Tonight we had 3 interior searches. It is very cool to see how Gimme's indications have become so clear - and - unfortunately how bad I am at recognizing them.
Interior 1 video - I called alert because Gimme was showing so much interest and it was totally on me - she didn't look at me at all. She knew it wasn't a hide and moved on before Dorothy said "no". There were no hides and you can see Gimme's behavior reflects it, once we get past my personal bias. She was quite interested in the cart with the two trays of people cookies on it.
Interior 2 video - Note how different this was. Gimme is much more direct in her focus and when she is sure she has it, she starts toward me to make sure I've noticed. When she sees me coming toward her, note her movement back to the hide. Her indication was very clear.
Interior 3 video - For this last search there were 7 hides and Gimme found them all. I think her indications are becoming more clear all the time. At this point it's more about me restraining myself and waiting for her to do something to tell me "this is it". She sometimes baps or pushes around something, but it's not an indication until she gives me the-look or comes toward me to get me to come with her to the hide. I think once I get this clear in my head, we'll stop having false alerts.
We don't have class on the 24th or the 31st. Gimme will be so disappointed.
We got into a TDU test in Portland on Wednesday, January 1st. It's hosted by the Portland Dog Obedience Club. This is the same club where Gimme got her TD, so I think it would be great fun to get another tracking title there. I'm sure Gimme will do great, I just have to keep from messing her up. I'll take all the prayers I can get.
Thursday, December 26, 2019
Thursday, December 19, 2019
RFE practice (108)
Again, the main goal is to get video clips to create our Intermediate/Advanced Skills Test video. I have enough intermediate clips now, though I'd like to improve two of them. Then I just need the three advanced clips and the bow. I'd like to submit this in January.
One of the advanced clips I want is alternate position. It is Gimme behind me facing to the heel side, "west". It was strong when we were working on it before, but I'm having trouble bringing it back at this place. Her first impression of WinStar was when she was in a false pregnancy. Also this behavior is based on doing a partial "otto" to get into position. She used to love "otto" and still does it readily elsewhere, just not here. There was one time (while in her false pregnancy) where I cued "otto" and wasn't centered on the mat, so she slipped. I'm guessing that has soured her on them in this location.
Training "west" video - She started with plenty of "otto", but then didn't want to do it anymore. I tried maneuvering her into "west" to reward it while repeating the cue. I also had her do it a couple of times by starting with "around" and then stopping her in position. We did a second short session and she seemed to be getting it. We are working on this at home, feeding in position a LOT.
Resistance video - I was telling J'Anna about a way I teach loose leash walking and did a little demo for her. Basically the dog has to resist the food on the floor to get the food on the floor. It wasn't much of a demo because Gimme knows it too well.
"Otto" video - This was a short bit to really raise the value of "otto". It would seem to work and then she couldn't do it. I really think I'll have to retrain this from the start in this environment.
For Gimme's clockwise spin simultaneous, I discovered a trick to get it to look better. Gimme doesn't turn as tight clockwise, so my trick was to take a small step away from her as I was turning, to give her more room. It worked like a charm.
I am finding between the seizure issue and our summer-from-hell, my wonderful Gimme is not as bold as she used to be. This makes me sad.
One of the advanced clips I want is alternate position. It is Gimme behind me facing to the heel side, "west". It was strong when we were working on it before, but I'm having trouble bringing it back at this place. Her first impression of WinStar was when she was in a false pregnancy. Also this behavior is based on doing a partial "otto" to get into position. She used to love "otto" and still does it readily elsewhere, just not here. There was one time (while in her false pregnancy) where I cued "otto" and wasn't centered on the mat, so she slipped. I'm guessing that has soured her on them in this location.
Training "west" video - She started with plenty of "otto", but then didn't want to do it anymore. I tried maneuvering her into "west" to reward it while repeating the cue. I also had her do it a couple of times by starting with "around" and then stopping her in position. We did a second short session and she seemed to be getting it. We are working on this at home, feeding in position a LOT.
Resistance video - I was telling J'Anna about a way I teach loose leash walking and did a little demo for her. Basically the dog has to resist the food on the floor to get the food on the floor. It wasn't much of a demo because Gimme knows it too well.
"Otto" video - This was a short bit to really raise the value of "otto". It would seem to work and then she couldn't do it. I really think I'll have to retrain this from the start in this environment.
For Gimme's clockwise spin simultaneous, I discovered a trick to get it to look better. Gimme doesn't turn as tight clockwise, so my trick was to take a small step away from her as I was turning, to give her more room. It worked like a charm.
