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Good morning!
>kneeling and getting up isn’t easy for me 😂. I have been wondering about stating peekaboo with him. I do that with Brighton or at least try to remember to do it. That way I have him between my legs and give cookie to keep focus. Would that also be an option?>
Yes! Great idea with the peekaboo!!!! I bet he will love that. You can also have a short leash stuffed into your pocket and put him back on leash for a moment.
>For the running contacts with the toy. I was getting mentally confused on how to do it with two toys? I am probably overthinking it. So do I toss toy when he gets in box and then use 2nd toy if he doesn’t bring back to me to play?>
What I do with 2 toys is I sit on a couch (I love to sit when training haha) with a toy in each hand. The box is in front of me, 3 or 4 feet away. And he goes back and forth through the box, tugging as the reward in the hand he is heading towards. He will make a slightly curved line to go back and forth from your hand to the box, but that is a great challenge. I don’t throw the toy at this stage because it gets the pups looking at us too much. Let me know if that makes sense or if I need more coffee to explain it LOL!
>For the parallel path do I try more lateral next time?>
Yes – He was racing to the jump here, so I think he is ready for more lateral distance for sure.
Tracy
Good morning!
>I had some steak cut into half inch pieces…you would think they were 2 inches by the amount of time he took to chew them. >
Ha! He definitely liked it! I could see him almost shocked about how good it was and then he was whipping his head back to you in the pattern games. It didn’t take that long to eat it at all – you probably saw that he actually chewed it rather than gulped it down. How is his belly feel this morning from the steak yesterday?
>Worked a bit of pattern game into the mix. Still distracted.>
He had a great first 2 minutes or so, which means the sessions for games like this should be short and mixed in with games that move.
To teach him to ignore distractions in the environment, this is probably not the right game because nothing moves in this game – but everything moves in the environment. Better games for distracting environments are games where you are moving like little handling games or even tunnel-wing games.
>Broke his stay on rep 2 and the last rep I said the wrong release word. Oye. I carried him back to the line after he broke. I know you are going to say don’t do that! My bad.>
Yes, all dogs at some point in the training anticipate that looking at the toy is the release, so we do get a broken stay or a release that happens right as we open our mouth to release (which is what happened here).
And you can totally carry him back to the start line like that when he makes a mistake, as long as he is allowed to bite you when you make a mistake 😂 😆 😝. We humans mess up more than the dogs do, and my dogs are all really good about not biting me when I screw up so I give them the same grace LOL
Since he is not allowed to bite you – it is fine to not reward him if he breaks a stay, but better to just jog back to the start without picking him up. Picking him up like that was a definite punisher and can create avoidance in an environment where you are trying to build engagement.
>I tried RC again. I think I am moving towards the middle of the bar and then I watch and I am not. Clearly this is a habit of mine. I tried hard to do it better than the last time. I think there was one good rep. I will try again later.>
It gets easier when the dogs are more experienced, because they read parts of the cue while young dogs need the entire cue.
>I contacted the vet and she recommended the nutriscan food allergy test >
I did nutriscan years ago when one of my dogs was suffering horribly and ripping his skin apart. It basically said he was allergic to everything.
>and also something called VDI GI panel. >
I think we did that one too, which confirmed he was allergic to everything. He ended up taking apoquel which worked like a miracle. I don’t think it is the same issue as Brioche’s but the testing is useful.
I have put out messages to the science people I know to get more info on improving gut biome. There is a lot of good info out there, I just need to find it!
Keep me posted here! I want him to feel better!
Tracy
Good morning!
This does sound like a rough week!!! Thank for filling me in.I think there are a couple of things going on:
Yes, these adolescents are really experiencing their first ‘spring’ so a lot are also struggling with environmental distractions. And you being home all day has probably thrown off her sleep cycle so she is sleeping less (which could be part of the lower energy overall).
>To make it worse, on Monday I went to my friends house to do a little practice and her puppy, same age as Carmen, went after Carmen and bit her. No blood, but pulled fur out and of course she was scared.>
Whoa! Poor Carmen 🙁 That can also contribute: I a, sure there is a bruise in that spot which can be contributing to her wanting to move less. And I am also sure it was really stressful! And it take 72 hours for an adult dog’s body to bounce back to feeling normal after something like that in terms of stress hormones… and in a teenager, it can take 2 to 3 times as long as that! So that is likely contributing to her low energy, distracted week. It is frustrating that it coincides with your week at home!
