Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
Good morning!
Wow, good boy turning away! And he looked really comfortable – it is so fun to see the development of mechanics with the pups!!!! Great job!!! This is something to revisit in both directions, maybe put it up for him once a week? That way he can keep rehearsing the mechanics and latent learning can work its magic too š
Looking at the deceleration video:
>>or the deceleration to wing wrap Obi was turning wide and going more into the center of the jump.>>
I think on some of those slightly wide moments, your deceleration was a little late so he was already committed to a takeoff point and turned after landing. My 2 favorite reps in terms of deceleration timing were at :26 and :41. On both of those, you showed the deceleration when he was maybe halfway to the jump, so he collected before takeoff on both of those! Yay!
About the center of the bar versus moving over to the wrap side: your position plays into that too. On the rep at :26, you were running to the FC on the outer edge of the wing so he was able to move over to the wrap side of the bar. Yay! On the rep at :41, it looks like you were more in between the uprights, so you were on his line a bit and that pushed him over to the center of the bar more. So as you decel, maintain your connection like you did here (it was strong!) and stay outside the edge of the wing so eh has room to move over.
You can also add more distance between t he wing and jump (maybe 20 feet if you have that much room?) so you have time to show the decel. He is fast and has a big stride, so using competition distances will help sort out the timing.
On the āoutā video:
He found the āoutā jump well on those first 2 reps! And then of course the jump was āin playā so he was gravitating towards it especially if your shoulders pointed to it for a heartbeat.
Your physical cue of closing your shoulders forward was good at :29! And reset cookies are fine for coming back to you after an error.To get him to *not* take the jump, close your shoulder and you can call him (which is a good contrast to the āoutā cue) and the reward from your hand. And if needed, you can walk through it so he can see & hear the difference. For the next session, you can start with the not-out reps to establish that *not* taking the jump is a possibility too š
Great job here!
Tracy
Hi!
>>You had mentioned that a down stay is an option for the start line, but not for grids. Many of the MaxPup games start with a wing wrap. Would you use a down to start these, assuming without the collar grab? Or would a down only be for times that you lead out? >>
Yes, a lot of the games start with a wing wrap. That is partially because we can add the verbal for the wrap before we send the dog to the wing, and with a collar hold we can do it without motion at the same time. Verbal *then* motion will create a stronger verbal than verbal *and* motion. And it is partially so that we don’t have to worry about the stays & releases because young dogs have a limited mental bank account for stay behavior – we generally can’t ask for a lot of stays.
The stay requires a clear release, which is fine… but the problem we humans have is that because we are thinking of the other parts of the game, we tend to release while at the same time use a hand motion or connection or foot motion. And that causes the release to become the movement or connection and not the verbal, so the stay behavior degrades (in our eyes) because the dog begins to move when we move a hand or look at them, for example. But we humans think the verbal is the release and the dog thinks the movement is the release. That creates the cycle of broken stay – marked as incorrect/negative punishment – lack of clarity – stress in the stay. And we definitely don’t want that!
So if you use the down stays with the games that start with wing wraps, you will need to be hyper-careful that you are not starting to move at the same time you say the release word (the release word can be the wrap verbal). And if he starts to break his stay, he is telling you that he thinks the release is something different than what you think the release is š
>>What about for this weekās Zig Zag game? Would a down stay work there? If so, where would I start the dog to make sure he has room to get up without knocking the bar?>>
The start line is a good place for the down as the stay position because the dog has 15 feet to move out of the stay and organize for the takeoff. I only recommend sits or stands for the grids because with those positions, you can start him nice and close and get his hind end engaged immediately.
There are extra mechanics when moving out of a down stay: standing up often has a little weight shift forward and then to jump he has to shift his weight back. If he is in a down, he can’t push off from his rear immediately and is likely to hit the first bar with his front feet. And putting him further back from the first jump will bring him into the grid on his forehand more than his rear – so the easiest answer is to use a sit or stand š You might be able to use the down on the wing-only zig zags but he won’t have time to organize from the down when a bar is there.
Let me know what you think!
TracyHi!
She did well here, the bowl does make it a little different! You can move the bowl further away (3 or 4 feet away from the edge of the board) so she doesnāt have to have quite as much self-control to ignore it and stay on. The board š Then when she hops into position, you can reward her on the board, then release her to the bowl for a 2nd reward. That will help her look forward more and less at you. In another session or so, we will be having you move a bit too so she will also look forward more then too.
