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Start line practice looks good here! You were both a little twitchy on the first rep LOL but then you walked away faster and she held the stay a lot better.
One thing to consider – it looks like you were giving her treats as she sat. It is not a bad thing to do, but it is something that will never happen in the trial environment… and we don’t want the or lack of treats to be something that tells her that there is no reward and potentially creates questions or overarousal. So getting in the habit of not handing her a treat for sitting will help transition the skill to a trial too.Nice work!
TracyYay! This is a hard sequence because the cues have to all be in place before the tunnel – and you got it both times. YAY!! At :20 (first rep) you were earlier: as she passed the exit wing of the wrap, you started the decel and right cues. Super! She saw and heard everything one before she went in. On the 2nd rep (:37) you were later – she was halfway between the jump and tunnel. So she saw the decel and heard the verbal, but probably did not see the shoulder turn so the turn was wider. The earlier cues definitely worked best.
Great job!!
TracyHi!
>We’ve been running at 18″ in class so I decided to try out 20″ for the first time. I thought her jumping looked great. Thoughts?>
I agree – I think the jumping looked great 🙂
>One item I took away from this sequence is she’s always looking for more information on where we are going next. We worked a wrap back into the tunnel and I had to leave earlier than what I thought otherwise she assumed she was going straight.>
Yes – with her stride length, the cues for a turn start the instant she exits the tunnel at the very latest. And if it was a jump? The turn cues would start at liftoff to the jump *before* the turn jump.
Looking at the turn on the jump after the tunnel here (especially because the sequence set up so much speed coming into it):
The 1st rep at :09 was late, she was already past the halfway point between the tunnel and jump. When you started the cues. The last rep was better but still little late – at :43, the cues started when she was a full stride past the tunnel exit.
The rep at :26 was the best one – the cues started as she exited the tunnel. And not surprisingly, that was the rep with the best turn 🙂And you were good about decelerating before rotating – that made a big difference for her!
Great job!
Tracy
Hi!
I am so excited that you both had a great time at Westminster! She looked fabulous on the videos!!! Happy and fast 😁 in that super noisy busy environment.
Standard was beautiful! JWW was also lovely!
>I panicked & did a sloppy BC to try & save it but my bad arms confused her and she came to the wrong side. >
It looked smoother than it might have felt. What happened was that you got the BC done at :31 but then looked forward, which cued her to stay on your left side. But she was happy and confident when you fixed it!
I am so thrilled with how she did in front of the big crowd. YAY!!!! You totally should stay floating on that cloud and enjoy the high!!
>Side note: She has 2 barks now. A soft, almost a lip-synch bark but with full facial expression – is this her trial-polite bark? Haha. She is also giving me a louder more insistent bark, if the treats are slow in coming.>
Ha!!!!! You can give the silent bark a different cue, like “Silent Movie” or “Inside Your Head Voice” or something 🤣😂
>I found a Back on Track blanket and got it for her crate at trials! She loves blankets! It’s pretty cool – like a comforter but small-dog crate sized. It was a pretty good price on Amazon.>
Perfect! And you can use it on yourself – I have used the Back On Track stuff to heal strained quads and a knee injury on me 🙂
>Do you think I should drop some of the FEO runs hat I have been doing and do 2 real runs so she has less runs per day? I’m conflicted because I want to keep it fun for her but maybe as the remote reinforcement games make it easier for her to leave her treats & have fun in the ring, I’ll need them less?>
It probably depends on what type of runs they are. The T2B and regular runs don’t seem to take up too much bandwidth, but the Premier classes have a lot more weird turns, so maybe fewer FEOs if you have Premier classes? Or if 2 Premiers are offered, maybe enter 1 so you can still do a fast and fun T2B a the FEO?
>Our next trial is a local trial, outdoors on grass. I was not going to enter because I don’t like the surface, one of the rings has uneven areas. But I thought I could use it as an opportunity to do “In & Out” runs or ask for a start line stay and release them to a toy quickly. Do you think that is a good idea for both pups?
For Frankie – when is the trial? The NYC trip was probably exhausting so if it is this weekend then yes, skip it 🙂 so she can rest up and recover. If Frankie likes the quick release to a toy, then yes you can do a quick in and out in a few weeks. And Bazinga can totally do it!
Tracy
Hi!
Registration opens on Friday (2/14) at 11am, so you can sign up here when it is open:
Have fun!
Tracy
Hi!
This session went really well! He got all of the rear crosses except 1 (that one was just a little disconnected).One thing that will help make it feel even smoother if is you start moving before he gets to you or passes you. You can be a bit further from the jump and toss the treat as far away as you had it here – then a he finishes eating it, you can start moving forward to the center of the bar for the RC.
The other option is to start with a barrel wrap before the jump (about 10 feet away or more) – that might feel even smoother! And you can mix in some ‘go straight’ reps so he can read the difference between those cues and the RC cues.
Great job here!!!
TracyHi!