I am finding between the seizure issue and our summer-from-hell, my wonderful Gimme is not as bold as she used to be. This makes me sad.
Thursday, December 12, 2019
Nosework class (4/41)
Usually we do a lot more container searches (i.e. indoor searches) when the weather is rainy and cold, but Dorothy wanted to take advantage of the cold for exterior and vehicle searches. The class focus was elevated hides.
Exterior search video - This search demonstrated how scent sometimes arcs out from a high location leaving a large dead space under the arc. Gimme loves elevated hides, so the challenge was the abnormal arc-affect. She's smarter than the other dogs, so she finds it faster than they did, but it was still slower than normal.
Watch Gimme and you'll see she finds the scent 4' from where it is and then is challenged to find the high hide at 4' high. If you watch her on the first hide, you'll see she practically draws a half circle 4' around the hide location. Pretty interesting to see. She goes almost straight to the second hide once she realized she was gonna get to "go high".
Vehicle search video - Fortunately the hide was on the side of the truck closest to the street light, so you can see what is happening. Gimme found this very quickly - 9 seconds.
Interior search video - Gimme takes a straight line from the start line to the hide location high on the cart. Look how far it is and she just knew it was there. Note she's not the least bit concerned by the movement of the stool or cart - Parkour rules... It took her 6 seconds to get to where the hide is and just 3 seconds to source it. Awesome girl.
I keep thinking Gimme should learn to take her time finding hides to "get our money's worth". She said her need to get a chicken nugget is more important than my money's worth.
Exterior search video - This search demonstrated how scent sometimes arcs out from a high location leaving a large dead space under the arc. Gimme loves elevated hides, so the challenge was the abnormal arc-affect. She's smarter than the other dogs, so she finds it faster than they did, but it was still slower than normal.
Watch Gimme and you'll see she finds the scent 4' from where it is and then is challenged to find the high hide at 4' high. If you watch her on the first hide, you'll see she practically draws a half circle 4' around the hide location. Pretty interesting to see. She goes almost straight to the second hide once she realized she was gonna get to "go high".
Vehicle search video - Fortunately the hide was on the side of the truck closest to the street light, so you can see what is happening. Gimme found this very quickly - 9 seconds.
Interior search video - Gimme takes a straight line from the start line to the hide location high on the cart. Look how far it is and she just knew it was there. Note she's not the least bit concerned by the movement of the stool or cart - Parkour rules... It took her 6 seconds to get to where the hide is and just 3 seconds to source it. Awesome girl.
I keep thinking Gimme should learn to take her time finding hides to "get our money's worth". She said her need to get a chicken nugget is more important than my money's worth.
Wednesday, December 11, 2019
Urban Tracking (154)
I received a premium for the Portland Dog Obedience Club's upcoming TDU test (Jan 1st). We got our TD with PDOC, so it'd be nice to let them enjoy the fabulous Miss Gimme, Empress of the Cosmos, again.
On Thursday, December 5th, we met at Auburn Cinema. I asked Nadine to set us a TDU-like track, so I can gauge whether Gimme is ready for a TDU test. This was more like a VST track. Even with Nadine's best efforts, it has a lot more hard-surface than Gimme would see at a TDU. It also occurred to me, we've never run a track this old (1½ hours) on this much pavement. It was cold, damp and only a slight breeze, but it proved a substantial challenge.
Gimme started well on the first leg, zigzagging along it and crossed the first road without hesitation. I'd asked Nadine to run the track up the stairs in case we got a track with stairs, which placed the track end too close to the first corner. Gimme overran the first corner; no doubt drawn in that direction because of the end. When I didn't go with her, Gimme came back and found the turn up the side of the building and had no trouble indicating the sock-article at the corner of the building.
She got to the sidewalk parallel to the back of the building and started into the parking lot, but then came back. She checked every possibility in the area of the red circle, before finally committing to cross the pavement. I was pretty sure the track went across the parking lot, but I wanted her to make the decision, instead of helping her. It took quite awhile.
She turned early for the next turn and followed parallel to the track (about 12' off), along the curb of the landscaping strip. We crossed one island and then she angled out until she rejoined the track and found the eye-glass-case-article just before the corner. She overran the corner a bit, but then came back to find the corner.
She had no trouble with the next turn on the edge of the sidewalk-grass. She did a lovely job following the track on the grass and bark. She sailed along and found the cloth-purse-article in the bushes.
