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Greetings! So far at the trial we have had some great results (no Qs, but close) and I have learned a lot.
Friday, the first run was FAST. We were warmed up and entered the ring at the appropriate time, lined between my legs, then leash off. The person who just completed her run is hollering for her dog’s collar. I put the leash back on and attempted to engage him. Lesson 1: I realized that we should have left the ring as the delay was longer than I imagined that it would be. Lesson 2: I left his reward on the concrete barrier outside of the ring. When he left me, I believe he was headed to the reward. I changed the placement of the reward for subsequent runs.Pre-entry https://youtu.be/oZ6nJKiQDLw
Entry https://youtu.be/EwHwqWyQuRc
FAST run https://youtu.be/9a9JHYtzRmk
The second run on Friday was Masters JWW. I arrived to the ring with only 2 dogs before us. That seemed to be the perfect amount of time. Grady was very engaged. I caused him to miss a jump…decent time, 34 seconds…only 1 second slower than the winning time. His reward was a bit too far from the end of the course.
Pre-entry routine https://youtu.be/Y5mTK1hwU8o
JWW run https://youtu.be/0S13QYMXgW8
Friday Masters STD: I was getting ready 2dogs before our run. The handler running fell at the last jump, injuring his hamstring. I am a PT and joined the two nurses attending to the injured handler. A friend volunteered to hold Grady.
Saturday Masters STD: This has been by far our best run in a long time! I pulled Grady off of the jump before the teeter 39.15 seconds…great finish! He was fast, happy, even barking during the run at one point! Note to self, make sure that the leash is not tangled around his hind leg!
Pre entry https://youtu.be/eS_drFS9oK8
STD run https://youtu.be/cTfcVImWuZQ
Lots of learning! Several opportunities to test our toolbox to re-engage when unexpected things happen. Grady was somewhat distracted by the ring crew that consisted of prisoners and individuals completing community service. He did better than I expected, always choosing to re-engage with me! Another plus, he never sniffed in the ring! Amazing, especially after not running on dirt for over 2 years!
This course is really helping!
Thank you for the feedback! We had a lesson last Saturday with Lori Michaels and talked about what we had been working on. I always started from outside the ring to set up sequences…she was actually the one who pointed out the additional use of let’s go. I will try “cookies” for his remote reward. We worked on bypassing his remote reward (sometimes behind or in front of him) and having to come to me and then maybe completing one obstacle before running to the treat bag. We also worked on his start line with me running prior to releasing. I think that everything was better due to exercises from this course😁.
We have a trial at a lovely dirt arena this weekend…we have not been on dirt since before Covid😳 My goal is to keep Grady happy and engaged!
The major Kryptonite issues he has would be random stuff on the turf (Sheltie fur, bugs, leaves) and sometimes judges. I carry a baggy full of fur pieces to put on turf as a distraction during practice. For some reason during our last trial, he seemed to feel pressure from Laura English as she move into different positions. At one point, he had an issue with men in hats. I believe we have worked through this by asking people to portray obnoxious male judges in hats.
This has improved…initially, Grady would only do a “down” when it was the first or second trick. I could tell when it was too much to ask…his response was slower and I might have to use multiple commands.
Remote reward after 7 obstacles…
Grady had to bypass the reward (placed on drinking fountain-cut from the video). My “let’s go” cue could have been earlier.
This video is with his fancy, fluffy leash…harder to remove, but much improved a
after a recent trim!
Remote reinforcement-offered engagement and “let’s go”
I discovered an issue with “let’s go” during a recent lesson as it seems to be part of what I say when entering the ring. I’m still trying to figure what to say…perhaps,”are you ready, are you ready, let’s play” with “what a good boy” thrown in…
Grady’s ability to respond and quickly do his tricks has improved. My ability to keep my hands out of my pockets is also better!
