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I used the set up that I had for the Learn your Dog Camp to do the rear cross exercise. What can I do to help her?
HI Tracy-Thanks for your comments! We can use food in the Fun Run but since I really don’t train with food at home, I’m not sure I should use it in the ring. My routine at home is always the same: 1) i train first thing in the morning before she’s had her breakfast and I use that as her remote reinforcement. She is usually not into tugging in the morning because she just wants the food. If I persist I can get her on the tug and she runs fine; and 2) i train in the evening before she’s had her dinner. I don’t use dinner as a remote reinforcement in these sessions, just the toy and she is into tugging in the evening. At the last trial, I gave her 1/2 of her breakfast before the trial and the other half as her reward for the run. Maybe I should change my routine in the am at home and try feeding her breakfast first thing and then going out to practice and see if she is more into tugging/running? Also, do you think I should try just doing a push back and run at the start-line? I know that stationary starts are demotivating for her.
HI Tracy-Here is a link to Saturday’s Standard run, Sunday’s JWW run, and the beginning of the JWW course that I set up in my yard this morning. Char got off to a slow start and did not gain much speed. She did not want to speak on the line this morning. So the second run i just did the Pink Panther lead out. I don’t think i can ask her to speak in the ring. I also really can’t use it as we enter the ring because I think it will distract the dog running. She was not interested in tugging before the JWW run so I kind of knew she was going to be slow. IN contrast, her Standard run on Saturday was better. She did engage in tugging before we went into the ring and I thought her speed was better. I just can’t figure her out. She needs so much amping up and some days it can be really difficult to do. These are definitely our last competition runs. This Friday I’m doing a Fun Run and then sat. and sunday I entered a CPE trial where we can train in the ring. Thoughts?
HI Tracy-Thanks for the quick response. As it turns out, I didn’t enter T2B or FAST so we couldn’t do FEO. I did not ask Char to speak at the startline, but I tried to do the Pink Panther start. I think it worked well and the run was pretty good. I forgot to post this video of a fun run we did in early April, where Char did speak on the startline. She really had trouble with her “middle” position. Do you think I should just let her line-up by my side?
HI Tracy-Perfect timing. We are going to do an AKC FEO run tomorrow so I’ll implement your suggestions and get video. I doubt you’ll see this tonight because it’s getting late on the east coast but for future reference, if I do get her to speak on the start-line do I release her and immediately reward? or do I reward after one jump or two jumps? I’ll post video after tomorrow’s run. Please remind me when is the last day to post in this class? Thanks!
HI Tracy-We did a UKI FEO run this Saturday and I tried some volume dial with Char off the startline. I also tugged with her into the ring (didn’t get that on video). I feel that she left the startline with more gusto and ran better in general. Here’s the video so let me know what you think.
I’m still not sure whether she’s an all business dog getting to the line and then volume dial at the line. What can I do to test this?
The one thing that really gets her amped is when I ask her to speak. She can do this at home on the startline very well but I’m worried that if I ask her to do it at a trial (even if it’s just FEO) that she won’t do it. I think if I can get her to do this on the startline it will be huge! What should I do to progress to this? I don’t want this to become just another stressor at the startline so I want to make sure I’m not moving too quickly. Thanks!
HI Tracy-I have a question about jump height progression. Dora will be 11 months old this Monday. I believe she is done growing because she hasn’t gotten any taller or gained any weight since she was 6 months old. She will be jumping 20″. I have been setting the bars at 10″ for her and because she is a poodle, she easily clears them. My question is how should I progess to her full jump height? Thanks!
Here is more set point and a ladder grid. I think her take-off and landing looks better sine I set her closer to the facilitator bump? The space is still 5 feet and height is 10″. Thanks.
Good morning!
I’ll try setting her closer to the bump and see what she does.
The problem I’m having with the toy is that I’m trying to use it as a placed reward (instead of a manners minder) for teaching her running dog-walk using a mat. So I set teh toy about 12 ft from the mat and I release her and she’s supposed to run over the mat and have at least her rear feet contact the mat. When she does, she can get the toy. The problem is when she jumps over the mat she tries to grab the toy as well. She doesn’t understand that even though it’s on teb ground and I’m sending her straight at it, she can only get it when I say “get it”. Maybe I’m asking too much of her at this stage? She’s not very excited by food so she doesn’t drive to the MM and that’s why I would really like to be able to use a placed toy.
Looks like we’ll be seeing you in person at the Zanee agility camp in late August!
HI Tracy – Here is Dora’s set point exercise. The jumps are 5 feet apart and the bar is at 10″. She seems to be taking off really early? Any suggestions? Move the jump out to 6 feet? Is the toy too close to the jump?
On another topic, maybe we covered this and I missed it, how do you teach the dog not to get the toy on the ground until you tell them to get it? Thanks!
So here is a video of me trying the off leash engagement tonight. She still does not want to get on the toy right away. I started thinking about how we’ve trained over the years and I really don’t bring her to the ling on leash. Typically, we just go into the back yard and she sees that I have the toy and when we go through the gate I show her the toy and tell her to get it. Then most of the time I don’t do a formal set up and release. I typically send her around a wing to the first obstacle. How can I build value for the start-line?
I think you are exactly right about her being conditioned to work only for food when her breakfast bowl is out! I will test it tonight with the same routine but without the food bowl. We usually trial first thing in the morning and I bring her breakfast in the cooler and leave it right outside the ring exit. So it very much simulates what we do at home in the mornings for her breakfast bowl. I think I mentioned that the cooler has worked really well to get her to stay in the game and do her weaves in the competition ring. My only issue with Char’s runs are that she seems stressed when we walk in the ring and she typically starts slow. I’d also like her to weave faster but that is a separate issue (I think). Should I try feeding her breakfast before the trial? She is a complicated girl!
Hello-So I just saw your comments before we were going out to do our breakfast practice and I decided to try what you said. You can see when I took the leash off when we were before the first jump, she looked at me at .50 secs in the video. I offered her the toy and she didn’t want it. This is what I’m afraid will happen at the fun run. I’m pretty sure if I had given her a piece of cheese she would have stayed with me. She really likes toys but only when she’s relaxed and in the mood to play. Should I do more leash off engagement with food before I try using a toy? I could also reward her for getting on the toy with food? There must have been something really interesting on the ground because Char is not a sniffer and Dora did the same thing this morning. We will be able to do 4 runs at the fun run on Sat. (2 in the jumpers ring and 2 in the standard ring). Thoughts?
