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You are very welcome!! It has been a wild summer weather, so might as well go with the flow LOL!!!! Have fun!
T
Good morning! This is looking really good! Most of it was very smooth and fast. You made a lot of lovely adjustments in the few spots she had questions and those ended up looking really strong too.
The one spot she had a big question was on the opening where you were facing her (lead out push at 2). She did not release immediately on any of the reps there – in fact, I think she had a “You’re nuts!” thought bubble LOL!! So you can isolate that to one jump and reward her for jumping into you – remember the strike a pose game? She probably needs a re-visit of that so she doesn’t think this is so weird 🙂
Getting her to drive 1-2 will let you move to 3 sooner and send to 4 sooner too. When you were able to send to 4 and leave early, she had a great turn at 5 and you were way ahead for 7. That allowed you to show the decel before she entered the tunnel and be ready to cue the threadle wrap at 7.
>>I also did something (maybe rushing the move) that made her turn away from the jump during a threadle wrap instead of turning toward it.>>
Two things were happening here:
Part of it was connection. When you had very clear connection to her, like at 1:33, she didn’t need to look at your face. She could watch the hand cues and get it really nicely! When the connection was not as clear, you were looking ahead more or high hands blocking your face (like at 1:38) she looked at you more, and didn’t turn away as well.Also, there might have been verbal cue questions from her. What is your threadle wrap verbal, and what is the threadle slice verbal? They sounded the same to me (and on 9 and 15 too) so she might have been looking at you for more info. I definitely recommend verbals that sound very different so she doesn’t have to look at you at all.
The FC with the big connection 7-8 looked great! The first run didn’t have the big connection so she correctly picked up the tunnel, but the rest had lovely connection. Yay! You can tighten the turn a bit more by finishing the FC then running forward – she will chase your line. You were backing up to the FC, which was causing her to go as little wide.
You had a really nice adjustment on the FC 13-14! On the first run yu were walking then accelerated into the FC, which sent her wide and caused her to consider the off course tunnel. On the next two times through there (1:50 and 2:58) you got to position then decelerated…. that set up lovely turns! Yay!!!
Really strong timing of the begining of the threadle wrap cues for 15 at :56 and 1:54 and 3:01! You started when she was over 14 so she knew before landing what the next line to 15 was. Click/treat for you!!!! You called her a little too soon at :58 so she came off the jump, but you supported it better at 1:55 and at the end and she got it. Yay!
That set up a clear connected layering send at 1:58 and on the last run too. She had a bar down on 18 at 2:01 – I think she was asking questions about the layering and didn’t set up the jumping correctly on the first time through? It was not a problem on the last run. Or maybe ‘here’ was not as clear of a verbal as the ‘check’ verbal you used at the end? She kept the bar up nicely there, so it was probably just her sorting out the layering as you were cuing the next jump.
Great job here! Let mek now what you think!
Tracy
Hi! The Canada trip was super fun! Highly recommend it for next year as a little vacation if you want to come!
>>It appears that a certain distance exists in which I am behind Levy that communication is breaking down.>>
That is entirely possible!! The dogs need to process things differently when we are behind them and I think it is indeed much harder.
>> I have noticed that I am able to be further behind now. I think once he starts responding to verbals more this will help when he can’t see me.>>
Absolutely! Plus you can use placed rewards like a manners minder or a toy already on the ground, so when you give a verbal like GO GO GO, he looks ahead and sees the reward immediately. Or, in class, have the instructor throw it as soon as he looks ahead at the line. That way he can get immediate feedback (reward!) for looking ahead or responding to any cue when you are behind him (can be GO or a turn or an obstacle name).
>> Also, I am really enjoying the Jumping package 3 Pop out sequences. I did Pop out Sequence 2 yesterday both boys were able to threadle the jump after the tunnel which I was not expecting to go well… Yeah!!!>>
Yay! SUPER!!!!
