- (From one of a group of young guys in a car near a nightlife area) "Hey puppy, need a ride?"
- (From a middle-aged man hanging out on the street near the club) "Hey baby, you can walk me any time!"
- (From a young guy on the sidewalk tonight, near the bank) "Awww... What a cute owner!"
Monday, August 29, 2011
Puppy Pick-Up Lines
There's something about walking dogs that seems to bring out the weird in guys. Here are the top three odd pick-up lines I've heard while walking my dogs, in chronological order:
Club Cleanup | Working From Home
I got last-minute approval to take the morning off, so I was at the club by 9am today. Despite the quick response to the storm, the room already smelled just a little bit off. There were huge wet spots on the matting that hinted at a worse mess underneath.
There were 7 or 8 of us working. We moved all the agility equipment to a dry area and ripped up most of the matting, exposing standing water below. As a few of us worked on the mats, others set to work with wet-vacs and towels. The amount of water was incredible with large, quarter-inch-deep puddles in a few areas. To further complicate matters, the mats are custom-cut around the walls and pillars, necessitating very careful placement of the ripped-up mats to ensure they would fit back down again.
We were pleasantly surprised to find that our work was complete in 2 hours. By the time we left, the professional chemical-cleaner was already working to clean, disinfect, and partly dry the soaked matting. No mold for us!
I had fun, despite the circumstances. One of my fellow 9am students was there (the one whose dog Maxwell convinced to go psycho), I met another member with a rescue dog, the membership chair, and even the club president! Mr. Trainer preceded to embarrass me for the second time in three days, boasting of my work with Sadie to the club president. (The first time was when he announced, to the whole class on Saturday, my trial results.) I can't honestly say I minded, since I am very proud of our accomplishments, but it was unexpected. Besides, my success reflects well on him, as it should.
The remainder of the day was spent working from home. Yay... Maxwell made it ever so much more pleasant with his dash-and-whine routine. It went something like this:
Sadie just wanted the occasional belly-rub, and to woof at the mailman. Good girl!
There were 7 or 8 of us working. We moved all the agility equipment to a dry area and ripped up most of the matting, exposing standing water below. As a few of us worked on the mats, others set to work with wet-vacs and towels. The amount of water was incredible with large, quarter-inch-deep puddles in a few areas. To further complicate matters, the mats are custom-cut around the walls and pillars, necessitating very careful placement of the ripped-up mats to ensure they would fit back down again.
We were pleasantly surprised to find that our work was complete in 2 hours. By the time we left, the professional chemical-cleaner was already working to clean, disinfect, and partly dry the soaked matting. No mold for us!
I had fun, despite the circumstances. One of my fellow 9am students was there (the one whose dog Maxwell convinced to go psycho), I met another member with a rescue dog, the membership chair, and even the club president! Mr. Trainer preceded to embarrass me for the second time in three days, boasting of my work with Sadie to the club president. (The first time was when he announced, to the whole class on Saturday, my trial results.) I can't honestly say I minded, since I am very proud of our accomplishments, but it was unexpected. Besides, my success reflects well on him, as it should.
The remainder of the day was spent working from home. Yay... Maxwell made it ever so much more pleasant with his dash-and-whine routine. It went something like this:
- Hang out on the deck
- See something worth chasing / greeting / investigating
- Start a constant stream of high-pitched crying
- Run the length of the deck, into the apartment, down the hall, into the office
- Stop suddenly
- Stare at me
- Be quieted by my attention
- Repeat
Sadie just wanted the occasional belly-rub, and to woof at the mailman. Good girl!
Storms, Projects And Other News
Hurricane Irene didn't hit us nearly as hard as expected. I stayed up quite late last night, listening to the wind and rain. The dogs were unfazed, save for the bothersome business of having to get wet when they went outside. This morning brought a few downed branches, but nothing serious. We kept power, and even internet, all night.
Sadly, I just heard that PCOTC's lower training level was not so fortunate. The room was flooded, and needs an emergency cleaning to prevent mold and other such unsavory business. I've asked my boss for the morning off tomorrow to help with the cleanup... hopefully I'll hear back in the affirmative.
Of less immediate import, we finally fixed the screen door to our deck. It took us over two years to do it, procrastinators that we are, but the new screen looks so much nicer. Why did it need replacing, you ask? Because the day we moved in, a certain large yellow dog simply walked right through it. The metal screen must have been ancient, since it offered her almost no resistance. For her part, she was suitably surprised and hasn't gone through since. Maxwell, on the other hand, found the tear to be just the right size to be an Aussie-door. No more!
Now that Sadie is amassing a nice collection of rosettes and ribbons, it seemed only natural to find a nice way to display them. Her first few were hung from the bottom edge of a picture frame (with her picture in it). That became impossible with the most recent batch, though. Not only do the hooks on the new ones not fit in the crevasse, but there are too many to fit anyway! And so, I built a nice little display for the living room.
The materials cost me less than $35, and that includes enough to build one for the little guy, once he starts competing! I may have to buy some thin wood strips to solidify the edges, as the cork bends quite easily, but overall I think it's a hell of a job for someone so un-crafty as myself.
And now for your regularly scheduled training update:
I'm teaching Maxwell the CHIN cue, which I first saw performed by a fellow New Rochelle Humane Society volunteer's dog. On cue, Maxwell plops his face into the palm of my hand and waits for the click. The end behavior will be a bit more flexible. I plan to have CHIN work for any surface I request, with emphasis on a person's legs (when seated) and the edges of chairs and beds. He should hold still for several minutes at a time, even if petted and fussed over. Obviously we're a long way from that, but he's making good headway. (Haha! Get it? Headway? *ahem*)
I've started teaching Sadie the same trick, with much different results. She has finally learned to offer behaviors besides SIT and DOWN when she doesn't immediately get a click. When trying to get the CHIN behavior, I held out my hand and looked at it. She nosed it a bit, offered a paw, and licked my hand... and then bit it. Not hard. No, not at all! It was more like she gently took my hand in her mouth, as a hunting dog might gingerly hold game. Her expression was priceless. It was as if she didn't really think that was right, because she knows not to bite, but what on earth else could I be asking for??? She did eventually offer the correct behavior, and earned many handfuls of kibble.
Boooooooooooriiiiiiiiiiing...
Sadly, I just heard that PCOTC's lower training level was not so fortunate. The room was flooded, and needs an emergency cleaning to prevent mold and other such unsavory business. I've asked my boss for the morning off tomorrow to help with the cleanup... hopefully I'll hear back in the affirmative.
Of less immediate import, we finally fixed the screen door to our deck. It took us over two years to do it, procrastinators that we are, but the new screen looks so much nicer. Why did it need replacing, you ask? Because the day we moved in, a certain large yellow dog simply walked right through it. The metal screen must have been ancient, since it offered her almost no resistance. For her part, she was suitably surprised and hasn't gone through since. Maxwell, on the other hand, found the tear to be just the right size to be an Aussie-door. No more!
Now that Sadie is amassing a nice collection of rosettes and ribbons, it seemed only natural to find a nice way to display them. Her first few were hung from the bottom edge of a picture frame (with her picture in it). That became impossible with the most recent batch, though. Not only do the hooks on the new ones not fit in the crevasse, but there are too many to fit anyway! And so, I built a nice little display for the living room.
Sadie is doing so well! I already can't wait for the next trial...
I even made her name the same color as her collar
The materials cost me less than $35, and that includes enough to build one for the little guy, once he starts competing! I may have to buy some thin wood strips to solidify the edges, as the cork bends quite easily, but overall I think it's a hell of a job for someone so un-crafty as myself.
And now for your regularly scheduled training update:
I'm teaching Maxwell the CHIN cue, which I first saw performed by a fellow New Rochelle Humane Society volunteer's dog. On cue, Maxwell plops his face into the palm of my hand and waits for the click. The end behavior will be a bit more flexible. I plan to have CHIN work for any surface I request, with emphasis on a person's legs (when seated) and the edges of chairs and beds. He should hold still for several minutes at a time, even if petted and fussed over. Obviously we're a long way from that, but he's making good headway. (Haha! Get it? Headway? *ahem*)
I've started teaching Sadie the same trick, with much different results. She has finally learned to offer behaviors besides SIT and DOWN when she doesn't immediately get a click. When trying to get the CHIN behavior, I held out my hand and looked at it. She nosed it a bit, offered a paw, and licked my hand... and then bit it. Not hard. No, not at all! It was more like she gently took my hand in her mouth, as a hunting dog might gingerly hold game. Her expression was priceless. It was as if she didn't really think that was right, because she knows not to bite, but what on earth else could I be asking for??? She did eventually offer the correct behavior, and earned many handfuls of kibble.
Friday, August 26, 2011
We Seem To Be About To Have Some Weather...
Westchester County is currently under a hurricane warning due to Irene. There are even areas of New York City that are being evacuated. We have taken some precautions ourselves, bringing plants and other such small items inside, and tying down the deck furniture.
While I don't think the work is about to end, I do think caution is worthwhile. Here are things I've heard recommended:
While I don't think the work is about to end, I do think caution is worthwhile. Here are things I've heard recommended:
- Ensure you have plenty of water for yourselves and your pups
- Stock up on a few days' worth of non-perishable food (human and dog)
- Make sure you have batteries, flashlights, and other basic power-outage necessities
- Bring in or secure loose items outside
- If you need / decide to evacuate, make sure you have any medications, ID tags, and other critical items for your pets
- If your dog is afraid of severe weather, make sure you have 'comfort items' on hand; favorite treats, toys, thundershirt, and/or anxiety medications
Aussies: In General And In Specific
There's another blog I found, but did not include in yesterday's post. I do not intend to give you the link, either, as the author is a UK breader of mini Aussies.
