ADD A CUE
By
Nancy Yamin
Items Needed: None
Optional Items: Prizes
How to Play: Have all the students line up side by side with their dogs leaving 4-5 feet between each team. The first person to go picks one cue and does this cue with their dog. The next person in the row has their dog perform the first cue and then one of their own. The next person does the first two cues and adds one more, and so on. A team is out if they perform the wrong cue or if their dog doesn’t do the cue. Once a person is out they should step back out of the line. The next person in the line continues with the cues that have already been given and then adds one. The game continues until there is just one winner left.
Cues to Use: Sit, Stand, Down, Stay, Touch, Come, Watch (Eye Contact), Heel, Leave It, plus any tricks the class has learned such as Turn Around, Back Up, etc.
Suggestions for Success:
- Demonstrate with three people and three cues before officially starting the game to help everyone succeed.
- If there are more than 6 people playing, consider dividing the class into two groups. For a grand prize winner you can have the winners of each group play against each other
- Writing down the choices of cues to be used on a board for everyone to see will help move the game along, especially with beginner level students
- For the first round that is played or to make the game easier, you can have the students help remind the players of what cue is next by calling them out
Increasing the Difficulty:
- Do not write the choices of cues on the board
- Do not tell the students the next cue
- Remind students that they may only say their cue word one time or they will be out
- Have students play the game using hand signals only
- Use more difficult tasks such as walk around your dog, weave through legs, heel 5 steps,
etc.
"Proof the Cue" Variation:
If you are working on proofing a single cue in class, try playing this game using just that one cue. Students must come up with different challenges for that single cue. For example, if you use the cue sit, the variations may be to have the dog sit while you do 3 jumping jacks, the next person does that and adds sit while they walk around the dog, then the next person does these two and adds a sit while facing with their back to the dog. A great list of challenges may be found in the "Proof It" game in the off leash section of this website.
© 2010 Nancy Yamin