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Hi Abby (and Merlin :))
This was pretty much a picture perfect session! All the angles? Yes! Clear line ups and sends? Yes! Adding motion? Yes! And I think he was at 100% rate of success. Super!!! You generally used the time while he was eating from the pet tutor to get to your next spot, which made it very efficient. If he does weave back to you as you are getting there, no problem, you can reward that. Great job adding your motion – he was faster when you moved, but not distracted by your motion. Perfect! I loved the ‘behind the back’ line up moment when you needed him back on your left side (he likes to be on your right) – that worked like a charm, you can totally use more of that.
Great job on this session. For the next session, try tightening the angles of the poles a little but structure the session exactly as you did here. Do you have any access to an outside place? He is ready to take this skill on the road!Great job, keep me posted!!
TracyHi! Both sessions here looked great – they both started off strong and continued to get better and better! The other good news is that she LOVES treats so it really didn’t matter what you were doing: when the treat target was out, she drove to it without giving a hoot what you were going… send, run past, cross, etc: she was perfect on every challenge on both sessions. Great job gradually layering the challenges in to keep her confidence and success rate very high!
On the downhills: this was a strong session – nice introduction to the set up and then progressively adding challenges. When you started she was looking at you a little but then as soon as the reward target was in place: boom! Straight down the board every time. She got faster and faster – and the main goal of ‘run to the end, no stopping too early’ was definitely accomplished.
So, next session, add a tiny bit more tip! And then you can start with the reward target out there right away and work through the challenges.
The uphills also looked great! I am so happy with how this went. She started off good and ended great: running to the end, exactly what we want. She only slowed down in order to eat the food and not fly off the top. Nice! And no issues with any of the challenges. So next time on this setup: give her a bit of a warm up (one or two reminder reps) just like you ended here, then I think you can easily add the wing wrap in before the teeter. That will add even more speed.
And if that goes well, for the session after that: add a tiny bit more tip!
For both games, you can also get her a little more pumped up with more playing before and after.
Great job!!!! Let me know how it goes!
TracyIn general, yes, start at full height. But always go with the dog on the first rep and you can have the reward visible at the end – show it to her as you put it there and then go to the start. If you think there is a chance that she will sprint up the board and dock dive off the end… then the other approach is to either put a table on one end so it is more of the teeter-tables game to get her used to stopping at the end. Or, you can lower the teeter so the angle is not steep and she won’t risk getting hurt if she jumps off. In that case, the teach it would be at whatever low setting keeps the teeter “up” side propped in position without moving 🙂
Tracy
Good morning!
He totally cracked me up when he went backwards beautifully next to the board til he was next to the contact… then hopped on into his target position. GOOD BOY!!!
I agree – he was happy to back up with more tip and he was assuming his position nicely right at the end of the board.
I think the barking has to do with the difficulty of the game plus the added distance and possibly the length of the session: He is pretty quiet when you are at a about an arm’s length from the bottom of the board (maybe a little nose whistling) and he is very accurate. The conversation begins as you add more distance which also coincides with being later in the session. You can try to start. The next session at the bigger distance already to see if that isolates it, or do a longer session (this length was good) but stay at that distance and see if he barks later in the session even with the easier distance. That can help you figure out if it is distance or duration 🙂
Either way – he is doing great. I think the barking might be distance related, so you can keep yourself in that arm’s length distance and add challenge with a tiny bit more tip.
Edited to add – less distance is fine because form is more important than distance! And his form is good when you are at a little less distance 🙂
The other thing to add is backing up onto an inflatable like a slightly under-inflated disc or fit bone to help with the core and balance he will need as he is moving into the down and the teeter is dropping. The year-old-ish dogs are having a little trouble with that, because they are still baby bodies in many ways :). I will try to get more ideas for that on video (Elektra is having a little trouble with the balance with a lot of tip too)Great job!!!
TracyGood morning!
You might be the only one here who is using tables in this game (as it should be) and the rest of us are faking it with other things LOL!!!