That's right, the fictional breed that is apparently becoming an "in" dog to own. The author talks about breeding the 4th ever UK litter of minis. There's a little problem, though. Her bitch is an ASCA registered Australian Shepherd. As in, not a mini! In fact, the ASCA is against AKC recognition of the mini as a breed. As far as I'm concerned, all she's done is breed an undersized dog to another undersized dog in an effort to shrink an existing breed.
She does agility with her dogs, which is fantastic. But don't you think that having your "mini" measure into the tallest jump height would be a clue? Okay, rant over.
I had the pleasure of working with a little female red Aussie-mix tonight at the shelter. She was a petite girl, maybe 35 lbs, and the sweetest dog. I took her into a pen to burn off some energy, but all she wanted was to curl up in my lap as I sat in a chair. No interest in the toys, agility equipment, or even in chasing me.
As we sat there, I found golf-ball-sized knots behind each of her ears. That cannot have been comfortable! I got help cutting the worst of it out, then spent at least a half hour brushing and combing her. The poor thing badly needed the attention. I must have gotten an entire dog's-worth of fur off her, and didn't even finish! I completely cleared out behind one ear, but ran out of time for the other. At least it should be much better for her.
A curiosity about this dog was her food preferences. I train with Natural Balance, as it's easy to cut small chunks and goes down fast. However, I wanted to give this pup a special treat for being so good about the grooming, so I found her a spoon covered in peanut butter. And she refused it! Not even an exploratory lick. Strange little dog.
I've decided that I should sneak her home as my snuggle dog. Maxwell is my amazing work/play dog, but doesn't do laps. She can make up for his terrible deficiency!
That's right, the fictional breed that is apparently becoming an "in" dog to own. The author talks about breeding the 4th ever UK litter of minis. There's a little problem, though. Her bitch is an ASCA registered Australian Shepherd. As in, not a mini! In fact, the ASCA is against AKC recognition of the mini as a breed. As far as I'm concerned, all she's done is breed an undersized dog to another undersized dog in an effort to shrink an existing breed.
She does agility with her dogs, which is fantastic. But don't you think that having your "mini" measure into the tallest jump height would be a clue? Okay, rant over.
* * * * *
I had the pleasure of working with a little female red Aussie-mix tonight at the shelter. She was a petite girl, maybe 35 lbs, and the sweetest dog. I took her into a pen to burn off some energy, but all she wanted was to curl up in my lap as I sat in a chair. No interest in the toys, agility equipment, or even in chasing me.
As we sat there, I found golf-ball-sized knots behind each of her ears. That cannot have been comfortable! I got help cutting the worst of it out, then spent at least a half hour brushing and combing her. The poor thing badly needed the attention. I must have gotten an entire dog's-worth of fur off her, and didn't even finish! I completely cleared out behind one ear, but ran out of time for the other. At least it should be much better for her.
A curiosity about this dog was her food preferences. I train with Natural Balance, as it's easy to cut small chunks and goes down fast. However, I wanted to give this pup a special treat for being so good about the grooming, so I found her a spoon covered in peanut butter. And she refused it! Not even an exploratory lick. Strange little dog.
I've decided that I should sneak her home as my snuggle dog. Maxwell is my amazing work/play dog, but doesn't do laps. She can make up for his terrible deficiency!
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
The Ketschker Turn And OMG FOOD!
I came across an agility term today that I'd never heard before: the Ketschker turn. Since I was at work (ahem) I couldn't see any of the videos people linked to, and everybody on the blogs seemed to already know what is was. Thus is took much searching to finally figure out what the heck it was: a tight, blind cross used to wrap a dog at least 180 degree around a jump standard. I found a good video demonstration here.
I've asked Mr. Trainer his opinion of the move. Given his vehemence against blind crosses on course, I'm guessing that this turn will get the same treatment. But maybe not... after all, all the blind crosses we do in class are accidental!
Ever wondered how to get 1,000,000% attention from your dogs? I have the answer, my friend! Simply stand in the kitchen and pack six Kongs with canned dog food, pumpkin puree, and peanut butter. They'll be too busy trying to mind-control you to even get in the way!
I've asked Mr. Trainer his opinion of the move. Given his vehemence against blind crosses on course, I'm guessing that this turn will get the same treatment. But maybe not... after all, all the blind crosses we do in class are accidental!
* * * * *
Ever wondered how to get 1,000,000% attention from your dogs? I have the answer, my friend! Simply stand in the kitchen and pack six Kongs with canned dog food, pumpkin puree, and peanut butter. They'll be too busy trying to mind-control you to even get in the way!
Summer Reading List
Okay, so I know summer is almost over, but I've recently come across a bunch of fun blogs. I haven't read through them in full, of course, but they seem worthwhile.
Please note that the images below are wholly owned by the site owners, and I claim no affiliation.
This blog is very well written, though many of the posts seem to be about courses far beyond my current skill level. It makes for interesting reading, and leaves me wondering who in the world dreams up some of those courses! Updates are detailed and pretty regular.
A nice personal blog, in which I very much identified with the writer when he wrote about his new BC puppy. In the antics he describes I saw my own little dog. The bit about the half a tennis ball stood out in particular, as that exactly describes Maxwell's favorite toy. Updates are infrequent.
The latest post is from 2009 (yikes!) but the bits I have read are intersting. The author is a bit like me, writing about whatever seems to be relevant at the moment. She seems very into agility and other dog sports, so I can relate to her writing.
This last one is much broader in topics than the others, but seems to be worth reading. I actually came across it when following a (well-deserved) rant on AgilityNerd about clueless people and their dogs. I'll admit I skimmed some of the posts, as they were less interesting to me than pure dog-talk, but there is some good material to be found. Plus, you may like the other bits more than I do.
Do you have any good doggy blogs that you read? If so, share them in the comments! I love finding more people who share my interest, even if I only ever 'meet' them through their writing.
Please note that the images below are wholly owned by the site owners, and I claim no affiliation.
Do you have any good doggy blogs that you read? If so, share them in the comments! I love finding more people who share my interest, even if I only ever 'meet' them through their writing.
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Why So Serious?
Training the doggies is fun. Doggies being trained by me should have fun, too.
Last night I decided to try and train Sadie to bow. Now, this could easily be the fifth time I've tried this particular trick with her, and never before had success. In the past I'd always started with a lure for a few repetitions then switched to a 'fake' lure - my empty hand. She never caught on.
This time I decided to go with a purely capture approach. Play bowing isn't something she offers often, so I had to find a way to increase the likelihood of it. So I got crazy! I was hopping around, twirling in circles, and squealing with excitement. This is the most fun I've ever had!!!! Sadie responded by bunny-hopping, spinning, and play-bowing and... CLICK! Every offered bow got her a handful of kibble. The difference from previous attempts was amazing. She was happy and engaged, rather than frustrated, and the offered bows got more frequent.
I got silly with her again tonight, clicking a few of her offered bows. Each time she threw out her front paws I'd bow at her as well. Then I let her settle a bit (enough to stop hunching her back) and gave her an enthusiastic bow. She responded by giving me a shallow bow back. I kept the silly excitement level a bit lower and cued her bows with my own, getting well over a 50% response rate at first, which continued to improve. Not bad for day 2.
Sadie's ultimate reward, though, was doing nosework for the last of her dinner. She launched out of her crate on my FIND IT cue. Her tail wagged slowly in concentration as she scented out the piles of kibble hidden throughout the apartment.
Her strong, positive reaction to my enthusiasm got me thinking about my training of Maxwell. I love working with him. He's so quick to catch on to new tricks and has such an amazing work ethic... but was he having fun? I realized that I've gotten not just serious about dog training, but serious in my training. That has to change.
And so, tonight I got creative with the little guy. We started with a few bows of his own and a little flat-work. Then I set him up at the far end of the weaves, as if I was going to call him through them. I paused long enough to let him focus, then gave a happy HERE instead. He trotted quickly to me with an Aussie smile, as if to say "You almost had me there!" We repeated this a few times, with me randomly either calling him through the weaves or simply asking for a recall.
Then I brought out the squeaky toy, and it was on.
I rough-housed with him, using the toy to take the brunt of his teeth. He was wide-eyed and riled up when I suddenly asked him to OUT and WEAVE. He shot through the poles like his nub was on fire, and I sent the toy sailing past him as a reward. I alternated toy-play with weaving, moving around to give him different entrance angles and starting positions. The human bed served as a nice table to send him from, and he only missed his entrance once.
This just reinforces for me what I've read and been told, but apparently never fully internalized: a reward is what the dog finds rewarding. For Sadie, that means food. For Maxwell, it means play, and preferably fetch. I'm going to try to incorporate toys more into his training sessions. Food will surely always be a part of it, but I can use it as a 'lesser' reward, and the toy as the good reward, and a long play session as a jackpot.
Last night I decided to try and train Sadie to bow. Now, this could easily be the fifth time I've tried this particular trick with her, and never before had success. In the past I'd always started with a lure for a few repetitions then switched to a 'fake' lure - my empty hand. She never caught on.
