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Hi!
Wow, this was just about perfect! He was sending to the tunnel brilliantly and finding the wing wraps pretty independently too 🙂
He also had no trouble switching gears to the soft right (wing to wing) instead the wrap. Well done!
Since. This was easy for him, you can add more distance between the wings and the tunnel to increase the challenge.
Question: what are you wraps verbals? I think the ‘right’ on the soft turn was pretty clear but I couldn’t quite make out the wrap verbals.
>I need to get some of my verbals out sooner. More practice is needed but I think we are on the right track.>
You are totally on the right track! Your connection was really strong, and that is more important than verbals at this stage. We will keep adding the verbals til they are second nature.
>PS. My older Golden had a lot of fun with this exercise.>
Yay! It is a fun one even for experienced dogs, and you can practice the verbals with Folger too 🙂
Great job!
Tracy
Hi!
Nice job in this session, bringing the wing in close to set up success then gradually moving it further and further back. He was great about finding the jump with you moving as well. Yay!
Since he is getting the idea, a future session can start where you left off here: do a couple of reps just like the last one here. Then see if you can take out the target on the ground, and move to a thrown reward (he likes the lotus ball, if I remember correctly?). That way you can throw it when he looks at the jump, no need to wait til he arrives at the jump.
When he is happy to find the jump without the target out ahead, you can add more and more distance between the wing and the jump.
Great job!
Tracy
Good morning!
>He was excited for sure with the toy. Is it ok to toss toy back to him vs the food? Not sure which would be better but I question if it might help.>
Yes – you can toss a toy back too, I think he will like that. To help him understand how to stay even when you put a toy on the ground, lead out with 2 toys: one is the long one that you put on the ground, and the other is a short one you can throw back to him after he holds his stay.
>For the wind in your hair is it ok to say jump before the go go go? Guess with the shorter distance I would think he should take the jump on the word jump or do we think that will come with time?>
The GO directional will tell him more about the situation (jump in extension) so while you can say jump, you don’t need to say jump. Jump doesn’t mean extension, necessarily, so Go will delver better info sooner.
Keep me posted!
Tracy
Good morning!
Nice job with the walk throughs and runs!Your plan was clear on the walk through – the big difference I noticed was that the dogs move faster in the run, which means practicing that final walk through at a faster speed will better prepare for the run 🙂 That will include the verbals and connection all happening faster – and it was he connection that stood in the way of nailing the run with both of them.
In Watson’s run – the opening looked strong, and the closing looked strong! The connection was not visible to Watson on the first FC at :14 – you saw him then you closed your shoulders and looked forward before he saw the new side and made the connection.
Compare that to the 2nd run at :43 where you got the connection and held it so he could see it and make the turn. Yay! Then the rest of the run looked great too!
Levy – the opening looked strong with him! The connection on that run is what caused the blooper: he went a little wide at 5 and you disconnected going for the FC (:10) so when he turned back to the line, he saw the side change happening.
Since he ended up in the correct side of the tunnel you can keep going to get the ending line.You mentioned it as the handling plan being something to change but I think your handling plan was strong! It is more about maintaining the connection in the moment even if there is a wide turn – that will keep him on track 🙂 And that’s why I tell everyone to keep going even if there is a blooper – it trains us humans to think on our feet so we can still get the rest of the sequence done 🙂
Great job here!
Tracy
Yay for the friend! He definitely LOVED the set point with the toy here. Powerful and nice form!
He is focused on the moving target toy, which is great! I agree that he is also releasing from the stay when you put the toy down, so you will want to keep the toy movement and the release separate: put it down when you get to position, praise, then either release or throw a reward back. Don’t be surprised if he thinks the toy is the release and breaks on the toy movement. Maybe your instructor can reward by feeding him when you put the toy down too?
Great job here!
Tracy
Hello and welcome back! Yay!
I love her happy insanity at the beginning, she was pumped up to play!
Looking at the wing versus tunnel game videos: She is doing a great job with a challenging game. And she did well on both sides!
