2nd Lesson Week One
I can't believe it is already the second lesson (and technically the 2nd week of that lesson, but I'm trying something different), this class is going by very fast! I have been trying to make this fun for Tibby. She hasn't had a zoomie issue for a while. Maybe it's the heat, but I think she is getting the game - little by little. I've been working on not demanding she do things (still I am bad at this) and rewarding even when she isn't 100% right. So often I will go back to the video and it was my movements that put her off doing something.
The Lesson:
1. multi-wraps with handler in different positions: set a bar at your current cik&cap height and have a dog do multiple wraps around the wing. Change your position so that you’re sometimes on take-off side, sometimes on landing side of the jump. Reward by reaching in with a toy to reward close to the wing. Multi-wraps should always be your first exercise when you put the bars on the next height and you should keep working on them on each height, it’s great collection jumping exercise, I actually do some before every training, within our warm-up.
2. cik&cap sequencing: we’ll mask this training for different handler positions and moves into a little sequence and include a tunnel for extra fun Start with cap on one, try cik with handler on a landing side on 3, a shoulder pull from 4 to 5, cap with a front cross on 5, tunnel again and then push for another cik on 7. Reward in the direction of where I set number 8. Break it down in little parts first.
3. Running contacts or 2o2o
What Silvia said:
"Cool, I love how she is taking the jumps and tunnel on her own! And she can collect really well when avoiding landing on the cat! Very interesting method And she sure looks really happy now! – Especially in that living room session! Maybe you could keep one jump indoor all the time and work on one jump things indoor (multi-wraps and sends – those are even more important for her), in very short, but frequent sessions? She is still a little bit confused what this game is all about, but she is sure liking it more&more. Do you still see that instructor you mentioned that you found? Could you maybe ask her to show you a front cross? It’s really easy when somebody takes you through it. If jumps with bars make more sense to her, you can use a bar, but very low, not what you’re using at the beginning – that looks pretty much like full height already. It’s too much for her age and agility experience. But hey, she sure does seem to be having fun now!!! Great job!"
What I said,
"Thanks! I wanted to ask what should I do when Tibby skips a pole in the weaves? I want to keep everything fun for Tibby, so she will keep playing with me. Do I just ignore it and have her try again?
I’m doing RC with Tibby – it looks like more fun and Tibby needs it to be fun. It’s a little hard when we can’t go outside- there isn’t a lot of room in the garage, but it’s better than not being able to practice at all.
We have lessons about every 2 weeks with our instructor. She has been having me do front crosses since out first lesson, but I forget to do them – I get so excited when Tibby decides to work with me.
The bars on the jumps….well, when I have the bars lower Tibby knocks them down. She puts her head down, knocks them over with her head and then walks through. When they are higher she doesn’t do that. When we do cik/cap I just put the bars on the ground, so I don’t have to argue with Tibby about it. I think I’ll just keep the bars down for now – I was just experimenting in those first 2 sessions.
Thanks watching our video :)"
Silvia said,
"Yes, you can just ignore the unsuccessful tries and only reward when she stays in the whole channel. RC is definitely more fun, but somewhat tricky with dogs who have different speeds and won’t run full speed after the ball every time… But well, you can still try and introduce a stop later if necessary. Interesting bar problem You can keep it down for now yes and then very slowly add height, maybe she will leave them up if they are very low Front crosses get easier with time, so just keep practising, you can practise it on walks too, in slow motion"
A Classmate said,
" I love that cat! I think he wants to be trained!
So obvious that it trusts your dog explicitly & wants his tummy rubbed!"
A different classmate said,
" The cat is too funny!"
Showing posts with label homework. Show all posts
Showing posts with label homework. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Foundations Lesson One Week Two
What I said,
"Let’s see….we are working on motivation, so getting Tibby excited. Seems to be working ok. Except that my neighbors have been setting off fireworks ALL day long for the last week. During the day and during the night. Just when I get Tibby excited to play, they will set some more off. She isn’t scared, but they make her nervous and she wants to go inside. Tonight she did pretty well and would play with me even with the fireworks going off, but she was subdued.
I need to work a lot on my handling. I walk around and try to figure out how to direct Tibby. Probably I do more practicing by myself than with Tibby!
And it is so HOT here. Bleh. We have been doing cik/cap inside, but there isn’t a lot of room to run around."
