[Tracy Sklenar]

Hi! Sorry for the delay – I am at a UKI Festival and the cell service is horrible… which also means no internet. I am not sure when this will actually post!

>>Temperature here is over 80 with hot direct sun, so we didn’t spend THAT much time outside. Maybe that’s why my walks were not sufficient. >>

Totally relatable – we have a “feels like” of 99 right now…. Gross! I am at a trial that is outdoors and undercover. My morning runs were decent in terms of temps, but since I (foolishly) entered 4 dogs, you better believe I was careful in the walk though and did a whole lot without actually running.

So a whole lot of walk through can be done without a lot of running – but when it is cooler, definitely work on running at the actual pace so solidify the feel of it all.

>>Also, I am not taking as much advantage of my verbals as I could and I am not “moving in the new direction” with crispness and speed.>>

YES! This is key – timing and delivery of verbals, along with connections needed. The timing will help you move to the next line too – you can spend a lot of time in the walk through working out the timing, really emphasizing what to do when he exits a tunnel, or as he is over the jump before a turn, for example.

>> As I was walking the course, I realized that I only walked 3 minutes (instead of 8). So that is nice; of course, that does mean I make mistakes sometimes.>>

Being able to do it all in 3 minutes is great, especially when you are running more than one dog (Casper is on his way!) But yes, be sure that you don’t miss anything – if I feel like my walk through is done, I will stand and visualize the course and make sure I have it, before going to get the dog.

Looking at course 1:

Opening plan – the lead out plan is a good one (he will also easily find the 4-5-6 line with less of a lead out, from a rear too, based on the strength of his weaving). But the big lead out takes out all options after 1 except 2, based on your position.

Nice layering options – you can layer the tunnel AND teeter, but you probably don’t need to. Layering the tunnel will get you to 9-10-11 easily. To get the cross on landing to 10 – you walked a FC but a BC might be more efficient to keep you moving forward to set the line t 12 and the DW.

Nice distance choices at the end!! Those are strong skills for him for sure!

Run 1:

You did a FC 3-4, it looked really good! I originally thought the BC would be better but on the 2nd time through there with the BC, I didn’t like it as much – it as a little later and the turn was a little more surprising to him.

>>I did a FC after #3 on the first run and a BC on the second. Don’t think it made much difference. I suppose I should have done the BC sooner and further back, then I could move in the new direction sooner.>>

The FC was a stronger option here based on the timing and the strength of the rotation – yes, if you start the BC sooner I bet it will it will be really nice too. On this course, the FC was great because the course was rolling him back to you anyway – if there was some crazy thing that required you to be way ahead, then the blind will get you there better than the FC.

Nice tunnel layer parallel to the frame!! That was easy for him.

>>tried a couple of times to see how to incorporate #11 and then forgot it entirely during the first run. The “HEY! Walk it” was in response to his longing look at his toy. He was also very, very wide at 18.>>

Yes – the forgotten 11 then a big send to 12 which might be why he went so wide (‘we’re done! Woohoo!’)
The 2nd time through with 11 set the line a lot better – I think the BC on the landing of 10 is going to be a very effective option for staying ahead though.

That wideness at 12 threw off the rest of the line to the ending on that first run, great job holding on to it and getting it done!

I was about to suggest that you try 16-17 with him on your right then do the threadle wrap on 18 – and that is what you did after the re-walk. It worked like a charm and is a great place to put that threadle wrap move. Plus, getting the line 11-12 set up your dog walk cues to be more in flow, so the entire ending looked much smoother.

Walk 2 –
You were playing with various options about where to be on the tunnel-teeter section – I think the BC between the tunnel and teeter will give great flow and will be easy to do.

The choices on the middle section looked good- hard to tell what you were doing with the timing, so that is something to rehearse more of in the walk through.

On the jump before the weaves – I definitely suggest turning to his left (to the outside) – that is the line he will want to be on, plus you can all your weaves cue and then leave. Turning to the right requires you to stay there and push him back to the weaves, which keeps you there longer. Turn left on
Nice layering on the weaves to the next jump!

