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Good morning!
On the serps – you can get her to come in more to the jump while you move if your upper body is more in strike a pose mode 🙂 That means you can swing the dog-side arm back and extend it away, which open your shoulder up and rotate your upper body to face her and the jump. You were ‘closing’ your shoulder forward towards the MM which kind of cues her to go past the jump.When you switched sides at 1:28, your upper body position was much more of a serp! Yay! Because adding motion is hard for her too (especially with the manners minder) you can help her by rotating the jump towards her so she can see the bar more easily. Plus you can use a less enticing reward target, like an empty food bowl. She was getting it by the end but we would like more success in the beginning too 🙂
And in all of these handling games, if something is going wrong: you can totally use reset rewards because of the possibility that there are handler errors happening 🙂 That would be praise and a cookie for lining up with you again. That will help keep her in the game as you sort out mechanics. Note how she left to go sniffing in the first half of the session – there were a lot of failures and very few rewards, so she was getting stressed about not knowing what to do. Reset cookies really help that, and turning the cup to make it more visible will help too.
The proofing game went well! Your serp position was really good esepcially at the beginning – you can have your serp arm even further back to rotate your shoulders towards the jump (and towards her) even more. And keep it back 🙂 as the session went along, you were not as open as you were at the beginning:
Compare the last serp (1:24) where your shoulders were pointing to the tunnel, and your dog-side arm was down by your leg) versus the first serps where your shoulders were pointed back to the jump and your arm was further back. To really clarify the serps when moving, have your arm at a 90 degree angle away from your body, so it extends away with your elbow locked. This will also help when you add in the threadle where the arm swings back even more.
She found the tunnels really well here!!
The layering also went really well! There was not a lot of room behind you to give her a big acceleration to the line, but she was more than happy to accelerate any to find the jump. Great job with the thrown rewards, that really helped her look onto the line! When you revisit this, y can set up the mirror image and see if she can do ti on the otehr side as well. And you can go to the advanced game which adds the tunnel into it 🙂
Backside wraps – nice job! She had lovely commitment to the backside of the jump even as you moved forward past it: click/treat for you BOTH! The verbals when repeated for the wraps do sound funny but they are very effective 🙂 And I love how she adjusted to the GO line at the end even after all the backside wraps. Super! You can use a toy on this game more – that will help keep her more engaged and less interested in cookie-hunting on the floor.
Great job here!
Tracy
Good morning!
>Switched to food and things went so/so. >
There were a couple of food reps here that went well!
>Still seeing hesitation for the “Go”. I know that I was late with the cue on some of them so tried to get better on that. >
She had small questions based on handling info for the Go lines. On the Go lines, you were really connecting (yay!). On some of the reps, you were also decelerating and putting pressure on the line towards the jump, so she was hesitating to sort out what you wanted her to do.
A good example of that is at :21 – she saw you starting to pressure in toward the jump, so she was trying to figure out if you wanted straight or RC or even backside.
Compare to the go at :45 – your line was straighter with no pressure in towards the jump, plus the ball was in play. Nice rep there!
So to keep the Go lines straighter – keep accelerating with connection straight past the jump. A placed reward can help too, if throwing the rewards is hard to do without accidentally putting too much pressure on the line.
>Gave her a break and ran Jack rewarding with the balls. Then tried the more advanced with Jazz and ball for the reward. More drive and also more laps >
She definitely liked the ball! Very motivating! No worries about the laps for now – it is far more important to get the motivating rewards into the game and work on getting the toy back faster in different sessions (like in the house) and with lots of trading for really good stuff.
>Since she isn’t driving forward it’s challenging to get the line for the rear crosses set up. >
The rear crosses went really well, she was able to find the correct line here! Finding the wing after the RC was a little harder, you had to get up there to show it to her, but that was mainly because it was new to her.
> Realized I wasn’t sure of the handling/verbals for the advanced sequences – >
You were using left/right which is a good choice, but might actually be cueing a turn that is too tight for what she needed here – she can turn nice and tight!
