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Good morning!
>Whew! Perfect!! Get It! Will be my dead toy marker, love it. Less words for me the better LOL!>
You can eventually change to a separate dead toy marker if you want to or if she seems confused. I have never seen dogs get confused though, unless the ‘get it’ is only ever used with something like a ball throw or frisbee throw. That is not the case with Sunnie. And less words is better because then our brains have a good chance of using them correctly and that helps the dogs truly learn them 🙂
The parallel path game is going great! It is hilarious how much value we can build for a potholder LOL! But it is a good way to think about how to build value for eventual agility obstacles when she is older. Shaping for the win!
You can add more and more distance to this game of course so you might need to take it on the road when you run out of space in her training room. That will be a good way to refresh the value in new places (start closer in a new place and see how much she ‘remembers’ the pot holder).
In the home space you can add starting right next to her but walking slowly, so she can drive ahead of you. That will set us up for the rear crosses!
The giant crate wing wraps looked great! She has a ton of value for this too – I think you will both have fun with Turn And Burn! The pop up crate might be too big for that, so you can use something a little smaller for that game.
Great job here! Have fun!
Tracy
Hello! These games are off to a great start!
Backing up: We can make it more independent by changing the placement of your reinforcement. I think you had the cookie in your hand the whole time, so it looks like he was following the cookie more than thinking about backing up 🙂
When you are working it on the flat – put one cookie down just underneath you, then when he backs up, you can toss the next treat – no cookies delivered from hands, and your hands don’t assist in moving him backwards.
When adding the mat: start with him having all 4 feet on it then lure his front feet off with a cookie in your hand. Then freeze your hand (don’t move it back towards him) so he can offer stepping back with his front feet: then toss the treat to him.
The turn and burn around the barrel is also going well. This is a fat moving game but also needs a lot of precision:
Be sure you are starting close to the barrel (close enough to touch it, no distance added yet) with him lined up at your side before each send. If you were too far and just tried to send (like at :22 and :58), things went sideways because the cue was not as clear and he is new to this game.
So after a reward, you can tug him close to the barrel before getting the toy back, then line up, then send. Go for the precision of the line up and send with connection, because those are really good reps like at 1:22! When you didn’t have that, he got frustrated and started leaping and grabbing.
>Ziv loved this although coupe of times he had trouble going from toy reward back to work->
If those were the moments where he was leaping, I don’t think it was a toy transition question – it was more of a send lacking clarity question. The prevision lineup will help smooth that out.
For the next step of the game, add the line on the ground that moves closer to the start point after each successful rep or two, so you can cue yourself to do the FC earlier and earlier. Without the line, you will default to the same timing and we want to get the FC happening sooner and sooner.
Nice work here!!
Tracy
Good morning!
Keep me posted on how his belly feels after class. Charley Bears treats are very visible and don’t roll, so maybe they won’t upset his belly? I break them in half so the pups don’t take too long to chew them.
The parallel path game went great! He is very good at hitting his prop and was focusing forward to it – he didn’t look at you until after he hit it. The distance away from you didn’t seem to matter. And he was happy to do it on both sides of you, no weaknesses on either side. SUPER!!!
So 3 next steps for this:
– You can add more of your motion, getting further ahead and moving a bit faster: can he still find the prop and ignore the increased excitement of more motion?
– You can go all the way to the cookie reward with him and don’t start moving til he is ready. When he starts moving, he will be next to you: will he drive ahead to the prop? This will set us up well for the rear crosses!
– Take the parallel path game like you did it here to a bigger location so you can add more room and distance!
The countermotion also went well. You will get a snappier drive to the prop if you don’t loop him back to the send after tossing the reward. Instead, you can call him to you, do a bit of ready dance, then send him. That gives him a clearer start indication so he will move even faster to it, and that will let you start moving the other direction even sooner.
Great job here!
Tracy
Good morning!
Definitely a wise choice to get this game in before the rains come!! And the session went SUPER well!! Fun!