This time I decided to go with a purely capture approach. Play bowing isn't something she offers often, so I had to find a way to increase the likelihood of it. So I got crazy! I was hopping around, twirling in circles, and squealing with excitement. This is the most fun I've ever had!!!! Sadie responded by bunny-hopping, spinning, and play-bowing and... CLICK! Every offered bow got her a handful of kibble. The difference from previous attempts was amazing. She was happy and engaged, rather than frustrated, and the offered bows got more frequent.
I got silly with her again tonight, clicking a few of her offered bows. Each time she threw out her front paws I'd bow at her as well. Then I let her settle a bit (enough to stop hunching her back) and gave her an enthusiastic bow. She responded by giving me a shallow bow back. I kept the silly excitement level a bit lower and cued her bows with my own, getting well over a 50% response rate at first, which continued to improve. Not bad for day 2.
Sadie's ultimate reward, though, was doing nosework for the last of her dinner. She launched out of her crate on my FIND IT cue. Her tail wagged slowly in concentration as she scented out the piles of kibble hidden throughout the apartment.
Her strong, positive reaction to my enthusiasm got me thinking about my training of Maxwell. I love working with him. He's so quick to catch on to new tricks and has such an amazing work ethic... but was he having fun? I realized that I've gotten not just serious about dog training, but serious in my training. That has to change.
And so, tonight I got creative with the little guy. We started with a few bows of his own and a little flat-work. Then I set him up at the far end of the weaves, as if I was going to call him through them. I paused long enough to let him focus, then gave a happy HERE instead. He trotted quickly to me with an Aussie smile, as if to say "You almost had me there!" We repeated this a few times, with me randomly either calling him through the weaves or simply asking for a recall.
Then I brought out the squeaky toy, and it was on.
I rough-housed with him, using the toy to take the brunt of his teeth. He was wide-eyed and riled up when I suddenly asked him to OUT and WEAVE. He shot through the poles like his nub was on fire, and I sent the toy sailing past him as a reward. I alternated toy-play with weaving, moving around to give him different entrance angles and starting positions. The human bed served as a nice table to send him from, and he only missed his entrance once.
This just reinforces for me what I've read and been told, but apparently never fully internalized: a reward is what the dog finds rewarding. For Sadie, that means food. For Maxwell, it means play, and preferably fetch. I'm going to try to incorporate toys more into his training sessions. Food will surely always be a part of it, but I can use it as a 'lesser' reward, and the toy as the good reward, and a long play session as a jackpot.
Monday, August 22, 2011
Visual Feedback
Having video of my runs yesterday is amazing. I can't stop watching them, especially the jumpers run. Not only does it make me grin to see how happy Sadie is, I'm using them to figure out where I could have handled better.
Jumpers:
The obvious place to start is the first bar she knocks down. It took me several viewings, and finally stepping through the frames, to figure that one out. She never hits the bar... she hits the standard! She has a rather long takeoff, but actually clears the 26" jump cup. I think my cue for the jump accidentally gave her a send as well, rather than pulling her back to me for the weave entrance. I should have leaned hard away from the jump as I cued, which would have helped her not only stay with me, but wrap around the standard.
The second bar down was absolutely my fault. I didn't give her enough space to leave the tunnel, which caused her to cut around behind me. I needed to move back at least another 3 feet get her out and reoriented. Then, if she still had the hesitation, I should have just circled her to allow a better approach to the jump. That part actually did occur to me on course, but I knew we'd already lost the Q on the second jump. She often can take tight jumps like that, so I sent her over.
One last spot stands out to me: her movement from the last jump to the final tunnel. You can clearly see her lose the course, as she fails to orient herself immediately to the tunnel entrance. It might have been beneficial to have given her a verbal just as she landed, rather than relying on my movement to fully communicate the next obstacle. Once she gets me in her peripheral vision you can see her head snap to the tunnel.
Standard:
The clearest point for improvement was definitely the chute. She has no hesitation taking it, but apparently needs more work on keeping a straight path through it. I don't like seeing her pull the cloth so far to the side. It's potentially dangerous if she were to get tangled and/or feel trapped and panic. I'll need to work on sending her through to a target a lot more, with me moving at various angles to her path. In this particular case, it would have helped if I had stayed with her. My movement away pulled her over.
We also need to work on enthusiasm and drive over the dog walk. While she took it immediately, she also lost a lot of speed. Again, this means many repetitions of sending her over the equipment to a target with super-extra-awesome treats. I'll also need to start selectively rewarding for faster and faster runs.
General positioning issues show up throughout this run. The first is even before the run starts, when I set Sadie up. She is crooked to the tire, and even facing away from the curve I want her to take. Start lines are a bit challenging with her since she runs far better if I rough her up and go, rather than asking for a start-line stay. That means I can't fine-tune her direction as well, and my start (which necessarily must go out and around the jump) tends to pull her into the handler-side of the first obstacle. Two more spots with potential for improvement are when I crowd her teeter exit a little, and when I should have lead out more from the table. The table wasn't so much a problem as a lost opportunity to ask for more speed.
One thing that is quite clear from both videos - Sadie knows her rear crosses!
Jumpers:
The obvious place to start is the first bar she knocks down. It took me several viewings, and finally stepping through the frames, to figure that one out. She never hits the bar... she hits the standard! She has a rather long takeoff, but actually clears the 26" jump cup. I think my cue for the jump accidentally gave her a send as well, rather than pulling her back to me for the weave entrance. I should have leaned hard away from the jump as I cued, which would have helped her not only stay with me, but wrap around the standard.
The second bar down was absolutely my fault. I didn't give her enough space to leave the tunnel, which caused her to cut around behind me. I needed to move back at least another 3 feet get her out and reoriented. Then, if she still had the hesitation, I should have just circled her to allow a better approach to the jump. That part actually did occur to me on course, but I knew we'd already lost the Q on the second jump. She often can take tight jumps like that, so I sent her over.
One last spot stands out to me: her movement from the last jump to the final tunnel. You can clearly see her lose the course, as she fails to orient herself immediately to the tunnel entrance. It might have been beneficial to have given her a verbal just as she landed, rather than relying on my movement to fully communicate the next obstacle. Once she gets me in her peripheral vision you can see her head snap to the tunnel.
Standard:
The clearest point for improvement was definitely the chute. She has no hesitation taking it, but apparently needs more work on keeping a straight path through it. I don't like seeing her pull the cloth so far to the side. It's potentially dangerous if she were to get tangled and/or feel trapped and panic. I'll need to work on sending her through to a target a lot more, with me moving at various angles to her path. In this particular case, it would have helped if I had stayed with her. My movement away pulled her over.
We also need to work on enthusiasm and drive over the dog walk. While she took it immediately, she also lost a lot of speed. Again, this means many repetitions of sending her over the equipment to a target with super-extra-awesome treats. I'll also need to start selectively rewarding for faster and faster runs.
General positioning issues show up throughout this run. The first is even before the run starts, when I set Sadie up. She is crooked to the tire, and even facing away from the curve I want her to take. Start lines are a bit challenging with her since she runs far better if I rough her up and go, rather than asking for a start-line stay. That means I can't fine-tune her direction as well, and my start (which necessarily must go out and around the jump) tends to pull her into the handler-side of the first obstacle. Two more spots with potential for improvement are when I crowd her teeter exit a little, and when I should have lead out more from the table. The table wasn't so much a problem as a lost opportunity to ask for more speed.
One thing that is quite clear from both videos - Sadie knows her rear crosses!
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Q x 2
Let me just start right off by saying:
That's right, two ribbons.
Today was the Montecello trial at Port Jervis. To say it was a nice venue wouldn't do it justice. It was an enormous, stadium-style indoor riding ring. It was big enough for three agility rings, practice jumps, the check-in booth, and more. There was limited crating in the surrounding aisles reserved for volunteer workers. I was ring crew for Open Standard, so we got a spot next to one of the rings.
Sadie's first run was jumpers. She's been working so incredibly well lately that I had high hopes for getting her title, but knew that she tends to be goofy for her first run of the day. She did a fantastic job, though knocked two bars and lost her Q. What was far better than a Q, though, was how she ran. She was fast, she was focused, and she was happy. I've never seen her finish a run before with such a big Labrador grin.
Our next challenge was FAST. It was a tricky course. The start line was on the left and finish was on the right, but the send bonus went from right to left. Sadie did an excellent job following me through our winding course (which even included the weaves) and hit her A-frame contact. We almost missed the send when she came galloping back to me after a turn, but I managed not to step over the boundary and sent her back to the jump. Once she saw the line, it was no problem. We finished with 61 points, less 6 points for being over time. That makes 55 points for the Q and second place! Once again, she had that goofy grin as I leashed her and ran for her treats.
Last but not least was standard. The course had a tricky start, with a tire to teeter to weaves S-shaped sequence. Sadie took it like a champ, hit her weaves on the first try, and flew through the rest of the course. It was after she hit her A-frame contact that I realized she was clean, but tried not to let it affect my handling. We finished clean and 24 seconds under standard course time, for first place. We both ran out with idiot grins on that one!
Though we didn't get her jumpers title, I think we had a hugely successful day. I would count our wins as follows:
And not to forget the little guy - he came along and hung out with us. I didn't have as much time to walk him around as I'd have liked, but he seemed fairly subdued anyway. He was very good, didn't try to lunge through the crate much, and was fairly respectful of other dogs' personal space. I'm glad he's getting used to the trial environment. He's so young and high drive, stressing out due to location/situation changes will be the last thing I need when he starts trialing. It'll be enough to get through his first-run nerves!
That's right, two ribbons.
