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Hi! Hope you had a great weekend!
As always, thanks for the update!
>>Mookie nailed all 4 nicely. For seq 1 Mookie could do the layer. For sequence 2 we could wrap 3 to the outside but it seemed easier for Mookie to wrap to the inside. For seq 3 it was faster and easier to turn to the outside on 4. For seq 4 we could wrap 3 to 4 in either direction.>>
Perfect! It is good to be able to turn both directions but it is even better to know which is easier for the dog, and which is faster (often the same turn – easier and faster usually pair up nicely :))
>>I needed to work on the turns for the puppy. We are still in the process of learning the turns. He needed increased support to execute the turns both to the inside and outside. >>Yes, that makes sense. Youngsters do need a lot more support especially when you are rotating the new direction.
>>Question: Are you doing another Motion Counter Motion Class on line or will just the Indep study be available. I am thinking of going through those exercises with the puppy when Camp is over. Let me know Thanks.>>
There are currently no plans for it – I will be doing some sort of short course in late Sept/early October, not sure what yet, maybe I should take a poll and see what people want 🙂
>>As for Buddy he needed extra support to go to the outside. He seems to turn more efficiently to the inside and reads it quicker and better. >>That is interesting! He might have a side preference and turning one way is easier for him than turning the other way. I like t keep track of that stuff because it does help me sort things out when figuring out handling on course.
>I will be starting nose work with Buddy next week which will give him another activity to explore. >>
Fabulous! I bet he will love it!
>>And I am glad I got in what we did for class this week as it was hard to work outside with this weather. It should be cooler next week>>
Fingers crossed for better weather – I heard this was the hottest year ever, and the past 8 years were the hottest 8 years ever recorded. I guess this is our new normal.
Thanks for keeping me posted!!!
Tracy
Good morning!
65 degrees must feel delightful!!!
>>Yet I believe we are beyond repeating it. Do you think we’re ready for Max Pup 2?
Yes, I think she is ready! And there is still time to play before MaxPup 2 starts, so you can play with anything you wanted to practice more.
>>It doesn’t cool down in Phoenix until October, nights. So we would still be mostly indoors. I’ve been using the biggest space I have…will that work with rugs? Don’t think I can get a 10 ft tunnel in there.>>
Yes, it will work – do you have access to a tiny play tunnel that can come indoors, or borrow a 3 foot tunnel?
>>How hard is it to do the Live classes, tech wise… and do you think it would be too much pressure for us?
You just need really good internet 🙂 And I recommend 2 decides (like a phone and a tablet, or a computer and a tablet). It won’t be too much pressure!
>>I’m having trouble finding the price for each level of MaxPup2?
here they are (they are at the bottom of the course listing):
Auditing is $119
Online working 199
Auditing plus live classes 199
Working plus live classes 259Thanks!
TracyHi!
>>If my understanding is correct, a serp is a “left then right” turn or “right then left” turn. Do you end up using two verbals or just the initial turn verbal? Is completing the serp part of the larger left/right or right/left context? Hope my question makes sense :)>>
Depending on how hard the serp is, I often do end up using two verbals – but the timing is pretty separated because the first one is for the previous obstacle and the 2nd one is for the serp.
So if the dog needs to turn left on the exit on a tunnel to find the serp jump, then I say “left” 6 feet before he goes into the tunnel. Then the right for the serp jump begins when he exit the tunnel (or sometimes sooner depends on spacing and context).
If it is a traditional 3 jump serp, say on obstacles 2-3-4, 3 being the serp jump:
The left verbals for jump 2 begins no later than landing of jump 1. Then the right verbal for the serp jump (jump 3) begins as the dog is lifting for jump 2, at the latest. So yes, you can use several verbals but they are not both applied to one jump.
Let me know if that makes sense.
Tracy
Good morning! I am glad to har you are both back to feeling good!!!
Yes, the double blinds are a matter of timing (too soon, too late, just right) and that applies to the motion and connection too!
