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Hi!
This walk through had more emphasis on pace, and it made all the difference! If you have. To be too slow or too fast – be too fast, as long as you are connected because rehearsing the hustle and the transitions faster than you need them to be will make the actual run feel roomy and comfy š if you practice more slowly, you might feel like yo are in catch up mode the whole time, plus he doesnāt get the transitions for the tight turns.Adding motion to help the flip cue was good – on the walk and run, there was a little too much forward motion for the front of the jump. When you deceled/turned a bit, he got it nicely! So that goes on the list of things to remember to do because it is a useful skill. It s a similar concept to a tandem turn, in that we turn and run a parallel line so that we can get the dog to come in then turn back out.
You walked a RC on the tunnel 18-19 at the end but ran it as a spin move at 2:01 – I liked the spin better because it gets you further ahead for the ending šAlso on the 2nd run, you used softer handling in the opening and it worked nicely! The first run had too much power in the handling so he was wider. The intense but softer handling of th second run looked great.
Overall, I think this is a more effective walk through because of the pace. The hang up was the challenge of the flip, but everything else was really strong! So keep being ahead of the pace in your walk throughs, adding in the transitions mentioned above for the other course to get the turns.This will be especially important at trials to get those tight turns that we know he can do, he just needs to know very early š
Great job here! Let me know what you think!
TracyHi again!
Hi! These are good to see!
In the walk through, connection on opening line was good but you were too slow in your pace as you noted – going at a steady pace doesnāt allow you rehearse the transition for the tighter turns, which might be what it is harder to get the tighter turns on the bigger courses. The only other detail in the walk through is to remember to rehearse connecting after the crosses on 11 and 15 – you tend to naturally connect during the run so it is not a big issue, but I will keep bugging you about it anyway to keep pushing for best possible rehearsals š
A decision idea: I think slicing the other way on 2 will be faster (going to t he entry wing on the side further from the tunnel so he can land facing the tunnel – it should set up a better exit line and also shorter yardage so it will be faster.Good run here! Little details to get it perfect: you can tell him out to the #4 tunnel sooner, while he is still tunneling #3 so he doesnāt exit looking at you then turn back to it.
O n the crosses: The FC on 11 looked really good! It was also the turn that you rehearsed with more speed during the walk through, so the change of pace was rehearsed. On the wrap at :23, he went wide: you decelerated late and rotated late there. So in the walk through, you can rehearse going super fast til he is in the air over the previous jump then decel and send to the wrap then rotated away before he takes off so he can drive back nice and tight š Working that section coming in from more speed will allow you to rehearse the transition to the tight turn on time, which will tighten it right up.You can also work that transition from fast to slow into the turn cue for 14 at :32. You didnāt have a clear change of motion and you were facing forward when he took off, so he jumped long there. I think a decel as he over over 13 then send and move away when he lands will help (and possible a brake arm too, using the outside arm there a āyou gotta slow down, dude!ā cue š )
So the run was connected and the ābonesā of it were really good! But focusing on the changes of pace need more rehearsal, which will help tighten up the turns nicely.
Great job here! Onwards to the next course!
TracyHi!
I think he is feeling the wind in his hair lately, so things like tight turns on tunnel exits are much harder š It is a champagne problem, because the speed is fabulous and we can get the turns back šT
Hi! This went really well! Your plan was very clear in the walk through and it went really well during the run. My only suggestion in the walk through is to connect more to her on the backside pushes so you donāt have to go as close to them to support with motion – if you look at her more, she will go more independently so then you can run less/leave sooner š
And when the tendon is fully healed, I will bug you to run faster during the final stages of the walk through to really get her rhythm, but not til the tendon is healed š
The run went well! Layering the #3 jump to show her 6-7 went really well! And so did the ending line- the plan was strong and it was well executed. She did have some questions about the off course obstacles that she could see as you mentioned, so that was good to work on more. I think you can also revisit the proofing games, like when we have the wing or serp or backside jump right next to a tunnel – these can remind her to do the cued behavior and not add any extras LOL! That will help her to tighten up those lines, because she will remember to NOT scope out past the backside cue, for example. I donāt think there is much to do differently in terms of handling, you were doing the send-and-leave which is perfect! So revisiting the dog training will help remind her š
Great job here!!! It is fun to see the walk throughs beginning to really match the runs!!!!
