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Just saw this, sorry! And yes – it is perfectly ok! We can sort out how to make it work around your travels 🙂
TracyHi!
That is a bummer about the practice facility 🙁 Maybe the owner will understand that this is bad for business and change the policy?The videos are looking good! She is doing great!!! I grouped the feedback by topic 🙂
Rocking horse videos:
Commitment is looking really strong here! Her only questions were at the beginning of the first video, when you broken connection a little bit as you were sending to the barrel, so she was not 100% sure where to be on that first rep. Compare :07 (broke connection as you pointed forward before she was past you, so she tried to switch sides, thinking it was maybe a blind cross) to :20 and after that, where you kept connection til she was past you, and she had no questions 🙂 Yay! And if she ends up on the wrong side? Handler error, reward the dog 🙂The turn and burns on the barrels also looked great. She definitely likes her toy – so when using a toy, try not to switch it from hand to hand. The switching delays the cues, and draws attention to your hands. So you can either keep it in the same hand, or put it in a pocket, or have a toy in both hands 🙂
Skipping ahead to the Spin and Race Track rocking horse video:
very nice job with the spins here! Most of the reps had rally nice timing and connection! Now, if you miss a connection (like at 1:20 and 2:26 where she ended up on the other side of you), you can either reward or keep going, but don’t mark it as an error and don’t stop without rewarding because it is handler error, not Ginger error :))
She definitely was more jazzed up for the toy, so you can keep using it in these games.One thing I notice is that she doesn’t really understand to line up at your side to start each rep – she gets a little sticky in her sit or she stands away from you, especially on your right side. You can use a cookie to draw her in close to your side, so she understands the line up and start of each rep. Then you can release with a bit of ‘ready ready ready….’ then the verbal and physical action 🙂
You can add in more of the race tracks, where you just run run run so she gets used to staying on the line arounnd the barrels while you run. Feel free to add more distance!
Reverse retrieve videos:
She likes her toys and she likes to retrieve – she even ran past a toy you dropped on the first rep of the 2nd video LOL! good girl! You can be running away sooner, as soon as you send her to it (and before she arrives to it)
the ramped up game looked good too – nice stay! And she was able to go from a cookie to the toy – on the 2nd rep, you dropped the toy but ran away with no connection at :39 – so even though you said get it (I think) it was unclear as to what she should actually get. Indicating by pointing at it and looking at it as you release her will help make it clearer.You indicated it more clearly at the start of the next video – so she picked it up nicely! Keep being super clear on the indication of the toy (more connection, more pointing at it) – the other reps were not as clear so she was not as sure that she was supposed to get it.
She is retrieving it near you but not to you, so continuing to run away and rewarding with the 2nd toy will help her bring it to you even more.Minny Pinny:
The first video was a good intro to the setup – she had no trouble figuring out to go around all 3 wings. Nice placement of reinforcement!
2nd video, adding the tug, also good! I am happy to see you using the tug a lot, so she doesn’t think agility is only about the cookies 🙂 She also seems pretty balanced, turning well in both directions.
Adding the poles went well with both the cookie and the tug. Yay It is great to see her be able to go back and forth between the cookies and tug! Because she is small, you can angle the poles in so that they are a little closer together so it is easier for her to bounce through them. They were a little too far apart here, so even though she was bouncing, she was really having to reach forward in the bounce. When they are closer together, you will see her push off her rear more and turn her head more too.On the last clip, you added the directionals – super! I was going to say you can add them 🙂 One tweak in the mechanics: line her up at your side, gently hold her collar, say the left or right verbal a few times (whichever one applies :)) and then let go of her. That way the verbal comes before the movement, which should make it easier for her to learn it independently of motion.
You can also add the countermotion element: as she starts moving into the minny pinny, you can do a FC and start moving the other way, just like a turn and burn game 🙂Find my face – she did really well finding your face with no stress (and you had some excellent acting skills pretending you were lost LOL!!) The only suggestion is to try to only use ‘get it’ markers instead of praise so she knows to look away from you to get get the tossed treat, and for now – keep tossing the treat away so she can do another rep 🙂
Great job on all of these! Let me know what you think!
Tracy
Hi!
>> I keep spacing that they ARE directed but not just our upper body but by the direction our feet our.>>
One thing that I remind myself of is that the upper body indicates the present, what we want the dog to do right now. And the feet indicate the future – where we want the dog to go next. It helps me remember to use all of my body parts LOL!!!