>>However, I did try to threadle wrap 4-5 because I thought it might set a nice line into the tunnel. (Both boys lock onto the bar and took the obvious side) We didn’t get it. I am thinking it might be best to wrap the outside wing instead. Thoughts?>>
The threadle wrap might have needed you to turn more to get them off the front side: as you cue the threadle wrap, you can turn to the line parallel to the line you want them to travel to, to get them to the correct side of the jump and off the front side of it. And yes, it is always possible to wrap the outside wing – try it both ways and compare the times on the video!
>>I am going to try sequence 3 today and I am not sure of the best way to handle 4-5-6? My plan at the moment is to try and stay near the exit of the tunnel 5 to get 6 and send to 4. >>
Not sure if you tried it – if we are looking at the same sequence, I suggest dog on right 1-2. Serp 2-3. Then blind cross 4-5, so you are doing the blind before the tunnel entry. That way he exits the tunnel and is on your left side for 6 and 7. The full course has a threadle wrap after where 7 would be, so it is really advantageous for the handler to get miles ahead and do the blind before the tunnel.
Let me know how it went!
Tracy
Good morning!
>>This is almost (but not quite) too embarrassing to share. >>
Nothing embarrassing at all! That is why I posted the videos with my young whippet: lots of joy, lots of speed, lots of late handling, not necessarily the obstacles in the right order and some joyous running past the obstacles LOL!! All due to trying to sort out my handling for his needs. But that is the goal of this series of sequences: sharpen the walk through tools to be able to run sequences better with any age dog 🙂
>>How do you think Casper looks?>>
I think he looked fantastic here, and the walk through rehearsal benefitted him a lot in the runs! And a couple of things to add will make things even easier when you are running him.
>>I have a hard time guessing when he will be stuck to me like glue and when he will be off doing any old thing.>>
I believe that those inconsistencies are more from handling connections and timing. As a youngster, he is going to pick up lines you didn’t intend if you don’t cue soon enough, or he will come in on lines you didn’t expect if connection is unclear. The walk throughs will help with the planning for sure!!
On the walk through:
You were consistently connected on the 1-2-3 line, and he nailed it all 3 passes through there. Yay! The consistent rehearsal leading to consistent, repeatable performance? Nothing surprising about that LOL!!! That is why I big everyone to do it 🙂You also had excellent connection on the tunnel exits on each walk through, and added more speed too which helped!
Speaking of the tunnel exit:
The first run was super helpful info!!!! 1-2-3 looked really good, basically the same as you walked it. Right before he entered the #3 tunnel at 2:11, he saw you turning to accelerate forward and you were quiet… that indicated a straight line exit. But the time he heard/saw the turn cues, they were relevant to the off course jump so he turned nicely there.On the 2nd run at 2:28 you called him when he was about 8 feet or so before the tunnel entry and started to rotate right after that. SUPER tight turn!!! Good boy!!!! On the 3rd run – nice call at 2:38 when he was about 8-10 feet away from the tunnel! Another nice turn!
That is something BIG to plan for in your walk through: turn cues on tunnel exits, starting a solid 10 feet before entry for both dogs. We see the need for this with Enzo too on the bigger courses: being quiet and accelerating away always cues the wider turn for him as well. Since we cannot always use deceleration as part of the cue, timing the verbals to be early so they hear them before entering the tunnel (and using a brake arm as well) will make a huge difference! Definitely add tunnel exit cues *before* entry to your walk through planning and rehearse rehearse rehearse 🙂
One other thing to add to your walk through rehearsal is exit line connection: After you finish a cross or spin, keep your connection back to him behind you. That is to both show the clear side info (which tightens up the cross or spin) and so you can time the next cue.
If you rehearse looking forward after a cross, you are rehearsing disconnecting (the dogs are still behind you there) and being late on the next cue because you are cuing a dog that is already at the takeoff point… and that is exactly what happened on the first full run.
