Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
WAIT WHAT YOU DID A REAR CROSS ON PURPOSE??? Happy dance! LOL!!!! This is great! And the serp update is awesome too! It is SO COOL to see it coming together and you are at the very beginning of the adventure!!!!! YAY!!!!
Good morning!
I really want spring to arrive in Winnipeg because this needs to go outside! I think in that 2nd rep, she was trying to be fast and powerful… and slipped. So then she backed off a bit (wisely) and tat might be why she was using her front feet differently on the reps from the side after that and approaching jump 3 differently too (a bit leap on rep 3, more carefully on the other reps).
So until the snow melts – use food inside so she doesn’t get the same level of excitement. She can organize herself without slipping then backing off. And then when the snow goes away, we can take this outside and add the toy 🙂Zig zag 2:
She is definitely getting the hang of this! You can use lower hands/arms, so she has an easier time seeing the handling – that way she can adjust more quickly because the hand motion will in her line of sight. A good example of the arm position can be is a 1:09 and also 1:38. Those were below your rib level and very easier for her to see. The arm being really high is harder for her to see. But otherwise, you and she are doing well sorting out the cues and setting up her lead changes!! And it doesn’t ever really need to be super smooth from this position, because we going to change things up to a gigantic serpentine eventually 🙂Great job! Let me know what you think!
TracyGood morning!
>>Ronan starts to get excited and will scream when the lesson music comes on and he hears you!
Ha! I am so glad Ronan gets jazzed up by the theme music LOL!!!
The get out drill is difficult!
The first steps looked good! I think the wing and jump were set up nice and close and that helped him understand the get out cue pretty easily.
One thing I noticed in the difference between those early successful reps and the later ones which were harder was that on the earlier reps, you were stationary a bit as he was wrapping, before the out cue, and then not using a lot of motion when you did start moving. On the later reps, you had a lot of motion, full on running – so he had trouble making the leap from a little motion to a lot of motion.Doing the cue earlier totally helps! And I think you can be more gradual in your increase in motion: start my walking slowly but moving the whole time, then go to fast walking, then slow job, etc – so the really fast running comes after a few sessions when he is almost 100% successful with less motion.
Also, as he is learning to do this you can reward the approximations even if he is not perfect – for example, at 2:10 when he did make the movement away from you, you can toss the reward past the jump even if he doesn’t take it.
>>I also tried using the outside arm and that felt awkward. When I used my dog side arm to send him out it felt better since that is what I am used to. >>
Which arm will be handler-preference 🙂 The outside arm can make things really different than the dog-side ‘stay on your line’ cues, but if it feels too weird, you can totally use your dog-side arm pointing perpendicular to your ribs. As you play around with less motion for now (steady motion but not running yet), the arm use will percolate and you will develop a definite preference.
For the Advanced level – you can add the blind in even soon 🙂 When you are pretty sure he is going to the jump, can watch his head: as soon as he turns he is head to the jump, you can start the blind – that really trusts the commitment because you are moving away before he even has a chance to change his leads 🙂 It is a worthwhile handling move to get you to amazing places on course 🙂 and great for commitment work too!
Nice job here! Let e know what you think!
TracyHi!
>>>>Do you have any way to put him in a class or baby dog seminars?>> I have been looking, but it is SO hard to get into a baby dog class around here (and no seminars right now – maybe you should come!! 😁)
I will be at OTR in June! I think there will be baby dog classes!
>>Plus, I’m in this weird place now where we are beyond the most basic foundations, yet not doing any contacts yet, and that makes it harder to get into a class when you have not started with the first in a center’s progression. >>
You can put him into a basic foundations class just to get him out and about around other dogs!
>> also thought about getting into a basic obedience class which would be a lot easier to get into and yet would still give him exposure to new places, dogs and people, while I keep working through your class progression and working contacts & weaves on my own. I do like obedience training!>>
Perfect! An obedience class would be great!
>>(separate cut, not mentioning it was from your class since I think that is a no-no)
You can mention it is from class! No problem at all!
>>So I’m wondering if this is what you meant by tightening up the wings for a tighter angle so he can bounce?Yes, this totally worked!
As he is going over the bumps, keep saying the directional so it gets associated with the bumps. I think that will help especially on the right turns where he is turning away from you.And taking off without the release was fine because he was not in a stay and you weren’t holding him so…. He was a good boy! Remember to mix in some easy ones too where you are sending and he is not turning away. But overall this went well You can revisit it here and there to begin getting close to the center where the wings meet.
>>(I should watch those DVDs again that seems like it would take a LOT longer than just asking you what you think of this spacing LOL!!!!)
I am not sure what Susan Salo would say, but my way of determining the distance is a bit of experimenting to see what looks comfy 🙂 what was the distance here? It is close to being correct for him – let’s see how he does with the dragging toy 🙂 So attached the tug toy to a line and when you put it on the ground, start to drag it forward then release him. That will give you a more realistic picture of the striding because the stationary rewards slow the dogs down a bit. I think this distance with the dragging toy will be perfect!
Great job! Let me know what you think!
TracyHi!
He did so well with this last night in class!>>We haven’t done a lot of this stuff other than I think the prop games in MP1, but he seems to understand the concept pretty well so far (and he’s definitely a concept dog).>>
Yes, he totally remembered the concept even though it has been quite a while since we noodled around with it. And he is such a great example of why I love teaching concepts: that little prop game taught the concept in a way that was great for his young brain and puppy body… and now that he is more adult, the concept transferred immediately to the jump. Hooray!
Little ideas for it: As you are sending him away, you can repeat the out verbal: “out out out” so that it really supports his line (because your motion is not going to 🙂 . Then when you do the blind, you can switch to a name call or a wrap verbal so he gets more collection cue for that (he was little surprised but the blind and of better and better on each rep. I thought your timing was good! He was just a little surprised 🙂 You can also play with a FC there as that can help him realize there might be turns on the exit of the out jump.
When you didn’t do the out, he was a good boy – looked at the out jump on the first rep but didn’t go to it because he was not cued to it. Super!!! And then he was perfect on the rest.
Great job here! Let me know what you think!
TracyHi!
>>>> He’s into dogs. But even one person has dog out in lap sometimes and he’s cool with it as long as it’s not his favorite dog, Rio. He did occasionally casually say hi on his way but now he’s sniffing his reward station instead.>>
We can definitely put dogs into the Kryponite games 🙂 Start with a boring dog then build up to Rio 🙂
>>For the no cookie pattern game, is it important to keep the same trick for the sessions? He tends to offer his own behaviors and they will vary.>>
Usually it is good to keep the same trick, but he seems to like having his own dance party so I think you can have a basic framework of a favorite trick but if he makes up his own dance routine and is engaged, you can totally go with it 🙂
>>I tried to start with paws on leg but he came back offering middle so I just stuck to middle. He looked a little surprised when I told him to look around.>>
Bear in mind that he LOVES that middle track and it has a zillion cookies behind it, is you can totally use it too 🙂
>>Kryptonite
1. Fast/loud dog running in ring or vocal handler
2. Person tugging with dog
3. Leash or harness on ground
4. Person he knows filming or visible
5. Loud sounds – thunder, train, 18-wheeler/motorcycle>>These are all good! With the 1 through 4 distractions, you can ask your classmates to gently start to do these things 🙂 Start of nice and easy, then eventually build up to wild things 🙂
>>Toolbox
1. Engage: Pattern game
2. Reinforcement: Cheese, squeaky ball, clam
3. Action: Middle, Paws on leg, touch, circle>>Awesome! All of these will work really nicely 🙂 Also – the off leash offered engagement will be good for all of these.
>>At Home
1. Phone ringing
2. Audio from trials
3. Wildlife
4. Webster/Broom
5. Pet TutorAt Class
1. Rio the Golden
2. Leash
3. Friend watching/filming
4. Train>>Great! Start the easier ones especially the ones you can control in class and keep me posted! The demos are posted so you can get a visual of how to play it all 🙂
Tracy
Hi!
>>I tried a little cookie-free pattern games.
Ah! I watched it before reading this, and there was so many different tricks happening that I thought it was the volume dial, with different tricks, and off leash engagement. So for the pattern, stick with the same tricks – spins seem to be her favorite 🙂
>> As usual I’m stiff and awkward trying new things,
You did well! Don’t pick on yourself 🙂
>and I worry that cueing tricks is not really a reward for engagement if food isn’t really available for the trick >>
It is not supposed to be a reward, just a pattern than predicts reward. So you don’t need to get engagement or try different things. Yo can cue the first spin as you move away – spin, spin, spin and then when she engages with you – run back to rewards.
>>And when I lost her I waited to see if she would choose to reengage…when it felt like it had gotten too weird I went into a pattern game With cookies.>>>
I think a couple of things happened here: on the other reps, you were getting engagement then moving away, like at :31. Then at 1:24 when she left to sniff, you left the reward station without engagement or asking for the pattern game, so she sniffed. The other element if that you probably want to stick to 2 reps and the take a break – there is not a lot of high energy in this yet so you don’t want her to get bored 🙂
So on the cookie-free pattern game reps, you can immediately cue the spin as you walk away, she does not have to offer engagement first.
If she does leave to sniff, you can go get her and reset the game sooner when that happens rather than have the cookies get really exciting when she leaves.
>>was surprised how she seemed to like the 3 pets and stop pattern engaged chill game. I was too heavy at first but she forgave me and seemed to really be asking for more.>>
Yes! She did well! I don’t think you were too heavy for her – I think it was that you were moving towards her and the pets were too quick. At 2:10- 2:17, you were moving towards her and moving fast. She put her ears back and leaned away. But when you invited her to you, moving away, she was much happier and engaged 🙂 And for the petting:
Try slow, smooth petting and see how it goes – it is it quick, it is stimulating and she might not like that. So instead of tap-tap-tap for the petting, try peeeetttttt, peeeettttttt, peeeeeettttt, then move away.The little combo game at the end was good! Remember to put the leash down as you do it, so it is more realistic
Let me know what you think! Lots of great stuff here – I think if we switch the order of what you do in the pattern game and stick to the spin as the trick, you will see her get really into it 🙂
Great job!
TracyHi there! Glad to see you back in action!!
Take a breath – how does she do in a non-agility environment? She was very excite here 🙂 I think watching to see her close her mouth will help with seeing if she is inhaling through her nose. In the spot where you captioned it as “I can’t see” Is because she was panting and not breathing through her nose 🙂 You can also do this sitting in a chair (even on the agility field) because sitting in the chair is less stimulating and she is more likely to take the breath and less likely to have a dance party because she thinks you are doing agility!
Remote reinforcement is looking good in all the various formats you used it here 🙂 She seems very happy to leave her “stuff” behind and do the thing 🙂 At the end when you did the line ups, having the toy behind you was great because that is something she will see on course! Having the toy out ahead was really easy for her 🙂
Engaged chill is actually chill! Yay! You can see her tail relaxing. Ahhhhhhh 🙂
Line up – you gotta be quick to get turned around with her, she is so speedy LOL!She seems to like this line up game and also she seems to be happy to weave through your legs – so this can be useful to have her ‘weave’ into position then you walk/job away on the start line while she holds position! Just be careful not to use your “YES!” Lol as she thinks she is done when you do that.
I think the line up can be useful because it will give her something thoughtful she needs to do on the start line, which can help get her settled into position and be more thoughtful on course too!
Off leash engagement looked great too! She looked super!
So I think that we can plan some more things – you can definitely do more of the remote reinforcement combo games but I also think you can take a look at the kryptonite games – those distractions will put her into the higher arousal like a trial, so we can tackle those to transfer the engagement to the trial ring 🙂
Great job! Let me know what you think!
TracyPerfect! It will be good to know which tools are effective and when, especially on a harder surface like dirt!
THi! Lori is awesome!!