For example, you cued a left turn at 1:06 and she produced a beautiful turn . The wing was just a little too far away for such a nice turn, so she didn’t take the wing. Good job rewarding anyway. On the right turn cues, you accelerated ore and got closer to the wing so she took it.
Because of her ability to turn tight, you probably not need verbal cue for the line to the wing after the RC – you can let physical cues do the work there 🙂 Eventually that line can be obstacle names.
>I tried not to repeat things – even though I was changing the end part, the start wrap was always the same. Didn’t seem to cause any sticky behavior although I didn’t ask for a sit/stay before starting as that seems to be a sticking point. >
That was great! Tons of rewards even if things didn’t go entirely to plan, no repeating the same things, and nothing that indicated she was wrong. No freezing! She has frozen up before even without a stay, so this was a big win!
>No hesitation for the tunnel – made sure there was light coming through as I think some of the hesitation could be from dark tunnel entries.
Yes, that worked really well. Plus you were supported the line to the entry with motion and not peeing away, so she had no questions.
Great job here!
Tracy
Good morning!
>That too high dog-side arm totally bit me this morning at the USDAA trial in Jumpers. Super simple jump on his line out of a curved tunnel followed by another jump and then a BC to get a slight turn to the left for the jump after that.>
Oh no! Darned arm! I have been watching some of the EOTT and that high arm is leading to the same errors (coming off lines). The dogs just can’t see the connection and line that well, leading to errors. It is really easy to see from my armchair quarterback view 🙂
Congrats on a 59 point snooker run! That course was HUGE! It is like they took a normal course and spread it out because the opening distances were just ginormous LOL The wraps looked good – I could see the brakes and exit line arm keeping it really clear for him!
>The exit arm totally saved me around 0:30 after the late FC on 7a when we were heading across the ring to #2 (yellow jump). Did a backside slice on 7a (purple jump between the 2 tunnels) because he’d already done a backside wrap for me at 5. I was out of his way and going past the exit standard as he was landing, but forgot the exit arm so my back was to him as I was running to the last tunnel so he was drifting out to the off-course jump >
Yes! He had a great backside slice then you took off running, neglecting to mention what the next line was… so he was drifting to try to figure out the line. That was when you squeaked but more importantly: dropped your left arm back and opened up connection. The camera view didn’t show the opposite arm there but it certainly was a good place for it!
Watching the EOTT – there are a lot of wide turns/errors on cross exits on the crazy blinds needed for those courses because the dog-side arm is high and the exit line arm is not visible. Being the Armchair Quarterback is fun LOL!!
Tracy
OMG! Sounds like a vacation is ahead!
>One question the send round a barrel. I use “nananana” which is my backside push cue, rather than “dig dig” which is my wrap jump cue. > My rationale for using na-na is it teaches take the “wing” then the bar, with the bar being added later. But should i be using my ‘take the bar and wrap the wing” cue – of dig dig.>
This is one of the places where it your choice – whatever makes the most sense to your brain 🙂 Using your backside circle wrap verbal is great here! You can also use the front side wrap verbals, but it sounds like it makes more sense to use your backside verbal and that is great! We add bars soon so then it will be even easier to decide which verbal you want to use.
Have a great camping trip! Are you taking the dogs with you?
Tracy
(I had to buy a new “barrel” cos my one blew away in the storm, despite having a sand bag in it)>
Good morning!
>The availability of the training center (and my yard) were hit or miss in February due to ice and snow. However, it looks like we are turning the corner and I will finally get back on schedule.>
This winter has been a MESS in your area! I hope you get some good spring weather ASAP because there hs been too much snow/ice/cold. Ick!!
It looked like a ton of fun to work with Karen! The first flatwork games are definitely similar to MaxPup games so it was fun to see him do them – he looked lovely. You can add in a bit of deceleration so he can collect before arriving at your side.