On the first full run, exiting the FC at 2:30 definitely needed the exit line connection rehearsal of timing the turn cues (those cues should start as he was over 4 at the latest+. You started them as he was about halfway between the jumps, which is after the decision point for takeoff, so he landed wide.
>> I was surprised at what a nice turn I got over #5 on the last run with no spin.>>
Exit line connection! At 2:40, as he was landing from 4, you were connected back to him and cuing a turn so he had a much better turn on 5. It was not the spin you rehearsed, and in this scenario the spin would get you further ahead on the next line if it was complex. But it all falls into the category of ‘exit line connection rehearsal’ so the timing is second nature and much easier because you have practiced it before running him.
I have a lot more coming about exit line connection this week! It is the thing that most folks are currently struggling with, so it is becoming a focal point in the next set of games 🙂 Stay tuned!
Great job here! Let me know what you think!
Tracy
Good morning! Great job trying the blind on the other side of the backside jump!
Huck’s video:
Super nice connection on the line 1 through 5! He found the lines really well. You can continue to build up more independence by staying connected line you did on those, but getting further from the jumps and throwing the reward out on the line, randomly, a lot!On the first rep, you went close to 6 and didn’t change the line, so good job rewarding the tunnel.
At :33 and :53 you went close to 6 too but changed the line so he did not go to the tunnel. That put you out of position for the jump after the backside (you said “oh boy!” there LOL!)
Ideally, you would sent to 6 and run a parallel line to his, heading to the center of the bar of the 7 backside so you can get the backside without the look at the tunnel, and also get ahead for 8.
The blind worked a lot better at 1:13! His questions were not really about timing, they were about connection. At 1:12 as you started the BC, he saw the change in info but your dog side arm was down near your side – blocking connection. When you pointed forward to 7 at 1:14, that broke connection and turned your shoulders to the 8 jump, which is where he went (good boy). After the blind, keep your dog-side arm back behind you and make a very direct eye contact. That will maintain connection while also turning your shoulders to the jump, so he will be able to commit to it. No pointing needed 🙂
On the backside wrap at 1:26 and 1:48 and 2:04 – send to the 6 jump here too, so you can go to where the wing and bar meet on 7. You got close to 6 and that ended up blocking the wing for the wrap on 7. He read the FC at 1:29 but was a little surprised by it (you can see him do a bit of a hitch step before taking off). Showing the wing will give him more time to find the backside and be ready for the cross. At 2:05 you did a post turn – he had to wait for you to show the wing a bit there but it did show a better line to the tunnel after landing!
Maple’s video:
Nice connection on the way to jump 3 helped her keep the bar up on the wingless jump! Yay!You can get further away from the 4-5 line to be able to get the blind started even sooner for 6-7. I don’t think she needs you as close to the lines t here, so lateral distance should be easy to get.
At :20 – as you exited the blind, you disconnected and pointed forward which sent her past the jump (same as with Huck).
Note the difference at :34 when you kept your dog-side arm back and made BIG connection… she got 7 beautifully! So definitely remember to keep the connection on the exit of the crosses and resist temptation to point forward ahead of her.
On the circle wraps:
>>The wrap into the tunnel felt very awkward to me like I was in their way. A little bit easier with Huck I think cuz he doesn’t need so much jumping room.>>I agree – Huck doesn’t need as much jumping room, so you were able to block the wing and still get the wrap 🙂 With Maple, blocking the wing at :52 caused her to have to slow down a lot to set up the jump. At 1:15 she didn’t commit – the wing became visible after you started rotating which pushed her off the line. You showed her the wing a little earlier at 2:00 but she still didn’t have enough time to sort out the jump mechanics (she turned after she landed).
So to get the info to her sooner, don’t go near the 6 jump. Send her to it while you drive to where the wing and bar meet on the landing side of 7 – that way, she sees the wing before she is taking off for 6 and has a lot more time to set up the jumping. Then as you move away, you can look at and point to the landing spot, which will support her commitment as you move to the tunnel.
