I went a little crazy this weekend with the running dogwalk practice/video thing. On Saturday I decided to try Strummer out on the full dogwalk lowered to 2'. He had a great week in the yard with the 22" table, the reps went something like 20/21, 24/26, 30/30, 28/30 all with the treat gizmo for reward so I figured I wasn't pushing him hard enough and that the 24" table wouldn't be much of a challenge. I was so sure I'd have rave reviews of his first time on a full lowered dogwalk but I'm afraid the results were dismal. 1/9 hits (11%) (one was iffy and I didn't count it) and I rewarded 3 of those misses though one was the iffy one. Luckily my timing with my clicks was way off for the misses and good for the one hit but that's about the only positive thing to say about the training session. Well that and his speed. How awesome will his dogwalk be when I finally get it right? The clicks for the misses were probably late because I wasn't sure and decided to reward in the end. Jonny shot some video for me and I feel obliged to post it even though the results are not at all what I wanted. But it's important to document the bad stuff as well as the good. The best part of the video is the start where my snarky husband says, 'This video brought to you by Crazy Dog Lady Fashions'. Unfortunately this is a common dog outfit for me for winter and in fact it gets worse. I knew it was bad but I didn't realize it was quite that bad. It was snowing while I was taping so every once in a while there's a white streak on the video, couldn't do much about that.
Saturday's training session w/ the full lowered dogwalk:
Yesterday's performance was still bugging me today so I decided to run Strum back to the field to try some backchaining. I'm not sure if he was having problems because he still doesn't understand the concept of adjusting his stride to hit the yellow zone or if he understands but couldn't figure out how to control himself to do it. He's so fast and big strided, there's little room for error. Or maybe he simply didn't generalize the idea of the plank/table set-up at home to the dogwalk at the practice field. I've worked the plank/table set-up at the practice field but not all that often and not recently that I can remember. I put the table next to the up side of the down ramp so he had a way to get up on the dogwalk and I tried some reps. Then I gradually moved the table back so he would have more of a running start. The further back the table went, the worse his results. I made a big mistake of doing way too many reps. I should have stopped at 15, his success rate would have been 14/16 (89%). Instead I did a whopping 34 reps for a final tally of 21/34 (62%). The good news was that my timing with my clicks was much improved and I only rewarded one miss (by mistake of course). Toward the end of the session when he was starting from further back and having more misses I decided to move him closer so he could have some success and he did. I didn't have the patience to edit 7 minutes worth of training video so I included the reps at the beginning of the session and the end. It's mostly to document the process so I don't feel like I need every single rep recorded for posterity.
On a positive note, his weave entry training is coming along really well. I don't like to work him 2 days in a row on weaves but as we were leaving I couldn't resist doing just a few reps and he was perfect, getting entries that were plaguing him at the beginning of the week and flying through a set of 12 poles after a tunnel. Whee.
The other people that train at the field must think I'm crazy because I was leaving at 10 am with Cody & Lola when they arrived then returned again at around 12:30 just as they were leaving. I took Team Old School out there in the morning to do the weave and contact exercises that were set up. They did fairly well, no missed contacts at all (maybe some dogwalk ups, I wasn't paying attention to that) and I think only 1 or 2 missed weave entries per dog. It was cloudy and nice and cold-low 30's I'd guess-and the dogs were running wild. Fast, happy, excited hyperpants dogs, I love winter agility. I was overdressed in that puffy vest and sweating by the end of it. Now if only the serious snow will hold off for another few weeks so I can get that darn dogwalk perfected.
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Cody Baloney Mascarpone
A bummer of a Thanksgiving as our friend whom we normally celebrate the holiday with was in CA visiting his mom who had to be rushed to the hospital at the start of the week and likely will not live to see the end of the week. His wife flew out on Thanksgiving day to be with them. Not a happy time for them.
