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Hi!
The perching is going well! He is methodical in a good way: moving each foot one at a time without being frantic or wild about it. That is perfect for this type of stuff! He seemed a little better going counterclockwise in terms of being smoother and with an ease of motion. He was able to go clockwise but it seemed like he was not as coordinated. So keep working the clockwise in small chunks, so he can get his feet under him that direction too š
For the cavalettis – yes, we want him to trot with his head straight so there are a couple of ways to do it:
* Shameless luring š You can use a long spoon with peanut butter on it and just lure him through LOL! This is good for conditioning because it gets the behavior going.
* rewarding the gaps – click and drop a treat in each gap so he trots through each gap and doesn’t look at you. And have a bowl at each end, far enough away that he can get his whole body out – and the last treat comes in the bowl. Eventually you won’t need to treat in the gaps and he will trot back and forth between the bowls.Also, the distances can be shorter – maybe try 16 – 18″ for now? Usually cavalettis will be no wider than the dog’s height at the shoulder but it might be worth it to try a little tighter for now as you convince him to trot and look ahead and not at you š
Nice work! Glad you are staying warm!
TracyHi! This looked really good! He had no trouble finding the lines to the front side towels or the backside slices š Yay! Easy peasy! You can even use the rolled up yoga mat you have up against the wall as a ‘jump bar’ for a bot more challenge. Two next steps to consider:
On the backsides, move away from the wing a little more, bit by bit – so he stays on his parallel path to the backside as you are gradually further across the ‘bar’. Right now you are where the towel meets the wing. So you can be moving towards one or two inches further from that junction (more towards the center of the towel and less to the wing).You can also do some 360s on this set up! They are here with the head turns:
https://agility-u.com/lesson/tight-turns-leading-with-the-head/
Great job!
TracyGood morning! This was really cool to see – the evolution of plankrobatics confidence š I agree that as soon as he figured out how to turn around, he got happy with the game very quickly. Nice! And he was not concerned at all about adding more tip. If he remains happy like this, you can add a little more tip the next time too! Does the training space you rent have a teeter? It would be good to play teeter games in a new place – I always start back several steps on new teeters so it is really easy, but it looks like he is really ready for meet and greet different teeters š
Great job!
TracyHi!
yes, he is a different timing than what you are used to – not just because he is speedy, but because he has a BIG stride! With the littles, you had a little more time because they had to take more strides. With Chapter, you have less time because his stride fills the distance. But, it will be easier to get commitment!I think you did a great job with the wing game here! Having him commit behind you is great because he prefers to chase you and go fast, so he had to be PATIENT and work his commitment while you ran away. Good boy! He made the one error on the first rep – he was at the wing and you moved away and he didnāt finish the wrap. But you worked through it and he was fabulous on the rest of the reps. Yay! It might be that he was looking at the toy, or chasing your motion. But either way, he was really good on the rest!
I noticed that on the purpley wing on the left side of the screen, he turned a little wider (on a left turn) then on the other wings. The right turns looked a little tighter. On the left turn there, you can help him out by making more connection on the exit, in the form of more direct eye contact. It is possible that he was a little wider there because he didnāt see the connection as well – he was not wide on the left turns on other wings.
The race tracks looks great! There was one rep (last rep) where you said right and here and I was not sure if you wanted him to skip the outer wing and come through the box? But he was finding his lines beautifully.
One other thing that I loved on this session was that the reinforcement was delayed a little bit. You had it stuffed in your jacket, maybe so your arms were free to handle, which means he had to wait a heartbeat or two while you praised him and took it out. That is great – he needs to learn about those delays in reinforcement for when he trials! And he was focused, relaxed and happy – no running off or getting discouraged because the toy was not right in his face. You may have done it on purpose, or not…. but either way, do more of these delayed rewards on handling stuff because it is a great prep for trialing š
Have fun!!! Great job here!
TracyHi!
>> also wondering about the instructions to stand still instead of stepping forward after dog does the nose touch? is it for shaping the behavior/independence?>>
I think you are referring to the threadle and serp games not the backsides here.