Nice work here!! Let me know what you think!
Tracy
Good morning!
Fingers crossed for cooler, dryer weather ahead – super dry here but also highs in the mid 90s expected, so I was out a sunrise getting the dogs doing a few things 🙂 Gonna need a nap later LOL!!!
>> We are on our last two in person puppy make up class. She is getting better with working with other dogs and people around. She works happily for a solid 30 minutes on various things>>
Wow, good for her!!! 30 minutes of focused work is really excellent!!! She was great on the 3rd video, doing a nice balanced ladder while another dog was working a few feet away. Yes, there is a low fence separating her from the other dog, but we all know that she could very easily step over it to go play 🙂
Thanks for the contact videos! She seems happy and confident going across the board on both the teeter and the DW. One thing I notice on both… she is relying on your to be there and turn to her to get her to stop in position. When you were a little behind on the dog walk, she slowed down to wait for you, then used your feet as a target when you got there.
Because she is already speedy and going to continue to get even faster as she gets more experienced… I think we need to get her to do her end position without you needing to be there 🙂 There are two reasons for that:
– with her speed, it is likely that she will be ahead of you going across the board and we don’t want her to stop and wait for you (or leap off if she doesn’t wait)
– if she can do the contacts independently, then you can move to your next position on course and handle the next line more easily. By going to the end of the board with her, you will likely be out of position and behind for the next handling line.It should be pretty easy to take what she knows already and get her to do the contacts independently by adding a target a few inches off the end of the board. That will help her focus on finding her position without you. Then you can release her to the next obstacle, or you can throw a reward to her. Start adding the target with you near it, then you can get further and further away (moving laterally away, walking ahead of the contact while she holds position, rear crossing it, etc).
Great job here! Let me know what you think!
Tracy
Good morning!
>>do you think she did better when I just ran and didn’t point arms in the straight line 4 ways because my shoulder is more likely to stay a bit more open so she feels more connection?>>
Yes, it is totally about the connection. Plus, if the dog-side arm is up then drops down, she looked at you to see if there was a turn cue coming.
The countermotion is going well – you were definitely not blocking the wing here and also moving away sooner! You can start to move away even sooner now, as she is passing your leg and before she gets to the wing. As you do that, clarify the reward throws: some of the markers were late (after the throw) or were praise instead of get it, so she was looking at your hands more as the session went along, possibly trying to sort out if it was a wing cue or a cookie toss. Using a food holder toy will also help clarify that (easier to see if it is tossed or not :)) so adding one will help too! Plus, it amps up the impulse control a bit because she will have to move past something even more exciting 🙂
>>found it hard to pick up her feet when it was tipped up several inches. >>
She might be concerned about her toes getting under it, or the amount of tip, all of which is valid. So you can keep the tip very very minimal with a bunch of towels stuffed under it.
>>She absolutely didn’t want to tug near or on the wobble board so I decided to switch to the end of the teeter since I wasn’t going to get more arousal by tugging on the wobble board.>>
She might want to tug on it when all four feet are on it and it is more stabilized. It is work it to try because it is a great hind end weight shift game with a board moving under her (just a tiny bit).
For backing up the teeter:
>> I experimented with me standing vs crouching but both ways she is looking up at me and then sitting or laying down on the board.>>
I totally agree, she did better when you got lower and offered some really nice backing up! I think bending over might have been confusing her with the sit cue (she was looking up at you more because you were taller, which tends to produce a sit). You can play this sitting on the ground, as that can produce really nice backing up without the pressure of leaning over. She doesn’t need much more tip to this for now because she had to think so hard about it 🙂 You can leave it where the tip is now for a few sessions until she finds it super easy to back up 🙂
>> She seemed more confident about backing up to this than the wobble board. I am guessing that at 10.5-11lbs, she should be a 4-on teeter dog. I really feel like the 2-o-2-o is more clear to the dog, but I think she’s just going to be too light to control the board rebound.>>
Agree, and agree! 2o2o is a very clear criteria… but also she is too light to control that criteria and would get bounced off the end of the board. 4on it is! But you can make a 4on criteria very fun for her – front feet right at the end of the board with a foot target is fun and easy. I also taught all of my 4on dogs to scratch at the target to get them happy to do it, go right to the end, and weight shift. I faded the scratching but they enjoyed it when we trained it!