And I thought the backside before the DW and after the DW was a bit challenging in the course design but sure enough… I have already see something similar on course this weekend (with a tunnel, not a DW, so even less time 🙁

Looking at the run:

He needed a little more info to go straight after the frame – you were quiet and hanging back on the first run so he had a little zig zag line there at 2:14. You were much clearer about the drive forward at 3:49 and he looked great!

The BC from the tunnel exit to the teeter was perfect both times 🙂

On 6 –
You said “go on” after teeter, so he did indeed go on 🙂 (2:20)
That spot at 3:57 was better but I think you can send and leave sooner, – just give him one step off the teeter than move away laterally. Plus, you can use a brake arm to get a better turn – he was still looking forward over 6, so you can ask for more collection on the approach to it.

He got the turn to the weaves, but it was wide and you had to hang out there to push him back to the weaves. This is a perfect spot for your switch cue – he knows it really well and you don’t need to get close to the jump to do it. You can do the switch then cue the weaves and be down the line waiting for him 🙂

You played with 2 different FC options after the weaves: the first one at 2:45 is what put him over the off course – it was late and you stepped forward out of it. The second one on the landing side at 4:11 worked a lot better because you were earlier.

I think if you did the switch on the jump before the weaves, then really trusted his weaves, you could do a blind cross while he is still weaving in either of those spots and get the turn really easily 🙂 Doing the cross before he exits the weaves will give very clear early info.

15-end looked great on the first run! On the 2nd run, you were a bit late on the push at after the tunnel at 4:13 (he was already approaching the jump) – the timing of the first run was earlier and more successful.

The switches on that closing line work beautifully – great job with your connection and patience to get it done!
Those switches are one of the reasons I recommend that you do it on the jump before the weaves – super strong independent skill!!

>>Almost caught up – if you ignore how much I skipped.>>

You can go back and catch anything you missed, if life and Mother Nature cooperate 🙂

Great job!!
Tracy

[Tracy Sklenar]

Hi!
Seq 3: Good handling choices! Eventually you might be able to do the backside push while layering 🙂 It is a good one to work because I bet we see that with the dog walk in the center of the ring at some point soon.
You can walk it more thoroughly though – doing it without speed and not thinking about what his commitment looks like is what bit you at 1:01 (jump 10).

In that spot in the walk through, you planned your movement but you can add in the timing of starting the cue AND when he looks at the jump and is committed.

The first run went really well – the cues at 10 were not as clear (almost looked like a threadle wrap. On the 2nd run, you were better about waiting to see commitment, so he got it nicely! (I don’t think he needed the spin there anyway, his turn was lovely!)

You can leave for the next line as soon as you see him look at the bar. At 1:01, he never really looked at the bar – he was looking in that direction but then you pulled back so he came with you. On threadles, you will see a distinct head turn to look at the bar (often accompanied by a lead change and a first step to the wing.

So after watching these all in a row – if you add a couple of things to your walk through, I think you will be able to nail these runs with both dogs, on the first run.

So what to add?
– connection to the invisible dog in the walk through – where is the dog? You were tending to look ahead to the next thing, but the dog is still behind you, so that will change your timing on the fly (or set up connection errors). So – always thinking about where exactly the dog is.
– hand in hand with connection, think about exactly what it looks like when the dog says “I see it, you can go now!” to confirm the dog is committed. This is most important on the really hard lines like wraps, threadles and layering. And there is an element of patience and waiting until you see that from the dog – you keep cuing the thing until you see the dog’s head lock onto it, then you can go to the next thing. This is harder at first but it will make ALL the difference.

For example – I rushed my dogs on a backside in Speedstakes this morning, and did not wait to see them turn their heads to it… so I got the front side with all of them. OOPSIE! LOL!!! My bad.
I reminded myself to wait for the dog to confirm commitment and then nailed a hard Team Jumping run. That illustrates the difference – just keep supporting the cue until the dog says “I see it!”.

Then… walk those pieces faster 🙂 Go faster than you think the dogs even need you to go! If you can practice going faster than the dogs and still getting all the handling and connections and confirmations from the dog, then a real time run will be SUPER easy 🙂

Great job here! Let me know what you think!
Tracy

[Tracy Sklenar]

Hi!
This is where the walk through rehearsal will make a big difference – especially the connection to her and the seeing her give you the thumbs up that she is committed 🙂 And then… walk it all faster at Emmie speed, so you can lock in the connection and timing before running her. You can see that the send into the layering is forward-facing, meaning you were looking at the jump and not at her, which opens up the tunnel (shoulders and feet are pointing to the tunnel :))

On the run –

She is a little tentative when you are not connected at the beginning – not run-in as fast and drifting a little to wait for more info. She got it, but more connection will drive her through faster and with more confidence.

On the layering – it is counterintuitive, but looking at the dog more gets them to work at a distance better. Pointing forward revealed the tunnel 4-5 – as you broke it down, you added more connection and less of a high arm, so she was able to get it nicely! That is definitely something to plan for.

>>Then I got lazy handling the backside and took it for granted.

I think eventually she won’t need the connection shift to the landing spot of the backside at 2:18, but it is definitely something to remember for now 🙂 You got it nicely on the last rep!

T

[Tracy Sklenar]

Hi!
Looking at the walk through, it looks like you were blocking the wing at 2, then not cueing the last wrap til she has exited the tunnel. So you can plan to trust her more there at 2 because she totally has the backside skill, and plan to call her and show the next cue before she goes into the tunnel.
Also, I think you were definitely better with thinking about where she will be on each line here, but it can be done more at her speed so it really locks in.

It went well overall, nice job! More connection to the backside will definitely help her out.

2nd run here and last run with Kippy, you were further across jump 2, not at entry wing – trust that skill and plan for it, as it changes the timing of the next line to be in that position versus closer to the entry wing. 🙂

[Tracy Sklenar]

Hi! (I know the post above about Emmie has not come through yet, because the internet is being NAUGHTY here!)

I agree, this went really well! Nice framework of your walk through! But it will all go much faster so try to add that into the walk through – it is really hard to do the full speed at a trial, so doing it at home will really lock you into his timing and the pace you need to run at.

The run went really well! Fully connected and fast! Definitely try to match the walk through to that, so he can produce first runs like this all the time 🙂

T

[Tracy Sklenar]

Good morning!
Sorry for any delay in getting this reply, I am not actually sure when the internet gods here will let me post it (at a trial and cell reception is very spotty).

I remember you said that these were harder looking but WOWZA I think you did a great job!!

You made strong handling choices, and tried some different options on turns – not super important which was faster at this stage, it is more about being able to show her cues for ALL the things 🙂 And you did! Yay!

Pop out 3 –
On the walk through – it think your pan is pretty clear! You can say your verbals more like you say them in the run, and sooner. And also – try to move faster on the walk through because you have to move faster on the run! Connection all looked good! Timing was less clear on the parts that she went wider on – more below.

The Back push to dig in the opening looked great (:29-:33 and :52. -:55 and 1:20 – 1:23). That is some seriously challenging jumping and she was great!

You can rotated towards her more (and sooner -decel before she passes you and rotate as she is passing you) on 4 (:35 and :57 and also 1:23 when going the other direction). That will tighten it up a little.

>She’s still jumping long on these 180 turns. What else do I need to do?>>

I think you are talking about the Right turn at :37 and :59 and 1:26. You were just late 🙂 That is why she went wide. As she is exiting the previous jump, you should be saying your right verbal a few times and let her see you moving laterally away. The timing her was after she had reached the halfway point between the 2 jumps, so her takeoff decision was already made.

The other wide spot was the exit of the backside (German-ish) turn at :39 and 1:01. SUPER Nice connection to the landing spot as you moved through, but you are late getting past the wing so she is wide – you can see on those reps that you were on the landing side as she was talking off.

Check out the much better position passing the wing to the takeoff side as she was on the takeoff side at 1:28 on the backside and you got a much better turn! Yay!

The other tricky part is the spin at the end – :44 did look like a FC, and you overcompensated a little at 1:06 and it was a little late.

I liked your spin at 1:30! At first it looked like you were going to get too far ahead but nope – you nailed the timing of the decel and the spin! Super!!!

