Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
Hi!
That restaurant sounds good, I will definitely check it out!Looking at the course in sections:
I don’t think you needed deceleration in the opening, just one more step to commit to 2 then you can peel away. You were peeling away too soon so he came off the line: let him land then send him with connection to his eyes and a low arm (don’t point forward to the jump). The line up was not a bad place, necessarily (except at 2:38), I think the first couple of off course DWs was a frustration behavior – even though he got rewarded for the openings, he still has a sense that something went wrong and I don’t think he is a fan of the start and stops in training (even with rewards). You were definitely clearer with the send at 1:05 – clear movement and you did it when he landed from 1.
He definitely had some trouble with the backside at 4 – part of it is getting him to default to taking the jump as you run past, so you can work it by tossing the toy behind you as he gets to the backside (rather then cuing him to take it then rewarding). We want to toss the toy really early – it is partially a reward for going to the backside, and partially a way to create taking the jump as a default behavior as you leave so you don’t have to stay there to cue it (like at 1:37, 1:55, 2:38). He might have had a harder time here because it was right in front of the street (pretty big distractions) and/or because it was a right turn. He did not have trouble later in the course when he was doing the backside before the DW, when it was turning left, turning away from the street, and also going towards the DW which is really high value.
>> I felt like I was stopping to reward there appropriately before moving on.>>
Yes, but it was a stopping reward – which he might not find all that reinforcing. I think he much prefers moving rewards and a lot less start-and-stop in training.
>>I had one lapse in judgment by screaming yes because he got that freaking right turn out of the tunnel and I lost my mind with excitement. I’m in the 12 step #justthefacts program and the first step is admitting I have a problem>>
Haha yes, I am in that same program – I think I am on step 3 which means I have given it to my higher power and also which is the step where I take inventory of all my faults? Step 4? I am working that one too LOL!
>> When he actually does the skills I’ve trained it makes me so excited. (Why I don’t know because it’s not like I haven’t invested the time and am asking him to do things he doesn’t know>>
Well, we get excited because it is exciting 🙂 So nwo we all need some human self-control so that we don’t screw up the next section of the course by yelling “YES!” lol
When sending to the tunnels: The better you connect directly to him, the better he commits: At 1:41 you were using the verbals but didn’t really have connection, so he didn’t take it. Compare it to 1:59 and 2:43 when you had connection AND verbals and he was perfect 🙂 The same goes for the straight tunnel later in the course at 3:59 – more connection will totally help! And, in that situation, give your ‘go tunnel’ cues while he is in the previous tunnel – you were calling his name there and then said tunnel, but the name cues him to look at you and we want him looking at the tunnel.
Nice job with the the RC at 2:03! It would be a BC there when you have more time thanks to weaves instead of a straight tunnel 🙂
He did well on the RC and you threw the toy… and he checked out because he has a limited threshold for the stop and go in training, unless you are running with the reward (2:06). So while nothing was necessarily going ‘wrong’, he seems to find the stop-and-go with a tossed toy to be generally not fun. That is good to know! So…. keep going rather than stop. And if you want to reward – keep running and let him chase you, as if the course is finished.Yes, he was striding high on the RDW… when you put the RDW in course work, we want to rehearse correct behavior. So I use all of my props, not just the mat (Hot Sauce has the mat but also a flyball jump and the MM to help her when I am running courses). Then you can fade it in the full course work – but you won’t want to rehearse the high striding because it will become harder to recover the good striding. And we don’t want to tell him he is wrong… so we use the aids.
Great job here! Let me know what you think!
TracyHi!
Nice work on this one, glad you got it in even with life and crazy weather getting in the way (you have had some CRAZY weather in your area!!)
Great job here, especially with it being your only run – really strong!! I looked at the spots where she was checking in, and it was mainly happening on the exits of contacts & weaves, more ideas o that below (the jump & tunnel lines didn’t appear to have any checking in, yay!)
