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Thank you so much for the feedback. Here is some of what we did on Friday. The good news is that he didn’t bite at the grass. That’s a big success, IMO. I kept the volume dial low because I didn’t want grass eating. In the first sequence, after the games, etc., he did a big loop. I called him back once, but then just waited for him. Overall, I think the session went okay. I don’t like my choice of just taking off to do the sequence. I should have told him what was next. He can line up at my side or between my legs, so we have that in our toolbox, but I was still thinking that I didn’t want to make anything too challenging. We did some tricks and EC and instant focus, too.
Thoughts? I won’t be renting the field this week because we have a scentwork trial this weekend, but my backyard is finally snow-free, so I can work on things there. Thanks.
Thanks so much. I actually laughed out loud about your reaction to my throwing down the mat!
I am intrigued by the same words being both the marker and the cue for where to get the reinforcement. I have always separated that out, especially to make sure that the marker doesn’t mean “leave me to go get your reinforcer,” but your explanation makes sense and we will utilize your version.
What is the ideal instant focus object? I just grabbed something off the shelf at the training center for the video.
I have some video of active tricks. First with food in hand and then not. Right before this session, I was training Stevie downstairs while Riot was upstairs and he was not happy about missing out. When he finally got his turn, he gets very aroused and starts to spin. This is something he has done since he was young. He doesn’t do it much anymore. I usually try to distract him or ignore it. I opted for ignoring it tonight and then trying a pattern game. I suspect you have some thoughts on that? One place he used to spin like this when he was younger was when it was our turn in rally class. It was like he had performance anxiety with everyone watching, but who really knows. He will occasionally do it before we start agility training. He used to do it when I entered the most often used training space in my backyard. I pretty much got rid of it there by going into the yard with him and just hanging out, so that moving into that space didn’t mean training. He will sometimes do it when he sees me set up the video camera, but not always.
We do have an engaged chill. We do it all the time in the lineup waiting to compete in scentwork. Photo below. I didn’t know it was a thing! I haven’t used it in agility training.
I see I sometimes say “get it” when handing him a treat. I will need a new word or phrase for the pattern game to avoid confusion. One more question. I am renting the agility yard on Friday. What would be the most useful thing for me to video for this class? Thanks!
I forgot to answer the ball question. All of the above! Lotus balls. Lotus balls attached to fleece handles. Tennis balls. And his favorite, a small ball inside a holey roller.
I took him with me to the training center tonight, as I usually do when I teach. He hung out in the building in his crate for over an hour while I taught. After everyone left, we played pattern 1. He has played ping pong and up down before. The snack variation was new, so we also tried that. Riot thought it was big fun. In fact, every game we played, he was so happy and engaged. His eyes were bright, he had a happy vibrating tail, and he had that slightly open mouth expression that says, “This is FUN!” I was having fun, too.
We also did remote reinforcement, which is something we have done since he was a puppy, so he knows the pattern. Interestingly, after we brought his arousal up with the flirt pole, he had a harder time coming away from the cheese on the table. I just kept moving around until he made the decision to come get me. Probably because he knew I could reach the cheese for him! LOL.
We also played instant focus 1 and 2. We got a little too close to the stuffed JRT, but he was able to disengage with no assistance from me.
We will try the other games this week, too, but we really had a lot of fun tonight. It felt good. The video is only lightly edited. I didn’t take anything important out.
Thanks, Tracy. One quick note on sniffing. He really likes to sniff some particular spots in the barn. Where everyone comes in, especially. He also will get fixated on a spot if a dog has peed there. It can be hard to tell if that is really displacement sniffing or just “I love this smell and it’s more fun than anything else” type of sniffing. He really loves to sniff on walks and, basically, everywhere! Same thing in rally. When he drops his head to sniff it is usually in a place where there is something interesting — the crack between mats where stuff gets stuck or hair left by a dog in a previous class. I work with all manner of things that are distracting when we train at home and he can deal with that much better. I will pay closer attention and video.
