[Nancy Little]

First of all, thank you for the video. That was an excellent explanation and I loved that it also included the serpentine as well. Funny how Voodoo and Lever are the same age and run so similarly. He run best when I keep my eyes on his eyes and that’s taught me how to master connection. He’s taught me a lot! I feel like my teamwork with Pose is coming together much faster because Lever required so much extreme connection from me.

On the verbal wraps, I will ponder more on that and probably will have different verbals for them. Push is the current backside. I will have to think about whether that should be a backside wrap or slice. Then think of another cue that doesn’t sound like the others.

I love your responses because I have to reread them a few times and let them simmer. I love that.

Okay…on to more skills sets.

I don’t know why, but I struggled with the diagrams on the skills sets. I’m not sure why. But it took me forever to figure out the lines and the numbers. I kept getting myself confused. Maybe because sometimes the lines ran the entire course and sometimes only parts of it and then sometimes I had to go to the end and follow the arrows back. I could not tell what the difference was between #4 & #5 and between #3 and #6. I must have dyslexia because going between the lines and the numbers was too difficult for me. Not sure how to make that easier. Maybe just a quick turn line (for the direction) or which side for the back side? I did skills 1 and 2 yesterday and 3 and 4 today. I couldn’t get through any more than that because I was struggling with the diagram. I’m sure it was just me.

Here is Skills #3:

Skills #4:

Here is Novice Sequence 1:

Here is Novice Sequence 2:

Here is Novice Sequence 3:
She had a little trouble at the jump 6 where she sliced instead of wrapping it. I was trying to shape the wrap, but when I worked through it I figured out all she need was me to keep moving so I could show her the next line. I wasn’t happy with the opening much it felt like I was late showing the turn at #3.

Thanks so much!

[Nancy Little]

Question – do you have a different verbal for backside wrap versus backside slice? That can help! See more below.

No. I don’t have two different verbals. I’ve been concentrating on too many others. I could certainly add these or modify her collection to the backside.

I haven’t noticed her turning better in any direction. But if the wrap is on a slicy line, she might slice it a little more than setting herself up to turn.

But overall… these wraps are just about perfect 🙂 One thing to play with – as you are moving into them and working connection, start the wrap cue (physical and verbal) directly to her eyes, then shift to the landing spot – that can help collection even more when coming in at full speed, and it will also set us up for the next frontier with her – being able to cue and strip out the connection element of looking behind you while you leave, but still getting commitment.

Do you have a video of this? Are you saying that I would look to the landing spot as I pull away (after commitment?) . Also, what does “frontier” mean? Or was that a typo. I can’t figure out what that means so it must be a typo.

I’ve seen her set herself up this way on a slice when send her from a distance to wrap a jump to her running dogwalk. Not sure why she does this, but it happens more frequently there. I can look for videos and show that to you.

On the right wraps, looking at :16 – it looks like you had your hand past the upright over the bar, so she sliced a little more than wrapped. I think the hand through the uprights over the bar stimulates the slice (presenting motion in that general area) so you can move that hand (right hand, in this case) to just before the entry wing so she passes it as she is heading to the wing, like a tiny stop sign – that has helped dogs set up the circle wraps better and they slice less. It is an element of the soft brake hand which she already reads so well. I also like it because it gets
me out of there even sooner.

Interesting. Lever responds to that cue so nicely, but she obviously reads it different. Again, do you have a video example of this? I’d love to make sure I had it visually correct before trying it.

About the verbals – a backside wrap verbal versus a backside slice verbal can help too (or we can add a collection cue to a general backside verbal but I like distinct verbals better).

Not sure which I should use….I currently have so many verbals (also have a SHITLOAD of location specific event markers for her, which HELP her a lot!!). I feel like things need to settle for a bit before I can handle more.

[Nancy Little]

Here are a few reps from the Skill Sets: 1 & 2
They are the backside wraps and the frontside wraps

She seems to be slicing on the backside wrap, but I assume that’s because she’s thinking more about going there and not enough about using her body (preparing). I was pretty hot yesterday when I did these and it’s hotter today, so I doubt there will be any training.

I did the front side wraps first so that also might have been the reason for thinking front wrap. This is the order I did them:

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