Fingers crossed the cold weather goes away – this winter is already too long LOL!!The Serps are looking good from position 1 and 2! He had a little trouble with position 3 – the angle looked like a threadle angle, so you can make position 3 a little easier and also you can be more visible been the uprights of the jump.
The other thing that will help is if you are closer to the jump, so he collects to turn before he takes off. You were a bit too far from jump on the first side (he could fit his whole body over it before turning) so try to be close enough to touch the wing with a relaxed, bent arm. You were definitely closer on the 2nd side!
>Mostly just working on getting him to move faster. I need to remember to do more tugging at new/distracting places and when he’s fresh>
Looking at the parallel path commitment games on the jump and the tunnel – he was doing this really well and moving faster for sure! I think you can change the reinforcement to get even more speed – the back and forth with the cookie has probably maxed out on speed here because there is not a lot of running needed to get the cookie and also it is not that exciting 🙂 So you can use a thrown toy for the reward: what does he love? Fur tugs? Ball? Or you can use a lotus ball or something with food – you can throw it further and he will really be able to chase it and run run run 🙂
Nice work here!!!
TracyHi!
>Well Sunday did not go! The class was cancelled due to snow.>
Darned snow! I am ready for spring.
>This Saturday I have Knight scheduled for Speedstakes 1 and 2 and Jumpers on Saturday. Then on Sunday I have him scheduled for Agility 1 and Agility 2 and Jumpers. I can also do mulligans after each of these runs if I want to.>
That is a lot of runs, especially at this time of year when the pups might not be outside running around as much as normal. So feel free to scratch runs if the course is weird or if he is at all tired, or even if he does great and you want to end early on a high note.
> Figure in Speedstakes I will start him at a tunnel. Jumpers at the weaves or tunnel. Sunday start at dog walk, Aframe, teeter, weave poles. Also thinking about starting at a jumper before the contact. Your thoughts.>
Excellent idea, especially because of how much he loves contacts! Fingers crossed the course design has lots of contacts and tunnels near the ring entry!
>You might have done this, but you can mix in a run or two in class where the rewards are outside the ring (then run to them at the end). The other runs can have rewards in the ring with you, but mixing in rewards outside the ring can keep those remote reinforcement skills sharp!>
Yes, you can totally do this. It is totally up to the handler so you can decide in the moment what you want to do, based on what you think will be most successful.
Have fun! Keep me posted!
Tracy
Hi!
How was Westminster? It looked wild!You couldn’t find it because I forgot to post the recording. SORRY!! It is here now:
Hi! Thanks for the update!
>then he watched as I gave it away with his leash for the others and he received it at the end of the run.>
This is a super valuable experience for him – very smart to show it to him at the match!
>I need to use a brake arm more, it is something I don’t do enough.>
The brake arm has been a great addition to the toolbox – we can keep moving forward while also getting great collection (without having to do nearly as many spins or other rotations).
The fun match video was fun to watch! I love that they had music playing and people cheering for you and Callan!
The barrels run was great fun – a really nice way to establish connection. There was a threadle wrap at the end of it (:23) – remember to use deceleration on those to tighten his line coming into it. Decel is actually a critical element of the cue but it is also not discussed or used enough there 🙂
>The one time I lost connection with him he didn’t take the jump as I was rushing and thinking ahead, connection, connection, connection!!>
Yes, I think this was at :31 – he gave a great reminder to make big connection back to him on the tunnel exit. You can keep going when that happens to maintain the flow. The rest of the run looked great! And you made a big adjustment on the 2nd run at 1:18 and later at 1:53, fantastic connection and he had no questions. YAY!
The standard run also looked really good!
>He missed his down contact in his running A frame in the last clip so that is something to work on. I also need to practice a soft turn cue from the Aframe or other pieces of equipment, other than jumps. Do you have one and if so what is it?>
I use the same soft turn cue as I do for jump (left/right) and the timing of the verbal & physical cues is pretty early – before the apex of the a-frame, for example. So you can work the frame by giving really early cues but rewarding him for hitting the contact zone correctly 🙂
>I was very pleased with his behaviour and Startlines all day! 😄 Interesting that he barks as running the fun barrel racing but not during agility courses.>
Yay for his good behavior and start lines! I think he looked great! About the barking… it looks like he has to think a lot harder for now in the jumping and standard runs than he does in the barrel racing runs. When he is more experienced, he won’t have to concentrate as much in the jumping/agility runs (it will be automatic) and you might get some barking there too 🙂
>I have the UKI Cup this weekend. Only doing Speedstakes. We do have a fun run on Friday. It will be busy with two rings going! Wish us luck!>
FUN!!!! Have a blast, I know he will be terrific! Send updates!!
Tracy
Hi!
>With the line-ups where she was still standing.>
Yes – you can ask for a stay in that moment, 50/50 are decent odds. It is her current version of ‘all business’, perhaps? She is lining herself up facing the jump, so maybe see if she can sit in that spot. It might work great! Or not at all 🤣 she will let us know.