He was able to take treats until we had to be about 10 feet from the gate. There was a lot of congestion and a solid wall behind us, running parallel to the gate. A pretty abysmal set up at the AKC trial and yet another reason we scratched our Sunday run. Teams that had already run had to pass right by all the dogs waiting because there was only one way in and out. UKI was nice and open.
This is making me think, which is good. I have him in a scentwork class for just a couple more weeks where the instructor has everyone stand around in a smallish room and watch the other dogs work. (Dogs are crated elsewhere.) He is learning to work through that pressure, but he finds it a challenge. It is not often that there are that many people in close proximity at a scentwork trial, but it can happen and people can be used as a distraction at the upper levels. He may bark at men or very large women during these classes, if they are very close, when he first comes in, or if they stare at him. However, once he is searching, he doesn’t seem bothered and can ignore them. He also sometimes barks at men who suddenly appear or if they start waving their arms or shouting. At this point, I don’t plan to trial under any male judges, at least until I see that it doesn’t bother him anymore.
The grass grabbing can be when I want to start, like when I say “ready” (so I stopped saying that), and he will also do it on the run. I won’t be fixing anything, but just attempting to do a few jumps and he will grab a mouthful as he is running.
Thanks so much for the feedback. Yes, we haven’t worked backsides very much at all. The smoke from the California wildfires cleared out this weekend, and it stopped raining, so we were able to practice in my yard yesterday. I was also able to practice some more left turns.
Here are sequences 1 and 2 from Week 4. I practiced the left turns after I filmed these. I also don’t have a cue other than jump. I need to put that on my list to train a different word.
He had really nice focus for these. Clover was crated outside, which definitely helped. We also have been able to participate in some group classes this summer (not agility) and that has led to improvements overall. It was fun to work on handling. Note that the video for sequence 1 is much longer than for 2 because I was trying to work out the left wrap handling.
Thanks.
Thank you for the feedback! I didn’t move on to the next week because I really wanted to continue to work on these skills, and then we have had some other issues to contend with. I love love love how early I can finish the front cross in sequence 2. He has really nice commitment to the pinwheel. I started getting some wrong tunnel entrances. Any tips would be appreciated. I still think he lands and then turns when turning left. Just keep working on it with a low bar? I also had a couple issues with the back side in sequence 3. I think it’s mainly a training issue, but I’d like your thoughts on the BX from 2-3. He wasn’t jumping, but just came around and I think I was doing something to cause that.
Sorry for being MIA! Thanks so much for the feedback. Weeweewee made me giggle because it made me think of “this little piggy.” Everything you said makes sense. 🙂
These videos are from two weeks ago. I was hoping to do more of the exercises before submitting, but between extreme heat, unhealthy smoky air, and Riot’s dental (two back molars pulled despite everyday tooth brushing), it didn’t happen. I am hoping to be able to catch up in the coming week.
I was really pleased with his focus. Clover was on premises and in season, so hooray for having a brain at all!
I am looking forward to your feedback on some clearer cuing suggestions and tighter turns/transitions. He doesn’t turn as well to his left and we are working on that.
Thanks so much for the feedback, Tracy! I really appreciate all your help. This class was sooooooo challenging for us, but we really have improved. Look at him go! (We had to substitute weaves for the second tunnel.) iPad still broken, so no sound. Of importance was that I said “go” when he took the weaves as number 3, which was totally a go as it was a straight line to them.
As soon as it stops being a fiery inferno here, I will dust off the jump grid. Salt Lake forecast for the first part of the week – 103, 104, 102. I need to fiddle with the set point exercise. He was launching over the tiny jump and the 16″ without stepping in tonight.
I nearly melted my laptop rendering this video. Seriously, I have never felt it get so hot!
We need to work on backsides after tunnels, so I didn’t make a thing of it in the second sequence.
Thanks!
Thanks so much for the feedback. I think I was just having one of those “we’re still in a #&*@% pandemic” days when I posted this. I really like the idea of isolating one thing for ME to work on. That makes it so much more manageable.