Tracy
Hi!
>>I can see I need to crate Hoke for my walk through. If I did the walk through correctly, he would be running the course! >>
Yes! We don’t want the dogs to pick up the course when we are walking it LOL!!
The opening to the weaves looked great!! Really nice lines! He is hitting the outer wall of the tunnel, so you might want to put some more bags on it – it looks & sounds like he is tumbling around in there a bit.
>>I was happy about our progress on the weaves & I left some of that training in. He was popping out at the end if the weaves when I layered the tunnel. I rewarded him anyway because it was such a good effort. >>
Yes – that is a hard challenge but definitely keep working on it – you can open up the weaves and put a target or MM out there, so he can get used to doing the weaves really independently.
After the weaves, the line to the dog walk also looked good. It looked like he had a little question on the rear cross n the jump before the dog walk in both runs (jump 12 at 1:31 in run 1, and at :41 in run 2, the bar came down) and it was a little hard to see why – I believe that you needed to put more pressure on the RC diagonal sooner, running to the center of the bar, so he could see the rear cross info before he made a takeoff decision.
>>We need to work on that turn away to the outside of the course after the DW…. I can set something up inside close to a wall.
Yes, I think the most important part will be the physical cue of converging RC pressure (you were really lateral but you can still converge from out there, and also use your arms/hands like a tandem turn so he reads the turn before takeoff). Will he stop on the dog walk if you stay in motion, or does he need you to decelerate?
Also, you had the jump cue as your release which indicates turning to his right, so by the time he heard the switch verbal and left verbals, on the first run, it was too late to make the adjustment. Switch is probably the best release verbal, because it indicates the turn away. But on the 2nd run, you said switch a lot sooner and he switched on the flat… so he needs a clarification is switch is a RC on a jump, or a turn away on the flat. It can’t be both, or you will always need to be ahead of him which is hard to do.
After the 15 tunnel, you did a RC on the first run: you can immediately be running to the center of the bar on 16 because that will set up the right turn, which will make 17-18 easier too. On the 2nd run, you got the blind which definitely made it easier! And it will be even easier if he takes the 14 jump first!
I think the main takeaway on this course is to have clearer rear cross info for him: the RC pressure can come sooner, and more directly to the center of the bar! And, clarify if the switch cue means on a jump or on the flat.
Course 2 walk through – I thought the walk through looked good in terms of the plan! You looked pretty connected and you were moving fast too! The backsides in particular looked very clear. A couple of thoughts:
More blinds, fewer fronts 🙂 Think of which is the easiest/quickest way to get your feet pointing the next direction – blind or front? That would mean a blind on the exit of the 4 tunnel, and a blind on exit of the weaves, and a blind 16-17.
Also, it looked like you wrapped him towards you on the jump before the weaves (jump 10) but the better/easier/faster line for the dogs is to wrap to the outside (to the left) there.
And eventually you can layer the tunnel while he is weaving – that will make for less running 🙂
And remember to practice your verbals! You were very quiet in the walk through.
On the run:
>>You can see us running out of gas very quickly in the humidity. The grass is also very thick so it is like running in quicksand if it gets a couple of inches. >>
I totally relate – running big courses is really hard in the heat. It is not just the running, it is yelling the darned verbals too! The cooler weather does definitely help.
Bar down at 3 – less acceleration after the frame release and earlier turn cue
>>Not enough time for that FC u planned before the teeter!>>
Exactly! The blind was very flowing after the 4 tunnel! And that set up a nice line to the tunnel – very nice backside serp at 8!!
The wrap to the right on 10 was what caused the off course- you needed to step in more to set the line to the weaves
Not being able to layer yet while he is weaving made for a rear cross after the weaves, that went well! Nice job on the backside then the dog walk-tunnel discrimination!
I think he self-released off the dog walk when you were behind, so definitely give him lots of rewards for staying on it. You can also put a target out in training to help him hold position. The push to the backside was good but I am guessing your terror sound on the FC was because you felt he was coming at you fast LOL! A BC would be quicker for you there for sure.
Great job here! Let me know what you think!
Tracy
Hi!
>>Two quick videos for serp and threadle and I was interested to get your comments on my arm/body position.
The threadle was good, because the upper body was rotated back to the dog (the outside arm helps this, and the other option is to swing the inside arm back more.
