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Good morning!
Yes, you’ve definitely had some amazing adventures! And hopefully more coming up this summer! And they’ve been incredibly valuable to baby Vibe 🙂
>We got a fun tug ring in Utah and it’s a nice one for him to be able to shove into my hands after retrieving.>
The ring tugs are super!!! A toy company near me just adding a ring tug as a leash handle, which is perfect for UKI runs!
The reverse retrieve is looking super strong! He was really good about bringing it to you with minimal victory laps 🙂 and you were great about extended play sessions when he brought it to you – the play should last twice as long as the ‘work’ in each rep for games like this.
You can turn it into a bit of a commitment game by adding a 2nd toy in your hand: can he still go get the original toy while you are running away with the 2nd toy visible? How visible it is depends on how hard he thinks the game is 🙂 The 2nd toy can be in your hand to start then eventually work up to it dragging 🙂
And if he will hold a stay and focus on the toy: he can be in a stay while you are 15 feet away from him, for example. You put the toy down next to you and you start walking towards him – but as you do that, cue him to continue past you to get the toy. It is a bit of extreme countermotion that can be worked up to you running the other direction and he continues past you to commit to the toy (which will eventually be obstacles of course :))
Looking at the threadle wraps:
Yes, at some point in training it is normal for the value to shift into the work (obstacle focus) and away from handler focus. He was committing to the TW super well (especially on your left side). You can add your motion of moving forward into these, along with 2 different balance reps:
– you can cue the TW immediately
– You can step to the other side of the barrel to cue the regular barrel wraps towards you
– You can revisit the decel game from the early days of MaxPup, here he comes to your hand. But in this case, you cue the ‘come to hand’ (can be the hand target like you did here, and no TW verbal of course) and then do a pivot on the flat away from the barrel rather than the TW.For example, if he is on your left side, there would be 3 options you can cue:
TW to his left
Push to the other side of the barrel so he wraps to his right towards you
Come to handler then pivot on the flat to his right away from the barrel.That can be fun for him (good puzzles, which he likes :)) and helps maintain the balance of where to look rather than just at the barrel 🙂
Great job here!
Tracy
Good morning!
>You know, part of the reason I wanted a farmdog is because I’m a novice agility handler – and I don’t need a Ferrari of a dog to learn. He’s a little quicker than I had planned on
I must admit, though, it’s fun to see him racing around the agility equipment for the joy of it.>Yes! He is a speedy little dude but also yes…. SO MUCH FUN! And it will be easier to learn the ins-and-outs of agility with a dog that is excited to run and go fast because his commitment will be better (which makes handling easier).
Looking at the video: This went well!
It was very fun to see him zig-zagging his way through the serps! A lot of training came together to get that: connection, the zig zag grids, strike a pose games, etc. Yay!!
You can actually be a shade closer to the jumps which will help show the line – you can be an arm’s length away. This does mean he has to get used to jumping in close to you but I don’t think that will be a problem 🙂
>At 0:49 – maybe I’m just too late (should be closer to jump 2) for him to take jump 2?>
It looks like he had a lot more speed there so with you running (like at :42) he didn’t quite coordinate the footwork in time. At
At :47-:49 – you were not moving quite as fast but still showing good serp cues so he found the line nicely! Dialing back your speed when adding more of his speed is a good way to break things down when there are a lot of mechanics needed from the dog 🙂 On that rep, you were a little far from the 2nd jump and also closing your shoulder forward a bit so he missed it. You got a little closer to it on the other reps (like 1:07) and he got it – so being closer to the line in general will help that.
>When I tried to have him cross from the far side of the tunnel to try a serp (1:27 & 1:38), we didn’t get it. >
I think what happened there was that he had a spill or something in the tunnel at 1:15, which seemed to startle him so he was being a bit careful after that.
As you mentioned, that also coincided with the neighbor dog barking, so that could have been a factor. Plus it is a hard line because the turns are tighter – so you can dial bak your motion and walk or slow jog through it at first to help him see the lines.
Great job here!!
Tracy
Good morning!
He did really well with the intro to the channels!