The first rep on a teeter is always interesting, but the 2nd rep is what really tells us how the dog feels about it. I was SO HAPPY after her first rep where you just basically introduced it to her… then she turned herself around to head back across the board. That seems to indicate that she is in a very happy place with the process and that is the more critical element of teeter training. YAY!!!
Then the rest of the session looked great. She was definitely keen to run the board! She was starting without you haha!For the next session, one thing to add is to see if she will hold a stay on the first table so you can lead out and recall her across the board to the 2nd table. That can start to give her the feel of running a little but with the support of you being at the end with her. And if the next session goes as well as this one, you can add a tiny bit more tip to the setup.
As you add more tip, there is going to be more noise (especially indoors) so my general rule of thumb for myself is that the first session of new tip will have a towel or something that dampens the noise. If the dog is happy with the tip, then the 2nd session on that new tip is without the towel so the noise is back in. That way, I can add each element separately (which also helps me figure out what the issue is, if the dog is concerned about anything).Great job here! She is making terrific progress! Keep me posted 🙂
TracyGood morning!
Sly was Man On A Mission on the uphills with the teach it!!! It didn’t really matter what you did (crosses, lateral motion, sending…), he was all like: “Bye mom, off to do the teeter now!”. PERFECT! You set the session up brilliantly and I am glad he was so confident with a new setup. I am sure he noticed the difference, but he was still happy to run up the board 🙂 YES!
I think that is a MAX200 teeter – One thing I have noticed with my MAX200 and the Teach It is that little rattly noise at the top when it hits. For 2 of my dogs, I draped a small towel over the metal so that there was not as much noise. Just food for thought as you progress to more tip, if you think the noise would bother him in any way. I get the dogs happy with any new tip, then I remove the towel to get them happy with the noise too – that way there is only one added element at a time.
Since he was happy… onwards! Tiny bits of tip getting incrementally added, with excitement before and after (like more wing wraps and running in from a tunnel, wheee!)
I have been using the Teach it for the downhills too, to prop the teeter for the bang game, and also to hold the plank for running dog walk practice. I feel like I totally got my money’s worth already!Nice backing up session! He was really looking for the board – it is not easy on a narrow board, but he did great! He gets better and better each time. Happy dance! You can add a little more angle to the board as well (each time, he shows us he is ready for more angle :)) I can’t remember if you added backing up to the teeter itself yet, I didn’t see it above – you can do that too, but start without tip so he can get the feel for it. And if you have any inflatables like a disc or fit one: adding backing up onto a partially inflated one so he can get the hind end balance while it is moving (I need to add more because my smallest dog is having trouble balancing at the top of the board as the board is moving, so I am taking it back to the inflatables).
Great job! Keep me posted as you move forward in each game. Have a great weekend, hope you are getting some great weather!
TracyWhoa, listen to the wind singing in the background!! But I am glad to see that you are out training and the temperatures are not obscenely low.
This session looked great, she was lovely finding her target position! You should totally be thrilled! I think the session was super strong. The only question she had was about the release – you were happy and praising and that went on a little too long in the early part of the session, so it looks liked there were some early releases (oops!) but no worries – praise less, release sooner, party more hahaha
Next session can totally have you moving more, moving past the board (walking at first, adding crosses) with the eventual goal being that you can run past the board and she hits and holds target position. I think it will not be a problem for her, just be super clear with release and get all rewards in really low at the target (thrown back or you can run back) to keep her head low and weight shifted. Because of all of her running dog walk expertise, we are really going to emphasize the weight shift of the teeter so you don’t get any dock diving off the end 🙂
Great job! I am excited to finish her teeter, this is going to be so fun!
(PS – I think I saw a backside video come in overnight in the FB group – I will be in that group this afternoon after an appointment this morning. Looking forward to it!)Tracy
Good morning! I think this session was also really lovely! There was a significant amount of movement and noise, and he seemed happy about it all!
His only really question was where to look: at you & the toy, or down to the target. I love the energy and excitement that the toy brought to the session! But he was definitely looking up at it more than at his target. I call this a champagne problem because he was not concerned about anything involving the teeter, we just need to figure out more forward focus down the board and less on the toy, while keeping the toy involved. He was MUCH better about looking forward when you were not holding the toy (but he cracked me up when you sent him down the board but he jumped off to get the toy LOL!)