The serp can be more rotated. Your arm was back, but the center of your chest was perpendicular to the bar. Ideally, you would point the center of your chest to center of the bar (you will feel a pretty significant rotation in your waist :))
Lateral lead out –
He went to the wing nicely here!!! And had good stays!! On those lateral lead outs, if they were jumps he would be making a soft turn (left or right) so to help him know what to do: connect more on the release and send (you will see a little zig zag when you release if you are not connected enough and then after he gets to the wing, hold your position and have him come to you for the reward. No need to do a FC or anything 🙂 He was a little wide on the first rep, and then on the next one you moved too early and said “yes” which is a reward marker so he came to you and not the wing. So just sending and remaining stationary will help him find the wing and then the line of exit after it.Countermotion – this is looking good! He is reading the countermotion really well, your connection shift looked great, and you are timing your sessions to keep them short (huzzah!!) The hardest part was the stay – walking confidently through the serp helps him hold the stay! When you are more twitchy, he is less sure of the release. And you can add in NOT releasing him, but instead going all the way around and tossing the reward to him for holding the stay – you did a catch rep and you can add in being past the jump when you do it 🙂 You can also remind him to stay when you arrive in position… he was anticipating a little and keeping forward, and we don’t want to create any inconsistencies or frustration.
Great job here! Let me know what you think! Tracy
Onwards to the lead outs!
0844 and 0843
Nice lead out pushes on both of these!! Great connection! You can challenge him more by being just past the center of the bar on jump 2 before you release him – that will get him to turn before takeoff for 2, rather than after landing.0842
Nice job on the throwback!
Try to be so close to jump 3 that you can reach out casually and touch it. The further away you are, the straighter he jumps over 2. So to get him Turing before takeoff of 2, you will want to be very close to 3 and also start the throw back move before he takes off for 2.0841
These are the blinds – your lead out line was good. When you released him on both reps, you stepped between the uprights of 2, so he jumped straight. Try to always be moving to the next jump (3) so he can turn before takeoff. Your timing was good on the 2nd rep, starting the blind as soon as he landed from 1 at 1:35 so he was able to get a really nice turn! Yay!0840
Lead out push on the other side – very nice connection! On this side, you can also be further across the center of the bar before you release him and start moving when he lands from 1, so that he can turn before takeoff of 2.0839 This is the throwback on the other side. Yo can be closer to jump 3 here too, so he is turning before takeoff of 2 (and you can start the throwback as he is taking off for 2).
0837
Blind crosses – try to keep moving to 3, don’t move between the uprights of 2 🙂 You can put a leash on the ground so you can see your running line – by moving between the uprights of 2, you ended up drawing a straight line for him, so he landed long and had to turn after landing.0836 – it is a little harder to see you in this clip, but based on his landing spot (straight over 2) you moved between the uprights of 2 🙂
So the common theme with all of the lead outs is to trust his commitment to 2 more, so you can be closer to 3 for all of them.
Great job here! Let me know what you think!
Tracy
Good morning!
There are a lot of short clips here but they are from the same games, so I am going to group them all together. You will see common themes emerge 🙂 and also I think they might be posted in reverse order, based on how they are numbered?First up, the wingin’ it game with tunnel threadles:
0853 – very nice! Try to have the toy in your pocket so you don’t switch hands when you should be giving a cue – that delays the timing of the FC. And great job NOT rotating your feet in the tunnel threadle! You can run more directly towards the tunnel entry you want, so that he can go to it and doesn’t wait for a cue from you.
0852
This is the mirror image – also really nice! As with the previous run – try it with empty hands so you can get the timing earlier without switching the toy around, and run directly to the tunnel entry you want. This angle is great because you can see you are running away from the tunnel then have to push him back – so feel free to converge directly to the tunnel to let him learn to take if on his own.0851
He is doing well with his commitments! One thing I notice on this one is that you are giving your wrap cue for all the wings. You an give him a GO for the first one after the tunnel (because he is going straight) then a left verbal for the middle one, then left verbal for the FC. You lost little bit of connection on the FC (good job staying in motion!) and on this rep, you had the most direct running line to the tunnel entry – nice!!0850
This is th mirror image – you can see the dig dig dig happening no th wings, so for example when you want him to go straight to the tunnel, you can use your go verbal rather than the wrap verbal. Your line here on the tunnel threadle pulled away a bit more than needed, it was not as direct as the previous rep.0849 – on this one you can see how the pulling him away from the tunnel then trying to push him back can get tricky – you pushed back too sooner so he ended up in the wrong end of the tunnel. You timed it better on the 2nd rep, but running directly to the entry you want will take out the need to time it properly.