On the video:
It looks like you cued 4 as a front side – it should be a backside if you get a chance to run it again – it is a little harder that way 🙂
She drove right to the end of the teeter but checked in before the weaves. In general, try to gve your ‘what’s next’ cues either before she exits the contacts/weaves, or as the release off the teeter. I couldn’t hear if there was a release verbal on the teeter or if she is a hit-and-go dog – if there is a release, use your weave or go cue as the release to get rid of the check in. If she is a hit-and-go dog, then give your weave cue as she is arriving at the top of the board (she should still ride it down – no leaping off allowed even though you have given her the next cue – that is similar to RDW training, where we give the next cue but still expect them to maintain criteria).Hooray for the BC 7-8 at :19, great independent weaves!! Super!!! She had the tiniest hesitation after the weave exit… you can start your tunnel verbal when she is at about pole 10 so she can drive right out to it after pole 12 🙂
She looked at you coming off the a-frame – part of it was your position, closer to the DW and not really on the line to the tunnel, so to help smooth out her question you can drive in more across the a-frame contact and accelerate to the tunnel. Also, for verbals – start your a-frame exit verbal when she is at the apex of the frame – you can tell her to go tunnel (or ‘out’ tunnel, if she has a turn away cue for that line because it is not really straight). You were a little quiet and late, so when you are quiet, she looks for you (which is generally a good thing).
At :32, after the #13 weaves – you can try to send to the backside from further away to get more ahead of the RDW for the line to the tunnel #16. That will help smooth out her question/check in after the dog walk. But, more importantly, say go more than once and say it LOUD (don’t be gentle with it LOL!) – you said it once time kinda quietly as she got on the top ramp of the DW on the first rep and then didn’t say it again til she was off the board and looked at you. I think saying it loudly and several times will really help her get it right away. For example, at :58 you said it 3 times and she did well! And really smart dog training to also work on the turn cue for the other side of the tunnel – she did great!!
And nice ending line too after the tunnel – really well done!
Great job here! Let me know what you think! She is SO FUN to watch and you are doing a great job with her.
TracyHi!
This is a really good game for him to help smooth the transition to new environments and set him up for success.
Good shaping session with the foot pod in the house – don’t be toooooo picky on this behavior for this game. You were trying to get just one foot and not have him roll it, which is great for using the paw pod for fitness but for instant focus, we are happy with any simple interaction. That is why we want a pretty meaningless prop, so you won’t care at all what he does with it LOL!The first moment outdoors shows us why we play this silly game 🙂 You can reward that very first movement towards it, when he made the initial interaction – true, it was not even close to what he was doing in the house but it was interaction, so….. we reward it. I generally lower my expectation by about 50% when I am in a new environment for this game. When he didn’t get rewarded, he tried to leave (stress behavior) so that is insightful! When doing instant focus in new places, you can have a lowered criteria expectation for now, so the rate of success stays high (I place the reward to help the accuracy but also reward just about any interaction). If the rate of success stays high, he will be a more relaxed dude in new places – but if he fails, he might stress a bit. So at first the lowered criteria expectation (any interaction) will set up the success and then over time, you can build it up to higher expectations. For me, it is like behaviors in the ring we ask for at the beginning of their trial careers (short stay on the start line, jumps, tunnels) versus what we ask for as they get more comfy in new environments (long lead outs, weave entries, contacts, etc).
Nice work here! Let me know what you think! And try to take this on the road as much as you can 🙂
Tracy
Hi!
>>Flick is with her between me and the wing, and doing a 360 circle around the wing, backside first. It’s a term from OMD – I’ve had a fair amount of instruction from OMD coaches and instructors here in CT. Haven’t seen any of the outside/backside push you mention here. Does it have a name or are people just coming up with their own cues?>>
The OMD folks would call the backside circle wrap a reverse wrap. It is a similar line to a flick, but the dog is on the outside of you (like a push to the backside) rather than the inside of you.