It’s interesting how the forced front sends him jetting out, but the blind brings him in tight. Why is that?
I’ve been running Pixey on the sequences before I run Riot. This was a good wake up call that I really need to think and handle differently for him. I need to remember the spins and brakes, especially. It’s been a long time since I have had two dogs doing agility at the same time.
As for jump training, we have done some set point work and some straight grids, but not for a while. I have about five or six jumps at home. Looking forward to your suggestions.
Thanks again for the positive spin (ha ha) on the video. You are so good at finding the good things and providing tips for improving those things that can be better. 😊
Sorry for the delay in responding. Thanks so much for the feedback, especially the observation about turning his head. I have been working on that a bit in my yard, but it has been ridiculously hot, so not as much training as I would like. We have also been working backsides without a bar and with only one wing. Great suggestion. Thanks for that, too.
These are some of the novice courses from last week. I didn’t get them uploaded until tonight. We have already filmed this week’s sequences, but I can’t get those uploaded yet.
These are the first LYD courses we have tried. Ugh. I hate the zig-zaggy lines I am setting and I hate how freaking late I am and I hate how much I am talking. Ri ri ri ri ri. Ugh. He was losing his brain at the end. And it was so darn hot.
He will jump 16″ in competition, but I usually jump him at 12″. Do you think I should be doing some at his competition height? I basically never do anything at 16″. I’m also thinking some jump grids or one jump work might be good for him. I don’t think he is powering off his rear as much as he could. I know jumping off the front is definitely a poodle thing.
The one good thing is my regular old video camera still works!
Thanks so much for the feedback. Yes, the disconnection felt really weird (and Pixey would have NONE of it)! The custom skill sets are a great help. Thanks for adding them to the Camp.
We had some issues with the threadle last week. I haven’t trained that with Riot at all and it shows. Also, I just have difficulty getting tight wraps. What is it? Why does he jump long even when I am stationary? What can I do to help him?
This week’s technology fiasco is that my iPad thinks my headphones are plugged in even when they are not. I didn’t connect that problem with what would happen when recording. I have no sound! So just imagine me giving perfectly timed verbal cues, okay?
I’ll be dusting off the video camera for the next session. Not sure if I want someone else touching my iPad right now and I have tried all the online suggestions to fix the problem, to no avail.
This was sooooooo hard for us.
Apologies for the weirdly blurred video. I think my videographer got some sunscreen on the iPad camera. Do you remember the show Moonlighting with Cybill Shepherd and Bruce Willis? Rumor had it that they put Vaseline on the camera lens for her close ups. So, it’s sort of like that…
Thanks for the great feedback, Tracy. It helps so much!
What do you mean above when you say to play with the exit line connection and reward? (At the 1:00 mark.)
Here is our work on the custom skill sets. I am definitely more comfortable with him on my left, so I am making myself do more work with him on my right.
Is there a place in the course where you talk about training threadles? I am prepping for our yard rental tomorrow night and I don’t think I’ve seen anything on your use of a threadle arm (but you talk about it in the skill sets). Thanks!
Thanks so much for the feedback. It all makes sense. I have been reluctant to throw the toy much because his default mode is to run right past me, so I have been rewarding more from my hand in an effort to get some more handler focus. I will work on balancing that out.
I am having issues adjusting my timing to his running style. The camp courses are a bit beyond our team’s skill level right now, so I opted to just do exercises 1 and 3 and try to break them down for him. There were some real trouble spots and some flashes of brilliance and only a brief Sheltie drive by, so I am overall pretty pleased with the little guy. I know with some coaching that I’ll be able to adjust my handling to what he needs. He’s still jumping long, so I must be screwing up the decal cues. Also, I think I’m going to need some rear crosses. On the last rep, I tried to wrap him to the right (dee dee), but my physical cue must have looked like a wrap to the left. It was late and his head was still in the game, so I opted to just let it go. I think I need some more one jump work, or maybe one tunnel plus one jump to get the decel and turns.