0848
The opening looked good (remember you don’t need dig dig for every wing). At :15, you disconnected as you switched the toy to the other hand, so he came off the jump.0847 – on the exit of the FC wraps, try to make more direct eye contact so he knows exactly where to be, in terms of which side of yo auto be on, At :45, you are looking to your side with your left hand at your side, so he is behind you not entirely sure which side to be on. To tighten that up, you can reach your hand back to his nose and make a very direct eye contact as he exits the blue wing. That will give him very clear and early info about where to be.
0846 you can add more connection on this one too on the exit of the FCs – you can see him drifting a bit, waiting for more info. You added a spin on the wing before the tunnel threadle, but that delays the threadle info so I don’t think he needs the spin.
0845
This starts with a bit of tunnel double whammy which is a good refresher. When you added the wing, you were pretty direct in your running line to the tunnel threadle which is great! Try not to pull away a lot – he was finding the threadle nicely here (only one blooper where you ended up on the wrong side of him :))So the common themes here are: – run more directly to the threadle side of the tunnel, rather than pull away from it and push him back.
– more connection on the exit of FCs so he can see which side you want him to be on (having the toy in your pocket will really help this)
– no need for the wrap verbal on all the wings, you can give your go verbal for the straighter lines or left/right for soft turn lines.Nice work!
TracyGood morning!
>>And then we went to a trial out of town this weekend and he looked awesome!!>
Yay! Good boy!!!!!!
>>We worked a little jumping this evening at home. And i had a little with his stay. Hot? tired?>>
Probably depleted: travel is exhausting for everyone, plus he had multiple training sessions in a new location – dogs get physically and mentally depleted. So since stay is a hard skill, it is not totally surprising that he struggled with it on the Sunday night after a trial weekend.
>>Thought he looked pretty good til I had the jumps angled. THOUGHT I had the angled jumps spaced appropriately but several times he jumped 2 bars.>>
The straight line grids and the very slight angles looked good! As you added more angling though, the distances did indeed look shorter and shorter. You can use a 5 foot bar to make sure that the distances are still 6 feet center-to-center as the angles increase (the full bar plus a step center to center will keep the distances on track :)) If he continues to jump both like a double, then you can reduce the angles – it is a really hard grid for dogs to read and also for the mechanics, so if he has a question, you can make it a little easier by opening up the angles.
Nice work here!
Tracy
Hi!
The lead outs are going well!
On the FC – get closer to jump 3, rather than between the uprights of jump 2 – that position will give him earlier info about where he is going. When you are between the uprights, you can see he jumps straight then turns after landing.
Working the straight line 1-2 so he finds it without you needing to be between the uprights will really help! When he passed jump 2 at 1:19, I think part of the reason was that he needed more connection, and then you started to rotate too soon so he missed the jump. You can isolate taking 1-2 as you add more and more lateral motion with lots of connection (and throw rewards past 2 :)) so you can move up the line towards 3 and trust he will commit to 2.
Left lead outs –
He had some trouble on the long lead outs on this side at the beginning.
Stay connected as you lead out so he doesn’t break his stay before the release (rep 1 and rep 2) and also so he doesn’t think the reconnection is the release (they were happening at the same time). As you increase the distance on the lead outs, be sure to throw the rewards back a lot when you are all the way out at jump 2 as wellHe read the post turn to 3 really well! And he read the line 1-2 well on this side, letting you get the FC without having to be between the uprights of jump 2. So you can add in starting to do the FC sooner – you were starting it when he was taking off for jump 2 (so he landed straight and turned after landing), so now you can try starting it when he is halfway between 1 and 2 – this will challenge him to maintain commitment and set up the turn, but I think he is ready for it 🙂
Great job here! Let me know what you think!
Tracy
Good morning! Nice work on these!!
Video 1:
Nice line to the tunnel! Give him a turn cue before he goes into the tunnel, then give him the upper body serp pose for jump after it to get the turn to the last jump. That upper body serp position is form the ‘strike a pose’ game, where your dog side arm is extended all the way back and away, and you are a little twisted at the waist to face the jump (but your feet keep moving forward :))Video 2 – very nice connection and handling! Try not to say ‘go’ for the jumps because it is a turn not a straight line – you can use a jump cue (which cues take the jump on a slight turn) or a left/right cue.