The stand still instructions are for 2 reasons:
First, to help the dogs be correct with the driving in to the handler, particularly when a jump is added. The threadle and serp understanding is precise and subtle, and it gets muddled my motion when the handler moves (most handlers move out of them incorrectly especially in the training stages, stay tuned for more of that). What happens is when the handler moves after the touch, the dog ends up on the wrong line (doesnāt make the second turn that is required for both of these skills) and either ends up on the wrong side of the jump or bypasses the jump.
Second, related to that second turn: both the serp and threadle cues are two-part behaviors for the dogs: come-in then turn-away. These behaviors are similar but placed differently relative to the jump. The initial cue is designed to cue BOTH of these elements and not just the first part (come in). When I say my threadle verbal and show the cue, for example, the entire behavior I am asking for is ācome in between me and the jump then turn away taking the jumpā. I do not give an additional cue to help the dog take the jump (with a trained dog, I just leave when I see acknowledgement).
So by standing still, we are able to show the dog both elements of the desired response without accidentally building in an additional cue (placement of reinforcement is hugely helpful for that!). If we move after the hand touch (like stepping to the jump on a threadle or pointing to the reward on the serps) then we are possibly creating a reliance on the additional cue, as well as rehearsing undesired handler mechanics.Let me know if that makes sense!
TracyHi! I will get one for you when I get home tomorrow – currently holed up 5 hours from home with one of my dogs getting surgery today (in a snowstorm of course). I also use the PVC frame from my table for early training.
TI didnāt notice the bow the first time, I was too busy cracking up over the chewing. LOL!!! It was like he was chewing boulders LOL!!! But I went back to look for the bow: SO CUTE!!!!!!!!
T
LOL! That is awesome!
I thought of a variation of your backside slice game – you can roll up some towels as jump bars and lay them on the line you want over, so he gets the visual of a ābarā and still works the backside of the wing. Then you can switch sides, and he can do parallel path over the towel bar and you can be on the outside of the wings. I figure the weather is going to be poopy for a bit, so creativity for indoor agility is needed šT
Good morning!
>>Again, we are a bit all over the place.
This is normal š And good! Variety is good with puppies!
>>Back in week 3, on the stay work, I feel good with the catch it and āOKā. Her understanding of the stay concept is improving and mostly staying away from āstay dang it, attitudeā. >>
Excellent!
>>I am a bit confused about the āget itā. Not to mention, I use that when I want her to bring something back which we will get to shortly.>>
It depends on how you want to use āget itā. I use it as a cue to move to something that I have tossed like a toy I have tossed (and ideally bring it back too LOL!). The catch is a āstay there, it is coming to youā cue and the release is basically a ācome to meā cue.
>>Also, from week 3, she is 100% into the party of 1 mode or chase me to get it. >>
Ah! I feel that pain LOL!!!! Yes, keep working it, making it super fun to bring it back (or, honestly, donāt run off with it LOL!). It is important that when she brings it back or when she doesnāt run off with it, that you donāt take it away. You might be taking it from her to start the next game or training rep… but she might be thinking āwait, mom took the toy away, forget it, I will not bring it backā. So I either trade for another toy, or play tug then let her keep the toy. And if her toy play is good, I often trade for a treat at this age.
,>> she will get it and bring it back when she feels like it (if there is a trade in play and / or I am retreating slowly).
That is good! Keep going with those to help condition her to bring it towards you.
>>But if retreating too aggressively, she will just drop it and come running.>>
That is good too, better than running away with the toy š
Have you seen the free Toy Transitions class on Facebook? There are games that can help the retrieve. I will find the link. It is free and might give some good ideas.
>>>Week 4, strike a poseā¦we are doing well. I need to focus on adding more distraction. With food in the far hand, she will hit the target and then go for the food. Again need to try it with favorite toy more before moving to part 2.>>>
Perfect, we want her to hit the target hand then go to the reward. With the food reward, you can also put an empty food bowl on the ground and have her hit the target then go to the bowl when you drop the treat in it. Sounds like she is ready for the toy, too!
