Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
Hi! Lots of good work here!
Looking at the Set point – His step in is going well! I think you will see him use more hind end power when he is looking straighter to the bowl (with you next to it) or the moving target, and when the bowl is further away.
What was the distance between the 2 jumps? We might want to tweak it, but it was hard to tell because the food bowl was too close for him to power in and out of it. He needed to shorten up in the gap between the jumps to land at a trot to the bowl – so the bowl should be about 12-15 feet from jump 2 for now, so he can land, take a full running stride, then slow down to the reward.
And when you lead out, stay right next to the food bowl instead of being lateral so he doesn’t think about turning to you.
Since this requires a lot of strong stay behavior, definitely keep throwing back rewards for the stay like you did at 1:16 and 1:35 and 2:15 for example, to help convince him to stay while you lead out .
We really want the stay because we are trying to limit the number of jumps – and broken stay reps still count towards the total # of jumps. So you can do as many throw-back rewards as releases forward, to help build up the stay 🙂
Wind In Your Hair looks great! The ‘lazy’ part of it was good – remember that you can throw the reward as soon as he looks at the jump after exiting the wing wrap, rather than waiting for him to arrive at the jump. That will help him jump in extension, without looking back at you or touching the bar.
He did really well when you added speed at the end, so you can add more speed! A little more distance between the wing and jump can be added (6-8 feet or more). And you can start closer to the wrap wing rather than send – that way he can drive further and further ahead of you (but be sure to throw the toy as soon as you see him looking at the bar and not at you).
Smiley face also looked really good! You had super nice connection and sends to the wing and verbals – he committed really well and you were able to be very much on time with the FCs (before he arrived at the wing).
>I set it up far from the shed so it only got 3 sets of tunnel bags and 2 wings tonight.>
I think the tunnel was cold so it didn’t move much and didn’t need a ton of bags LOL! But definitely as it warms up, he will need more bags 🙂
Great job here!
TracyGood morning!
It is great to see grass and not snow!!His step-in to the first jump looks really good! Nice and coordinated, and using his rear nicely.
The step through the gap and step out is where we can tweak things:
Because he is a nice size 🙂 You can change the distance from 5 feet to 5.5 feet then 6 feet. I think 6 feet will be the destination for now, so you if you think he can handle going directly to a 6 foot distance then you can skip the 5.5 foot reps. That will give him more room to power through on his hind end.
Also, the MM is too close 🙂 causing him to collect in the gap and collect over bar 2 needing to land at a trot to get to the MM. So, if it was 10 feet or so away from jump 2, you can move it another 5 or 8 feet away. The goal is that he can land from jump 2 and do more one full stride at a run, then decel into the MM.
And since he is level-headed and coordinated (he seems like this is natural plus I am sure you have done lots of foundation with him for both of these :)) you can move to a toy reward. A stationary toy, followed by using the moving target toy.
Nice work here! Let me know what you think!
TracyHi!
>The good news….we have lots of opportunity for improvement>
Ha! There are always fun things to add and she was a really good girlie here!!
For the wrap pre-game, she was not always sure which side of the barrel to go around so you can emphasize your mechanics to help her out: line her up at your side, gently hold her collar, say the verbal 4 or 5 times… then let her go. That will help her learn the verbal separately from the physical cue, and she can fly around the barrel more independently. For now, always line her up so she goes around turning towards you and not away from you (and you get to practice on both sides). Since she likes the toy, you can also use a tug reward for this!
>Our practice was a comedy of errors….the barrel blew over in the Oklahoma wind,>
That made me think of the of the showtune: Oklahoma, where the wind comes sweeping down the plain… LOL!
>the neighbor dogs yelled at MissL and she had to correct them, the toy I was using was an EPIC fail!! The toy was WAY too high value, hence she pulled that fur tail into 2 and ran off with me chasing behind her. We attempted again and I obviously didn’t have the 2 tugs securely attached together and MissL won round 2 of taking off with the toy. >
Well we don’t want things to be boring LOL!!!