She went out into the parking area and sniffed around, then came back and picked up the track along the curb. The actual track was right up next to the building, about 4' away. She made the next turn without issue and soon found the tiny glove hidden in the grass.
From there she followed the track down the sidewalk. The next turn was up the steps and she seemed to know it was there, but wanted to go around by way of vegetation. There were a dozen people waiting in line for tickets to the movie, including a couple of rowdy young children. She loves children, but in this situation I think she found them distracting and was trying to avoid them. I encouraged her and she went up the stairs and quickly followed along the metal pole railing.
At the end of railing she went straight, toward the building. She didn't find anything there and as she got back to the grass, she picked up the track and drove straight to the last article, a leather glove.
Gimme did well enough, especially considering all the challenges. It took her a half-hour to run this track. If this were a test, I am sure we would have failed - as much me as she. Clearly WE are not ready for a VST, but I still don't know if we are ready for a TDU.
Nadine and I planned to meet at Game Farm tomorrow to see if Gimme is ready for a track more like what we'd see at a TDU test. Unfortunately Nadine has strained her ankle. I'm sending in our entry anyway. We have until Saturday the 22nd to cancel if I want to. So I've "instructed" Nadine to get all better by next Thursday. Cross all the body parts you can spare.
On Thursday, December 5th, we met at Auburn Cinema. I asked Nadine to set us a TDU-like track, so I can gauge whether Gimme is ready for a TDU test. This was more like a VST track. Even with Nadine's best efforts, it has a lot more hard-surface than Gimme would see at a TDU. It also occurred to me, we've never run a track this old (1½ hours) on this much pavement. It was cold, damp and only a slight breeze, but it proved a substantial challenge.Gimme started well on the first leg, zigzagging along it and crossed the first road without hesitation. I'd asked Nadine to run the track up the stairs in case we got a track with stairs, which placed the track end too close to the first corner. Gimme overran the first corner; no doubt drawn in that direction because of the end. When I didn't go with her, Gimme came back and found the turn up the side of the building and had no trouble indicating the sock-article at the corner of the building.
She got to the sidewalk parallel to the back of the building and started into the parking lot, but then came back. She checked every possibility in the area of the red circle, before finally committing to cross the pavement. I was pretty sure the track went across the parking lot, but I wanted her to make the decision, instead of helping her. It took quite awhile.
She turned early for the next turn and followed parallel to the track (about 12' off), along the curb of the landscaping strip. We crossed one island and then she angled out until she rejoined the track and found the eye-glass-case-article just before the corner. She overran the corner a bit, but then came back to find the corner.
She had no trouble with the next turn on the edge of the sidewalk-grass. She did a lovely job following the track on the grass and bark. She sailed along and found the cloth-purse-article in the bushes.
She went out into the parking area and sniffed around, then came back and picked up the track along the curb. The actual track was right up next to the building, about 4' away. She made the next turn without issue and soon found the tiny glove hidden in the grass.
From there she followed the track down the sidewalk. The next turn was up the steps and she seemed to know it was there, but wanted to go around by way of vegetation. There were a dozen people waiting in line for tickets to the movie, including a couple of rowdy young children. She loves children, but in this situation I think she found them distracting and was trying to avoid them. I encouraged her and she went up the stairs and quickly followed along the metal pole railing.
At the end of railing she went straight, toward the building. She didn't find anything there and as she got back to the grass, she picked up the track and drove straight to the last article, a leather glove.
Gimme did well enough, especially considering all the challenges. It took her a half-hour to run this track. If this were a test, I am sure we would have failed - as much me as she. Clearly WE are not ready for a VST, but I still don't know if we are ready for a TDU.
Nadine and I planned to meet at Game Farm tomorrow to see if Gimme is ready for a track more like what we'd see at a TDU test. Unfortunately Nadine has strained her ankle. I'm sending in our entry anyway. We have until Saturday the 22nd to cancel if I want to. So I've "instructed" Nadine to get all better by next Thursday. Cross all the body parts you can spare.
Monday, December 9, 2019
Nosework class (3/41)
Gimme hasn't done much lately and she's missed no opportunity to remind me. We had a few gaps in the nosework schedule. Then Gimme and I missed a nosework class because of my back and we haven't been walking much for the same reason. Missed tracking because of my back and had just one RFE practice. I'm getting better and we're trying to get caught up on walking. This was our first nosework class in a few weeks and I thought Gimme might be too excited to do well. She was indeed excited, but did well anyway.