Today was the Montecello trial at Port Jervis. To say it was a nice venue wouldn't do it justice. It was an enormous, stadium-style indoor riding ring. It was big enough for three agility rings, practice jumps, the check-in booth, and more. There was limited crating in the surrounding aisles reserved for volunteer workers. I was ring crew for Open Standard, so we got a spot next to one of the rings.
Sadie's first run was jumpers. She's been working so incredibly well lately that I had high hopes for getting her title, but knew that she tends to be goofy for her first run of the day. She did a fantastic job, though knocked two bars and lost her Q. What was far better than a Q, though, was how she ran. She was fast, she was focused, and she was happy. I've never seen her finish a run before with such a big Labrador grin.
Thanks to Mrs. Trainer for filming!
See the two rear crosses at the end? Only the first one was planned!
The second was supposed to be a front, but she was moving faster than expected.
Our next challenge was FAST. It was a tricky course. The start line was on the left and finish was on the right, but the send bonus went from right to left. Sadie did an excellent job following me through our winding course (which even included the weaves) and hit her A-frame contact. We almost missed the send when she came galloping back to me after a turn, but I managed not to step over the boundary and sent her back to the jump. Once she saw the line, it was no problem. We finished with 61 points, less 6 points for being over time. That makes 55 points for the Q and second place! Once again, she had that goofy grin as I leashed her and ran for her treats.
Last but not least was standard. The course had a tricky start, with a tire to teeter to weaves S-shaped sequence. Sadie took it like a champ, hit her weaves on the first try, and flew through the rest of the course. It was after she hit her A-frame contact that I realized she was clean, but tried not to let it affect my handling. We finished clean and 24 seconds under standard course time, for first place. We both ran out with idiot grins on that one!
Thanks to Mr. Trainer for filming!
Check out her contacts... they hit yellow!
Though we didn't get her jumpers title, I think we had a hugely successful day. I would count our wins as follows:
- First FAST Q ever
- First STD Q ever
- Ran happy
- Ran fast
- Ran clean (for the most part)
- Hit every rear cross
- Took the weaves like a pro
- Didn't snark at, or give a funny look to, even a single dog
And not to forget the little guy - he came along and hung out with us. I didn't have as much time to walk him around as I'd have liked, but he seemed fairly subdued anyway. He was very good, didn't try to lunge through the crate much, and was fairly respectful of other dogs' personal space. I'm glad he's getting used to the trial environment. He's so young and high drive, stressing out due to location/situation changes will be the last thing I need when he starts trialing. It'll be enough to get through his first-run nerves!
Friday, August 19, 2011
A Gentleman And A Scholar
When I took the dogs out tonight to do their business, I ran into one of our neighbors, her 3 kids, and their dog. The kids range from babe-in-arms to perhaps 5 years. The dog is an 8-year-old BC mix, Monty, who looks like he's 12.
Sadie growled once at Monty then decided she didn't care after all. The kids were enamored of both pups, and preceded to pet them both enthusiastically. I was quite pleased to see that they were gentle and didn't grab either dog.
Sadie ignored them, neither avoiding nor seeking the affection.
Maxwell surprised me. He kept four paws on the ground at all times, politely sniffed their faces without licking, and stood very still to be petted. He really seemed to enjoy it, gradually relaxing into a sloppy down with one girl handling his head, neck, and body. It was like he had been trained for this, even though he definitely has not. The kids were in love with him.
It was too bad Monty wasn't socially adept. At first Maxwell had wanted to meet him, and gave off strong play signals. He ignored Monty while be admired by the kids, then tried to interact again when they left him. Monty gave a funny nip/lunge/bark that was almost, but not quite, a rough play invite. It was too strong a move for my little guy. He fled to the far end of his leash and lay down facing, very deliberately, away from us.
Sadie growled once at Monty then decided she didn't care after all. The kids were enamored of both pups, and preceded to pet them both enthusiastically. I was quite pleased to see that they were gentle and didn't grab either dog.
Sadie ignored them, neither avoiding nor seeking the affection.
Maxwell surprised me. He kept four paws on the ground at all times, politely sniffed their faces without licking, and stood very still to be petted. He really seemed to enjoy it, gradually relaxing into a sloppy down with one girl handling his head, neck, and body. It was like he had been trained for this, even though he definitely has not. The kids were in love with him.
It was too bad Monty wasn't socially adept. At first Maxwell had wanted to meet him, and gave off strong play signals. He ignored Monty while be admired by the kids, then tried to interact again when they left him. Monty gave a funny nip/lunge/bark that was almost, but not quite, a rough play invite. It was too strong a move for my little guy. He fled to the far end of his leash and lay down facing, very deliberately, away from us.
But Doctor, It Hurts When I Do This...
A long time ago, in a land about 6 hours north of here, I was a varsity high school swimmer. Unfortunately, I was also prone to hyper-extending my right knee. Between the two I quickly developed tendonitis, requiring about 2 years of physical therapy and a prescription for Vioxx. Part of the PT was for me to not kick during swim practices for something like a month.
Fast forward to current times. Now I'm a runner, taking two active dogs out for 2+ miles, 5 days a week. While I had a few scattered days where my knee would hurt, it was not a regular occurrence. Until this week, that is. Now it starts to 'warn me' about a half mile into the run, and actually hurt nearer to 2. That means I stop running around the two mile mark every day, rather than push for 3 or more on a regular basis. Overall, I'd say this will cost us 5 or more miles a week is lost distance. Not insignificant.
So I've been thinking about the best way to handle this. I've imagined going to the doctor for advice (though I won't, and don't need to) and come up with these two scenarios:
Scenario 1
Me: "Doctor, my knee hurts when I go running."
Doctor: Looks at my knee, does a few simple flexibility and strength tests.
"Well, you seem to be having a relapse of your tendonitis. Lucky for you we have this magical new treatment that I can administer right now, and you can go back to your old routine tomorrow."
Me: "Thanks, doc!"
Scenario 2
Me: "Doctor, my knee hurts when I go running."
Doctor: Looks at my knee, does a few simple flexibility and strength tests.
"Well, you seem to be having a relapse of your tendonitis. You need to stop running for two weeks, take 2 Aleve or similar with each meal, and ice every four hours throughout the day. Also, here are 5 exercises to do three times a day. When you start running again, start short and slow, then build back up."
Me: "Thanks, doc! Now my Aussie will get practically zero exercise, get wound up and bored, and destroy the apartment. In the meantime I'll start boredom eating (more-so) and get fat because I'm not exercising. This is gonna be great!"
Which sounds more likely to you?
Sadly, I really should try to give my knee a chance to heal, which means shorter runs, and not pushing myself too hard. Tomorrow I'm going to a sporting goods store with my boyfriend. I may try on some inline skates. Then I can let the dogs run, but still save my joints.
Of course that begs the question - How do I make them stop?
Fast forward to current times. Now I'm a runner, taking two active dogs out for 2+ miles, 5 days a week. While I had a few scattered days where my knee would hurt, it was not a regular occurrence. Until this week, that is. Now it starts to 'warn me' about a half mile into the run, and actually hurt nearer to 2. That means I stop running around the two mile mark every day, rather than push for 3 or more on a regular basis. Overall, I'd say this will cost us 5 or more miles a week is lost distance. Not insignificant.
So I've been thinking about the best way to handle this. I've imagined going to the doctor for advice (though I won't, and don't need to) and come up with these two scenarios:
Scenario 1
Me: "Doctor, my knee hurts when I go running."
Doctor: Looks at my knee, does a few simple flexibility and strength tests.
"Well, you seem to be having a relapse of your tendonitis. Lucky for you we have this magical new treatment that I can administer right now, and you can go back to your old routine tomorrow."
Me: "Thanks, doc!"
Scenario 2
Me: "Doctor, my knee hurts when I go running."
Doctor: Looks at my knee, does a few simple flexibility and strength tests.
"Well, you seem to be having a relapse of your tendonitis. You need to stop running for two weeks, take 2 Aleve or similar with each meal, and ice every four hours throughout the day. Also, here are 5 exercises to do three times a day. When you start running again, start short and slow, then build back up."
Me: "Thanks, doc! Now my Aussie will get practically zero exercise, get wound up and bored, and destroy the apartment. In the meantime I'll start boredom eating (more-so) and get fat because I'm not exercising. This is gonna be great!"
Which sounds more likely to you?
Sadly, I really should try to give my knee a chance to heal, which means shorter runs, and not pushing myself too hard. Tomorrow I'm going to a sporting goods store with my boyfriend. I may try on some inline skates. Then I can let the dogs run, but still save my joints.
Of course that begs the question - How do I make them stop?
Volunteer Training And Mini-Agility
Today is Thursday, which means shelter night! Even better, it was green-dot class night. I very much look forward to teaching the class, even though I still get really, really nervous talking to a group.
There were six students tonight. Four were right on time, but a husband and wife pair came after I'd gotten into my spiel. I got through everything in the classroom, and then Mrs. Trainer took 3 and I took 3 for the kennel portion. Of course I got the couple.
They were really very nice, and seemed to care very much about the dogs... but they kept wandering off a few kennels down to say hi to other dogs. It was frustrating, since it meant they missed some of the information I was giving. The fell in love with the happy little beagle/lab mix we took outside, cooing over her and wondering aloud how anyone could give up such a sweet dog. For all their good intentions, though, there was just something off about the way they walked her. They didn't make me feel confident that every dog that went out with them would come back on the first try.
