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Holy bananas -35???? EEK!
This is a good game for indoors LOL!! The hardest part is standing still 🙂 She was perfect, lovely collections! And your fast & fun exits for the reward looked great. Since adding a tunnel is not possible 🙂 we can get creative. Do you have a manners minder or pet tutor? You can set it out ahead maybe 6 feet past the jump. If you are standing still or doing the send, she should collect and turn and NOT go to it (and get rewarded from you). If you are moving, she should go to it (and you can reward her from it). You can use anything she has value for – a dog bed, crate, empty food bowl, etc 🙂 They will all help her read the collection cue of the deceleration. Great job here – let me know what you think!
TracyHi!
>> I’ll be honest, she is so amazing (to me anyway), that our training sessions are too long (because I want to be amazed more), I need to play more and keep it fun. >>
I know that feeling! Set a timer so you can stop yourself after 2 or 3 minutes. The other think I like to do is play music – I start the session when a song starts, then end it when the song ends. That means about 2 minutes and 30 seconds of training and then we take a break 🙂
>>But from a contradictory perspective, I feel I need to start being more deliberate. She seems to be developing a bit of a mind of her own. She runs around and offers a bunch of stuff to get rewarded.>>
Ah yes – try to clear the training environment of other things that might entice her. You don’t want her leaving you to offer other things… but you also don’t want to be telling her that she is wrong when the behavior she offers is correct. So, the easiest thing to do is to not have other stuff around for her to interact with.
>> I have started being more deliberate with her path, not letting her cross behind me and making her stick to the task at hand and not letting her decide what she wants to work on (sounds so silly, but yes, she is doing that).>>
When the pups leave to offer other things, it might also be a reflection on the rate of success in the current session, so try having higher success rates (breaking things down more) and then I bet she won’t want to change her mind and do other things 🙂
>>We “deliberately” worked on the “Get Out” work today. She did very well and I was amazed.
Awesome!!!
>>>I wanted to talk about the “verbals” discussion. I have actually been thinking about this long before she even showed up. The two areas where I am undecided are: Backsides. I only use one verbal with my older dog, push. Do you have suggestions for the wrap and slice? >>
I use “back” to mean backside slice and ‘digdigdig’ to mean backside circle wrap. Some folks use ‘push’ or ‘around’ so it depends on what feels comfy for you. Since ‘push’ is already something you use, I suggest keeping it for the backside slices and adding a different one for the backside wraps.
>>Also, for the jump threadle, I have never had a cue. Current dog is pretty velcro and I would do a tandem turn with a left or right verbal. Previous dogs with more distance would be a name call, a directional and a Hail Mary! So, I would appreciate some suggestions there as well. I have a plan for all the other items discussed!>>
I like having a threadle verbal, so there are no hail mary moments LOL!! I use ‘close’ and lots of folks use ‘in in’ for those.
>>Pretty sure I will sign up for online for foundation class in March, so you will have a chance to see her in action and correct all my bad habits!>>
Yay! I am excited for that class to begin!!
Tracy
Hi!
Yes, Elektra understands the release cue of my hands relaxing next to the tug, so she gives it back. It is a little hard to see happening. I also do TONS of rewarding of that – either giving the toy back immediately or giving her a treat for releasing it 🙂
Tracy
Hi!
The lefts and rights at the beginning with your motion and then when you stopped moving all looked really good! Getting it while you are moving is easy – getting them so nicely when you were not moving and pretty neutral was GREAT!
The turn away into the left turn was harder to get started but then at 1:49 she had a bit of a break through! 2:51 and 2:56 were impressive and so was 315 on those left turns, even with the ‘easier’ option of going to the right being pretty close by.
She had trouble turning away on the right turns -she did well when there was a forward step but on the turn aways she needs a little help for the right turn. So to help get it started, two ideas:
– you can soften the angle where she start, so she is facing the first jump on almost astraight approach with you in a neutral position (maybe a little behind her) and then with ner starting on your right.
– you can also add a hand cue, with your right hand, turning her away before the first jump. A cookie lure might get her convinced to follow your hand at first (she won’t want to slow down to turn away to her right LOL!) but then that will be easy to fade out.Circle wraps:
>>Do you have a separate que for a left circle wrap vs a right circle wrap? >>
I personally do not have 2 separate cues for this – I have never found the need for it, at least not yet 🙂 Other people do have that, but they are mainly in Europe where they might encounter that skill a whole lot more than we will. I have limited brain space for all these verbals, so I will only add separate cues for the backside circle wraps if there comes a day that I totally need them.