This left Jonny and me to fend for ourselves since the house was in no condition for last minute dinner guests. Of course this didn't stop Jonny from asking a friend inside who was walking the next door neighbor's dog at 8 am. I'm still in my jammies like a common Boulder trust funder. Do you know what usually goes down in this house on a workday before 8 am? I'll give you a hint, a lot. But there I am in a pair of pink fleece jammy bottoms with reindeer on them and an ancient sweatshirt, can't recall if I've brushed my hair yet, definitely haven't brushed my teeth yet and when was the last time I showered? The house is in an equal state of dishevelment and confusion and a bit fuzzy around the edges. Of course this friend has a beautiful perfect house in the mountains that looks like something out of a magazine with all fancy appliances and cabinets and floors and furniture not covered in dog hair even though she has a dog. And she always looks perfect too, perfect hair and fashionable clothes, never the crazy dog lady look even though she walks dogs for a living. Thankfully she is very nice and says, well, she would be in her jammies too if she didn't have to work. Jonny gives her coffee, good coffee, and where else is she going to get good coffee at 8 am on Thanksgiving morning so I think she's happy enough for that and never mind the dog fuzz and my frightful appearance.
It goes without saying that Jonny will do the cooking because he's an excellent cook and I can make frozen pizza. Usually. Last time I was cooking something, and by cooking I mean boiling up water for pasta and opening up a jar of pasta sauce, Jonny had to pop out to the store for a few minutes and leave me unattended at the stove, which I'm pretty sure is a violation of our home owner's insurance, and his final words to me were, 'Please don't set anything on fire.' But for some reason I can bake and baking's not Jonny's thing so I decide to make 'Chocolate Truffle Tart with Vanilla Mascarpone Topping'. Also known as 'Chocolate Crack Pie'. The fumes from the melting chocolate, butter and sugar mixture for the filling alone are enough to put you in a diabetic coma, never mind the evil topping. You don't want to know what's in the topping. You just eat it and never mind the sugar fits.
The other fun thing about this dessert is that it sounds fancy pants and snooty and difficult to make but it's so easy a monkey could do it. You can even make it while in your underwear, a pair of green smartwool hiking socks, clogs and a grubby sweatshirt while shaking your bumpy to Dag Nasty's 'All Ages Show' played at full volume. The other fun thing is that I get to use both the Cuisinart and the fancy electric stand mixer that my grandmother bought me. I'm still trying to figure out what the big hook attachment that came with the mixer is for. I use it for playing practical jokes on my husband but I suppose that's not the traditional use for it.
Now I'm not saying there were no victims here. Strummer ended up covered in graham cracker crumbs in the morning and later that night had a fair bit of mascarpone in his fuzz but we have plenty of spare dogs to clean him up. I also very nearly did start a fire but that was in the process of boiling water for tea and Jonny saved the day so all was good.
Not the most appetizing photo but you get the idea.
We had a nice Quorn roast (I can't tolerate soy all that well so no Tofurkey in our house) a green bean/brussels sprouts casserole, some stuffing, nothing too fancy or extreme. Neither of us are into making a big fuss, we'd rather spend the day off relaxing.
Friday we took a little trip up to Rocky Mountain National Park for a hike up to Lake Haiyaha. I was surprised to be greeted with 5" of snow on the trail at the very start. I figured we might find a dusting on the upper portions of the trail but didn't think we'd be sliding on snow and ice right from the get go. If only I'd thought to bring my Yax Trax. Still, it was a beautiful day, not too cold and no wind. It started out with gorgeous blue sunny skies and ended with a fairly good amount of snow falling. The trail starts out with a steepy steep climb up to Nymph Lake where you get a short break then it's back to huffing and puffing up to Dream Lake which is as far as most of the tourists go. Today we had to the lake to ourselves, a rarity. Then it's some more steep climbing through the woods the the trail opens up to some exposed areas that offer both a breathtaking view of the valley below and a steep drop-off from the narrow trail, especially harrowing when the narrow trail is snowy and icy. 2 1/4 miles or so later you end up at Lake Haiyaha where the wind is howling and the snow is whirling and you don't want to spend too much time taking photos or your hands will freeze solid.
This was the only place on the entire hike where I was cold.
