Most Rally classes focus on the time spent between the Start sign and the Finish sign, and how to perform the signs themselves. That’s great, but there’s so much more that goes into a successful Rally performance — most of which comes before ever entering the ring.

 

Success comes from confidence, and that comes from fluency — that’s what My Rally Coach and Rally School is all about!

 

Fluency is usually associated with language, and I think Rally is a lot like a language. Rally seems simple at first, the behaviors used at the Novice level are what most of us teach our dogs from the very beginning. Your dog seems to achieve fluency in those basic behaviors, but that’s typically in a controlled environment. You’ve probably heard, (and maybe said yourself), “my dog does that perfectly – at home.”

 

Performing behaviors in novel locations with a variety of distractions is when your dog achieves fluency — and truly understands cues and the associated behaviors. That’s the point that your dog is ready for behavior chains and soon after sequencing behavior chains for Rally signs and further sequencing for a Rally course. If you work with your dog methodically and successfully, (without cutting corners), while also keeping them in a positive emotional state — your dog will be ready to trial.

 

But what about you? There’s your fluency to consider. Without it you’ll lack the confidence to lead your dog into the ring and on a Rally course, which will affect your behavior, which will affect your dog’s performance — negatively. Do you know all the signs for the level you’re planning on entering — like the back of your hand? Do you know how and where to perform them? All of them? Do you know when you should or shouldn’t retry a sign? That’s just scratching the surface of things you should know to be fluent.

 

On my journey to the Rally Master title with my Basset Hound, I discovered that a lot of things needed to be successful in Rally aren’t commonly taught in classes, nor are they readily available or accessible whenever and wherever needed. Additionally, a lot of things aren’t commonly taught that simply make people feel more comfortable and confident about entering a trial or participating in Rally in general.  With My Rally Coach and Rally School I hope to help bridge those gaps.