The automatic treat dispensers are a pain sometimes – so inconsistent with how they work! One of the ways I introduce the channels is to put the dog at the entry and put the reward (dispenser or toy or food bowl) at pole 4, then 6, then 8 then 10, then after 12. It helps fade out my position the end of the poles and allows me to begin sending early on.4 poles is going well from both sides! And you are adding lots of angles and handling which is great. Now that he is actually weaving, you will want to limit reps – he did 19 reps here (76 poles). It adds up pretty quickly, especially as you add more poles, so stick to 10 reps or less at 4 poles, 8 reps or less at 6 poles, and so on. The channels being wide open allow for more reps because he doesn’t have to weave so it saves his body a bit.
It sounds like the DW work is going well too! Are you back chaining it or is he going across the full (low) DW?
Nice work here!Tracy
Good morning!
>Note the inflatable tube man in the next ring! Torch knew it was there and ignored it. Good girlie!>
OMG! That was so weird to have there! She did a great job ignoring it 🙂 I was very distracted by it 😂
She did well with the tunnel exits! She naturally wants to turn towards you, so the timing of the cue didn’t matter as much – but you will want to give the turn cue before she goes in.
The GO cues looked (and sounded :)) like they were timely and your toy throws also helped her continue straight.
Rear crosses are definitely trickier! I think her questions were a combination of timing and side preference.
The first one at 1:33 was a shade late for a baby dog in terms of the motion (the verbal was definitely late :)) so she went to where she saw you last. The RC at 2:04 was a little earlier but still mainly happened after her head was in the tunnel. The last one (2:24) got it! I think the timing was a little sooner and she is learning to read the RC pressure, plus she might be more of a natural right turner.
Because RCs are hard, you can make it more visible (especially to the left turns) by making the angle of the start wing a shade easier, almost on a straight line to the tunnel. That will make it easier to show her the RC line sooner, which should help with the left turns in particular. If the RCs are still hard, you can also put the reward on the correct line at the end of the tunnel – that can help get her turned the correct direction.
The lead outs are going well!
Timing and connection on the blind were good – she thought you wanted more of a straight line because you ran more towards 2 and not towards 3 as much – you can be running with a little more lateral distance on that line, so you can be closer to 3 when you do the blind.
You were very close to 3 when you did the FC and she read it perfectly – great turn with lots of power!
The lead out push went super well too, your position, timing, and connection were all spot on! The only thing I would add there is to get into your position and stand still there and praise for a moment – then release. That way she doesn’t think you arriving in position is the release for the stay.
Great job!!!!
Tracy
Hi!
I think his brain was still pretty engaged here!! But also I think the serp questions were also about you moving fast – you were running so he stayed parallel to your line and didn’t ‘see’ the serp cues. You were definitely doing them! But the motion overrode them. So you can do two things to help him out:
Dial back your motion to a fast walk, and dip your serp shoulder/wave your hand a little to help him find the serp (without stopping).Then when he can do that with you at a fast walk, we can get you back to running (and yes, dip your serp shoulder down). But when you add running, you can angle the jump (45 degree approx) so he sees the bar more clearly. That way you can keep moving at the higher speed – you had good speed going here but then slowed down for the serp, and we would like you to be able to stay in motion 🙂
Great job!
TracyHi!
He is definitely sorting out how to find the jump on that side! He did well with you connected and not too far ahead, so you can split the difference: be ahead by slowly walking. Or, be fast but not as far ahead. That way you can build up to being ahead and being fast!
The start wing was actual harder in the first part of the session – maybe because he had to ignore all the things going on out there (tunnel-bag person, people walking a dog, cars, etc). It was good that you broke it down and rewarded that wing wrap several times. He did really well with it when you added more motion at the end, and when maybe there were fewer distraction challenges 🙂
Nice work!
Tracy
This was AWESOME!!!!!!
It was almost too easy, I was waiting for the hard part LOL!!
Loved the choices for the blinds! And watching your timing: you nailed it. The blind began as he was over 1 and finished before he took 2. The connection was super clear. He was a shade wide on that onem because you were running more towards the landing side of 2 (towards the weaves) when ideally you would be running towards 3 more (trust 2 to him).
Blind after the a-frame: perfect! He had no questions and really powered through it.
The blind before the weaves was perfection! You started it as he was taking the jump (:23), you finished it with VERY clear reconnection before he took off for the next jump (:24) and you were on the mouse line to the weave entry. He had a super nice turn, no slipping on a relatively tight line!
