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Tunnel Games!
Refreshing the tunnel and threadle skills on a longer and slightly curved tunnel. I was able to do the double whammy with him turning to his right (his stronger side). He had more trouble turning away to his left, so I broke it down by placing the reward in the tunnel itself – that really helped! A well-placed lure can be a thing of beauty LOL!!! Then I ended with an easy one. I will let latent learning do its magic and see how he does in a day or two.Tracy
Hello!
>>Well, poop on a stick. I just wrote some comments and posted them and got a message saying ‘you aren’t allowed to do that.’ Hopefully that was a one-off!>>
Hmmm that is odd – did you have to log in again after it?
>>On the backside drill, I feel like I am still not doing it well.
Disagree! It looked really strong. I have a couple of small suggestions but overall it is 100% headed the right way. One small suggestion – start moving for 2 or 3 steps before you say the back cue. That will make a big difference when we use the front and back cue in the same session!
>>On why I would consider the good reps, it’s more of a wrap than a slice.
The toy placement was in that grey middle ground between wrap and slice, which is fine for now 🙂 It over-exaggerates the slice placement but it sets him up to immediately look at the bar after he rounds the backside wing, rather than look at you. Trust me, he will not over-collect when you cue backside slices and his backside wraps will be great too!
>> If I try to slide too far to the side, I pull him with me and he doesn’t go over the jump bump. >
Yes – this is my small suggestion #2 – when you are sliding across the slice and throw the toy, look back at the toy and don’t look at him. If you throw it and look at it (and point back to it) then he is going to go to it rather than follow you. For example, at :59, I really liked your timing and toy placement – but you were looking at him while you moved forward, which does not really indicate the toy. So that is when you can look back and point back to it.
>>Feels like he really has a feel for the ‘back, back, back’ part though!
Yes! He did great! And leads me to small suggestion #3: when you throw the toy, stop saying back back back and say ‘get it’ (while you look back at the toy and not at him) so he knows he has permission to disengage from the handling and go to the toy.
>>Pretty pleased with the left and right drill. At least to my eyes.
Agree!! He looked great! You can try to move away sooner and faster on the FC as he is going around the minny pinny, but otherwise you can back-burner this until MaxPup 2 when we build it up 🙂
>>I have been either rewarding the toy release with a treat or giving him the toy again after he releases it. Been doing this a lot and it seems to have helped with him giving the toy up more readily.>>
Yay! That clenching/clamping on the toy is a sign of arousal or frustration, so it is good to know he is able to let go of the toy more easily!
>>I’ve also been working on his startlines with liberal amounts of ‘catching’ a toy. That also seems to be helping a lot.>>
Perfect! He really likes to do the action things, so the stay rewards will be something we keep doing all the way through when he starts doing NFC at trials and beyond 🙂
>>It all adds up to even more fun training with Bobbie Bobbertson! (His nom d’jour.)
Yay! I am glad you are having fun with Sir Bobbertson Of House Sponge 🙂
Have a great weekend!
TracyHi!
Is your set up verbal “needle”? Very clever!
She seemed happy to line up between your feet but was not clear about the release – sometimes it looked like it was when your hands moved, so it was harder for you to move away. Try to add in moving away as soon as she gets in position – and she probably will also be happy to learn it starting from anywhere – behind you like you did here, at your side, in front of you, etc. (It is also a great flyball skill!)On this skill and later in the video on the flat – when you are stationary and looking at her, she seems to take it as the sign for “offer more” (so she offers the down or something else). So as soon as she is in the sit, you can move into the lead out as a way to affirm the sit.
The stays on the flat with the prop in front were terrific! She was especially good when you were closer to the camera – it was a little harder for her when you were on the other side of the room, not sure why, so maybe start on that side next time and see how she does. Overall, it is going well!!
Rocking horse – commitment looks really good! I can’t wait for the snow to melt so you can run run run run 🙂 Add as much movement as you can at home or if you take it to the barn. She seems ready, your connection is good, and you have added your verbals. YAY!