And so, I failed them. They have the opportunity to come back and work privately with myself, Mrs. Trainer, or Mr. Trainer to get their green-dot without re-taking the class. It made me feel bad to tell them I didn't pass them, but I think I did the right thing for the shelter dogs. I was validated at dinner afterwards by Mr. Trainer congratulating me, and the shelter manager saying it was best, since I didn't have a good feeling about them.
I did some indoors agility work with the dogs tonight as well. Sadie has a trial on Sunday, so I wanted to proof her weaves. I moved a bunch of furniture out of the way and set up my jump and the weaves. We warmed up with rear crosses over the jump, then sends and calls through the weaves, then strung the two together. Even at 24" Sadie was doing great. I have high hopes for her jumpers run.
I did the same exercises with Maxwell, but down at 20". He did great as well, although his weave sends are not yet as solid as Sadie's. It seems like he has to concentrate more on the task when I'm not right there with him. He did gain some speed, though, and got his favorite cookies as a reward for the best runs. Since he has so much more drive than Sadie, I worked on control through the sequence. We ended up going weaves to the jump, randomly crossing and circling to take the jump several times from both sides, then back through the weaves. He did great, though he kept trying to anticipate the weaves... exactly why I did the exercise!
I'm going to ask someone in Maxwell's class to start dropping bars while he runs. He knocked the jump two or three times tonight and it definitely worried him. He was reluctant to take it again after each drop, until the last time I had to lure him with the remains of his dinner. Once over, he got the food and I ended the session on that success.
There were six students tonight. Four were right on time, but a husband and wife pair came after I'd gotten into my spiel. I got through everything in the classroom, and then Mrs. Trainer took 3 and I took 3 for the kennel portion. Of course I got the couple.
They were really very nice, and seemed to care very much about the dogs... but they kept wandering off a few kennels down to say hi to other dogs. It was frustrating, since it meant they missed some of the information I was giving. The fell in love with the happy little beagle/lab mix we took outside, cooing over her and wondering aloud how anyone could give up such a sweet dog. For all their good intentions, though, there was just something off about the way they walked her. They didn't make me feel confident that every dog that went out with them would come back on the first try.
And so, I failed them. They have the opportunity to come back and work privately with myself, Mrs. Trainer, or Mr. Trainer to get their green-dot without re-taking the class. It made me feel bad to tell them I didn't pass them, but I think I did the right thing for the shelter dogs. I was validated at dinner afterwards by Mr. Trainer congratulating me, and the shelter manager saying it was best, since I didn't have a good feeling about them.
* * * * *
I did some indoors agility work with the dogs tonight as well. Sadie has a trial on Sunday, so I wanted to proof her weaves. I moved a bunch of furniture out of the way and set up my jump and the weaves. We warmed up with rear crosses over the jump, then sends and calls through the weaves, then strung the two together. Even at 24" Sadie was doing great. I have high hopes for her jumpers run.
Pretend there's furniture in the way on both sides
And that turn is barely enough space for a dog to make
And the 'X' is where I started
I did the same exercises with Maxwell, but down at 20". He did great as well, although his weave sends are not yet as solid as Sadie's. It seems like he has to concentrate more on the task when I'm not right there with him. He did gain some speed, though, and got his favorite cookies as a reward for the best runs. Since he has so much more drive than Sadie, I worked on control through the sequence. We ended up going weaves to the jump, randomly crossing and circling to take the jump several times from both sides, then back through the weaves. He did great, though he kept trying to anticipate the weaves... exactly why I did the exercise!
As you can see, I got a bit creative with the little guy!
I'm going to ask someone in Maxwell's class to start dropping bars while he runs. He knocked the jump two or three times tonight and it definitely worried him. He was reluctant to take it again after each drop, until the last time I had to lure him with the remains of his dinner. Once over, he got the food and I ended the session on that success.
Monday, August 15, 2011
Video Special!
I've been working on this one for about a week now. It's still definitely a work-in-progress, but is at a point I thought I'd share our success. To give you a hint, the verbal cue is "Clean up!"
Maybe I can use this one my boyfriend's pile of clothes on the floor...
Maybe I can use this one my boyfriend's pile of clothes on the floor...
What I Should Have Done
I was thinking this morning, while running, about the rental session last night. Specifically, about Maxwell's trouble getting through all three jumps.
What I should have done was set up a target at the end of the line of jumps and just sent him to it. I should have had him him take the line and ignore the table. Once he was charging over all three jumps I should then, and only then, have started asking for the turn to the table.
It was unfair to ask for the full sequence, when he clearly didn't know to finish the line before taking the table. Once my Ready Treat comes, I can use that to reinforce the line, and he won't be able to skip a jump and self-reinforce.
What I should have done was set up a target at the end of the line of jumps and just sent him to it. I should have had him him take the line and ignore the table. Once he was charging over all three jumps I should then, and only then, have started asking for the turn to the table.
It was unfair to ask for the full sequence, when he clearly didn't know to finish the line before taking the table. Once my Ready Treat comes, I can use that to reinforce the line, and he won't be able to skip a jump and self-reinforce.
Sunday, August 14, 2011
There Is Hope
A small group of us rented the club today for a while.
I got there shortly before 7. My friend was there already, working with another classmate on her Aussie's shyness. The Aussie and my friend's dog were happily working for treats together with no issues.
Since I was early, we put the helper dog away and I let Sadie loose. She had a treat in her face for the first minute or so, to keep her occupied while the Aussie sniffed her, then his owner started working them both. Sadie has no problem with other dogs as long as she isn't leashed, so all she cared about was the cheese. The two dogs would SIT, DOWN, STAY, and COME on cue together. They even took a jump in tandem once! For the last minute or two I worked them. The Aussie was hand-shy at first, but quickly realized that I was quite free with the treats.
The rest of us then set up a short sequence: three jumps in a quasi-serpentine to a table, where you front crossed and ran back down the serpentine. It was laid out so the jumps were practically a straight shot for the dog, but got them used to the handling and seeing the angles.
Sadie was running better tonight. I had her at 12" at first, but she was way over-jumping. We went up to 20", and only knocked one bar the whole session. I was extremely pleased with her, as she followed my cues wonderfully. Even when we added 6 weaves to the start of the sequence, she took them with energy. It's wonderful to see her new, bouncing weaves.
Maxwell had trouble taking all three jumps. He could get any two, but would veer off from the third. I had him at 16" to start, but moved him to 20" as well, hoping to slow him down. I'm not sure it worked! He is so high drive... he would charge out and over the first two jumps before I could even set him up. He did stick the table beautifully, which is something I've been wanting to work on. His weaves were gorgeous, even with a send. And... he did get the full jump sequence once. For doing it right, I tossed his tennis ball rather than ask for the rest of the run.
Both dogs also got a little drive work through a tire. The club has a brand new break-away tire, which Maxwell demonstrated nicely on his second pass. It must not be fun to hit, though, since he cleared it ever time after that. For each dog I placed the reward on the ground 15+ feet beyond the jump. I set them up close, then simply asked them through. If they took the tire, I let them charge for the reward. Maxwell got his ball, and Sadie got food. I think this is especially good for Sadie, since she can get overly handler-focused.
I ordered a Ready Treat today from Clean Run. It's a single-shot remote treat dispenser, and I think it will be great to work on sends over the A-frame and dog walk. Excellent for Maxwell, since he's sooooooo much faster than me. Plus, I can use extra wonderful stuff like peanut butter in it, which the Manners Minder can't.
I had a conversation with Mr. Trainer about my frustrations with Maxwell. I am feeling much better about the situation, though it's still going to be embarrassing when class has to grind to a halt so I can catch my dog. I now have permission to train in class with a tennis ball when Maxwell has the floor. He'll be leashed at all other times in the room, with lesser rewards. There is also the possibility to gating off the back of the room so I can work on off-leash motion, using the gates to make the other dogs a bit less distracting.
I do have to remember one thing he said, though: Give Maxwell more breaks. I definitely mean to already, but I think I just end up doing different training (like the "Look at that!" game from Control Unleashed) instead of real breaks. Maybe I should make myself take him outside for two minutes every quarter hour. That should prevent my over-training, and give him a respite from the other dogs.
Hopefully these changes will start to have a positive effect on Maxwell. Only time will tell...
I got there shortly before 7. My friend was there already, working with another classmate on her Aussie's shyness. The Aussie and my friend's dog were happily working for treats together with no issues.
Since I was early, we put the helper dog away and I let Sadie loose. She had a treat in her face for the first minute or so, to keep her occupied while the Aussie sniffed her, then his owner started working them both. Sadie has no problem with other dogs as long as she isn't leashed, so all she cared about was the cheese. The two dogs would SIT, DOWN, STAY, and COME on cue together. They even took a jump in tandem once! For the last minute or two I worked them. The Aussie was hand-shy at first, but quickly realized that I was quite free with the treats.
The rest of us then set up a short sequence: three jumps in a quasi-serpentine to a table, where you front crossed and ran back down the serpentine. It was laid out so the jumps were practically a straight shot for the dog, but got them used to the handling and seeing the angles.
Sadie was running better tonight. I had her at 12" at first, but she was way over-jumping. We went up to 20", and only knocked one bar the whole session. I was extremely pleased with her, as she followed my cues wonderfully. Even when we added 6 weaves to the start of the sequence, she took them with energy. It's wonderful to see her new, bouncing weaves.