It all looked smooth and easy… and fast! How did his time stack up to the other times in his class?
Great job, thank you for sharing it!
Tracy
Hello!
>Sammy was great – obviously my connection is getting a bit better:-).>
Super!!
> Jazz was very good on the first day. Yesterday he started to sniff between the obstacles. But today was a nightmare. I was very careful with his “ready to work” routine. He was motivated and connected before at the start. But then he was sniffing between all obstacles the whole run – I was completely helpless.>
This is really interesting. It is possible that he has something happening that is causing a bit of underlying pain? He didn’t feel it much on the first day so he ran well. But perhaps he felt it more and more on the 2nd and 3rd days, and he ran less and less. The sniffing probably indicates that *something* was stressful to him. If you were doing the same routine but seeing less and less motivation, it could be something outside of training causing it. Do you have any video?
And it is defnitely possible that it doesn’t happen at home, for a lot of reasons, and only happens at a trial.
We do see pain be the cause of this a lot – I am currently doing a free podcast series with 2 sports vets and a behavior specialist on this exact topic! I can send you the links if you like 🙂
Looking at the video: We got some GREAT information from both of the dogs about how to set their lines and get more speed, and still get the blind!
The first run with Jazz looked good – he started off a little slower and careful because of the big sends, but I think he REALLY enjoyed chasing the line when you ran for the blind. Your blind on the tunnel at :13 was perfect!
And same with Sammy – great blind at :26 and :42! I think with both boys, you can set up the blind and get more speed on the sends by being closer to 1-2-3, especially the #3 tunnel. If you go closer to the tunnel at the beginning, you can move forward to 4 more which makes the send easier while keeping you in a good spot for the blind.
At :37 you went a little closer to the tunnel with Sammy and he was faster to get to the #4 jump, and you still easily got the blind cross at the tunnel.
Seq 2:
Nice timing of starting the blind on the takeoff side of 5 at :54 with Sammy and 2:03 with Jazz! Super! And lovely connection after the blind with both of them. They really flew through it!At 2:21 you were more lateral and decelerated so Jazz slowed down and looked at you. To maintain the speed there, you can go a few steps closer to the tunnel then run hard up the line to the blind: you will still be at a big distance away from the line to be able to get the blind, but the few steps of extra acceleration he sees from you when he exits the tunnel will cue him to run in extension too.
Sammy almost went to the tunnel at :56 (and a little bit at 1:47) because you faced it and stepped towards it. At 1:23 and 1:30 with Sammy and 2:07 with Jazz you faced the backside line very clearly and he had no questions.
Turning him to his right over jump 1 on the 2nd run set a nice line to the tunnel. You can see at 1:06 and 1:39 he had a question and looked at you. This was when you got a little too far ahead and had to decelerate, which almost pulled him off of jump 3. At 1:22 you got closer to 3 so he didn’t question it, but then when you pulled away to 5 he questioned jump 4.
That would be a good opportunity to run in closer to 2 so you are accelerated up the line when he exits, even if you are a bit lateral/working at a distance, to support the speed and commitment.
Seq 3:
At 2:36 you were running in acceleration at get the blind, so even with you ahead and lateral, Sammy ran in extension too! Yay! He was not quite as fast on the last run but there was not as much acceleration from you. The blind timing and connection was perfect at 2:40 and 3:54 and you set up the wrap beautifully, showing acceleration on the line after it so he accelerated too.You handled it the same way with Jazz and he hesitated at the tunnel exit at 2:53 and 3:11 and 3:30 – he does not like you that far ahead or that far away. But when you were a little closer and showing acceleration, he was FAST! His speed on the ending line made the blind after the tunnel a little late to start, but your position and connection were both very strong so the timing was not as important: he found the line really well.
You can try a spin with him on the exit of 5 (front cross to blind cross) to see if that gets a tighter turn – the decel alone was not as strong of a cue for Jazz like it is for Sammy. Sammy landed turned and ready to explode forward, while Jazz landed a little wider and not as fast to turn. The spin will be stronger turn cues for him.
I think the front cross 7-8 worked really well! You can start it a little earlier (when they are taking 6) and you can start closer to 7, to set up a nice line to 8.
