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Good morning!
I agree, her first day of school went really well!!!!She caught onto the lazy game really fast! I liked how she was looking forward to the jumps for the most part, and not up at you as she went around the pinwheel. My only suggestion is that she needs a better line up to catch jump 1 when you are starting the next rep (she was not really seeing it and starting with the middle jump). You can throw the cookie for jump 3 further away, so when she eats it and turns around, she is on a straight line back to the first jump. I think she is ready for you to spread this out the next time you play with it – jump 2 and move further and further away (and you get to remain lazy like you were here LOL!)
Wingin’ It also looks really strong! Her commitment is *solid* and that is exactly what we want. My only suggestions involve handling LOL! You might have to move a little faster to get to the tunnel exit before her to show the send, she was going FAST! And add a tiny bit more connection to her eyes as she exits, especially when she is on your right side (she wants to curl into you a tiny bit before the sending). When you did 2 wings and the FC, you can challenge her by trying to turn sooner on the FC – this might mean she is ready for you to spread this one out more too 🙂
For the Wingin’ It games, you can totally use tug toys! She does love her treats and lotus ball, but she also loves her tuggies and this is a good game for those.
The plank game looks good too – she started off a bit excited with legs going everywhere but then she started thinking about her feet AND was able to be balanced while going fast. You can add more angles on the cookie tosses (tossing them more towards or away from you), so she comes back to the board on harder angles as well to practice getting on from all sorts of approaches.
Turning around was harder for sure – you will probably need to use a lot of treats to convince her to slow down and take her time with that, it is the only spot we need her to slow down and think about all her feet LOL!!Great job here! Let me know what you think!
TracyGood morning!
Wingin’ It – the one step sends at the beginning looked great, and she was balanced on both sides in terms of commitment and turning!When you added the 2nd wing (at :12, :18, :24, :33) – I think she actually needs less help than you were giving her here 🙂 You were using a send step to the wing after the tunnel and then moving over to meet her on the exit side of the middle wing, so you had a lot of arm movement and also you were not finished rotating as she got to the 2nd wing. So, because she keeps getting faster and faster, you don’t need to send to the wing after the tunnel when doing the 2 wing variation. Instead, you can move up the line (she should ick up the wing based on your motion and connection) then when she exits the first one, do a one-step-send-then-FC for the second wing. The goal is that you are turned fully and on the way back to the tunnel before she arrives at that 2nd wing (with connection of course :))That will be harder for her in terms of commitment but she is ready for that 🙂
I like the modified mountain climbers with her! She was very confident, almost to the point of looking judgey when you were not ahead of her LOL! That is great! Question – will she drive to a stationary frizzer on the end of the board? Or a hollee roller? I would like her to drive up to a reinforcement without looking at you, but we need to make sure she likes the reinforcement 🙂 What about her entire meal, in a bowl? We want her to think less about driving up the board and where you are, and just run to her reinforcement.
>> I think having the table the remakes so much more sense for her than the plank to nowhere. >>
Eventually we will change what is propping the teeter to begin to incorporate the plank-to-nowhere element (because she needs to know!) but the other games (the downhill games) can also help with that. There are about 3 zillion teeter games, and she will still have a fabulous teeter if you only play 2 zillion of them 🙂
>>There’s a tiny bit of give on the plank – I had to find props that were the correct size and brace the yoga mats under the one end.>>
I think it was fine, she seemed perfectly happy with it.
>> I know she just wanted to blast around and do the 3 jumps and was looking at me like why are you not running? You always run.>>
Ha! And that is the point of the lazy game: dog runs fast! Human doesn’t always have to 🙂
>> I was not sure if you were looking for a slower type of movement.
Slow from you, not from her – she can go as fast as she likes. I think she did really well, only judgey right at the beginning then she realized that *she* didn’t have to meander. Ha! Perfect! You got the middle jump further away and she was strong with that too. You can start her further away from jump one, so she drives into the whole little pinwheel without you.
>> I was saying “toss” (hard to hear) which is her marker that means I’m throwing the toy/friz right to you at close range.