Only one suggestion: have her wear a collar so you can gently hold it, say the wrap or tunnel verbal 4 or 5 times… then let go. Even doing it from a stay becomes all about watching motion, so holding the collar is the best way to get the verbal happening before anyone moves.
She was trying to guess based on motion and watching you very carefully. To really solidify the verbals, having her hear them before either of you move will really help – and that way you won’t even have to move or handle much at all!After a session or two of really emphasizing the verbals, you can go to the advanced levels.
Looking at the set point:
She is understanding the concept and did really well, so now we can definitely tweak the setup to get more power.
These jumps were a little close together for her, so you can add one foot more between them and see how it goes.Then we can get more drive forward to the target by using the moving target from the pre-games. You will have the moving target starting where you target was in this video, then as you release you will walk forward while dragging it. If she hasn’t done the pre-game yet, start with that and add it to 1 jump before adding it to this setup.
>*Feel free to skip :45-1:57. I was really proud of her long stay and wanted to leave it in for the sake of memories >
That was impressive! She was a good girl 🙂
>Admittedly, this game speeds up quite a bit when a toy is involved.>
Yes, the toy is what will bring the wind in her hair for sure 🙂 The treats were fine… but definitely use a thrown toy reward for this game so she can blast through it.
Since this went so well, you can add more distance between the wing and the jump, as well as more motion with you running 🙂 Stay connected like you were here and you can throw the reward as soon as she looks forward to the jump.
Great job here!
Tracy
Good morning!
>He keeps running away with his ball UP THE STAIRS>
Ha! He’s giving himself a good workout. You can also block off the stairs with some wings so he can’t get up them LOL
I think he very much enjoyed this game!!! Fast and driven!
Only one connection blooper at :25, where you looked forward so he didn’t know which side to be on. You adjusted it perfectly in the next rep and all of the others so he had no other questions. YAY!!
Since he loves this game so much, you can keep adding distance and also you can stay at the start wing longer… then as he finishes the wrap you can start running forward. That will allow him to get ahead of you 🙂
Great job here!
Tracy
Good morning!
This went really well, especially considering there is a new wrap verbal!
On the first wrap, you turned towards the tunnel (post turn) which supported the line to the tunnel. After that, you did not turn to the tunnel during the wrap cue, so he got it perfectly! Then when he realized what the game was about, he didn’t need as much help with physical cues.
When you added back the tunnel, it took him a moment to realize that the tunnel was in play but then he got it nicely, even when you weren’t moving to it a lot – SUPER! He was really beginning to isolate the verbal by the end and find the tunnel versus the wrap. GOOD BOY! The goal is that eventually you don’t have to move at all 🙂 And you can also try the advanced levels where he does mini sequences of this 🙂
Great job here too!
TracyGood morning!
The set point is going well – he was bouncing properly on all the reps except 1. I think on the trotting rep, he is either unsure of the release (maybe because you are stationary?) or waiting for the MM beep? Either way, the other reps went well so when you play this game again, you can use the moving target/dragging toy 🙂 His stay looks great so he is ready for more challenge.
He definitely likes the toy as part of the wind in your hair game 🙂 I think he is waiting for you to throw it before looking for the jump, so we can get him driving to the jump more:
When he exits the wing wrap, say go immediately and several times (be connected) and when he looks at the jump, then throw the toy. Adding more distance between the wing and the jump will let you see more of where he is looking and get him driving ahead of you.
>For the smiley face game if I use wings how far apart should they be? Can I start closer just to get the mechanics?>
You can start pretty close for now, to get the mechanics and also because of the boot! So the wings can be maybe 5 or 6 apart (or closer if that ends up being too hard). Then as he learns the game, you can spread them out more and more.
Great job here!
Tracy
Good morning!
The set point is going really well! Leading out to the TnT was easy for her! Good job adding the toy/food bowl more, getting it gradually lower to the ground. Keep building in lots of reward back to her when it gets to the ground, so she doesn’t anticipate the release coming when it gets to the ground.
The distance here between the 2 jumps looked a tiny bit too big – do you remember what the distance was? She might need it half a foot shorter for now.