>also noted the arm back connection parts in the demo video…. And I still noticed I need much improvement there. I was trying!>
Most of your connection here was really lovely with your eyes on her eyes and your arms down while you moved. For example:
– dog-on-right from the wing to the tunnel at the strait of each rep was consistently connected and with a low arm. And so was dog-on-left from the wing to the tunnel when you switched sides. Nice!!! She had no questions.– the exits of the blinds at :22, :29, :44 and :52 were lovely and connected. You can see the lovely connection more easily on the other side: 1:01, 1:08 & 117. In other words: every single one. Happy dance! She was able to turn nice and tight on those with no questions.
– you were good about staying connected when she exited the tunnel to go to the wing, but I think the rep at 1:16 was the best connection from the tunnel exit to the wing. On that one, your arm was back to her and she could very easily see the connection. Your arm was a bit more perpendicular to your shoulder on the other reps (a right angle in your armpit 🙂 ) which makes it harder to see your connection.
– the race tracks were almost perfect: low arms and lots of eyes and verbals delivered to her. Lovely!
So let’s compare all of that great work to the little blooper moments. She is too young to keep commitment going if the connection shifts the cues, so she had a couple of questions:
At :45 she didn’t go to the wing after the blind. In the video you mentioned it was because you said yay, but it looks like it was mainly because you pointed with an arm and that turned your shoulder away from the line, so she followed your shoulder turn. Compare to the next rep where you were more connected to her eyes (not pointing :)) and she found the wing with bo problem, at all 🙂
She had a similar small question at 1:37 on the race track – it was the only time you pointed ahead of her and it turned your shoulders, so she looked at you to see what you wanted (then went and took the correct wing).
I grabbed screenshots of those subtle details so you can see how the line of your shoulder changes. The link is here:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1LEisBDxsDUxnPe56IybeHbbPPKrlY0BD5I2cLS4cdyw/edit?usp=sharing
For now, you can keep working on getting perfect connection 🙂 but thankfully, she won’t need you to be perfect as she gets more experience. None of us humans cane be perfect which is why we reward the dogs sooooo much for finding the lines 🙂
Great job here!!
TracyGood morning!
I hope your internet is back. I hate it when my internet goes out!!!
The jumping foundation grid looks good, I am super happy with 99.9% of it. He seemed to have no issue at all with the angled jumps and his form is looked balanced and powerful. So what is the .1% we can tweak? 2 minor details:
– Always aim for the tuck sit where his front feet stay stationary and his brings his back end in towards them to sit (instead of the rollback sit) The tuck sit like at 1:21 and 2:04 were great, for example – really lovely put off into the jump!
The sit at :59 was more of a rollback sit and you can see his positioned was not as ready for power – fortunately on that rep you rewarded him, so all of his jumping work was done from the tuck sit.– the other tiny detail is while his form over 1 and 2 is spot on, he is diving with a low head over 3 because the toy is really low. It is a good choice and your timing is good, but the profile of it (low to the ground) is too low. So I suggest a toy change. Do you have something like a jumbo sized hollee roller:
https://www.chewy.com/jw-pet-hol-ee-roller-dog-toy/dp/38460?utm_source=google-product&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=19996370614&utm_content=&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=19996373038&gbraid=0AAAAADmQ2V3XKpEzG4YuFH23i3NvYsd35&gclid=Cj0KCQiA7rDMBhCjARIsAGDBuECwKK-V-xid1_Mx5WMcTeV1TGmzhRFmKgRif4Uz-cL8tcuZ7UY_jWoaApwlEALw_wcBThe large might be good too but the Jumbo for sure would work.
The proofing game went great! Serps were no problem at all, and he balanced to the tunnel really well to. Your arms and verbals looked really different on those, which made it clearer for him.
Adding movement to the serp looked strong – nice arm position all the way through without pairing the release with arm motion. And good rewards thrown back for the stay – you are the absolute BEST about getting stay rewards in!!! Truly, you are so good with mixing in stay rewards and it shows with how good his stay is!
