Hello,
Does anybody have any training techniques for keeping flying tails down in the ring??
GG

LOL Training and maturity :) :)

One of mine used to do this as she used to get VERY excited at a show :rolleyes: so when it happened at home or on a walk I'd just touch the tip of her tail lightly with a finger and say 'tail'  naturally she'd twich it down and she learned that 'tail' meant to keep it down ;) ;)  of course it may not work with every dog :)

It isn't fair really, dogs who don't keep their tails up when they should can have them held up (and they usually go up anyway when going round the ring) but I've never seen anyone holding their dog's tail down ;) ;)

Here's an idea - what do people think?

As most people say to touch the tail to get it to go down and yet this breaks the gait, how about a thin stick with tassles or similar that you can flick the tail with as it comes up? Use the "tail" command at the same time and in time it might click into place?

Or... enter them as Malamutes - lovely waving plume :D

Thin stick with tassles would still have the same effect of breaking the gait :(

The whole idea is to use the finger touching the tail during training and when not at a show so that the command becomes the cue ;)  Usually once the command is known it only has to be used once or twice at a show to remind the dog where it is ;)

Edited to say - I should stress tho, it really is a very light touch to the tail, just enough to make the dog aware of it's tail ;)

i was told by a top judge that if i got my dogs tail down he would do better as when his tail comes up it spoils his topline, so used to have to bend down [he's a small breed], to touch his tail, so i got a long dressage whip with tassle on and that worked wonders,all i say is tail now and down it comes. oh by the way he got a ticket this year!!
debs

I have been trying this but he doesn't put his tail down at all when I touch it - he just looks at me as if I'm stupid. Will it still work if he doesn't put his tail down when I say tail????
GG

Can I suggest that whenever you are trying to teach a dog to keep its tail down, you don't use the word tail? 
You could use 'cheese', 'pickle' or anything else so long as you are consistent.  If you use the word tail while you're in the ring, it'll draw the judge's (and anyone else who's listening!) to the fact that your dog has a problem with his tail carriage, which they really don't need to know! ;)