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Good morning!
She is doing well here, you are definitely getting the backing up! Happy dance! She is backing up pretty straight, but you can also start the next session with the broad jump already in place to help keep her straight. It is normal that they are a little angled at first.
And as strange as it sounds… training this less will actually produce more learning LOL!!
This skill requires new neural pathways in the brain (in terms of mechanics and motion, because backing up is just not something any of us are naturally wired to do 🙂 ) and also is depleting to their puppy brain and muscles… so you will see that it is better to do short blasts of 30 seconds then give the behavior a rest for a day (a good deep sleep overnight between the training sessions is when the behavior is actually “learned” and cemented.)
The first 30 seconds of each session here is when you got the best behavior, and then at around 1 minute, she started to change the behavior and turn around rather than back up. The turning around could be a sign of the depletion because it is easier on the brain and body 🙂 So to get the backing up without defaulting to turning around , do 30 seconds or 5 reps, then give her a break and do something entirely different for a while. And then you can come back later for another 30 seconds, and then let her sleep on it. Latent learning is magic for this stuff!
Great job!
TracyHi!
>>I can totally have a reward station that I take with me. Would a small cooler work that has the treats, toys either on top of it or inside of it?
Yes, that would be great! And the cookies can be inside it, or the toy on top of it.
She did a great job with the lines and jumps here! Her only question was on the last jump of the long line.
For the big straight lines, rather than throwing the toy – for now, place the toy 15 feet past the last jump and lower that last bar – seeing the toy get thrown AND having to organize takeoff for a 16 inch bar at the speed was too hard and we don’t want her using Brad as the target 🙂 She did get a bunch of really good reps but getting her to look forward on the line and trust the reward will be there will really help 🙂
>>did have a glitch with the backside. After looking at the video I wonder if I should stop putting my arm forward as that rotates my shoulders? I>>
On the 2 misses she had at :36 and :51, she was wide exiting the tunnel (just how the tunnel was angled here, no big deal :)) but then as she was coming back to you: pointing forward did indeed turn your shoulders to the front side and stopped your motion up the line – so she curled in.
At :43, you had more parallel line motion and didn’t point as much, so she got it.
So to get the backsides more consistently, keep moving on the parallel line and yes, use less of an arm cue – keep the arm back til she is passing you.
>>Would this be a back side wrap verbal?>>
Yes, on the first backside where she is jumping tight to the entry wing – that is a backside wrap verbal. On the 2nd sequence with the backside, I would use the backside slice verbal because she is entering on one wing and exiting near the other wing.
Great job here!!!
TracyGood morning!
I agree with your thoughts on the RR video – Really good progress here! Nice job with the clear marker and quick reinforcement!
>>Or any distraction except the surrounding traffic noise which doesn’t bother her a lick. But right in front of the house? I can see her struggle with engagement when there’s so much to look at.>>
Yes, it is a distraction level similar to the level at a trial – different distractions, but still very distracting. Plus, in the front of the house, she has a history of running off to chase squirrels (hello neural pathways!) and that is a probably a huge dopamine release for her… which makes it very motivating for her to do it again. So you are creating new neural pathways which takes a bit longer, but it will happen! And in the meantime, be sure there is no more front-of-house taking off to chase squirrels, so that behavior doesn’t continue to build.
>>Next week I’m going to add a simple behavior. A sit or down or twist or spin. Just a little something very close to the station. Or do you think I should just try to increase the distance from the station before adding a behavior?>>
Yes to adding a simple fun behavior – what is her most favorite simple trick to do?
And you can add in distance too – think of it as ping-ponging the amount of challenge you add: sometimes easy, sometimes hard, then easy, then hard, and so on.The pattern games are looking good! The back and forth is really easy for her. Adding the delay and engaged chill was harder for her – she started to look around more. So keep working the engaged chill, but work it in the house in a less distracting environment so she gets the idea of just hanging out – then you can take it outside again 🙂
>>I really don’t need the leash when I have food in my hands. But I left it dropped because I’m getting ready to take the game show on the road. >>
Actually, holding the leash is really important because when you take this game to different places (like outside the ring at a trial), you will be holding the leash. So it is super important that both of you are used to the mechanics of the leash. And also, if there is any chance she might take off after a squirrel or something if the leash is dragging, you will want to hold the leash to prevent that rehearsal of taking off. Stepping on the leash will result in a leash correction to her neck if she tries to take off, which we want to avoid.
It is easier to loop the leash on your wrist, and for the back and forth cookie tosses you can toss it only a couple of feet away.
Great job here! Let me know how she does with her field trips!
Tracy
Good morning!