On the first part of the video:
Her commitment on these looks awesome! She was beautiful in both directions and did not seem to even look at the tunnel. before or after the circle wraps Good girl!She had a couple of questions on some of the reps, and I think these were the same questions later on too – if you were blocking the wing a little too much, she might not be able to commit as well. You can use your really big cone or squished up ring gates to make a bigger ‘wing’ so you can show the full wing more.
Then the other thing she needed, especially on the right turn wraps, was for you to wait til she turned her head AND took a step towards the bar. When you did that: she was perfection. When you left before she turned her head or just after she turned her head but had not turned her feet yet – she had a refusal. More on that below.When you added the balance of front versus back from the tunnel – nice!! She was super, especially on the right turn wraps. Mix it up more frequently between the different wraps, so she doesn’t get into the groove of it only being one direction (that is probably why some of the left turn cues were incorrect as she was in wrap right mode)
The physical cue on the dig dig backside wrap really helped her too.Looking at some of her questions when you were using countermotion on the backside wrap to her right at 6:00, 651 and 7:00 for example, she hadn’t turned her head yet to look and take that one step to the bar. So this is a spot to give her that one extra heart beat of patience on the right turn circle wraps for now. When she is more experienced, you won’t need to but for now, watch her and don’t move forward until she looks at AND steps towards the bar 🙂 You were doing that more from 7:14 7:25, 7:35 and from then on til the end – both showing her a clearer line and waiting til you saw her turn more.
Through the box – this went well!!!
The FCs at the beginning were perfect. And then when you added the send through the box – also perfect, especially because she had just been rewarded for the other jump. Nice!!!>>The first one I see I did a front cross instead of a simple post turn. I guess the front cross takes the other jump out of play.>>
The FC is a different challenge, but yes the post turn does challenge her to not look through the box – I am sure she will be fine with those.
On the backside – the extra step totally helped her – you can go one step deeper to it and also use a little less send arm (you did add more connection with less arm at 1:27 and she almost went… but then changed her mind at the last minute – that is just a young dog moment. So for now, keeping that extra step in and then as she gets more experienced you will find it easier to not have to step in as much. At 2:17 you can see she is already getting better at it! Yay!
She had no questions about going back to the FC or straight line after the backsides, that is good!
I am also excited about how well she read the throw backs – nice and tight, and your connection was super so she knew where to be and came through the box when asked. And also no questions on the lap turns – wow!!!
And on the backside inside the box -very nice too! When you had your arm back like at 5:47, she was perfect. If you brought your arm too far forward, she either went wide or had a little question, so that arm back connection was most helpful for her.
The hardest thing for her were the serpentines! I think it was a combination of you moving really fast and a little bit of shoulder closed forward. When you slowed down a little and also opened your shoulder and added connection, it really helped and she nailed it. Then you were nicely able to add back speed.
Balancing it with go was harder – she went straight but didn’t necessarily know to take the jump til you got the MM involved, then she had that big a-ha moment 🙂 When you went back to the serpentines, she was reading it as different, so you can add in her name on these to help her know to come on (versus the very clear gogogo cue). I think the physical cue was clear but serpentines with you moving fast are challenging (for all of our dogs, not just her :))
At around 12:00, you were starting a little too close to the cone so had to really pull away to get to the layering, so it was a really hard visual for the verbal to override that verbal. When you sent to he cone more, she got it really nicely!
Layering is a really hard skill, so you can also move the go jump in a little closer to her line past the serp jump so she stays out and has an easier time finding it.Great job here!!!
Let me know what you think!
TracyHi! Ha! It is TOTALLY a Dr. Seuss name: it is from a more grown up game called Yes Tunnel No Tunnel Back Tunnel Go Tunnel, which is fully Seussed up. Dean is spot on LOL!
Kaladin did a GREAT job on these! He committed to the correct side of you based on your connection and also found the backside of the tunnel really nicely. Thank you for not stepping across the tunnel exit on those LOL!