Here's what Dream Lake looks like in summer. And here's what it looked like on Friday.
Do I look 'sporty' or 'crazy dog lady'? Could go either way if you ask me.
There were flecks of snow whirling around in the air even when the skies above were bright blue. It was like being in a snow globe. Then it started to snow for real, so beautiful. What a great way to work off the crack chocolate pie, which is gone as of Saturday afternoon. Anybody got a spare bottle of insulin?
This left Jonny and me to fend for ourselves since the house was in no condition for last minute dinner guests. Of course this didn't stop Jonny from asking a friend inside who was walking the next door neighbor's dog at 8 am. I'm still in my jammies like a common Boulder trust funder. Do you know what usually goes down in this house on a workday before 8 am? I'll give you a hint, a lot. But there I am in a pair of pink fleece jammy bottoms with reindeer on them and an ancient sweatshirt, can't recall if I've brushed my hair yet, definitely haven't brushed my teeth yet and when was the last time I showered? The house is in an equal state of dishevelment and confusion and a bit fuzzy around the edges. Of course this friend has a beautiful perfect house in the mountains that looks like something out of a magazine with all fancy appliances and cabinets and floors and furniture not covered in dog hair even though she has a dog. And she always looks perfect too, perfect hair and fashionable clothes, never the crazy dog lady look even though she walks dogs for a living. Thankfully she is very nice and says, well, she would be in her jammies too if she didn't have to work. Jonny gives her coffee, good coffee, and where else is she going to get good coffee at 8 am on Thanksgiving morning so I think she's happy enough for that and never mind the dog fuzz and my frightful appearance.
It goes without saying that Jonny will do the cooking because he's an excellent cook and I can make frozen pizza. Usually. Last time I was cooking something, and by cooking I mean boiling up water for pasta and opening up a jar of pasta sauce, Jonny had to pop out to the store for a few minutes and leave me unattended at the stove, which I'm pretty sure is a violation of our home owner's insurance, and his final words to me were, 'Please don't set anything on fire.' But for some reason I can bake and baking's not Jonny's thing so I decide to make 'Chocolate Truffle Tart with Vanilla Mascarpone Topping'. Also known as 'Chocolate Crack Pie'. The fumes from the melting chocolate, butter and sugar mixture for the filling alone are enough to put you in a diabetic coma, never mind the evil topping. You don't want to know what's in the topping. You just eat it and never mind the sugar fits.
The other fun thing about this dessert is that it sounds fancy pants and snooty and difficult to make but it's so easy a monkey could do it. You can even make it while in your underwear, a pair of green smartwool hiking socks, clogs and a grubby sweatshirt while shaking your bumpy to Dag Nasty's 'All Ages Show' played at full volume. The other fun thing is that I get to use both the Cuisinart and the fancy electric stand mixer that my grandmother bought me. I'm still trying to figure out what the big hook attachment that came with the mixer is for. I use it for playing practical jokes on my husband but I suppose that's not the traditional use for it.
Now I'm not saying there were no victims here. Strummer ended up covered in graham cracker crumbs in the morning and later that night had a fair bit of mascarpone in his fuzz but we have plenty of spare dogs to clean him up. I also very nearly did start a fire but that was in the process of boiling water for tea and Jonny saved the day so all was good.
Not the most appetizing photo but you get the idea.
We had a nice Quorn roast (I can't tolerate soy all that well so no Tofurkey in our house) a green bean/brussels sprouts casserole, some stuffing, nothing too fancy or extreme. Neither of us are into making a big fuss, we'd rather spend the day off relaxing.