On the moving target game:
>She obviously has ZERO start line stay (are you noticing a pattern with my dogs???)>
Holding a stay with a fabulous toy is hard. So you can split is down to smaller pieces, with the goal being to release before she moves out of the stay: you can hold the toy in the air – and if she holds her stay, release her. Then lower it to the level of your knee – and release her before she breaks. Then lower it past your knee – and release before she breaks. Then down to your ankle level, then to the ground, etc. On the last rep she was able to hold it when it was on the ground (yay!) but on earlier reps she was releasing as soon as the toy wa going or as soon as it got to the ground.
Separately, you can reach her to stay on a mat or something with lots of cookie rewards, to help her have defined boundaries when we add more excitement to it 🙂
Great job here!
TracyHi!
>Hope it’s OK to combine them in the same video.>
Absolutely! Whatever is easiest for you is great 🙂
>For the set point I didn’t do the breaking down with stays first as I know he will stay in front of an obstacle. >
Yes, his stays looked great! And of course you can add in reinforcement for them to keep them looking great 🙂
>I only did these 2 reps as this is the very first time he has done that exercise. Just want to make sure everything looks OK in regard to distance/set up before I do it again. >
These looked good! You can play with moving him a tiny bit closer to the first bump, maybe just the width of 2 or 3 fingers. He moved through it really well. The toy was off camera – was it flat on the ground, stationary? His head was a tiny bit low but that will change as you add the moving target (which you can add now :)) and as the bar and a bit of height gets added to the jump (no rush on that).
>I tend to be a bit conservative with repetitions on these as he’s still a baby.>
I agree with that, for a variety of reasons. Mainly, we want to teach the mechanics properly while also allowing their brain and body to mature. Time is on our side!
>For the next game, well I don’t think I should be left unsupervised with anything that involves throwing but I didn’t get it over the fence with the distraction sheep that were there so I’ll take that as a win.>
Ha! You can always practice the reward placement by running it without the pup 🙂 Running AND throwing properly is definitely not easy LOL!!
>In fact probably a hole in my training is that I don’t throw the toy enough and I do want him getting used to it coming from different places. >
You can mix up the placement: sometimes have it placed out ahead, sometimes throw. Placing it out ahead is very helpful for when the distance is really big! And throwing it is useful for being able to fade the lure of the toy on the line. Your cue to throw it is very early: as he exits the wing wrap you can throw it as soon as he looks at the jump. That way it will arrive before he looks back at you. And if you have other people around, you can have them throw it.
He seemed to have no question when you added your motion and did indeed have fun! You can 2 two small variations on this one:
– hang out at the wing for a moment longer so he catches up to you, then he drives even further ahead as you takeoff and run up the line.
– send to the wing from further and further away, so he has to find the jump from behind you. This helps the pups look the line and resist the temptation to chase the handler.Great job here!
Tracy
Hi! He did really well with the sequence in class, and he has come a long way with ignoring the other ring! Looks like there were people walking around back there and he ignored them.
>instructors hanging coat still got him. So the more different stuff I can expose him to the better – yes?>
Yes – new weird thing. So also yes – keep exposing him to new weird things 🙂 One way you can do it is in regular life and pattern games (because we don’t always have access to the agility context). So even if it is putting something new & weird in a room then bringing him in while playing pattern games, or in your yard, etc – having him on leash and playing pattern games can help him learn to ignore new things in the environment. And being on leash prevents the opportunity to go to the new weird thing to check it out, because we would like that behavior to go away 🙂
>Didn’t stop to fix any of my errors here and no hands in the collar.>
That was great!
>This bit was from yesterday – did some pass the leash until we go to the leash.>
This went well too – the rep at the end seemed particularly hard after seeing you put the leash down and then having to move away from it after the tunnel. He slowed down a bit but got it right. Super!
