ness Posted February 20, 2007 Share Posted February 20, 2007 Hmm sas no I just know that to qualify in UD I need to pull my act together. I can't afford to be throwing away any points due to my handling. There is enough for the dog to mess up that will cost points without the handler losing them as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shoemonster Posted February 20, 2007 Author Share Posted February 20, 2007 (edited) More? I am inspired at the moment! I promise I'll give you guys a break from me now! lol At the end was mucking around with hand targets, running just in front of him til he touched my hand with his nose then he got a treat, have heard this can help with heel position, as he kmows when he's in correct position to touch my hand then he gets a treat, anyone else think this will work? He's a bit of a lagger sometimes, I guess due to me not motivating him enough The loud noise in the video was the person from the unit in front bringing their bin in, he pretty much ignored it which was fantastic, as he could have been distracted by that, and run off Any ideas on getting a dog that's stafford size to give "shoulder contact" or are there other ways? I think I watch him so much that I turn my body slightly towards him, and now if I look straight ahead he sits back a little bit, or something, that doesn't make sense, but he lags if I am looking ahead, as you will see if the video And some mucking around with freestyle stuff! He's so cute, he tries to jump the whole 360' circle in his spin! lol Oh and of course the sound is out by a few seconds again, I don't know why youtube makes all my vids sound out Edited February 20, 2007 by shoemonster Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ness Posted February 20, 2007 Share Posted February 20, 2007 (edited) Hey Shoey, Just watched the video. Glad to see your so enthusiastic about it. First thing did you plan what you were trying to achieve with the session. Looks like a whole lot of different things and sometimes it was hard to tell if you were just turning around or actually doing an about turn at the end and wanting Ed to maintain a good position. You need to break it up more so it just doesn't turn into walking to one end doing something then walking back the other direction and doing something else - does that make any sense. Also watch what you are rewarding. For instance on the finish Ed has his paw up when he comes back into heel and you rewarded that. You should have either waited for the paw to go down or broken it off and started again. Getting a stafford to give shoulder contact - if that is what you want as your criteria - try using a target stick. Or you could even have a target (disc, piece of tape) which you stick to your clothing which is slightly lower which could be a nose target - in the right place it would produce a shoulder contact or if you wanted you could try and actually teach a shoulder target. Also heeling in confined places - next to walls etc teaches them to come in closer. You can also set up a series of chairs. I was practising tight about turns so I had 2 chairs with Ness and I standing in the middle and the just turning on the spot. Hope that is of some help. Edited February 21, 2007 by ness Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shoemonster Posted February 21, 2007 Author Share Posted February 21, 2007 Oh cool! Yeah it's hard to see his feet, I was surprised how often he did that in the video He knows targeting so I might use a target stick for it Makes heaps of sense to break it up, and I realised on that video I was walking up one way doing something then walking up the other end and doing something! lol You are right I thought a while back I should tape myself or someone else calling out commands and play that back, as I tend to get distracted easily (hehe me not Eddie) and forget what I intended to do half way I am taking in what you are saying even if I seem abit slow in doing it! So much to remember but I will be keeping this thread so I can read over it all the time too I have been working on Eddie's drops too, as he is hesistant alot of the time to drop, working on getting fast drops, and working on me giving shorter signals and not bending over so much to him as I have been. I've just been doing it on the rug in the lounge room, and once he is switched on he is quite good and does lovely straight quick drops for me I think my main problem is that I'm trying to bring it all together, isn't it? That's what you've been trying to tell me, work on the things seperately, foucs on one thing at a time Ok, lots of homework for me to think about Oh also drove past the train station carpark last night, pretty deserted and nice white lines everywhere for me to practise on! lol (with OH nearby so it's not too scary Thanks so much for your help Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arya Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 Hey thanks Jules I will check out the Alexander technique as I do lose my balance sometimes (course, this could just be I'm totally uncoordinated anyway ). Mrs D, thanks for the explanation. The dog looks at me great but I must admit, I do look at her right in the eye all the time. It's a contact thing with her- if I don't have it she don't listen! But in the ring I lift my head up and work with my eyes ahead and just a little down to catch glimpses of her. I wonder why people trialling don't bother to find out the rules properly? I mean, the first thing I did and I tell people is to get the little blue book for a start! Dogdude, don't know if anyone else has replied but the KCC Park run-throughs (there's five left I think) are on Tuesday nights at 7pm. you have to book with Nolene McIlroy as it is run by OTEC and her number from VCA mag is 5978 7504. I'm sure she wouldn't mind me putting it here as it is in the VCA mag for people to ring. They are great nights and everyone is so helpful! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogdude Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 Thanks Arya Will try to make a couple. I need to wait till wife is on an early shift as we share one car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shoemonster Posted February 21, 2007 Author Share Posted February 21, 2007 Well we had our first night in a higher class level at training tonight OMG I really need to do something about my nerves, I was a mess Luckily the instructor realised and she was fantastic, really helpful Eddie just doesn't know what to do when I'm like like, he gets all freaked out and then he realised that the people in the agilty ring we doing jumps and he was obsessed with them Towards the end we both settled down and he did some great stays and stand for exam Also did my first real figure 8, and he was pretty good really, using hand targets to get him around Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shoemonster Posted February 22, 2007 Author Share Posted February 22, 2007 Oh and last night reminded me not to get caught up with one good night of trainign and instructors praise and that we have lots of work to do before we think about trialling yet! Oh well, it was good for my enthusiasm! And I am determined that we will get