Video 3 – try to get a little further ahead on the jump after the tunnel, so you can open up the serp position – that way he can ask the turn to his left and keep the bar up. At :04, you were facing forward so he didn’t really he had to turn left. He did better at :33 but you will want to help him out by using your serp arm and shoulder position.
Video 4:
At :07, your line did indicate the tunnel entry he took and you said ‘get in’ when he was looking at it, so you can reward him (he was correct). You were MUCH earlier on the 2nd rep and he easily found the tunnel entry you wanted 🙂 Very nice!!!Video 5 – he had a question after jump 2 at :07 – before jump 2, your feet said to go to the tunnel in front of him, but when he landed from jump 2, your arm said not to.
Compare that to the timing on the 2nd rep, where before jump 2 both your feet and arm were telling him to come to the other side of the tunnel – that was much earlier and much clearer. Yay!Video 6 – you can send him from the jump to the tunnel from further away, so that you can get ahead and show serp position for the jump after the tunnel
Nice job coming off the kitties, Sid!!!!Video 7 and video 8 – He did well on both of these, with you on the different sides! To keep him moving forward and ahead of you on the line, you can throw the reward (toy or a visible cookie) so he doesn’t want to curl back to you.
Video 9 – you were nicely ahead of him on the first rep here! You can open up your shoulders back to him (feet keep moving forward) so that he turns himself to the left for jump 2. You were facing forward so he had a question (looked at you) at :02 – serp position will get him to look at the next jump without looking at you.
He had a question at :31 too – you said the tunnel cue, but your physical cues were all turned to face the jump or other side of the tunnel, so he was really unsure. At :55, you rotated your upper body to cue the tunnel and it was MUCH clearer for him! Super!
He found the 2nd jump more easily there too, because you err further ahead.Great job on these! Let me know what you think!
Tracy
Good morning!
Yes, this summer has been BRUTAL with heat and humidity!!! But you are getting enough training in to be making significant advances – well done!1st Serps and tunnels video: This is going really well! The footwork is the most critical part for the small dogs and you nailed it! He read the lines really well. For example, 1:17 – 1:21 was PERFECT and so were all of the other reps – the only one he had a question on was the 2nd rep, but either you started too close to the tunnel or he started without you 🙂 and you were a little behind. You got it done nicely, but being behind he gave a little head check. The rest was great!
2nd serps and tunnel video –
Also went really well!! Keep maintaining that connection between the 2 jumps, so he can find them independently, even when you are a little behind because he is FLYING 🙂You can start to flatten out the line of jumps til they are flat, but take your time and do it inch by inch so you can maintain the skills he is showing here.
>>I totally know when he went into the wrong end of the tunnel that my feet sent him there! He’s a good boy.>>
Yes, 1:23 – turned your feet and he responded. Good boy!! That will be useful on more complicated sequences! 1:51 was perfect – excellent line set by you and he read it beautifully.
Tunnel entries & exits:
>>Also worked on entrance/exits of tunnels. We haven’t spent much time on the soft lefts and rights but I think he’s pretty good on the go’s.>>
Honestly, for the littles… I prefer to have a lot of GO GO GO to get the line and the speed – the turns are easy to add later on.
On the first video, the go lines (and your Brain Camp shirt, if I am seeing it correctly :)) look fabulous! He doesn’t actually need to wrap the wing on these, we just want a straight line exit. Remember to throw the toy super early to maintain that straight exit after you add in the turns, so he doesn’t come out looking at you.
The turns were a little wide but I think that was timing more than lack of understanding. You were a little late with the verbals (he was in the tunnel) and the physical cue was straight, so he was pretty straight on the exit. You can give the verbal when he is about 5 or 6 feet from the tunnel entry and also let him see you turn your shoulders to the next line, all before he is in the tunnel.
On the 2nd video, your go cues (verbal and acceleration are well-timed! Throw the toy as soon as he is in the tunnel so it lands before he exits.
The right cue at :43 was a little late – as he was just about entering, you were starting the verbal but still running straight, so he exited wide. Compare to the GO cues at :48, which started when he was halfway between the wing and the tunnel. Nice!
Nice RC to the left! And nice RC to the right! It is unusual that a young dog can do both in the same session – clear verbals and physical cues are helping! So cool!
And he is getting more heat tolerance built up – these sessions were longer but he was able to come back and continue to play. Good boy!
Wow, the teeter tipping looks great!!! Confident little dude!!!
