[ruth.e.larocque]

Hi Tracy,
we need to go back and continue working on strike a pose serps (obv) to incorporate your suggestions above, but I went ahead and did our first threadle introduction, so here it is.

I used both extended/closest to the dog arm, and also tried using the outside/across the body arm, mostly as a reminder to me to ask this: at 2:55 in your demo video you say to ask for more specifics about the time and place for using one arm versus the other, so, OK, I’ll bite! What’s the time and place LOL

You’ll see in the video that after some early errors I bring back the target in my hand to help him out, so I gather we need to work on fading the target?

Week 8 Strike a Pose 3: Concept Transfer for Threadles (slices)

thanks as always!
Ruth and Leo

[ruth.e.larocque]

Hi Tracy!
thanks as always for the feedback above, so incredibly helpful! Before I forget, what is the last day we can submit video following the final live class?

Here is video for Week 6 Strike a Pose Part 2: Concept Transfer for Serps

the first part is baby level (toy in one hand, then the other hand), and the second part is advanced level (toy on ground, first one side then the other). You’ll see at 1:26 in the video he goes outside the uprights instead of through, but we just kept going and he didn’t repeat that error.

TIA,
Ruth and Leo

[ruth.e.larocque]

Hi Tracy,

>>On a big hair day, I reach a whopping 5’2″

LOL! I’m only 5’0″ myself, and, I figure, if you’re tall enough for your feet to reach the ground it’s all good 😉

thanks for the tips on mechanics to make it more likely Leo will keep feet on the ground instead of hopping up, I’ll try it and report back.

In the meantime, here are two more videos:

Week 3 Prop Game: Rear Crosses
I know you said not to worry about spinning the wrong way after getting to the prop, but Leo was pretty dedicated to doing just that most of the time, so am looking forward to your feedback so I can give better info to Leo (note: sound cuts out half way thru vid, not sure what happened there)

Week 6 Wing Wrap Foundations: Rocking Horse Games part 1
Leo is not always committed and I even manage to pull him off a couple times, and once he cuts behind me. This was a fun one to work on!

thanks as always,
Ruth and Leo

• This reply was modified 3 years, 4 months ago by ruth.e.larocque.
• This reply was modified 3 years, 4 months ago by ruth.e.larocque.
• This reply was modified 3 years, 4 months ago by ruth.e.larocque.

[ruth.e.larocque]

Hi Tracy,
Happy Friday!

here are two videos from Week 4 Foundations for Turns on the Flat (lap turns and tandem turns). He is tall+long and I am short, so it’s hard for me to avoid getting a chin-up and even some jumping up during the turns, but at least some of the time his feet stay on the ground.

video 1 is baby turn aways

video 2 is adding the prop for turn aways. After the turns and on his way to the prop, Leo keeps turning his head towards me (even tho it’s pretty clear he understands he should hit The Thing) so I added the clicker to try and isolate head forward or foot on the prop but I don’t think it helped much. Maybe I should try a Manners Minder? Looking forward to your help and advice on all of it!

thanks as always,
Ruth and Leo

• This reply was modified 3 years, 4 months ago by ruth.e.larocque.
• This reply was modified 3 years, 4 months ago by ruth.e.larocque.
• This reply was modified 3 years, 4 months ago by ruth.e.larocque.
• This reply was modified 3 years, 4 months ago by ruth.e.larocque.

[ruth.e.larocque]

Hi Tracy,
here is Week 8 Baby Level Leading with the Head around an upright. I’m skipping around a bit with posting homeworks, I hope this one is ok to post ‘out of order’ !

hope you’re having a fun weekend on the road teaching,
thanks as always,
Ruth and Leo

• This reply was modified 3 years, 5 months ago by ruth.e.larocque.

[ruth.e.larocque]

Happy New Year Tracy!

Here are two more videos:

Week 3 Countermotion with a Prop
We started out ok, but then my countermotion started pulling him off the prop before he got there to touch it, so I went back to more stationary sends. You’ll see with some of the backwards sends that he spins and backs up to the prop, is that ok?

Also, Leo got frustrated a bit and did some vocalizing and biting, so I stuck with just the stationary sends and haven’t [yet] gone back to adding countermotion.

Week 5 Baby Level Running Contacts
We’d done some practice with a mat before this video, but today was our first time with a box and it shows LOL. Also first time with the food robot. Is it ok that he often turns his head to look at me rather than continuing straight to where the food shows up?

thanks for your feedback!
Ruth and Leo

[ruth.e.larocque]

Hi Tracy!
I recorded some training before snow hit Seattle, we’ll be buried for a few more days : -)

This is Week 3 Parallel Path with the prop. We had way more success than misses (misses = no touching) but I’ve included some of the misses and my responses for feedback purposes. Leo clearly understands he needs to be near The Thing, even when I move farther away, but I stopped marking and feeding near misses as it led to him leaping over or purposefully swerving around it. Not sure if I should’ve let the near misses go and R+ anyway?

thanks as always!
Ruth and Leo

[ruth.e.larocque]