TracyHi! Working this in the yard with the trees and birds and squirrels is definitely challenging – bearing in mind that he probably has a longer history of chasing birds/squirrels than moving to the start line without food or toys, so he is finding the distractions challenging! I like how the pattern game brought his focus back after he was marking a bird or whatever distraction caught his eye when he was staring at the fence on the ride side of the screen š He also did best when he was moving with you to the āstart lineā on leash, doing things. When you tried him off leash at the end… he took off (it was also funny with Tenzing was stuffing his head into the cookie bag while you were going to the start line with Nuptse LOL!!!)
So an idea: because this is intense work that requires a lot of brain power, try to just get one great rep of the routine. Then run back, get the treats… then release him to go chase some birds and squirrels. He probably needs that mental release after the intensity of focus required to do the start line routine without food or toys in your hand. It will be similar to the kind of release that running a course provides! Than after he has a good time chasing birds, yo can call him back,and try to get another rep of the routine, then run out, give treats…. then release to go for a run in the trees nd party with the squirrels.
I think that release to run will probably also be a reinforcement for him, which will also build up the focus in the start line routine. Let me know if that makes sense.
Great job here!
TracyHi! The course content remains visible forever! We have til the beginning of September for video review. Fingers crossed for cooler weather! And check out the transition to trials games to help get your youngster happy and relaxed in new environments š
Tracy
Hi! I think that is a good plan! You are prioritizing reinforcement and connection – those are the top 2 things for youngsters, in my view š You are keeping it simple and letting him offer. Now, if he looks like he needs help for whatever reason (distracted, etc) and canāt respond or offer: then yes, you can totally ask for a hand touch or a trick to try to get him more focused on you and more engaged. But if he is engaged and ready, you can go into āget on with itā mode rather than keep asking for stuff. It is a fine balancing act for sure, as we try to figure out the young dogs! Keep me posted!!
Hi there!
>> My question for a trial setting is though what if I am sure heās setup well and I cued it well and he doesnāt take it? First of all Iād be shocked if that happened because heās such a good boy that way that my inclination would be to assume that even I though I did everything right I must not have so just keep going.>>
I am with you – i would just keep going. It is possible that you did do everything right, but something was going on in the environment and he couldnāt process taking the first jump for whatever reason. Just keep going is smart and will help get him ignoring the environment. And if it is a training run, you can reward something else then bring him back and try it again and reward.
>> Youāll laugh but one of the things I frequently say to the folks that take lessons from me is that Iām really good at this in slow motion without my dog! Iām going to make a real effort to get at least a couple of walks at speed in all my walk throughs for both dogs tomorrow. Slyās just got one T2B run so itāll be fast, fun and FEO>>
Ha! That is funny!!!! Too bad we canāt take the course for a spin with a slow āschooling ponyā then take the real dog out for the run LOL!
Oops sorry for not seeing it earlier!!!!
>> I am having trouble showing her threadle wrap vs threadle slice. I know it will be body position but when I watch it back I canāt think how to make it more obvious.>>
Watching the video – I think there were a couple of things going on.
Early in the video, you kept your feet and shoulders very forward on the threadle wrap, and really turned your feet/shoulders to the bar on the slice line – it worked great! Then when she had questions, like at :57 and 2:24, you wanted the slice but you kept your feet and shoulders very forward like you did on the threadle wraps so she was confused (compare to the successful reps like at :12 and at 1:30, note how you turn more for the slice).