Maxwell had trouble taking all three jumps. He could get any two, but would veer off from the third. I had him at 16" to start, but moved him to 20" as well, hoping to slow him down. I'm not sure it worked! He is so high drive... he would charge out and over the first two jumps before I could even set him up. He did stick the table beautifully, which is something I've been wanting to work on. His weaves were gorgeous, even with a send. And... he did get the full jump sequence once. For doing it right, I tossed his tennis ball rather than ask for the rest of the run.
Both dogs also got a little drive work through a tire. The club has a brand new break-away tire, which Maxwell demonstrated nicely on his second pass. It must not be fun to hit, though, since he cleared it ever time after that. For each dog I placed the reward on the ground 15+ feet beyond the jump. I set them up close, then simply asked them through. If they took the tire, I let them charge for the reward. Maxwell got his ball, and Sadie got food. I think this is especially good for Sadie, since she can get overly handler-focused.
I ordered a Ready Treat today from Clean Run. It's a single-shot remote treat dispenser, and I think it will be great to work on sends over the A-frame and dog walk. Excellent for Maxwell, since he's sooooooo much faster than me. Plus, I can use extra wonderful stuff like peanut butter in it, which the Manners Minder can't.
* * * * *
I had a conversation with Mr. Trainer about my frustrations with Maxwell. I am feeling much better about the situation, though it's still going to be embarrassing when class has to grind to a halt so I can catch my dog. I now have permission to train in class with a tennis ball when Maxwell has the floor. He'll be leashed at all other times in the room, with lesser rewards. There is also the possibility to gating off the back of the room so I can work on off-leash motion, using the gates to make the other dogs a bit less distracting.
I do have to remember one thing he said, though: Give Maxwell more breaks. I definitely mean to already, but I think I just end up doing different training (like the "Look at that!" game from Control Unleashed) instead of real breaks. Maybe I should make myself take him outside for two minutes every quarter hour. That should prevent my over-training, and give him a respite from the other dogs.
Hopefully these changes will start to have a positive effect on Maxwell. Only time will tell...
Saturday, August 13, 2011
Gone To The Dogs
This morning started out as a typical Saturday.
Up at 7 to take the dogs running. The weather has cooled considerably this week, making it much more pleasant. Off to the club around 8:30, giving me plenty of time to settle the dogs and watch some of the Foundation 1 class. At 9, Maxwell's class starts with a nice little jump sequence.
That didn't last long.
About half way through class, I was working on drive through weave poles. I was just sending him through a single 2x2 section, tossing his new squeaky tug toy for him. He would charge through with a perfect entrance, grab the toy, and trot happily back to me. (Though the toy didn't always make it all the way back) He'd get a bit of cheese... repeat. After maybe 6 or 7 passes he ran for the toy, but froze for a split second rather than grabbing it. Suddenly my little dog is flying around the room at top speed.
Not only that, he managed to get another dog in on the fun. This friendly little Sheltie, who always seemed like far too much of a gentleman to go zooming. They must have been circling the room for two minutes or more. Maxwell leaped over equipment, took jumps, and was generally a hoodlum. They two dogs got along famously, including lots of shoulder bumps and friendly nipping. Agility had gone to the dogs.
Mr. Trainer and I spent the time trying to tackle them.
He worked on leash a lot after that, and I did a ton of shadow handling. Of course he was completely back to normal.
Given the insanity that Maxwell caused, I was really looking forward to running my reliable dog. Good old Sadie. Runs clean, if not fast, and handles closely. Alas, it was not to be.
Although we had removed her stitches, apparently her wound is still uncomfortable. I tried her at 16" (nothing for her) but she took down half the bars. I was going to try again, thinking she was just rusty, but Mr. Trainer stopped me after one jump. And so, Maxwell got to run the rest of Sadie's class.
Of course now he's perfect, with no other dogs out to distract him.
Now it's time for me to admit something.
When Maxwell goes nuts like that, I laugh it off. I train harder. I try to see his indicators, telling me when he's about to lose it. I work on focus, both at home and in class.
But it doesn't seem to make a difference.
I am getting frustrated. And demotivated.
I have this fun little dog who oozes talent out of every pore... and yet I can't even get through a single class without him going dangerously wild. I think I've had just about everybody fooled into thinking it wasn't bothering me. I think maybe I had myself fooled.
Maxwell is such an amazing dog in so many ways, and I know he's young. I know he's likely to simply grow out of this, to some extent. But I feel like I'm banging my head against a wall, putting in all this effort to seemingly zero result.
If spring comes around, and with it the start of the 2012 trial season, and he's still in Foundation 2, still going berserk every class, I don't know what I'll do. People need reinforcement too, and I don't feel like I'm getting it from him.
What can I do to help us both?
Up at 7 to take the dogs running. The weather has cooled considerably this week, making it much more pleasant. Off to the club around 8:30, giving me plenty of time to settle the dogs and watch some of the Foundation 1 class. At 9, Maxwell's class starts with a nice little jump sequence.
That didn't last long.
About half way through class, I was working on drive through weave poles. I was just sending him through a single 2x2 section, tossing his new squeaky tug toy for him. He would charge through with a perfect entrance, grab the toy, and trot happily back to me. (Though the toy didn't always make it all the way back) He'd get a bit of cheese... repeat. After maybe 6 or 7 passes he ran for the toy, but froze for a split second rather than grabbing it. Suddenly my little dog is flying around the room at top speed.
Not only that, he managed to get another dog in on the fun. This friendly little Sheltie, who always seemed like far too much of a gentleman to go zooming. They must have been circling the room for two minutes or more. Maxwell leaped over equipment, took jumps, and was generally a hoodlum. They two dogs got along famously, including lots of shoulder bumps and friendly nipping. Agility had gone to the dogs.
Mr. Trainer and I spent the time trying to tackle them.
He worked on leash a lot after that, and I did a ton of shadow handling. Of course he was completely back to normal.
Given the insanity that Maxwell caused, I was really looking forward to running my reliable dog. Good old Sadie. Runs clean, if not fast, and handles closely. Alas, it was not to be.
Although we had removed her stitches, apparently her wound is still uncomfortable. I tried her at 16" (nothing for her) but she took down half the bars. I was going to try again, thinking she was just rusty, but Mr. Trainer stopped me after one jump. And so, Maxwell got to run the rest of Sadie's class.
Of course now he's perfect, with no other dogs out to distract him.
Now it's time for me to admit something.
When Maxwell goes nuts like that, I laugh it off. I train harder. I try to see his indicators, telling me when he's about to lose it. I work on focus, both at home and in class.
But it doesn't seem to make a difference.
I am getting frustrated. And demotivated.
I have this fun little dog who oozes talent out of every pore... and yet I can't even get through a single class without him going dangerously wild. I think I've had just about everybody fooled into thinking it wasn't bothering me. I think maybe I had myself fooled.
Maxwell is such an amazing dog in so many ways, and I know he's young. I know he's likely to simply grow out of this, to some extent. But I feel like I'm banging my head against a wall, putting in all this effort to seemingly zero result.
If spring comes around, and with it the start of the 2012 trial season, and he's still in Foundation 2, still going berserk every class, I don't know what I'll do. People need reinforcement too, and I don't feel like I'm getting it from him.
What can I do to help us both?
Friday, August 12, 2011
Never Enough...
The dogs can never seem to get enough play, enough treats, enough exercise, enough training...
Maxwell is noticeably more restless when I don't train him in the evening. I've been pretty tired this week, so haven't been giving either dog as much attention as I'd prefer. Last night I did train them both, if slightly abbreviated. Unusual for a Thursday, given that I train at the shelter and get home moderately late. Both pups did rear crosses over a jump, jumping with collection, walking backwards at heel, and a little trick training.
And since I didn't run yesterday, both dogs were bouncing off the walls when we got home from work. My boyfriend accused me of ruining his dog. He was joking... mostly. Sadie certainly does act much younger than her nearly 6 years.
I'm looking forward to classes tomorrow. Despite how fun the travel has been, I still really missed seeing all my agility friends and working the pups at the club. As a bonus, one of them is bringing suture removal stuff to take out Sadie's stitches!
And since I'm going to sleep imminently, I should have plenty of energy for class.
Maxwell is noticeably more restless when I don't train him in the evening. I've been pretty tired this week, so haven't been giving either dog as much attention as I'd prefer. Last night I did train them both, if slightly abbreviated. Unusual for a Thursday, given that I train at the shelter and get home moderately late. Both pups did rear crosses over a jump, jumping with collection, walking backwards at heel, and a little trick training.
And since I didn't run yesterday, both dogs were bouncing off the walls when we got home from work. My boyfriend accused me of ruining his dog. He was joking... mostly. Sadie certainly does act much younger than her nearly 6 years.
I'm looking forward to classes tomorrow. Despite how fun the travel has been, I still really missed seeing all my agility friends and working the pups at the club. As a bonus, one of them is bringing suture removal stuff to take out Sadie's stitches!
And since I'm going to sleep imminently, I should have plenty of energy for class.
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Analysis Paralysis
It’s that magical time again. Time to sign up for the next session of agility classes! Of course, that means figuring out which ones to take.
Maxwell is tough. At under two years old, he’s already far surpassed Sadie in drive and technical excellence. His understanding of each obstacle is impressive, and he’s very consistent. BUT… he’s also still 500% puppy-brained. He gets bored when we do repetitions of easy tasks. He wants to play with all the other dogs. He wants to run. So, do I keep him in Foundation 2 yet again? Or do I move him up to Intermediate, with his sister?