Great job here! Let me know what you think!
Tracy
Hi!
>> But yes I asked because I think what is happening ‘in-between’ the reps can be helpful to see what we can do better and if we want to modify our ‘in-between’ the reps. But including all will add A LOT of time since we often play (food chase) between each rep; or if we use a toy, play with toy and then ‘getting a toy from Fly’ takes more time than actual rep 🙂 I guess I can include 1-2 ‘between’ going forward.>>
It is fine to leave it all in – the placement and delivery and timing of the reward is really critical to building understanding. And it is fun to watch the play 🙂 and also I can type while watching 🙂
On the tight blinds video:
SUPER nice timing on the blind at :16 and 1:01 – you were finished with it and reconnected just as he was arriving at the wing. Note how tight his turn was! One thing you did really well on those reps was decelerate into the blind.
At :06 and :27 and :48, your timing was very similar but he was wider: you kept moving at the same pace, which caused your motion to keep moving towards the wing. That motion sent him wider. The deceleration at :16 and 1:01 kept you on the ‘takeoff’ side of the wing and that set a better line.
>>I think the same as in previous video, I’m ‘blocking’ his view of the ‘wrap’ wing>>
Yes, a little. You can execute the tight blind closer to the blind cross wing, which will give him a better view of the wrap wing after it. Then be sure to step to the wing and let him lock onto it before stepping away. His questions on the last two reps happened because you stepped backwards away from the wing before he had gotten a look at it.
>>Where he is distracted here – people walking/talking outside. Happy he didn’t go there to check!>>
He was really good!!! And it is great practice for ignoring people at future agility trials.
On the tandem turns:
>>Tandem turn:
AKA ‘it can’t be THAT complicated’ >>Ha! It is actually pretty complicated LOL!
He was paying very close attention to your line of motion here, good boy!
Be sure that you turn parallel to the line you want him to come through on to get past the wing, and not move towards the wing until after you have turned him away. That line might change a little, based on where he is coming from before it.At :02, :20, :29, you had a good parallel line (watch your feet moving parallel to where you wanted him to be) and he got it.
At :09, you moved towards wing rather than on the parallel line, so he went to the other side of the wing.
At :24 – this is where you might have to adjust your line more, based on where he was coming from: he was on a parallel path to the other side of the wing, so you would have to turn away more to get him to come to the correct side for the tandem turn.
You did some foot rotation to get him to turn like at :48, but I think it worked a lot better when you did not turn your feet (like at 1:05) and set up the line parallel to his line – that looked really strong!
>>I’m also including sessions with toy. It was HIS choice to use toy, not mine. He brought me that toy and he wasn’t going to play for treats. So toy it was….
CRAZY! But look at SPEED of this CRAZY:) He sure can RUN!
I want that speed – but with ‘little bit of thinking’ LOL>>I loved it! Definitely keep using the toy! One thing that will help: does he had a ‘toy-in-hand’ marker word, that cues him to grab the toy in your hand? I use “bite” with my dogs as the marker cue to grab for the toy. He seemed like he didn’t know if the toy in your hand was the reward for coming to you in the moment, which is why he was grabbing for it. Use the marker only when you want him to take the toy in your hand, and so he will quickly learn to ignore the toy until he hears the marker. That will make it a lot easier to get him to turn away, because he will be following the cues and not thinking about if the toy is available or not. You got faster with your turn cues but that was mainly to keep him from grabbing the toy 🙂
>>Should we work more with toy because he is faster? But it’s harder to get him to ‘think’ also I suspect he is watching THE TOY and not me. Also he is ‘wider’ on turns with toy>>
Yes, keep using the toy 🙂 The marker will clear up when he should watch the toy or not, which will then allow you to use earlier cues and decel to tighten up the turns a bit.