>I’m feeling like I need to reinforce our recalls and distraction and focus skills.>
Yes, short blasts of fun games will bring her right back 🙂 And for the harder training games, do a quick rep or two then let another dog take a turn.
> It was totally unprovoked, my friend said so too, and he did this to her one other time on a hike. So, I don’t feel comfortable training with the pup unless he’s going to be crated. >
I totally agree – they can’t be off leash together or even on-leash and close to each other if he might attack her again.
>I want her to learn to work around other dogs, but his behavior issue seems random so I’m really not sure I should have her off leash around him. >
I agree with your gut instinct here, which is telling you not to do it. She can work around stable dogs with no risk of attack.
>Carmen is well adjusted, but she can get a little timid and very distracted in new situations, and just I don’t want to create any fears.>
Totally agree! You are 1000% correct in your thinking. Make working around other dogs a safe, happy thing.
>When I’ve practiced with her this week she’ll have a few good reps but then has seemed to get distracted and lose interest. >
Try for a rep or two then give her a break. It might be all the factors working together to limit her ability to engage this week.
>Having greyhounds, focus is almost always an issue at some point, and I do usually notice it get worse in adolescence, but it’s still hard to deal with.>
This is so true! All breeds have focus issues in adolescence, they just manifest differently. So we dial back the number of reps and increase the reinforcement value. Lots of great rewards along with lots of breaks (I let my teenagers watch the other dogs do stuff haha) helps us survive adolescence.
Keep me posted on how she does this weekend!
Tracy
Hi!
>The tunnel refusals continue to be a mystery. Last night as I was getting set to replace the tunnel with a jump she was willingly racing through the tunnel before and after wrapping jumps. Decided to replace it with a jump anyway to see if we still had stickiness with our handling.>
She generally does it a couple of times before stopping, so you probably stopped (or she stopped herself) before she opted out. I think it was a good idea to take it out.
>I still am alternating Jack then Jazz. >
Great! Does Jack get a run in between each of her sequences? She gets only one run, reward, then Jack plays?
>Started with ball rewards – we haven’t had any success with a retrieve, in fact I think she finds the game of keep away pretty self rewarding so I think I need to stop with the balls until we have a retrieve.>
I think the joy the balls bring to the training override the annoyance of not having a retrieve 🙂 so I recommend sticking with the ball/frisbee/etc. Yes, running with the balls probably has a self-reinforcement element, and it also likely provides her a needed break. She comes back eventually 😂 Yes, it is not efficient and I am sure it is annoying 🙂 but the passion for training and running with you is the top priority and the balls help that.
>I’m going to try attaching the toy to a rope so that I can bring it (and her) back to me and tug/play before tossing again. >
Try it! But remember the priority is fun, not retrieve 🙂 The retrieve will come naturally when the game with you is insanely fun.
>She did well here – minimal stickiness and this I think was due to my confusing handling cues.>
First two runs were super fast! (Not sure how many runs she had before these) That might be where you force yourself to end the session. She was crazy fast and dealt well with cues that were not entirely clear on the turn aways. She was slower by the start of the 3rd run, from the very first step, then froze. I think she was already sticky/slower before we can decide if the cues were clear or not. The 4th and 5th sequences had no freezing but were definitely slower.
So to keep the speed, joy, and excitement of the first 2 runs in everything – limit sessions to one or two reps, total, period. Leave her wanting more! It will be hard to stop but the handling will be the easy part when she is always running fast and happy 🙂
Nice work here!
Tracy
Hi!
>I’m going to the NAC (3 days driving to CA; 4 days there; 3 days driving home). >
Wow! That will be an epic adventure! So fun!!!! Please post updates and of course I will be cheering for you and Enzo at the event!
These out and soft brake games are GREAT for Casper because he wants to get on a line and go go go but that is not always what the course calls for. There was a TON of lovely work on the video!
It was interesting to watch the first few runs where he was correct… but he was drifting out towards the jump that was not on the line. Perhaps it was because it was visible? But he did a great job of NOT grabbing it until you gave the ‘out’ cue. Then he executed the ‘out’ brilliantly. Yay! The drifting went away really quickly and his lines were more efficient.