2 things to think about with motion and connection in mind:
– try not to decel while he is in the tunnel then accelerate to the blind… that cues him to go wide (acceleration). Be accelerating to the wing and then decel into the blind to set up the tight turn. And keep moving to the next blind, even when practicing on one wing, so he gets used to staying in motion the whole time and will stop hesitating near you.– for connection, use fewer arm cues and a lot more connection. That will commit him sooner to the first wing and also let you know when he has come into the gap for the 2nd blind to start – and reconnecting after the 2nd blind will propel him to the next wing too! It is all eye contact, very little arm use – the arms can be tucked into your sides 🙂
The BC at :12 was a timely first blind,
The BCs :17 and :44 were too early – he never looked at the wing, partially because your dog side arm is blocking connection and turning your shoulders. So adding more connection will get you to consistently see when he looks at (and is theoretically committed to) that first wing.
At :28, the first blind was good! Then you were too quick for the 2nd blind 🙂 He never made it around the wing to connect on the new side after the first blind.
At :33, you were trying to send more but there was not enough motion to the wing or connection to him, so he curled into you 🙂 Then he needed more eye contact at :35 too.
The rep at :54 – :58 was REALLY good about connection and not blocking connection with your arm! YAY!! And the same with the following reps, you really locked into the connections there and they looked great.
Tracy
******
Hi!
>I noticed he is looking at me quite a bit on most of the different types of turns and then once he knows, he tends to speed up.:).
Yes, he had some questions! I see what you mean!
>>Is this because overall I’m late with either physical/verbals,
Yes 🙂 In general, you will see fewer questions if your physical cues match your verbal cues. They did not always do that here, thus the questions: “do I read the physical or verbal cue, mom?”
On the GO reps, showing more acceleration before he gets into the tunnel will help a lot! Sometimes you did that, but sometimes you were at the same pace as the left and right turn cues (more below) so he was not always sure. So letting him see you accelerate while pumping your arms (having your arms back was confusing to him at 1:04, for example) with some connection will help him go straight.
Als, bear in mind that Go and Ko sound alike bear that in mind), so that could be playing into his questions on the go reps?
Also, you might notice that as the session went on, he actually looked at you more and more on the Go reps – part of that was that the toy placement was late – so by the time you threw it, he was already looking at you – which builds in more looking at you. Plus, I think it was a ball toy which dogs often wheel out wide to watch the throw and grab the toy. You can see it at 1:37, for example, where he is totally looking at you and then you throw it, which reinforces looking at you 🙂
Two ideas for that:
– Don’t use a ball toy 🙂 Use a tug toy – dogs are less likely to flank out for those.
– Have someone else throw the toy, so it it is visible to him before he even exits the tunnel. You can throw it is you can be sure that he will not watch you throw it. It is not important if he wraps the wing or not, because you are giving a GO cue so he just has to go towards the wing. The most important thing is that the toy is thrown before he looks back at you.For the left/right turns, your verbals were mostly on time but the physical cue of turning your shoulders did not happen til after he was in the tunnel, so he was not sure where to go on all the reps
At :07 for example, the verbal sounded on time but your motion faced straight til after he was in the tunnel – you can say the verbal when is he still 6 feet away from the tunnel and also let him see you turn your shoulders and move to the new line, all before he goes in.On the other side, the right physical cue at 1:09 and the go cue at 1:12 looked identical physically so he had a question on the go
I think making the physical cues looked different too will really help – and throwing the toy to the line before he looks back to you will help too!
Looking at the wrap exits at :39 and :46) – the verbals sounded timely but these is another good place to show wrap handling before he enters 0 he can see you rotating before he enters (which challenges his commitment!) rather than facing straight til after he enters.
Rear crosses – the physical cues are clear and it looks like he read them every time except for one, more below on that. Yay!!!! In this case, your verbals need to also come before he enters the tunnel For example, at :55, the physical cue was good but the left verbal came after he exited so it was a little late. You can see him exit and look at you, then carry on.