>We started at step 1 with “Wind in your hair” with a ball in my hand. That was SO FUN. It feels like real agility teamwork >
Yes, it is super fun! She did great! And you were able to add plenty of distance between the wing and the jump.
Since this went so well, you can definitely move up the timing of the ‘chase’ marker and toy throw: rather than wait for her to get near or over the jump, you can mark & throw the instant you see her look forward to the jump. That will get even more acceleration ahead of you.As you build up the GO verbal, make it louder and repeat it: GO GO GO 🙂 That will be more of what it sounds like on course, so we teach her to maintain her coordination even with loud exciting verbals. And you can add more speed to your motion as well!
>She’s CHONKY right now. >
The toy-based games will work it off of her 🙂 She is doing great!
Nice work here!
Tracy
Good morning!
>I really like that Skizzle can sometimes work for kibble at home, despite it’s downsides – takes a long time to chew and isn’t always motivating for him.>
I think of it as the value needs to match the challenge, as best as possible. I use kibble at home for plenty of stuff, especially indoors. And lower value non-kibble treats at home… then the environment indicates which value treat comes out when we are in different places. For my 2 year old dog, maybe cheese in a calmer agility environment. And meatballs or chicken in harder agility environments and definitely flyball which is a crazy environment. And certain toys (like the raccoon toy) only make an appearance in flyball which is the hardest environment for him. So it can be a value scale that balances back and forth based on the environmental challenges.
On the video:
I agree- the blind cross went great! Really nice each time you did it! Super connection there.
And lots of super connection on the sequence as well – for example, :53 though 1:03 was a great example of the connection you were giving him throughout the session and he found those lines beautifully. He is still sensitive to disconnections (like when he missed the tunnel and missed a jump in the session, both due to little disconnections) but overall the connection looks great!
>Nice to know he doesn’t have tunnel-suck – but so sensitive to my movements.>
Yes, it gets easier as the dogs get more experienced, and you won’t have to be as perfect all the time 🙂
About the rear cross:
You’ve got the hardest part of it, which is getting him to drive ahead to the jump AND turn the correct direction. Yay!>if I connected with him so he took the jump after the tunnel (7), he didn’t take the following one (8). >
I think the 8 jump was set slightly to the side so he needed to do a slight lead change to his left to find the jump. You were moving along the line so he stayed on the line, good boy, and you were not far enough ahead to use motion to get him to the jump.
So what you can do is a bit of a ‘get out’ cue! He knows that from previous classes: as he lands from 7, look at him, use your get out verbal, and most importantly: use your opposite arm (right arm here) to point forward to the 8 jump. That should get him to shift away to 8! Let me know how he does with that.
>The video suggests I’m starting to handle hunched over all the time. I think it’s me trying to maintain connection>
I would not have thought your were hunched over until you mentioned it! Yes, it was maintaining connection.
>but I don’t think it’s helping…and it won’t help me move around an agility course better. I’ll try to stand taller.>
I think it is helping! You were very connected here and getting where you needed to be, no problem. If you keep emphasizing connection, you will get him even more committed to lines and then it will be even easier for you to move around the course. So, no worries about standing taller 🙂 And many, many fast small dogs handlers get a little low to show connection and it works out beautifully.
Great job here!
Tracy
Good morning!
This went really well and she did great in a hard environment! She quickly figured out that finding your face was fun 🙂 and she got quicker and quicker as the session went along. YAY!
You can throw the search cookie further away – that way you have more time to move away for her to then run to you to find you. On several of the reps, she was so quick to find you that you had barely taken one step away 🙂
Keep playing with this game in different places, and you can even add a jump: having her go over it then you disconnect on purpose – then reward her for finding your face 🙂
Great job!
TracyGood morning!
>Really liked his sending out to the wrap jump on these. >
Yes, he did really well! And you were easily able to get the backsidey stuff after the tunnel too!