>>Week 5 Running Foundations, we have been mixing it up. I have an old ST carpet, which she did good on. She will run thru a mat. And she will run thru a slightly elevated plank (itās more of a puppy trot). I have backed off from that until we do more mat work on the ground with real runningā¦>>
Also excellent. Puppy trotting is fine – have you added a toy to that game? And the plankrobatics will help with the elevated plank too, giving her more understanding of where to put her feet.
>>Week 6 Wing wraps ā with the 2 barrels about 6 feet apart she did a great job with me in all positions. When I moved them about 10 feet apart, she had issues with the sideways and back sends.>>
Good news not the 6 feet! When you get to 10 feet – you can help her out with shifting your connection from her eyes to the barrel on those sideways and backwards sends. So you will start by looking at her, and when she is looking at you and ready: your arm, leg and eyes will all move to the barrel. That can help on those sideways and backwards sends. If you have been trying that and she is still questioning it, you can try to get closer – 7 feet or 8 feet – and see how she does. You can also shift the placement of reinforcement to the other side of the barrel, to build more value for leaving you for the barrel.
It sounds like she is doing really well!! Keep me posted! And thank you for the update š
Tracy>> Ok at about 0.15 you have your outside arm upā¦why?>>
That outside arm was showing a stylized cue for the backside at a distance used in some parts of Europe (and Russia) to allow the handler to be waaaaay far across the bar and not have to step to the entry wing. (The puppy hadnāt seen it before so I was not far across the bar)
Hi! I think the mat has a lot of value, but maybe not yet a lot of verbal cue recognition? He definitely likes it š I think for now with the mat, you can use more handling to help because if he gets an amazing hit – we donāt want to tell him he is wrong (even if you wanted the tunnel LOL!!) So for the mat, you can use a send arm/leg to indicate it and a distinct send to the tunnel. You can also play the various games with the tunnel nearby, like the banana line or back and forth games – and sometimes send him out to the tunnel. I think in a few more weeks of adding the verbal, youāll be able to revisit it and fade out the physical cue so he does it just on a verbal š
Nice work here!
TracyHi!
I put together a quick video – the first 2 reps are the backside wraps (360s, reverse wraps, whatever people like to call them LOL!) On those, the dog enters on the takeoff side and exits to the next line on the takeoff side of the same wing – a full 360.The rest of the reps are the various degrees of slice. On anything I consider a slice, the dog enters on the takeoff side but exits to the next line on the landing side except on the wrap exits like a German turn, where the dog exits on the takeoff side but on the *other* wing (not the entry wing).
>>BTW did the backside games for first time with Robbie today and he nailed it!>>
Yay Robbie! Brilliant!!
>>Do you have vid showing how fast to move/position yourself to show the dog the serp line after they go around the backside of the wing?
On the video, you will see a couple of German turns with my black dog – the key is not how fast you move, but how far across the bar from that parallel line you can send the dog to the backside š You can see the dog is going to the backside on the verbal cue and minimal physical cue, so all I needed to do was run past the exit wing to show the line. Let me know if that is what you meant.
Tracy
Hi!
For me, backside wraps are full 360 degree wraps. The slices can be the very severe slices but also less severe where the dog ends up a little more back towards where he started. Let me grab some video and compare šHi! Do you mean your start position? You should be within an armās length to start it, to ideally get the pups bending before the arrive at the bar. For people with short arms like me, you should be able to reach out and touch the wing with a relaxed, bent arm. Lots of folks are starting a little too far away so you will want to be close enough that the pup has to turn as he approaches the jump so he lines himself up nice and tight between you and it. This goes for both the serp and threadle.
But even if we humans are not very close to start, we add motion in and that helps get the pups turning nice and tight too š
Let me know if that makes sense!
TracyOMG your description cracked me up!!!! I totally feel the whole āwalking up and down the small space without the dogā thing LOL!!!!!! But, it worked perfectly for you. He nailed it! Yay! The only question he had was when you stopped moving on one rep but the rest were great! You can see how letting him see the line to the wing and some connection allowed him to slide around the backside. Yay! And, another positive benefit: he was turning his head To lead into the turns, so he was nice and bendy around the wing! Super yay!
The next steps will involve more distance and so on, but you can put that off til there is less white stuff everywhere.Great job here!!!
Tracy
