Progress Update 📍 — ViBaDog (Kopie)

At this point, your Stand from Movement while walking backwards is basically finished.

There is just one more thing we should start changing:

the closed hand in front of the dog’s nose.

Up until now, the closed hand has helped guide the dog while walking backwards.

That is completely fine for a younger dog or a dog that is still working with food luring.

In that case, the hand can stay in front of the nose a little longer.

But if your dog is already past that stage and can heel without food guidance, we should start fading this help out as well.

Instead of keeping the fist directly in front of the nose, bring the dog along more naturally.

For example:

➡️ use a cue such as “Come”
➡️ hold your hand a little further away
➡️ tap near your armpit to help the dog find the position

Then perform the exercise from this looser movement:

S → hand up → T → hand down → Stand → reward

The closed hand in front of the nose is still a very clear visual aid.

If we keep it for too long, the dog may perform the Stand beautifully while walking backwards but struggle once we turn around and walk forwards.

The reason is simple:

walking attached to the closed hand and walking freely are two different pictures for the dog.

If your dog can already heel normally without food luring, the recommendation is:

remove the closed hand in front of the nose before you start building the turn.

That way, the transition to the forward version will be much cleaner and easier.