OK, so before we add more tip… let’s add other things he will need to see. For all of these, reduce the tip a little to make that side of things a little easier, and keep putting the treat on the board like you had here, and add:
– a wing wrap before the teeter, with you adding in the following handling:
– driving ahead (like you did here)
– hanging back and moving more slowly so he drives ahead
– moving away laterally (walking at first, then build up to jogging and running)
– a rear cross between the wing and the teeter
– a blind cross at the exit of the teeter as he is getting to the top! Do this walking at first.On the teeter itself, you can add a strip of duct tape across the last inch or two of the board, as a target for his end position. The cookie still goes on it for now in the mountain climbers, and you can also use it as the target for the bang game.
Great job here! Let me know what you think!
Tracy
Hi!
Here is a link to the course map – fast, fun, CHALLENGING course! Sadly no video because I am a fool!!!! Sigh.https://docs.google.com/document/d/1rnQNoBLTG-xNshW17wAxSu_Slv82Dn9FRB5tBe9fUv0/edit?usp=sharing
Starting nice and close to the wing on the backwards sending really helped her – she has to find the wing with your feet pointing the other way AND she has to pass the toy to do it! And nice job with the verbals!
And shifting connection to the wing was SUPER helpful for her too, like at :36 where you were looking at her for a moment too long, then shifted connection and she went to the wing. Yay! Compare to :50 where you shifted your connection to the wing earlier and she went to it much more smoothly. At the end, she still needed you to be close to the wing for the right turn wraps but was comfortable with more distance with the left turn wraps – that is good to know, because you can add more distance with those left wraps but stay nice and close for the right wraps, for now.
The only things to avoid there are marking the commitment with praise, because that draws her to you, expecting the toy (because we all pair praise with the reward, even though we try to use markers :)) So if you are not going to reward, giving the next wrap cue will be more helpful.
The forward sending looked great (:57 – 1:01) – that was easy peasy for her!
On the big racetracks around the outside – you can actually connect a little less and run harder, like you did at 1:15 to 1:20, that worked really well!
Great job here! Let me know what you think!
TracyGood morning!
That first rep was super funky, like a fancy TikTok reel LOL! The video was fine after that 🙂
2nd run:
Nice opening, she went to the backside really well! To get her to take the jump, try to just look at and maybe point at the landing spot, but keep moving forward – resist the temptation to rotate your feet at all or to stop your motion. She is too fast 🙂 At :11 you rotated (she did not need the extra help, she was committing nicely) and that put you late for the turn on the next jump and the bar came down (and she ended up past the tunnel, it was hard to hear if you were cuing it or not).You moved forward better at :21! She is doing really well with this skill, so doesn’t need the opposite arm to help her over the bar. This is good to know, so you can keep moving forward. Going around to the other side of the jump before the tunnel worked, but the shortest/fastest path is the inside line so definitely worth it to try to get her on it. Very nice job on the ending line!! Make sure you reward her before you look at the map!
The last run was my favorite because you were connected and stayed in motion the whole time! YAY! That is the key to success with her – never stop moving so you can be in a good place for the next line. It might not always be smooth yet because she is still pretty young, but she has a lot of great skills and the more you keep moving, the more you will be able to control the lines. This was super!!!!
>>came back and did a little more but storm came up and jumps kept blowing down.>>
I see what you mean! The weather has been crazy lately!! But overall – the issues were small and the successes with staying in motion and getting her on the lines you wanted were big!
Great job 🙂 Let me know what you think!
Tracy
Good morning! So much good stuff here to look at!!!
>>I look at your videos inside and then go outside to run. The result is, after the first course, I forget how you did it.>>
That is fine, though – one of the goals you stated earlier in the summer was that you wanted to create your own handling plans. And you have more distance skills with Enzo than I do with mine, especially with my younger dogs, so our handling plans are likely to be different.
>>Also, as always these days, it is hot and Enzo is jumping 24”. There were more bars than I would normally expect but we survived it.>>
For real!!! Sooooo hot. These demos are filmed at 6am, usually, and the oldest dog gets to go first so he can have the coolest temps (over 10 and all black – heats up fast!)
You can see how the heat suppresses the speed of the younger dogs in the demo, even as early as 6:15am. And they aren’t even jumping full height (wet grass plus 85 degrees = lower height). So Enzo might be feeling the heat too, I know the rest of us sure do.