>>You’re right – I will need to watch this. Right now, what I am noticing in the class we are taking is that when I get more revved up and use more verbal praise, she does better and seems to enjoy herself more. If I’m focused more on handling and cuing, she gets more serious and, sometimes, seems worried.>>
Yes, for now, keep up the excited chatter in class – we can take it out at home but leave it in class when the info that she needs is mainly about how well she is doing 🙂
>>I’m glad you’re going to give us some tips and exercises to give this a try. I’ve just evolved to using “turn” and my girls (bless their Aussie hearts) have seemed to figure out what I mean. It’s been many, many years, so I have a rather ingrained habit to break…..Something tells me you’ll have a way that works. >>
Yes – stayed turned for the next games package – it is something that we do every.single.year in CAMP and it is HARD but sooooo worthwhile 🙂
T
Hi! These are going well!
Using the MM on the Go line is great as it is in the exact right spot to reward the Go line. An idea about using the MM – if you are going to use it for the Go line, have all of your sequences going towards it as well (wrap, RC, backside) – that way he is not locking onto it as the lure for the Go, and also it is a good way to be sure your cues for the other turns are on time. And for the other turns, you can reward from your hand so he learns where to associate reinforcement to match the verbal cues.
On the wrap cues – add in deceleration sooner, so he can collect before takeoff. On the reps here, you were accelerating the whole time so he was wide for the first couple (but then he figured it out and realized that heading back to the MM was the sweet spot :)) So when he lands from the first jump, decelerate and begin the check cue, then you will find it easier to rotate for the FC as well.
He had an accidetnal rear cross at :40 – you pressured in towards his takeoff spot a bit too much, so he thought it was a rear cross cue. On the other reps, you were facing the wrap wing so he read the wraps direction really well.The backsides went really well!! You had really strong, clear connection on the pushes – at this stage, you can add more independence: move more towards the center of the bar and not as close to the wing to send him to the backside. It creates more independence sends and also gives you a better position for what would come after the backside.
He is reading the RCs really well, but he is reading them when he is over the bar rather than before takeoff. That means that the RC pressure is a little late – you were running straight then cutting in for the RC after he thought he was supposed to jump straight (you can see him jumping the center of the bar on these, looking straight). So you can begin the gentle pressure on the RC line sooner, heading more towards the center of the bar – so he will add a turn stride before takeoff and you’ll see him jumping the part of the bar closer to the wing, so he has a better turn to the next jump.
Great job with all of your verbals here too! I think he is really beginning to understand them too!
Lovely session! Let me know what you think!
TracyGood morning!
Hope you had a fun trial weekend!>> Will the Lazy Game contacts impact a running contact? Should the game be changed in anyway.
Nope, it is no problem with the running contacts – it is a confidence boosting/plank acclimation game that will help with running contacts.
On the video – This generally went really well. Great job paying attention to the detail of the verbals and body cues! When she was taking the wing you didn’t want in the beginning – it is hard to tell from the camera angle – but when she kept wanting the white wing that was on the right side of the screen, I believe it was because your were blocking the 2 outer wings (like the red wing at :56). It did not seem to be a left or right turn preference because it happened on both sides, it looked more like you needed to step one step further over so she could see the wing you were indicating without needing to go around you. If you are blocking the wing, I can see why she would think it was the wing out the side and not the one behind you (especially if you turn your feet to the side rather than stepping straight back, which was happening here). So try to line yourself up nearer to the line of the jump cups so she can see the full wing.
For example, at 1:22, you looked to be in the perfect spot and she had no questions about which wing it was. Compare that to the earlier reps at the beginning and you were more on her line, which can block the wing.You were starting to leave earlier which was great, but remember to reward fast and on all the correct reps. For example, you were a little late rewarding at 1:26, and did not reward at 1:48 when she was correct. I think you might have been thinking about the verbals and physical cues, but still get that reward in really quickly to give her feedback in the moment.
>>Some of our race tracks were pretty wide but I think most of her wraps were fairly tight.
I think the wraps looked really good! I didn’t see any race tracks on the video (did I miss them? More coffee needed!) but the race tracks can be wider because we are asking for speed and extension.
Great job here! Let me know what you think!
TracyHi there!
Ooh, I liked your blind crosses here! She reads them brilliantly and because of her speed, I think you will need to use them a lot so you can stay ahead of her on course. They are looking great!
