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A quick update: yesterday I went herding with Moo. He was OVERTHETOP crazy with arousal. He was screaming to the point that he could not stay in the barn while the other dogs worked. He would not eat or snuffle. When it was his turn, he was too aroused to do much work and needed to remain on leash. He used to have great self control but his ability to work has deteriorated due to this increase in arousal. Just like in agility, it came on suddenly. Here is video from the Spring:
Today we had a lesson with Susan Salo. I was pleased with how well it went. Moo worked enthusiastically for the entire time. I used the Cato board for his start line and the structure seemed to help. I only used food and that worked well. Low key, low arousal and Moo can work. My camera shut off but this is the start of our session. Notice Moo offering to get on the platform!
So I no longer think Moo has a confidence issue, but instead believe that he is starting to experience more arousal and the adrenaline, which is new for him in a working situation, is not only confusing but also making it really difficult to work. Your thoughts?
Hi Bobbie-
Here’s an update on Moo. We went to class last night. I decided to give him one turn and I worked my other dog the rest of the time. He snuffled before and after his run.
What I observe from the video is that Moo is sensitive to pressure but not necessarily fearful. The pressure from the building and the people/dogs/instructor prevented him from wanting or having the mental capacity to perform. Once the pressure eases (he rounded the turn from the teeter and now was coming towards the group, the dynamics for him change. This fits with much of the trouble at trials. It is hard to get around a ring without turning your back on someone.
My other observation is that the start line begins the chain of avoidance behaviors. I am guilty of using toy play to distract Moo from whatever he is struggling with mentally. It has worked well in class. Get him jacked up and he is good to go. Without that kind of arousal, he becomes aware of the distractions and the other kinds of arousing feelings that he experiences. In the video, when I put the toy down, he was actually then able to work through these feelings. I think Moo is trying to tell me that the toys are not helping, but making things more difficult for him. For his second attempt at the course, I switched to a lotus ball and it made a big difference. I think Moo is also trying to figure these big feelings out and food, a primary reinforcer is probably a better choice. When he was younger, he would refuse food when I had a toy. I’m sure hormones fit into this shift too. I think I will also start using a Cato board on the start line for some structure. Structure is a good and predictable thing! 😀 I have a private lesson with Susan Salo on Saturday and will try it out then.
Here is a video of a day in the life of Moo. I took him to the car dealership. This totally random and very energetic woman wanted to meet him. As you can see, he is outgoing and even though she kept trying to touch his head 😖 he engaged quite happily. He snuffled and did his relaxation exercises while others (5-6people) watched. A tall man with a big belly also wanted to meet Moo and he greeted him happily. The man was standing and it was no problem. The second half of the video was on a walk. We rounded the corner to find this giant inflatable cat! Even better, a mother and daughter were sitting on the curb waiting for the school bus. This was an unfamiliar neighborhood too. No avoidance or anxiety here. His visit was appropriate (approach but don’t touch without permission.) Moments later the garbage truck came along and picked up the cans while Moo passed comfortably by on the sidewalk just a few feet away.
I’m looking forward to the start line games you have made reference to. I am also taking Moo herding on Friday so if you have any ideas on how to integrate that into his plan that would be great!
Ok. I got video off of the video recoding
We walk on busy streets and trails everyday (we have busses, trucks, garbage trucks all around the streets where I live so he has had a lot of traffic exposure).
I will use the snuffle mat in training. I am an agility instructor so Moo often hangs out in his crate while I teach classes and mostly sleeps or watches. He’s good. I’ll use the snuffle mat before and after his runs though if you think it will help.
Well, not good news from today’s UKI trial. I did not get videos of his runs, and truthfully, it would be too painful to edit them anyway. My plan was to do 3 runs, all NFC. The first was speedstakes. I chose a tunnel start away from the ring entry with no one behind him. Moo used to love tunnel starts so I thought that was best. He played with his toy on the start line, I had him do the tunnel and he came out scanning the ring for people. I was able to reconnect with the toy, did a few jumps and tunnels and left for his bonus (chicken). The second run was jumping. I chose a jump to a short straight tunnel in the middle of the ring, facing away from everyone. He was the first 12” dog so I came in, did shadow handling, hand touches, but noticed that Moo did not want to play with his toy. I did a short lead out, released him to the toy (that he didn’t want) and sent him to the tunnel and tried the toy one more time. I think at that point he felt like I was nagging him with it. We made a loop out with a jump and tunnel and left for his bonus. Round 3 I went back to the tunnel start with the plan of tunnel, jump, aframe and out. The judge let me put my leash in my pocket so the leash runner, someone we know, could stay seated (Moo was jumping on her and begging for cookies earlier but I wanted to take that element away.) Moo came out of the tunnel stopped and was clearly not willing to continue. I did manage to get him over the aframe and left the ring to his bonus. I couldn’t leave with such a terrible last impression so we had fun at the practice jump. It was the only time all day that we both had any fun. I did my best to be upbeat and happy with Moo but it sure wasn’t easy.
So clearly UKI FEO is not going to be the magic answer at this point. If anything, Moo seemed more upset the more I encouraged him to play. I was breaking all the rules and he was really not happy. The toy became another source of pressure. It was painful to see him in that much distress, and even though I believe that I did everything I could to give Moo what he needed, he was not having fun and neither was I.
Moo is not environmentally sensitive, nor is he people shy. I have started taking him to various places like malls, Home Depot etc. and he has a blast. He greets everyone happily when I give him permission. Never does he show any of this fear in his regular life and is normally a very confident dog.