Side note: The package 4 and package 5 themes of figuring out how to get to opposite ends of the course showed up *everywhere* on the courses I ran this weekend as well as on the AKC courses that I saw posted. There was some sequences that we ran on the courses this weekend that were actually identical to the challenges I put into the class sequences and courses. It was crazy! These skills are gonna be useful!
Looking at sequence 1:
>>On this one, I did recall that you didn’t take a huge lead-out. It seemed to me that a lead-out was a good thing, so I ran it both ways (and walked it both ways).>>
Correct, I took a short lead out because I wanted to cross at the exit of the tunnel. But a longer lead out can put you in a different position for 4-5-6 which is also good!! There is no wrong answer in this case.
Run 1:
The opening worked really well!>>I didn’t do the flip (backside turn away) because I was easily there for the blind (although I might have been a bit late, I didn’t have to be).>>
Yes, it was easy to get the backside push. To tighten it for him – use your hands to put a ‘stop sign’ in front of him as he is passing you to the jump. You made a terrific connection at 1:0 as you finished the BC, so you can just leave your hands down by your knees, in front of his nose 🙂 That will allow you to keep your feet rotated (makes for an earlier exit up the next line!) and get better collection on the takeoff side of the jump. You moved your hands towards the jump which pulled your feet to the jump – it add more extension to the turn and delayed your exit up the next line.
I chose the backside flip/threadle wrap move because it bought be 2 extra steps to get up the line for the backside after the tunnel: as I was cuing it, I was 2 steps further down the line and on the correct side of the tunnel, so I could leave as soon as the dog turned his head to the jump. Those extra 2 steps can make ya (or break ya!) which is why we have been emphasizing the threadle wrap a lot lately).
The other reason I chose the threadle wrap was what the dog would see before he enters the tunnel (which creates the tunnel exit). On the threadle wrap, the dog sees acceleration on a straight line, so is very likely to exit the tunnel straight, which sets up the backside more easily. Coming out of the push wrap, Enzo saw the side change which put him ever-so-slightly turning to his right, making getting the backside harder at 1:08. A big go verbal will help there, before he enters the tunnel, then switch to the push verbal for the next jump.
When he exited the tunnel at 1:09, you had decelerated a tiny bit with the dog side arm coming up high – so even though the verbal was strong and your were looking at him, the decel and high arm turned your body to the front of the jump, so that is where he went.
Compare at to the re-send at 1:17 where you were more visible, lower arm, and the shoulders/leg all pointing to the backside.
Run 2 – the long lead out worked well for him, he definitely has this skill!!!
You can lead out even further so it is easier to get past the tunnel entry – this is important so you can start the FC before he takes off for 2, to tighten up that turn (on the first run and also at 2:37)
Things got a little tangled up after the FC – you did a tunnel break then the front cross ended up late (1:41) then you did a post turn (bar down because the info was late). You did a BC there at 2:41, and it worked a lot better!
He got the push at 1:47! Yay! The handling that go it was a “go” before the tunnel entry then you accelerated, facing the backside line – no arm, lots of connection, feet and shoulders pointed to the backside.
He also go it at 2:16 where you use the same opening as the first run (but did a pst turn on 5) – as with 1:47, he saw a lot of acceleration and body pointing into the backside there.
He got the push at 2:46 as well. You were post turning there which puts you behind (parallel to him as he enters the tunnel). The good part about that is he sees all the straight line acceleration on the exit. The part that is made harder by the post turn (as opposed to the spin move) is that you are further behind – so he may not read the backside cues if it was the first run. By the end, I am pretty sure he knew it was the backside at 2:45 🙂 so one thing you can do is do a balance rep – run it tunnel to front side, reward, then run the full sequence again with tunnel to backside. That will give you a clearer picture of what he reads with the cues before he learns the sequence.
Sequence 2:
>>On review, you and I were not that different,
Great minds think alike 😂🤣😁
>>I discovered that if an alarm goes off while you’re taping, it stops at that point.>>
Yes – a big technology fail!
>>By the way, who was the demo dog on this one? It was Voodoo on the first run but this one looks tiny. Too dark for Export; was it Hot Sauce Marie?>>
Yes, that was my little Hot Sauce, who thought it was utterly stupid to be out there at dawn in the heat when we could have been inside eating breakfast in the A/C haha!
7 as the backside does make it juicier for sure! But that is something we might very well see on course so it was good to practice.
