Today’s post is the final part of the wonderful topic of clean loops. It covers one of my favorite topics, next-level clean loops! How can you take clean loops to the next level? Speed and agility! Increasing both speed and agility in your own skills can help your puppy do the same. Fast clean loops are often best reserved for handlers and puppies who have previously worked with clicker training and are very comfortable with the process. So before you give this a go, make sure you and your puppy have already worked both with the clicker and have developed vary clean loops in training.
Speed Loops
Speed loops are my favorite because, with speed loops, you can get a surprising number of repetitions in a short amount of time. Speed loops are how I trained Louie in thirty-second sessions. At faster speeds, we could get about 13 clean loops per thirty seconds! That means every clean loop took about 2.3 seconds! It is important to know that the speed at which you will use your clean loops depends entirely on the behavior you are working on. Some behaviors need very low speed. And by “need,” I mean they actually require it. These will be behaviors like stay, go to mat, and other behaviors you want your puppy to do slowly and calmly. Other behaviors are much better suited for fast speeds. My favorite behaviors to work on with fast loops are targeting behaviors. If I remember correctly, the fastest loops I did with Louie clocked out at less than two seconds each and were nose-targeting behaviors.
There are three “keys” to speed loops that will help you take your training to the next level. First, you need to have really, really clean loops. And by “really, really,” I mean squeaky clean loops! When your loops are squeaky clean, you and your puppy will get into the zone, and it will feel like a dance. Both you and your learner need to know precisely what will happen next at all times. The second key is that you set up the training environment really well. I used to work with Louie in places he was entirely familiar with and do a warmup exercise to keep his attention on me and what we were working on. Setting up like this helps set the learner up for success through focus and gets us humans ready as well. Third, you need a timer. Timing your training sessions will ensure that you will give both yourself and your learner a break at the right time. I recommend keeping training at a minute or less when doing high-speed loops. Set the timer in a way that it won’t startle your puppy, then hit start and get training! Please make sure that you actually stop when the timer goes off. If you are in the middle of a loop, you can finish it. But once you have delivered the treat, end with a jackpot and take a break with some playtime. When things are going really well, it is easy to try and push for more behavior, but it is better to keep it short and end on a good note.
Agility Loops
Up next in taking your clean loops to the next level are what I call “agility loops.” This term is not referring to the sport of agility directly, but the concept fits. When we use fast clean loops, they are easier done with stationary behaviors. But getting clean loops while moving is a whole different ball game! Practice clean loops on loose leash walking, distance recall, heeling around objects, and more! If you really want to get adventurous and your puppy is doing great, you can do fast and agile loops!
Make sure to go at your learner’s pace and stick to the level of learning your puppy is at. If your puppy has never done speed loops, start at a slower speed and work your way up. If it has never done agility loops, start with something easy and work your way to something more challenging. If your puppy is only familiar with one and not the other, work on both separately until your puppy is spot on with both; then, you can combine them.
Whatever you do, clean loops can make training more efficient and more fun! If you run into a problem during training and need some help, schedule a guided training session, where I will sit in, via Zoom, on your at-home training session and give you live tips!
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