Great! The only adjustment to make is to say it and deliver before she looks back at you. That will generally mean you will want to watch her landing spots: if she lands and looks at the next jump, mark & toss. If you are wanting to toss for the 3rd jump, you can toss when she takes a stride towards it.
>. And for Dellin, this is about as much enthusiasm for cookies as you will ever get. It looked pretty normal.
She looked great! Happy hoppy for the food and pretty fast too! She was faster on your right than on your left for some reason, probably just more room getting back on the board when she was on your right. When you take the plank outside, you can do this with 2 frisbees 🙂
>>Tradeoff was the bouncing on the mats.
I think the bouncing added to the fun 🙂
>>I realize I was quiet – I was not sure what to say, so just shut up and let her chase the cookies.
You can use your ‘get the cookie’ marker (I say get it).
You can elevate this plank a tiny bit more so it is a few inches off the ground. And you can also add in turning around on it, in the middle from a standstill.
Great job on these!!! Let me know what you think!
TracyGood morning!
She did a great job with the lazy game! I love how she was zipping around the little pinwheel and you didn’t have t work hard at all to convince her. She is stronger turning to her right (moving faster, looking at you less) so when she is turning to her left (starting on your right side) – throw the rewards sooner and more frequently. She might need a reward after each jump on her left turns for now, and might not need it nearly as often on the right turns.That middle jump got really far away and she committed, without you needing to go much past jump 1! NICE! This is exactly what we want. If you have room, you can start her further back from jump 1 (you can start by the fencing!) and see if she will continue to propel through the pinwheel with you not working hard to convince her 🙂
She totally does not think you are a loser at treat throwing LOL! She was happy to find anything you tossed LOL!
She looked super confident to move along the plank! The back and forth was easy for her – you can even toss the treat a little sooner so she drives through the exit and doesn’t look at you.
Nice job adding the sibtle angles of entry and exit with your treat tosses – she also had no questions about that and did well with getting herself on and off smoothly.
Turning around is definitely a little harder – I think she was at her best with that towards the end, when your hand was a little lower and not quite right on her nose – that slightly lower hand and having it further from her nose helped her move more fluidly through the turn (like at 2:10). When the cookie hand was higher and closer to her nose like at 2:02, the raised head position made it harder to move smoothly through the turn. So keep going with the low hand and having it a little further away on the turns.And yes, she totally appreciated the treat refill haha!
You can repeat this on an elevated plank, if you have something stable to raise it a couple of inches – bricks or something similar.
Great job! Let me know what you think!
TracyHi!
>. I should decide that left or right means do the tunnel or jump, instead of only using it on jumps – then turn as you come out/land to make my life easier. I agree with basing cue on dog’s body not mine since I don’t want him turning to look at me if I’m behind and don’t want to worry about our exact relationship to each other if I’m ahead or doing weird cross/spin things.>>
I have trained almost all of the verbals to include commitment: take the tunnel and turn left on exit, or take the jump and wrap-right.
I have very few verbals on the flat only, but even those have a commitment element: ‘get out’ is a lead change away on the flat followed by an obstacle commitment
It can be super confusing to dog and human if left can apply to an obstacle AND on the flat – eek!