A couple of little details to smooth them out:
First sequence, with the BC to the tunnel – she was flying!
Timing was good on these! Keep trusting her and starting the BC early, so you can make that strong connection as you finish it. She reads that really well!>>But am I too……deep after the BC?? She ends up having to go around me
I think you are asking about the BC before the tunnel – yes, she was having to go around you because of your position when doing the blind:
Your line was too far over towards the tunnel exit so she was wide based on your location: her line was a little wide hen you were starting on your right and blinding to your left (like at :21) and even more so when you did left to right like at :11 and :30
What was happening was that you were running to the landing side of the #5 jump (the BC jump) and by running there, it opens up the straight line to the tunnel exit. So let her stay out on her line more and don’t let yourself get between the uprights of #5 – run more towards the #6 tunnel entry. That will set a really nice line 5-6 after the blind.She had a bar down at :10, probably because you sent and left at high speed. The handling was correct, she just needs more experience with that – you showed the same cue at :19 and she rattled the bar at :20 (I didn’t fall but she touched it). But then she was fine with it at :28 and afterwards, so I think she just needed to practice the skill more.
I really liked the fluffy BC at :36! You trusted her a lot on the 3-4 jumps and started it on time, finishing it on time too! She read it perfectly – note how she put in a GREAT turn on the 4 jump! Also really strong on the last rep! AS with the BC before the tunnel, the further over you can be towards the next jump, the less she has to go around you (although I thought she did well on the BCs here, they seemed easier than the FCs for you both).
Great job! Let me know what you think!
TracyGood morning!
>>There is a lot to do again. How does anyone keep up? These, in with the seminars, plus the wkly games. >>
There is a lot! But there are ‘break’ weeks built in, only one new little thing posted last Friday 🙂
>>Her jump circles are getting really good. Did the wraps first. Yup, first one I pulled her off. But then it got better. On the other side she went wider. Maybe I am late?
I totally agree, she is showing really great commitment skills! We can really get into handling strategy now – she was wider on one side over the other because yes, you were late 🙂 More on that below.
>> She is doing good getting that top jump so I think I need to trust her more and get over to the FC sooner. I am barely making it. She is being a good girl and not going behind me on the FC and coming in.>>
Yes – more trust needed! Here are the specifics:
On tat very first rep, she came off the wrap at :06 – you were stationary and moved suddenly – that isn’t exactly incorrect to do, but we can help her understand the commitment better there: as you start to move away, keep looking behind you at the landing spot and also toss the reward there just as you leave to help support commitment. Good job fixing it right away by sending her right back to the jump!
On the fluffy FCs 🙂 it is a matter of trusting the lines to get the timing. You were quicker to get them when you went from your left side to your right side – it seemed less comfy for you on the other side, so those were later.
On the 2nd rep on the video. the FC was maybe a tiny bit little late: you can start it sooner so you are fully finished when she lands at :12. Going the other direction:
The FC at :24 was much later, it was just starting as she was landing so she went wide.Back to the original side, at :25 that was a good FC – maybe the tiniest bit late but you got to a better position so she read the line better between 4-5 – you can probably send her to the tunnel and be more lateral on #3 (jump after the tunnel) to get there more easily. Trust her to find the line as long as you are connected and moving.
For example at :59 and 1:22, you were waiting a bit and gave her a big send step to get the jump after the tunnel, which slows you down from getting to the FC at 1:00 and 1:24. If you keep moving and use your verbal, I think she will pick up that line easily and then you will have a really easy time finishing the FC.
Same idea on the other side at 1:11 – you can cue the 3 nd 4 jumps with verbals and connection, which will get you to the FC at 1:12 much sooner (it was late here, starting as she was jumping, so she was wider).
Thinking about it strategically, since the FC happens pretty close to the #1 jump: you can use lateral distance to cue 3 and 4 and stick closer to #1 the whole time so you can easily show the FC 4-5.