That set up the harder sequences really well – especially the out then the threadle in to the tight slice. He paid attention and had lovely jumping in there too.
You can start telling him about the ‘out’ before he even gets into the tunnel. That will make the out cue earlier, which will give you time to get the next cues in earlier too. For example – waiting for the tunnel exit to start the out cue at 1:24 got him to go out, but then the ‘in’ cue was late at 1:25 (he was landing) which made the wrap cue late at 1:26.
I don’t think he was having trouble turning to his right on the switch sequences – the timing of the cue get out then in cue made it hard for him to get the switch cue at 1:39, 2:10, 2:38, 3:00. He was already taking off for the jump when you gave the cue there so he couldn’t adjust til landing. At 1:56 he stopped his takeoff to try to figure out the cue.
2:18 was the best timing, so he could adjust before takeoff. And moving up the timing of the get out will help all of that, so he can then see the ‘come in’ before he takes off for the jump, followed by the switch cue as he is coming through the gap and before takeoff.
He was very responsive to the soft brake cues! I think you will find this SUPER useful if you run into tight boxes/smaller distances on AKC courses. He can see it even if you are behind him and it will keep him on the line you want.
When he is in trial-mode, the timing can be a bit sooner 🙂 He read the line at 3:33 really well but you will likely need to start it when he is in the air over the previous jump (the pinwheel jump here) when he is running full out.
The timing at 3:46 was better because the cues started just after he exited the tunnel. He really reads the soft brake NICELY!!!! Good boy! And well done with the tunnel threadle at the end.
Great job!!
Tracy
Hi!
>Oh now you have me thinking. I did this before with another dog and started just by having my husband eat the apple alone. We will give that a try.>
Yes! Get creative 🙂 It will be fun!
She did really well with her plank work! Tons of confidence with getting her hind end on and balancing. She was stepping a back leg off a bit, but I think that was mainly because she was turning to you to get the treat. You can asl her to hop off before throwing the treat so she is a little more balanced getting off the board.
On the head turn video:
The mechanics do require 3 hands 🙂 but you did really well! The rep at :28 was spot on – you sent and turned her away with the same hand, which gets the head turn and keeps her head low. Remember that the turn away with the hand is a slow motion move – when you were doing it fast (like at :44) she didn’t quite know what you wanted. So the slower the movement, the easier it will be for her to turn away – which makes it easier for you to mark.
Great job here!
Tracy
Hi!
She was excellent to hold the stay while you put the toy on the ground, then release directly to your hand – in both. YAY!!!
Since this went so well, we can start fading out actually touching the hand 🙂 She has to pop up to touch it and in a real serp, we don’t want her to touch it anyway – we want her to come in then turn herself back out.
To get that, you can say your ‘get it’ cue just before she gets to your hand, so she kind of side swipes you and then goes to the toy. The goal is that she comes towards the hand then turns herself to the toy – and that is the behavior we will apply to the jump.
Great job here!
Tracy
Hi!
He did a great job with the pattern game! There were EXCITING THINGS happening and the pattern game really helped him engage with you and ignore the environment. What a good boy! You don’t need to wait for him to engage, you can start the game the instant you walk into the room 🙂
He tugged brilliantly in the ring! And what a superstar, finding the jump immediately 🙂 He had a little trouble on your left: you are correct that there is probably a bit of value for heeling.
When the instructor is talking, you can kneel and hold his collar – then re-engage when she is done. He kind of mentally wandered in that moment. No need to handle the line, walking past it is fine because he will learn to find it without you needing to be near it 🙂 You can see how well he found it! He was really flying!And it was great advice to break it off and play – and how cool that he ignored the toys there the whole time!
Really great session, especially in the new location. I am so proud of him!! Great job to you both!
Tracy
Hi!
>But with little dogs I am unsure. My bump jumps are quite large (relatively speaking). I dont see the difference in terms of forces with jumping a bar and jumping a bump jump which is a little smaller but wider. >
Smaller dogs do make it harder to find jump bumps! I use half or even a quarter of a pool noodle with my littles. The force is smaller that way, plus they can learn all the concepts and coordination, without ever knocking a bar. I don’t want to accidentally desensitize them to knocking bars by starting them too early on bars.