Remind me – is get it is your toy-in-hand marker? If so, carry on 🙂 If it is the thrown reward marker, be sure to use your toy in hand marker for these. I couldn’t find it when I scrolled back, but I want the markers to be consistent because she really does well with them!She only had one question which was at 1:32 – she was not sure which cone to go to. It looked to be because she was close a cone and your leg was back/you were sideways… but you wanted the other cone. When you moved your leg into a forward position? She nailed it!
Serps:
The serp part was easy for her! She really had trouble with the stay so this was more of a stay session than anything – it was more about impulse control on the hand target and she ended up very successful on the last set of reps! Yay! You did a lot of going back to reward in position – that was good! You can also walk all the way around the jump without releasing (and reward her) and you can also do lots of the ‘catch’ rewards as you arrive in serp position.When you did release her, the serps looked good so the stay is the main challenge here. You can also try to be past the halfway point on the bar before releasing her – you were a little too soon on most of these but that might have been more about trying to release before she broke the stay.
Threadle- the stay was not hard here, it was the ignoring of the toy that was hard. As with the serps (at the end of the serp video in particular), she did a LOT better on the crazy “hard” angles than she did on the so-called “easy” angles. Hmmmm! My guess is that the harder angles turn her visually away from the toy, so they are actually easier in terms of the stay!! That is good to know – next time, start with the crazy hard angles and see what she says 🙂
The stay degraded a bit when you released early on one and by the end you were releasing when your hand moved… so be very careful to maintain the clear distinction between the hand moving into position and the release happening several beats after it.
One more detail – she seems to be VERY verbal (which is GOOD!) So with that in mind, be super careful of your marker timing: at 2:51, she was heading to the jump bar so you said pounce… but the most efficient line to the toy was NOT over the bar. She was correct 🙂 And also it happened in the rocking horses where you said “get it” on one rep so she stopped what she was doing and went to the toy. Both of those are legit (and very literal LOL!) interpretations of the markers, so just hold them one step longer if the reward is not placed on the obvious line to include the behavior you want her to continue.
Great job! Let me know what you think!
TracyTurn and burn concept transfer!
As soon as he realized that I was trying to leave sooner, his commitment waned. So I changed the reward placement to help him out (2 failure rule is always in effect!)He was also definitely teething – he kept putting the toy in his molars to chew it, which is unusual for him.
Hi!
Really nice connection here on these rocking horses and good job adding the spins! You can start them sooner at :55 and 1:04 by beginning the rotation before she reaches the cone and so you are finished and connected before she exits the cone.
And definitely try my ideas about either leaving the toy in one hand or sticking it in a pocket (and adding a marker for it) so that he doesn’t have questions about the toy or looks at it (you an see his question at :38 for example, when he comes to the toy then back out to the cone).
Take a look at the race tracks – he is ready for those and they are fun!
Great job on all of these! Have a great weekend!
TracyHi!
Minny pinny is looking really strong, he really has the concept!! Nice! For the left verbal, you can say it a few times before letting go like you did on rep 2 but then keep saying it as he goes all the way around. You did this on the right turn verbals (say it a few times, let go, keep saying it) and it worked really nicely!
As you are saying the verbals, you can stretch them out and be q little softer in your delivery, which will help him differentiate these from the fast/short wrap verbals.
It looks like the footing is a little slippery so he is not quite fully coordinated going around – you might want to use 3 bumps if you have them so he doesn’t hit the bars at all especially as he finishes the turns
Because he seems to have really figured out the concept, you can add in doing a front cross and moving away to reward as he begins going around it. Your reward placement was really strong, so now we can add motion too 🙂 You started that on the last rep and he is ready for more 🙂
Go back and watch the end of the video at 2:09-2:10 and you will see him do a hilarious and adorable leap in the air with this toy as you were turning the camera off LOL!
Great job!
TracyHi!
His sit and stay looks good! Remember to movee forward away from him as if leading out past a jump, and not backing up away from him.(Side note: he is trying to catch with his feet which is adorable!)
He is ready for the next level, so now you can have him do the stays in front of his prop – make sure you line him up on both sides of you to be sure the right side line ups are strong like the left side lines up. Then lead out as if the prop is a start jump, and release to reward before he breaks.
Nice work!
TracyHi!
The rocking horses looked good here! Your connection looks really clear which totally helps too. His commitment is good but it can be even better with some toy clarity 🙂 You might not realize it, but you are passing the toy from hand to hand and sometimes he is given it when you do that, sometimes not… so he is looking at the toy first, which delays his commitment. When it is clear that it is not toy-time, he carries past you to the cone but I would like him to not look at you or the toy til it is reward time. That will get even more commitment!
So two ways to do that:
– definitely use a toy marker that is not “yes” or “good” 🙂 Use something that means: grab the toy now! I say “bite” 🙂 A distinct toy marker when it is toy-time will help him NOT look at the toy til you say the magic word.
– either keep the toy in the same hand (no switcheroos) or tuck it into a pocket. Most people find it easier to tuck into a pocket, which works great in this game. The reward doesn’t need to be a precision reward, so you can say your toy marker and whip out the toy from the pocket when it is toy-time 🙂It was hard to hear if you were using your wrap verbals. If not… he is ready for them! And he is ready for the spins and the racetracks too 🙂
Great job!
TracyOooh I would think crawfish was an excellent reinforcement!
>>wonder if I could have been a factor in Roulez’s uber arousal level.
Hard to know! But Audie is a super engaged boy with a ton of lovely drive… so we don’t need to jack him up LOL! With dogs that have natural drive like Audie, I prefer to let them be chill and even a bit slow at this age… because once that have a thoughtful understanding of the skills, it is very easy to turn on the speed 🙂 You can probably see in the demo videos how slooooowwwwwwww Contraband (the merle border/whippet) is, so slooooowwwwwwwwwww LOL!! He turned out to be crazy fast AND able to think in arousal (huzzah!) – he is a good posted child for us needing to be on Team Fake Chill at this stage so we can get speed AND thoughtfulness later in life 🙂
THi!
He did super well in a new place! Yay! And yes, I agree with your videographer/coach who wanted you to chill out a bit LOL!!! He is doing all the right things, so now we can be clearer on mechanics.I think Jamie and I will now officially invite you and Audie to join Team Fake Chill so you can focus on mechanics 🙂 (OK, Audie is fine, but you are officially invited :)) A lot of what was happening was going really fast (too fast for a baby dog) and really stimulating (Audie doesn’t need the extra giddy up, he brings plenty of it already :)), so he had errors in spots where more of a Team Fake Chill approach to start each rep will smooth things out nicely.
At the start of each rep, whether it is the 360s or the tunnels, remember to use super clean calm mechanics:
line him up at your side with a cookie, take his collar when he is at your side. Do this instead of grabbing his collar and pulling him into position – that causes a lot of neck torque, causes higher arousal, and also pulls his front feet off the ground. We want him to start balanced and with all 4 feet on the ground and you holding his collar. That way, you can say the verbals a few times then let him go (so he is not seeing the motion and hearing the verbals all at once).
And starting with all 4 feet on the ground is more balanced so he can move forward. When you have his front feet off the ground, the first thing he has to do is shift all of his weight forward to put his front feet down, which puts him off balance and makes the turn games harder as well as the tunnel games.
On the 360s, this will translate to him standing at your side, your hand on his collar (you can be one or two steps further from the barrel at this point). Say his backside wrap verbal 3 or 4 times, then simply let go of him (you sometimes throw him forward LOL!) And the calmer mechanics will also get rid of the READY GO you were using before each rep (which Jamie gets a click/treat for pointing it out LOL!!)
And on the harder tunnel entries, the smoother mechanics and letting him hear the tunnel verbal a few times will also help him find it. He was having trouble on the backside tunnel approaches because his front feet were up in the air and you tried to rush away with the verbal and motion all happening at the same time 🙂 You were more zen on the last rep so definitely keep going that way.
I think he is also ready for you to add the tunnel threadle verbal when is in on the threadle side! Be sure to hold him and let him hear it 3 or 4 times before you let him go, so he can find it with the verbal getting added as the cue.
Nice work here! And I hope Jamie paid up that chocolate reset cookie she was offering hahahaha!
TracyBaby Ramen’s first parallel path concept transfer! He was a good boy! The main goal was to get rewards in early so he would look straight ahead and not at me. I used food and a toy in this session.
When he was on my left: perfect!
He had a harder time on my right, for whatever reason: maybe I have a lot of value for training on my left and not enough on my right? Or because he is probably a righty, being on my right requires him move with a left lead leg more? Not sure, but no worries: I helped him out and he was getting it by the end.
Good morning!
>>Quick question, can I use cones for the rocking horse exercises or do I need something bigger. Don’t have barrels.>>
Are the cones super tall, like those big traffic cones? Those should be fine – ideally the top is taller than her, so she cannot see over the top. If they are smaller, something else would be ideal – a laundry basket or garbage pail or anything like that 🙂 You won’t need it for long because we go to wings shortly.
Looking at the minny pinny left/right game:
Her commitment looks really great here! She is also really thinking about bending through the line, which is great 🙂 My only suggestion is to hold her for longer so she can hear the left and right verbals 3 or 4 times before you let her go – that will attach the verbal so it becomes the cue, separately from motion. When you say it and you both run simultaneously, she is more likely to prioritize processing the motion and not the verbal. And holding her for a bit longer will help you stretch the verbals a little: lehhffft lehhft lehhffft instead of leftleftleft 🙂 That will help her differentiate these soft turn verbals from the wrap verbals, which are shorter and louder.Great job! Let me know what you think!
TracyHi!
He did really well with the left and right game here! No trouble adding the bars 🙂 As with the tunnel game – try not to say the verbal and move all at once, because then he is processing your movement more than the verbal. Instead, line him up at your side, hold his collar, say the verbal 3 or 4 times… then let him go. And for now. you don’t have to move until after he is at hte 3rd wing – then you can FC and run away for the reward. Doing it like that will really help solidify and attach the verbal to the behavior, separately from your motion.
Nice work on all of these! Let me know what you think!
TracyHi!
Tunnel game looks great! Try to hold him a few seconds longer before you start, so he can hear the tunnel verbal 3 or 4 times before you both start moving. That will help solidify the verbal as the cue. And, he looks ready for you to now put him on the inside (between you and the tunnel) so he learns the turn away for the tunnel threadle entries 🙂
Great job!
TracyGood morning! He is doing well with his wraps!
>>I just want to get a perfect session on wraps.>>
No need to be perfect 🙂 Instead, be connected and precise, and plan the reinforcement to build up the value on the harder side. The harder side is the left turn side (harder for both of you :)) so you can reward all of the left turn wraps in the next session, t build up the value. Then you won’t have to be as perfect 🙂 Ideally, you would throw the reward out past the left turn cone as he moves to it, so he gets more value for going past you to the left turn.
And when doing so, you don’t need to do as many wraps in a row – I like to keep each rep to 2 or 3 wraps in a row, maximum, so I can maintain my own focus and also get lots of rewards in. When we get past 3 wraps, we mess up or the pup messes up. For example. the error at :32 was the 5th wrap in a row, after several really strong ones. Compare to :26, which was the 3rd wrap in that rep, where you both nailed it – that would be a good one to reward by throwing a toy out past the cone (instead of near you).
Nice work!
Tracy