Then I think she did some guessing after a couple of errors š So definitely keep that subtle difference in the handling as she is learning the different verbals: fully forward facing feet on the threadle wrap, slight turn to the bar (more exaggerated than what you were doing when she didnāt get it) and keep the sessions really short: do just a couple of reps then do something else, so she doesnāt start to guess or experiment š She did well on the push backside and the front side!>> watched a video of a pro yesterday and the whole time she was looking at the dog, I donāt know how she navigated the course!!>>
Lots of practice, and peripheral vision š with practice, you will get really good at being able to see the course without looking at it while you are running š
Let me know if that makes sense š
TracyGood morning! Or is it evening there? Sunrise here!
Good work keeping the walk through as part of your training! You can see how well it it works – Ruseās runs were lovely and we got good info for Hero. And it seems like your pace is good compared to the speed of the dogs – I think the walk through pace was a little ahead of the actual pace of the run which is fine, as long as you are connected to remember that the dogs are behind you. I will keep bugging you to emphasize that connection all the way through the walk through, remember to look back for the dog the whole time.
Heroās run:
Your walk through connection 2-3 matched your run connection here: you got a little bit of connection then turned your shoulders away to do the blind. It is not necessarily āwrongā to do that, if the dog can process the cue and go to the backside (Ruse!) but Hero is less experienced so you need to hold that connection longer to get him to the backside. I think all of my dogs have been through that stage of needing more support to get to the backside.
Then you were too far over on the line so he took 1 again. Then what was happening was you were calling him into handler focus with a strong name call after the #2 tunnel then pointing forward on the push to 3, which turned your shoulders to the front of the jump – you can keep going even after an elimination because that might happen at a trial and you can still use it as a practice for recovering from the bobble.Note the difference at :30 and :50 when he got the backside at 3 – you can see how much longer the connection needs to be in place (til he is almost at the backside wing) for him to commit to it. That his a young dog thing, he just needs one more step and one more heartbeat of connection to get that backside.
The rest looked good after that, good job clearing his line after the BC 5-6 so he could read the wrap to the right!
Glad you did the wrap to the left at the end, I timed it – even though it was a little wider because the blind was late, it was still significantly faster.
Ruse:
Ruse did well here too! The push to 3 went well both times – you were more connected, for a little longer, than the first couple of reps with. Hero, and I donāt think you were calling her name so she never went into handler-focus. Did you run her after your ran Hero? If so, you might have been more on the ārhythmā of getting that backside. It is also possible that she has better understanding of backside commitment so you can āreleaseā the connection to move into the blind sooner than with Hero. One more stride of connection was the difference here, so be sure to really exaggerate it with him.The rest looked good too. I timed the ending lines with her as well, and the FC to the left was also significantly faster (and the FC was really timely!) So if the wrap to the right was your first choice but it turned out to be slower, be sure to check your planning and do the 3-part process:
– better landing spot for extension (left wrap)
– better line (fewest turns) to the next part of the sequence (right wrap, by a little)
– shortest distance (left wrap, or at least it was when I set it up :))So it is a 2-1 that the left wrap should be faster there even though the exit line was not as pretty. In fact, I think both of your dogs looked lovely going to the right!! But… we like to win so even though the left wrap was not as pretty (it was not pretty when I ran it with mine, either), it is the winning line š
Great job here! Let me know what you think!
TracyHi! The course was hard, but not above your pay grade š The only real training thing is the dog walk exit because the way you handled it is the best way – a rear cross to get the 4 jump and the 5 tunnel. The dogs need to understand how to exit the dog walk, which is did better on the 2nd time but then ended up on the backside.
The rest of it was better than you think! The ābonesā of it are in place. Little details of timing are the only real thing – and I suggest a different strategy for that 6-7-8-9-10 section. Your strategy was good and when you ran it the 2nd time, it went well! The first time was a bit unclear – the wrap cue on the 8 backside did look likes a slice cue as you reached across the bar. I think you donāt need the left hand involved at all on those, you can cue the wrap and move forward through it which should take the slice off the table entirely.