Pop out 4 – loved the connections n the walk through! And you were faster in your pace (which also helped you say the verbals more like you say them in the run – repeated, not just once :))

First run – opening looked great!
Oh wait, the WHOLE FIRST RUN LOOKED GREAT!!! HUZZAH!!! Yay for you BOTH!! Loved it!!!

2nd run – you were not quite as out of the way of the landing spot of 2 so the bar dropped, and you missed the landing spot connection shift on the backside at :44 but I do love that you were really driving past the jump! Your position was fantastic!!!

>>Back side to serp still a work in progress.>>

Really high rate of success with that on both of these videos!

And the last run looked terrific too 🙂 Super happy with all of this!!!

>>So, I did the threadle wrap for her. It went better than expected>>

Heck yeah! Check out the in in threadle wrappy turns that you nailed EACH time here. YES!!! Very cool to see the training come into the sequences!

>>. If I wanted to wrap to the inside would it be a double lap turn? You’ll see I chose the back side push to a wrap.>>

If you do the threadle side of 2, then yes, one option is a double lap turn (Lordy, that is a LOT of handling though LOL!!!) The other option is to Blind cross between 2 and 3 (tricky timing, as soon as she turns to look at 2 you do the BC) and then push to the backside.

I think the way you did it to turn to the outside was the best way – smooth and clear and very fast!!

Great job here! Let me know what you think!
Tracy

[Tracy Sklenar]

Hi! (I know the post above about Emmie has not come through yet, because the internet is being NAUGHTY here!)

I agree, this went really well! Nice framework of your walk through! But it will all go much faster so try to add that into the walk through – it is really hard to do the full speed at a trial, so doing it at home will really lock you into his timing and the pace you need to run at.

The run went really well! Fully connected and fast! Definitely try to match the walk through to that, so he can produce first runs like this all the time 🙂

T

[Tracy Sklenar]

Good morning!

I have looked at all of these and overall, this is great because it gives us an idea of what you naturally do that makes things easier, and what you can add to your walk through to be able to nail it the first time. This is a perfect time to do this because we have are getting ready to enter big event season! Yay! I will post some comments and thoughts with each video, then a bigger summary with the last video 🙂

On this first video:
Thanks for posting the walk throughs! I feel like you are really good at walking the frame of the plan, and running it the frame of the plan… but not taking into account where exactly the dog will be, where to connect (like on the layering Ines and exits of the backsides), and when to leave for the next Iine. That is where the bloopers are coming from.

So we will focus a lot on rehearsing running the invisible dog to see his/her commitments and how fast you need to be to execute the plan – more on that below 🙂

Run 1 – at the beginning, you were being too helpful to get the first backside only evident line was to the tunnel.

You were clearer there on the 2nd run , he just needed more support to commit to 5. Try not to stop on a missed jump, keep going because it is excellent practice for thinking on your feet!

At 1:46, things tipped the other way – now you are watching him but not executing the plan 🙂 looks like you were late on the threadle and then in his way to get him to it.

Last run was best! You were really locked into all the elements: check out how fast you have to move 😉 Pretty darned fast!!!) You can add more connection on the backside wrap exit at the end, he was wide there because he didn’t know which side to be on.

Nice work! Onwards to Emmie!

[Tracy Sklenar]

Hi!

>>It feels like the closer I go to the jump, the rather behind I’ll be getting to the next line, but if I’m not trying to “handle” it with my shoulders as you also mentioned, I should be able to leave earlier. >>

Exactly! You can leave sooner because you handle a lot less.

>>I know with the threadle wrap you said my feet should be facing the next line, not the jump she’s wrapping. Is that true for the threadle slice as well?>>

No – the feet on the threadle slice face the landing spot. That is part of what differentiates them from the threadle wrap.

On the video – the first walk and the first run looked good! I think the main thing to add to the walk through is the isolated moment of when she acknowledges commitment and what exactly it looks like – especially to tunnels which seem to be her least favorite thing.