I think getting him to focus forward to the target more will also get more speed when you send him without you. He was fast and fabulous when you were moving (great job with the crosses!) but he was trotting more and his head was up more when you were standing still. I don’t think he was worried about the motion, I think he is trying to figure out how to do it with you not in the picture.
So, some ideas for you specifically for that:
When you are getting ready to release him across the board (whether you are moving with him or sending him) – your line up is great so now add in a heartbeat to wait til he looks forward. Hold him, give him a little ‘ready, steady…’ then when he looks forward, you can release him and send him down to the target for the yummy.
On the first few reps, support him by moving with him so he doesn’t look back at you.
When he is getting the idea, we will add forward focus into sending him without you. Do everything the same as above but you won’t be moving 🙂
To make it a lot easier, you can back chain the sending without you: start him on the ‘downside’ of the teeter nearer to the target til he focuses ahead and sends without you, then gradually work your way back to the top of the board.Now, the next step of getting him to focus ahead is to add the toy back into the picture – I think the toy will be super valuable as we get more tip and noise involved 🙂 So you can backchain the looking forward while you are holding the toy starting at the bottom of the board near the target. My guess is there is something like this already existing in your flyball foundations or in your agility foundations. For example: focus ahead on a ball or a mat while you hold the toy.
And last idea 🙂 because we are trying to convince him to focus ahead but the bit of food on the target might be less valuable than you and the toy… go up a notch in food value there. A little smear of peanut butter or cream cheese might be exciting enough that he stops thinking about the toy and looks for it 🙂
Great job here! I am super excited by his progress. With plenty of good weather ahead, I think we have a fun road ahead!
Tracy
Good morning! This looks really good! How not-fine was he during the first session? I can see him being not quite as fast in the final 3rd of the board a couple of times but he was faster and faster throughout the whole session. He seemed to really enjoy the wing wrap to the teeter! I think there is a little whip and rattle to the board when he is moving fast from the wing, and that is GREAT!
Because he was less confident on a previous session, do one or two more sessions just like this: same setup, same cheese placement 🙂 Be sure to add in sending him from the wing to the end of the board without your motion, as well as some rear crosses between the wing and the board.
As you do these sessions, save the highest value food reward just for this. For example, my dogs get string cheese during normal training so for the teeter the value goes up up up. I used peanut butter and smoked salmon yesterday 🙂 Ewwwww but also yummy!
And with those ultra high value food rewards – do very few reps. That will make a big impression as the game gets harder because he will be working less and earning more 🙂If the next 2 sessions go well, and I am confident they will… let’s add a tiny bit of tip!
Keep me posted!
TracyHi! Wait, it rains out there?? Eek!!!! Hopefully it is nice and dry now 🙂
Both these games look good! You are on a roll!
Backing up is looking strong. You can definitely add a little more tip now 🙂 One thing I notice is that he was having trouble “finding” the narrow board – he was looking for it with his back feet but was not always hitting it. So you can work the backing up skill onto something wider, too, for now: backing up onto a wide plank or a dog bed or something, anything wider than the teeter that he has to step up onto. That will help him find the narrower board too because he can practice finding things with his back feet.The bang game is looking good too – the target totally helps (it will stay there for a while) and I think you can add more tip to this too. We expand on this game on Monday but for now, start him closer to the end so he can basically leap right into position without looking at you, and that way you don’t have to move as much to help him. But he is figuring out that it is 2o2o and it will be even easier with the strip of tape not visible there.
>> I know we haven’t gotten here yet but in max pup we worked on the target or scratching on the board as another layer of criteria. How does that work with the two on two off? Is the end result something like- run to the end, do your scratching, paw target, etc until the board hits the ground and then go into a two on two off?>>
The scratching was for the 4on targeting, to give the 4on dogs another layer of ‘something to do’ at the end of the board. The 2o2o dogs are welcome to do it, but I don’t think you need to – they will be reaching for the ground with their front feet as the ‘to do’ at the end of the board, so we don’t need them to also scratch. You are welcome to do it if you want to, but it is not needed with all the criteria layers already in the 2o2o.