I will say I wasn't clear on the purpose of this class' exercises. Normally Dorothy explains them very well, but didn't this night.
Container 1 video - This first search was a threshold hide. Gimme overran it, as usual, but must have caught the scent because she turned herself back to it, indicating in just 7¾ seconds. The other instructor said I ran her into the search, causing her to pass odor. I've watched this video repeatedly and don't see any running - I walked fast to keep up with her and have exactly one step, which was faster than a walk, and which was also just as Gimme turned back. I really don't see how we could have done a nicer job of it.
Container 2 video - This was pretty much the same start, me walking as fast as I needed to keep up with her. Gimme had the hide in 7½ seconds. She wasted no time at all.
Container 3 video - This didn't go as fast because my position was between Gimme and the hide at first. I was just thinking about moving outside the row OR getting Gimme to search on the other side of me when Dorothy asked the question. "Where do you want her to search and where could you move yourself?" Before I could reply, Gimme took matters into her own capable paws and went straight to the hide. Gimme is so talented, she really doesn't need my help. Howevah... what other handlers do to help their dogs, I need to learn so I'm not a hindrance. Even with my unintended blocking of odor, Gimme still had the hide in 30 seconds. BTW I did take three "running" steps. I do this to keep the line slack, so Gimme doesn't get an unintended leash correction for hitting the end of the line. I do the same thing in tracking.
Interior 1 video - For this off-leash search all the hides were in the near part of the room and the larger back two-thirds was blank. I really expected Gimme to zoom through the near area and then work her way back to it. Actually Gimme caught the threshold hide from the doorway/startline - stretching her nose toward it (sadly not caught on video) and caught it right away. She circled a little into the back two-thirds, but came back quickly to catch hide two on the black cart. From there she again circled a little deeper into the empty part of the room, but then brought herself back to the black cart. She very briefly paused to see if I'd pay a second time and when I didn't fall for it, went quickly to detail and locate the last hide. She had all three hides in about 1:15... very nice.
She did a nice job in class, despite being cooped up for a couple of weeks and bored out of her mind. She was happy to see Auntie Janice waiting to give her a manicure. I don't really think she likes the manicure, but she loooooves all the peanut butter she gets.
I will say I wasn't clear on the purpose of this class' exercises. Normally Dorothy explains them very well, but didn't this night.
Container 1 video - This first search was a threshold hide. Gimme overran it, as usual, but must have caught the scent because she turned herself back to it, indicating in just 7¾ seconds. The other instructor said I ran her into the search, causing her to pass odor. I've watched this video repeatedly and don't see any running - I walked fast to keep up with her and have exactly one step, which was faster than a walk, and which was also just as Gimme turned back. I really don't see how we could have done a nicer job of it.
Container 2 video - This was pretty much the same start, me walking as fast as I needed to keep up with her. Gimme had the hide in 7½ seconds. She wasted no time at all.
Container 3 video - This didn't go as fast because my position was between Gimme and the hide at first. I was just thinking about moving outside the row OR getting Gimme to search on the other side of me when Dorothy asked the question. "Where do you want her to search and where could you move yourself?" Before I could reply, Gimme took matters into her own capable paws and went straight to the hide. Gimme is so talented, she really doesn't need my help. Howevah... what other handlers do to help their dogs, I need to learn so I'm not a hindrance. Even with my unintended blocking of odor, Gimme still had the hide in 30 seconds. BTW I did take three "running" steps. I do this to keep the line slack, so Gimme doesn't get an unintended leash correction for hitting the end of the line. I do the same thing in tracking.
Interior 1 video - For this off-leash search all the hides were in the near part of the room and the larger back two-thirds was blank. I really expected Gimme to zoom through the near area and then work her way back to it. Actually Gimme caught the threshold hide from the doorway/startline - stretching her nose toward it (sadly not caught on video) and caught it right away. She circled a little into the back two-thirds, but came back quickly to catch hide two on the black cart. From there she again circled a little deeper into the empty part of the room, but then brought herself back to the black cart. She very briefly paused to see if I'd pay a second time and when I didn't fall for it, went quickly to detail and locate the last hide. She had all three hides in about 1:15... very nice.
She did a nice job in class, despite being cooped up for a couple of weeks and bored out of her mind. She was happy to see Auntie Janice waiting to give her a manicure. I don't really think she likes the manicure, but she loooooves all the peanut butter she gets.