I was proud of him for getting the threadle right away even after a bunch of serp and tunnel reps! You set him up well for success – the only tiny blooper was when there was a toy on the ground behind you LOL!
>much as I tried, apparently I can’t help myself on the threadles to keep my arm back and not cue the tunnel with it.>
It is a small detail. But yes, you can keep reminding yourself to keep that arm locked back 🙂 You don’t move the serp arm or shoulder at all because you are rewarding from the other hand, so I know you can convince your threadle arm to stay locked back too 🙂
Excellent work here!!
Tracy
Hi!
The wrapping is going really well – she is doing a great job ignoring the bowl to go around the cone. Yay! Easy peasy! She seemed to be looking at the cone and not at the bowl, so you can add a ‘look’ cue to this: when you point your hand, you can also say “look” (or any verbal you want to use :)) to add in the cue to look at the cone.
Since this is going so well, you can leave it and check out the turn and burn game that was posted on Monday! She looks ready for that! And it is fun 🙂
She was so cute giving hugs and kisses at the beginning of the 2 toy video 🙂 She did really well going back and forth to the different toys. Yes, this means she is definitely able to do Turn and Burn because the toy is the ideal reward for that 🙂
The toy race video was HILARIOUS! It was like she knew you were trying to cheat to win, so she didn’t want to go get the cookie you tossed hahahahah! Love it! She still easily got to the toy first with excellent speed and forward focus. Good girl! She is moving really really fast here, so you will want to save this game for floors where she can really grip. The wood is a bit slippery, so you can play this on a rug or you can take it outside to grass or dirt.
Great job here!
Tracy
Hi!
Backing up is off to a great start! Click/treat for you for keeping your hands really low – that kept her head in a good position so you were able to get her backing up really well already! You were also quick with your rewards, and that really helped. Super!!!Keep going with this method and you can throw the treats further and further back to get more steps. And you can also play with the advanced level, where you are using a target: she starts with all four feet on it and at first you only lure her front feet off (then let her offer stepping them back on). Then you can get all 4 feet off and see if she can step her back feet on. This is often the easiest way to add more and more distance, because she will be looking for a “destination”.
Nice work!
Tracy
Hi!
>I’ve modified our AM routine a bit to minimize Ripley’s frustration since we had some build-up leakage this weekend at the UKI Festival. So, Vibe gets his kibble in his giggle ball while I train Ripley, then Ripley gets his pickle with peanut butter/squeeze cheese while I train Vibe starting with toys.>
Perfect! Balancing things when bringing a new pup in to the house takes a bit of choreography, but it sounds like the new routine is going well.
>I went ahead and did the full 360 style this AM to start with something more arousing to also work on tug play. >
It was a true turn and burn session! Super fun and super high energy! His commitment is looking good and he is happy to finish his wrap with you taking off for the FC relatively early. Yay!
You can alternate energy too: big energy during the rewarding and tugging, but you can also teach him to drive hard to the barrel independently of you by asking for a bit of a lineup: Get him to lineup a your side (cookie lure is fine), gently hold his collar, start your verbal… then let go and let him explode to the barrel. That will teach some amazing explosive fun out of the ‘quiet’ moments like stays. And it will prevent him from sending himself to the barrel without you LOL which we were seeing a bit of at 1:02 🙂
Because this is super high energy, try for fewer reps/shorter sessions with breaks: I’d say by the 1:32 mark here, he was tired and at 1:52 you were asking if he was ready and he was not sure if he was LOL! 😂😝 He will continue to work and play because he is that kind of dude, but the body language there looked like a break would be good to relax for a bit, then come back and do a few more high energy reps later.
Great job here!!
Tracy
Hi! So fun to get to the training center and have all that space!! He is looking fabulous!
Look at him tugging so nicely on the pill bug game, even after he ate a treat! YAY!!! That is a huge thing!!!