Great job here! Onwards to more tip on all the games!
Tracy
Hi! This was a really good session!
>>I didn’t add motion for this session but plan to next session.
Perfect! You can also get him more jazzed up, adding a little “ready ready ready” type of stuff before you send him 🙂
>>He did well until the off side weaves around 9 o’clock to 10 o’clock. I tried to make it easier after a few failures and then went back to super easy to end on a positive rep. Is that how I should handle the multiple failures? I thought he was going to get the third try but apparently not (whoops).>>
Yes, he looked like he was going to get it but then curled in at the last moment. You handled it well. You can also start closer on the same angle, or open up the angle of the poles a little there. The errors were on one of the harder angles of entry, so more time on slightly open poles plus being closer to them will help for sure.
But overall, he was great and you can totally add motion! For the super hard angle, you can open up the poles for that rep only.>>How far do we go around the clock? So we stop at 2 and 10 or 1 and 11?>>
Not sure what you mean? But the general answer… all the way around the clock, so he can eventually get all the entries from anywhere 🙂
>>I’m also going to work on threadles
yes, start those on the easy angles and pretty close to the poles – they are weird at first!
>>I need to pay attention to him self releasing!
You can also just keep him engaged before the send so he doesn’t send himself, because we don’t want him to start a great entry and then be told he was wrong because he left too early. So, you can line him up with a cookie, get him excited with a bit of ready, steady…. then send him 🙂
Great session here!
TracyHi!
>>My “teach-it” is coming. I’ve watched the video a few times but want to be clear where I should start. With it on the lowest setting? Then when she’s super comfy move up from there?>>Which game? With the teach it on the mountain climbers, I start with the board at full height and the teach it at the top setting, so it props the board stationary but full height.
Or if you mean the downhills (teeter tables) the teach it will be kind of a medium height so that the board doesn’t move a lot.
Let me know if that answers or if I am missing something LOL 🙂
Tracy
Hello!
>> I was going to use a target and 2o2o for the teeter end behaviour, but I intended to only use a single cue for the whole teeter behaviour chain – get on, run, target: “Tee Tee Tee Tee”. Do you feel it’s necessary to cue the teeter AND the target if I am doing running contacts for the other two obstacles?>>
Yes and no!
(Helpful, right? HAHA!!!)
It depends on the dog. Some dogs find it very helpful because they can discriminate the DW from the teeter more easily (especially with the slatless DW) and also some dogs drive harder to the target when you say it (or some dogs don’t stop if you don’t say it, I have one of those LOL!!! Oops!)
But some dogs slow way down the instant you say it, and get super careful trying to be accurate and find the position.
So… for the target verbal, use Tee for now (just once, not repeated). And then as we build the entire teeter, River will let us know if you can stick with just “tee tee tee” or if you need something else. I *think* the way we are training the obstacle should be fine for your goal of just one cue… but the dog will guide us 🙂
Let me know if that makes sense 🙂
TracyHi!
This was only your 3rd session? She looks really good, particularly in a new place/new teeter!Having the other person help at the end of the board was great! Please pass along my thanks! I like to have people help with mountain climbers because the dog really gets a lot of support, but the pandemic has made it difficult to include helpers. And it looks like you went to the magic of peanut butter, so Emmie was happy 🙂 When you added a lot of running past, she got to the top and then lost a little confidence: At 1:11, you ran past a little too much so after she had a lick of the PB, she got a little concerned because no one was there. And at 1:50, there was more tip and no people around so she also got a little concerned. You can dial back your motion so you are adding the challenge of moving past, but come right back so she is not up there too long by herself. It shows where she is still building confidence: being at the top with the peanut butter is all good as long as you are there relatively close by, particularly when the board is moving a bit 🙂 And that is fine, because she is only on her 3rd session – she is doing amazingly well.
If you can do another session or two like this (little to no tip) then she will be well-prepared for the new games coming on Monday.Great job here!
Tracy