You’ll get more speed from Kaladin if you look at him more on the sends: when you are looking ahead, he is looking at you and waiting a bit to be sure. You can see it as he exits the tunnel at :23, for example – he does go to the jump but he checks in and doesn’t see fully convinced 🙂
If you are further ahead he goes without checking in based on motion, but we don’t want you to have to be several steps past the tunnel exit like at :37.
>then wasn’t connecting with him soon enough when we tried it back the other direction.>
Having the off course jump nearby on the TWs was hard! He needed you to be further ahead for now, to show the line – I think having you further behind showing a conflicting line to the off course, so he checked in with you but was not sure which you wanted.
He did it well when you were further ahead, so you can break it down with an off course jump right there – putting yourself less and less ahead each time so he drives past you to it.
Be sure he sees the arm cues and not just shoulder turns, because I think that is where he was questioning which line it was.On Lift’s video: She had a ton of great work here!
>Started out with great sending to the wraps and apparently she’ll let me get one of those when I’m not very well connected as she exits the tunnel but not a 2nd time.>
Yes, she sent really well to the jump without a lot of connection a long as you were halfway to the jump (first 2 reps). At 1:18, you were maybe a 1/3rd of the way to the jump, so she looked at you and got mad. I think she was going to the jump after barking, but then you stepped back early so she came off it.
On the last run, motion totally supported the jump after the tunnel on each end of the line, so her question was mainly about when you were not moving forward to the jump.
Breaking that down to be able to send from the tunnel exit will help her out a lot – give her big 👀 connection and one step. And as you start it, move the jump in closer so it is relatively easy to get to without you running to it.
And both dogs were great about finding the tunnel after the send, making it easy for you to get way ahead.
Great job!!
Tracy
Hi!
>By the stationing, I did not mean directly outside the ring – we have distance. I’ll have to see what’s what when we get there to see if there is somewhere I can put a cot.>
Having seen how busy a quiet night at OTR can be, I can picture someone letting their dog get very close to Judge being a good boy on a cot. Distance is your friend for the first class(es).
>Can certainly leave the leash on since his breed tendency is to make bad choices that involve going into the pressure of the things he does not want to see.>
Breed tendency plus adolescent brain development… leave the leash on until he gets relaxed enough to not feel the need to go towards things in the environment. It might be very quick! or take a few weeks. Or change every time you go there 🙂
> Is a more realistic plan to enter the ring, do some tricks, play tug, maybe do a 2 bowl pattern (can’t put food on the turf directly) to see what that looks like, do some more tug?>
Yes! Get it all on video and have your instructor help you out with next steps in the moment. And if you leave that turn or class thinking that it was all way too easy… BIG WIN! Yay!
> I do plan to crate him in the car for most of his downtime.>
Perfect!
>The food thing is hard – he has had significant GI issues,>
Poor buddy! And the GI think will absolutely affect behavior. The Brain Camp people just did a really interesting series on Gut Biome and behavior, if you are still looking at ways to balance the GI.
>so he has a selection of treats that work for him and he will happily eat – they are mostly dehydrated raw type foods in a couples of proteins (only one of which is his actual current approved protein)- his diet is pretty tightly restricted by his TCM vet and it is working well to keep his GI in order. >
Can you experiment with other preparations of the existing approved protein and stuff he will eat? Simple stuff like wetting it can a difference, or wetting it then baking it to make it crunchy can also be novel without upsetting the GI.
>If I offer him novel things (even at home), he will not eat them – he will examine them, throw them around, take them to the dog bed, toy with them and then ultimately leave them uneaten (it was pretty funny to watch that with one piece of popcorn). >
If it is a food that is not known to upset his GI system, then we can build value for taking (and enjoying) novel foods.
>Anything like cheese or hot dogs are not possible – he used to like cheese – I suppose I could use a tiny bit and see if I have an intestinal fall out, but I have to be really careful. >
Yes, no need to try anything that can create fallout or any food aversion.
>I do have some special toys that he only sees at agility and really likes. The top toy is his disc however.>
This is good! Does he like fur toys? Some of the pelt-on-a-bungee toys have been outstanding in harder environments.
Keep me posted!
Tracy