On the opening line, you led out further than you did on the previous sequence so at 1:25 you were able to time the FC to start sooner AND get past the tunnel entry, so his turn 2-3 was better. You were a little later at 1:50 but he was already turning right based on your position.
Also of note – he is turning really well on the tunnel exits without needing a lot of cues, so you got a great turn on the exit of 3 at 1:28 without needing a tunnel break or any big handling cues – just a verbal and moving away. Nice!!
Very nice push to the 6 backside, very nice looking the landing spot to get commitment to the bar as you continued to move forward. Why did he drop the bar at 1:33? Looks like you were decelerating there which surprised him, plus 24” bar.
You can keep moving directly forward and let the countermotion set up the tight turn, and use the decel for the send to the 7 backside (bar there too, but that was lack of deceleration, which needed to come before the rotation to set up the collection).
You definitely kept moving forward on the 2nd run at 1:59 and he did really well! Then you had more deceleration into the backside FC which also had a better turn than the first run. You can also use more of a ‘stop sign’ with your hands as you rotate, dropping your hands in front os him as he approaches the entry wing, to ask for more collection on this one.
At the end – both options looked terrific, so the ‘correct’ option would depend on where the rest of the course goes 🙂
The switch from the tunnel exit and then layering the tunnel looked great! Then at the end of the 2nd run, crossing at the tunnel exit was smooth, easy, and fast as well.Sequence 3:
>>We went inside for a long chilling time before going out to do #3.>
Smart! This summer has been brutal!
>>So interesting that Contraband has lovely tight turns and you have to be able to send him out. In contrast, Enzo runs wide and away and I have to hang on to get the tight turns.>>
Part of Contraband’s ability to turn wicked tight and then go into full extension is due to the changes we made in the puppy foundation program… and the rest of it is simply incredible luck that he can pull off collection so easily and land in full extension. And he is even better at trials so far – faster on the big extension lines, without losing those stunning turns. Sometimes, the agility gods send a gift.
Enzo is more like my other dogs – lots of demand required for the turns and plenty of speed going out on the big lines 🙂 Speed on the big lines makes for lots of winning runs though, so I really love this kind of dog!
Watching your walk through – definitely remember that you can use your switch cue in a variety of places! Looks like you were planning a side change 3-4-5, which would require extra turn management on 4 – that is fine, except you have an exceptional switch cue. 🙂
On the run, you easily got the side change but needed more turn cues for the wrap on 4 at 4:31 – you were facing forward as he took off, so he was jumping straight. The spin after the FC at 5:01 got it a lot tighter (you can finish the rotation before he takes off). Or, lead out a little more and use a switch cue.
>>Also note that, between 6 and 7 I need a helping hand to get a sharp turn out of the tunnel.>>
That section looked good! He has been turning on tunnel exits better than ever! You can play with trusting him more on the exit of 6 to then be able to tighten up 7 and 8. He was a little wide at 8 – 4:41 and 5:11 – you were saying ‘go jump’ then right before takeoff you added a call with the post turn. He turned but was wide. You can play with adding countermotion and when he lands from 7, you can send to 8 and rotate as early as you can to head to 9 – that will tighten up the turn at 8 and get you further ahead for 9-10 too!
The switch 10-11 at 4:44 was good – you did say “go” and accelerate a lot so he was fine to take the jump, as “go” in that context could very well mean the layering line. Jump-tunnel discriminations are all the rage nowadays, so a tunnel verbal was better here as you saw at 5:15. The trick is… can you get him into the tunnel on the verbal like you did here, while accelerating up the line to the next section like you did at 4:45?
One recent addition to my set of cues is the wrap verbal versus the switch verbal (that is what I did here). So on the 3-4-5 section versus the 10-11 section, the verbal is very clarifying:
Switch means turn away and get on the big layering line (3-4-5) And the wrap verbal can be used in conjunction with the RC handling (9-10-11) to get the inside obstacle, not the layering, in this type of context. That has really helped my dogs a lot and since Enzo already has a good understanding it is something to consider! You might need a different cue for the layering cue (your switch already has a long history and does not automatically apply to layering), so something like “away” can easily be added to get that extra layer of understanding.
I was able to use my switch versus wrap on a challenge we are seeing more and more on a technical jumping course this past weekend, the baby dog nailed it and posted a time that was fastest of all heights by almost 2 seconds some pretty hot shot company. And the judge mainly does AKC judging, I believe, so I bet you see the same challenges in your neck of the woods too!!Great job on all of these!! Let me know what you think!!!
Tracy