A little analysis:
Foundation 2: Pros
· All the dogs are on the floor at once, so we can work on ignoring them
· Sequences are short, potentially reducing the likelihood and intensity of zoomies
· Dogs are working the whole class, so he gets an hour of training
· He knows most of the dogs already, so training through distractions is easier
Foundation 2: Cons
· Sequences are short and fairly simple, so he isn’t technically challenged
· He already knows most of the exercises (with one paw tied behind his back) so he gets bored
· He knows most of the dogs already, so he knows which one or two are always receptive to play invitations
· With all the dogs on the floor at once, it’s trickier to work him in high drive without running him into another dog
Intermediate: Pros
· Longer, more challenging courses
· One dog on the floor at a time, so we can work on handler focus and communication
· New dogs to learn to ignore, made easier by their being crated during his runs
· I know most of the other handlers, so I can ask them to provide mild intentional distractions
Intermediate: Cons
· Nobody else (people or dogs) on the course as he runs, so less chance to work through distractions
· Less time on the floor, so he may have pent-up energy when he comes out (zoomies!)
· I’d have to work two dogs in one class, which is certainly doable but not ideal
· Potential to put him through sequences he’s not ready for yet
The items that are stricken out really shouldn’t even be considered. They in no way reflect what is (or is not) best for my dog.
I still couldn’t decide, so I emailed Mr. Trainer for his opinion. He was very helpful… NOT. (Hi, Mr. Trainer!) I believe he referred to his response as sounding "like a politician." However, just that fact that the response wasn’t an immediate “go for it” makes me think that staying in Foundation 2 is probably what’s best for Maxwell’s training. I want to give him the best possible chance for success later on.
At least I have some very clear goals now: get focus through distractions, and no more zoomies. If I have to get creative, then that’s what I’ll do. I have a new squeaky tug toy that he L-O-V-E-S, so I’ll try using it as a reward. (I had him doing SIT-STAY while I threw it for him at Lola’s house, and he was positively quivering with anticipation of the release. His reward for fetching was a rousing tug. His reward for tugging was food.)
Sadie will continue in Intermediate, where we’ll get her running cleanly at 24” and continue to improve he contacts. I’m really happy with her progress, and she still seems to enjoy class.
Sadie will also be taking Novice Competition. I sat in on a class last night with a friend, and it looked like a good next step. It’s a different instructor, which is probably good for growing me as a trainer/handler, and the class is run a little differently, which will be a nice mix for Sadie. Plus she’ll have all new dogs to work around. With her reactive history, I love finding opportunities to work through what would once have been a complete doggy meltdown, but is now merely cause for awareness.
Plus, the class seems to be popular, which means it will actually run. (Did I ever tell you, I did get my money back from last session, plus a small credit to boot? It was very nice of the registrar, who apologized for the mix-up.)
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Old Dogs, New Tricks?
The New Rochelle Humane Society recently held a trick contest for their volunteers. Participating volunteers picked a dog, and then taught them as many fun tricks as they could. The results were extremely impressive, considering that the average volunteer probably doesn't spend more than a few hours at the shelter in a given week, and each dog is handled by many volunteers.
For your viewing pleasure, here are a two of the excellent entries: Saunders the cocker spaniel and Pinky the pitt.
Those are some great shelter dogs (and volunteers)!
Then the shelter manager had to send out this link, so now I have a litany of new trick ideas for my own pups.
Train on!
For your viewing pleasure, here are a two of the excellent entries: Saunders the cocker spaniel and Pinky the pitt.
Those are some great shelter dogs (and volunteers)!
Then the shelter manager had to send out this link, so now I have a litany of new trick ideas for my own pups.
Train on!
Friday, August 5, 2011
Trials and Tribulations
The past week has been tough on the humans and rough on the dogs.
After driving the 5 hours back home on Sunday, we had two looooong days at work, then took off for Chicago. Tuesday night we drove about 4.5 hours, stopping for the night in State College, PA. Though they were very good in the car (going running each morning helps), they were very nervous in the hotel room. I think Sadie was exhausted still from the Adirondacks and then watching us drive to PA, so she quickly settled and fell asleep in bed with us. Maxwell, though, was freaked.
We fed the pups dinner outside by the car, so we wouldn't have to carry as much in. Sadie gobbled hers as usual. Maxwell wouldn't touch his until I broke up a treat in it and held his dish. Not something I intend to do regularly. As we were trying to sleep, he cried a little. Then he'd be silent for a moment, before giving a short, sharp bark and running/leaping around the room. He only truly settled once he realized he could lie down on his bed and still be reached by me.
The next morning I got up early to run the pups in the rain. After all, tired dogs travel better. They were really good until I tried to feed them. Once again, Maxwell refused to eat. And this time even a treat didn't help, so he went hungry. 10+ more hours of driving later, Sadie settled in comfortably in Lolo and Lola's house (Tagalog for grandfather and grandmother), but Maxwell still wouldn't eat. I eventually was able to hand-feed him most of his dinner.
Maxwell also refuses to sleep on his bed, preferring to cram himself under the bed. He comes out only once I get up, no matter what time that it. He still won't eat properly, but I've found he will eat if I ask for behaviors first. It's like he's trained me to train him. Weird, right?
Maxwell, by the way, has also decided that the elevated hearth is a nice place to relax. I guess the stone must be cool to lie on, because he fell asleep on it.
Sadie was feeling right at home again. This is the house she lived in when I first got her for my boyfriend, so it's just a matter of following Lola around, waiting for the inevitable treats. Banana slices, raw meat being prepared for dinner, and peanut butter on toast are normal offerings for both dogs.
Poor Sadie, though, had a slight problem.
She's never been the most spatially aware dog on the planet. She's known to smack her head on the underside of our dining table on a regular basis, but yesterday was unfortunate. The dogs got to go to a local off-leash park to run off some energy. Maxwell buzzed a few GSD's, enticing them into a game of chase, then getting Sadie in on the fun. He was having a ball doing enormous loops, always staying just ahead of the next dog. There were some huge downed branches that posed no trouble for his elegant jumping. Sadie, on the other hand, didn't judge it quite so well.
From what I can tell, she didn't give herself enough lateral space and caught her flank on the sharp end of a branch. I do know that she came trotting over, happy as a clam, but with a weird dark spot on her side. When I touched it, her flesh gaped open. Three stitches later she still shows no indication that it's painful, though the shaved spot seems to itch.
The only upside to this is that Sadie after anesthesia looks like a drunkard. She would stand in the middle of a room, feet planted extra wide, and sway slightly in place. We got her onto the couch to sleep it off, and she drooled all over. By bedtime, however, she was trying to rough-house with Maxwell, zip around the house, and generally do exactly the opposite of taking it easy.
The vet says restricted activity for a few days, then she should be fine to return to her normal work. He was even fine with agility class next weekend, much to my surprise. Depending on how she is, I'll likely run her at only 16", if I even ask her to jump. The stitches don't come out for 2 weeks.
Here's hoping for no more "excitement" for a while!
After driving the 5 hours back home on Sunday, we had two looooong days at work, then took off for Chicago. Tuesday night we drove about 4.5 hours, stopping for the night in State College, PA. Though they were very good in the car (going running each morning helps), they were very nervous in the hotel room. I think Sadie was exhausted still from the Adirondacks and then watching us drive to PA, so she quickly settled and fell asleep in bed with us. Maxwell, though, was freaked.
We fed the pups dinner outside by the car, so we wouldn't have to carry as much in. Sadie gobbled hers as usual. Maxwell wouldn't touch his until I broke up a treat in it and held his dish. Not something I intend to do regularly. As we were trying to sleep, he cried a little. Then he'd be silent for a moment, before giving a short, sharp bark and running/leaping around the room. He only truly settled once he realized he could lie down on his bed and still be reached by me.
The next morning I got up early to run the pups in the rain. After all, tired dogs travel better. They were really good until I tried to feed them. Once again, Maxwell refused to eat. And this time even a treat didn't help, so he went hungry. 10+ more hours of driving later, Sadie settled in comfortably in Lolo and Lola's house (Tagalog for grandfather and grandmother), but Maxwell still wouldn't eat. I eventually was able to hand-feed him most of his dinner.
Maxwell also refuses to sleep on his bed, preferring to cram himself under the bed. He comes out only once I get up, no matter what time that it. He still won't eat properly, but I've found he will eat if I ask for behaviors first. It's like he's trained me to train him. Weird, right?
I nearly FREAKED when I couldn't see Maxwell yesterday morning
Maxwell, by the way, has also decided that the elevated hearth is a nice place to relax. I guess the stone must be cool to lie on, because he fell asleep on it.
Yeah, stone is comfy...
Sadie was feeling right at home again. This is the house she lived in when I first got her for my boyfriend, so it's just a matter of following Lola around, waiting for the inevitable treats. Banana slices, raw meat being prepared for dinner, and peanut butter on toast are normal offerings for both dogs.
Poor Sadie, though, had a slight problem.
She's never been the most spatially aware dog on the planet. She's known to smack her head on the underside of our dining table on a regular basis, but yesterday was unfortunate. The dogs got to go to a local off-leash park to run off some energy. Maxwell buzzed a few GSD's, enticing them into a game of chase, then getting Sadie in on the fun. He was having a ball doing enormous loops, always staying just ahead of the next dog. There were some huge downed branches that posed no trouble for his elegant jumping. Sadie, on the other hand, didn't judge it quite so well.
From what I can tell, she didn't give herself enough lateral space and caught her flank on the sharp end of a branch. I do know that she came trotting over, happy as a clam, but with a weird dark spot on her side. When I touched it, her flesh gaped open. Three stitches later she still shows no indication that it's painful, though the shaved spot seems to itch.