Friday we took a little trip up to Rocky Mountain National Park for a hike up to Lake Haiyaha. I was surprised to be greeted with 5" of snow on the trail at the very start. I figured we might find a dusting on the upper portions of the trail but didn't think we'd be sliding on snow and ice right from the get go. If only I'd thought to bring my Yax Trax. Still, it was a beautiful day, not too cold and no wind. It started out with gorgeous blue sunny skies and ended with a fairly good amount of snow falling. The trail starts out with a steepy steep climb up to Nymph Lake where you get a short break then it's back to huffing and puffing up to Dream Lake which is as far as most of the tourists go. Today we had to the lake to ourselves, a rarity. Then it's some more steep climbing through the woods the the trail opens up to some exposed areas that offer both a breathtaking view of the valley below and a steep drop-off from the narrow trail, especially harrowing when the narrow trail is snowy and icy. 2 1/4 miles or so later you end up at Lake Haiyaha where the wind is howling and the snow is whirling and you don't want to spend too much time taking photos or your hands will freeze solid.
This was the only place on the entire hike where I was cold.
Here's what Dream Lake looks like in summer. And here's what it looked like on Friday.
Do I look 'sporty' or 'crazy dog lady'? Could go either way if you ask me.
There were flecks of snow whirling around in the air even when the skies above were bright blue. It was like being in a snow globe. Then it started to snow for real, so beautiful. What a great way to work off the crack chocolate pie, which is gone as of Saturday afternoon. Anybody got a spare bottle of insulin?
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Running Dogwalk, 11-22-2008
Finally had a chance to shoot some video. Light was terrible in my yard at that hour and I had to shoot from that weird angle or I'd be shooting into the sun but oh well. I started out the session as normal with the treat gizmo and he was 12 hits/13 reps, 92% (missed the 5th rep). Then I put the gizmo away and put his tug under the flower pot. I mixed in some reps where I had the toy on me. He was 8/9, 89% (missed the first rep, definitely overexcited) for the toy under flower pot and 6/6, 100% for the toy on me (32/34, 94% for the whole session). BUT he was looking at me for all but one of each type of toy rep. Of the reps where he was looking at me with the flower pot/tug for reward he was looking at me at the very end of the board for 7/7. Of the reps where he was looking at me and I had the toy on me he was looking at me as he was coming down the board for 4/5, looked at me at the end of the board for 1/5. None of this is terribly surprising but it's interesting to see it all broken down into numbers, at least for me. The moral of the story is that he's going to look at me if I use a toy. I imagine if I use the flower pot/toy more often he'll start looking ahead again but then I have the same problem of fading it away. One answer is to stop rewarding the hits unless he's looking/running forward. But I'm not sure I can bring myself to do it, it's taken me so long to get that hit at the bottom. On the other hand I fear we'll never progress if I don't up the ante a bit. The other option is to add a jump or tunnel after the plank and reward him after that and I like that option a lot better but the problem is that I have no more room in my yard, I can only do it out at the practice field. So I'm back to thinking that maybe I'll stick with the treat gizmo for 2 more weeks and wait until he's solid on the low dogwalk before I worry about proofing and fading the gizmo. At some point I'll have to work on proofing/fading in the yard too just to get enough reps in but I'll start out at the field where my options are more practical.
Here's the video. Feel free to 'tsk tsk' all you want at my late clicks, wow my timing was bad for some of those. I need to tape more often so I can keep tabs on any bad habits I'm getting into.
Here's the video. Feel free to 'tsk tsk' all you want at my late clicks, wow my timing was bad for some of those. I need to tape more often so I can keep tabs on any bad habits I'm getting into.
Friday, November 21, 2008
Pure Mania
Had some more practice with the dogwalk plank this morning and I'll get to that but first can we discuss the chaos that these morning training sessions are turning into? This morning I came back from walking the dogs and tried to go in the yard to clean up before training and Strummer was so out of his mind excited about the prospect of training that he charged out the door from behind me knocking my legs out from under me and landing me on my ass. I must have had murder in my eyes because Jonny looked concerned and said 'Dont' hurt him'. Well of course I didn't hurt him but I was furious. Do you know how much we practice sitting at the door and waiting for a release word before you go out? He so knows better. But obviously not. I think Jonny is not sticking with the program and since Jonny was there at the door too he thought it was o.k. to charge out. Yeah, that's it, when in doubt blame the husband.
