[Deborah Hill]

Hi Tracy,

Today, I worked on toggling between food and a toy.  The video has two parts:

1) Food (Zukes) and a fleece toy
2) Food (Zukes) and a wool dryer ball

Cowboy seemed OK with this arrangement.  Although, he was a bit more willing to release the wool ball over the fleece tug.  Here were my verbal cues (although, I couldn’t always hear me say them on the video):

Get it (tossed treat or toy)

Snack (deliver food directly)

Chomp (invitation to tug)

Trade-yah (release the toy) – This was only needed for the fleece tug

Bring (retrieve)  This was only needed for the fleece tug

Sometimes Cowboy would retrieve the toy part way and drop it in anticipation of a food reward and then I would say “Where is it?”  I do this at home and don’t consider it a formal cue, just something I do out of habit.

Video: Cowboy Reinforcement Procedures using food and a toy

• This reply was modified 3 years, 10 months ago by Deborah Hill.

[Deborah Hill]

Thanks Tracy!

LOL! Cowboy is Obsessed with the MM! I was thinking about bringing it to a trial but thought the better of it given that not all dogs like the beeping noise. I plan on trialing in UKI and AKC so am sure I may have the opportunity to use it with the sound turned off.

Thanks again! I’ll start playing with the toy to food and back again game 🙂

[Deborah Hill]

Hi Tracy!

I saved the moving between food and a toy assignment for later since I know that will be challenging and I will need more time to work through it.  Cowboy is definitely more food driven so as soon as I whip out a treat, a toy will be quickly forgotten.  The exception is the Lotus ball since there is a strong association with food.

I did work on remote treat delivery using a Manners Minder (I may also try the one where you place food on a table or chair since that closely simulates what happens in a trial environment. Cowboy did well enough that I added some simple behaviors towards the end before going back to the MM.  My verbal cue is “Treats”.  I did not use “Let’s Go” because I use go as a send cue in sequencing.

Video:  Cowboy Reinforcement Procedures using the Manners Minder

• This reply was modified 3 years, 10 months ago by Deborah Hill.
• This reply was modified 3 years, 10 months ago by Deborah Hill.
• This reply was modified 3 years, 10 months ago by Deborah Hill.

[Deborah Hill]

Thanks Tracy!

I had another practice session yesterday (no video) and was more mindful of my timing and mechanics. Today, I switched from food to toys. Here are the three cues I used:

1) “Catch” (I am not sure if my mechanics are correct here or if I should have thrown the ball further over Cowboy’s head)
2) “Get It”
3) “Chomp” (supposed to be an invitation to tug but I don’t think I said the word once!)

Video: Cowboy Reinforcement Procedures using a Toy

[Deborah Hill]

Hi Tracy,

Cowboy takes turns playing with my other dogs but his favorite is my arthritic 13 year old, Furgie.  They have a very similar play style but I keep those sessions brief so my senior girl doesn’t get hurt.  He will play with my Border Collie but Kaeto will opt out when Cowboy gets too physical and starts body checking.

Today, I had a go at the food reward cues. Here is the order that I used in the video:

1) Get it (tossed after eye contact)
2) Snacks (come to hand)
3) Cookies (follow cookie in hand)
4) Catch (toss directly at or behind)

Cowboy thinks this is the Best Class Ever!  His rump never stopped wagging!

Video: Reward Cues

[Deborah Hill]

Hi Tracy,

Here is what I came up with in terms of a reinforcement hierarchy. Cowboy is extremely social and is highly motivated to interact with other dogs and people. So far, this has been the case regardless of the environment we find ourselves in. He is also a chow hound. This guy loves to eat! Again, I have not seen him refuse food nor change the way he accepts it (slow, fast, hard mouthed, etc.)

Reinforcement Hierarchies Top 5:
Exciting and #1 being the BEST.
1. Interacting/playing with another dog_____________
2. Interacting with other people___________________
3. Cheese! ____________________________________
4. Tennis Balls__________________________________
5. Lotus Ball with Zukes or Pet Botanics treats_________

Toy Reinforcement Top 5
#1 being the BEST.
1. Tennis Ball__________________________________
2. Lotus Ball¬ with treats__________________________
3. goDog Furballz _______________________________
4. My socks! ___________________________________
5. Braided Fleece Toys____________________________

Activity Reinforcement Top 5
#1 being the BEST
1. Chasing /playing with another dog______________
2. Interacting with people_______________________
3. Walking, exploring and sniffing _________________
4. Chasing a tennis ball__________________________
5. Chasing bunnies, squirrels and other critters_______

[Deborah Hill]

Thanks so much, Tracy! I was really proud of Cowboy and was pleasantly surprised when he was able to take on so many new things in one day (I am going to include the horses next to the dog walking area).

For me, it’s always unnerving to go to a new place and work on unfamiliar equipment. To be on the safe side, we did the teeter separately at first and then back-chained it into the course and that worked well.

There is still a lot of work that needs to be done and I genuinely appreciate being able to play this game with such a willing partner. I also want to thank you again for being a part of the journey.