Overall, this was really good info about what each dog prefers to see to get the most speed on the lines: going a little closer to the line before the blind helps you set the acceleration while staying lateral to easily get the blind. And Jazz is faster when you are closer in general – Sammy seems to be happy when you are ahead/further away 🙂
Great job! Let me know what you think!
Tracy
Good morning!
>understood that lap turns have me closer to facing the dog coming out of the tunnel, whereas tandems I am turned away and looking over my shoulder.>
Correct! And current course design trends call for fewer lap turns lately, but we still train them because it helps teach the dogs the concept and we never know when they will come back in style 🙂
>So – are “tandem turns” different than a jump threadle wrap “In, in”? >
The threadle wrap in-in is a super specific version of the tandem turn. Here are a couple of major differences:
– the tandem turn can be used on the flat, on the front of a jump, or on the backside of a jump. And it doesn’t always need to be a wrap – it can be a wider turn too.
– The threadle wrap is only on the backside of the jump, and it is only ever a wrap.– The tandem turn always has both dog can handler turning and going the new direction, in tandem with each other 🙂
– The threadle wrap almost always has the handler facing forward and NOT turning with the dog, but continuing on the original path after cueing the turn. I say ‘almost always’ because sometimes we do turn with the dog and face the new direction, but that is rare nowadays.>I assume that the handling for lap, tandem, and threadle are all a little different? >
Yes – on the lap, we face the dog until he is a couple of inches from the hand, and then do that arm-and-leg step back then turn them away.
On a tandem turn, because there are a number of different possibilities, the dogs are relying on our hands and timing to know where to go. And we are facing forward along the line, then turning the dog away then also turning to the new line we have cued.
On a threadle wrap – ideally the dog is a little more independent and goes by himself after we start the cues, without waiting for our hands to turn him away.
>I don’t remember using both hands for the threadle wrap. >
That is handler’s choice – one hand or both hands? I use both hands (opposite arm being visible) because it helps my dogs see the cues, especially the smaller dogs.
>And of course – you mentioned not using words b/c you want fluent behaviors before adding verbals – do you have more words (!) for the lap and tandem turns?>
Yes, more words LOL but you have them in place already! They are all about what line you want him to take:
The lap turn is almost always the same line for the dog as a threadle wrap, so I would use the threadle wrap verbal for both of those cues.
The tandem turn can create different lines, so I use whatever verbal matches the line I would like the dog to take: left, right, wrap, etc.
On the video: This went really well!!
Great job making that outside arm SUPER visible at the beginning and throughout the session. You can see how that draws him right in and allows you to get the turn away easily.Because we are talking about the differences: most of these were tandem turns, where you were basically facing forward and then turning with him back to the tunnel. Threadle wraps would have you moving towards the fence and not back to the tunnel.
When you were late (:44, 1:33) he stayed on his line which is good 🙂 Because he was flying, it is great to show him the cues and call him before he even enters the tunnel. The arm can start coming up and he can hear the verbal right before he goes in. That way, he will be ready to turn when he exits.
When you can’t get to the wing early enough before he exits the tunnel, you can pull away from the wing with your shoulders feet and show him the outside arm as you continue to move forward -that can set the turn really well even if you are not as far ahead as you’d like 🙂
He had a sniffing moment because he probably thought you dropped a treat (maybe you did :)) I don’t think he was stressed or anything, just starving 🙂
Great job here!!!
Tracy
Hi!
The isolation must have been hard! But it looks like everyone is healthy, and that is good 🙂
He did well finding the threadle side of the jump on just the hand cue! And also did well when you asked for the serp – the change in your position really helped him see the difference. What verbal are you going to use for the threadle slice? You can add it now.
He was holding the stay nicely but releasing when you moved your hand – so if you don’t want him to release on the hand cue, put you hand in position then wait a second or two, then use your verbal release. You might need to reward him a lot for not moving when you move your hand, because he might think it is the release.
Tunnel threadles:
It took him a moment to sort it out but then he was perfect. You were using the dog-side arm which is fine, just be sure to make it really visible to him (punching it downwards really helps small dogs see it). You can add in the double whammy game now!On the turn aways on the wing: two things might have been happening here to caused him to spin towards you before going to the wing.
