The Spotted Devil

And he does that with an impressive level of drive Doesn't he just Zig in the backyard would be a right royal PITA. Working his Spotted heart out day after day and I'd almost call him bearable ;)

Dunno, ness - perhaps we should just relegate our unsuitable dogs to the backyard And just because a dog won't tug doesn't mean they're "weak nerved". It's just that my Dalmatian would rather have been pi$$ing on a tree :D

Oh what a dull world it would be if we all had the 'right' dog for the job

I think my Dally fits the "high energy, low drive" description really well - someone wrote about it on the Clean Run list and I was just nodding my head, ticking the boxes. It does take time, patience and finding out what works for your dog. Ziggy would not even LOOK at a tug toy at home let alone at training but at Saturday's agility trial I had food in one hand and tugging like mad with him with the other. And that was just before his 7th run of the day when he was quite whacked. Be careful about putting too much pressure on to tug - I started by producing a very tempting sheepskin tug toy when I arrived home after a week away. Zig was so excited to see me and I channelled that energy into tugging. I never offer him the tug toy - when I was moving towards tugging at training I would hide the toy in my training bag (where the food was) and make a great play about trying to hide it from him. When he kept persisting and stole the toy out of the bag I would grab the other end, play tug, give and jackpot with food. It was a long time before I used tug at a trial and even then it was only for the first 2 runs of the day then I would switch to food. Now I use both - tug when the dog before us is in the ring, give and heel to the start line with a piece of food before we enter the ring. Eventually I'd like to drop the food before we walk in the ring and extend it to the end of the run but am only doing that in training at the moment. Oh, and he was COMPLETELY disinterested in food to begin with so he had to work for every scrap of food that he ate which made it much more valuable. Now I deliver food in lots of different ways - in fact, running to a bait plate was how I cured his phobia of the seesaw!

I think Vickie raises some excellent points. I don't train specifically for the distance challenge. I work on all the little aspects of handling and then just use them when I walk the course. Recently we have been working on Zig's "GO!" command (which means take every obstacle in front of you) - great for the run home but it has been invaluable for the distance challenge. Rear crosses also really help. As Vickie said, it's going into the distance challenge that you also need to think about - can be very hard when the tunnel exit is right near the line to build some forward momentum. Also, coming out of the distance challenge can be tricky......I was walking an Open Jumping course a few weeks back and a few people were freaking out about the huge loop that the dogs had to do at a distance with an awkward entry. I decided to just give the "GO!" command and then keep my mouth shut - it worked so well that Zig did it all at breakneck speed but I didn't think to decel coming out of the spread into the weaves and he completely missed the entry Gee I was SO chuffed though!!!!

That's awesome :D I'm absolutely thrilled for you! It was such a wonderful atmosphere. The roar was a giveaway that you'd nailed it alright!!! Yes, I conquered my nerves by having a dog that really needs my support and all my concentration. I owe him that much.

Jess, you were so calm!!!!! I was sitting right near the tunnel that the first few dogs took the wrong entry. Were you watching that and did you change how you handled Darcy? Talk to Sal (photographer) as I'm sure she was with someone who videoed both rings. Jazz's run in agility was glorious - well deserved win as well. Tassie, we had a great day - no passes but Zig has come so far in just 18 months of trialling that I couldn't be more pleased

That sounded like amazing fun for you both! :D especially loved the line at the end! Cant wait until we get our chance for that feeling! Congrats on your great runs It's an awesome feeling!!!! It can take a while to find your feet when you start trialling - but with experience comes confidence and a real connection with your dog - a pass is just the icing on the cake. I push the envelope with Ziggy now so we make more mistakes but it's worth it - he is still fairly green as we have only been trialling for about 18 months. TO - well done on making the cut

I should update this thread as there are a number of Dallies doing very well around Australia in Obedience and Agility....here's one we prepared earlier ;) Yarrowfell High Society CD AD JDX

I imagine some of this sentiment arises from the lack of BAER testing for Dalmatians in the past - the expression of the piebald gene that gives them their unique spotting also predisposes them to deafness. Good breeders should BAER test puppies and not breed from dogs with uni-lateral or bi-lateral deafness. As to the nature of the breed, they are not one to hang on your every word unless you make it VERY worth their while. I use food and tug and I'm very consistent. Ziggy wasn't the easiest of adolescents but he has taught me to think outside the square when it comes to training. Last week I called him off a kangaroo with simply a "Ziggy! Come!" in a bright voice. He had bolted off out of sight but came sprinting back within seconds.......I didn't even have food on me

That's good news Sandra - she sounds like one tough cookie!!!!

No passes for us but some fantastic and promising runs which I would like to remind myself about: JDM - first run of the day and a Spotted Dog I know was a bit excited and did huge loopy turns (what's a shoulder cue Mum???) Ran clear but 1 sec over time. ADO - was all over the distance challenge - think he dropped a bar on the spread. ADX - ripper run but blew a straight entry into the weaves. We've been training lots of tough weave entries and have neglected the easy ones!!! JDO - just got away with the distance challenge. Again we blew a straight weaves entry. JDM - tough, tight course. I ran it over and over until it was second nature and it really paid off. Threadle arm had a serious work out and he nailed every obstacle discrimination. Just tipped a bar as I couldn't get ahead of him at one of the tunnels and thus the next jump was awkward. ADX - great run, fast and smooth. Felt great. Was forced to rear cross at the seesaw (his old nemesis) and he just needed a bit more support so hesitated and was pinged for a refusal. Finished fast, though, which was fabulous as he tires mentally at the end of the day. He tugged all day and tried his Spotted heart out. Tired Ziggy tonight.

Whoo hoo!!! Congratulations Vickie and Trim

Come in spinner

Crate him next to your bed. Win, win!

Huge congratulations Jess!!!! It was a tough course and an awesome run - I was pretty confident you had it in the bag!!! Well done

Has she contacted the breeder???

SM - well done! I haven't watched all of it because my Internet connection is crappy but you and your dog look fabulous.

Try this link: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-09-02/defining-dangerous-dogs/2868820

English Springers are lovely dogs but can be VERY high energy, especially working ones of course but I've seen plenty of show types that are high energy too. Any young dog left to it's own devices will make short work of your backyard. If you don't have a lot of time maybe a smaller, calmer dog might fit better. Goldens and Labs are lovely but they are Gundogs too and do better with lots of training and an outlet for their energy.

Oh goodness! I never train with collars on for agility but it's a good reminder.

So true! Emily is called Em, Emmy, Dog Face Junior and Proby - as in 'probationary' ;) 2 syllables seem to roll off the tongue for training.

Oh cuuuuuuute

wuffles - it might not take as long as you think and I bet you have improved as a trainer since!!!

She is always very, very, very hungry. She is very easy to motivate. I've never come across something like the dumbbell, though. If I try wait her out she will offer other behaviours - nudging the dumbbell, pawing it, dropping, sitting on it... she just doesn't seem to want to put it in her mouth. Great that she's motivated normally. Maybe you have inadvertently poisoned the behaviour???? Been there got the t-shirt ;) Maybe take a break for a while and then start again with the Shirley Chong method and a different retrieve article. She may well be picking up on your frustration too. ETA: No soreness in the mouth???