Bracing can be an excellent live saving task for any mobility dog to have in their arsenal. It's versatile, dependable, and easy to teach. Read on to learn about what bracing is, criteria needed for a bracing dog, why we taught Robbie to brace, how we taught it, and the numerous ways he braces for me everyday! What is Bracing?To brace is when a dog stands a certain way to withstand pressure on their shoulders in order to stabilize their handler. The dog needs to be standing with even weight on all four feet, and should tighten their muscles & lean back slightly when you brace on them. Every time you brace, it should be directly on the top of their shoulders, never on a harness handle, their neck, back, or hips. Their shoulders are the strongest part on the dog's structure, even more stable than the hips. It's for that reason that all bracing should be done on the shoulders only. Criteria Needed for Bracing DogHere is what our trainer told us: • Minimum of 25" at the shoulder • Large breed dog • At minimum, 1/3 of your body weight (though safer if more) • Begin teaching the stand command at 1 - 1.5 yr, but wait until dog is 2yr to apply bracing pressure Does He Wear Special Gear for Bracing?Robbie only wears a mobility harness for counter-balance work, not for bracing. Counter-balance harnesses can take some light weight added to them, but shouldn't have the same amount of pressure applied to their handles as you typically put on the dog's shoulders when you brace on them. You could brace on the space under the handle, but not on the handle itself. For all of his bracing work, on duty or off, I always put pressure above Robbie's shoulder's blades. Too far up and you're on the neck, too far back, and you're pushing on the spine which can't handle that kind of pressure. The shoulders are the strongest part on a dog, and therefore the safest place to brace. Remember too that while your service dog is there to brace and help you, it will never be the same as bracing off an inanimate object. Why I Need Robbie to BraceCRPS does all sorts of fun things to my body. It affects me full body, which means that my arms and legs are weaker than they should be. If I sit for too long my legs can go numb or tingly, which can make it really hard to stand up. I also fall down more frequently, and the pain that results form a minor fall can be incredibly difficult to stand up after. Sometimes, too, my brain sort of "forgets" that I have legs, and so I fall down and have to stay down until my brain remembers that they really do exist. All of these make simple activities like rising from a chair, getting out of a shower, dismounting a horse, rising after a fall, and more increasingly dangerous for me. A fall for a healthy person means a few days of sore muscles. For me, it means being bed ridden in horrible waves of pain and unable to move for a week, at minimum, and not being able to return to normal activity for at least 2-3 weeks. For this reason, Robbie's brace is his most important task for me. How We Taught "The Brace"Begin in a quiet place with little to no distractions. Use the same room and location every time you practice it! If you start teaching the dog to stand on a table, but the next day you try it on the ground, that counts as a brand new location! Once your dog is reliable at the command in one place, then you can more distractions such as noises and other people or animals. As your dog gets more and more reliable, you can try working on it in new locations such as different rooms, outside, the park, and in public. If your dog needs a refresher course when you change location, that's ok! Dogs learn differently than people do and need to be taught something multiple time in multiple situations before it sticks. A good rule of thumb is to proof your dog on every command in at least 5 different locations before you can consider it to be reliably learned. Step 1: Teach Dog to Stand
First, teach the dog the action of standing (above). Practice that a bit each day for a week. Once the action has been taught, add in the command via overlay. This means that each time the dog successfully stands, praise them by saying, "Fido, Stand. Good Stand!" Again, practice overlay for a week, then try testing your dog by saying the command first and giving them the chance to show you if they know it or not. If they stumble a little, don't worry. They will get it with time. Just continue to give them guidance and overlay the command each time you ask them to stand. For bracing, your dog will always be right beside you. However, it is important to add distance & duration to this command as your dog gets better. Adding distance and duration slowly will help reinforce to your dog to stay in that stand position, no matter how far off you get or what distraction catches their eye. A solid stand can make common activities much easier, such as bath time, wiping paws, putting on gear, and grooming. Step 2: Teach Dog to Push Back Against You at Stand Once your dog has a solid stand, you use the leash on the dead ring to teach them to pull back against you in combination with a fur rub. For this portion, it is extremely important to make sure you are using the dead ring. If you use the running ring (the one that tightens), the dog will move forward, as he should, and this will confuse his training. Step One: Recap for The Dead Ring Tug
The Fur Rub