He had his training session and Lola was barking her head off but that's nothing new. Then I put him in the house and Lola was still barking her head off and rushing at the door so I told her I don't think so missy and gave Cody his turn since he was being a good quiet boy. And that's when the mayhem twins exploded into a hysterical barking fit at the window looking onto the yard. I've been letting Strum watch out the window as long as he's doing it quietly and he's been good for weeks now but Lola was mad and she pushed him over his threshold.
I went in the house to shut off all access to windows that open onto the backyard. I shut one bedroom door and leaned a gate up against the other one rather than shutting it because Strum's crate blocks the bedroom door so I have to move it which means the mountains of stuff on top of it go spilling onto the floor. I go back outside and within seconds I have mayhem again. Strum has said, 'phffbbtt, you have got to be kidding me' to the gate leaning against the bedroom door and Lola is at the back door bark screaming. Let's try it again. I say to heck with the mess, move the crate and shut the bedroom door and put the gate up against the doorway (no door to shut) leading to the mudroom so Lola can't get to the back door. I go outside and once again within seconds I have hysterical barking. This time I see a little black and white head at the other bedroom window and Lola is at the back door again. I go inside to see that Lola has jumped the gate and Strummer has busted through the bedroom door which doesn't shut properly. Sigh. I got up how extra early in the morning for this? I give up on Lola at the back door and move the gate to the other bedroom door that won't shut properly. Go outside. Sigh again. There's that little black & white head barking at the bedroom window. I swear I can see the devil horns sticking out of his head. I go inside and Strum has busted through both the gate and the door. I've run out of both patience and swear words. I don't want to crate him because I'm afraid he'll hurt himself. So I get another gate, one that will squeeze tight between the door frame, put up the second gate and shut the door. Finally this works. I'm pretty sure Susan Garrett doesn't have these problems at her house. I'm going back to being a cat person.
Training, yes, there was actual training before the mayhem ensued. I started off with the treat gizmo as per usual for about 6 reps. Strum got all but one, missing the 5th. This was the only miss for the whole session. Then I put the gizmo away and brought out a tug toy that he hasn't seen for awhile. I played with him for a bit then put the toy under a heavy terracotta flower pot located where the gizmo would normally be. He had solid hits for all the reps and was looking at me for maybe 2/6 reps. For the most part he was focusing ahead on the flower pot. I also mixed in some reps where I kept the toy on me and threw it for him for reward, still keeping the flower pot in it's place. Again I had maybe 2-3/6 reps of him looking at me instead of ahead. At least when he was looking at me it was at the very end of the plank instead of most of the way down which is what I've had in the past. I think the secret to having the toy on me is to throw it before he's too close to the end of the plank so he doesn't have a chance to think about looking at me. Of course I have to be careful with the timing so I make sure he's likely to have a hit before I throw. I'll try to get some video this weekend so I can get a better idea of what's going on in case I'm missing something.
This weekend I move the table up to 22". Getting close to being ready for a lowered regular dog walk.
He had his training session and Lola was barking her head off but that's nothing new. Then I put him in the house and Lola was still barking her head off and rushing at the door so I told her I don't think so missy and gave Cody his turn since he was being a good quiet boy. And that's when the mayhem twins exploded into a hysterical barking fit at the window looking onto the yard. I've been letting Strum watch out the window as long as he's doing it quietly and he's been good for weeks now but Lola was mad and she pushed him over his threshold.
I went in the house to shut off all access to windows that open onto the backyard. I shut one bedroom door and leaned a gate up against the other one rather than shutting it because Strum's crate blocks the bedroom door so I have to move it which means the mountains of stuff on top of it go spilling onto the floor. I go back outside and within seconds I have mayhem again. Strum has said, 'phffbbtt, you have got to be kidding me' to the gate leaning against the bedroom door and Lola is at the back door bark screaming. Let's try it again. I say to heck with the mess, move the crate and shut the bedroom door and put the gate up against the doorway (no door to shut) leading to the mudroom so Lola can't get to the back door. I go outside and once again within seconds I have hysterical barking. This time I see a little black and white head at the other bedroom window and Lola is at the back door again. I go inside to see that Lola has jumped the gate and Strummer has busted through the bedroom door which doesn't shut properly. Sigh. I got up how extra early in the morning for this? I give up on Lola at the back door and move the gate to the other bedroom door that won't shut properly. Go outside. Sigh again. There's that little black & white head barking at the bedroom window. I swear I can see the devil horns sticking out of his head. I go inside and Strum has busted through both the gate and the door. I've run out of both patience and swear words. I don't want to crate him because I'm afraid he'll hurt himself. So I get another gate, one that will squeeze tight between the door frame, put up the second gate and shut the door. Finally this works. I'm pretty sure Susan Garrett doesn't have these problems at her house. I'm going back to being a cat person.