>>Can we start learning the weaves along with this MaxPup class or do you think it will be too much?
You totally can! She is old enough, and the weaves donāt need more than a couple of minutes a couple of times a week.
>>I signed up for your independent study weaves class but if you are going to offer a video class, Iād LOVE to do that! >>
The weaves class will remain independent study for now, there are not enough hours in the day to add video review to it LOL!
āØ>>I definitely plan on taking MaxPup4 to give her the best foundation to be ring ready.>>Yay! That one will probably start in June.
>>doing FEO with her in May but I wanted to see if you think it is a good idea or if it is better to wait until we take MaxPup4. I am having ssecond thoughts about the FEO plans, but I think the tunnels fun match might be a safe bet.>>
The main thing about FEO is: will she play with a toy in that environment? If so, you can do some FEO. But if she wonāt, I suggest waiting a little longer because without toy play, FEO can be a little stressful! For the tunnel fun match you can check and see her toy status and also maybe they will let you use food?
>>There is a trial in May that the location/setup most matches our practice location (yard). It is 1 ring, on grass, no cover. It is a fairly small trial. She has been at this location before and we have used the practice jump there. I was thinking of doing 1 FEO class and just doing maybe 2 jumps and tug & get out. >>
That is a possibility – do a morning class (it will be HOT in May with no cover and that will impact her more than usual because of the other things in the environment). And donāt ask for a stay – just do some tricks, some jumps & tunnels, be finished and have the toy visible the whole time.
>>but I want to get her crate-to-ring routine more established before the trial. If I donāt have that ready, I think I should hold off.>>
I am not a believer in a crate-to-ring routine because the environment is way to fluid to have a routine. And if the environment changes and you canāt do the routine? We donāt want the dog to stress. I am a big fan of having a toolbox of things to use to support the dogs, because we know the environment is always different and always changing. It is much easier to be able to help the dogs that way š
>>The other trial is our Boston Terrier Nationals. It is here in FL and they have a tunnels only fun match. Just all tunnels & fun. It is indoors and on mats. She has been in the building but only once.>>
Fun! And if she is happy and will play? Cool!
>>I really need to get her in a group class so that she has more experience at other locations.>>
I suggest doing this or taking her to a seminar or two before doing any FEO at trials – in classes or seminars, you can use food and toys to help ease into the different environments. And in classes and seminars, you can use other people as ring crew and judge to help prep her!
And when preparing my young dogs to trialā¦ I always put them in a seminar or class that is a level or 2 below what they can actually do. I want them to be on fast, flowing courses as youngsters and not doing crazy backside threadle international stuff to prepare for novice LOL!
>> I have been making the most of the trials that I bring her to. We use the practice jump at all the trials we go to and I have been asking friends to stand near the jump or walk near the jump like a judge would do, and she does not seem to care about them. So that is a start.>>
This is a good start for sure! The hardest part of trialing is being able to move through the start gate, take the leash off, and eventually NOT have the toy or treats. MaxPup 4 addresses that very specifically to transition into that š
The other thing to look for are UKI trials. They are MUCH more user-friendly for the FEO experience: smaller, flowing courses for baby dogs, you can do FEO in any run (so you can pick a cool time of day), and also a lot less expensive LOL!! I know there are a bunch in Brooksville š and also some great ones in Georgia, SC, and NC if you are in a mood for a road trip. My whippet baby Ramen is almost ready for FEO so we can meet up for a baby dog road trip!
Let me know what you think!
TracyGood morning!
The lap turns looked great! I think a bit of latent learning from the tandem session has kicked in, plus your position of being stationary and facing her was powerful!She drove right into your cue hand: perfect! My only suggestion is to be sure to keep your feet together til she arrives at your hand, then step back with the hand & leg next to the and *then* turn her away.
On some of the reps your other leg was back, and on some of the reps you were stepping back *and* turning her away at the same time (which turned your upper body to the wing before she was past it). That is why she sometimes went to the other side of the wing.
Great job here! Let me know how she does with the tandems!
Tracy
SUPER job breaking this down and building it back up to help her out!
I think she was having trouble processing her mechanics & striding with all the speed on the first run (plus the big visual of the a-frame on the way to 5). She had a little trouble stepping in to 1, had trouble with the 1 stride and took the bar at 2, then when she landed from 4 – she looked at 5 and went around it, perhaps not able to figure out the mechanics with all the speed.