>>Again, her questions were pretty much when I left early.>>-

Yes – either leaving for the next line before she is committed, or looking ahead too early (which is basically the same thing :))

So you can reframe what you remind yourself during the walk through – rather than “watch her head” you can tell yourself to “Keep moving along the line and wait for her to begin driving to the obstacle – that is the cue to move to the next line”. That should smooth out the litter blooper of pulling her off the tunnel at :35 and her question at :58. She was not clear on the cue at :58 either because puling away was on your mind and showing in the body language there 🙂 So from the landing of the jump before the last tunnel you would need to be looking at her and moving towards the tunnel until you see her lock onto it – she is probably going to be about 6 feet from the entry -that is your cue to move to the next line.

2nd run – the walk through has a nice low arm and lots of connection, but on the first run you end up pointing forward a lot, with your arm parallel to your shoulder (that was the source of her questions on 5 and 7). On the 2nd run, you had the same low arm and strong connection as the walk through – NICE!

So to make the first run look this good 🙂 be sure to remind yourself to lock the dog side arm down and back. It is possible you need to do more ‘go fast’ walk throughs to get the arm locked in, so you don’t have to think about it and so it is easy on the first run. Rather than doing it once, do it 3 or 4 or 5 times to really get the flow – then watch your video of the walk through. When I do the go fast walk throughs at home, I am out of breath like I just ran it, so I wait til I am fine again before I run the dog : )

3rd walk through -Watching this, I think there can be more connection back to your invisible dog in the middle section. I think you are looking too far forward in 3-4-5 which might get a question on 5, and the spin might be late. Then while she was in the tunnel, you were looking ahead of her to the backside. So remember to look at where she will be so you can maintain connection and timing all the way through.

On the first run, she did have a question at 5 from looking too far forward (and high arm pointing forward) and also the bar at the backside (late FC).
The 2nd run was definitely clearer , but more connection back to her will be the key element to add when planning. On the 4-5 line at 2:53, she was behind you and not sure where to be (bark bark!) until motion helped her out there – so make the big connection to her to get her to the line even before she takes off for 4.

And the Fc on the backside was definitely better! The timing on that would be as soon as she passes the plane of the entry, which is basically just before she gets to the entry edge of the backside wing. So as she is exiting the tunnel, you are running to position and decelerating, setting up the FC collection.
You were doing the FCs as she was taking off, which makes it harder for her to set up the collection over that bar.

Very nice connection to the end!

Overall, the runs are looking really good and you are tackling the most important skill… the walk through! When that is really comfortable, you will find that the courses run much better on that first run 🙂 It is all beginning to click into place, which is very cool to see!

Tracy

[Tracy Sklenar]

Hi!

Bummer about the walk through video getting turned off! Technology is a pain sometimes LOL!!!

>>In the rep you see first, he breaks his stay, my bad! I should’ve given him a toy and played a few seconds before starting over. >>

Yes, definitely a little anticipation on the release when you moved when in position – and yes to playing with him if the error on the first rep was human error 🙂 And be sure there is no movement on the release on lead outs like there – there is movement on the release in the 2nd rep when you turn, face him, and move your hand & release simultaneously. So I can see his argument that there might have been a release on the first rep on the video 🙂 . Be sure to put your hand in position, freeze… then release 🙂

He is reading the threadle really well! So you don’t need to step him to #2 at all, then 🙂 Hold position til he turns his head to 2 – then you leave directly to 3. That extra step or two might not make a huge difference on this sequence, but it will help on a bigger course for sure!

The rest looked really great! You might have been a bit ‘extra’ in your intensity calling on to turn on the exit of the last tunnel – it was a “Break Glass In Case Of Emergency” call and he came out in huge collection, looking at you LOL!! So you can call him normally and trust that he will turn.

The threadle wrap looked great! He is definitely getting those really nicely!!!

Well done here! Let me know what you think!

Tracy

[Tracy Sklenar]

Hi! I think she did really well here!

When doing the volume dial for cookies before the run – the tricks were good now you can add more action in the cookie delivery by having her chase you a bit, or having her chase the cookie hand doing a spin instead of just handing her the treat. Action cookies will get even more arousal and engagement!

