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Hi! That is really interesting to hear! It is not too uncommon for Border Collies to struggle with the things you mention (any breed, actually, not just BCs). Have you talked to Tricia Lude about it? She is certified to teach a program called Control Unleashed, which has proven to be super helpful with dogs who are asking the same questions Ria is asking!!
T
The box is currently in 4 pieces (thanks to hubby and snow plow on the tractor) but the dimensions are 36″ x 48″/ The 36″ is the width of the a-frame and the 48″ is a little taller than the contact zone but it was easier to get the PVC. The PVC tube is 1″ diameter. It is wrapped in tape and has U-shaped couplers holding it all together.
T
Hi!
>>Retrieves/ still getting lots of victory laps when out in open space…good retrieves in confined indoor spaces of various size…tips?>>
Sounds like you are making progress in the indoor spaces!
In the big open spaces – I would work it separately by lots of toy play and exchanges – throw a toy, cue a victory lap, wait for about 5 seconds… then call and run the other way. When he starts to move towards you, present another toy and repeat the process 🙂 You can also exchange for food and then re-start the game. I do this when training too – for example, I did a session with the 15 month old pup and some weaves today – tossed a toy for a great response, cued him to take it for a run, counted to 5, called him back, rewarded, tossed the toy to let him run with it, counted to 5, called him back, tugged, exchanged for a treat, did another rep of the poles, rewarded. My making the retrieve a big play session (I also play with multiple discs too, incorporating food rewards for bringing them back), the retrieve is very natural in the flow of training the other things 🙂
T
Hi!
>> Do you know which week the first strike a pose were introduced?>>
It is in week 4:
https://agility-u.com/lesson/strike-a-pose-part-1/>>He understands the MM but hasn’t learned to not go directly to it so before I use it with multiple behaviors prior to release to MM I need to break that down.>>
This is a good one for the MM, then, especially if you plan to teach running contacts with it! It is hard to resist the MM 🙂
Tracy
Hi! I am excited to hear how he does at the barn!
This session went well: good boy with the toy play and with being outside! It was hard with the distractions but the more you play with him outdoors, the easier focus even with distractions will be. Being a little bit closer to the cone will help, so it is right at your knees – and squatting totally helped! He was able to offer lots of good reps, a really strong session in a new place. He is slightly better on his right turns and he ‘recognized’ them sooner (earlier in the session) but once you really got him on the toy, he also was able to offer left turns! Yay!! It was a good example of how toy play really helps raise the engagement level so distractions fade away more easily.
When you used the kibble, did you bring the bowls out too? That can help generalize the game into new places (the bowls should be pretty value-loaded :)) as well as keep the cookies out of the grass.Great job here!!!
TracyHi! I wasn’t able to see everything that happened, but your observations sound spot on! You smartly dialed back the level of distraction and that really helped set him up for success!! Smart dog training 🙂 He will continue to get better and better at ignoring the distractions 🙂
T
Ha! I love that song! That was definitely a mantra when Voodoo was a youngster: stay calm, be super connected.
Then he grew up and he is used to me being loud and flailing around, and has enough education to cover me LOL!!! Fever needs you to be super chill for now…. but soon enough you can be loud and full of excitement and he will be great 🙂
T
Hi! It has been posted:
https://agility-u.com/course/au-028-maxpup-agility-foundations-jumping/Along with some obstacle training options:
https://agility-u.com/current-courses/
Hope to see you there 🙂Tracy
Good morning!
>>I’m a little late in posting some Week 9 homework. Is it ok to post it now?
Absolutely! We’ve got several more class weeks, keep on posting!
>>This one is some tunnel threadles. In the first few, I think that Ria might be on the wrong side of me but it seems that we get thing straightened out a bit as time goes on.>>
She was finding the tunnels really nicely!!! You can smooth things out by taking the extra heartbeat to get connection before sending to the tunnel (you might have to also stand still while you do this, she likes to make decisions based on your motion). She is pretty speedy, which is great! But is also means that we slow the handling down so she can process it while trying to go really fast.
When you got connection to her when she exited the tunnel, she was able to come to the correct side (between you and the tunnel). That extra moment of connection really helped! If you were trying to cue the next tunnel before fully connecting, she ended up on the wrong side of you (or back in the tunnel she just exited).
So – Send her to the tunnel on your outside arm (you are between her and the tunnel) then when she exits. Make the big connection so she is on the inside – and stand still til she makes that decision 🙂 One thing I think will also help is using the opposite arm (held across the body) on then threadles (along with the verbal, that was going really well!). That can help her recognize coming in to the new side and also it can help her turn away to get into the other end of the tunnel.