She sorted out the 1-2 striding better on the next rep but still had the question about 5. Breaking it down helped everything! And you can approach each sequence like that: moving more slowly, just doing a light jog so she can process her mechanics with less bandwidth devoted to your motion. And you can break it down first before trying to run the full sequence, to help her out. And be aware of big visuals in the environment, as that definitely draws bandwidth away from her processing her own mechanics. That way you will be able to get to the smooth, fast, finished product more quickly š
Great job!!
TracyGood morning!
Looking at the first rep:
>>The blooper rep was totally on me. I mean all bloopers are but I just had sloppy handling! Should I have been running closer to the tunnel so she would drive ahead on the last two jumps? >>
On the first rep at :06, you were looking forward and very lateral, so she didnāt see a cue to take 4. Compare to the 2nd and 3rd runs where your connection and lines were much clearer! Do you need to be closer to the tunnel or jumps? For her, not on a simple line like this unless you were setting up a rear cross. You can stay connected back to her and take off up the line to get ahead š
>>I should be doing that or having her figure out how to drive ahead of me after she comes out of the tunnel>>
This is also a good skill to work on, so you can use the setup as a training opportunity to make sure she knows how to drive ahead as well.
>>they definitely need me close in some instances and I want them to have the confidence to go ahead or take something ahead.>
Yes – in some cases (like really tight turns or weird lines) being closer is best so you can show the lines. But these lines are pretty straightforward, so you can play with being way ahead, as well as getting in close to the tunnel so she drives ahead (for when you canāt get ahead :))
The blind cross reps were also really good here especially at :50 and 1:13 – those were your earlier BCs, where you were finished before she took off for the jump. The others were good too – she was flying up the line there and your connection after the BC was clear so she changed sides really well!!!
On the 2nd video – great job working each element separately!
>>The first exercise I clearly could not figure out my hands and upper body. >
This was at the beginning when you worked the tight turn on jump 2 to the tunnel and it went really well! You can lead out more so you are at the wing sooner, which will make it easier to get her on your right side to go into the tunnel. Having to move into it was probably what was making you feel like your arms were moving too much.
The blind on the landing side of 3 looked great! So did the cross on the takeoff side (it was a FC and that worked well). Because you want to drive her to the tunnel and then get to your next position without having to run backwards to get it, this is a spot to actually lead out less! Maybe lead out to the jump and send to the tunnel when you are doing the BC on the landing side 3 after the tunnel. And for the FC on the takeoff side, you can lead out even less so as she arrives at the tunnel, you are still on the takeoff side of the jump, making the side change very easy.
Yay for the RC!!! Those reps looked really strong, super clear RC lines and nice drive back to the tunnel.
The full sequence looked fabulous! Nice distance on your send to the tunnel at 2:16 (great connection and verbals while you were peeling away to the blind at 2:17) – that got you to the blind with great timing and position. She was flying!
The BC start on the next run looked great. The RC and the side changes after the tunnel also looked super strong, and your connection was very clear on both of these runs. Super!!!
My only suggestion is to add deceleration into the wrap jumps at 2:22 and 2:47 – a tiny bit of slowing down as you move forward when she lands from the previous jump will help her collect for the wrap. She was a little wide on those because you were accelerated, so the decel will get the good collection there too. You donāt need to do t he FC sooner, just adding the deceleration will naturally get the collection.
>>On the plus side, she stayed dialed in when the Amazon Prime delivery driver stopped at our house. High five to Kashia for that!>>
Haha, yes!! I was distracted by that but she did not look at the delivery at all. Yay!
Great job here!!!
āØTracy
Hi!
I think what happened here was that the session progressed from almost no motion (hers and yours) to a lot of motion too quickly for you both – she could do it if you were stationary without the tunnel and at the end she got it with you being stationary after she exited the tunnel.We can break it down a bit so that he can get it when you are both moving:
– before adding the tandems, help her process turn info on the tunnel exit by doing two things: call her loudly when she is still a solid 6 feet before the tunnel entry. And, do a BC so she exits and you are connected over your other shoulder and she changes sides rather than lock onto the wing. That will help her to learn that the LOUD name call before she enters means āsomething happening on exit watch the momma!ā And you can be moving while this is happening – we donāt want lack of motion to be the cue.When she can do that:
– add your motion first, with her in a stay at the tunnel exit and you are walking up the line with steady slow motion – no stopping to get her to come in. And you can use a tug toy as a reward for coming to your hand, that can be really exciting for her!