>Tribute is still not overly thrilled with driving to a dead toy but I can see he is starting to get the idea.>
For this game, when you are working with other people – do you think he would drive to it better if someone was dragging it a little? That way it is not entirely dead 🙂 and he will drive ahead of you.
> While waiting my turn, I practiced short stays and he did really well considering that two rings were going at once and there were a lot of distractions. >
Good boy!!! That can be a busy environment and he did great!
>We still had to use collar grabs for some of the activities but he was much better about it. >
On one of the reps, someone was standing behind him & holding a leash – that worked really well because you were able to get to where you needed to be and no one else had to hold his collar. It sounds like he is doing well when you hold his collar too. Keep giving him treats for it and he will continue to like it more and more 🙂
Great job! Thanks for the update!
TracyGood morning!
That is a nice facility and a really great opportunity for a puppy 🙂 He did great! I am so proud of his focus and engagement with you – what a good boy, and you really supported him! These experiences will make his transitioning to trials so much easier in the future.
I love how you played toy races and cookie recalls AND moved him to different parts of the ring while you did that. That is a great way to get him working in different spots but also playing familiar, fun games. He rocked it! Short, fast, FUN session – it really gives him such a positive vibe for working in those agility rings. Yay!
I agree, the cookie toss was the only problem hahaha but he was fabulous when you tossed the toy: drove to it and even better: brought it back 🙂
Great job here!
Tracy
Hi!
She has the concept of the ladder grid really nicely, so we can add in more power for her too :)Using the stationary bowl as a reward target with you facing her, causes her to pull up short on the last jump, so let’s switch it to a dragging toy (from the moving target pre-game) and you moving away from her. You will see her engage her hind end more and push powerfully over each bar. You can lead out to about 10 feet past jump 3 and start moving the toy as you release her. Because we will be getting more power, you might also see that the the distances are a little too short 🙂 so you can spread them out by another 6 inches and see how she does!The Diamond is all going really well! Her commitment is looking strong so you can trust it more and start the blind cross sooner 🙂 Try to start it when she is about halfway to the wing – that way she will see it sooner so the turn is tighter. And when you finish the blind, reach back to her with your eyes (not your hands) to really seal the deal on the tight turn.
At 1:13 you were working a FC, but it looks like she thought you were rewarding when you decelerated and switched the toy to the other hand. So to avoid that, either don’t switch the toy to a different hand, or have it in your pocket (you might not have even realized that you had switched it 🙂 That way she can stay focused on the line and won’t have her focus drawn but the toy moving around.
The RC versus straight line is going well! Your position on the straight line looks really different from the RC position, which is great! On the RCs, you were definitely showing the RC pressure so now it is a matter of how early you can show it: on the right turn RC, you were early enough that she saw the turn. Super!! On the left turn RC at :52 you were a tiny bit late (I think you were a little too far ahead when she exited the wing). You nailed it on the last rep! You got nice and close to the wing wrap, which allowed you to set the RC line sooner: click/treat for you! Lovely! Letting her see that far cross pressure really allowed her to set up the turn the new direction because you were on the new side before took off for the jump. Super!!!
Great job here!
Tracy
Hi! I am happy to see the snow is melting! And he looks so engaged here – baby dog is growing up because I remember some early videos where he had trouble focusing outdoors! The plane was annoying but he was still focused 🙂
Really nice session on the out here. He really had no questions so he was able to get out to the jump and you were able to get the crosses in.
He had one moment when he considered going out to the jump without being cued, but my guess is he saw you moving carefully so he was anticipating the ‘out’ cue. When you moved after? No questions at all. You can add more speed to your motion on the ‘out’ cue too, to challenge him: can he still read/process the cues while you are running?
Hopefully you can do more training outdoors to add the rear crosses and stuff! Fingers crossed for now more snow.
Great job here!!
Tracy
Hi!
Super super nice session here! It is a wealth of riches: we get to discuss good turns and GREAT turns. No bad turns here an all! Woohooo!
So the good turns were the first few reps – you had your brake arm going but also you were not really decelerating. There was a lot of acceleration but the brake arm still helped get a lovely turn.