In both videos, she was very patient in her sit when you took the leash off 🙂 And you were good about letting her offer that then throwing the treat. Next step – add in a little quiet praise while she is sitting 🙂

The opening is tricky when turning to her left on jump 1, because it makes it really hard to keep her off the tunnel as you found out LOL! On the first run, you were a little late on the turn 3-4 so she went to the tunnel (you were running straight over 2 which propelled her long over 3).

On the 2nd run, wrapping that way with the motion in towards 2 does set the line to the tunnel and playing it without sound… the physical cue does indicate the tunnel. You said the verbal earlier but the physical cue overrode it. So as she is lifting off for 2, you would need to be saying your right and turning to 4 to get her to turn over 3.

The line to the tunnel looked good on both runs!
After the weaves, you had a little too much shoulder pull at 1:31 (she correctly looked at the other jump). Definitely better on the 2nd run! And it will be easier when the independent weaves are in place, because then you can be a lot further ahead.

Nice adjust on the switch timing before the jump-tunnel discrimination! You were too early at 1:39, so she didn’t take the jump. Much better on the 2nd run!

The last element as the FC wrap after the tunnel there – switching her away to the tunnel looked good, you just needed to look at her more as she exited the tunnel to get the timing of the wrap. The first run was earlier and worked better. The 2nd one was late (bar down) – the added connection will give you the exact moment to decel because you will fully see her exit the tunnel.

And then after that wrap, you can totally let her find the line into the tunnel! It is right in front of her and a fun way to end 🙂

Great job here! Let me know what you think!
Tracy

[Tracy Sklenar]

Wow, nice lead outs here! He was pumped up but held the stay til you released, 3 jumps ahead! The sequence went well with the wrap then the go – you can throw the toy sooner on the last jump so he doesn’t curl back to you.

Nice job on the 2nd video too – when you are in a bigger space, you can add in more lateral distance (instead of being ahead) to see if he can hold the stay and send laterally to the jump when released (I am sure he can :))

Great job here!
Tracy

[Tracy Sklenar]

Hi!

I think he did well here trying to figure this crazy game out with you sitting LOL!!
The difference in the energy of the verbal makes a bug difference for him. Question: do both of the cues begin with. ‘Get in’ or ‘go in’? I didn’t notice that in earlier sessions (I thought you used tunnel as the tunnel verbal, but maybe I was under-caffeinated LOL!!)

The cues being too similar might be why he hd a question at the end – too similar and he was trying to predict which one it was, perhaps?

Feel free to try this with the tunnel verbal and see if it makes a difference.

Nice work!
Tracy

[Tracy Sklenar]

Hi!

>>There were a few new people at the field. Only one other dog in the field at the same time- and far away. But he was clearly uncomfortable. Should I keep it to just me and Jamie or one other person for now? other suggestions?>>

That is good info from him! I think he needs to get into environments with other people around, but without challenging behaviors (stay is pretty challenging!)

You can take him on walkabouts near new people, playing the pattern game. That way he can assess them and return his engagement to you when he is ready. I would do this for as many sessions as needed til he returns engagement really fast – then you can switch to asking for a simple behavior. Once he is used to new people and not surprised by them, all of the other behavior will pop right back into place 🙂
Keep me posted!

Tracy

[Tracy Sklenar]

Good morning!

>>I know VERY little about jump grids and am just learning about conditioning work. I have the Susan Salo book. Should I just go through and pick random ones to set up each week? >>

I don’t think the Salo grids will necessarily help her. I recommend Dr. Leslie Eide, a sports vet who teaches online jumping and conditioning classes, and also is a high level agility competitor 🙂

https://www.facebook.com/thetotalcanine

>>Moving on to the next thing- we had the opportunity to rent some indoor AIR CONDITIONED space a couple days ago>>

Ah, AC!!! That is so nice at this time of year.

Seq 1: The walk through looked good! One thing to remember is that the dogs are always slower on mats and the handlers are always faster 🙂 So take that into consideration as you plan your timing – letting her look at the line before you move to the next one. She will cue you when she has it 🙂

First run – You were a little too quick 3-4, she needed to be able to get past you from the tunnel exit (accidentally push to the backside). You let her get past you better on the 2nd run and that looked good!

