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Good morning!
>Yesterday he went to a baby skills seminar at OTR for a couple of hours and got to be in the big ring (a first). He did great -could play with toys and eat food and do the skills. I did a little bit of CU type games when he came into the building (by the back door) and some of his ready to work protocol. I was very proud of him>
Yay!!!! I am happy to hear this! I am not surprised, he has been super with everything!
The threadles are gong well adding motion! Once you begin the rep by moving around the jump, try not to start then stop then start/release. That was getting him a bit twitchy in the stay because it was hard to know if the stopping then moving was being paired with the release. And stopping gave him a look at threadle position at :17, which is why he threadled 🙂
The most successful reps where when you were smoothly moving across the bar and releasing just as you arrived the exit wing. The best example of this was at :37 – perfect!!
The threadles are going really well too! You can move the MM a bit further away so it is more on the slice line exit on the landing side.
Once the MM is on that slice line and he has no trouble with it, you can mix the threadle and serp together in the same session now with some motion with both. That can challenge him to read the cues (rather than separate sessions for each). The MM can stay in the same spot (the threadle reward spot) so as you show the serpentine, he has to pass the MM then he can go around the wing to get to it as the reward.
Great job here!
TracyHi!
This was a good session to reward some driving to the crate and getting her to work for the TT as the marker. Since she’s got crate games in place, she might have been waiting for cues to go in and out rather than offer the behavior – but even without a cue, it is good to get her offering to do it because that will make future shaping even easier.
You can apply this game to shaping something else as well, so she doesn’t wait for cues/releases – it can be something like getting on a platform, sitting in a chair, banging on the end of the teeter, etc. All of this will be good for when we use the TT for things like running contacts, weaves, etc.Nice work here!!
TracyGood morning!
The tunnel threadles are going well! For this introductory session, being stationary was good. You can move into the double whammy level now, where you will be adding movement (walking:))
>Also funny not funny : julee between the leg is huddle. Never ever thought it would sound like … tunnel. Until it did. Sigh.>
Oh dear, yes I can see that it could be very similar. Maybe change the lineup word? Probably easier than changing the tunnel word 🙂
I agree that the backside session went well too!
>don’t know why I’m in this mind that it had to be perfect and she’s never going to make an error. But she does and we handle it.>
Well, perfect is pretty impossible so it is good to not get concerned if there is an error or two. Errors are a cue to you that you might need to change what you are doing.
At the beginning, she ended up on the front side (not enough connection because you were looking a bit forward ahead of her). You adjusted really well and the other reps had far clearer connection, making it easier for her to find the backside. Yay!
Since we are also trying to teach the verbal – you can use a reset cookie instead of the main reward (toy) if she ends up on the front side when the verbal is in play.
If she gets the toy and same response for everything, then it is harder to diffentiate the verbals. But if there is a huge party with the toy for backside when she hears the verbal versus a reset cookie party if she ends up on the front side, it will help her (the reset cookie rewards the effort).Now, since this is handling and human error is a distinct possibility – if she fails and has an error, help her more on the next rep so she can be correct and get the toy 🙂 My suggestion of a reset cookie doesn’t mean she read the cue wrong 🙂
Nice work here!
TracyHi!
>>he can’t find the tiny kibbles (they are MINIATURE pieces), so tossing it was frustrating him.
For tossing small treats, you can try a lotus ball or treat hugger to carry the treat that he can then grab by himself 🙂
> We got little stretches of duration, I was able to take a small step away and he was really successful!
Super!!!
He did really well with the threadle wraps! He did better with one hand as you mentioned, but i think that was mainly because the cue was clearer:
The one handed cue was a little slower and the hand was closed, which made it easier to follow. When you were doing the 2 handed cue, your hands were moving faster and on some reps they were open, so they were harder to follow.Also, when you gave him a little more room, he found the threadle line more easily. On the reps at the beginning, you were a little too close to the barrel so he was more likely to go to the other side.
He seems ready to try this on 2 barrels!!
Speaking of 2 barrels – rocking horses went well too ! Yay!! The best reps were when you were very connected 🙂 This was especially true after the spin : when you looked back at him, he knew where to be really well. When you kept your arm at your side, he couldn’t see the connection as well. Reaching back to his nose with your hand will definitely open up that connection after the spin.
He had a question on the left turn sends for a moment – I thought maybe it was because you were too far and not connected as well? But it happened when you got closer and connectedmore, so I that he was probably seeing something that he was moving towards.