THE EMERGENCY BRACE AT HEEL - ADVANCED BRACING For this, your dog will need an extremely precise heel. I don't recommend teaching this until your dog is 100% reliable at coming to the heeling position and can maintain a perfect heel at 6-8 in distance parallel to your left leg, with their shoulders lined up with your hips. The need for this level of precision is simple. If you are falling, you need to be able to reach out to the same spot EVERY TIME. If your dog is even two inches ahead, you hit the neck. Two inches lagging, you hit their back. Two inches farther out, and you either miss the dog completely or hit the side of their shoulders which pushes them away from you. Positioning for emergency bracing at the heel is crucial because a matter of inches will determine if the dog can help prevent that fall. If they're out of place, you hit the ground, and run the risk of taking them down with you. Additionally, when your dog is trained to prevent falls like this, it's important to keep in mind that you should try not to put all of your weight on their shoulders. They aren't horses. Part of teaching this to your dog will also mean figuring out for yourself how to balance out your own weight and how much your dog can handle. Since this version of the brace is different from a stationary brace, as all of the other applications are, I will write a separate post dedicated to teaching your dog to stop on cue, and to perform the emergency brace. Please do not not attempt it on your own without the guidance of a trainer, for the safety of you and your dog. For now, work on teaching and reinforcing a reliable brace and heel. Versatility of The Brace
Closing NotesIf you have additional questions about teaching brace, or are interested in one on one assistance in teaching this vital task to your dog, please email me at [email protected]
7 Comments
Bobbi
12/5/2018 12:41:39 pm
Hello, this was perfect. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Sometimes the tasks that seem the easiest stump me the most. How the heck am I going to teach her that?! But this makes perfect sense. I have fibromyalgia and lupus and although I am ok with short outings, the longer I am on my legs the worse they get with pain and weakness. This has really kept me from "going public" with my dog since I don't need her all the time. Do you think i should let that hinder me? Kudos to you for fighting through your reality and helping others! Our pups are amazing aren't they?! Thank you!
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CRPS Service Dog
12/7/2018 06:15:04 pm
Hi Bobbi, I'm so happy this post has been helpful to you! With my CRPS, Robbie does far more for me at home than in public. I work from home, and spend my days doing work or chores or fun things with Robbie. But that means he helps me a lot with all of those things. I still have him go out in public with me though, because his primary task is bracing, which includes preventing falls and getting me up after falls. Like you, I struggle with weak legs and physical pain the longer I'm out and about. Weak legs = higher fall risk. So while Robbie may not do as much active work in public as he does at home, he's still integral to my safety and the management of my condition when we go out. Also in public, he stabilizes me when I get dizzy, and is learning to pick up items I drop or get things off low shelves which is really helpful. I'd say that it's better to have your service dog, ready to help you if you need it, than to have something bad happen, like a fall, need them, and they're at home. That said, public access can take several months to help prepare your dog adequately, but some of my other posts should help give tips on that. And working with a dog in public draws a certain amount of attention, I've also got posts on how to handle that. Let me know if you have any other questions.
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Alex Debolt
3/5/2023 03:05:28 pm
Looking for one on one training for a brace dog.
Kat
5/15/2019 09:47:32 am
Thank you for posting this. I am looking into a service dog for other issues, but I have balance and mobility issues that this task would greatly help me with.
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Connie Pappas
7/8/2019 09:52:23 pm
Thank you so much. I'm in the process of trying to get my boy certified as a service dog. I have issues with my legs getting up from sitting positions and am expecting to eventually have legs giving out and have falls as well. I was looking for some sort of service he could perform for me and this is it. He's super smart and wants nothing more than to please me so I know he will be able to learn this. Again thank you for sharing this.
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Dana Thomas
1/18/2021 01:13:34 am
Hello, I’m so glad I found this post. I’m getting a puppy next month that I will be training as my service dog. I’m going to need to eventually train her to help me go upstairs which is a pulling action. I too will need stability. I can’t find tutorials on training for the pull action any suggestions? Thanks. I’m getting a St Berdoodle. That should weigh around 150 lbs. she should be a strong enough animal when trained.
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My CRPS Service Dog
2/1/2021 09:32:02 am
Hi Dana! That's a great question. There are a few different ways a dog can help via pulling, but assistance up stairs isn't as much of a pulling action as it is a stabilization while moving. As your dog goes through basic training, it will be vital to establish confidence in them, a reliable heel close to your side, pace matching so the dog understands to go the same speed as you, going up stairs slowly, and a really good bracing stand. As they get old enough to learn and begin bracing (2yrs), a stair task would be added to that training. If you need assistance going on hikes outside, that is more of a pulling action and my recommendation would be to look into training your dog to pull formally when they turn 3 yrs old and pass health scans of their joints. Plus - for your breed - that would likely be a good energy outlet on its own. For either of those, I do have my own dog training business now and offer a short course for people who want to learn a single task at a time from me, or a longer course for multiple tasks and public access skills. If you'd be interested in that, you can send me an email at [email protected]. For now, good luck with your new puppy!
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My Name is Sally...I have a condition called Complex Regional Pain Syndrome. This blog is about my journey training Robbie, a dog who helped me regain independence, confidence, and achieve the impossible in the face of my disability. It continues on with the training of Austin, Robbie's successor. Check Out... - "More than a Dog" was published on a site called The Mighty Categories
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