So this seems to be an anxiety specific to performing agility in a competition setting, even when we are not competing. I also am wondering if once he has one of these experiences, that it doesn’t poison that environment. I guess I’m not really sure where to go from here and why it has escalated so quickly.
Yes, I use a lotus ball and food, although food gets him “into his head” more than toys, and he tends to get slower and more thoughtful.
Today we were working on shadow handling, which he has done since a young puppy. I decided to take a break and do his relaxation exercise outdoors for the first time. It was definitely different, but I was pleased to see how quickly he settled. I was using the cheese I had in my pocket from the shadow handling so not the best treat for this, thus the choking! I know he is relaxing more because his tail is no longer wagging and he used to try and hump me when the exercise was done ☺️ and he has stopped doing that. I didn’t notice until I played the video, but I hear a squirrel 🐿 in the background and dogs barking in the background at the end. Still a relaxed Moo.😀
Addendum: I learned something important in my training session today. Moo is super sensitive to pressure from behind, even if it is positive (reinforcement). In this video, the first part of the video is our last exercise of the session, 45 minutes of continuous training with short breaks (we were training alone). The toy was at the end of the poles and he was eager, broke his stay, did ok with fixing the mistake and was fast through the exercise. The second part was with the toy left behind him for him to get at the end of the exercise. With the toy behind and lateral, it was harder to get him set up and he was slow to leave the start and go over the first 2 obstacles. That pressure of the placement of the toy caused him a little stress. Perhaps I could desensitize and counter condition pressure from behind?
Your post on mental resilience really speaks to one of our biggest issues. I hope you have some suggestions for building mental resilience because this is what I really need help with!
I am posting a long video and I apologize if it is too long, but it really gets at how this is one of our biggest issues. We went to run thrus today at a training center where we go for run thrus and trials. There were 5 dog and handler teams and only Moo and one other dog were crated in the building. It was quiet and low key. He was happy and at ease in the building. He rested nicely between runs and enjoyed his snuffle mat. Each turn is 2 minutes and we get 4 turns, so I edited a lot out, but you will get the idea of how things went.
The start line was an issue. There was pressure from the buzzer, the person operating the timer, the music video was right overhead, ring gates etc. Moo was able to play well with his toy. Then when it was time to set up, Moo was looking moderately uncomfortable, broke his stay, was a bit slow to start, but ran the course well. I finished his turn with some work at the start line, trying to build a little resilience for a stressful situation. Not sure it worked. He was already depleted☹️ Off to his crate for a snuffle and a break.
We started his second turn with play and reinforcement for a faster release. He did well! We worked on other stuff and went back to work on the start line again. It wasn’t as good as at the beginning of the turn. I think he was depleted again.
His third turn really shows him starting to not want to play any more. I had a different toy and he was playing nicely at the start line. He looked comfortable, but when I released him, Moo came off the line slowly and refused the tunnel. He was walking. If we were at a trial, he would look around and become worried. I played with him and he worked a bit, but lacked enthusiasm until much later in the run. I think he gets mentally depleted after one run!
I was going to stop at this point, but I got thinking about building mental stamina. I had my snuffle mat, so I used it on the start line. Moo looked happy with this 😀. He wanted to go.
So, pressure at the start line is an issue. That sets the tone for the whole run. Mental resilience is a big issue, even in training. In competition, I find his first run to be his best. He cannot do more than 2 runs a day and maybe 1 trial a month. He was better and has steadily gotten worse. HELP!
Yes, I will do my best to get video. Moo is very relaxed in the busiest of trial environments, even at the sports dome where we have trials next to multiple events like basketball, soccer and volleyball. I often return to his crate and he is sound asleep, belly up! He eats, plays, relaxes and shows no signs of stress until he gets to the start line. There, I have tried naked play or tricks and he is reluctant, refuses or becomes even more stressed. In this video, I skipped the sit and asked for spins, got none, so I just took off. He started slowly and then saw the judge and became even more more worried.
I do have a remote reinforcement cue that I have used since I started getting Moo ready for trials. “Bonus” means let’s go get your food reward outside the ring. I did use it to get him to finish the run. I do want him to do a behavior, like an obstacle, so I am not just reinforcing his becoming worried.
Moo is normally a very confident and outgoing dog, so this has been a real surprise. I also think he is having a hard time with being UNDER aroused at trials. In training, Moo barks, jumps and leaps for his toys and is oblivious to the environment. Initially, he was focused on me. Now he is focused on the environment. I cannot get him aroused once we enter the ring. I will really work on this at run thrus this week and when I do the FEO runs next month.
I can’t do back to back weekends. He went from earning placements the first weekend, and the next weekend, he could not make time or complete the course.
Our relaxation exercises are going well. Here is part of today’s session. I sped it up to shorten the video so he looks less relaxed than he really is.
Yes, when we started trialing, we did a lot of FEO runs. Moo wasn’t terribly interested playing in with a toy in the ring. I have signed up to do so at the end of November and a trial at the end of December. He plays right up until he goes in the ring but once the worry starts he isn’t interested. Anything I should work on for this assignment?
I just found a UKI trial in November. I was thinking Moo needed a break from trialing. Do you think it would be ok if I just did FEO?
I’m not sure how to work on counterconditioning with Moo. His triggers are the judge and people in the ring at trials. Everywhere else he is friendly and outgoing. He will happily tug and play until he gets to the start line even in the craziest environment. He pulls to get into the trial venues we go to and enjoys socializing with his human and canine friends.
I think his ring stress originated with being startled when he looked up to see the judge close to the contacts in the ring. Then he started to generalize this worry to other people, ring crew, leash runner, the scoring table etc. can you counter condition being startled?