His only commitment question was at 1:40 where you needed to turn your feet to the tunnel more before you did the RC, so he could get past you. You pushed him off the tunnel there 🙂 The
next rep was a definitely better but you can make it clearer by staying closer to the wing before the tunnel, then driving forward to the center of the tunnel so he can pass you, commit, and still see the RC info.Nice work here! Let me know what you think!
TracyGood morning! I am glad to har you are both back to feeling good!!!
Yes, the double blinds are a matter of timing (too soon, too late, just right) and that applies to the motion and connection too!
2 things to think about with motion and connection in mind:
– try not to decel while he is in the tunnel then accelerate to the blind… that cues him to go wide (acceleration). Be accelerating to the wing and then decel into the blind to set up the tight turn. And keep moving to the next blind, even when practicing on one wing, so he gets used to staying in motion the whole time and will stop hesitating near you.– for connection, use fewer arm cues and a lot more connection. That will commit him sooner to the first wing and also let you know when he has come into the gap for the 2nd blind to start – and reconnecting after the 2nd blind will propel him to the next wing too! It is all eye contact, very little arm use – the arms can be tucked into your sides 🙂
The BC at :12 was a timely first blind, he was maybe halfway better the jump and the wing, and was definitely looking at the wing. Yay!
The BCs :17 and :44 were too early – he never looked at the wing, partially because your dog side arm is blocking connection and turning your shoulders. So adding more connection will get you to consistently see when he looks at (and is theoretically committed to) that first wing.
At :28, the first blind was good! Then you were too quick for the 2nd blind 🙂 He never made it around the wing to connect on the new side after the first blind.
At :33, you were trying to send more but there was not enough motion to the wing or connection to him, so he curled into you 🙂 Then he needed more eye contact at :35 too.
The rep at :54 – :58 was REALLY good about connection and not blocking connection with your arm! YAY!! And the same with the following reps, you really locked into the connections there and they looked great.
Tracy
Hi!
The tip assist should be able to keep the teeter totally stationary – maybe the teeter is a little tall? Or you can put something on the bar of the tip assist to help raise it up, like a big pool noodle?>> Is there a specific way of teaching the teter with this device? Hopefully there is. >>
Yes, it is one of the tracks in the teeter class. I use a Teach It but other people have used a jump wing that is strategically placed under the teeter board. The Tip Assist should totally work, though!
Tracy
Hi!
His commitment is looking really good, so we can adjust your position and timing to get the lead outs smoother
Looking at the end first – he read the line really well with the post turn, you can turn a little sooner but his commitment was strong!
With that in mind –
On the BC lead outs, you can be moving closer to jump 3 and start the BC when he has landed from 1 and before he gets to 2. Try not to get between the uprights of 2 (which sets a straight line instead of the turn we want). You were helping too much by being between the uprights of 2, and then didn’t do the blind til he was jumping 2 (which creates a wide landing here and potentially knocks bars when he is jumping full height)
Also, that is why he went around 3 at 1:59 – your position was pretty far across the bar of 2, and the timing was late so he did not have the time to adjust and find 3.The same goes for the FC openings – he doesn’t need to see you between the uprights of 2 – let him find it as you move up the line heading to 3, or with the FCs, you can totally lead out to 3!
The only lead out that needs to be between the upright s of 2 is the lead out push which is like a serpentine.
Nice work here! Let e know what you think!
TracyHi – These are the Zig zags grid- he is doing well with this!
The angles looked pretty much like a straight line to him here – he had no trouble reading it – so you can totally begin to flatten out the jumps to add a little more challenge. And you can use the moving target reward that we did in MaxPup 2, that will help get more power and keep his head down too.T
Hi!
He is doing well committing to the wings so now you can definitely run faster -you were walking on much of this, so he sees you decelerated and is not sure if you want him to turn or run. He slows down to wait for more info and we want him to be super confident and run.On the tunnel threadles – the reps where you didn’t really rotate towards him were clearer, because your line of motion really helped set the line to the correct end of the tunnel. Yay!