Isolating the wrap after the FC (like at :48 and :50) your sends are a little too forward so that is causing her to jump a bit wider on those. You can send with less motion then leave sooner, with a softer send and letting her see you leave before she collects to take off. That will be easier to do when you finish the FC sooner. You can also spin to create a tighter turn there (FC/BC move) but that is a whole lot of work LOL and you can get a great turn by sending sooner and leaving 🙂
Great job here! Let me know what you think!
Tracy
Great question!
I use giant chunks of string cheese for the most part, and sometimes I use giant chunks of freeze dried turkey.
But as a background for this game, I have also taught the mechanics of “eat it fast then re-engage” to the dog. What I mean by that is, away from the jumps: I toss a treat in the grass (something big and easy to find) and then as soon as the dog eats it and re-engages, I reward that with something better (like a better treat or a frisbee). So my dogs have discovered the joys of grab the treat, eat it fast, and don’t look for more on the ground because something better is coming from da momma 🙂
And then if they have a ‘big chunks of treats’ training session, dinner is of course much smaller or non-existent so they don’t end up getting fat 🙂
Let me know if that makes sense!
TracyHi! This was also fun to look at!
I know the serp ended up being the fastest on the first part, but I think that is because it was the best handled and maybe not the best choice overall. On the BC-BC, both were a little wide – the first one needed earlier timing and more connection. On the 2nd one, based on how this particular sequence is set – I think a FC would be faster than a BC there.
When you did the FC to the BC – the FC was tighter than the BC, so perhaps the FC-FC will end up being faster than the serp, if you are early and connected on them?I am not surprised about the timing on the 5-7 section – even with the late FC, that slice line should be mch faster. You can try doing a BC instead of the FC there, it is probably quicker to get through that line and she can read those really well!
Nice work here!
TracyHi!
This was really good to see with the timings! And some really good info from Min 🙂On the first video:
>>If we ditch the first post turn to the right when she didn’t drive straight to the last jump, it seems to be about the same with the send & go vs the spin.
I think the send is going to be faster overall, for 2 reasons: first, it gets you up the line better so she can chase you faster. Second, if you give the next verbal cue sooner and don’t mark her turn with a ‘yes’ or ‘good’ – it will be even faster. The zig zag was the yes marker – it is very distracting for the dogs because they are not sure if they should continue on the line or come to you for reward. So, welcome to the “Don’t Say Yes” system LOL!!! Just give her all facts: yell tunnel to get her on the line you want. I will be doing more about not using ‘yay’ markers on course in the next set of games because it is something everyone is doing, and the dogs are asking questions 🙂
>>So the extension line and then the tighter approach to the tunnel is faster for her even though she may be faster through the tunnel on the inside turns since she is already on the left lead heading to the tunnel. I think part of that is that t I have trouble with the inside wraps/spins in this situation where you are approaching on a hard slice
The part was also really interesting – I think the best handling was the spin to the left, really nice! But also not the fastest LOL! Pretty =/= fastest. And with these, you can also give the tunnel verbal earlier on all of them so she can drive around the wing to find the tunnel.
The slice line (fastest line) had a slightly wide exit on the FC, so it can be even faster – you were a little too late in the decel and ended up past the line a tiny bit which caused you to close your shoulder forward – so she went wide trying to figure out which side to be on: keep your dog side arm back so she can see your eyes to get the great line.This ‘slice line to harder tunnel line’ being faster than the wrap to a really fast tunnel entry is exactly in keeping with stuff we saw on a very similar line yesterday at a seminar – we timed it with a lot of dogs and that slice line was faster with all of the dogs and the tunnel entry was even harder than this one here. Good to know!! I would be in competition that most folks would do the wrap line, so you will beat them by a mile there.
T
Hi!
>> I wanted to have you look at these before I trained and taped again because honestly the only mistakes I found were mine!
Yes, I only saw little handling bloopers, Winn was great!
Sequence 2:
>>I did notice she seemed very slow our first run but I am not sure why.
I think it was because you were pretty decelerated, so she stayed in collection. You can lead out less and power into it more!
Good opening 1-2-3 with strong connection – and yes, leading out less so you can run more will definitely get more speed. Then you can decel sooner for 4 then leave, so youget more speed from 3-4 but also the nice turn.