– when she can do it from the tunnel exit and come to your hands with you in steady motion, you can add sending her into the tunnel. Your motion will remain the same (slow and steady, lots of rewards for coming into your hands – the tug toy might be more motivating and also more visible)When she can do that, you can add more and more of your speed! It might take a couple of sessions to build it up with motion but that is fine š
Nice work here! Let me know how she does!
Tracy
Wow, she is doing great with the bang game! Yay!!!
You can start adding your motion: as you cue her to go into position, start to sloowwwllllly walk forward and past the target so she gets used to you moving while she is stopping in position. It will be sooooo slooowww for now to help maintain the success you have here. Then you can either toss a treat back, or release forward, or go back and deliver a treat (using a marker for each, so many words š¤£š¤£)
>>somehow I paired it altogether but not sure how to get rid of it. I released her faster in this video so I didnāt get the rear leg movement.>>
It is possible that she is just getting frantic because she doesnāt know what else to offer, so she offers ALL the things? She might not even realize she is moving her rear leg. So you donāt need to leave her on there for too long – you can mark and reward pretty quickly, and praise early as well even if you donāt reward or release right away (to get more duration). I think having you moving will also help, because maybe she was doing the leg thing because you were behind her? Her leg was dropping off the side a little on this session because she was looking back at you after hitting position.
Great job here!
Tracy
Hi!
I think part of what was happening was a side preference for turning to her left – she turned left on all the reps š So when you wanted the left turn like at :14 and :20 – there was some pressure on the RC line there and you were moving sooner on those reps, but turning to her left was easier in general.
On the other reps where you wanted the right turns – the right turns away from you are harder and require more brain processing to get the mechanics. The info can be sooner at :03, :08, :26, and :32 and then on the last rep to the right as well. Ideally you would be fully on the other side of her having completed the RC before she enters. You can help get that by moving the wings further away (15 feet or more) to give you time to actually get to the other side of her before she enters – she is fast!
And you can also use a placed reward that is somewhat visible but also gets the right turn – that can help her with the mechanics of turning away from you to her right at high speed.
Nice work trying to sort this out and keep it fun for her! Let me know how she does with more room to show her the side change and the placed toy!
Tracy
Good morning!
>>Iām not completely sure there was a lot of value for the mat or if she was just running to the MM.>
I think there were plenty of deliberate his of the mat, which means there is value and she was not just running to the MM š
>> I only treated in 1 direction and held & released her from the other side. >>
You can do a back and forth approach: MM clicks when she hits going away from you, and a cookie toss when she hits on the way back to you.
>> I am thinking the next session I click when I see all 4 feet on the ground after the mat?>>
Yes, you can do that! The other thing I would add is now elevating the mat by attaching it to something that is maybe an inch of two tall (like a piece of wood). The purpose of that is to make her footsteps even more obvious (to you both) because she has to step up and over the mat.
>> I see Hot Sauce had a tiny pause after the mat. Was that just shaped by careful clicking? >>
Yes – she had to walk/trot off the mat and was slowing herself down to do that and NOT leap š She now has the full running dog walk, no leaping and no pausing LOL!
>>What would the criteria be for a non-click (besides a leap)? >>
Missing the mat entirely would be a non-click. I like to see a 1-2-3-4 footfall pattern where each foot should be visible enough for me to count to 4, and I try to click on foot 4 – and if I can see the 1-2-3-4 patter then I can also see if the dog is preparing to leap or not š So I might reward a 1-2-3 pattern in the early stages if there is no leaping, or even just front feet in the early stages. The no-leaping rule is the most important in the early steps š
>>I was not clicking when she did not get all 4 paws on the mat in this session>>
When the mat is a bit elevated, you will see her put more feet on the mat so there will be more clicks. On the reps here where you didn’t click, I think she didn’t really purposely hit it so it was fine to not click.
Great job here!
TracyHi!
Very cool to work from home and play with the dogs š The weather is looking good!On the rear crosses:
>>turning left was not our friend. I know my mechanics arenāt perfect, but heās pretty happy to turn right, so I think I need to do some more work on just left/right verbals?>>
Yes, I see a definite right turn side preference (that is totally normal). The reps at :03, :07 and :36 were late getting on the RC line, so he was fine to turn right there.
On the right turn RCs, the timing at :12 and :22 was good – you were changing sides behind him before he took off and that helped. You were too early at :17 and pushed him off the line (he had a bit of BIG MAD there, good job giving him the toy).