>>Yes, I was thinking that a K Turn/Spin on the first jump may have tightened her turn a little. I’m not a huge fan of throwing these in on course just to tighten turns but for her I think maybe that is something worth exploring in some scenarios?>>
Yes – I agree that I don’t want to just do spins everywhere! Some young dogs find them helpful and then we can fade them out in favor of sending. My general rule (for myself LOL!) is that a spin on a significant turn is fine if it turns me to face the next line sooner than a send or post turn would.
>>There was a big emphasis on straight tunnels followed by tight wrap away/rear cross and she was actually adding strides which hasn’t been a thing for her before so very happy.>>
Wow, that is fantastic that she was adding collection after the straight tunnel extensions! YAY!!! And yes, we are seeing a lot of straight tunnel to a turn or tunnel-tunnel-turn as well.
Looking at the video:
>>she loves this as she really knows the joy of driving forward with no turns.>>
Yes! She did really well and it is an excellent skill to have. We have our big national event this weekend and MANY of the courses end with full on straight Iines that are 100 feet long. EEK!
You can cue her to get on the straight line for her ‘go on’ even earlier: as soon as she exits the tunnel and looks at the next jump, you can start the cues. You were saying it when she landed from the jump after the tunnel but you can definitely name that line sooner.
The next 2 sequences has backsides on jump 3 – you can get a better turn on the backside at :28 if you are tighter to the wing she is approaching the backside on. You can literally be on her landing line there as she goes to around the wing… then before she takes off, get outta there LOL!! But keep moving forward on her line until she has landed and looked at the tunnel entry. You were further across the bar, so she jumped longer and then had to adjust after landing.
On the 3rd sequence, the spin and positional cue you did for the backside on 3 was great! That set up a perfect line to the tunnel.
>>I probably needed to call her while she was in the tunnel on the last sequence to try and get a tighter turn out of the tunnel but she was a good girl.>>
Part of the design challenge of that sequence was that the dogs were definitely going to turn wide on the tunnel exit so we handlers could not get that far ahead because we had to set the line. But we can definitely get it tighter! At :47 you did a name call before she entered (it was after she entered at 1:06) and it was a little late – try calling her name or giving a ‘right’ verbal plus showing the FC rotation when she is about 2 meters before entering the tunnel. And then yes, keep calling her as she is in the tunnel – the cues should come early and often there because it is such a hard turn.
Good job getting the last line anyway – the sequence deliberately puts the handler behind in a weird position, and she still drove ahead brilliantly. Super!!!!!
>>I’m interested to really up the game for the remote reinforcement out on the field so we might try that next.>>
Perfect! Let me know how she does!
Tracy
Hi! I am glad the seminar went well! Yay!
>> I guess I was probably stuck on “but she can doooo thiiisssss” and didn’t quit when I should have.>>
Totally relatable. The other thing you can do is grab one of your other dogs – if Muso is using questions, give her a break then try it with one of the others. That can help you sort out the handling and lines without also having to go at baby dog lightening speed 🙂 Bear in mind that adult dogs can also save us if the cues are not clear, but they can also show us when the cues are unclear LOL!
>>Darkness, rain, wind and lack of time is not helping me make good choices.>>
Yes, winter is annoying. WE HAVE PUPPIES TO TRAIN, MOTHER NATURE!!!
>>I SOLEMNLY SWEAR TO WATCH MY VIDEOS AFTER ONE ERROR. >>
It is such a pain but it is SO worthwhile. If after one error you know what went wrong, you don’t need to watch the video. But if it is still going wrong? Definitely watch the video in slow motion, freezing it at the point where she is taking off for the jump before a turn or off course. That can be really helpful 🙂
Enjoy the rest of the weekend!
TracyHi!
Yes, I agree that she is really confident here! She didn’t even mind when it was spinning like a Disney ride LOL! Good girl! You can get a rug or yoga mat to put under it, so it doesn’t slip out from under her.You can create a field of moving objects for her to walk across, such as this little wobble board, any bigger wobble boards you might have or any fitness stuff like discs or fit bones (keep them a little under-inflated for now). The more practice she gets with different moving surfaces, the easier it will be to teach the teeter. And be sure to play tug before and after.
Great job!
TracyGood morning!
>>It rained today but we managed a fun Farmdog family walk. We practiced cookies for checking in.>>
This is awesome! I am glad she had the chance to do this!
Excellent work on the video! Her tugging looks great and she is happy to switch back and forth to cookies. That makes training so much easier!
Backing up – both sessions of this went well!!! She really had some good steps back in the second session at the end of the video. You will get more backing up steps if you can keep your hands low, so they aren’t moving up and down. Ideally your cookie hands stay just below your knees, so she keeps her head low. When she lifts her head as your hands come up she stops moving backwards.