Another option – rather than go to the inside of 8 (the side closer to the teeter – go to the outside of 8 to slice to 9. You can blind on 7 (German turn) to send to 8 on your left, then be more in position for the switch at 9.Th middle section went well! The ending line was harder. He did better on the 2nd run at 13-14 when you told him to jump just once, rather than urgently calling him – he stayed on the line better rather than come off of it. And because turning tight on the tunnel exit is NOT his favorite, I think the timing of the turn on the exit of 16 needs to come no later than 6 feet before he enters it (you were late on these) – it can be a super loud tunnel break or similar verbal and even a spin, done so early you feel like it might pull him off. Then you will know exactly when he needs to see it, to convince him to turn and not carry out straight (which is a useful skill in other scenarios :))
Great job here! Let me know what you think!
TracyHi!
Have a criteria of ākeeping bars upā is really difficult, because soooo much info goes into the dog needing to know how to keep the bars up. I think he is not getting the info, so he is failing a lot: the rates of success for the 4 videos were 40%, 33%, 75%, 25% respectively for an average of 43% – ideally it is up over 90%. And, bear in mind that a lot of the rewards came after the tunnel, so they were not directly associated with the jumping (and some of the punishment for the bars down came pretty late, and there were some times you stopped & didnāt reward and I could not tell why – ticking bars? If so, there were lots of times where he ticked but didnāt stop, so it was not consistent there.
Because the rate of success is pretty low, I worry that we will build in frustration behaviors or conditioned responses that we donāt want, like stress. So I think it is important to set him up to be more successful.
4 ideas for you:
– work your timing to be earlier on low bars first – on the 12 inch bars, he can keep them up even when you are late so you can be MUCH earlier with those too. Then gradually raise them: 12 to 18 is a big change, so I would do a session that starts at 12 ,goes to 14 and ends on 12 as he fatigues. Then if yo guest 2 sessions of 90% success or better – go to 14 to start, with a little 16, then back to 14. And so on, based on success rate.– spread the sequence out so you have more room between jumps – that way you have more time to make the handling adjustments and he has more room to adjust his striding. He basically needs to see the next cue starting no later than landing of the previous jump.
– because keeping bars up is basically about handler timing (he is not required to save you if you are late or unclear š – you can work these sequences at 18ā but lock the bars into the jump cups so he canāt drop them. If you hear him tick the bar? Take it as info that you are either late or disconnected, but donāt stop handling. Stopping him a tick is hard to do on a timely or consistent basis, so it will contribute to a low rate of success and will probably confuse him.
– And be hyper aware of your rate of success at all times: if you punish the bar once, ok…. but more than once? You need to make it easier so the entire session is reinforcement other than that once time.What height is he jumping in his conditioning program, and are you moving while he is jumping?
Keep me posted!
Tracy
Hi! He looked really engaged before you took the leash off, then he was outta there like a shot. Hmmm… I could not tell if you cued something or did he choose to leave? You can work that scenario with cuing a behavior, taking the leash off, cuing a behavior – then releasing him for tree running!
Let me know what you think!
TracyHi!
>> Acting is not my strong skill š¤£. I have to get my face botox-ed into oblivion so I donāt make faces at my patients when they tell me off the wall things.
Perfect, you get to practice it many times a day, then LOL! ALso, with humans, it is OK to say they are incorrect LOL!
>>I think Iām not understanding the difference between avoiding start and stop and rewarding all the things.>>
Good question. It is the difference between:
THAT WAS GREAT YOU ROCKED IT YESSSSSSS
And ok here is your friz, letās try again. (And then repeating the same thing several times, most dogs think that is an indicator of something is wrong)It comes back to reinforcement. Looking at the skills videos from the other day, he did a thing and you reinforced with full on engagement like he was totally correct.
When things went wrong in the course work you reinforced him… but after trying to fix it, or with a lot less engagement because you were already splitting your focus back to what you wanted to try next.Dogs spend their whole lives sorting out reinforcement, so he knows the difference between the HECK YEAH YOU NAILED IT and the āmeh, here is your friz, I am already thinking about what is nextā.
So like with everything, it comes back to reinforcement.
>> I just feel like sometimes we get so off track that I canāt get the flow going again?
In those moments, you donāt have to get a flow going- just run, have a party, throw the reward.
>>Any suggestions on how to re-establish flow? Or if I canāt just stop?
If it has gone off the rails, stop like it was the end of a brilliantly successful sequence and party as if you won the Worlds. Flow is secondary to reinforcement.
>>If I think about how to get back on for more than a second, usually when he will want to check out because he knows itās not correct. I really would like to get through a full course fighting for week 5, but not feeling hopeful.>>
I think if we can sort out the reinforcement procedures, then the summer CAMP experience will be far more valuable in the long term than getting through any of the courses. As a student, I rarely get through sequences in seminars – but the experiences are incredibly valuable for establishing the procedures that my dogs need. I save the good course running for trials š
>>So the connection part of the walk through will be less about the visualization and more about remembering where he is behind you and to look at the obstacles behind you in those moments
This one is the challenge because I feel like he will be ahead of me most of the time- which is incorrect and I need to break that š >>
Correct! Your plans are planned based on him being behind you, so you need to keep reminding yourself that he cannot land behind you in one heartbeat then be 10 feet ahead in the next heartbeat š
T
Hi!
Forced fronts: looking good! Because she is small-ish, feel free to bend over so your cue hand is down at her nose-level. This helps the dogs focus on it in the higher arousal of trial settings. It is a little more challenging for the stay (she will want to release as you lower your hand to position) so yo can isolate that without a jump to be able to reward the stay.
And yes, keep rewarding the stay like you did – she might have been anticipating that the position was the release? So you can get into position, praise then either release or throw the reward back.
Yes, on the first sequence, I was handling 3 as a backside – more connection will help her see it (keeping your arm back and looking at her) as well as the verbal. You were looking forward which caused your shoulders to turn to the front side, so she came into the front side.The throwback at 1:22 was harder – you can look at the landing spot there as you throw back to the jump – looking at her was too much of a turn cue for such a responsive dog š She didnāt go into the tunnel there –
You stopped moving, turned and reached for reward as she was approaching the tunnel, so she had a question about going into it – she sees everything LOL! Much better at 2:00 when you kept moving with better connection.She is definitely doing better about fixes! But keep rewarding, keep rewarding, keep rewarding. Because of the pandemic, I have watched probably quadruple the number of handling videos in the past 18 months than I normally would have, and there are two definites in my dogs and student dogs:
– 99% of on course errors are handling errors
– If we donāt reward, the dogs deflate.
So even though she stuck with you – just reward the errors then reset, and donāt mark them. An example is when she didnāt take the jump on the rear cross at 2:54 – it was a handling error (your footwork pushed her off the line) and she got marked and no reward. There was a quick reset and reward, but you can reward, reset and reward again (she wonāt be sad about that LOL!)
Then at 3:10 she got it but she saved you a bit – rather than stop to ask if she is OK, cheer and reward – it will be a more valuable use of reinforcement.
Building up resilience to handling errors is something that we all obsess on (because we canāt be perfect handlers :)) and the key is tons of reinforcement paired into the handling errors. So if I end up rewarding something in the 1% (or more Iike the .1% haha) when the dog might have been wrong? No big deal š But if I withhold reinforcement when I have created the error, even if I donāt know why/how it happened? Then frustration builds in and we lose the dog in the moments where resilience matters most: in the trial ring when there is no primary reinforcement immediately available.>> And since that obstacle was after a new hard skill I didnāt ever really stop her after missing the backside. Also I was confused as to if I was handling it well at all so I kinda didnāt expect her to do>>
Totally agree with this approach! You were like āwell, that was me, so letās just keep goingā and she was happy! When you handled it correctly for the backside, she was good!
To be honest, before the pandemic I would have encouraged more of the quick fixes before the reinforcement, but watching all of this video in the last 20 months has changed my mindset a lot, it is like doing a research project! Even those quick fix moments can be frustrating for the dog (because they were correct in the first place) so keep going like you did there, or reward then fix then reward.
Great job here! Let me know what you think!
Tracy