The pill bug game is going great. It is great to see you running again! The pot turn reps and blinds all looked great. I loved the addition of the other tunnel, where you did the blind and sent him through it. Super fun! And your connection was gorgeous! If you get back to the ring rental again, you can keep going with this and all the other variations you can think of (without hauling tunnels around too much haha)
The zig zags are going well – his stay looks strong (nice job rewarding) and he is easily able to change his leads. I think the lead changes will go better if you take the TnT out of the picture for now 🙂 He was a little locked onto it so he would get the first lead change, then he seemed to think it was all about finding a line to the TnT LOL!!! So rather than worry about that here, take the TnT out of the reward and reward from hand, to get him following the cues that you show him. That will allow you to show him all the variations on the lines without him trying to get to the TnT 🙂
He is doing a great job with all the motion in the jumping grid! Yay! He maintained his form even with the dragging toy, then with you running. Super! You can angle these jumps a bit – the change of visuals might be challenging in a good way! And to prep for what is next in jumping, keep the first 2 bars low and the 3rd bar can be higher.
Great job here!
Tracy
Hi! He did great here! This is a hard game and he was really successful. YAY!
>I think I caused the first question! >
Yes – on Rep 1 on both sides, you can rotate more at the waist to cue the serp before the release, like you did on rep 2 and beyond on each side.
I think he needed to see the cues sooner on those and also on the tunnel & threadle reps. What I mean by that is you were walking to position and doing the arm cue basically simultaneously with the release, which does not give him a lot of time or room to make a decision.
A clearer way to do it is to be moving into position with your serp arm already back the whole time (you will feel like you are holding a tray of drinks or something haha) then release when you get to position. That way he sees the arm cues a lot sooner. Same with the threadle and tunnel cues: have your arm back for the threadle the whole time, or shoulder closed for the tunnel as you walk to position so the arm and release are not happening at the same time (this will also protect the stay so he doesn’t start to release on arm movement) .
That will help get him to 100% success!
Great job here!Tracy
Hi! This session went great!!!
>Definitely was way too far to start, >
I don’t think it was too far – I think a little more connection was needed on that very first rep. If you watch your right arm, it was a bit parallel to you and even pointing ahead a little bit. That blocks connection and turns your shoulders slightly away from the line, and a baby dog won’t ignore that and take the jump anyway 🙂
When you added more eye contact and your arm further back on reps 2 and 3 and beyond, she did great! No commitment questions! On the first rep when she was on your left, you had a low arm and lots of connection and she found it easily! Super 🙂
On the other reps on the first side, as she got comfy you were adding the arm pointing ahead a bit more – resist the temptation LOL! Keep your hand pointing behind you to her nose so she can see your connection. That also keeps your shoulders pointing to the line to support it.
The were only one little blooper at 1:29 , where you said tunnel but turned away from it before she passed you and saw it, so she came with the shoulder turn (good girl!) That was a one-time-blooper, your line and connection to the tunnel on all the other reps were perfect 🙂
Great job here! Keep adding distance away from the jump, and you can also add in being way ahead of her, as well as meeting her at the tunnel exit to see if she will drive ahead.
Tracy
Hi!
>She will learn thru different games that the bowls can be used in many ways. >
Yes, as long as the contexts are different. And be sure to not obsess too much on one game (like stillness) with the bowls because we don’t want the presence of the bowls to be the cue for stillness, if that makes sense.
>Will we ever be able to use the bowls with “obstacles” for wrapping for example like the cone or we will figure out a different approach? >
We don’t need the bowls anymore for the wrapping games – but we do use them here and there for other games (that don’t involve stillness, she will be moving past them to a target). She is incredibly smart so I know she will figure it out 🙂
>I’ve never used a dead toy before. All I know is that it’s pre placed.
While I love Get It – I use that for thrown cookie or toy. That won’t be confusing?>You are welcome to have separate markers, but I don’t think you need separate markers. The dogs are fine with get it meaning thrown or placed, as long as it is out ahead. They know where to look and that makes them happy. You can totally have separate markers, but a lot of folks (most folks?) with all the markers tend to mess up the markers and that gets frustrating to the dogs. My dogs have a get it that covers toys/treats that are out ahead moving or placed and there is no confusion. They have a lot more awareness of what is happening and don’t need the extra verbals.