On the reps at :48 and :59, and after that: you added more deceleration into the brake arm: those were LOVELY!!! They cannot get any tighter without bleeding off speed! Same when added the left turn wrap into the tunnel – decel plus brake arm got super turn. He did vocalize a bit n those left turns but it might have jut been excitement. You can also play with some 20 and 22 inch bars to see how this holds up even on taller bars. And definitely add decel in: decel plus brake arm makes for stunning turns!
When you were usign the brake on jup 1: you can release with both hands up instead of dog side arm up then brake when you release. If dog-side arm is his cue to look at the jump, you can start with that and slowly bring up the brake arm, so he is seeing both before you release.
>I think I need to rewatch what you had in mind for the push wrap mechanics. His tend to be pretty tight so I’ll watch others in the clas>
I really liked his turn here!! So your feedback might be “No brake needed” :). But what yo can do is play with a higher bar: do a rep like you did here, then do a rep with the brake arm dropping in to cue with the dog-side arm as he passes you… and we time the two turns to see if there is a benefit to the brake being added, or if we leave this lovely turn where it is 🙂
Great job here!
Tracy
Hi!
>I was trying to also use the brake arm on #4 (the spin) but realized my right arm was going from being the exit line arm as he turned on 3 and then the brake arm approaching 4. I wasn’t sure if I should move it back to a more neutral spot or leave it across my body approaching 4.
It is easier to leave it up and just move it to the next position. Otherwise, you will feel like you are doing some crazy 80s dance moves LOL!!
Looking at the BC at the beginning of the video:
The main thing I will bug you about here is your dog-side arm not your opposite arm 🙂 But what your dog side arm dogs will change what the opposite arm does, so it is legal to bug you haha
Keeping your dog-side arm high and parallel to your shoulder was blocking connection/delaying timing, which is why there was some wideness here.
If you look back to him & keep your arm down when he exits the tunnel at :05 & :21, your FC timing will be earlier. Your arm was up parallel to your shoulder so by the time you could really see him, the FCs started late (as he was taking off) so he landed wide.
Being late on the FCs affected getting the exit line arm visible and also the turn cues on the next jump/ the spin at :08 started when he was over the bar and at the cue at :24 didn’t have time to decel – so the pressure on the line cued a RC there as you mentioned. Compare to :36 which had decel so he knew it was a wrap.
The rep at :34 was better timing but you can also hold the exit line arm longer – you had it up but when he landed, it was gone so he didn’t get a chance to lock onto it.
The high arm to show the line bit you at :50 – she didn’t see connection so was looking you for more info, then the timing of the rotation starting pulled him off the line. He got the cross but the timing was late at 1:03 and 1:18 and 1:33 – the exit line arm helped keep the turn tight!
>3rd time we got the correct direction but he drifted a bit wide on the exit of the spin.>
Add an exit line arm to the exit of spins too! That will tighten it right up – he drifts when he is not sure about where to be on the line.
You can add exit line arm on the exit of the spin on the jump before the tunnel at the end of the sequence 4 – he hesitated a little bit there waiting to see the more info because he dint’ see the connection.
>but I had enough to keep track of with an exit line after the FC and then the spin.>
This is relatable LOL!! So many arms LOL!
Yes, the brake arm can come a little sooner on the circle wrap at the end – try to show it to him before he arrives at the entry wing – but overall it was still a really nice turn!
Looking at Lift’s video:
She is even quicker on her feet every time I see her! She is SO quick here!
She also says you can have your dog-side arm lower and back to her more, to get earlier timing 🙂 At :36 for example, it is up high and she almost comes off the line because she was looking at you to get more info and you started the FC a little early, but then ended up a little late and rushing into the next turn:
>Got the turn to the left with her too while I was spinning right. >
Exit line arm will also let you see her better, so you can decel. The accidental rear cross was due to lack of decel, so the pressure towards the jump on the spin did look like a RC cue.
