
Working Drop? Drop and Toss n Fetch Don’t Mix. Unless…
This piece is the first of series of pieces on the cued Drop we’ll be covering, compliments of Patrons of Pawsitive Vybe.
Many disc dog handlers are “working the drop”. It’s so important and so fragile. It seems like you either got too much of it or not at all enough. And just when you think you’ve got it all dialed in, you try something new and it falls apart. Much of what we do on the freestyle and game field is dictated to us by our team’s ability to drop on cue. Not everyone wants to admit it, and many will claim that their Cued DropA cued Drop, or Drop for short, means that you tell your dog when to drop, purposefully, and upon your discretion. A cued Drop is a must in the game of disc in... is fine or completely functional but, whether they are working on it or not, most all disc dog teams could use a better, more functional, and/or flexible drop.
Of Anguish and Pain: Working the Drop
Working on the cued Drop is the source of much anguish and pain for many teams. I’ve been there and done that… What often winds up happening is that the team spends all their time working on flip sequences and Toss n Fetch – avoiding all the important transitional and flow stuff because the Drop is just not there yet.
Well, I’ve got some bad news for ya. Toss n Fetch is not helpful for shaping & reinforcing a cued Drop. And it’s probably worse than that, it’s probably damaging to the good work you are doing on the cued Drop. Especially if you’ve got a dog that drops late.
Toss n Fetch Is an Unbalanced, Oppositional Game
Toss n Fetch is an unbalanced and oppositional game. It happens from the side of the field. The handler stands on one side and throws a single disc out into the field. The dog runs out into the field and returns to the sideline with that single disc. Everything happens in front of the handler transferring the possession of a single disc.

These attributes of play create an unbalanced and oppositional game in terms of shapes and pressure. None of it is balanced.
None of this is inherently bad. There is nothing wrong with an unbalanced game with a dog. PressurePressure comes in many forms in dog training. Positional Pressure, Performance Pressure, Environmental Pressure, the Plane of the handler’s body. Pressure is a fact. How you wield it or leverage it is up..., oppositional position, and transferring possession of a target is great play. It’s just not great for freestyle or games that require balanced play.
Toss n Fetch & the Oppositional Linear Retrieve
Toss n Fetch creates a strong reward history for a full linear retrieve, from 40 yards to the hand or to a drop at the handler’s feet. This strong reward history creates a habit of retrieving to the handler on any linear approach to the front of the handler.

Freestyle out throws, throws at the end of sequences, and any longer linear throws made during freestyle play are likely to result in a linear retrieve to the front of the handler. This, in turn, is likely to make a responsive Drop on the run or at a distance a weird behavior.
The game starts and ends at the handler. Why would I drop it anywhere else?
Shapes Create a Cooperative Lateral Retrieve
Lateral throws that can be intercepted and throws to the Working FlankThe Working Flank is a moving position. On a Working Flank the dog is out to your side some distance and holds position, moving with you as you move around the field. The... are likely to result in a lateral retrieve. With dog and handler moving in the same direction. This is cooperative movement.

Retrieves coming in to the handler laterally, from the side or on an angle, are far more likely to be dropped on cue because they do not resemble the oppositional toss and fetch or formal retrieve that resolves at the handler.
There are many approach angles, throwing angles, and drop locations available in a game with shapes that create some lateral play. The game does not start and stop at the handler.
It is easy to keep the dog and the game off the handler with shapes that reinforce lateral play. If the game can start and finish anywhere, why would I need to only drop it on the handler? It might be a good idea to drop right here.
What is Flipping the Field?
Flipping the Field in Toss and Fetch balances out the game in terms of pressure, shape, and possession of the disc and bridges the gap between an inherently unbalanced game and games that require more balance in terms of shape, pressure, and the sharing of discs.

When Flipping the Field in Toss n Fetch, the team starts in the center of the field, at mid-field with multiple discs delivering alternating throws towards both end zones. A 40 yard throw in one direction followed by a 40 yard throw in the other direction.

On the retrieve, a Cued Drop is employed at a distance and reinforced with a throw towards the other endzone, behind the handler. This cued Drop reinforced with a throw to the other end zone is repeated until the handler runs out of discs. A cued Bite (in the hand) may be substituted for a long throw to replicate and reinforce a GiveThe Give is a retrieve to the hand. A cued Give is a foundational skill that is not super useful in the actual performance of disc dog freestyle, and has huge applications for... for Toss n Fetch training purposes.

Best of Both Worlds
Flipping the Field creates a best of both worlds situation. You get to train and improve your Toss n Fetch, increasing retrieve speed and building drive by doubling the rate of reinforcement.

You also get to develop, exercise, and reinforce the cued Drop and generalize the skill to more aggressive, oppositional, linear approaches.

It’s a complete win-win.
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