Great job here!
TracyHi!
He did great with Find My Face!
>Here is our first attempt at Find my Face….this could be extremely helpful given Ringo’s propensity to get over the top!!!>
Yes, that’s exactly why we teach it! You can reward any semblance of finding you (finding your eyes or hands or glancing at you or coming to your side etc). No need to wait for eye contact especially in higher arousal situations. You can add a little tugging to this game to start letting him learn it in higher and higher arousal.
The barrel racing looks great too! You had great connection and motion, so he knew where to go each time.- the FCs, spins, and race tracks all looked awesome!! Yay! His only question was getting past the stack of step anchors (or whatever that pile was LOL)
Do you have grass outside (as opposed to snow)? This game can totally go outside 🙂 or to the dirt barn? More room will be great fun for you both!
Nice work 🙂
TracyHi! She did well here! The noises and light did distract her a little, but she recovered really well and she didn’t seem concerned about it for long.
For the tunnel threadles – easy peasy when you were just working the turn away. When you were doing the double whammy, I think that adding more motion will help: you can meet her at the tunnel exit as you do your FC, then be moving towards the threadle entry as you cue the threadle (arm and verbal). On the left turns when you were stationary, she was able to get it but she will propel herself better to it. On the right turns, the lack of motion caused her to turn towards you then away – so moving up the line towards the entry will help for sure! And if she still has questions, you can add an arm flick away to help (it is really easy to fade that out).
Speaking of the arm – you can make it more visible across your body back towards her – I think on the right turn side, the left arm was out to the side of you (still on your left side, rather than across on your right). So the change in arm position can help too!
Nice work here! Let me know what you think!
TracyHi! He did great here!!! He found the backside really well and you were able to get across the bar to add more lateral distance.
My only suggestion is to use less ark as part of the cue – that might block connection as you add more speed. You can have your dog-side arm pointing back to him and lower, so he can see your face and shoulders.
You can also add more speed by starting from a cookie toss- you’ll still be moving at the same pace, but he will come blasting up the line. That will add a good challenge for processing the cue.
Great job here!
TracyHi!
OK I will now use the phrase ‘shittery wait’ lol Waits are hard for her, so you can remind yourself to be calm, don’t get flustered 🙂
Keep me posted about the trial on Sunday! Definitely see if you can use the mat – if not, try it outside the ring.
>>were you going to do zoom discussions where will they be posted>
Yes, dates will be posted this coming week! Stay tuned!
TracyWelcome back!! I’m sorry to hear about Montana 😞 9 is definitely too young 😢
Sounds like Knight is doing great!!! For the Sunday drop in, ask the people to be loud like a trial and see how he does! Keep me posted and we can plan for the UKI trial!
Tracy
Try one more session on the skinny upright with the empty cue hand to lower her head, then onwards to the barrel 🙂
Hi!
>Yes! I think the cheering & noise jazz her up. That’s the most speed I’ve seen from her in a group setting.>Yes! Totally agree!
>3rd line-up – We’ve done the freeze dance at home when she offers a stand, but usually she offers a sit. I thought I’d see if she wanted to freeze in the stand but clearly not!
NFC times – yup I was looking at the timing of that first session from when she crossed the first jump and 3 reps with that many obstacles is probably too long for a 50-60sec NFC run. >The one thing I remind myself of in the NFC runs is to move more slowly and stay calm, and not try to rush the handling and rewards. That way I *might* get two reps of something in? Or not – but that is fine as long as my mechanics are clear and clean, and the dog can regroup for the next rep.
> However like you said – she kept doing agility and there wasn’t any leaping lizard moments.>
Right! That was a big win!
>She’s going to tag along for this weekend’s UKI trial up at OTR, but she’s not entered. I’ve got 605 runs to get through as show manager this weekend plus the excitement of a hotel stay on Sat night so that I can go out to dinner with Merritt and not worry about driving home (slight potential for a bit of snow) after that. The Casey Keller seminar is in 2 weeks on the 14th with the trial on the 15th & 16th. Right now she’s entered in 2 classes/day, but guessing we wont’ run all of them, esp with the seminar on Friday morning.>
It is a busy month! She has a lot on her calendar, so easing her in to trial runs will be perfect.
Keep me posted!
Tracy
Hi!
