lightly grasp his collar with your right hand.
4. After a wait of 1 second, say GOOD.
5. Then toss the food tidbit and release the dog.

You are finished at this step when the dog consistently and readily moves out from Heel when released.

Step 5. The Dog does an Automatic Sit.

1. Warm-up the dog for the first couple of trials, by doing the Actions of Step 4: "Rest of sessions," above.
2. In the present step, continue to cue the dog around you with your right hand.
3. Stop the dog's forward movement when he reaches your left side.
4. Immediately after the dog halts, command him to sit. Then immediately "Prompt" the Sit response.
5. As soon as he sits, say STAY. Then physically hold the dog lightly in place by his collar, to prevent him from breaking from the Sit. Do not correct the dog's bad sits at this time. Though, on every trial, position yourself in relation to the sitting dog so that a good sit is evident. If the dog does not willingly sit or does it haltingly, do some practice sessions of "Sit Training" (see Chapter 7, "Sit and Rise").
6. Take a kernel of popcorn in your right hand and toss it outward.
7. Following the toss, hold the dog in place and wait 1 to 5 seconds.
8. Then give the collar a light flip forward. The dog should feel the release, but don't do it in a coercive manner. If the dog hesitates to move out after the Send-away signal and physical release, simply throw out another food tidbit, and allow the dog to retrieve both tidbits.

Continue in this step until the dog sits at Heel without having to be restrained, and responds reliably to the Send-away signal. Don't be too quick to end this training step.

Another Way of Doing the Sit Prompt at Heel. If it's awkward for you to prompt the Sit, reposition yourself, and then do the prompt. That is, when the dog comes to Heel, grasp his collar with your right hand, tell him to sit, then pivot on your left foot, face the dog, and place your right foot in front of the dog. Physically place the dog into the Sit; signal him to Stay, then return to the original Heel position. Continue the trial.

Step 6. The Dog Sits at Front.

Besides doing the automatic Sit at Heel, the dog must also sit when he comes Front before he goes to Heel. Both components Sit front and Sit at heel complete the Front and Finish exercise, as is required in the Novice exercise.

Immediately following a food retrieve, at this Step, gently guide him to your Front and make him sit. The dog should already be doing automatic Sits-front, if he's had the Come-front part of Recall training in the previous chapter. Continue to prompt the Sit-at-front, as necessary. If Sit-front is new to the dog, do the pertinent sections in the earlier "Come-in" part of the "Come when called" chapter.

After the dog had been in Sit-stay at Front for 1 to 4 seconds, motion him to go to Heel. Perform the motion with your right hand as described in Actions 4, 5 and 6 of Step 3, above. When the dog reaches Heel position, he comes to an automatic Sit (or place him in the Sit physically, but not aversively).

Maintenance (practice) trials.

If you are doing the Obedience Recall exercise for competition, practice the Recall exercise precisely as is run in the Obedience Ring The training should include two practice drills, "The Finish," and "The Front and Finish practice drill," as they are described next.

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