Looking at the video:
Super nice progress with the backing up already! Yes, luring her forward then letting her step back while keep ing your hands low definitely helped her start to figure it out.>the balance pad & a wedge along with my mechanics.>
The balance pad and the wedge were probably too hard at this early stage. Good job ditching them for now! You can take a low, stable mat and have her back up to it: start with all 4 feet on, lure her front feet off, then let her step back with just front feet. When she can do that repeatedly, you can lure all 4 feet off and reward her for stepping back with her back feet onto it.
Nice work 🙂
Tracy
Hi! All of these games are looking lovely! The suggestions are mainly about head position (his, not yours haha) and markers:
He did great with his parallel path work! He has a ton of value for it and is very happy to go to it. He wants to watch you, though, and we want him looking forward at the line. Easy fix: As you keep adding distance away from the prop here, change the ‘yes’ to your ‘get it’ marker. The ‘yes’ marker gets the dogs looking up at us and the ‘get it’ keeps them looking straight. So you can say ‘get it’ just before he gets to the prop (rewarding him for committing to the line to go to it) then throw the treat straight, before he looks at you.
Nice job with the countermotion! This is where the yes is effective because we want him looking at you after he hits the prop. The only thing to add here is a moment of engagement with you before you send him. Rather than loop right back into the send for the next rep after a reward, call him to you. Then engage with him with a bit of the ready dance 🙂 then send to the prop. That gives him a clear picture of when to start driving to it, and makes it easier for you to add more and more countermotion too!
Backing up: He is doing so well with this! Yay!
Because he is short and we want you to keep the reward hands low (at or below your knee the whole time) so he doesn’t try to look up at you while backing up: you can totally sit on something (a low stool or on the edge of a chair, so there is enough room to lure him forward between your feet?). That way you a rest your elbows on your legs, dangle your hands down low so he keeps his head low, and just flick the cookie towards him when he backs up. That will keep his head in a more natural position which will lead to even more steps backwards 🙂You can also play with the advanced level where he is backing up to a target like a mat or low bed!
Great job here!
Tracy
Hi!
>However, watching back I feel I am pushing in too fast too soon on her.>
Yes, you were pushing in a bit too much and pushed her off the line at :14 and :22. The placed reward helped her a lot… but then it didn’t matter what the handling was because she was going to the reward no matter what 😂 😆
So for the next session, don’t try to throw early or place a reward – set the line by running to the center of the bar then moving to the other side when she is past you so she can commit and turn 🙂
For the ladder grid:
>I tried her closer with the five feet spacing but she didn’t seem to have the power to get through it without the double tap now. We changed it back to four feet and she seemed to do better.>
The sorter spacing was definitely better for now! She did not double tap, but she is also really young (6 months-ish, right?) so the power will continue to develop and she will be able to go back up to 5 feet when she is in a more adult body 🙂
Also, be sure you are not facing her on the release. That might have been cueing collection and reducing her power on the bigger distances.
But because she is so young, this doesn’t need much revisiting at all 🙂 Maybe every 2 weeks or so – you will see that her form won’t really solidify until she has a more mature body.
Looking at the Diamond game: this went really well!
Gorgeous connection on the racetracks in both directions!! That looked super smooth through the session (and fun!)The tight blinds were really good too – she is VERY strong at reading the beginning of the cue, so even when you were late she was able to produce a nice tight turn. But when you were earlier (trusting her commitment and starting the blind when she was halfway to the wing) like at :59, her turn was GREAT! So definitely keep trusting her. And be sure to look all the way back to her as you finish the blind: when you were not looking back or switching the toy from hand to hand, she would look at you for more info. So as you finish the blind, look back to her eyes and say the next verbal directly to her – that will keep her looking at the line.
Great job!!!
Tracy