>Attended a seminar in this space on Saturday – he did well, but no real take aways from the teaching. It’s still fun to get out among different people and dogs.>
Even without big takeaways, it sounds like you still had good rehearsals and he was successful 🙂
Great job!
TracyHello and welcome back! Happy birthday, Julee!!!!
She did great with the moving target game here! My only suggestion is to see if she can hold the sit long enough for you to be moving the toy for a few steps before you release her (I bet she can do it :)) The releases here was before the toy was really moving.
When that is all good, you can add it to the jump and then to the set point (after introducing the set point with a stationary reward).
Great job!
TracyHi!
>The full session is included in the video>
The full session was great! No more editing needed. It was fun to see her engagement and she did great!
>I’ve decided I’m probably going to use a down at the start line for Ellie. When I put her in a sit she almost always lies down as I lead out, so I decided to just go with the down since that seems to be her preference.>
I totally agree that we want a position that is natural and comfortable for her, and the down is great for that! The exact spacing before jump 1 in a down is a little trickier (she will need to be further from jump 1) so for grids, you can try a stand stay! She held her sit really well here but she was leaning forward, so if you use a sit you will want to move her back a few inches so her head is not over the bar 🙂
Looking at the video:
A couple of setup ideas:
For now, have the first jump be a bump so there is no height challenge. And we may put jump 2 at 8” for a bit to get more hind end action involved 🙂
Having them spaced 5 feet apart is a little too close for 20”, try 6 feet on the next session.What she was doing here was lifting from her front end to get over the jumps (and her hind end use was happening after that, when she landed). She was more pumped up with the toy, so it was a little more obvious. The bar ticking was because of the front end pull 🙂
So before we add height (which will get more lifting from the front and less of the more desired pushing from the rear), we will get her pushing off from her rear. The moving target pre-game will help that a lot: you can work it first on the flat with the slow moving target then over one low jump. Then we add it to the set point and see how it changes her form. It should create more push from the rear because it is asking for more power and lowering her head position (and it is FUN :))
Nice work here! Let me know what you think!
Tracy
Congrats on Ellie joining your crew! She is adorable and I am glad she and Mason are BFFs 🙂
>Ellie is a toy fiend and is always looking to see if one might be thrown for her, but otherwise she doesn’t naturally connect that much with faces. When out in the yard playing, she still often doesn’t come to the correct side if I’m looking over my shoulder at her with my arm out.>
We will definitely look at how we can help her ‘read’ connection! We don’t want her to make direct eye contact with you, but we DO want her to process where your upper body is cueing lines.
>I want to be picky about good jumping technique given Ellie’s rounded back. She is about 20″ tall, but she’s only 28 lbs and to me she looks like a dog that might end up being more comfortable jumping 16″ instead of 20″. In her lessons she is jumping 12″ and has become consistent at keeping the bars up. I’d like to get her up to at least 16″ as soon as you think she is ready so that she learns how to use her body at that jump height. Side note: the rehab vet confirms that her back is not causing her any pain.>
Click/treat to you for getting the rehab vet on board before doing jumping work! We will definitely look at her form – I see you have the set point posted, so we can get started!
Tracy
Good morning! Great to see you and Check back, I’m excited to see him!!!
>We absolutely do not have a reliable stay. Would you recommend skipping the games that need stays such as the set point, or changing the game to lead out as much as possible, or sending, or…?>
For the smiley face and wind in your hair games, no stay needed – woohoo! For the wrap versus tunnel game, no stay needed: start with gently holding his collar. For the set point, you can send him through it for now as long as
he doesn’t get too cranked up with excitement
LOL And we will continue building up the stay!Have fun 🙂
TracyGood morning!
This went well – for this game, set up spot didn’t really matter, it was more about introducing the moving target concept. And you wont need as many reps when you do the set point, 5 total will be plenty.We did get good info about the toy position, though – when the toy was too close to the bump, he ticked the bump. So when we add this to the set point, you’ll want to start the toy at least 12 feet past the 2nd jump.