I think he was a little too locked onto your hand, following the cookie and your hand was moving fast and high. You might have been trying to cue the turn away and the wing at the same time. No worries – if you slow the hand cue down a lot and keep your hand really low so your focus is on turning his head to the left (away from you), he will wrap the wing on his own once his head turns the correct direction.
The other thing that is possible is that you were teaching him a hard new skill and doing it towards his harder direction (to the left). Try it on your other side, turning him to his right, and see if that is easier. It is normal for a young dog to struggle turning to their harder direction at first, so teaching it to the easier direction can really help.
Nice work here!
Tracy
Good morning! I hope you had a great time in Maine 🙂
>This was actually Rusty’s first time actually working outdoors. >
That is impressive! He was perfectly engaged. Usually young dogs need a couple of sessions to be able to be as focused outdoors as they are indoors. Well done to you and Rusty!!
>Overall I thought he did quite well.>
I totally agree – it looks like he was more than happy to turn himself away to the tunnel so you can show him arm cue but start your ‘kiss kiss’ verbal sooner so he gets that early permission to turn himself away.
And having the arm cue up early (like at 1:05 and 1:15) was spot on – he did so well that I don’t think you will even need to use the arm to flip him away, you can keep it up and let him do it all by himself (which is most ideal).
When you revisit this, you can add in meeting him closer to the end of the tunnel and then move forward so he can do this with more motion too.
My only other suggestion for future sessions is when you are doing the double whammy of 2 tunnels in a run, sometimes *don’t* cue the threadle into the tunnel – we don’t want him to assume you will want the tunnel again 🙂
Great job!!!
Tracy
Hi!
>Nifty can only get one stride in before the jump.
One the flip side – if you do a lot of AKC, you will only see Nifty get one stride in between jumps so will need to adjust the timing. If you don’t play in AKC, no worries, you will have more distance between the obstacles 🙂
>But I have been sending with the dog side arm for 20 years or so, and my body just wants to do what it already knows. It’s going to take quite a bit of practice.>
Yes, the human brain really loves to use the dog-side arm! Another way to think about it is to give the info directly to the dog by looking at them on a send – instead of looking at the jump 🙂 It is counterintuitive to send by looking pretty directly at the dog, but it works really well!
>In general, I find it much easier with Nifty. She is more comfortable taking those sends and because she’s bigger and takes longer strides, it’s easier for me to see when she is going to take off. >
Being more experienced and larger, I can see how it would be easier with Nifty!
>Canny needs more remedial work on sends.>
Yes, the smalls need bigger commitment because they have to take some many strides to cover the same distance as the bigs. Plus they are a lot harder to see!!
Looking at the videos:
Nifty sequence 1: fantastic timing on the blind after the tunnel at :11 & :53 & 1:32! You started it early and clearly so it was finished before she entered and the connection looked great on the exit. You set yourself up really well to get there easily by sending away to the line before the tunnel. Yes, I agree that the toy throw contributed to the bar coming down.
You were getting earlier and early on each re – make sure to not get toooooo early because we don’t want her to ignore a blind when you don’t want her to take the tunnel 🙂
Nifty sequence 2:
Super nice timing on the landing side of 5 on the first and 2nd reps. O the 3rd rep, you ran in and got the blind on the takeoff side of 5 – that went well too! You an actually be earlier on that blind: trust your send to 4 and her commitment so you can start the blind as she is jumping 3 so it is finished before 4. At 1:16 the blind finished/re-connected when she landed, so she was one stride wide.
And then you were a bit squared up to the 5 jump as she turned at 1:17 which is what cued the off course to the tunnel. No need to withhold reward there – she was correct based on the motion 🙂Your timing was better on that last rep but also, what got the backside instead of the tunnel was that you got through the mouse line better (never squared up to the 5 jump) by getting there sooner: as soon as you cued the 1 jump, you cued the 2 tunnel and got outta there. Perfect! Nifty understood it perfectly.
Canny seq 1: This went well too! I can see where Canny asks little questions about the sends – you can train with lots of thrown rewards out on the line so he doesn’t head check when you are not moving as much.
I was also going to suggest the you stay in motion, even if it is not a lot of motion – just a little motion will support his lines (fast walk, slow jog). And that is exactly what you did on rep 2 here! Yay!
You added a little bit of motion but stayed in position on the line you wanted to be near… and absolutely nailed the blind. YAY! He had a little question on the bar before the tunnel but that is probably because he is still learning to work that far away from you and hear verbals over the bar. But that 2nd run was great!! And he will sort out the bars, no worries.