Training, yes, there was actual training before the mayhem ensued. I started off with the treat gizmo as per usual for about 6 reps. Strum got all but one, missing the 5th. This was the only miss for the whole session. Then I put the gizmo away and brought out a tug toy that he hasn't seen for awhile. I played with him for a bit then put the toy under a heavy terracotta flower pot located where the gizmo would normally be. He had solid hits for all the reps and was looking at me for maybe 2/6 reps. For the most part he was focusing ahead on the flower pot. I also mixed in some reps where I kept the toy on me and threw it for him for reward, still keeping the flower pot in it's place. Again I had maybe 2-3/6 reps of him looking at me instead of ahead. At least when he was looking at me it was at the very end of the plank instead of most of the way down which is what I've had in the past. I think the secret to having the toy on me is to throw it before he's too close to the end of the plank so he doesn't have a chance to think about looking at me. Of course I have to be careful with the timing so I make sure he's likely to have a hit before I throw. I'll try to get some video this weekend so I can get a better idea of what's going on in case I'm missing something.
This weekend I move the table up to 22". Getting close to being ready for a lowered regular dog walk.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Running Dogwalk Update
It's been a while since I posted any updates on Strummy's contact training. I've got some new video on the camera but who knows when I'll have time to upload it.
I raised the table up to 20" on Sunday and so far his training for the week looks like this:
Sunday - 19/20 hits, 95%
Monday - 19/20 hits, 95%
Tuesday - 19/20 hits, 95%
Wednesday - 17/20 hits, 85%
The misses occurred at varying reps though usually in the first 10 reps. Today's were #3, 4 and maybe 5 or 6.
My plan is to go to 22" then 24" then introduce him to the lowered dogwalk at the practice field which I think is 24".
My biggest dilemma at the moment is when/how to proof. This week's practice sessions were all the plank on the table with the treat gizmo for reward. I can stand still anywhere around the plank/table or run beside him, run past him, etc., body position/movement don't matter as long as the treat gizmo is there. If I take the treat gizmo away and use a toy for reward, he watches me all the way down the plank-NOT what I want. He's usually successful in that he hits front feet in the yellow but he sometimes comes off the side of the plank and I don't want his eyes on me the whole time. Some days the toy gets him amped way up and success rates go down. Other days he's fine with the toy. The one thing that seems to work is to leave the gizmo out but switch off rewarding with the gizmo and a toy thrown right where the gizmo is. He's completely obsessed with the gizmo now, I think watching the treats come out is more reinforcing than the actual treats (I'm only using his regular meal kibble for treats) and I do feel he's targeting/focusing on it too much. This was my main reservation with using the gizmo, I have to figure out how to fade it and when. Do I wait until I have really solid behavior on the full sized dog walk or do I start now that I have fairly solid behavior on the plank? I'd like to start him on the dogwalk next month and in a way I think he's ready but I don't know, maybe I should do more proofing on the plank first.
One thing's for sure, he loves the training. Crazy dog was foaming at the mouth at the end of his session this morning.
I raised the table up to 20" on Sunday and so far his training for the week looks like this:
Sunday - 19/20 hits, 95%
Monday - 19/20 hits, 95%
Tuesday - 19/20 hits, 95%
Wednesday - 17/20 hits, 85%
The misses occurred at varying reps though usually in the first 10 reps. Today's were #3, 4 and maybe 5 or 6.