Great job here! Let me know what you think!
Tracy
Good morning!
One thing I notice about the runs here is that, as a fast young dog, he needs the cues to be sooner and also bigger. He has fewer strides between jumps (being big and fast!) and since he is young/inexperienced, he needs extra processing time for his brain to receive the info and send it out to his feet 🙂
Subtle decelerations get missed while his brain is processing all the things happening in the moment in that environment – especially when you are not moving a lot beforehand or handling from behind.
>>. The first tunnel was a wrong course and so was the second dog walk >>
On both of those moments, you were facing the line he took during the decision moments at :20 and :30, so he was correct. Ideally, as he landed from the jump after the DW you would already be showing the turn cue for the next jump – thos can be driving a rear cross on it or having finished a blind to help set up the side change. You had stopped moving and pulled him to turn to the double, which is why you ended up cuing the off course line when you faced it and accelerated.
The same happened after the weave – you accelerated forward and were facing the dog walk, so that is where he went.
In both cases, you can handle more aggressively to get to where you need to be in terms of the next line (so there is less stop and go when bringing him back, which might end up frustrating him and getting more off course lines). So that would mean running past the end of the DW, and running ahead while he is weaving. If he cannot allow you to do that yet at a trial, you can run FEO with a toy and reward it! That will set up more long term success by transferring those skills to the trial ring with FEO at this stage (especially with the new rule that you can do FEO in ANY class! YAY!)
>>. How should I handle discriminations between obstacles when, for example, the turn is to the right and there are two possible obstacles in that direction such as jump, turn right and choose between the dw and A-frame or between two different jumps? No problem with my slower dogs, but a different game with Bacon.>>
He makes the line decision here at :46 before he takes off for the 2nd jump after the table, based on you moving forward after the panel. This is a place where you can more aggressively get to position (leaving him on the table while you lead out past the panel). That way you can show a deceleration as he is taking the panel and a bigger turn cue for the next jump – a spin might be needed there for now to make it even more obvious (but probably won’t be needed forever, he just needs more experience).
But most importantly to get the turns… try not to manage the individual obstacles because that is putting you too far behind to show the next info. Run ahead or lead out when he is stopped. And if he struggles with completing the obstacle, use your FEO time to reward him in the ring (provided he can do it already in training – if not, train it there first).
:45 there was no transition 9 stayued back from the tableOn the JWW run:
>>How should I have lead out to help prevent bars 2 and 3 from dropping?
If the plan is a FC or a blind cross there, lead out closer to 4 (somewhere along the line 3-4) so you can start the FC no later than landing of 2 – with his speed and the short distance here, he will probably need it more like at takeoff of 2. Also, lead out and handle with a LOT more connection. You were only peripherally connected, so he was looking towards you for more info on that opening line and not able to organize the jumping on time.
Another plan is to lead out closer ot 2 and do a rear cross on 4, also with lots of connection.
>>took three tries to get the 6 weaves by the back wall.>>
Those were hard to see indeed! The visually blended into the fencing behind him and there were only 6, which might be why he didn’t quite see them.
Nice work here! Let me know what you think!
Tracy
Hi!
>>Fly was pretty distracted at AG field today – there was some big party happening across the street, many cars driving/parking and people walking; he could see some, there is a piece of fence there that is ’chain-link’, not solid. Also noise. Just saying that it could have ‘contributed’ to him being slow – but I suspect it was mainly my handling, as usual 🙂>>
Absolutely can contribute to him having to split his focus, but also a great opportunity to work through distractions.