Now, you are welcome to do the whole session bent over but your back might get angry about that 🙂 So the other option for low hands without back pain is a regular chair, and you can lean a little and rest your elbows on your thighs, so you can have quick cookie delivery without your hands moving up and down.
The wrapping games are going super well, both with the bowls and with t he tugs. YAY!!! She seemed perfectly fine with the laundry basket as the ‘jump wing’ 🙂
Onwards to the next step here, which will be you standing up 🙂 The easiest way to do it is with the 2 bowls and the laundry basket, and you can drop the treats in (or near) the bowls as she goes around it. That will set her up perfectly for the new games coming next week!Only one other suggestion: she has very quick feet, and sometimes slips on the floors indoors – so since she is getting faster and faster, you might want to get a couple of cheap area rugs or yoga mats so she can really grip the footing for when you play the games indoors.
Great job here!!
Tracy
Good morning! He is doing well with all of these!
The on and off the plank is looking good! He seems very confident and is also happy to switch to tugging even after the cookies. Yay!
You can add yourself standing now, mainly so that when you are cuing him to turn around you can move your hand more slowly. When you were doing it fast he was also doing it ast… and losing his balance. So, have him follow your hand slowly in a full circle (a cookie in the hand as a lure is perfectly fine :))
And you can also then work a sit on the plank – it should be easier with you standing for him to get into a nice tight sit.
The Get it for the toy is looking really good too! His focus forward on it was great! You can take this outside and do some driving ahead at bigger distances, and add some toy races too!
Goat tricks on the various inflatables & Paw pods – he is happy to put his feet on all sorts of things. Yay! Try to let him offer interacting with the thing before you put your hand or cookie in as a lure. You can change your position to help indicate which object you wanted him to interact with.
The next step would be to push all of these together so they are touching, and take about 50% of the air out of the disc – and then let him offer getting all 4 feet on the various objects.
Having them all next to each other will make it easier for him to get all 4 feet on (they are a little small for more than 2 feet right now). Plus it introduces the concept of different feet feeling different surfaces. You moved 2 of them together towards the end which definitely made it easier for him to get all 4 feet on! Yay! The disc was overinflated which makes it a lot harder for him in terms of balance, so taking out a lot of the inflation will help him balance more and be able to changes positions more easily.
Great job here! Enjoy the rest of your weekend!
Tracy
Hi!
>> I was skeptical as I have been working some hind end awareness with Teagan without much success>>
Yes, hind end stuff with baby dogs is hard! He did really well here – you got multiple steps of backing up! And it was a nice short session so he was able to be finished before he got tired physically or mentally.
My only suggestion is to place the first cookie more under you, between your feet back by your heels, so that he comes forward more- which creates more backing up 🙂 which you can then toss the cookie as a reward for like you were doing here.
Great job!!
TracyGood morning!
He was a good boy with all the toys here! He liked the white one in particular, so you can bring up the excitement level by swinging the others more (like lure coursing LOL!) or throwing them. You can also tie them together so they are one ridiculously long toy that you can swing in big loops for him to chase. It might be easier to do that standing, but that should help him balance the value of the various toys.
Nice work!
TracyHi!
>>. We were the crazy fangirl and fandog stalking you at CanAm until I realized you were back to back and we held our awe in check.>>
OMG was that you who was so nice and saying hello, as I waved and sprinted away to get the next dog? LOL!! I am so SORRY!!! Running 4 dogs at CanAm was a bit, um, challenging LOL!!!!
>>Should be viewable now. >>
Yes! Thanks! They are both of Pre-game 1, sorry I didn’t notice it sooner. Can you re-post pre-game 2?Pre-game 1 is looking good! He was very happy to interact with the prop! If he likes toys, you can mix in tugging after every couple of treats so he can move towards it even more explosively.
Beaus this was easy for him, you can go to the week 1 game where you send. All of the sending applies to agility of course and also to flyball (especially when we add countermotion!)
Great job here 🙂
TracyGood morning!
This is going well! I agree that she did a great job!
She definitely figured out that it was wing-jump-wing for the layering and seemed very happy to ignore the tunnel to do the line – SUPER!Getting the turn into the tunnel from the jump was a tiny bit harder – in these early stages, the cue to the tunnel is mainly about making a BIG connection from jump to tunnel with very direct eye contact until you see her turn her head to look at the tunnel – that big connection will emphasize the line to the tunnel by turning your shoulders to it. And it will get easier as she gets more experienced – on the last rep, you can already see her recognizing the context and turning over to the jump to get to the tunnel. Yay!!
You can revisit this with a mirror image, so she does the layering on your right side as well 🙂
Great job!
TracyGood morning again!
>>Today’s episode of “How the F*$& Do I Run This Dog?!”
The answer to that question is two-fold:
First, be sure that your motion and verbals match! Plenty of the errors were because of conflicting indicators: voice said one thing, body said another, so she had to take her best guess.
Second, live by the 2 failure rule (that is 2 failures for the entire session, not necessarily in a row). If you get a 2nd failure, that is basically her saying that what you want is not clear so the rest of the session must be broken down to help her understand what you want.
And when you get that 2nd failure, the first thing to do is look at the video so you can see what she is seeing. So on the first video, you will see that the decel was a bit too “forward facing” and not enough motion the new direction, so she was seeing parallel line motion to the tunnel entry you didn’t want.
And, stopping to look at the video after failure 1 and definitely failure 2 will keep you from getting cross with her and using negative markers or withholding reinforcement. That stuff plus repeated failure will make her careful or frustrated, which we don’t want.
Ideally, when she lands from the pinwheel jump, the brake arm would be more visible towards her (opposite arm moving towards her and dog side shoulder moving out of the way) as you decel and turn to the line you want.
The video will tell you if you are doing this (or not LOL!) and if she can see it 🙂 Otherwise you will end up pulling waaaay away from the line you want to get it done on shoulder turning, which is what was happening along with adding other things like spins or rotations towards her (I don’t think you needed either 🙂 )
Yes, it is a pain in the bum to stop and watch the video, but if you are getting off courses you can assume it is a handling question – and if you get the error twice, definitely look at the video.
So I think this skill might be something worth breaking down, first on the jump before the tunnel then starting on the pinwheel jump so you can time the cues of the threadle then driving to the tunnel entry. Do it all at a walk first, so she can read the info through the motion, and so you have an easier time showing the line of motion and not pulling too far away from it.
When she is getting it and the handling is solidifying… end the session rather than try to put the whole thing together 🙂 Trying to add more speed to put it all together can make it harder for your both, but ending the session and both of you sleeping on it will allow for a lot of learning without working hard 🙂
Nice work! Let me know how the seminar goes!
Tracy
Hi!
She did really well here – lots of success!
Yes, I think being calmer and more deliberate with your words and motion helps! No need to get her more aroused when the leash stuff is already pretty stimulating. You can do the happy voices and jumping around during the reward moments 🙂You can also be more deliberate with the cookie delivery when the leash is in play – you can have cookies in your pockets, but try to have empty hands and don’t have a hand in your pocket or have cookies in your hand in front of her nose 🙂 All of that needs to be faded out anyway, so we might as well fade it out now LOL! You don’t need to do it as remote reinforcement- you can still reach into your pocket to pull out a treat after the leash is off (or back on) but empty hands is the next step for sure.
Adding behaviors before the ‘chips’ marker is good! Remember to mix in some rewards for engagement when the leash comes off, so it is not all about making things harder. Easy reps mixed in with harder ones will keep things spicy in a good way 🙂
Great job 🙂
TracyGood morning!
>>I’m envisioning sustained chill outside the ring while waiting for her turn. So, it would be after leaving the stash.
It would probably be used in the time between leaving the main reward station and the last ramp up to go into the ring, so you would likely still have cookies or a toy with you. The order is something that you will sort out in coming weeks and as she starts trialing, but to give you an idea: I generally bring the dog to the reward station, let the dog seem me put the stuff down, then I get closer to the ring but I still have cookies or a toy. Then, depending on the dog, I will go do some engaged chill near the ring. Then into pattern games, then into Volume Dial, last cookies used up, then into the ring.
That is a general framework and is slightly different for each dog/each scenario – there is no way to know exactly til we ask the dog 🙂 And then as they mature, you will see that some elements won’t be needed in the lead up to the run. Stay tuned for more on that coming soon 🙂
>>Here’s pink panther creep. She thought it was fun. But, other than barking sister she’s not too excited in the backyard.>>
It is great to work this when she is not too excited – that sets up a lot of success and also stimulates her into a different arousal state. Even just getting her physiology to ‘rehearse’ getting stimulated and then returning to baseline is hugely helpful. This is all good rehearsal for working in the higher arousal state at class and trials! So while you might not ever use the Pink Panther at a trial, you can still train her in that state by using it in training. And training in that state is great for trialing in that state!! It is also good for obstacle skills – you can use this game with weave training, for example: can she hit and hold her weaves, after you do some pink panther to get her blasting into them? Fun! Anything that can mimic trial arousal states is good to have in training.
Great job here!
Tracy