Sadie doesn't seem to realize she's injured
Let's hope her new inflatable collar thing keeps her from licking the wound
The only upside to this is that Sadie after anesthesia looks like a drunkard. She would stand in the middle of a room, feet planted extra wide, and sway slightly in place. We got her onto the couch to sleep it off, and she drooled all over. By bedtime, however, she was trying to rough-house with Maxwell, zip around the house, and generally do exactly the opposite of taking it easy.
The vet says restricted activity for a few days, then she should be fine to return to her normal work. He was even fine with agility class next weekend, much to my surprise. Depending on how she is, I'll likely run her at only 16", if I even ask her to jump. The stitches don't come out for 2 weeks.
Here's hoping for no more "excitement" for a while!
A Taste of Freedom: Part 3
Our last full day here, and we finally got perfect weather. It was sunny, low 80's, and with a light breeze keeping the bugs away. Just right for swimming and relaxing on the dock. The pups swam for the fetch toy until they were tired. Maxwell told us he was done when he ditched the toy on the rocks, then went to perch on his favorite boulder. Sadie gave one final chase, than took the toy up into the woods, away from the humans.
After the humans were done swimming, it was time for lunch. We finished the bag of potato chips while the hot dogs were on the grill, so the pups got the crumbs. Sadie, of course, just jammed her head in the bag. Maxwell was a bit daintier, and preferred to have the crumbs dumped on the floor for him.
After lunch and some relaxing time, it was back to the dock. Since I finally had some really good natural light, we started posing the dogs and trying to get some nice photos. It was hard to get them to actually pose together. Since Sadie is definitely still higher ranking, Maxwell kept leaning away from her. Both were avoiding looking at each other, with occasional nose licking and yawning. It actually made for some really interesting behavior watching.
That night I got to polish up some new tricks. Both pups had been earning their dinners, and especially all the extra goodies. Each dog has one new behavior that is at least 75% "complete."
For Sadie, I picked something that seemed natural: begging. In the space of about 5 days, she learned a nearly-complete cue. When I hold out my index finger horizontally across my body, she rocks back on her haunches, gets her front feet up in the air, and holds the pose for a few seconds. It doesn't count if her butt comes off the floor, if her front paws go over her head, or if she cannot freeze the pose. It's really cute, and absolutely the fastest trick she's ever learned. In fact, I think learning to beg was the first time I've seen a real conditioned emotional response (CER) with her. In the past she's certainly looked happy at the sounds of the click, but generally in the form of switching her attention to the treat bowl. This time, I saw a huge twitch reaction and head tilt at the click, and her attention stayed on me. It was awesome.
I had planned to teach Maxwell to march with me. My goal was to have him raise his front paws to correspond to my lifted feet. For example, with him at heel, I lift and hold my right foot. He lifts and holds his right paw. He took to paw targeting my foot, which was a start, but meant that he'd swing his right paw across his body to swipe at my right foot. To fix this, I decided to stand a flashlight on end and teach him to paw target that instead, eliminating the sideways motion. When I put the flashlight down, though, he bit the handle! I simple couldn't pass up such an interesting offered behavior, so I clicked. He very quickly progressed to running about 5 feet down the hallway, grabbing the flashlight by the handle, and carrying it back to me. All on offered behaviors. It's not perfect yet - he drops it rather hard, and doesn't always grab the handle properly - but it's a pretty neat trick. No cue for it yet. That will have to wait for our next visit.
The last day there was also gorgeous. We exhausted the dogs in the lake, giving them plenty of time to run around on land and dry off before the ride home. Now they still seem to be adjusting to leashes, and certainly miss all the freedom they had in the woods. Hopefully we'll get back there again soon!
Super Sadie!
Yeah, I'm good over here thanks.
After the humans were done swimming, it was time for lunch. We finished the bag of potato chips while the hot dogs were on the grill, so the pups got the crumbs. Sadie, of course, just jammed her head in the bag. Maxwell was a bit daintier, and preferred to have the crumbs dumped on the floor for him.
Kids, don't try this at home
After lunch and some relaxing time, it was back to the dock. Since I finally had some really good natural light, we started posing the dogs and trying to get some nice photos. It was hard to get them to actually pose together. Since Sadie is definitely still higher ranking, Maxwell kept leaning away from her. Both were avoiding looking at each other, with occasional nose licking and yawning. It actually made for some really interesting behavior watching.
Leaning tower of Maxwell
Noble beasts survey their domain
That night I got to polish up some new tricks. Both pups had been earning their dinners, and especially all the extra goodies. Each dog has one new behavior that is at least 75% "complete."
For Sadie, I picked something that seemed natural: begging. In the space of about 5 days, she learned a nearly-complete cue. When I hold out my index finger horizontally across my body, she rocks back on her haunches, gets her front feet up in the air, and holds the pose for a few seconds. It doesn't count if her butt comes off the floor, if her front paws go over her head, or if she cannot freeze the pose. It's really cute, and absolutely the fastest trick she's ever learned. In fact, I think learning to beg was the first time I've seen a real conditioned emotional response (CER) with her. In the past she's certainly looked happy at the sounds of the click, but generally in the form of switching her attention to the treat bowl. This time, I saw a huge twitch reaction and head tilt at the click, and her attention stayed on me. It was awesome.
I had planned to teach Maxwell to march with me. My goal was to have him raise his front paws to correspond to my lifted feet. For example, with him at heel, I lift and hold my right foot. He lifts and holds his right paw. He took to paw targeting my foot, which was a start, but meant that he'd swing his right paw across his body to swipe at my right foot. To fix this, I decided to stand a flashlight on end and teach him to paw target that instead, eliminating the sideways motion. When I put the flashlight down, though, he bit the handle! I simple couldn't pass up such an interesting offered behavior, so I clicked. He very quickly progressed to running about 5 feet down the hallway, grabbing the flashlight by the handle, and carrying it back to me. All on offered behaviors. It's not perfect yet - he drops it rather hard, and doesn't always grab the handle properly - but it's a pretty neat trick. No cue for it yet. That will have to wait for our next visit.
The last day there was also gorgeous. We exhausted the dogs in the lake, giving them plenty of time to run around on land and dry off before the ride home. Now they still seem to be adjusting to leashes, and certainly miss all the freedom they had in the woods. Hopefully we'll get back there again soon!
The end of a perfect day on a perfect trip
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
A Taste of Freedom: Part 2
I have a secret.
Would you like to hear it?
I learned… how to exhaust an Aussie. You heard me right. I now am the keeper of powerful knowledge. So powerful, it’ll put a young Aussie (and a middle-aged Lab) out of commission for 36 hours. And it’s really very simple.
All you have to do is hike 7 miles, then play fetch in the water until they refuse to go after the toy.
Two days ago we hiked the Stone Dam trail. It’s roughly 3.5 miles long one-way, and we got far enough in o see the lake. Sadie was tagged but loose, and I kept the Energized Doggie on-leash. Sadie was romping and exploring the whole way out, and Maxwell had fun with every patch of mud he could find. We brought some water for them, plus there were a few streams along the way to supplement. By the time we reached the end of the trail, though, both dogs were showing fatigue. As we paused in the clearing, Maxwell flopped in among some tall ferns, and Sadie stayed close.
Trying to get rid of the merling, perhaps?
The route back to the car proved fairly quiet, as Maxwell no longer had the energy to pull me along the trail, and Sadie stayed only just ahead of us on the path. The pup was so tired, in fact, that I allowed him loose (on his drag-line) for perhaps a mile. For the most part he was very good, pausing to wait for us to catch up a bit, or crashing back through the underbrush to check in. After he scampered off and would be called back, though, I leashed him up again. Once I caught him, of course.
Nothing like walking in your drinking water
When we got home, we were all hot a sweaty, so we played in the lake. Maxwell is now fearless in his life jacket, though still hesitant to challenge Sadie for the toy. Imagine our pleased surprise when, after only a short while, they both stopped wanting to swim. Sadie wandered off first, sniffing down the shoreline. Maxwell shortly follow suit, hauling the fetch toy out of the lake one last time and taking it up the hill, out of reach. I gave them each a stuffed cow hoof to chew while the humans swam and waded, which kept them more than content.
That night, and all the next day, they were quiet.
Not just calm and polite, but tired. They were both ravenously hungry, so I gave them extra kibble, but wanted little more than to sleep all day. They flopped around a bit, trading couches, stretching out on the floor, even taking over the armchair… but that was about the extent of their activity. My attempts to initiate a game of fetch in the woods with a soft disk were adequate only to get them on their feet and outside.
Belly rubs!
Today, they are finally back to normal (mostly). It rained most of the day, so they both slept a lot. Sadie still twitched and whined a bit in her sleep, but she was happy to engage with me as well. Maxwell slept also, but when he shifted positions, it was with a vehemence that bordered on aggression. It stated, as clearly as any cooped up human child, I’m bored. This sucks.
When the rain finally let up I took them for a short hike down the old road. Sadie is back to crashing through the brush, heedless of the branches whipping her face. Maxwell is back to pulling me along, wanting desperately to charge after Sadie. And I was happy to let him drag the leash in exchange for some attention. A few good recalls down the path earned a shower of treats for him, and a few for Sadie.
Now let’s hope that that, plus the short aquatic fetch session this morning, is enough to hold them over until tomorrow. When I just know the weather will be better.
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