The Ladder: But I guess we kind of did it, on one side?>>
I think he did really well!!!
>>But still IDK either I was slow or he was slow or I was just doing it ‘wrong’, or maybe spacing between wings was too small – because I felt like I was waiting for Fly instead of ‘moving’>>
I think that these turns are so tight and that he has so much body to turn, that you did have to wait for him a bit. He will get faster with practice for sure.
The main thing on the first side is to be sure he can fully see the wing- don’t block it, or he will slow down to find it and then the turn gets wider because he has to go around you too 🙂
[>Now from the other side, LOL. You just said “You seem to have a side preference” – haha, here we go 🙂>>
Ha! Yes 😆 one thing that will help on the harder side is if, as you send him around the wing, you shift your connection from his eyes to the ‘landing’ spot behind you at the wing. That will really help support commitment.
>>I also tried repeating cues as you suggested, I dont’ have it on video but interesting:
-with weaves, it totally helped, he didn’t pop out of the weaves earlier!
-but with backside, ‘push-push-push’ – he stopped and looked at me like “What? Don’t you see stupid I’m already doing it’ 🙂On the pushes to the backside, shifting connection to the landing spot on the other side of the wing should help him commit as you repeat the cue, and not look at you like you are crazy LOL
On the 2nd video:
Lovely connection here! The FC and spins on the wing looked great. The more you moved, the faster he moved so be sure to add acceleration to get even more speed.>>do you prefer me to post 1 video with ‘all games we played’, or separate videos for each game?>>
I am happy with whichever is easiest for you ☺️ you don’t need to worry about editing or anything, if it helps get the videos posted. Editing takes a lot of time, and so it is better to post it unedited than to delay if you are editing it.
>> you prefer 1 post with longer video/videos, or ‘spread it out’ for multiple posts on different days if I know I won’t be doing more training for the next few days?>>
If you have multiple videos to post, go ahead and post them all 🙂
>>– is it better to post ‘edited’ video with only games, or unedited section so you can see what is happening ‘in between’? Like reward/play/setup for next rep?>>
I love to see the in between moments!!! So, no need to edit. 🙂 plus that should be easier for you the post, less time spent editing. 🙂
Great job here!
Tracy
Hi!
>>In exercise 3 where was I supposed to be? >>
Which part of 3 – the jump versus tunnel? Yes, you will want to be closer to the jump but also the connection in that moment will override everything else. Getting that exit line connection into second nature will make a big difference 🙂
On the video: she thought the big lines were the best thing ever! Nice toy throws!!!
On the threadle wraps:
Yep, these definitely get you miles ahead!!!!
The decel was the magic on the first rep at :32. She was looking at the tunnel until you decelerate, then she easily found the jump.The push wrap was harder and doesn’t get you as far ahead. On this set up, I think it was angled differently so it was hard to have enough time to decelerate in position – she jumped a little wide at :45 because of that.
Sequence:
Nice blind 2-3 on the first run! She missed 2 on the 2nd run, probably because starting without a stay made it harder to set the line.She probably needs a verbal turn cue on the tunnel (couldn’t see the tunnel exit from this angle)
SUPER nice connection at :59 and 1:22 and 1:43 on the backside FC on jump 6!
Your transition was earlier at 1:22 so her turn was better. You can add a brake arm while you decel, to get even more collection there.Nice send to the tunnel, made it really easy to get the BC at 1:04 and the threadle wrap that 1:05 (accidental threadle wrap, but she was correct 😆)
You supported the line at the end after the tunnel more on the 2nd run and it looked great! You are about 5 away from the jump on the landing side there with the push wrap.
On the last rep with the threadle wrap at the end, you can send to the tunnel even more so it is even easier to get past the 2nd to last jump. Great job getting the threadle wrap there!!! You were a few feet past the takeoff side when she was jumping there which is a significant positional advantage!!! Yay!!!
