Getting A Jump On Things

91 days to go...

Busy week! First few days of last week got in some good training and some good power walks with both the dogs. To make it easier to cover what we're done the past week I will split it into separate headings.

2x2
Both dogs are now working at the same level, having brought Fyre up to where Josh is, and keeping both there to proof their entries under different circumstances. Lots of progress being made - obviously would have been nice to do it over just 12 days but I simply don't have the time to get several weaving sessions in as well as doing other stuff. Plus I am still learning this technique at each step, making my own mistakes and having to go back and fix them :) Currently they are doing two sets of 2x2s with a gap of 120cm between. Occasionally they both miss entries from hard angles, going straight for the second set of 2x2s, but generally much improved and a much lower error rate. I think they are grasping very well what I want from them now, so we are adding things in to make it tricker to find that entry - more distance, more motion from me, really tricky angles from both sides. I think over the next few days I will be able to move the two sets closer again and start to straighten the poles. Josh did an absolutely AWESOME entry last night, a tight angle from the right where I saw him really dig in to turn in around that first pole. Fyre did some FANTASTIC work tonight too, easy entries but with me starting to run with him, which he has had trouble with previously and did really well this time.

Jump Work
With the success of the work over one crossbar, I starting adding more challenges. I worked on waits in front of the bar (in a sit) returning to reward the wait occasionally and then releasing over the bar. This was a problem for Josh previously, with him wanting to go around the bar. He did that once but I reset him for another go and then he got it. Once he got it that first time he hasn't looked back! His waits have been excellent too, interesting since I haven't done a lot of leaving him in a sit (though I often leave both dogs in downs throughout a session when I am setting up, just for practice). Fyre is a bit less stable, wanting to break and go off over the bar. To work on this, and to work on both dogs getting into position in the first place (they are both incredibly keen to head off over the jump as soon as they see it!) I have been doing a lot of rewarding them in heel (both left and right) position as we set up and then U-turn to face the jump. I have incorporated this into various other exercises too, i.e. Fyre gets heeled back and forth from the table where I sit my extra treats, toys etc in between runs. Every so often Fyre also gets his plastic food container thrown back behind him and released to it when he doesn't break position on a wait.

We then moved on to two crossbars in a row, both from a wait with lead out and from me with forward motion and them moving ahead. Josh I am usually using a toy, and Fyre his food container as those are the things each likes best, though I try to make sure to mix it up between rewards so they work for a variety of things. Interestingly, as I had the two jumps set a reasonable distance apart, Josh bounce jumped them both from a standing start and on the move, whereas Fyre put in an extra stride between. Since we are working towards doing more jump grids, I shortened the distance slightly to encourage Fyre to bounce them also and he managed that no trouble at all.

Tonight just for fun I dragged out the tunnel, which all the dogs have been exposed to some time ago. I just pulled it out straight (after checking for spiders since it has been sitting outside for quite a while) let them each have a couple of runs through using a toy reward thrown ahead of the exit. Then I worked on leaving them in a down and releasing to the tunnel, which both managed very well. From there, we started very basic sequencing by putting a crossbar in front of one end of the tunnel. Figuring Josh would easily drive to the tunnel I set him up in front of the bar, led out and released him - perfect! Second time was trickier - set up in a down at the opposite side (so tunnel first). I started with a lead out to just past the jump and sure enough he came belting out of the tunnel and didn't even look at the jump. Hmm, too much too soon? Once more over the jump from that direction as some backchaining, then try again. This time I didn't lead out as far, and when he exited the tunnel I was midway between tunnel and jump and moving toward the jump (slowly so as not to kill myself if he decided to run in front of my legs). But I needn't have worried, he did it perfectly this time :)

Fyre found this a bit more challenging. As I probably should have expected, with me doing such a long lead out he ran past the tunnel the first time and straight for the jump. Hmmm, some more backchaining required! So we did another lead out this time with me just at the end of the tunnel, and rewarded him for that, then did the longer lead out over the jump to a target and this time he did it great!

Cones
I had the bright idea that I might be able to use the tunnel and the cones together, by using the tunnel as the reward for the dog going around the cone and therefore each reinforcing the other. In my head, this would work as having a cone at each end of the tunnel, me sending the dog around the cone then front crossing them back into the tunnel and so on. This would be a classic example of transfer of value, the value of the tunnel (which both dogs love) would increase the value of going around the cone. Sure enough, I lumped a pile of criteria together and at first attempt had the tunnel too close to the cone and had both dogs trying to head for the tunnel and me calling them back, and then not really interested in the cone because they really wanted the tunnel!! So in the end I decided to shelve that idea for the future and just work on single cones. Tunnel away, I used food rewards for the dog going around the cone in both directions so I could do lots of quick repetitions. I really must work on cones more, because whilst the dog won't need to know how to go round cones in an actual agility course, I can see them being exceptionally helpful in training to practice handling.

Still have to go through the contact work we have started, but that will take too long so will have to be an entry for next time!