At 1:06 you decelerated and rotated all at the same time, so she almost pulled off
She yelled at you at 1:30 about being late 🙂 Blame the high dog side arm there LOL And that is where she fell at 1:38 – I think the dog-side arm being lower and pointing back to her will both support the jump and allow you to time the FC sooner.
The best timing was at 2:07 and that was where you had your arm the lowest when she exited the tunnel – you could see her the best there ands could see the line. Yay!
>I haven’t done very many spins with her but apparently it made an impression and she was almost too tight on the turn.>
That was at 2:24 and there needed to be exit line arm 🙂 What happened was that when she exited the wing, she only saw your back so was going directly to you. She shifted back out to the line you wanted when you dipped your shoulder and said tunnel t 2:25. At that exit line arm and it will be perfect 🙂
>I liked the backside wrap at the end. I was thinking about the brake arm as she was catching up, but she was past me by the time my arm actually moved.>
Yes, that was really nice! With more practice you will gt that arm in one stride sooner and it will be perfect!!
>I started with asking for spins since motion is easier and then added in a sit cue right after. Sometimes it’s too much and she can’t, but she’s getting a lot better and I’m seeing some of that improvement in the ring too.>
I like that you are working the lineup in arousal!! When she is aroused, you can let her choose your position: spin, spin, stay! Sit, down, stand… Sheltie’s choice 🙂 My dogs will often choose the stand when they are very aroused but they don’t break the stay and I don’t fight with them about the sit 🙂
I noticed here that she was setting up pretty far from you. It might be fun to teach her to line up between your feet to get her close to you and to get a more exact start spot. Also, it is a fun way to keep moving – my 2 year old Plot Twist keep circling my leg as I get my act together before the stay 🙂 And I can move him into a very precise spot by just cueing and cueing the line up as I move over. He loves it – probably the movement, so I think Lift will like it too!
Nice work here! Let me know what you think!
TracyHi!
>I’m really liking the brake arm concept to make up for messed up decel timing, as I have struggled with this for a long time. >
I have found that the brake arm is powerful and can save use if we are late!
>Not that I want a crutch, but like the break arm for an extra tool to clarify the situation.>
It is definitely not a crutch! It is another useful tool for the toolbox 🙂
>Trying the circle rep again in the next session below I think I did a better job of staying out of his way, but for sure could’ve used the brake arm. Clearly remembering to use that will take some practice.>
You did have the opposite arm engaged at :07 – it was pointing to the landing spot. His turn was good! But it would be fun to see what he would do if you showed the outside arm across your body, just before he arrive at the entry to the wing.
And you were definitely out of his way! That made a big difference!!!
>Then the next couple of sequences I tried the blind cross at the jump and then some fronts. On the fronts I really thought I had a more obvious arm than I actually did. >
Actually, I thought your front crosses were really strong, like at :28 & 39 & :52 I think he could see the cross arm! But you can also exaggerate it to be sure. You had good timing on the first 2 FCs but the exit line arm also covers the slightly later timing at :52. You started later but the turn was still good because he saw the exit line connection arm.
At 1;11 you didn’t use an exit line connection arm and he was wider 🙂
In general, you are not as automatic about that exit line arm on the blinds, so keep adding it in – you were working the connections after a blind but the exit line arm makes it even clearer.
You had super nice use of the exit line arm at 1:46 and 2:00 after the blind- those turns were great!!
>At 0:55 it looks like I disconnected enough where he did not commit to the jump. Was there anything additional you saw that contributed to that?>
You are correct! If you watch it in slow motion from :57-:59, you can see that you took off and had your arm parallel to your body, and you were looking kind of at the jump bar and not at him. So he was behind you can could only see your back, and followed your line because he wasn’t sure where to be. Keeping your eyes back to him (and hand pointing back to him) will totally help.