>>I don’t think my connection was that great on the 2nd No tunnel (0:45)>
I agree, it was a tiny bit soft there – but that is what I really liked about him committing to your side based on the initial connection and staying committed til told otherwise. GOOD BOY! You can challenge that by doing the beginning of a ‘no tunnel’ rep and then doing a blind cross on the flat to get him back to your original side and cue the tunnel. So on the rep at :45: he exits the wing wrap on your right and you start running like it is a no-tunnel rep: but then do the BC to get him on your left and into the tunnel, while you continue to the wing behind the tunnel (he should exit the tunnel turned facing the wing behind it). And mix that in sometimes with NOT doing the BC and keeping him on your no-tunnel side, to bypass the tunnel and go directly to the wing.
That is a harder challenge but based on this video, he is totally ready for it. Let me know if it makes sense, the coffee level here is a little low 🙂When you added the turn aways:
First rep – good challenges on this one! The lap turn looked good, the no tunnel looked good and I think bypassing the tunnel send was a young dog mistake and not necessarily anything in particular you did. The tunnel entry there requires a lot of collection from the pups and the humans are accelerating away – difficult!!!Yes, the 360 threadle was a little late at :58 but you stayed connected til he got it. Nice! I lLove how he is driving into the lap turn on the next turn, and the race tracks look good!
The 360 on the last rep looked good, I think we can name it – do you have a threadle/360 wrap verbal chosen? You can give him his dig then his name then the new verbal in those moments.
And the no tunnel and backside tunnel entry looked great at the end on the last rep! I am looking forward to spring weather when all of these crazy moves can go onto jumps and into bigger courses 🙂
Great job!!
TracyHi! This is going really well too! During the home sessions – I think he was able to offer snappy responses even with the distractions of the meatballs nearby 🙂 He was very communicative: “Do you not know there are good snacks up there??” Ha! So funny – but he seemed to respond to every cue with speed! The spins and the paw tricks are great for this type of thing. When you do have the treats on you, you can also have him jump up a little or put his front feet on you to get the rewards – that is a great pumper-upper when distractions are higher. And when you don’t have the treats, you can still have him pop up onto you – it gets his heart rate up and is fun & interactive.
The ball versus meatball section was harder as you mentioned – but his responses were really strong! His ball play was not as strong until you started really getting the ball moving, then he was engaged with it. And great job engaging while the high value PT and RDW target were visible! That simulates trial conditions in many ways because he will see really high value things (like the obstacles, or dogs running the course) while he is in the queue so being able to engage with silly tricks will be really helpful! I think he was great here too.
One thing you can add in is his leash! It will feel weird LOL but the leash on then off is part of the transition to the start line that we can start teaching now. Kaladin is a REALLY good boy, so you really never need to leash him during your training sessions – so he is really inexperienced engaging while on leash! You can add the leash into these games now, so he doesn’t feel like it is a weird new thing when he goes into a trial environment 🙂Great job!
TracyGood morning!
I love those pants! It is a great color and if they are warm? Even better!I like how he offered nose and chin hits LOL! You were strong about sticking to a nose touch criteria and so he was really giving you good presses to your hand by the 2nd session. It was a little harder for him with the plastic target but then by the end it looks like he figured it out really well! And if the afternoon session went even better: perfect! Onwards to doing it from a plank or a balance disc or something where he can simulate his teeter end position (no need to add it to the teeter yet).
Nice work!!
TracyHere is Contraband with a new elevated target (I need a heavier one or something, he moves this a lot). And first tries with inverted target, food and toys.
Here is some work from today – elevated target using a new thing in a new place. First tries at inverted target – I think the little one is too small. She did 3 feet in it consistently but did manage to get a couple of good ones with 4 feet.
Good morning!
>>Yesterday, Keiko and I gave the “volume dial” game a try. As we got ready to play, I realized (with chagrin!) that Keiko has limited tricks. As a former “Tricks and Games” instructor at a local dog training facility, I would normally have had her in at least one class, and done other tricks at home.>>
I feel your pain, I realized I only have 2 or 3 tricks going LOL! Oops!!
>> Can I blame it on the pandemic?
Yes, I blame the pandemic for everything now haha
>>we had a few things we could use, and this will spur me on to develop more little focus and fun tricks with her. She’ll probably get a kick out of it all, too!>>
Perfect! This will be great for adding into focus routines and start line stuff, as we get out of the pandemic and hopefully get these pups to new places 🙂
>>Her focus, especially in the confines of indoors, is really good, and she likes treats and toys.