My plan is to go to 22" then 24" then introduce him to the lowered dogwalk at the practice field which I think is 24".
My biggest dilemma at the moment is when/how to proof. This week's practice sessions were all the plank on the table with the treat gizmo for reward. I can stand still anywhere around the plank/table or run beside him, run past him, etc., body position/movement don't matter as long as the treat gizmo is there. If I take the treat gizmo away and use a toy for reward, he watches me all the way down the plank-NOT what I want. He's usually successful in that he hits front feet in the yellow but he sometimes comes off the side of the plank and I don't want his eyes on me the whole time. Some days the toy gets him amped way up and success rates go down. Other days he's fine with the toy. The one thing that seems to work is to leave the gizmo out but switch off rewarding with the gizmo and a toy thrown right where the gizmo is. He's completely obsessed with the gizmo now, I think watching the treats come out is more reinforcing than the actual treats (I'm only using his regular meal kibble for treats) and I do feel he's targeting/focusing on it too much. This was my main reservation with using the gizmo, I have to figure out how to fade it and when. Do I wait until I have really solid behavior on the full sized dog walk or do I start now that I have fairly solid behavior on the plank? I'd like to start him on the dogwalk next month and in a way I think he's ready but I don't know, maybe I should do more proofing on the plank first.
One thing's for sure, he loves the training. Crazy dog was foaming at the mouth at the end of his session this morning.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Class #3
We survived yet another Monday night class, this time without a single hysterical fit. I won't say Strum was ever calm per se but at least no lunging or screaming. Now I had to manage him the whole class which is super fun let me tell you but at least he managed to control himself for the most part. I had a little angry barking from him when I tied him up to walk the courses but he stopped after a few seconds when he realized it wasn't getting him anything. I tried going over to him and rewarding when he was quiet but then he'd start up with the barking again when I left him and he didn't bark after the initial outburst so I decided I could live with a brief tantrum right when I left him and not worry about trying to teach him to shut up for now. I think he'll soon grow out of it (at least I hope so) and his fit doesn't last very long. The one mistake of the night was taking him outside for a break and playing reverse tug/fetch with him. This only got him more riled up and he seemed twice as jeeped when I brought him back inside. After that I took him outside for calming walk breaks rather than rousing play breaks.
He did great with the exercises except some of the weave pole stuff which was way over his head. This week I begged off of the weave stuff I knew he couldn't handle. He needs a boatload more training and I've got a whole plan worked out and it needs to be done away from class.
The exercises were from a Nancy Gyes seminar that my instructor Rob had just attended. We did them one way, then another. Thankfully Rob let us substitute and off-arm cue for an RFP and we had our choice of lead-outs, didn't have to do a lead-out pivot. The rest of the handling was all front crosses, no rears for some reason, probably not intentional, just the way it worked out. I had trouble with one exercise because there I was, running backwards on a front cross again. Rob pointed out that this was o.k. for a few steps but loses it's effectiveness when you do it for 3/4 the distance between 2 jumps and he was right. I had a terrible time working out the footwork on that one but had a bit of progress after trying it a few (zillion) times. The rest of the exercises and front crosses were mostly fine. Some turns were wide and Rob had me tighten them up but otherwise the Strum man did great. Only two bars down the whole night and at least one was likely a handling mistake. He might have been a bit wound up for that second one though.
One more class in this session but I'm going to sign up for the next session since I think these classes are helping Strum a lot. I also signed him up for a 4 hour seminar on handling/timing up at Stacy Peardot's place next month. Hopefully the little monkey brains will behave himself. Maybe I should start stocking up on Valium now.
He did great with the exercises except some of the weave pole stuff which was way over his head. This week I begged off of the weave stuff I knew he couldn't handle. He needs a boatload more training and I've got a whole plan worked out and it needs to be done away from class.