At :24 and 1;23, for example, you turned towards him a lot then turned back to the tunnel, which cued him to go into the wrong end because the extra rotation looked like a forward cue to the tunnel. At 1:35, he slowed down to wait for more info. Good job rewarding him, he was really working to read the cues.
Compare those to 1:45 which was more direct of a line to the tunnel entry you wanted, and he was so much smoother getting into the tunnel 🙂
TracyHi!
These tunnel threadles are going well! You can move more directly to the tunnel entry you want, so he finds it on his own without you needing to do any pull & send with the threadle arm – that independence will be helpful for when he is ahead of you on course.Between the wings, you can add more motion and connection – when you were stationary and pointing at the wings instead of connecting with him, he slowed down or didn’t go to the wing.
More motion and definitely more question will answer those questions for him, and you will see a lot more running 🙂Tracy
Good morning!
This is the wrap to tunnel threadle video – nice use of your verbals!When he was going into the wrong end of the tunnel at the beginning, he needed to see more motion to the correct end – that us what you did at :55 and it was great! Try not to rotate your feet towards him – when you changed sides you were rotating towards him – do more of what you did at :55 when you completed the FC and then moved directly to the tunnel entry you wanted. That was super smooth and was helping him find the correct entry really nicely!
Tracy
Hi! These are great!
I love those high hand touches – very active tricks are great! You can have him put his feet up on you tp get the cookie too, so he gets it very actively as well.
And leg weaves are terrific, for focus and as a great physical warm up.
You can play both of these games with ‘remote reinforcement’ (no cookies in your hand, they are outside the ring on a chair of something) to see if he can do these tricks on the way to the start line as a way to keep him pumped up!
Fingers crossed for cool weather ahead – this is the HOTTEST summer!!!!
Enjoy the rest of the weekend!
Tracy
Hi! Very nice session here!
She figures things out very quickly and that is great! So when she gets something wrong on the first rep, that means the info can be clearer for her (because she will figure out what you want and not give clear feedback on other reps LOL!!)The most important thing – look at her more and step to “take off” (front of the barrel) while you maintain connection .That means your position is slightly rotated towards her, rather than fully facing the barrel. You were facing forward on the first couple of reps so she came to you, looking for more connection.
When you switched sides: LOVED your connection at 1:24 – but you did not step with the dog side leg so she read it (correctly) as a threadley move 🙂 The next rep had the dog side leg involved AND the great connection… and she nailed it! Really nice!!
>>I have to remember to reward the stay more!>>
She was a really good girl with the stays! The one she broke did look like you were releasing so yes, be careful to reward a lot on this one because it is very easy to pair the release with motion.
On the next session – you can lead out more and be parallel to the barrel, rather than parallel to her like you were her. That will add even more challenge: distance challenge for her, connection and step-to-takeoff challenge for you.
Great job!Tracy
Hi!
Yes, these countermotion things are complex for sure!
You both did really well – you showed her a super clear connection shift from her eyes to the ‘landing’ spot, and you really focused on placement of reward – super!!
She was really strong with her commitment. And since she was so strong, I qm glad you went to the next step!Adding the motion was harder, but only because you did not do the connection shift to the landing spot – you were looking at her the whole time (she is really cute, so it is understandable 🙂 )
So when she came around and did not go over the bar (1:25, 1:59,
Blooper at 1:25, 1:59, 2:17, 2:30 – you released her but you were looking at her, so she came to the other side of you (which is where you shoulders point when you look at her, rather than at landing).
You can reward that – bloopers are handling errors, so if you get a blooper you can still give her the toy. And almost 100% of the time, errors on countermotion commitment are because we needed more connection shift to the landing spot.
On the reps where she did come over the bump – 1:53 and 2:06 and the last 2 reps, for example – it was because you were standing still longer, so you were on the landing side.
So with the countermotion, definitely remember to shift connection to the landing spot as you move forward and I think she will get it much more easily.
Nice work here!
Tracy