> I know with a bump jump they can stand on it but is this good in long run (I dont think mine would do this) >
Mine don’t stand on them either
>I have asked a couple of more senior instructors and got a blank look. >
😂 😆
>I was thinking perhaps a cut up pool noodle as it is alot smaller but a roll of towel is also a good idea. >
Yes – pool noodle and a rolled up towel are my 2 favorites 🙂
>Do love all the work around ignoring toys and working with toy you have – this is so good for Ziv and when he can listen with the toy I know he is in good work mode. very good practise for ignoring distractions in the ring.>
He is doing well! It is fun to see them learning and I agree, it is great practice for ignoring distractions in the ring.
Have fun!
Tracy
Hi!
It was really fun to see him get to open up and run run run on these sequences. He is FAST!!!
He missed the tunnel on the first sequence but I think that was just an oopsie of “oh! I didn’t know it was there!” because he was quite perfect with it after that.
He was having a bit of confusion about finding the wings after the tunnel. He was not sure if he should go to the wing or to you, but we can sort that out really easily 🙂
– to let him know when it is th wing versus when it is the toy in your hand, keep using your directionals but also use a marker for the toy. Sometimes he was getting the toy, sometimes you wanted the wing, so he was not sure which. The toy marker will help a lot.
– when you are handling, now that he is flying: no need to use your arm to show him the line. You can be more upright (makes it easier to run) and show him the line by moving and by looking at him pretty directly while you move. Looking at him directly will require your dog-side shoulder to be dipped down a little but you don’t need to how the line or obstacles with your hand.
You can point back to him but I think that will be too much like showing him the line at this stage. So for now, just run and look downwards at him and I bet he finds the lines really easily.
Great job!!
Tracy
Hi!
The threadle is going really well!
2 ideas as you add more motion:
– Move into your position with the threadle arm already up so he doesn’t think the arm movement is the release (because they happen simultaneously). It will feel weird but it will prevent stay confusion 🙂And as you threadle – maintain direct eye contact and keep your arm back: that is the cue to take the jump. Turning your shoulder forward or softening connection will send him past the jump like he did early in the session. Keeping the connection and arm back keeps your shoulders facing the jump, which helps him commit to it.
Layering:
Yes, definitely need a better toy for throwing – that orange one just splats to the ground LOLHe did well finding the layering and turning to the tunnel. To get a better turn to the tunnel you can change the verbal to “jump” instead of “go”. The “go” verbal provides too much extension, so “jump” will tell him which obstacle but also let him know not to carry on straight.
>I did keep using the check ( wrap) verbal so when I ask for the tunnel and not the jump it’s going to suck lol!!>
This is accurate 😂 😆 you might need to refresh the check check wrap to the tunnel before adding it to the layering game LOL!
Great job :)
TracyHi! The starfish is off to a great start – it is totally the hardest wing/tunnel game 🙂
Making the outside arm more obvious helped her lock onto it when you were working on the single wing. Compare the rep that started at :29 (nice obvious opposite arm, she had no questions) to the rep that started at :33 (the opposite arm was not visible and the dog-side shoulder was forward, so she went to the other side of the wing)
One suggestion to make it more obvious: have that opposite arm lower. It was generally just below your shoulder but if you can get it more to the level of your hip, I think she will see it even better 🙂
Turning to set the line also helps her find the correct side of the wing. The goal is that we are a bit turned so we are moving parallel to her path – not towards the wing. That way the line of motion also looks different (to support the arm and verbal cues). A good example of that is at :55 where you were turned and moving parallel to the line you wanted her to take to the wing and she nailed it.
When you move more directly to the wing (like at 1:35) or have your feet pointed to the wing, she is not sure which info to choose: feet/motion or arm/verbal. So to set the line to the tandem turn, you can show her the arm but also turn away from the wing a bit. Those will work together to se it really well!
Nice work here!