The backside cue on the first rep was too forward facing, showing the front side, so the physical cue overrode the verbal. Much better backside cue on the redo (facing the backside more). Nice connection on the exit! Then be sure you run to the next jump directly, you were moving laterally away from it.

Seq 2: walk through looked good here too. One thing I notice on the walk through (that was mirrored on the run) was that you are really far from jump 2 here – as the dogs learn to be super independent on the threadle, you will need support it with a positional cue by being close enough to the jump to touch it 🙂

On the run, being that far from the jump caused confusion at 1:42 – she came to you but did not know to go back to the jump. Then you turned your shoulders forward which made it harder. Keep going there! The cookie drop came when she turned and barked at you, right in front of a jump. Yes, we want her to not get frustrated but also, we don’t want to present cookies when she is facing you and barking in front of a jump. So the trick is to keep moving, keep moving 🙂

Back to the threadle: start super close to the jump, she should have just enough room to get between you and the jump. Hold the threadle position until she turns her head to 2 then you can move away. No need to turn your shoulders forward to cue the jump – the threadle cues it. When you turned the shoulders forward to the jump, it is potentially cuing her to go past the jump (like on the first rep). So keep your shoulders frozen in threadle position til she turns and looks at jump 2, then get outta there for 3-4.

>>After the 2nd attempt of sequence 2, I did the opening with 3 different handling moves. I’m not sure which one I liked better, but they were all fun to try!>

The blind worked well there and so did the forced front cross to Jaakko because they both showed the line more clearly and they are not ‘trained’ cues – meaning, if you do it right, the dog does it right 🙂 But, they both require the handler to spend more time moving to jump 2. And the threadle allows you to leave as soon as she turns her head to the jump, so that is a big advantage for the threadle.

The next section looked really good! Nice layering! The backside push needed your physical cues to face the backside more (you were clearer at 2:26 on the 2nd run) – you were turned to the front so she had a question about which side.

Threadle wrap looked great! YAY!! Nice to see the training shine through!

3rd sequence – another good walk through. You can try going even faster on all of the walk throughs, and also get the verbals out loud like you would do on a run – that changes the body language!

The other thing to plan in the walk through is seeing her head look at the jumps – that seemed to be the only real source of questions from her on any of these – you being a little early to cue or move away, which pulls her off or pushes her to a different line.

On the runs: Nice opening! Great lead out position and timing there!

Yes, a little loss of connection 8-9 on the first run, be sure she looks at the jump. The second run looked a lot better in terms of connection!

There was something happening with the verbal there – If there is a blooper, don’t dwell on it 🙂 You had a great run going til you starting thinking about the verbal at 4:31… dwelling on it caused the error at 4:37 because you were talking and didn’t connect or get to the tunnel exit. So keep practicing carrying on and ignoring errors 🙂

>>could not figure out how to get the backside of 6. I have been tasked with finding out what the answer is, lol. >>

Depending on exactly how the jump is set up (it was hard to see here), it is generally a backside push to slice but a threadle wrap is good to practice there too.

The tunnel in the way takes out the dogs being able to see your foot work (especially small dogs) so it is all upper body and verbal cue.

The specifics of the physical cue can be individual for each dog. The push to the backside cue would start as she is lifting for the jump before – and to support the verbal, you can rotate your upper body to her to give her more connection, or use an outside arm to push her to the backside. Or some dogs do better with a dog side arm.

You can also set up convergence by not going as close to 4 so you can by showing converging motion 5-6 and help push her out.

It is something to play with without the tunnel there, and with a line on the ground or a blocker or something to be sure you add distance.

The threadle wrap with the layering would need the cues to start before 5 too, with. The verbal and the big upper body movement – but also needs to be isolated at a distance. I think the dogs might have been surprised that there was something other a straight line on the layering, so they had a delayed response to the cues and needed earlier/more exaggerated cues there.

In that case, perfect handling won’t help the dogs 🙂 it is a matter of showing it to them in context so they understand that backsides are possible in layering too!

Great job on these! Let me know what you think!
Tracy

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