Your timing on the left turn RCs at :27 and :31 was really good, much earlier than the previous left turn RC reps. But he still confidently turned right: maybe it was partially because he had been rewarded turning right, or partially because he is a righty, or both!
So yes, you can do more verbal work but mainly I think he needs a little help sorting out the mechanics of turning away from you to his left (it is like writing your name with your non-dominant hand). A placed reward will make a massive difference because it will provide a focal point. You can tuck in a MM or toy on the landing side of the left turn reps and that will really help him (I think on the demo videos I have a toy placed on the right turn RC reps for my lefty dogs :))
On the serps:
>I also had Mochi out there because thatās something I didnāt do well with her (work with the distraction of another dog) and because I was being lazy. I thought he generally did pretty well with everything going on!?>>
He did pretty well but it was too much pressure – note how much he looks at her and how she is shaking the toy and chasing his line. That draws bandwidth in his brain away from the processing needed for the other things going on and devoting mental space into not running into her and ignoring her movement. The errors in the session were related to her being right there or chasing his line. And with baby pups, there is not a lot of bandwidth to begin with LOL!!
You can ease into the pressure of having other dogs around by having her in a down stay or on a station – but no toy shaking or chasing her brother around LOL!! That is especially important because if there is an error and you communicate that it was incorrectā¦ he might not actually know what the error was because mental bandwidth being devoted to ignoring the other things in the environment. So with less pressure in the environment, you will see the little errors go away because he can process his mechanics and the cues better. The little errors are things like not seeing the tart wing at :12 when you didnāt step to it, or at :14 and :20 when he was looking at her and not at you.
On the next session, you can also start to add a little more distance between the wing and jump – and if he can still find the jump easily, you can start to flatten out the angle of the jump a bit.
Nice work here!!
TracyGood morning! These are looking really good!
>>I might have made it too easy because we finished the game in just one session and thatās not really our style.>
I donāt think it was too easy! You and Mason nailed it in one session – that doesnāt always happen with our pups but it is fun when it does! He did have one question at :13, when the wing was further around on the tunnel side and you were looking ahead more. He got it on the next rep, with some really strong connection from you too!
The timing of the FC from the jump to the tunnel can get sooner eventually but for now it is fine to let him go a little wide on the jump – that way you can be sure he is definitely committed to the jump
The short tunnel worked well here, so for the next session you can start with the longer tunnel and the ends turned down because it is a bigger visual to go past so turning down the tunnel ends will make it a little less exciting š
On the rear cross video:
He is getting the idea of RCs! Yay! The verbals can totally help and your connection was good!!>>He seems to be thinking a lot as he heads toward the jump. >>
Yes – he was waiting for more info before committing to a takeoff decision. That means you can give the RC info sooner:
I think you were waiting for him to pass you before getting more strongly on the RC line to the center of the bar. The RC reps were at (:05, :13, :36, and :43) and on those you can see that the RC pressure started when he was maybe halfway between the tunnel exit and jump – so he was reading the pressure, but if we can get it earlier there will be too positive outcomes:
– he will turn before takeoff
– you wonāt be as far behind : )So we can work on getting you right on his tail for the RCs: you can get closer to the tunnel exit before he exits (feel free to send to the start wing from a position already near the tunnel exit or skip the start wing and just send into the tunnel). As he is exiting, you are running directly forward to the center of the bar from very close to him: that cues him to go past you and RC, and you will be ahead of him again after the RC š
Related to this:
>>I noticed that Mason exits on the outer edge of the tunnel, which is probably expected. The unexpected thing is that he takes the jump on that same side of the bar even though I have the tunnel exit lined up with the center of the bar, if not even facing a little toward the other end of the bar. Am I pushing him over to that side? >>
I see what you mean! Being on the outside of the tunnel is fine. When he is approaching the jump, it looks like he is moving away a tiny bit to get a better visual of the cue: viewing it with a little more distance gives him the fuller picture. Note that he is looking at you while doing this. So basically he is saying: I am not sure if it is a RC or not, so I will get a better view of the full picture of the cue š I think starting the cue earlier by getting on the RC line sooner will help him drive straighter on the line to the jump.
>>The middle of the dog walk is beyond the jump. You can see part of the ramp in the video. He has never paid any attention to it before, but maybe it is adding a bit of pressure.>>
This is entirely possible that a bit of mental bandwidth is being taken up by the dog walk ramp in front of him. I am sure part of his brain is saying ādonāt run into that, it would probably hurtā š But I donāt think it was impacting him negatively or was too much pressure.