What Silvia said,
"Did you try to use zoomies to your advantage, to call, run and have her run with you? That would be great, to use that speed and joy for running for agility. If she doesn’t like restraining, you don’t need to do it. However, one thing you need to pay attention to is to keep her at the same side. The goal of the tunnel exercise is to practise front crosses and shoulder pulls: see my reply to Eva with Darwin. Also on wraps, always do a front cross and then run away, but have her run after you on the same side as you take off, watching her all the time. For now, you just take off and then after a while check back with her where she is… You need to know all the time where she is and keep her on the same side all the time other than when doing a front cross. I know it can be hard, but do check the videos, for example from Alicia, Diane etc. and then practise it on your own, without Tibby, but all the time imagining where she is and how she is reacting to one or another move."
Edited 7/10/11 TO ADD:
The conversation continues - I said, " Yes I’ve tried running with her when she is zooming. Sometimes we just play and that is her favorite way to play. But how do I channel that into doing the excersises? She wants to run around away from me not with me.
I have watched almost every video, but I don’t think I understand what I am seeing. And yes I am practicing by myself, but I must not be getting it."
A classmate said, "Hi Catalina, Maybe when she does zoomies run around with her make funny noises or “gogo!” chase her, then run away and see if she’ll chase you, then throw a toy or treat. Just experiment, all you want is to be included in the game and running.When you watch the videos, watch what the person does, don’t watch the dog at all, the front cross is like a dancestep. I hope this helps. I know it is very difficult trying to do all those new things and watch your dog at the same time
"Silvia said, "Would she run away from you into the tunnel?
Try to rehearse the moves as you watch the video. If you see a person has a dog on left side, take Tibby’s toy in your left hand, imagining it’s Tibby and put it from one hand to another as people change the dog from one side to another. Once you have it with a toy, go out and try with Tibby AND the toy, changing the toy as you did when watching videos and having Tibby follow the toy and change from one hand to another just as you are changing the toy."I said, "At 3:33 that was my attempt at a shoulder pull."
Silvia said, "Yeap, that was a good one!!! Now let’s try also a front cross and then just stick with those two moves, that’s all we need for now!"
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
More Heel and Side Practice
We are still working on heel and side. We are about 3 lessons behind everyone else in the class. I can see a big difference in the 2 halves of the video. The first part is from June 20th and the second half is from yesterday July 4th.
Also, the 1st one is outside, so Tibby was a little bit more distracted. She was really excited to work yesterday - you can see her little tail wagging! She was so excited that she couldn't remember what to do at first. Then she decided to change things up at the end - heeling was just so boring.
I don't think we are ready to fade the perch yet, but I am still waiting to see what Silvia says. More practice, but maybe by the end of summer we will have it.
Also, the 1st one is outside, so Tibby was a little bit more distracted. She was really excited to work yesterday - you can see her little tail wagging! She was so excited that she couldn't remember what to do at first. Then she decided to change things up at the end - heeling was just so boring.
I don't think we are ready to fade the perch yet, but I am still waiting to see what Silvia says. More practice, but maybe by the end of summer we will have it.
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Lesson 5 Week 2
Wow, it’s your 5th lesson already! Here is your new list. As we were discussing, I’m underlining the assignments you should focus on in case you’re somewhat behind and don’t have time to focus on all those new tricks. But you sure want to try them all at one point!
1. heeling: make the “glued to the leg” exercise more like heeling: still do different kind of turns, but also some normal forward walking in different speeds (slow, normal, fast) to teach them to adjust and keep the right position in every situation
2. figure 8 backward: tell the dog to go into heel position and start spinning as we were doing on the target, then very suddenly stop and step back with the other leg (if the dog is at left side – with right leg), you can also make a gesture with left hand to try to get them to keep circling below the heeling position, eventually all the way around you leg, so that they come backwards between your legs back into front position. If the dog insists on staying in heel position, you can help with the hand a little bit, lure his head out (left for 90 degrees if the dog is on left side) and say back to have them back up in your direction. Step back with the other leg enough to have them back up between your legs. Reward and tell them to heel on the other side (right) and repeat the process. As soon as you get some smoothness with that, stop rewarding for coming in between, always first tell them to come to the other leg and reward at your side in order to avoid having them back up too far – they need to stay very close to your legs all the time.
3. skateboarding: try to find a skateboard (kids department) and reward for making it move with front feet. Don’t reward 4on, but 2 or 3, the criteria is they make a skateboard move.
4. cik&cap: find a table leg, dog-food container, traffic cone or similar and shape the dog to go around it – first just a step, then two or three circles, both directions (you can reward both right from the start if you are getting it – if not, start with just one, but then on one session, don’t reward that direction anymore but wait for the other)
5. fade the object for side legs: if the dog is already heaving both legs up at the same time, click&reward that before he even touches the object, so that he understands the idea is picking them up, not touching something. At the same time, try changing objects as much as possible. Going to vertical objects shouldn’t be too difficult, then go to “empty” objects like a chair that looks like an object, but doesn’t really offer much support, so at this point, the dog is already free-standing, the object is just there for mental support. Next step in table leg and then you don’t need an object anymore. For free handstand, you go through the same process, only that it takes longer as it’s physically more demanding – you can start working on it, but do not rush it, especially not with young puppies!
6. don’t forget on recalls and playing, stays with distractions (you can combine it all in a really fun game), try the hug on a plastic bottle or something similar that is light enough for the dog to hold it and have them hold it independently, add more steps to backing up from you, tape the 4in the bowl trick again so that I can see to what size you managed to get: the smaller the better!
And most importantly: have fun!
What I said:
"This class has gone by too fast
On this video “heeling”, smaller box, skateboard and cik/cap.
Just like with the perch she only likes to go in one direction for the cik/cap. We had some funny moments while taping this video – Tibby stepped on a piece of hotdog, she tripped me when she wanted to pivot around the perch and she kept getting in the box when I left to get more treats (deleted from the video, but on Tibby’s blog)."
What Silvia said:
"I see heeling is going really well now! I see your lure is already becoming more of a hand signal, that’s good! After you reward for coming into the position, try to not always send her to the other leg, but do 5 or 10 more moves with her on the same side, stepping one little step away from her and having her come in again. That way, she will learn better the importance of staying close to the leg and to follow it when the leg moves away – that’s actually a much more important lesson for future heeling as switching legs.
Nice progression with boxes! She sure doesn’t like that skateboard too much, so take that one slowly, reward whatever she offers and ideally by throwing a treat away, so that she can get away from it as an additional reward for coming close to it For cik&cap, you can again help some to get the other direction. And for her good direction, you could maybe switch to her ball now, to make it more fun for her."
1. heeling: make the “glued to the leg” exercise more like heeling: still do different kind of turns, but also some normal forward walking in different speeds (slow, normal, fast) to teach them to adjust and keep the right position in every situation
2. figure 8 backward: tell the dog to go into heel position and start spinning as we were doing on the target, then very suddenly stop and step back with the other leg (if the dog is at left side – with right leg), you can also make a gesture with left hand to try to get them to keep circling below the heeling position, eventually all the way around you leg, so that they come backwards between your legs back into front position. If the dog insists on staying in heel position, you can help with the hand a little bit, lure his head out (left for 90 degrees if the dog is on left side) and say back to have them back up in your direction. Step back with the other leg enough to have them back up between your legs. Reward and tell them to heel on the other side (right) and repeat the process. As soon as you get some smoothness with that, stop rewarding for coming in between, always first tell them to come to the other leg and reward at your side in order to avoid having them back up too far – they need to stay very close to your legs all the time.
3. skateboarding: try to find a skateboard (kids department) and reward for making it move with front feet. Don’t reward 4on, but 2 or 3, the criteria is they make a skateboard move.
4. cik&cap: find a table leg, dog-food container, traffic cone or similar and shape the dog to go around it – first just a step, then two or three circles, both directions (you can reward both right from the start if you are getting it – if not, start with just one, but then on one session, don’t reward that direction anymore but wait for the other)
5. fade the object for side legs: if the dog is already heaving both legs up at the same time, click&reward that before he even touches the object, so that he understands the idea is picking them up, not touching something. At the same time, try changing objects as much as possible. Going to vertical objects shouldn’t be too difficult, then go to “empty” objects like a chair that looks like an object, but doesn’t really offer much support, so at this point, the dog is already free-standing, the object is just there for mental support. Next step in table leg and then you don’t need an object anymore. For free handstand, you go through the same process, only that it takes longer as it’s physically more demanding – you can start working on it, but do not rush it, especially not with young puppies!
6. don’t forget on recalls and playing, stays with distractions (you can combine it all in a really fun game), try the hug on a plastic bottle or something similar that is light enough for the dog to hold it and have them hold it independently, add more steps to backing up from you, tape the 4in the bowl trick again so that I can see to what size you managed to get: the smaller the better!
And most importantly: have fun!
What I said:
"This class has gone by too fast
On this video “heeling”, smaller box, skateboard and cik/cap.
Just like with the perch she only likes to go in one direction for the cik/cap. We had some funny moments while taping this video – Tibby stepped on a piece of hotdog, she tripped me when she wanted to pivot around the perch and she kept getting in the box when I left to get more treats (deleted from the video, but on Tibby’s blog)."
What Silvia said:
"I see heeling is going really well now! I see your lure is already becoming more of a hand signal, that’s good! After you reward for coming into the position, try to not always send her to the other leg, but do 5 or 10 more moves with her on the same side, stepping one little step away from her and having her come in again. That way, she will learn better the importance of staying close to the leg and to follow it when the leg moves away – that’s actually a much more important lesson for future heeling as switching legs.
Nice progression with boxes! She sure doesn’t like that skateboard too much, so take that one slowly, reward whatever she offers and ideally by throwing a treat away, so that she can get away from it as an additional reward for coming close to it For cik&cap, you can again help some to get the other direction. And for her good direction, you could maybe switch to her ball now, to make it more fun for her."
Monday, May 23, 2011
Lesson 4 Week 2 Puppy/Tricks Class
What I said,
"1 I showed you Tibby’s crazy running in that video for the foundations class.
2 Tibby is moving in both directions now. I wait until she is doing good circles in both directions, but what is the next step? We are so far behind that I missed what you told other people.
3 Can’t do yet. Still working on back up 2o2o
4 I don’t think she knows why I’m clicking yet, but this is a fun trick. Also, she likes to steal the bowls
5 Tibby offered to sit up and hold the pole. I don’t know if we are doing this right?
6 I showed you last time - still working on it.
Other things: I have been working a lot with Tibby outside. Just easy tricks. Also, on our walks I bring one of her balls along and when she recalls to me nicely then I throw the ball and we race to it together. Tibby thinks this is super fun! I just want her to get used to working outside.
I had the video all made and ready to put on youtube, but I forgot to save it and my computer ate it! So this is the 2nd time I made the video and I was in a hurry, but almost everything fit in the 2nd time too. I wanted to show you our trip to an agility trial last weekend and Tibby trying to close drawers (she doesn’t like drawers)."
What Silvia said,
"Great job! Congratulations to the other direction! Once you have full circles, position yourself next to the target so that she can’t pass you and click for coming all the way to your leg. Getting there with stepping backwards too, slowly raise that pillow by putting some books underneath. She is picking up those bowls great, time to help her less with the positioning of the other bowl so that she needs to think some more! Getting there with the hug too, you’re doing it right, just select for a paw (or both) deeper&deeper around now. Her doors slams are GREAT, she definitely likes that! Why do you think she doesn’t like drawers, I would guess doors move more and make more sound, that’s why it doesn’t make sense to me? Also, GREAT to hear she likes her ball also outside, we will sure need that for Foundation class!"
Then I posted this second video
I said,
"Watching agility and closing drawers. Tibby really didn’t like closing the drawers. It was the first time we had tried a drawer and it was at my parent’s house. The drawers are also really heavy. There is a big difference between her closing the doors at my house this week and this video (which was done last week). Also I was rewarding with food and Tibby likes her ball better!
We stayed at the agility trial for about 2 1/2 hours. That was long enough for Tibby. She was a little bit whiny. She had her tail wagging the whole time, so I think she was just excited about all the people and dogs. There was one tiny toy poodle that she was obsessed with. The toy poodle and its owners were sitting near us for a while and Tibby stared and stared at it. Then when they left she very intently watched them walk down the stairs and out the door. She was actually the most relaxed when she was watching other dogs run. When the people were moving the equipment around she was the most whiny and trying to walk around. She walked up and down on the seat in front of us and sat there by herself for a while. She ate some treats and pulled her tug toy out of my purse, but didn’t want to tug. Mostly she sat on my lap.
I’ve tried to find places to take Tibby, so she will be comfortable, but it’s difficult to find somewhere like an agility trial - SO many dogs and people. June 1st the street market in my town will start again for summer,. I want to try and take her there every week. She seemed to jump back when the drawers closed and acted like she was scared of them. Yeah I would think the doors were noisier."
Silvia said,
" O.k., I can see now, she doesn’t like the drawers so much, but it doesn’t look too bad, I think she would get used to those too and slammed those just as well as the doors. She sure like that! And her ball She seems perfectly fine with the people and noise, it’s normal it gets somewhat boring for the dog to just sit there, but I don’t think she will have problems with that. Definitely take that as an opportunity to try some fun tricks and ball chasing!"
"1 I showed you Tibby’s crazy running in that video for the foundations class.
2 Tibby is moving in both directions now. I wait until she is doing good circles in both directions, but what is the next step? We are so far behind that I missed what you told other people.
3 Can’t do yet. Still working on back up 2o2o
4 I don’t think she knows why I’m clicking yet, but this is a fun trick. Also, she likes to steal the bowls
5 Tibby offered to sit up and hold the pole. I don’t know if we are doing this right?
6 I showed you last time - still working on it.
Other things: I have been working a lot with Tibby outside. Just easy tricks. Also, on our walks I bring one of her balls along and when she recalls to me nicely then I throw the ball and we race to it together. Tibby thinks this is super fun! I just want her to get used to working outside.
I had the video all made and ready to put on youtube, but I forgot to save it and my computer ate it! So this is the 2nd time I made the video and I was in a hurry, but almost everything fit in the 2nd time too. I wanted to show you our trip to an agility trial last weekend and Tibby trying to close drawers (she doesn’t like drawers)."
What Silvia said,
"Great job! Congratulations to the other direction! Once you have full circles, position yourself next to the target so that she can’t pass you and click for coming all the way to your leg. Getting there with stepping backwards too, slowly raise that pillow by putting some books underneath. She is picking up those bowls great, time to help her less with the positioning of the other bowl so that she needs to think some more! Getting there with the hug too, you’re doing it right, just select for a paw (or both) deeper&deeper around now. Her doors slams are GREAT, she definitely likes that! Why do you think she doesn’t like drawers, I would guess doors move more and make more sound, that’s why it doesn’t make sense to me? Also, GREAT to hear she likes her ball also outside, we will sure need that for Foundation class!"
Then I posted this second video
I said,
"Watching agility and closing drawers. Tibby really didn’t like closing the drawers. It was the first time we had tried a drawer and it was at my parent’s house. The drawers are also really heavy. There is a big difference between her closing the doors at my house this week and this video (which was done last week). Also I was rewarding with food and Tibby likes her ball better!
We stayed at the agility trial for about 2 1/2 hours. That was long enough for Tibby. She was a little bit whiny. She had her tail wagging the whole time, so I think she was just excited about all the people and dogs. There was one tiny toy poodle that she was obsessed with. The toy poodle and its owners were sitting near us for a while and Tibby stared and stared at it. Then when they left she very intently watched them walk down the stairs and out the door. She was actually the most relaxed when she was watching other dogs run. When the people were moving the equipment around she was the most whiny and trying to walk around. She walked up and down on the seat in front of us and sat there by herself for a while. She ate some treats and pulled her tug toy out of my purse, but didn’t want to tug. Mostly she sat on my lap.
I’ve tried to find places to take Tibby, so she will be comfortable, but it’s difficult to find somewhere like an agility trial - SO many dogs and people. June 1st the street market in my town will start again for summer,. I want to try and take her there every week. She seemed to jump back when the drawers closed and acted like she was scared of them. Yeah I would think the doors were noisier."
Silvia said,
" O.k., I can see now, she doesn’t like the drawers so much, but it doesn’t look too bad, I think she would get used to those too and slammed those just as well as the doors. She sure like that! And her ball She seems perfectly fine with the people and noise, it’s normal it gets somewhat boring for the dog to just sit there, but I don’t think she will have problems with that. Definitely take that as an opportunity to try some fun tricks and ball chasing!"
Previous lessons:
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Lesson 3 Week 2
What I wrote,
"I’ve been sad about our lack of progress this week. I did a few short sessions every day with Tibby this week, but she has been acting strange. Nervous? and zero attention span.
I am hoping it is just a stage that she is going through, or spring fever or the heat (it was 89F here today with 100% humidity). She gets frustrated very easily. I’m trying to not put any pressure on her – when she gets frustrated I let her do one of her easy favorite tricks and then end the session.
I think we may get the handstand in 2012 or 2013! Will you have a remedial tricks class for slow teams?
I can’t make Tibby do anything, so if she wants to do it she will, but if she doesn’t…..well, that is the end of it!
I included some of the times when Tibby blows me off (and runs away) or gets frustrated and whines. It doesn’t look like it in the video, but I can tell that she isn’t 100% happy.
After watching the video I can see that Tibby is doing better with her turns on the perch. I saw on the video one time when she offered movement in the other direction, but I missed it. I wait and wait for her to offer movement to the left, but so far I haven’t been able to catch any.
I think we need some help please!"
What a classmate wrote,
" Hi Catalina, i just watched your video and noticed your frustration. I think your tricks looked nice. Perhaps she isn`t yet used to do tricks outside….and for the movement to the left – just treat for right without click and click and treat for left. To have more movement you could perhaps throw a treat near to the bowl and when she comes back with her feet on the perch just try to capture her first movements.
And the sit-up. My dog doesn`t sit up such as long as Tibby does. They are young and they need the muscles to sit up longer. Every short sit-up gives more strength to their back muscles. And her “Back” looked great for me too."
What Silvia wrote,
"I agree with Brigit, you actually did TONS of progress!!! Considering how hard it was for Tibby to just sit straight, she already has great duration in a sit up now! Don’t ask for more as she can do for now, just go slowly with it. Back up is great too, it’s very nice to see she still goes crazy for that ball!
If you never worked with her outside before, your choice of tricks was not the best one, you first have to try some playing, then do some of her favourite tricks in between the play and then slowly go from there.
Also, to make backing up on an object easier, find a wider object so that it’s easier to step on it accidentally. 2on2off in the other direction is sure great! For pivoting in the other direction, you can put your target next to the wall, so that she can’t go the whole circle – maybe she will then step back and you could jackpot that?
Another thing to be careful about is your attitude. It’s probably my fault as I was telling you not to help and not to cheer her into working with you to not push her – BUT when she IS working with you and offering things, do mark it with excitement! I remember that when Le was a puppy and just started to learn about clicker, I needed to accompany every click with a smile and happy voice. I normally talk to my dogs a lot, so I think she though I’m really weird when I took that clicker and stopped talking – she though something was wrong. So I first needed to accompany every click with the voice, but then of course slowly reduced it to only go crazy for jackpots. But letting them know you’re impressed by what they’re doing is very important. It’s not to get the action – it’s to reinforce the action."
I think.....there are a lot of things to remember and it is hard to see everyone else progressing faster than us.
"I’ve been sad about our lack of progress this week. I did a few short sessions every day with Tibby this week, but she has been acting strange. Nervous? and zero attention span.
I am hoping it is just a stage that she is going through, or spring fever or the heat (it was 89F here today with 100% humidity). She gets frustrated very easily. I’m trying to not put any pressure on her – when she gets frustrated I let her do one of her easy favorite tricks and then end the session.
I think we may get the handstand in 2012 or 2013! Will you have a remedial tricks class for slow teams?
I can’t make Tibby do anything, so if she wants to do it she will, but if she doesn’t…..well, that is the end of it!
I included some of the times when Tibby blows me off (and runs away) or gets frustrated and whines. It doesn’t look like it in the video, but I can tell that she isn’t 100% happy.
After watching the video I can see that Tibby is doing better with her turns on the perch. I saw on the video one time when she offered movement in the other direction, but I missed it. I wait and wait for her to offer movement to the left, but so far I haven’t been able to catch any.
I think we need some help please!"
What a classmate wrote,
" Hi Catalina, i just watched your video and noticed your frustration. I think your tricks looked nice. Perhaps she isn`t yet used to do tricks outside….and for the movement to the left – just treat for right without click and click and treat for left. To have more movement you could perhaps throw a treat near to the bowl and when she comes back with her feet on the perch just try to capture her first movements.
And the sit-up. My dog doesn`t sit up such as long as Tibby does. They are young and they need the muscles to sit up longer. Every short sit-up gives more strength to their back muscles. And her “Back” looked great for me too."
What Silvia wrote,
"I agree with Brigit, you actually did TONS of progress!!! Considering how hard it was for Tibby to just sit straight, she already has great duration in a sit up now! Don’t ask for more as she can do for now, just go slowly with it. Back up is great too, it’s very nice to see she still goes crazy for that ball!
If you never worked with her outside before, your choice of tricks was not the best one, you first have to try some playing, then do some of her favourite tricks in between the play and then slowly go from there.
Also, to make backing up on an object easier, find a wider object so that it’s easier to step on it accidentally. 2on2off in the other direction is sure great! For pivoting in the other direction, you can put your target next to the wall, so that she can’t go the whole circle – maybe she will then step back and you could jackpot that?
Another thing to be careful about is your attitude. It’s probably my fault as I was telling you not to help and not to cheer her into working with you to not push her – BUT when she IS working with you and offering things, do mark it with excitement! I remember that when Le was a puppy and just started to learn about clicker, I needed to accompany every click with a smile and happy voice. I normally talk to my dogs a lot, so I think she though I’m really weird when I took that clicker and stopped talking – she though something was wrong. So I first needed to accompany every click with the voice, but then of course slowly reduced it to only go crazy for jackpots. But letting them know you’re impressed by what they’re doing is very important. It’s not to get the action – it’s to reinforce the action."
I think.....there are a lot of things to remember and it is hard to see everyone else progressing faster than us.
Monday, May 2, 2011
Lesson 3 Week One Puppy/Tricks Class
Time for a new to-do list!
1. take your dog to a city center, a store that allows dogs (pet store?) and on a train station
2. position yourself next to a high target and now only click for circling all the way to your leg (don’t click for steps in between) – name it with heel for one side and something else for the other and have a dog follow your leg when you move in a circle around the target away from the dog – then tell him to come to the other side and have him follow the other leg. Use different targets, try it on a very low one too.
3. build your own cavaletti and walk the dog over it – you can use the drawers or boxes of appropriate size and height, put them in a row and walk the dog through.
4. try the other version of 2on2off: instead of having them go on an object and off, stop in a position and wait, let’s try stepping back into 2on2off this time. Position your dog close to a low object behind his back, cue him “back” and reward for stepping on an object or trying to. Slowly, you can have a dog step on higher&higher objects, this is beginning of a handstand, but with young puppies, don’t overdo the height. Instead, you can have them back up stairs for example, to challenge them some more without making it too physically demanding. You need to build balance and strength slowly enough for the dog to never be sore after. You can also teach them a “pee” trick: click when they heave one leg, searching the object – before they find it and name it, it’s a fun one.
5. put your paw target on a drawer or doors or simply shape the paw touch to a drawers/doors and then select for stronger&stronger touches/pushes. The goal is to have the dog slam the doors or drawer with power, to teach them that they control the movement under their feet and the sound and that it’s FUN – my favourite trick for a great see-saw!
6. don’t forget on recalls and playing!!! Also, slowly add duration to a sit up, teach crossing paws with the other paw and fade the target, check if the puppy will stay in 2on2off position until “go” even with distractions (toys and food flying around)
Have fun!
Final version of 2on2off:
Our video of Lesson 3 Week 1
What I said:
"We had an awesome, but lazy week. I only trained with Tibby once (and taped it). I also only used a toy as a reward this week. Amazing! She LOVES these new balls that I bought her. They are made out of felted wool and have a bell inside. She goes crazy for them -- she would kill for one
Tibby and I won a contest! We entered a look a like contest at a walk for animals on Sat. We won $55 and also were interviewed for TV.
Tibby did really well with all the people and animals -- 100′s of people and dogs. We had to ride a bus to get from the parking lot to the event location. Tibby was just fine. It was very noisy and bumpy.
We also went to an agility trial on Friday, but I didn’t get any video of that.
There are only a few things on this video -- our ‘field trip’, back up, close door, baby steps of handstand, cavalleti.
I was feeling like I didn’t know where to start with this lesson (hence the lack of practice), but now I feel like it’s not too hard. It was really fun to PLAY with the ball instead of giving Tibby treats. FUN!!"
What Silvia said:
"Congratulations on winning the contest!!! She doesn’t seem to mind the crowd at all and looks really cool in her rain coat! And wow, she sure looks happier to work for her ball as for treats! Great job! Loved slamming of the door, that was a real slam already! Backing up and babysteps for a handstand are going well too! It’s very easy to progress from here on. Cavaletti would be easier if you set the boxes somewhat further apart to start with, but she sure is doing great, despite a scary bowl!"
What I then asked: "Can I use a toy for all the tricks? For example: How can I use a toy for the pivot/heel excersise? Off to try it......will report back on how it goes :)"
1. take your dog to a city center, a store that allows dogs (pet store?) and on a train station
2. position yourself next to a high target and now only click for circling all the way to your leg (don’t click for steps in between) – name it with heel for one side and something else for the other and have a dog follow your leg when you move in a circle around the target away from the dog – then tell him to come to the other side and have him follow the other leg. Use different targets, try it on a very low one too.
3. build your own cavaletti and walk the dog over it – you can use the drawers or boxes of appropriate size and height, put them in a row and walk the dog through.
4. try the other version of 2on2off: instead of having them go on an object and off, stop in a position and wait, let’s try stepping back into 2on2off this time. Position your dog close to a low object behind his back, cue him “back” and reward for stepping on an object or trying to. Slowly, you can have a dog step on higher&higher objects, this is beginning of a handstand, but with young puppies, don’t overdo the height. Instead, you can have them back up stairs for example, to challenge them some more without making it too physically demanding. You need to build balance and strength slowly enough for the dog to never be sore after. You can also teach them a “pee” trick: click when they heave one leg, searching the object – before they find it and name it, it’s a fun one.
5. put your paw target on a drawer or doors or simply shape the paw touch to a drawers/doors and then select for stronger&stronger touches/pushes. The goal is to have the dog slam the doors or drawer with power, to teach them that they control the movement under their feet and the sound and that it’s FUN – my favourite trick for a great see-saw!
6. don’t forget on recalls and playing!!! Also, slowly add duration to a sit up, teach crossing paws with the other paw and fade the target, check if the puppy will stay in 2on2off position until “go” even with distractions (toys and food flying around)
Have fun!
Final version of 2on2off:
Our video of Lesson 3 Week 1
What I said:
"We had an awesome, but lazy week. I only trained with Tibby once (and taped it). I also only used a toy as a reward this week. Amazing! She LOVES these new balls that I bought her. They are made out of felted wool and have a bell inside. She goes crazy for them -- she would kill for one
Tibby and I won a contest! We entered a look a like contest at a walk for animals on Sat. We won $55 and also were interviewed for TV.
Tibby did really well with all the people and animals -- 100′s of people and dogs. We had to ride a bus to get from the parking lot to the event location. Tibby was just fine. It was very noisy and bumpy.
We also went to an agility trial on Friday, but I didn’t get any video of that.
There are only a few things on this video -- our ‘field trip’, back up, close door, baby steps of handstand, cavalleti.
I was feeling like I didn’t know where to start with this lesson (hence the lack of practice), but now I feel like it’s not too hard. It was really fun to PLAY with the ball instead of giving Tibby treats. FUN!!"
What Silvia said:
"Congratulations on winning the contest!!!
She doesn’t seem to mind the crowd at all and looks really cool in her rain coat! And wow, she sure looks happier to work for her ball as for treats! Great job! Loved slamming of the door, that was a real slam already! Backing up and babysteps for a handstand are going well too! It’s very easy to progress from here on. Cavaletti would be easier if you set the boxes somewhat further apart to start with, but she sure is doing great, despite a scary bowl!"What I then asked: "Can I use a toy for all the tricks? For example: How can I use a toy for the pivot/heel excersise? Off to try it......will report back on how it goes :)"
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Tibby's Hips
I have been working with Tibby on 'beg' for a few weeks now. She still keeps falling over. Sit up or beg is part of our homework for the 2nd lesson of ST puppy class.
This is what Silvia said: "you definitely don’t want her to fall! First, make sure she sits correctly before asking her to sit up. For now, also help with something behind her back (a sofa?) that would allow her to lean against if necessary and put your paw target so that she can get some support from it when putting front feet on. Click and reward when you feel she is well balanced. It definitely takes practice to find balance and build muscle to be able to hold this position, that’s why you want to offer some support at first, as you definitely don’t want her to be falling over!"
This is what another classmate Mary said: "Scout, my TT, does “sit pretty” very well, but it took a long time for him to build up the core muscles to be able to hold the position. I found that working against a wall or other stationary object with his back to it helped him a lot in the beginning stages. The wall added support so we could concentrate on getting those front feet off the ground without him falling over. There was a lot of falling over before we came up with this solution."
So TT owners can your dog sit up? Is this a TT thing?
This is what Silvia said: "you definitely don’t want her to fall! First, make sure she sits correctly before asking her to sit up. For now, also help with something behind her back (a sofa?) that would allow her to lean against if necessary and put your paw target so that she can get some support from it when putting front feet on. Click and reward when you feel she is well balanced. It definitely takes practice to find balance and build muscle to be able to hold this position, that’s why you want to offer some support at first, as you definitely don’t want her to be falling over!"
This is what another classmate Mary said: "Scout, my TT, does “sit pretty” very well, but it took a long time for him to build up the core muscles to be able to hold the position. I found that working against a wall or other stationary object with his back to it helped him a lot in the beginning stages. The wall added support so we could concentrate on getting those front feet off the ground without him falling over. There was a lot of falling over before we came up with this solution."
So TT owners can your dog sit up? Is this a TT thing?
Thursday, March 31, 2011
First Video For Tricks Class
This is a video of what we have been working on for the Silvia Trkman class (More info here).
This is what Silvia said, "Hey, that frog is great! You make it look too easy! Great job also with the box and the plate, but do try to help a little bit less with your action and movement. To get more action from her, try throwing treats vs. making her move by your movements as it’s hard to get rid of those, the dog gets too dependent on them."
Good point. Hmmm, how can I keep Tibby excited and working, but without me moving around? Something to practice and work on.
Also, we just got back from our private lesson. I'm very tired. We left at 9:30am and got home at 6pm. I was wiped out after the class, but still had to drive home. Tibby slept. Ah, to be my dog! I'll write up a post as soon as my notes are rewritten. Lots to work on.........
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