And there are plenty of folks who have a separate set of cues for the tunnels – so “tunnel” means tunnel and exit straight, and if they want the dog to take the tunnel and turn left, then will say Zoom or something. I have not done that because my dogs tell me they are fine with me telling them how to exit when they are about 6 feet from the entry 🙂
Looking at the maps:
1st photo:
A ‘get out tunnel’ 4-5 because it is more of a lead change than a real 90-degree right turn. The tunnel then scoops the dog into the rest of the turn>> full 180 to another parallel tunnel – all with handler 20’ away and not super visible from dog’s POV. Would that also be a directional since the turn was 180?>>
Probably yes, if it was the shape of an “L”
2nd photo – if he is on your right, probably another get out tunnel
6- 7 might be a right but also just a name-tunnel>>3 to 4 where I want to just stay at the entrance to 3 and run like hell as he commits to 4. Because the tunnel curves it is a bit of just a go on but there’s a rear cross kind of plus a front cross after that technically. Some dogs turned left coming out.>>
Possibly a left verbal for exit of 3, but nothing other than maybe Go for exit of 4, or a soft name call if the dogs were feeling pressure or turned left? On the video:
You said Go on for 2, then had to call him – a left would be good for exit of 3. The 4-5 was set a little differently so it was more of a left turn and he read it well with the body cue!>.Lots of people at these shows use “switch” – change your lead away from me – and I’ve used that with my previous dogs – but it’s just feeling too handler dependent and risks changes on the flat and pulling off commitment (which sometimes happened with my previous really fast and responsive BC).>>
I use switch in very specific places, like turning away from the exit of the weaves to a tunnel, while I layer the weaves on the way back. I think you can use it as a tandem turn/RC thing with specific physical cues as long as it looks/sounds very different.
T
Hi!
>>I think Ronan liked wingin’ it a bit more>>
It is true, he might think the lazy game is a bit stoooopid – not enough running! But we humans like the lazy game because it creates much better commitment without us having to handle with perfection 🙂 Basically, the pups propel themselves without needing handling help every step of the way. He seemed to end up being perfectly happy with the easy cookies LOL! And I like that he was looking forward to the jumps even when you two were not working very hard at all to indicate the line 🙂
Keep moving that middle jump further away – and you can also start further back now, so you don’t end up past jump 1 on either side, and he still propels out to the middle jump. Eventually we will add handling back to it 🙂 And it should be so much easier for him to find the line without you needing to be perfect.
One step sends – this is looking great, he commitment is lovely and he is fast fast FAST!!!! Yay! Because of his speed, I recommend more of a lead out on the tunnel sends so you can get to the exit ahead of him for the one step sends 🙂 You can also add being lateral to the front crosses (on 1 wing or on 2 wings) so that you have more time to get set up for the sends and FCs.
One small mechanics detail for each of you:
Karena – either carry the toy in one hand the whole time or have it in a pocket, so you don’t switch it from hand to hand during the FCs. That moment of switching is delaying the cross and connection (because you are switching toy hands then finishing the cross), and you will need that moment to finish the cross to stay ahead of him 🙂 You can see it at 2:30, when he waits for the connection info that was delayed due to the toy switch.
Mike, I think you were keeping the toy in the same hand so your mechanics tweak is to add some deceleration to it – prepare to decelerate while he is in the tunnel, so it is easier to set up the send and rotate to the wing (or decel as he is rounding the wing if you are sending to the next wing). That should help you rotate sooner!I think he is ready for more distance on this one – you can move the wings further from the tunnel and further apart too 🙂
Great job! Let me know what you think!
TracyGood morning!
>>We are still on Hell’s porch here in MN,
For real! It has been so hot there!
The overal shape of the one step send session was really strong, in that he sent and ran without you needing to also run a lot. SUPER! His turns looked really good too! It is possible that he has more drive to the wings than to the tunnel right now, so you can run more towards the tunnel.
>.or in my case, sometimes several step sends>>
This was only when you were a little ahead on of him at the tunnel exits, and had to let him exit and see you before you could send – and that is fine 🙂 Once you sent him, he went without you and was fabulous!!!!
The middle jump is just there for more turns on the outer wings and for more sequences. It was great to just focus on the sending here – since it was so hot, it was great to have a short very successful session 🙂He also did really well on the long plank here!
Did you see that very first rep where he ran the plank without you? LOL!!! When the teeter gets involved,be sure that he is on a leash so he can’t run the teeter board without you (because he could potentially scare himself).The cookie tosses were straight off the end here, and he was very confident indeed! So now you can toss the treats on a slight angle towards you – kind of what you did at 1:30ish – so he then has to find the entry of the board on a slight angle too after he eats the cookie and turns back to the board.
>>I’m glad for the times he had to bail – super great practice in experiencing how that feels and that he can learn to adjust that over time at a safe height. >>
Totally agree!!! It is good to teach them how to use their bodies and bail off if needed, before the board gets too high. He was lovely here!!!! it doesn’t need to go any higher right now, so you can add the angles.