You completely nailed that connection moment and getting her on the line to the threadle end of the tunnel at 2:56 – it was great!!! A perfect example of the connection and patience 🙂
>> There were also some roofers working, so it’s a bit noisy.
It was noisy – but she didn’t seem disturbed by it when she was working. That as impressive! Many dogs would be sensitive to it and unable to work, but she was great. Is she worried about it when she isn’t working?
> Ria has had a few stressful days lately barking and lunging at a German Shepherd and being reactive in general, so no practice on the week 10 homework yet.
Poor girl! Is something worrying her, or is it just seeing the big dog is weird for her?
Great job here! Looking forward to week 10 🙂
Tracy
Hi!
>>Not sure if it was mentioned but if I stand still on serp exercise, can I reward dog with either food or toy in my off hand (ie, not the hand they touch, the one in front in direction dog is supposed to go)?
You can start with whichever is easier for the pup… then go to something more distracting. I tend to start with food and then go to a toy – then I dangle the toy: can the pup choose to come to the serp arm or does he skip it to get directly to the toy? It is an early proofing game for serpentines. Plus, it builds in a nice self-control element and eventually the toy goes on the ground.
>>On threadle exercise, does reward have to be preplaced or can cookie/toy be tossed to landing side after dog touches my outstretched hand?>>
I prefer the pre-placed toy or treat, so the pup can drive out directly to the reward (which eventually becomes the bar of the jump or other side of the tunnel) without needing any additional handling help. If the handler tosses the reward, the dog begins to look at the handler’s movement which can result in the pup beginning to rely on the additional cue to go back out. Plus, it is a fabulous self-control element, and threadles require a lot of self-control. If the dog struggles with the toy or treat already on the ground, you can begin the concept with a Manners Minder or an empty food bowl that you can then toss the reward into after the dog arrives at it.
Let me know if that makes sense!
TracyGood morning! I think it is great to do lots of fun things like hiking with pups 🙂 For the recall – check out the magic word game, that is a really fun one for taking into the real world and improving on the recall.
He is doing well with the games – being able to do them in a new place is awesome!!Starting with the blinds: you were emphasizing connection and it looked great! He was very quick to drive to you, so you will need to throw the treat further away so you can get ahead more LOL!! Great job getting the toy involved – you can have it on a long leash and drag it to get him to chase it more (more on that below). You mentioned wanting to work the recall more, so you can do it from a restrained recall (as much as the pandemic allows?) or, you can throw the treat near-ish to the videographer and recall him away from her – and doing the blind just adds more to the fun 🙂 Because the recalling from distractions is likely to be really difficult, you can use the highest value rewards when he chooses to drive towards you.
The toy races are going well! On the reps where he didn’t really get ahead of you, I think he didn’t realize that it was a race because you tossed the toy while he was still eating 🙂 You can distract him with the treat, but wait til he is done chewing it 🙂 before you throw. He was really strong driving to the toy when he saw you throw it! It looks like he was having a bit of a party of one, taking on a run? If so, you can call him and run the other way, to get him to chase you with it: then trade for another toy or treat when he brings it back.
The tugging everywhere section looked lovely! Good boy being able to tug on all the things in a new place. You had a really good assortment of toys going! He left the game at 2:50 – you were offering a great toy but maybe the session had gone on too long? Or a new distraction entered the room? He was a man on a mission! Was it a person he wanted to visit?
One thing I notice on the other games is that his food drive is a little stronger than his toy drive at the moment – so on this game, with all the fabulous toys and wild tugging, offer the most boring possible treat – then go back to a wild dance party of tugging, throwing toys, etc. It might be fine at home, so you can also take it to different places. And if he is happy to go back and forth with boring food, feel free to add more interesting food 🙂
Collection sandwich – really really nice connection with him on these!!! You were a little late on the first blind so he didn’t find the new side. You were really great with timing on the next reps, but he was distracted. I think part of it was a food versus toy thing – he was very happy to go eat the treat, but then the toy was not as interesting when offered after he had the cookies so he was exploring other adventures.
When you used the food, he was much more engaged. That is good info about distractions – if it was something like people or good smells, for now go to food as reinforcement. Separately, you can take food out of the picture and move further from the distractions – then see if you can get him playing with the toy. This is a pretty normal shift in value, food and toy value swings back and forth like a pendulum a lot at his age 🙂When you moved over to the obedience ring – very nice! He did really well here!! Great job with the mechanics of the game, he was collecting beautifully and turning with you, no questions. Yay! Was that ring less distracting because fewer people were around? Or maybe the turf has different smells? You also made an excellent decision to use food rewards – it was the right choice for the environment. Also, when he is off getting the cookie you tossed, you can run away rather than walk – walk away as he is getting it, and as soon as he swallows it: run! I think he will REALLY like that and he is ready for the added challenge of your motion (followed by decelerating and turning, which will set you up nicely for when you add a wing or jump :)) Did you notice that there was agility happening in the other ring and he ignored it, good boy!!!! I could hear people yelling cues and a dog running through the tunnel: Mr. BliZZ had to have heard it but yet never looked away from you. That is AWESOME!
