Each article will appear first in Off Lead magazine, and then appear here. Jumping difficulties can limit or end a dog s competitive career, and can spring from physical, mental, and mechanical causes. In this article, we re going to consider the mental aspects of jumping. But after a lifetime with animals, I ll happily go out on a limb and say I believe they do have emotions. As with any physical skill, it takes a progressive approach, meaningful practice and considerable experience to learn to jump well under any and all conditions.
Many dogs jump differently under the pressures of competition.
A deeply experienced dog has learned how to use his body under varied conditions, and has also learned to moderate and handle his emotional responses to the situation. The easiest parallel in most humans experience is driving a car. If our training and experience as drivers systematically includes these conditions, we will develop our skill accordingly. Though not smarter than teenagers in Texas, Vermont teens are better at driving in snow, assuming they ve been taught. A middle-aged Vermonter, however, will have more experience and thus know more about driving in snow.