Great job! Let me know what you think!
TracyHi!
>>Should I just keep wrapping the jump and working the different positions and getting more lateral?
Yes – she will still have a straight entry, but you can move away a tiny bit or walk past a step or two. Proceed slowly so she never tries to jump off or scare herself.
>> I’ve heard people put wings to help them find the angled entrances.
You can put wings out… but you won’t need to 🙂 These games will help produce that skill.
>>Regarding tossing the cheese -So I toss before she takes the jump? I thought I needed to wait for her to take it. That will definitely help her finding the jumps.
It is a fine line to get the middle ground of reward placement: We want to toss the cheese when she is looking straight and moving towards it, so it appears before she looks back at you… but we don’t want to be so early that the cheese is a lure or cue t take it.
Have fun!
TracyGood morning!
>>At home he’s VERY independent and able to find and stick 2o2o with all kinds of variations on my part – lateral distance, my position – ahead, behind, even with, speed, motion etc. So at home I can continue running ahead, blind cross, front cross, diverge, converge, keep a consistent lateral distance etc. and he finds his 2o2o and waits for release. That’s my goals for eventual trial performance.>
That is perfect! Does NADAC allow targets in training runs? In UKI, you can bring the target to refresh the behavior in the environment – that way the behavior is the same regardless of environment. It is very helpful for the dogs, otherwise they begin to watch for other cues in those different environments, such as handler decel or position.
>>He was trying, not being naughty, just couldn’t quite do it.
DEFINITELY not being naughty!!! There are so many variables that are changing at this point – so the behavior is harder to ‘find’. I use a target to help the dogs transition the behavior into the new environments (which could be the new location, or same location and longer courses, or more speed, or just that their bodies are still growing/changing or all of the above :)).
>>I am completely waffling on RDW. His stride is so long when he opens up I’m just not sure I want to put in the time and reps to train it.
There is a lot of peer pressure with RDWs LOL! But it is fine not to train one because it requires a ton of time, a TON of reps… and even then, it might not work out. My Contraband is doing a 2o2o right now because I don’t have the time to train it consistently and definitely don’t feel like doing a zillion reps of it. He is plenty fast with his 2o2o and I am confident I can achieve all of my competitive goals with a 2o2o with him. And, of note: I hear a lot of people saying that 2o2o is physically too hard on the dog’s shoulders, etc etc – but I disagree. Taught correctly, the dog is decelerating, shifting back and balanced. And, most of the behavior is taught away from the obstacle. Then, when it is transferred to the contact, it takes very few reps and most of those reps are at the end of the board. The injuries people are afraid of are simply not happening with a 2o2o (far fewer reps, less speed, lower impact).
> I need help with verbals. Now that we are walking and running real courses I keep seeing situations where I’m not sure what verbal to use.>>
Yep, agility has a lot of ‘grey’ areas.
>>For example – turns out of tunnels – I’ve got left/right which in my mind means find the next jump and turn that direction, so doesn’t feel quite right to use with a turn out of a tunnel. I want to be able to say it early enough before a jump that he can hear/understand/do and don’t want it to degrade to do this when I say it so I end up getting turns on the flat before jumps.>>
So the left or right would be a turn on the jump, or a turn on the tunnel exit? So then he doesn’t need to hear it til after he is exiting the tunnel. If it is for the tunnel exit, he would ned it about 6 feet before he enters.
>>Then there’s rear cross wraps and rear cross soft turns – do I use my same dig dig and check check that I use for wraps without a RC, do I use my same left/right soft turn even with the RC?>>
I name the dog’s behavior, regardless of my handling, in most of these situations – and definitely for wraps and soft turns. So if the dog needs to wrap to his left, I use my left wrap verbal no matter if it is a send or a rear cross. Same with the soft turn verbals – left or right per the dog’s behavior, regardless of my handling.