Yes, she was great here! I think her focus is really strong so these games at home are more about setting up the baseline for when you take her into different environments. You will know what works best for her, plus she will recognize these games and begin better able to ignore any distractions. Plus you can add distractions at home: I highly recommend volume dial games with your husband around 🙂 That is something I do with all of my pups: “Ignore the daddy” LOL!
>>Usually, when we’re doing a longer session with agility equipment, she tends to prefer the treats from hand, tossed, or a lotus ball. In this video, I think she is a bit more revved for the toy. It was brand new, with skins and dangly things, so she was really interested. What do you think?>>
I think she did a great job with both food and toys here! The toy looked to be a little more stimulating (it is a really cool toy!) so you can try it around the agility obstacles and see how she feels about it. She might be happy to play with toys in all places except around obstacles, where treats and balls are favorites, and that is fine 🙂
Great job here – you can try these with random new objects in the environment, to help teach her how to ignore things that are new/weird/different 🙂
Have fun, stay warm!
TracyWe don’t really know what is happening inside the dog’s brain, I wish it was as simple as operant conditioning but it is not. We assume it is a self-rewarding behavior but it could also be the dog seeking a release from the pressure of the training situation, which is also valuable feedback regarding our training. Or it could be avoiding the negative punishment of bringing the toy back when the handler takes the toy away (even if trading for a cookie, which is often less valuable to the dog). Most of the time, the handler takes the toy because she is thinking about doing the next rep… but yet the taking of the toy is directly associated with arriving back at the handler, so the based on the dog’s response it is perceived as a punisher (the bringing back of the toy decreases in frequency). There are a lot of things happening when a dog runs off with the toy. So it is really important to turn the situation around – plenty of free time with toys, plenty of toy play where we do NOT take the toy back in favor of doing the next rep, adding a cue to the behavior so we can use it as reinforcement (“great job on your toy race, go for a run, woohooo!!”) and also takes the pressure off of the situation.
When the dog comes back and we play and send them for another run, or trade for an amazing toy and play more… and we set aside our focus on getting the toy back to do the next rep… we are using really valuable reinforcement for the behavior we are training, we are helping to create bringing the toy back as a REALLY fun thing, relieving the situation of any stress associated with toy play.With puppies, training games where the dog brings the toy right back should be limited to the smaller spaces where you have a chance of getting the toy right back without pressure/stress and you are also happy to give the pup a lot of time to play with it. If we take a puppy into a training situation where they are unable to bring the toy back, we are going to add pressure and stress to a behavior that we do not want any pressure or stress associated with (that is why dogs don’t retrieve, or why they cannot release the toy from clamped jaws, and so on). Those environments are for play skills and not trying to train agility skills with the toy until the pup and handler are more of a team in terms of the toy play.
Good morning!
>>He and I play all the time outside, but never alone.>>
Ah, that is interesting! You can ease him into new environments with a ‘stable pony’ – one of the other dogs who will be completely relaxed and models that for him as he assess the environment. I always bring a ‘stable pony’ with any of my new pups 🙂 Usually it is my big intact male BC mix who walks into any room with a confident, relaxed attitude. It is super interesting to see the pups watch him and mirror that.
He did really well with his cone game at the barn!! Good boy! You can give him a send cue now that you are that far from the cone – the dog-side arm and leg can step towards it, just like you did with the prop. As you get further away, the send gets installed because we don’t want them offering when you are more than an arm’s length away – we start to put it on cue. And then you can do to the sideways and backwards sends, turn and burn, etc. He looks ready for all that on the big cone! No need to do anything with the little cones LOL! The little ones are too much like a number cone and we don’t want any value for interacting with those 🙂
He had a little trouble with the toy play at the end – possibly because steak was in the picture 🙂 You can try the toy separately when he is more acclimated to the new environment, but steak was definitely the right choice for this session!!
Great job!!
TracyI think of it as a two-pronged approach: I teach the retrieve and make the retrieve really fun! But I also don’t put pressure on and allow the dogs plenty of running around time with the toy. It is a great way to keep the pup relaxed during training and then they want to bring the toy back 🙂 It ends up being a very happy retrieve 🙂
