This post is concerning how to teach the Shih Tzu jumping for agility. Often we are asked, “How many jumps should I start with?” You can never have too many solo jumps to practice agility. A good starting place is 4 jumps. This is the fewest number of jumps that we suggest.
How to Teach the Shih Tzu to jump: Begin with Four
You can teach your Shih Tzu many drills, skills, and exercises with four jumps. Four jumps will let you develop on a short jump chute or jump grid. You can position a “box” with your jumps and work on handling, collection, and 270 degree jumps. You can teach your Shih Tzu jumping left and right. You can be out of the box and send your Shih Tzu or you can handle from the inside of the box. Your jumps could be positioned in a horizontal row, so that you could practice serpentines and threadles.
Teach the Shih Tzu 8 Jumps
Go to the next logical step and practice 8 jumps. Now you can setup two boxes with 1 introductory jump. You’ve now multiplied your exercises that you can work on with your Shih Tzu. Your jump grids can be of typical size and quantity of jumps. You can even setup your jumps in a circle with the jump bars perpendicular to the circle or on the perimeter of the circle. This pattern also enables you to develop a variety of skills.
Teaching the Shih Tzu Double and Triple Jumps
Your next level is a double jump and a triple jump. You could chain two or three single jumps together to make your expanded jump, however having double and triple jumps in your course work is extremely valuable to practice. We’ve seen several Shih Tzus run a perfect course and the final obstacle is a triple and the Shih Tzu is not prepared for it, and bang, down comes the bar.
Don’t forget to check out these other articles about Shih Tzus.Was this post helpful? If so, please take a minute to Tweet and Share below on Facebook. I would also love to know your thoughts so leave me a comment 🙂
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