Hi All, Have been reading up about using handsignals amd the benefits. The one thing I can't seem to find is when to introduce them. Currently we are using verbal cues for all the basics and whistle for recall. Is there a rule. She is 17weeks. Thanks for the any advise Sven
I always used them along with my verbal ones right form the start and then played no verbal commmands for a walk or after noon. It paid off as they got older and deaf I could still ask them to do stuff and its good over a distance. They also worked well when the dogs got too excited as they would pay attention to hand signals and not my voice. I've had surgery on my mouth and its taken a while to recover so hand signals were great then. It also good when I'm out birdwatching and stuff like that and it is also good because they watch me more and pay attention to what I might be telling them non verbally
You can introduce hand signals any time (in fact I often introduce them first, then add a voice cue). To add a hand signal to a behaviour that you already have a voice/sound cue (word/whistle) for, do it as follows: 1. Use the new hand signal 2. Immediately after use the old sound/voice cue [the behaviour happens] 3. Mark (click, or verbal marker) and reward When your dog starts performing the behaviour in response to the new hand signal you know they've made the connection and have worked out that the hand signal means the same thing as the sound. At that point you can use either the hand signal only, the sound cue only, or both together.
I generally start with the visual cue, and add the verbal one earlier, just because the visual cue is often a tweaked version of the initial lure, if I use one. A sit is an upward-facing open palm moving in an upwards direction - because the treat went from the nose upwards to make the bum go down. A down is a downward-facing open palm moving in a downwards direction - because the treat went from the nose down to the floor. A stop is an open palm held above my head - because the ball was in my hand, held where the dog could see it. Etc etc. Of course, the actual lure (treat, ball etc) is faded very quickly, but the hand motion still remains the same while you "fake it". I then just sharpen it up to the final gesture, such as removing the "pinched" fingers that were holding/faking the treat. Once I have that, I then introduce the verbal cue, as Rachael has described, in the "new cue - old cue" method.
We started with the hand signal. The verbal came after, as per trainer, we would bet $50 the dog/puppy would heed the hand. Then we introduced the verbal with the hand, then faded the hand, but not completely, can still use either.