>>Collar grabs seem to create a lot of whining, pulling away from me, and frustration, so Iām starting with a reset cookie>>
Try to get it on video if possible so we can see what the antecedents are. I like to have the collar hold firmly in the toolbox for a variety of reasons (the top one being a safety thing in off leash sports: it is so useful to be able to stand there and hold the dogās collar). To help reduce the arousal or frustration of the collar hold, you can line him up with a treat, put your hand on his collar (no pulling back or ready-set-go or anything), give him another treat, then let go. Ideally it just becomes a happy part of the line up (we donāt hold him very long at all at the beginning) because it is very neutral.
Great job here!
TracyGood morning!
Strong session here! He is really getting the idea of moving ahead and doing rear crosses! And the added play between reps made it even more fun for him.On the GO reps, you should move more the line, rather than stop and throw. This will accomplish two things: we want the acceleration to be built in as part of the cue, and also he will get used to you moving while he has to sort out his jumping mechanics.
The rear crosses are going well – using the right verbal only is better than GO + right, because they mean different things šand we want him to respond to the first cue he hears. On these, you were using more motion forward on the line and that was great – you donāt need for him to pass you before you are moving up the line because your motion on the RC line will cue him to pass you and to do the turn to his right. You can see that in action at 3:08, for example, where you were moving up the line pretty early (in a good way!) and he drove ahead and turned right. Yay!!! So keep doing that and adding more and more motion on the line. He doesnāt need your dog-side arm to point ahead on these, the motion and connection were all he needed.
Great job!
TracyHi!
He was able to find the jump each time with you being close and putting on pressure on the line, so that is a big win! There were 2 reps where he went past the jump, but that was a combo of him driving to the toy holder and your feet facing that way.
On the GO reps, you can throw the reward sooner: as soon as he looks forward, rather than wait until he is at the jump. He will look back at you if it I not thrown by then š
>>He did great when he didnāt realize the toy was pre-placed, but we failed twice after that so I had Carole stand out there with it. >>
The placed toy was definitely trickier, because he was locking onto the toy. It is likely that the toy placements (especially with someone holding it) have always been paired with going directly to the toy – so to make it easier for someone to hold it/throw it or have it placed, you can build in a lot of balance reps and use a marker. For example, on this rear cross game, you can have the toy in the same place (or held in the same spot) but on some reps you cue a GO or a FC wrap. Then you can throw a different toy or the holder can throw it. And, you can add in a marker which says the placed toy is now available (like a āget itā) to help eliminate the confusion about when to go to it or not.
You can tweak the game a little so you are right at the end of the tunnel when he is exiting, to be moving forward to get onto the RC line. That will add more opportunities for him to work closer to you, plus it will show the RC line sooner. At :46 and 1:29 the physical cue was not showing RC and he was turning to the toy š The rep at 1:07 was actually really good even though he turned left (when you wanted a right turn RC) because all the physical cues said left and he was watching the cues. Yay!
He did really well at 1:43 and 1:51 where you had some good pressure on the line! So we can keep adding the pressure (you donāt need to do RCs every day though š) and also mix in FC and GO lines too as you now start to jog up the lines to add more speed.
On the 2nd video:
He was having trouble reading the serp line a bit at first – he might have needed to see more upper body rotation or be a little more in front of the jump. Sometimes they just have an anti-serp day LOL but then he got it after a few reps. The tunnel reps were easy for him! He did well with the placed toy for the threadle but this is another place to add a marker to tell him when to get the toy.>>I honestly thought I was standing in āthreadle positionā for those,>>
Yes, you can be a little further over by the entry wing so half of you is visible outside the wing, that will help when you add motion.
>>The stays are still a work in progress. I am trying really hard to stay connected, but not sure I did that great of a job.>>
You can try 2 things to make sure you are not pairing arm movement (he released on that a couple of times) or re-connection with the release:
– you can walk to your position waving your arms and looking back and forth, like you are leading a marching band LOL! And while that is going on, say the verbal release. So basically, it is all movement all the time and not an individual movement paired with the release.
– you can lead out holding a very full cup of water in the dog-side arm, and release without spilling the water. That will tell you how much arm movement is happening on the release, because you will feel the water on your hand šDo this on just a one jump lead out so you can work those without any complex discriminations. Let me know how it goes (it will all be entertaining LOL!!)āØāØGreat job here!
Tracy