>I saw the rabbit fur lotus balls at Clean run but wasn’t sure how to attach a bungee to it. >
I took a thin long bungee from another toy and tied it around and the center. Not the best looking toy out there but definitely functional LOL!
T
And Lift has been meh on any kind of lotus toy that doesn’t have fur – there are a lot of fabric/canvas ones out there that I found.
Hi!
He did great with the countermotion serp exits! You can start moving forward even before he is passing you to challenge him to continue to the barrel (be sure to look behind you and indicate the landing spot as you did here).
You can definitely move to the advanced level where you are in motion across the jump and passing the barrel before you release, so you are on the takeoff side as he gets to the takeoff side too.
>Should I have used his wrap cue there?>
If you are doing this as a regular serp then yes, you can use a wrap verbal (but it is not really needed because the physical cue is powerful). You will also be able to apply this to backside serps with wrap exits, and it will eb the backside verbal for those (wrap verbals not needed).
For the advanced level, you can probably pivot the setup 90 degrees so it runs lengthwise in the room, giving you more room to move.
The lateral lead out also looked good here – you will get a smoother line to the barrel if you can get him to focus ahead (and not look at you :)) before the release. You can try it by slowly putting your hand & foot into position, pointing towards the barrel, and wait to release until he looks towards it (I don’t think he has a verbal cue on this but maybe I am remembering incorrectly? We can also work on adding a verbal if you like).
If he struggles to look at it with the hand/leg cue, we can put a target out kind of like the beginning forward focus game on the cone: a toy or bowl placed on the entry line. Then that toy/bowl moves around the barrel so he is looking at the barrel and not at the toy/bowl.
Great job here!!
TracyGood morning!
>I think he liked having more space to practice this!!!>
I agree, he definitely likes having more room to move here! Fun!
He did well with the serp versus the threadle here – you can add a bit more movement, progressively working up to being able to run through it over a bunch of sessions. As you do that, remember to stay close to the jump – one casual arm’s length away. You were a little far away on these. He got it, but as you add movement the position relative to the jump becomes even more important.
And when adding movement… if something goes wrong, assume it was handler error and either keep going or reward. On the rep where you had a blooper (at 1:11 where you did a serp physical cue and a threadle verbal), so he served), you indicated error (note the change in body language and the drop of your right hand) and he jumped up at your face.
Even giving him cookies on the way back to try again won’t override the frustration/arousal shift when you indicate an error, so the one of the ways we build resilience is being sure to not indicate errors.Note the difference when he didn’t take the 2nd tunnel at 1:40 and you praised and rewarded (that was also handler error and probably above his current pay grade coming off a threadle 🙂 )
Nice work here! Have fun adding motion!!
TracyHi!
>I realize we really need a stay. It’s a work in progress…baby level at this point. And sometimes it’s decent, and then at other times the whole concept is gone. Which is ok at this age. When there’s no stay, I change to games that don’t need a stay, or just end the session for a while.>
Stays are definitely hard! And I think they are mentally expensive – so you can start a session with a stay or two, then switch to cookie toss starts.
On his stays here, you were walking back to hand-deliver a treat. That can work, but definitely mark to let him know you are coming back so he doesn’t move. Also, when doing lead outs, you’ll be able to build up distance and duration really quickly by marking and throwing the reward back to him. So when you are working the threadle slices, for example, you can go to position (have a cookie ready in your hand), stand still, say your ‘I am throwing it back’ marker then toss is just behind him. That builds a lot of value for you being progressively further and further away 🙂
The threadle slice session went well! He really loves to target the hand 🙂 Popping up to target it will go away as soon as we add motion but it is wonderful how much he loves driving to you on these. You can add a barrel to the jump as a ‘wing’ because he will always see this with a wing. Since this is going so well, you can look at the serp and threadle next-steps where we do add a bit of handler motion.
He did a great job on the minny pinny too! He was very careful to look at the bars and get the striding correct in both directions – good boy! And nice job with your placement of the reward to get the last barrel to have the soft turn too. Yay!
>I didn’t remember to hold his collar, and he’s still not a fan of this (and I need to spend some time improving his emotional response to holding the collar)>
This game is a good way to build up some collar holding love – You can line him up at your side with a cookie, then put one hand on his collar (or one finger) then immediately let go so he can move. The line up with the cookie before the collar touch makes a big difference (most dogs don’t want to be moved around by the collar). And since he is small, you can do this sitting in a chair so that you are not bending over as much (bending over can add pressure that he might not love). As he gets happier with the collar holding, you can add in saying the verbal before letting go, but you don’t need to do that until he is very comfy with your hand on the collar.
>Feel like I’ve fallen off the training wagon a bit, but looking forward to working towards the skills we need for these latest games.>
No worries, you had work and life stuff, and he had a little break. He looked strong here so you are totally on the right track.
Great job here!
Tracy