>>How about a 180 degree and push out turn out of a tunnel away from me at a distance – to another tunnel or a jump – like in a gamble or just when I’m behind and want to layer the tunnel he’s coming out of?>>
Draw me a picture (even if it is on the back of a mapkin haha) and I will be able to give you a better answer 🙂 If it won’t post here, email it to me at agilityuniversity@gmail.com
>>So many little variations of things I’m getting all in my head about them.>>
That is why I go with naming thedog’s behavior for most verbals: it keeps things more clear for me and the dog. There are a few verbals that are relative to my handling or position (like the ‘get out’ verbal) but most are relative to the dog’s behavior. One of these things we tackle in this class is which word belongs where and how to NOT lose our minds over it LOL!
Tracy
Hi!
She is also doing really well with the plank game! You can toss the treats sooner now, to let her know she can move faster: when she gets on. The board and is looking straight, you can toss it off the other end of the board so she runs across and off the board to it. You don’t have to move faster; you can let the cookie tosses do all the work in that regard 🙂 You can hang out somewhat in the middle of the board and let her go back and forth over it.
You can also move the plank out to the grass so you can add angles – instead of tossing straight, you can toss the treat back towards you, so when she turns around she will approach the plank on an angle and get herself sorted out to still get on it and run across it.Turning around on the plank looks really good! She was good at it when she was a little pup, so this was a good refresher.
Great job here on all of these! Let me know what you you think :)
TracyHi!
The lazy game also looks really strong. She might have thought it was silly at first, but now she likes it a lot 🙂 I really like that when she couldn’t find the treat she kept on going to a jump. Hooray!Definitely keep working this with the good cookies and very visible ones. I think if you toss sooner (when she is on the way to the jump and before she takes it or looks back at you), then you will see her look for her lines even more there.
Since the middle jump is by the wall, you can’t move it out but you can move jumps 1 and 3 further away to begin adding distance. And then start her even further back, so she leaves you more and more to drive into the pinwheel 🙂
Onwards to the plank video!
THi!
She is definitely confident on her mountain climbers! That board is high and she is scooting right up it! Yay! What reward were you using? She was definitely liking it! When you add the wing before it, be sure that her angle of entry is completely straight to the board. I know that eventually she will learn angled approaches, but for now we want her to just go straight. You might be able to use the tree as the wing to wrap to get the straight entry LOL!!!! The next step on this is to try to duplicate this game on a different teeter, if you have access to another teeter somewhere.
Onwards to the next video 🙂Hi!
Her back & forth looked strong here as on as she realized the board was a little higher 🙂 The turns were harder for her, and she helped by putting feet in the grass. That is fine for now! You can help her keep all four feet on the board by turning really slowly (like you did at 1:08 and 1:34). When you were fast, she put her feet on the ground. Yo can also help her learn to leave all 4 feet on the board by putting 2 planks side-by-side, which gives her a wider playing field to keep all of her feet on. She is still learning body awareness skills, so having the side-by-side planks will help you show her that all 4 feet staying on the planks will get her LOTS of cookies 🙂
The soccer is so cute!!!! She is like a cat, swatting that ball around 🙂 Adorable!
Great job on these! Let me know what you think!
TracyHi again!
The angled entries are also going well – you can toss the treats on even more angle exits, which will help her find the board with more angle to the entry as well. You had some good angled tosses away from you, so now you can add in angled tosses towards you so she is moving back and forth on a curve. The best example of that toss towards you was at 1:23 – it rewarded her plank and then set her up for a nice line back to it on a slightly angled entry.
Onwards to the next one 🙂
T
Hi!
She did well with the back and forth game here. She looks confident with the plank! One suggestion is to add a ‘get it’ marker for the cookie toss, so she knows where to look for the reinforcement? When she gets on the plank, you can say get it and toss the other way – it is super easy to add for this game by saying the get it marker then tossing the treat, and it becomes very helpful for games in the future.
The next step for this game would be to slightly elevate the board, with a stable block or something under it, then repeat the game. I see on the 3rd video you had the board a little raised. You can probably raise it a bit more to be about 6 inches off the ground.
Onwards to video 2 below:
