[Amy Sannes]

Hi Tracy –

We tried the layering again – it’s hard! I think we were probably more successful on the first round – though maybe it’s easier to layer jumps before the tunnel than after the tunnel? Again – gives me more appreciation for the runs I see which demonstrate great layering!
>When you revisit it, you can try using 2 hands (like 2 hands on the steering wheel of a car :)) as he lands from 1: show him 2 hands and turn your shoulders away to get the jump. He might skip the 2nd jump at first as you sort out the timing but it should definitely get the turn!
Tried this. I was super late on the first attempt.

We tried to Wingin’ It – Go Tunnel, No tunnel – at the baby level. I am pleasantly surprised he found the tunnel at the far end more than once!

Thanks, Tracy!

[Amy Sannes]

>The other thing that will help on both the first video and as you added the sequence in the 2nd video: you can have the toy hidden 🙂
I read this feedback, but habits are hard to change – Skizzle was again teaching me this during the layering. He emphasized the point well, so I (kind of) learned to pocket the toy. 🙂

>Compare to the BC on the last rep – really nice long lead out and clear connection! He nailed it.
Yes – the long lead out helps me out a ton. I tried start line stays in a new place, and they fell apart somewhat, so I’m trying to reinforce them more, as well as working on stays apart from agility to improve understanding. I should throw a wing in my car and practice some start line stays at hiking trailheads (they are my easy away-from-home locations to work on things).

We tried the layering exercise. I chose the wide setup – but did move the jumps a little closer when he (I) was struggling early. I was pleasantly surprised that (after I pocketed the toy) casting him towards the white jump actually worked, and then he took the next one as well. Getting him to turn after that jump was more than we could work out today; the tight setup doesn’t help us (though if it was farther apart, the layering would probably be more challenging :)).

Thanks, Tracy.

[Amy Sannes]

Tracy –

Thanks for the feedback. I will try a bigger mat and a wing and maybe the manners minder to get focus forward. I will try to capture back feet hitting the mat.

The last couple days we tried the forced front cross games. Skizzle is again teaching me when I’m not in the right position – thanks, Skizzle! There were a couple places where I persisted or re-tried the movement – in the moment. I feel like it’s probably better to continue, reward the dog, and try again – hopefully to make it easier for the dog.
On the whole, this went pretty good.

Question on cues – in the second video, at 0:38 – is there a more specific verbal cue you use to have the dog take the red jump? I realize my handling cues are the main reason he didn’t take it. Though I’m not sure what the right move for me should be? Is it to rotate to the right more?

[Amy Sannes]

Good morning!

Thanks for the feedback, especially about how the ball in my hand is distracting him. And we need his focus to be more forward.

We tried the contacts foundation. Skizzle is a little stuck. I’m sure this is a reflection of all the training we’ve done and what I am doing, but not sure if/how I should work to change it?

[Amy Sannes]

Hi Tracy –

>You can add a little more speed by having him wrap a wing or cone before the teeter. That will get even more drive up the board to the treats on the target. I love that he is looking for confident!

I will try to remember to do this. He doesn’t have any concern with the teeter, but also isn’t moving very fast on it. We’ll try the wrap.

We tried the lead out and lines 3. This was uploaded as a short (sorry). I couldn’t figure out how to have it stay a video.

I took a private lesson in-person from Monica Bush. She had some great feedback for me. Hopefully I’ll be able to check in with her periodically.

[Amy Sannes]

Hi Tracy!

Thanks, as always, for the things to think about:
>When you went too far past and had to back up, he had questions about whether he was correct to commit or not
It didn’t feel that awkward in person, but it sure looks a mess on video 😉

>Keep working on leading out more and more so you can eventually be up by jump 3 and standing still, and he will still find the line.Feel free to adjust the angle so it is more of a straight line at first (easier for him to find) and then we can go back to the harder angles.
Appreciate which direction I should take – make it easier to help him out, before making the angles more difficult!

We played with the teeter angled entry. Moved the teeter back outside. He does well with this, and I load the target while he’s off the teeter.

Thanks!

-Amy

[Amy Sannes]

Thanks for explaining the throwback. That makes sense. And it’s exciting to put that move into a sequence!

I will try back chaining and setting up on a slice to help the 1-2 sequence.

And yes, still need to move further towards the obstacle so Skizzle knows to take it.

We tried lead outs 2, plus a re-do of the throwback… except I still did more of a front cross than a throwback. Will try again.
A few misses here, especially when I point forward 😉

[Amy Sannes]

>I knew it was going to be a really good session when the very first tunnel threadle was great! You ran a really clear line and he had no questions.
This was really fun to read. Thanks!

>remember to be patient and keep moving to the tunnel entry until he locks onto it, don’t stop moving before he gets past you
Thanks for the reminder – “keep moving to the obstacle” until Skizzle commits. I know you’ve stressed that before, but it’s not yet part of my habits, so it’s a great reminder for me now.

>keeping your arm back and big connection going as he exits the wing wrap and heads to the tunnel, so the same practice applies when exiting the tunnel and going to a wing.
Appreciate the comparison!

With these 2 things to work on, I’m looking forward to repeating that exercise soon so I can try to improve my handling!

Today we tried Lead outs and Line 1. This was fun. And deceptively difficult! (I am appreciating great agility handlers more and more, especially as I start fumbling the handling when I have four or more obstacles!) Part-way through, at 1:02, I’ve moved jump #2 over more to the R – and this is understandably more difficult.

I think in the example, you talk about a “Throwback” to get a tight turn on Jump 3 with the dog heading back to enter the tunnel on the right side. Is that different than a tunnel threadle? It looks like your handling had you between the dog and the tunnel for that?

Thanks, Tracy!

[Amy Sannes]

>He did really well here on the zig zags – held the stay brilliantly even with the toy tossed out ahead. Definitely keep that toy out ahead – that was where he had the best jumping
Thanks for the feedback. I will try hard to remember that for next time. I agree that he’s holding his stay better with the toy thrown, so I can start incorporating that more when it makes sense.

Today we tried the tunnel threadles and tandem turns. Skizzle was working at his best time of day, and I was a bit mentally tired after a few workdays in a row. My handling was less put together and not very well practiced…which let me practice rewarding Skizzle for participating! 🙂 I think he followed the tunnel threadle well, especially since I kept trying to block his path (didn’t seem like that in the moment, but it sure looks like it on the video).

[Amy Sannes]

>It was very fun to see him zig-zagging his way through the serps! A lot of training came together to get that: connection, the zig zag grids, strike a pose games, etc. Yay!!
Most recent sessions, I feel like things are going better than my handling deserves. Some of it is repetition and time spent training together. Not complaining – it’s fun to support him zipping around.

>Dialing back your speed when adding more of his speed is a good way to break things down when there are a lot of mechanics needed from the dog
This is a nice way to think about this!

We hadn’t done the zig zag grids from this week…so we tried them (one of us in a crazy shirt!), though he may have done a better job yesterday in the serps w/ tunnel work – on hopping through the jumps.

Thanks again!

[Amy Sannes]

Tracy –

Thank you so much for your detailed explanations…helps me piece things together! I really appreciate it. I could now explain to someone the handling differences among the 3 – lap, tandem, jump threadle.
>The lap turn is almost always the same line for the dog as a threadle wrap, so I would use the threadle wrap verbal for both of those cues.
This is helpful – I like the whole premise of telling the dog where to go from where they are (& a little bit from where I, the handler, am) – because it helps me think of things from the dog’s perspective.

>Because he was flying, it is great to show him the cues and call him before he even enters the tunnel.
I’m feeling less frantic about remembering the verbals, but they are still way late. Next step for me – try to give cues TOO early – maybe I’ll get some in on time. I liked the instructions for the serp, where you say to be in position for jump 2 as the dog lands from jump 1, so you can cue them and get out of their way.

Skizzle’s speedy. You know, part of the reason I wanted a farmdog is because I’m a novice agility handler – and I don’t need a Ferrari of a dog to learn. He’s a little quicker than I had planned on 🙂 I must admit, though, it’s fun to see him racing around the agility equipment for the joy of it.