One detail: don’t spin on the entry of tunnel 5 because it causes her to look at you when she exits (the spin is a turn cue) and we want her to go straight to 6
On the 6-7-8 line: she looked at the off course after 7 – try to send and go rather than round the line with her. That decelerates her and also doesn’t show her the line to 8-9 as early. By sending and going, you can get a FC or BC before the tunnel so you don’t have to decelerate into the threadle (whcich slows her down) or rear cross the tunnel entry – let her chase you down that line for a blind cross. Wheeee! Much faster 🙂Seq 3:
One detail for more speed: line her up facing 1 on a slice so she sees the backside entry at 2 and has a straight line to it, rather than having her set up straight to 1 and having to turn when she lands to find 2
The backside serp to the blind looked great! The in in on the 2nd rep also looked good! So I timed them both and the in in was faster 🙂After the tunnel on the first rep, remember to make a massive connection to her eyes as she exits and use your backside verbal to help propel her to the backside – you were much clearer about it on the 2nd rep.
She pulled the bar on 7 at 1:08 because you decelerated and closed your shoulders and said “good girl” which is more of a distraction – so drive hard with connection and just say tunnel 🙂 Tell her she is a good girl when the run is finished 🙂
I think you mentioned you kept forgetting to do the Fc before she enters the tunnel at :42 and at 1:10 – Yes, that is correct 🙂 you were really late at 1:10 and ended up on her line so she took the backside of 9. Start the FC before she enters the tunnel so she sees it and can be turning on the exit. The BC there might be even easier, because you can start it sooner and finish it quicker, because there is no rotation.
I really liked your spin on the 10 jump! It set up a really lovely ending line!Great job here! Let me know what you think!
TracyHi!
For this particular instant focus game, make it a random object and not a body part. But definitely train the chin rest and hand touch, because we will be using those for the next set of games 🙂Tracy
Hi!
I totally think it went better – a lot of it was just teaching him that tight blinds crosses are a good thing 🙂 and that there might be two of them in a row LOL!On the first couple of reps, the BC at 8-9 ended up being late at :16 and :25 in terms of getting the new connection so he could make the adjustment for the tight turn (plus, he was NOT expecting that such a thing even existed). You can start the 2nd blind sooner: when you finish the first blind and see him land, stay connected only long enough to see him on the new/correct side – then use your jump cue and start the 2nd blind so he sees it starting before he has to make a takeoff decision.
When you isolated it in the other direction, it was more of a training session to get used to it: :36, your arm too high and you looked forward pretty early, so he read the blind starting too soon
:42 – better!! The bar down was him figuring out how to do the collection for a tight blind while you were accelerating.
:51 – your disconnection to start the blind was too soon, so he never committed to the jump (you looked forward to start the BC immediately after the release there)When you put it back into sequence, you can see that he was processing it and figuring it out: at 1:01, he was AWESOME, good boy collecting to make the tight blind!
nice backside after it!And great job with the connected sends to the backside at the end of the video, that gave you great positional advantage!
Nice work! Let me know what you think!
TracyHi! It is always smart to stop training when frustration starts – I think you solved the issue without needing me, though 🙂 1-2-3-4 looked great on reps 1 and 2! Tight and fast!
The way this course ended up set, there is a definite threadle from 5-6. Just a post turn sets him on the line to the backside, as you saw at :11 and :25. A threadle cue of some sort is needed. At :25, you did a cross arm (but he didn’t see it because you open up back to him) and called his name – nope, still a backside. You added a spin to get the turn there on the 3rd rep, and it worked really well! The other option is a threadle verbal and open arm cue to show the line.
He dropped the bar on 3 on the 3rd rep, probably because you were planning to spin so you rushed out there a bit more than on the first 2 reps. And he was a little wide on the tunnel exit – at :40 you started the FC after he was in, so he couldn’t respond til he exited. So, send away more to 7 and let him see you start the FC before he enters, and it will set a nice line 🙂Nice work here, sorting out that 5-6 turn! Let me know what you think!
Tracy
