The Human Half of TEAM

By Denise Fenzi

TEAM = Training Excellence Assessment Modules. 

Let's talk about assessing the handler half of your team.

Handler errors matter.

In every organization around the world the handler's behavior is judged. In most cases, there are handler errors because they are perceived as being an aide to the dog. Extra body language, talking when you shouldn't be talking, making noises, moving your shoulders or looking around, etc. All of these are things that take away from the dog's ability to show its understanding without your assistance. These are things you want to address in training. Make sure that your dog can do the behavior 100% independent of your additional cues, or you will lose points. TEAM is designed to help you succeed regardless of the organization, so take that issue seriously!

And if obedience is not your primary sport? It still matters! It doesn't matter what sport you are teaching for; you need to be able to demonstrate that you can teach your dog to perform behaviors without additional help. If you do compete in sports where you are allowed to help your dog, it will be much much easier for your dog if they have learned to perform without it as well as with it.

Imagine taking a dog into the rally ring who could perform at home under distraction, without reinforcers, and without the handler talking. Can you see how that would make in-person competitions much easier for the dog when you could bring some of those things back? Even in organizations where you are allowed to use these sorts of aids you'll still want to learn to train without them.

And since TEAM is a training title where you demonstrate your skill as a trainer, we hold you to a pretty high standard in this area.