We went back to the serps, adding the tunnel for some of it. Mostly super fun. Some handler errors. I think Skizzle did well to mostly jump back over #2 even though I was encroaching on his line a bit.
When I tried to have him cross from the far side of the tunnel to try a serp (1:27 & 1:38), we didn’t get it. The jump was only 3-4 feet from the tunnel – maybe that’s closer than it would likely be? After further review, the neighbor dog barking may also have taken some of his attention. It may help to try the jump before the serp exercise to work on this. I probably also helped him not go between the jumps, because they were very close.
At 0:49 – maybe I’m just too late (should be closer to jump 2) for him to take jump 2?

Will try to keep the dog in the view for future videos 😉

[Amy Sannes]

> Gently hold his collar/harness, ask if he is ready (I am sure he will be :)) then let go of the collar/harness.
I can give this a try. I haven’t done as much collar grabbing as I maybe should, so we can see how he does with it all. I agree that I don’t think he’s concerned about the tipping teeter or the noise with it (not that there’s much on the matting)…I should move the teeter back to the grass soon.

Back to the fun stuff (Skizzle’s review) – aka, moving fast! We tried Wingin’ it Wrap Aways. Skizzle does very well here – esp. because I think my arm movements are a little quick (?). Took me a minute to figure out the difference between lap turns and tandem turns. I think my positioning was better closer to the end – reviewed the instructional video partway, so understood that lap turns have me closer to facing the dog coming out of the tunnel, whereas tandems I am turned away and looking over my shoulder.
So – are “tandem turns” different than a jump threadle wrap “In, in”? (My brain is constantly trying to consolidate everything into about 2 verbal cues) I assume that the handling for lap, tandem, and threadle are all a little different? I don’t remember using both hands for the threadle wrap. And of course – you mentioned not using words b/c you want fluent behaviors before adding verbals – do you have more words (!) for the lap and tandem turns?

Thanks, Tracy!

[Amy Sannes]

>Lead outs are one of the few places where we do want the dogs to pattern and recognize the patterns…Thankfully, there are not zillions of variations on course openings
This is great news! And makes sense.

>At :43, the blind cross timing is good but you were moving towards the landing side of 2 rather than towards 3.
Ah – I see it. I’m supposed to follow the line in the instructions – and stay close to jump 3 (lightbulb!).

>Sometimes he might prefer a sit or down but it doesn’t really matter – what matters is that you are both comfy, he holds the stay, and no one is fighting with the other.
Sounds like a reasonable plan!

I may try this with a right turn instead of a left…so I can practice keeping my line.

>Yes! It is actually on today’s to-do list: pick the MaxPup 4 start date! I figure it will take us through the summer and into the fall.
Yay! Looking forward to it.

This morning we tried the teeter bang. Here’s a clip…unedited to show he’s into tugging, but not super into hopping back on the teeter. I think it’s just that mornings are sub-optimal for him.

[Amy Sannes]

Hi Tracy –

I think Skizzle and I are both mostly recovered from our adventures. We started with lead outs. Skizzle did a good job holding his position. It wasn’t super obvious for him where to go, but after a few reps, I think he was patterned to it.

I have a couple questions – do you use a verbal to tell the dog to turn left after the 2nd jump to take the 3rd? Assuming that might be a soft left verbal? From the example videos, it seemed like you expected the dog to know to take jump 3 from your movement?

2nd question: I’m catering a bit to Skizzle with having him stand and wait. He doesn’t like to sit in wet grass, and sometimes would prefer not to sit or lie down in grass. It seems to be working all right. I think I’m decent at holding criteria for the stand stay position. Thought I’d dive into the considerations for which position now, before it’s more established.

Bonus question – will there be a “live” MaxPup 4? Having a blast, and planning for post-MP3.

[Amy Sannes]

Hi Tracy –

Skizzle and I had a spring camping trip that coincided with your break week. We had a great time hiking, but did more than we’re used to. I’m going to give him another day or two off before getting back to things.

Here’s a cute pic of Skizzle from our trip – a southern Utah slot canyon sized for him.

I hope you’re having a good week!

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