Hi Tracy,
I’m out in the woods with terrible internet service, so am crossing my fingers this is going to work! Here are 2 more videos:

>>>Now, we would prefer the pups *don’t* stick the landing because it puts all the weight on their shoulders (a lot of them are offering it here) so you can do 2 things to help him keep his rear feet isolated:
– Start closer to the thing so he just has to step back to it
– When you add distance, reward sooner while he is still backing up with independent back feet (before he gets to the thing).<<<

Ruth: starting closer to the thing wasn’t working well (it was ALL ‘stick the landing’ LOL), so we added distance and I [tried to] mark sooner. There was still a lot of 2-back-legs-together happening at first, but over time we ended up with less ‘stick the landing’ moves:

the other video is Week 4 “Strike a Pose” part 1:

thanks as always for your feedback!
Ruth and Leo

[ruth.e.larocque]

Hi Tracy,
hope you’re having a good weekend. Much of the country is having pretty crazy weather; hope it’s ok at your place.

Here is some hind end awareness work. First backing up to a solid platform (week 2 assignment), then I added some wobbly stuff and shortened the distance (week 3). Today was the first day Leo figured out it is more efficient to just back up, instead of turning around, walking on w/front feet and pivoting to just back feet (don’t have any video of that earlier work). Good boy!

TIA as always,
Ruth and Leo

[ruth.e.larocque]

Hi Tracy,
here’s our first attempt at Week 3 Turn and Burn! game. I’m using Leo’s car crate turned on its end as the ‘wing’. You’ll see we had lots of little things to work through (including the distraction of a big stick when we first started LOL!), so I’m looking forward to your feedback before we try this one again.
TIA!
Ruth and Leo

[ruth.e.larocque]

Hi Tracy,
finally back home in Seattle and getting back to homeworks! Here are two videos from Week 2:

MP wk 2 Driving Ahead and Focus Forward Part 2: Toy Races!
(we snuck in a little ‘work-in-distracting-environments’ since Leo gets distracted by bikes and walking people; and also some start-line-stay work since I didn’t have someone to restrain Leo for me)

MP wk 2 Wing Wrap Foundations: Next Steps
Standing instead of sitting for wing wraps now. I started with too large a gap that caused Leo to take a short cut 😉 but once I adjusted for that, he actually self-corrected a couple times as I slowly made the gap bigger again. Good boy!

Thanks in advance for your feedback!
Ruth and Leo

• This reply was modified 3 years, 6 months ago by ruth.e.larocque.

[ruth.e.larocque]

Hi Tracy,

>> And he has GREAT stay, good boy, and good job to you for training it!!

Thanks for noticing, my first agility collie had a bit of a creeping start line stay and I’m bound and determined to do a better job this time around LOL!

I’ll incorporate your suggestions above and am excited to try some more blind cross work.

Here is a Week 1 Baby Goating 1 video. I’ve been visiting family so am using what they have on hand; a scratchy front door mat on top of a green hard plastic bin cover at first, then I added some pillows underneath to make it wobbly. Leo has had lots of practice doing GOAT-type perch and platform work, so it’s easy for him to offer this behavior. However, I’m not sure we’re doing what we should be doing to meet the goals you’re looking for in this class, so am looking forward to your feedback, TIA!
Ruth and Leo

[ruth.e.larocque]

Hi Tracy,

week 1 Baby Blind Cross video:

thanks!
– Ruth and Leo

[ruth.e.larocque]

Hi Tracy,
2 more Week 1 videos:

Prop Game 1: Building Sends and Commitment.
This video is Baby level forward sends from both sides, using food and then a toy as R+. Leo gets very worked up during this game, and while he can still think and goes to the prop and purposely targets it (yay), he gets very bitey on my hands while I’m engaging him and before I send him (owwww), and he vocalizes out of frustration a couple times too.

Teaching Decel and Turn Foundations:Drive to Handler
This video is Baby level decel, then turns, then front crosses

TIA for your feedback,
Ruth and Leo

• This reply was modified 3 years, 6 months ago by ruth.e.larocque.
• This reply was modified 3 years, 6 months ago by ruth.e.larocque.

[ruth.e.larocque]

Thx for the quick response!

>>in a high distraction area, you can let go of him as soon as the toy hits the ground, so he doesn’t have time to look away. Eventually you will be able to extend the duration of the focus forward with distractions but the immediate “giddy up” of letting go will help him not want to look away 🙂 <<

Ruth: oh, this right here^ was worth the price of admission; I can see how otherwise I risk building an unfortunate chain that starts with looking away. Thank you!

>>And be sure to work both sides so he is balanced turning left and turning right<<

Ruth: Will do!

I saw from someone else’s thread (I think) that it’s ok to post videos somewhat out of order? If so, here is Week 1 “Wing Wrap Foundations”. I was in a hotel room and used available props, so the garbage can as “wing prop” is somewhat short and Leo puts his head over the top a few times, but I hope that’s not disastrous and overall I think he’s getting it. I backtracked when he started to make the same error for the 3rd time in a row, but after that it was all good.
Also, I am using too many diff. marker words, oops.

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