>In the last rep in class, I’m interested to see if we have a lesson that shows how to properly use the opposite arm for the threadle-wrap situation like here. >
Yes, in a couple of weeks 🙂 The TW is a combination of the arm the setting the line – the line gets set by turning away from the jump a bit, and moving parallel to the line you want him to take. That makes the threadle line clear. In the class, you did the arm and verbal so he looked at you, but motion was still towards the jump so he thought you wanted the jump. If you had turned a bit to your left to show him the line, he would have gone to the other side of the wing for the threadle wrap.
Great job here!
Tracy
Hi!
He did really well here! You had a good balance of different tunnel exits so he doesn’t only learn to turn or only go straight. Incorporating the cot was great because he was actually in handler focus and not staying out on the line in work mode 🙂 And his tugging looked strong too – he was really pulling back, so you can do that hand-over-hand ‘fake’ tugging so he pulls back more. When you pulled a little, he lost his grip but I attribute that to him still teething and growing those new teeth 🙂
>This is a time of day he’s a little more mellow. >
Well, if this is a rest-and-digest time of day, then I am really happy with what he did! Lovely work!!! How did it go this afternoon?
Tracy
Hi!
Thank you for the update on her lesson – so fun!!! It is a blast to hear about how confident she is. And yay for you for working with the toy! Exciting times ahead!!!!!!!!!!!
Tandem turns looked great – using cookie hand lures were lovely on your left side. On your right side – when you cue the line up, do you cue it with your right hand? She might think that the end cue is for the line up especially if you are not directly looking at her. So two things that can help: look at her more and cue it with both hands 🙂 2 magic cookie hands are better than one! And that can help it look different from the line up cue.
>Do you have a cue word for this one? Do I need one for this?>
For now, you can call her name to come into your hands – the cue will eventually be your threadle wrap cue.
The lap turns are also going well too! Your mechanics with the cookie in hand (magic hand! LOL!) looked great so I think the lap turns and tandem turns can both go to the advanced level where the prop gets added in 🙂
>I tried using a lotus ball so I could toss her cookies (kibble) and thinking this is better because all the pieces wouldn’t go everywhere. You’ll see what happened with the lotus ball. Took me a sec to figure out why she wasn’t moving, I’ve alwayd thrown the lotus ball for Get It. If I’m thinking correctly she saw it & expected me to throw it so she froze – like she does- >
Brilliant observation! I think you are correct – balls are for chasing, NOT grabbing from hands. So she was expecting it to be thrown and also has some impulse control to NOT follow it or take it from your hand. Smart girlie!!!!! Switching back to the treat was perfect, you can throw the lotus ball with the other hand.
>Do you have a cue word for this one? Do I need one for this? >
This will also end up being a threadle wrap cue 🙂 We officially add that soon!
Strike a pose with a bowl:
> she knows her bowls from vito games! >
Yes, that bowl has value! But she did really well 🙂
You can do 2 things to help her look at the target hand better:
– when she is coming back towards you, you can be looking at your hand and to at her cute face 🙂
– instead of an empty hand, you can use the actual target and even shake it a little. That can draw her focus away from the bowl.>I probably should have showered her with cookies when she made the connection? >
I thought your rewarded her well!
>Also, she was doing a drive by touch, barely touching my hand & I rewarded her for it- should I have done anything differently here?>
That is actually fine, because we do fade out having to touch the hand. We do want the pups to learn and in-then-out behavior (for the serps on jumps) so her drive by here was good 🙂
Nice work!
TracyHi!
He did really well here on the forward focus/self-control game! The first parts were really easy but he had to think hard about going around the wrap and not directly to the bowl when the bowl was more visible – but he did it!! Super!!!You can also try this game with the toy – he was really enjoying the tugging at the beginning so you can use the toy to replace the bowl.
>I also have been working on the collar grab with him from your previous video, it usually goes great, but then sometimes he acts like he hates it.>
I see it here when he made monkey noises and got mouthy – was that what you mean? You can build the collar grab love by lining him up at your side like you did here, give a cookie then touch his collar with a finger – then give another cookie or release him directly into the game. Where else are you seeing him not like the collar holding?
Nice work here 🙂
Tracy