there one day! I might set myself a new goal, to have done my first trial by the end of this year Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogdude Posted February 22, 2007 Share Posted February 22, 2007 I am thinking of at least waiting for the cooler weather. Should be enough time to get us polished up. You can still introduce your dog to some open work while you are working on the basics to avoid boring your dog. Of course I would not teach drop on recall or anything, but broad jump and retreive are fine. No point wasting time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ness Posted February 22, 2007 Share Posted February 22, 2007 (edited) Nothing wrong with teaching an "informal" drop in the middle of playing and I'll throw your toy again. Drop from a stand is one of the choices available in novice. Even a DOR shouldn't matter so long as you keep the number of straight recalls far greater then the number of DOR you practice. Edited February 22, 2007 by ness Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogdude Posted February 22, 2007 Share Posted February 22, 2007 There is nothing wrong with teaching DOR if you have the dog at a stage where he fully understands it. They can slow down a little in the learning stages in anticipation of the drop. Not good if they are in that cloudy stage when you step into the novice ring. Simply my opinion for what its worth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shoemonster Posted February 22, 2007 Author Share Posted February 22, 2007 (edited) Yeah the cooler weather will be better too We've started change of position in class, but i've been doing it with them for a while anyway Haven't touched on DOR at all but I do get them to drop sometimes as Ed's drop is quite slow, and I make it a race for him to drop, while playing at home I'll have to look through the rule book and see what else there is we could learn now for later Any suggestions? To break it up abit for him now and make it a bit more fun? (I know its as fun as I make it but you know what I mean lol) Oh, how funny is this? The instructor says to me, "you're really uncomfortable withthe lead aren't you? Maybe put it in your pocket!" Made me wonder for a sec if she was a Doler and had read this! Have started touching on retrieve by starting introducing holding the dumbell, and he loves to jump, so he'll love learning broad jump! Have a go to mat for dinner so send out should be not too hard to teach Edited February 22, 2007 by shoemonster Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogdude Posted February 22, 2007 Share Posted February 22, 2007 (edited) Some competitve handlers in the U.S train their dogs right through to UD before setting foot in the ring. That way they have more chance of dominating the competition, especially in the lower classes. Its like Ness said, plan what you want to work on. Set up a situation that teaches the dog what you are trying to acheive. Use proofing tecniques to keep it a challenge. A heel pattern wont teach him anything if he has already been successfull at it before. That type of training will allow him to become lazy and bored. Edited February 22, 2007 by dogdude Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shoemonster Posted February 22, 2007 Author Share Posted February 22, 2007 (edited) I wonder why they do it that way, I'd prefer to reach each stage and challenge myself throughout the way I guess they only do the lower levels to get them out of the way ETA I can see why they do it, I guess I may even feel differently with a different dog, but as Ed is my first I'm enjoying every part of it! Edited February 22, 2007 by shoemonster Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wheres my rock Posted February 22, 2007 Share Posted February 22, 2007 oops im one of those trainers i teach everything first not to dominate just simply because i love the teaching process more than the competing part. Also it gives you so much more confidence knowing your dog is well above the level you are n I have a ud trained sheltie here that will never set foot in a ring but he can do al the exercises he may not gain his title but im proud of him We havea guy at WP that has two ud trianed dogs that will never trial as he just doesnt enjoy it he loves training Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shoemonster Posted February 22, 2007 Author Share Posted February 22, 2007 (edited) Were you like it with your first dog Stella, or is it something that more happened as you'd trained a few of them? I more understand why you do it, than the people who are really competitive that do it, you do it cos you like to teach, they do it cos they have to win Edited February 22, 2007 by shoemonster Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wheres my rock Posted February 22, 2007 Share Posted February 22, 2007 umm once i got into trianing yes i did teach ben a lot of open and ud before he completed novice he was ready for novice at the end of one year so we worked on open and ud over summer then went out the following year and got novie open and a couple of ud passes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogdude Posted February 22, 2007 Share Posted February 22, 2007 People enter trials for a variety of reasons. There is nothing wrong with wanting to win, as long as it is not done so at all costs. There is nothing like winning Best In Trial, even a class win is a blast. As long as you are keeping dogs out of pounds, both of you spending time with each other and having fun, its all a good thing. I would prefer that if I am going to spend so much time, money and effort in trialling, then I would like to have a good chance of winning. Imagine entering CCD class with a utility or open standard dog! There is always the added bonus of not having down time while you train your dog to the next level. WMR is right in highlighting the confidence factor too. I shudder at the sight of some entrants. Having full confidence in your dog will also help your own performance no end. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leopuppy04 Posted February 22, 2007 Share Posted February 22, 2007 At home I never use the lead, but then I was thinking I should use it sometimes or I'll stuff it up in CCD, by not being used to it!He doesn't need it by any means, so I guess in the long run it would be better just not to use it (unless in class and I have to) Alot of the time I tuck the end of the lead into my pocket, so I don't have to hold it, and mess up my signals and stuff by fumbling with it LOL - I hear ya there! I am the Queen of 'dog not heeling' while on lead because I never use it! First class back after summer and the instructor commented - "where is he today"... LOL no attention whatsoever. I said, maybe I should try w/out the lead and see how he goes.... lol- excellent heeling ... So back to training with the Lead and all is good again - man I hate that thing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shoemonster Posted February 23, 2007 Author Share Posted February 23, 2007 Lol, he probably thinks he's going for a walk when he's on lead! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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