Seq 2 also went well. The first 2 runs were blinds on the landing side of 5:
At :06 when he was over 3, he had a little question about going to 4 – that was because you had already turned to 5 so he was not sure about commitment to 4. He took it though (yay!) and that allowed you to get a nice, timely, connected blind in.
On rep 2 at :35, you faced that 4 jump for longer so he had no questions! You were still able to get the blind in beautifully – it was even earlier than the previous rep and he drove through it SUPER FAST! Love it!
On the last run, you did the blind on the takeoff side of 5:
The motion into the gap supported 4 with no problem. Small detail: You can trust your motion to support 4 and start the blind one step sooner 🙂 When he was over 3, you did a big send to 4. I don’t think he needs it! As long as you keep moving and tell him to jump, you can start the blind in that moment rather than the send, which makes it perfect timing for the blind 🙂Great job on these! Have a blast on vacation! The week 4 sequences will be ready for you to run when you get back, and they will be useful for your upcoming ISC and UKI runs!
Tracy
Hi!
>How do you think the timing is looking? I feel like I am either waiting to see her commit to the first jump & then I’m behind for the BC (we dropped a few bars) or I am blinding too soon, but she’s just being really good about repeating the pattern.>
A couple of ideas for you! Yes, you are on the right track and you are doing it right 🙂 YAY!!!
On the reps where you feel like you were waiting too long:
As long as you keep moving up the line and your connection on the exit is good, you can totally be a little late 🙂 Motion and connection will cover the lateness (nothing was super late here).
For example, on video 1 – those were maybe a stride or two late because you were seeing her exit the wing and look at the jump then doing the blind, but you were continuing to move up the line so she read it really well.
The last rep on video 1 was the best timing on that video: she exited the wrap and you were doing the blind, so it was done long before she took off for the jump. Your line of motion was spot on and while it might have felt a little early, the line of motion made it very clear (harder angles might have required it to be later).
The first rep of the 2nd video was SPOT ON for timing! The 3rd rep (:11) an 4th rep (:18) were also both excellent!!! Those 3 reps were ideal timing: she was exiting the wing and you started the blind.
On the 2nd side on video 1 (coming towards the camera), you were definitely waiting a shade too long and that ended up getting you caught behind the 2nd jump.
I think when you are waiting for her to commit to jump 1 before starting the blind, you are not moving up the line as well as you did on the other reps – you were decelerating, taking smaller steps, to see the commitment. That is why you got caught behind the 2nd jump on video 1. You can also see that at :32 on video 2 – you were waiting for her before doing the blind so you were pretty close to the landing spot and the bar came down. The bar didn’t come down at :37 but you can still move up the line sooner.
So yes, go for the ideal timing. But the most important factors are to keep moving and get a great connection on the exit of the blinds.
> I’m excited to try the sequences when we are ready! is 40x40ish enough room for those?>
You are totally ready! It can fit into 40×40 – feel free to squish up the tunnel and use weave poles as ump bars to give you more room.
Great job!
Tracy
Hi!
>I can send Kashia from much farther away than I can Kastella. But in courses or running sequences like this, it’s just the opposite! >
That is interesting! I wonder if Kastella is more responsive to decel, so she thinks she isn’t supposed to go without motion? Kashia might not care as much about decel so she is happier to go without motion? They are definitely different!
>I only went for one day. We did incorporate two blinds where we had to make almost a 90 degree turn to the A-frame and then another 90 degree turn one obstacle after the A-frame to the teeter. I did a blind in both locations with both girls and they worked great!>
Yay! I am glad you did them and they worked great!!
>I play it much more safely and conservatively in a trial than I do at home…but I will definitely look for areas to practice everything I’ve learned in the blind boot camp! >
Super! Definitely go for It 🙂 Remember that you are an excellent runner so you are more than likely going to be able to get ahead to get the blind! Trust yourself and your girls, and go for it 🙂
>My girls are just so consistent that if I play it safe, they tend to Q relatively easily. But I know it’s about more than the Q if I want to keep improving our skills!>
Yes, you can set goals for yourself: how fast can you go? How much can you drive to get the fastest course time? Have fun :) T