[Deborah Hill]

Hi Tracy,

This weekend, Cowboy and I attended a young dog agility workshop presented by Judy Reilly. This was Cowboy’s first time doing a full-day workshop so I wasn’t sure how he would hold up but he did a fantastic job of staying focused during the entire event.

I am sharing this video with you because you had a tremendous influence on the outcome, not just during this class but the other MaxPup classes that came before it.

There’s still a lot to work on and improve but I am grateful that you were part of our journey!

Video: Cowboy at the Judy Reilly Agility Workshop

• This reply was modified 4 years, 1 month ago by Deborah Hill.

[Deborah Hill]

Thanks Tracy! I haven’t given much thought to my startline routine (crate to ring) so I am glad I had the opportunity to consider things I can use.

When Cowboy circled around me during the cookie tosses that was entirely his idea. He really seems to like that trick. I will start taking this act on the road to see how he does in different environments. I may have missed it but if you have other advise for creating a repeatable startline routine, I would love to hear your thoughts! 🙂

[Deborah Hill]

We are going into our 9th week already! Wow! Time really flew by!

Today, I worked on the engagement games for Week 8.  This was so much fun! I Started out using two magic words “Ready” (let’s him know I am going to give another cue) and “Get it” (used for tossed treats or toys).  I then switched over to some simple tricks that didn’t require a prop:

1) Elevated hand touch
2) Side by side spins
3) Leg weaves
4) Move in a circle around the human
5) Back-up

Cowboy seemed to be having a lot of fun with this one.  The only time I saw him get really thoughtful was for the back-up.  I didn’t use the clicker-board and I also tried to see if I could get the behavior away from the wall.  I think that combination was much harder for him so I rewarded for fewer steps.  His butt was wiggling the entire time so all good! 

Video: Cowboy’s Quick Tricks

[Deborah Hill]

Thanks so much, Tracy! When I introduced forced fronts to my BC, timing was everything! If I was a split second too early he would take the front side and if I was late he would just run past the jump. I thought I would have the same issue with Cowboy but he read them just fine.

When I watched your video, you had a bar on the ground to indicate the commitment point and I think that really helped me to visualize this. I will try again and see if I can do the other variations.

Thanks again!

[Deborah Hill]

Hi Tracy,

Today Cowboy and I worked on the forced front cross. I have a tendency to stay too far back from the jump but Cowboy still read it in spite of this. In addition, I did not use the sequence from your video and just worked with the jumps that were already set up for a class scheduled the following day.

Video: Forced Front Cross

[Deborah Hill]

Thanks so much, Tracy!  It was a great workshop! Challenging enough to uncover skill gaps but easy enough to enjoy lots of successful moments 🙂
 
With all of the Border Collies there, Cowboy certainly wasn’t the fastest dog but he was sooo consistent and ran clean during most of the workshop. Rebecca did think I could get more speed out of him once I improve my timing and he better understands handling cues.
 
When I signed up for your class I was thinking that I was adding skills for far off future events,  I never expected to be using any of it during this past weekend!  I was so thrilled! Thank you very much!  

Once the glow has subsided I will start working on those force front crosses (the bane of my existence! 🙂

[Deborah Hill]

Thanks Tracy! This totally makes sense. I am starting to work on release and reward procedures but it still gets a bit jumbled 🙂

On Saturday, I attended an agility workshop with Rebecca Thrift. I have wanted to try an “either/or” workshop for a while now so I am glad I had the chance. I took both Kaeto (Agility University Alumni) and Cowboy.

This was Cowboy’s second agility workshop and the most technical thing he has done. I am so grateful for all of the great exercises from your class. They helped tremendously! We weren’t perfect but I did feel comfortable trying the things I learned here! Thanks so much!

Music Video: Rebecca Thrift “Either / Or” Agility Workshop

[Deborah Hill]

Thank you, Tracy, for the clarification on the Tandem and Lap turns! This helps tremendously! I will have another go at these but wanted to submit a video showing Cowboy’s teeter performance since I haven’t shown one in a few weeks.

Cowboy generally does well when I am walking past or when I am near the end of the board. However, in this session I am rewarding for getting into the 2O/2O position while I run past. I am using the Manners Minder for this session. It is about 16′ away which is the furthest it’s been so far.

I got three different responses:
1) He kept running with me and wouldn’t stop
2) He would stop in a 4-on position and then go to 2O/2O if I waited him out
3) He would stop in the 2O/2O position but I am not sure if this is happening intentionally or by accident

I look forward to hearing your thoughts. In addition, I am considering teaching a running A-Frame. I have not taught one before; although, I have started running Cowboy through a PVC square. Because, I have not combined running and stopped contacts before do you believe this will cause confusion (i.e. will Cowboy be more inclined to run through the end of the dog walk and teeter)?

Video: Cowboy practicing end behavior on Teeter (2O/2O)

• This reply was modified 4 years, 1 month ago by Deborah Hill.
• This reply was modified 4 years, 1 month ago by Deborah Hill.

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