Great job here! Let me know what you think!
TracyHi! He definitely had a lightbulb moment here! Yay! I think the curling to the side is easier for him and allows him to also watch the cookies from your right hand. The channel of the 2 wings helps him and I think he might have also been targeting a step back over the feet of the wings. All good!
2 ideas for the next couple of sessions – mix up the hands you reward from. Sometimes use the left, sometimes use the right, so he doesn’t target to or focus on any particular hand. Cookies in both hands help a lot! If there is no room for a clicker, you can go to a verbal marker. And the other thing you can do, especially at the start of each session, is start closer to the channel so he doesn’t offer curling out of it. Then you can move yourself further from it, so he has to ‘find’ the channel backing up.
You can also use a wall as part of the fading process – putting your left side against the wall and the wing on your right side, you can work the skill- then get further from the wall (wing still near your right) then fade out the wing by moving it further and further.>> Add a verbal when I’m sure he’s got it,
Yes, you can add a verbal whenever you can reliably predict he will offer the behavior.
>>then try transferring to a plank?>>
I think you can transfer to different things while the channel is still close and helpful – like a wide board, wobble board, then a more narrow board, etc. Then after he can back up to all the things, then fade the aids to help get the backing up 🙂
Great job! Let me know what you think!
TracyGood morning!
I am glad it went so well! He definitely found it a lot clearer when the more exaggerated arm back. Yay!! So now to build on it: As you are directing him to the barrel, you can keep the dog-side arm back like it was here and fade out the arm across the body on the send part. But also add in the FC on the barrel – this is where the arm across the body will be the most useful because his questions generally came after the FC (or spin) – so execute the FC (or spin) and then use that arm across the body to get the dog side arm all the back for connection on the exit. That will help set him up nicely for the sending to the next barrel when you add it back in.>>There was one atrocious rep where I slipped into old ways, and he let me right away that those methods would not fly. So we acknowledged the suckiness of his mother and started over.>>
Ha! He was funny there! One thing you can do to help is throw at least half of the rewards out to the other side of the barrel when he is committing. That will maintain the value and he will go to it, even when you are not perfect (I didn’t think you were that sucky there LOL!) But if reward is always back at your hands and away from the barrel, he will need you to be extra perfect. So you can start the anti-perfect games by rewarding out past the barrel a lot. That way, when you are ‘pretty good’ (like you were on the one rep he questioned) and also ‘good enough’ (which is what most of us are in the ring at a trial LOL!) you will find he commits nicely.
Great job here!
Tracy
Good morning! He did well here!
On the first part where you were working the wrap on the side far from the tunnel – he did really well! The main thing is to stay super chill until he has fully landed – wait for the clean jumping effort, back feet on the ground… then party 🙂 You were not wrong in marking the good set up for the jumping (he was placing himself REALLY nicely and bending beautifully!) – but when you got excited, he got excited and dropped the bar. But on the reps where you were quiet… he nailed the wrap and the jumping effort. Yay! So on this particular skill, stay quiet for now.But separately, you can play proofing games on a jump to help him understand that he can jump without touching the bar even when you praise, talk, turn, etc – all the things he might see or hear over the bar LOL! Here is an example from when Voodoo was close in age to Fever:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mX8CuUnjdVAWhen you switched sides and he was seeing the tunnel as a distraction – I think he was considering the the verbal as “go do something” so he was offering a couple of different things – the tunnel, wrapping the bushes hahaha 🙂 (:46, 1:25, 1:34 are examples of those moments). Good boy! So you can tweak the set up slightly to help attach the verbal to the skill: when he comes around the wing, call him til he is facing the jump (and not the tunnel) or looking at you, and then start the backside wrap verbal. I think your line of motion looked great! So he was trying to sort out the newer verbal with his inclination to offer behavior further away. When you dialed back your motion at 1:00 and then at the end, he was much more easily able to process the cue – so you can keep the motion calm for now, and add in calling him – I think that will allow you to be able to add more and more motion too.
Overall – he is doing a GREAT job on these – they are wicked hard for a youngster and he is rocking it!!Tracy
There is always room for more coffee!
You have it correctly – go up on your right, she is facing the jump so she should take it. Then turn back and the jump is on your left side… but connect with her and call her to your right side so she does NOT take the jump and then reward. I will see if I have a video, if not I will get one 🙂
T