Lovely work here 🙂
TracyHi!
>>Why did I think that 2024 would be walk-through challenge free?>>
Ha! The walk through challenge is the most fun (also, most annoying) challenge LOL!!!! But it is super effective for getting clear rounds!
[>In defense of my 2:40 walk-through, I did study the map ahead of time. Also, it is only 9 obstacles.>>
No worries! You don’t need a long time with an experienced dog like Enzo.
I do agree that he was wide over 1 and that set a different than expected line 2-3. I think that you can add a brake arm to your release at 1, then you won’t need a turn cue on 2 either.
When you walk the turn cue, though, work the timing of it coming as being when he exits 1. You were rehearsing it as he was over 2 (based on where you were looking) so that would be late.
For the FC 5-6, what can make it tighter is exit line connection: looking back at the dog after every side change. This is one of the 3 things to add to your walk through. You were rehearsing looking ahead, which widens turns (not enough side info) and delays the timing of the next turn.
You did do a tiny bit of exit line connection at 2:08, so add it throughout so it is well-rehearsed and second nature.
Yes to more turn cue for 6! You can add a brake arm to the send and that will get you a great turn. The timing would be when he lands from 5, which is also why exit line connection is so important so you can practice the timing of the brake arm cue.
You did throw in a brake arm during the run, but it was after he already committed based on forward motion, so it was late.
The other 2 things to add to the walk through are:
More speed
True verbals (meaning say them as you would on course)Walking it and being quiet is not nearly as good of a prep as running it and being loud 😀 It is hard to run during a walk through at a trial, so getting the correct pace and verbals into your bones at home will really help trials too!
I think not add motion was why he was a bit wide on 9 – you ended up a bit too far from the line. Adding motion into it will give you the feel of running him, so you can get close to the entry wing of the backside to set up a nice line.
For Enzo, you can move to the next sequence and add these suggestions to it. Or, you can re-walk it for Casper and run it with him!
Great job here!
TracyHi!
I agree that this went really well!! And I also agree that doing full courses requires more mental stamina for human and dog (mostly us humans though LOL!)Opening line:
Trust her understanding of the line and set it closer to where the turn is. At :12 and 1:38 you were on the outer wing so she jumped to her left (she was unsure of the release at 1:39). She did make the turn after she landed. Being closer to 3 on the lead out (standing near the wing of 2 closer to 3) will get a better turn, and thar sets up sending more to 3-4-5 which gets you up the line better to 7.You can cue the threadle wrap sooner at :27. The rest of the reps through there looked good!!!
Doing the full post turn negates the advantage of being ahead on the TW, so you got the front side of 9. Try doing it as a blind exit, where you turn away from her (rather than towards her) as she is committing to 7 and I bet that makes 9 very easy to get.
You moved away sooner on the next rep at 1:55 and got the backside (yay!) but using a rotation (like a spin) on the threadle wrap will make it even easier to get there.
10-11-12 looked great! Great weaves!
On the 13-14-15 line, you can use a brake arm on 13 but keep moving rather than wait for her. That will make it easier to get 15 each time. You kept moving nicely at 2:56, but she needed more connection (and less arm moving forward) on 13 to get the commitment. Good job staying in motion and continuing!
At :57, setting up the layering: the voice said get out but the rest of the body said tunnel.
If she goes off course, assume it was handler error (because it always is 🙂 ) and either keep going or reward. You deflated and turned your back on her at :59, which she perceived as punishment and also deflates. Notice how she slowed down after that and checked a lot. And she didn’t release with speed at the beginning of the next rep. Rewarding her for handling bloopers will keep her fast!To get the layering, the stronger cue of keeping your arm back more and making big connection really helped her on the next reps!
Also doing a fc 13-14 and a threadle wrap on 15 will make a big difference in terms of getting ahead. That will make it even easier to send her into the layering.
Great job here! Let me know what you think!
Tracy
