New Bear video, large improvement in her contacts..

[Bear Luv]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FEfjxCWjRjU


Mmkay, so there it is. I have been using the target that you probably cant see on the ground because its so dark outside lol. She wont touch it except when there is food on it, or has been on it. She does every now and then. Its not really important for her to touch it, I never wanted her to, I just wanted her to stop. She just started to get speed on the a-frame today. For the first time after teaching the 2o2o, she jumped the apex. She rarely did this even when I attempted to train contacts before, thinking we had a running a-frame :x.

Anyway, whatever I did, works for her. I can get major distance with her. Or not major, but major for the size of my back yard lol. I know there are still thinks I need to improve on. Praising more, not slowing down when I give her the command. I am not all that into having the best form, just as long as it works for her.

I would really like to here anyone's recommendations on the transition from the a-frame 2o2o to the DW 2o2o. I know a lady who rents out her agility field, and we will be doing that, and then we are going to a trial in march to try out her new 2o2o on their equipment. I dont expect her to Q, but since I have been going to trials and other things, her focus has improved. She doesnt have much drive for agility to begin with, unless cheese is involved lol. So fun is most important, I am not even that interested in winning with her.

Anyway, just thought I would share that video so you can see what I have been doing for the past 2 months.

Diane

[Bear Luv]

ehh I spelled thing wrong, and hear. My corrections

Wow, wow, hey!! I didn't know you were on chaz!

[Dekka]

Nice stop. My only concern would be as your dog gets more comfortable and speeds up, I would worry about spinal and shoulder damage (bigger heavier dog.. not overweight but built) when stopping at speed with head up.

Other than that.. nice dog, how long have you been working with (ummmm) him/her?

[Bear Luv]

Yes I am on chaz

Thats why I introduced the food plate, so she stops with her head down most of the time. In that video I wasnt using the food plate, but I have been.

This would be our...2nd month? We started like two days before christmas. I originally didnt want to do the 2o2o because I was afraid of such injuries. I am not sure exactly how to correct them.

Diane

[Dekka]

is the dog trained to hit the plate with her nose, or is she used to food being on the plate?

[Bear Luv]

she was trained that "Target" means two on, two off. The plate is there for food. She does know to touch it, but she wont when I use that command, she just wont, and I dont want to spent hours trying to make her. She gets really upset over that kind of stuff, so I just decided it wasnt worth killing her spirit. Even uplifting voices dont help, she gets all sad. I decided to put food on the plate to make her speed up, and every now and then she will touch it even when there isnt food on it. We are making progress, but safety comes first, then fun. Perfecting it is the last thing on my mind.

I am going to try and get my A-frame out to a few fields around my house, and try her out on it there. I just want her to stop, I never really wanted to teach her the target plate. I try to be open to suggestions, but some things just dont work for some dogs, and this really doesnt work for her lol.

Diane

[MafiaPrincess]

Most of us taught targeting off the agility field. Dog touches plate for whatever command of your choice, reward appears. Then moved to grass in agility field not near the contact equipment... Then to the equipment. The target is meant to be faded though. So if you load it rather than the reward coming from you the behaviour you are getting isn't the behaviour that most of us train for.

I used to load the target plate, as it was how I was originally trained. We learned to target it properly, but it was loaded near the equipment, and my criteria for what 2o2o looked like was too lax.

There should be a very clear picture of what you want that contact behaviour to look like. 2 feet on the contact 2 on the floor isn't specific enough, and the dog should be stopping nose to target plate because it's a trained behaviour, not stopping there simply to grab the snack on it's way past.

My original target plate was a medium yogurt lid. When I started training last summer with a past agility world team competitor she showed me hers. Clear plexi glass. Like 2"x2" cider had to relearn targeting on the flat, as she couldn't always find it. She got better having to look for it. Trainer also had a second plate half that size. Took not too much time to remove the target plate and get my desired behaviour as she couldn't always find the plate.

Some days, it was still sloppier than I'd like, we'd pull out the plate and work a little at it, but in a month I had a behaviour that I'd worked on for 6 or more months and was still undesirable that now finally worked. I'd take targeting away from the field and work on it elsewhere as a behaviour that doesn't involve loadign the plate to start with.

[Dekka]

If you make into a game, she will love smushing the target with her nose. I don't see how it can kill her spirit. I am sure having permenant shoulder issues would be much worse. You will have to call touching the target, something other than target, since you have used that for your 2o/2o.


Just as an aside. I have a very talented high drive dog, who has done quite well in AAC last year (our vers of USDAA). But I am taking this year off to work on our contacts. Its a safety issue. (hers is a bit different... anywhere but at a trial she does a perfect 20/20. At trials she is so fast and 'high' that she will leap of the contacts. LOL my 11 inch dog has cleared the apex of the aframe and not touched the downside at all )