The exercises were from a Nancy Gyes seminar that my instructor Rob had just attended. We did them one way, then another. Thankfully Rob let us substitute and off-arm cue for an RFP and we had our choice of lead-outs, didn't have to do a lead-out pivot. The rest of the handling was all front crosses, no rears for some reason, probably not intentional, just the way it worked out. I had trouble with one exercise because there I was, running backwards on a front cross again. Rob pointed out that this was o.k. for a few steps but loses it's effectiveness when you do it for 3/4 the distance between 2 jumps and he was right. I had a terrible time working out the footwork on that one but had a bit of progress after trying it a few (zillion) times. The rest of the exercises and front crosses were mostly fine. Some turns were wide and Rob had me tighten them up but otherwise the Strum man did great. Only two bars down the whole night and at least one was likely a handling mistake. He might have been a bit wound up for that second one though.
One more class in this session but I'm going to sign up for the next session since I think these classes are helping Strum a lot. I also signed him up for a 4 hour seminar on handling/timing up at Stacy Peardot's place next month. Hopefully the little monkey brains will behave himself. Maybe I should start stocking up on Valium now.
Friday, November 14, 2008
Anticipation
Wait for it
Not just yet
Now!
Just a bit of Friday entertainment on my lunch hour. Carry on.
Not just yet
Now!
Just a bit of Friday entertainment on my lunch hour. Carry on.
Thursday, November 13, 2008
USDAA Nationals Grand Prix Finals Course
The Grand Prix Finals from Nationals is set up out at my practice field so I decided to give it a go with the older dogs. I didn't think it was a super challenging course but I had the advantage of having watched the big guns run it on the live streaming so made a handling choice that I'm not sure I would have figured out on my own.
Unfortunately they've taken down the video from Nationals and I couldn't remember how they handled the opening. I was thinking most people had led out past Jump #2 but I couldn't get that strategy to work for either Cody or Lola. Maybe it'll work with Strummer, I'll try him out tomorrow if time/weather permit. Anybody remember how the opening was handled? I ended up leading out 3/4 of the way or so to Jump #2 then putting in a front cross between #2 and #3. Worked a treat for both my dogs but not sure that's the fastest way or if it would work for a super fast rocket dog in the finals at nationals. I kept the dog on my left through #7 then front crossed between #7 and #8. I think that was fairly straightforward and most people handled it that way in the finals.
I can see why a lot of dogs were missing that dogwalk contact, if you stayed back to work the contact you got behind at the chute and it was a push to the #10 double. Lola ran the course perfectly except for running past the #11 tire and I had to work to pull her in to the #12 jump before the A-frame but this is a Lola issue. Cody ran it no problem as did most of the dogs in the finals I think. The A-frame was where I cheated and stole a handling move from the video. I saw a few people putting in a blind cross after the A-frame, picking up the dog on the left hand and sending to the #14 jump. I don't think this would have occured to me and if it did I probably would have dismissed it and aimed for a front cross after the A-frame. But I gave the blind a shot with Lola and it worked great. I was able to get into position easily for a front cross between #16 and the #17 weaves and got a nice tight turn through the pinwheel and into the weaves. I put in another front cross between #19 and #20. Some people handled that section with the dog on their right coming off of the A-frame and rear crossed at #15. I didn't like this strategy but gave it a try with Cody to see what would happen. I ended up with wide turns through the pinwheel and couldn't get into position for the front before the weaves so I had to keep him on my left at the weaves. He missed the entry too. Then I had to rear cross the #18 jump and ended up with a wide loopy turn and almost an off course at the #2 jump. So I didn't like that strategy but there were people in the finals who pulled it off nicely. Could be that I had a bad feeling about it so wasn't as precise with my handling as I could have been.
A couple of other variations I remember-Stacy Peardot managed to get a front cross in between the #12 jump and the A-frame. I wish they still had the video up to see how she pulled that off because wow I don't think I could have done that especially without a good independent dogwalk contact. I also saw some people putting a front cross in between #18 and #19 and I liked that option but I think you needed to be able to leave the dog in the weaves and run way ahead to pull that off.
Was fun being able to try the course out after watching all the pro's run it. Of course I'm sure it wasn't set up exactly the same but, eh, close enough.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)