>>I always started from outside the ring to set up sequences…she was actually the one who pointed out the additional use of let’s go. I will try “cookies” for his remote reward. We worked on bypassing his remote reward (sometimes behind or in front of him) and having to come to me and then maybe completing one obstacle before running to the treat bag. We also worked on his start line with me running prior to releasing. I think that everything was better due to exercises from this course😁.>>
Yay! And I am glad you were able to incorporate them into your lesson 🙂
>>We have a trial at a lovely dirt arena this weekend…we have not been on dirt since before Covid😳 My goal is to keep Grady happy and engaged!>>
Super! I think the pattern games will really help for getting engagement as you arrive at the arena and also when you are getting ready for the run. And then the tricks and Volume Dial should really help! Are there FEO opportunities?
>>The major Kryptonite issues he has would be random stuff on the turf (Sheltie fur, bugs, leaves) and sometimes judges. I carry a baggy full of fur pieces to put on turf as a distraction during practice. For some reason during our last trial, he seemed to feel pressure from Laura English as she move into different positions. At one point, he had an issue with men in hats. I believe we have worked through this by asking people to portray obnoxious male judges in hats.>>
Perfect, so you have already been working on the kryptonite games with the men-in-hats 🙂 In training, keep on scattering the fur pieces and adding other kryptonite stuff – and work on the volume dial so that he can completely ignore it 🙂
Keep me posted!
TracyAh, here os the combo game with tricks! Nice! The sit and the touch look good! The ‘up’ trick is definitely harder for him (and the speak seemed a little quieter :)) It is a good indication of the difficulty of the game – so if you get a good ‘Up” you can run right back to the reward, even if you had planned more. And yes, remember to ping pong so you ask for some really easy reps so the game doesn’t get harder and harder.
Planning for next steps:
this remote reinforcement game can go on the road, to as many different places as you can take it to. Also, be sure to work in the pattern games and the instant focus games, as they will be SUPER useful 🙂You can also begin to look at the Kryptonite games – he is ready for more distraction in these games with the tricks and the remote reinforcement 🙂
Great job here! Let me know what you think!
TracyHi!
He was great here too! This is what we are going to want hi trialing to look like 🙂 You can mix this into training, but you don’t need to do it all the time – for now, keep the remote reinforcement games pretty short, to build it all up slice- by-slice 🙂 And Yes, I agree – try not to say ‘yay good boy’ before the “let’s go’ marker – try to use the marker then you can do all the praise to keep the marker really strong 🙂Tracy
Good morning!
Leash mechanics are a real issue, especially with coated dogs and dogs with long ears! He was great here – look at the brilliant engagement at :36, :59 and at the end. This is exactly what we want! Happy dance! And you were super patient with waiting for a second or two, praising, and then bringing the cookie out.
This game can also go into the remote reinforcement games – that happens in Games Package 3, so be sure to do the Package 2 version first for a session or two. He looked great so I think it will easy to put this into the game.
Tracy
Good morning!
>>I discovered an issue with “let’s go” during a recent lesson as it seems to be part of what I say when entering the ring. I’m still trying to figure what to say…perhaps,”are you ready, are you ready, let’s play” with “what a good boy” thrown in…>>
Ah yes, that would be confusing if you use it when you enter the ring. Also, try not to say “yes” to him… we say “yes” a lot on course and I conversation, and we don’t want “yes” to eb the remote reinforcement cue. For example, he hits an amazing weave entry, you say yes…. and he exits the weaves to run to the reward station. Oops! (I accidentally did that with one of my dogs LOL!). So, you can mark the behavior with the marker, no need for a “yes” as well.
It is probably harder to change the entry words than the remote reinforcement word, so you can change the remote reinforcement marker to something like “cookies!”. I doubt you would enter the ring and accidentally yell COOKIES! LOL! so that might be a better choice : )
He did really well here – he was offering to move away with you nicely!! So now you an move forward to the next level in Games Package 2, where we add in a bit more behavior before cuing the run back to the rewards.
Great job!
Tracy