Tracy
Hi –
> also wanted to mention that Brioche is unable to settle on his cot during his puppy obedience class when we are in between exercises.>
He is probably too stimulated to hold a down or truly relax for now. I have no problem with that – at this stage, just maintain a criteria of staying on the cot. Doesn’t matter what the position is, just don’t get off the cot. As he gets used to the environment more, he is likely to settle himself into a down or at least be better able to hold it when cued. If he is not able to hold it and is repeatedly asked for it or told he is wrong, you are creating friction and stress so it is worth it to let him stand as long as he doesn’t get off the cot. And he can have a chew bone or something on the cot to make it easier to settle in.
Tracy
Hi!
A couple of ideas for you:
>His behavior was similar to being outside. However, he would fixate on the distraction and she had to animate the toy to draw his attention back. >
In the new environments, stick to easier games that he doesn’t have to devote a lot of thought to – that way he can devote more energy to ignoring distractions. That can be stuff like recalls, or blind crosses or tunnels: fast, fun, easy!
Separately from this – work on the stealth self-control games at home (from MaxPup 1). This includes bringing some leaves into the training area and letting them be n the ground, or turning on a fan so they fly around a bit. Or putting on videos with barking dogs or agility noises in the background. And while this is going on, play simple games to help him learn to ignore things in the environment.
And, brush off the pattern games and use them a LOT. They are great for helping him ignore distractions.
>I have never had a dog like this who would not focus on me and it’s annoying.>
It might be annoying but it is not that abnormal, so it is good to make training plans and not get too worried about it 🙂
> I don’t feel like it is teenage brain as he has been like this from the beginning especially with the windy outdoors- things moving and blowing around issue. >
I don’t think it was ever directly addressed or worked through… when it was starting to be a point of discussion, winter hit and all the training went indoors.
>And, yes, we are still dealing with a GI issue. Lots of mucous in the stool and pretty much not solid. >
This is heavily linked to behavior. Gut biome cannot be separated from behavior, and it can 100% be part of why he struggles to ignore distractions in the environment (especially quieter environments where distractions are more obvious). There is a ton of science behind the link and how it affects processing in the brain but getting his gut sorted out is a top priority.
>The vet said to just stick with cooling foods (no chicken, lamb, goat etc) as per the Chinese medicine philosophy. Turkey and beef are okay. >
Beef is a neutral food, but turkey is not neutral or cooling. It is possible he has an allergy. Maybe a completely novel protein trial and take out other ingredients?
>So I am sticking with one formula of food for now and have to gently cook the raw and add a digestive enzyme. >
Is the enzyme a probiotic? That will be important to his long term gut health too.
>He is very thin for the amount that he had been eating so doesn’t seem to be utilizing all that he eats. >
Poor little guy 🙁 Have you done a blood panel too, to see if there is anything else going on?
>It will get sorted out but I’ve had issues with Benni all his life and he is about to go for an abdominal ultrasound so I am not happy that Brioche is starting with issues. >
Are they related? I think so, yes?
Also – have them do a cobalamin test. One of my dogs had similar issues to what you describe and it turned out to be low folate. She is on a folic acid supplement and has had no further issues.
>Too much stress added onto my hamstring >
It is stressful. Ugh!!!
>I bought some grilled steak slices today and will see if that ups the ante for Brioche without causing additional GI issues. >
Just a couple of reps as a test drive is all you need 🙂
>It’s freezing cold and snow flurries AGAIN.>
This winter is NUTS. We had a record high of 85 degrees on Wednesday, and an inch of snow on Thursday. Insane.
>I signed up for MaxPup 3 but I’m pretty behind on all the handling stuff since I cannot do it until I can at least jog.>
No worries, Maxpup 3 starts with walking agility games 🙂
>I have a question on the release from a stay. I forget how I did it but Benni will take a jump or a tunnel without me saying “break” if I just say what I want…”jump” or “tunnel” which is what I use when those are the first obstacle and I am lateral to him. Brioche doesn’t move until he hears “break”. So I’m not sure if I want to mess with that at this point in time so as not to muddle his stay?>
You can begin by naming the obstacles in sequence: I am pretty sure he has heard “tunnel” a lot so you can add in using a generic “jump” verbal. Then take out the stay for a bit: hold his collar, say ‘jump’ a few times, then let him go and reward for taking the jump. If he has no questions, add in the sit with the obstacle name as the release. I think it is useful to do!
>PS when does max pup3 begin?>
March 31st!
Tracy
