Groundwork

The third part of TTouch is groundwork, which is slow movements over, around, and through obstacles. Groundwork looks easy, but it is very challenging! One of the hardest parts is slowing ourselves and our dogs down. We both are used to moving through at a quick pace, and even if we can slow ourselves down we still have to ask our dogs to slow down with us!

Groundwork works by bringing body awareness through deliberate movement. The obstacles sometimes involve smaller movements like walking, but some obstacles involve larger body movements such as high left lifts, turning the body around weave cones, or extending the body to step over a caviletti.  Dogs sometimes do groundwork while wrapped to help make more connections in the body and bring awareness to certain areas. For anxious or over-excited dogs this can help calm the brain and body. For dogs experiencing a disconnect, such as loss of hind end awareness in older dogs, helping a limb recover after a period of disuse due to injury, or even for a dog that doesn't move in a smooth, sustaining fashion, groundwork can assist them in reconnecting.

TTouch is all about achieving balance, and groundwork is no different. Groundwork is done using a two-point-attachment leash, which you can read more about here. So with Cody in a harness using two points of contact, he and I started our groundwork under Lori's tutelage.