Nice work here! Onwards to showing him the set point!
TracyGood morning!
Sounds like the 2x2s are going well!
> Assuming we don’t get another set of snow on Sunday (right now they are in the “could be 0-50″ and anywhere in MN” phase of forecasting)>
Yep, at last check, snow is predicted in Chicago and WI on Sunday night. Sheesh!!
>RCs – I told myself to run in close to the tunnel and did try but I think I needed to go in closer so that she could easily drive ahead of me. But yay for her not turning off the jump, us getting tangled up in confusion in front of the jump, or her spinning the wrong way!>
Yes, and also with more experience, she will recognize the cues more quickly so it will be something she can accelerate through.
>Next SS opportunity is Fusion UKI May 3-4. Nov SS is end of the day on Sat and 2nd class on Sun. She is entered in both plus Jpg & Snkr on Sunday. She has Stefanie’s seminar Fri AM so wanted her to only have 1 class the next day.>
That is plenty of time! You can consider a real run perhaps, but no need to decide now.
>But it all worked out and I remember thinking that it was great she didnt’ throw a tantrum when I was in her way on the backside slice and then whoops! Around the next jump she goes. LOL>
She was great there! And going around the next jump was more like staying on the line to the backside, a skill we will really like in the future 🙂
>I am picking up a custom made Tugawaycuwin racoon head tug at the Invitational. >
Ah yes, I am also going to do some dead animal shopping LOL
>Looking back at all 4 runs it is interesting to see her behavior at the start. >
Yes – it is fun to track what is happening. It might simply be a shift into not needing to self-regulate, perhaps she is feeling really comfortable in that environment?
I really love the ease of use of the food box – mark, run in, feed treats, bark (make sure she has swallowed), out for more agility. And she had no questions about leaving the food box behind. It was smooth, fast, effective!
Safe travels!!! See you later!
TracyGood morning! Thanks for the update!
>He did see Harmony yesterday. She palpated him and found couple tender areas and massage them out. Harmony believes that these issues were residual from the chiro treatment. >
It is possible that they were residual, but it also might be part of the soreness he is working through. I am glad he is on the road to feeling better!
>To be on the safe side Knight will be seeing her again next Monday since he has a class tomorrow which he will just have fun. (Not going to work hard with him). Also setting up another chiro appt in 2 weeks to be on the safe side. >
Great! Following up is good to track how he is feeling. Since he was still showing some pain, I recommend skipping class this week – even trying to keep things easy might be too much (he might do something like put himself in the weaves LOL) and since he has been showing a pain response for a few sessions in a row, skipping class til there is no more soreness or tend spots will be the quickest route to feeling better.
>FYI I know he is feeling better because he is engaging with me at home more than he has since Montana passed away. Yes I am doing a happy dance!!! But being cautious!!!!!!!>
Yay! That is why skipping class til there is no more soreness might be the best route: he is feeling better and we don’t want any setbacks by doing too much too soon.
>Now keeping my fingers cross that someone does not attend one of your seminars (Nail it or Young Dogs) at Christine Fleischmann location in May so we can see you!!!!! and hoping to get in a Paws for Thought.>
Fingers crossed here too! That would be fun!!
Tracy
Good morning!
He did really well with the moving target game here!! His stays looked really good and he says he was not early on that one rep hahahaha
The length of the toy was perfect. He REALLY likes the toy itself, so his head was really low. That means we might consider a bigger toy (like a giant holee roller) that has a higher profile off the ground, to get his head a few inches higher. You might have a toy that is about 6” or 8” ‘tall’ when it is on ground, and not as flat? We want him focused nice and low like he was here, but just a slightly higher head.
This game gets applied to the jump work, so after you introduce him to the set point (posted last night) you can add this as a moving target reward.
Great job!
Tracy