Yes, the leash runner was a big distraction walking in right behind him (I am not sure that her stomping towards him helped at all because it is a weird thing to do, which attracts his attention more as he tries to learn to ignore someone that close). So ask people to just stand there and do absolutely nothing 🙂
I think giving him more info in that situation can help – talking to him and telling him what to do more. You said ‘stay’ on rep 2 and I think that helped him!
Yes, resetting with the leash on and coming back int the ring was perfect. I think he left his stay early but that is probably because there was a lot of pressure with the leash runner right behind him – definitely rewardable but don’t do long lead outs and also, the ring crew can be further away:>My thoughts on slicing it down for him – Work with just leash runner – Work with just seated ring crew – Work with leash runner and ring crew – Work with leash runner and moving ring crew:
One definite slice is having them a bit further away for now. He has a high rate of failure (visiting) when the leash runner is right behind him or the crew person is right near the line. So to get more success, they can be another 10 or 15 feet away. When he doesn’t find that challenging anymore, you can totally start bringing them closer.
And do lots of rewards that are specific for ignoring them – like reward after jump 1 and not visiting the leash runner. Or, in the 2nd video, he was great about ignoring the stuff on the chair, but didn’t get rewarded because later on he flew off the dog walk. And then the fit bone stuff on the ground was weird so he had to investigate – in that moment, rather than stop and tell him he was wrong… keep running the invisible dog to keep him a chance to recover from the weird thing in the ring.
>I’ll have more opportunity to work with some people tomorrow and Friday>
Perfect! Have them be further away and aim for as close to 100% success as you can get it. And if you get an error, move them further away. That is a great slice to help him out!
Nice work here! Keep me posted!
Tracy
Hi!
Thanks for the update!!
>We’ve had two classes and I would say that the excitement level has definitely been increasing and manifesting in startline behavior
One thing to look at is how is her stay behavior when she is really excited, and not near agility? That is the starting point 🙂 The best game is tug-sit-tug to get fast sits and stays in higher excitement. Here are first steps:
>During training, she has a great sit but adding sequencing/class time it completely falls apart. >
That means that in training, she needs to be brought into higher arousal in easier scenarios, so the sit can happen when she is more stimulated.
>1) Practice outside of the ring on a cato board at the beginning of class.>
Yes – but first step is at home with very high arousal so the skill is in place before bringing it into the class environment.
>2) At max, only use a startline 1-2 times during the whole class and with the assist of the cato board. Otherwise, figure out a way to use a wrap start or send somehow.>Yes – but also add in some sort of offered control behavior before each sequence. Some sort of short fun line up or mini stay or something, so the behavior gets brought into the ring and there is very little run run run arousal without the stays getting practiced. This is where the tug-sit-tug is very useful!
>3) If a lead out is needed, only 1-2 jump lead out (max) so she can be successful holding it.>Yes – perfect! You want her to be very successful. You can do a shorter lead out, or start her at jump 2 or 3 if a sequence requires a longer lead out.
>One question I do have, what would you require from her on the Cato board? Typically, my criteria has been that I don’t care what she does on the cato board (sit, stand, etc) as long as she stays on the board. Would you require a sit just to be very clear with her? >
Yes, I think a cued position will help clarify things for her, to help with the concept of “don’t move”. It doesn’t have to be a sit (can be a stand or down) but a specific position can help.
>I think this all comes down to probably staying connected and keeping my criteria very clear but these are some of the things I’ve been thinking about.>
Yes to connection and criteria but also – she needs to be able to learn it and work it in high arousal which means bringing her into that arousal state to work short fun stays (with rewards thrown back sometimes too, rather than always releasing forward).
>On another topic, this weekend I have her entered in two Speedstakes runs at 16s for NFC. The judge is Merrit Speagle. This is our third trial doing NFC and I think that she’s been doing really well in the trial environment.>
Perfect! Merritt is really nice!
>Depending on the courses, I was going to look for places to do rear crosses. I think the other item was working on me continuing on the course if she misses a jump but rewarding after she takes a line instead – not stopping and rewarding for a missed jump. >
Great! Yes, rear crosses are going to be useful since she is so speedy – and if she turns the wrong way, assume it was late info and keep going. And same if she passes a jump – keep going to get her back on a line, then you can reward 🙂
You can also bring the Cato board in for NFC runs! Enlisting a helper to bring it in and out will help, even if you just have her hop up on it an respond to a position cue in the trial environment.
Keep me posted!!
Tracy