Saturday, December 7, 2019
RFE practice (107)
Gimme is finally out of her false pregnancy, so she is nearly back to normal. I was hoping to get some videos to use in our Intermediate/Advanced Skills entry. I let Gimme investigate the environment and very soon she found a toy in the bookshelf, of course. [Gimme was in the other room as I was reviewing this video and when she squeaked the toy in the video, the real Gimme came running to make sure I wasn't playing with her toys again; which is definitely not allowed unless I'm playing with her and the toys.]
Freeshaping video - The goal is for Gimme to put her back feet on the Lazy Susan (LS) and then move her front feet around to create a rear-hand pivot. I started out clicking her for leaving the toy and then clicked when Gimme was close to the LS. The toy proved too alluring, so I had to put it on a higher shelf. In the video it looks like her feet are slipping on the LS, but it's really just turning - the surface is textured. It turns much easier than I anticipated. I noticed Gimme's rear legs were trembling. Because the front legs weren't, I take this as a core strength challenge - as opposed to being afraid. I'm going to shove some fleece in there so it doesn't turn so easy before we try it again. I'm really only using it to build a concept, so there's no reason to do more.
Center front pivot video - This was just a little warm-up we did at the start of her second session. Just to get her brain in gear as we work on segments for the skills test. She always tends to get ahead of me going CCW, so I took it slower, doing tiny slices of a pivot and being careful to be sure she was in position before she got a reward.
"Back" video - We haven't done this in quite awhile and it's clear she's forgotten, so I give her my jacket to use as a target. We did several different variations on this, but couldn't refresh it enough to have something for the skills test. Clearly we'll need to work on it again.
This facility is so much quieter than Pawsabilities, which is both a blessing and a curse. It's definitely preferable to not contend with screeching daycare dogs or a puppy class with toy play right over the divider. On the other hand, it's so quiet - even a little noise is noticeable and distracting.
Freeshaping video - The goal is for Gimme to put her back feet on the Lazy Susan (LS) and then move her front feet around to create a rear-hand pivot. I started out clicking her for leaving the toy and then clicked when Gimme was close to the LS. The toy proved too alluring, so I had to put it on a higher shelf. In the video it looks like her feet are slipping on the LS, but it's really just turning - the surface is textured. It turns much easier than I anticipated. I noticed Gimme's rear legs were trembling. Because the front legs weren't, I take this as a core strength challenge - as opposed to being afraid. I'm going to shove some fleece in there so it doesn't turn so easy before we try it again. I'm really only using it to build a concept, so there's no reason to do more.
Center front pivot video - This was just a little warm-up we did at the start of her second session. Just to get her brain in gear as we work on segments for the skills test. She always tends to get ahead of me going CCW, so I took it slower, doing tiny slices of a pivot and being careful to be sure she was in position before she got a reward.
"Back" video - We haven't done this in quite awhile and it's clear she's forgotten, so I give her my jacket to use as a target. We did several different variations on this, but couldn't refresh it enough to have something for the skills test. Clearly we'll need to work on it again.
This facility is so much quieter than Pawsabilities, which is both a blessing and a curse. It's definitely preferable to not contend with screeching daycare dogs or a puppy class with toy play right over the divider. On the other hand, it's so quiet - even a little noise is noticeable and distracting.
Monday, December 2, 2019
Thanksgiving Walk
On Thanksgiving I hoped to meet Nadine for tracking in the morning, but it didn't work out. So, I took Gimme for a 2½ mile walk around the perimeter of Flaming Geyser Park before going to Mom's for the family get together. Here's some photos from our little excursion.
She loves her sniffing...
Thursday, November 21, 2019
Nosework class (2/41)
Vehicle search video - Gimme went right to the first hide, sniffed with interest and then left it. As she got to the back bumper, she went back and forth between the two truck bumpers. Then went back up to the step at the front door and alerted. Then she went around to the far side of the white vehicle, until she got to the front bumper and alerted at the license plate. From there I gave her far too much time to investigate the back half of the white boom truck. She gave me some looks, as if to see if I would pay her, but it wasn't "the look". I don't know why she was interested in the back end of the boom truck, but at least she didn't give me a false alert.
Interior 1 search video - The first interior search (on leash) was of three carts in the little foyer - set up to be purposely crowded. It took Gimme a bit to find the first hide on the beige cart, because she was inhibited at first by where I was standing. When I moved on a little bit, then she got right in and indicated. She went around a bit but wasn't settling anywhere, so I called "finished" and was wrong. When I gave her more time, she alerted on the red cart. She had shown a little interest there, but not an alert. Handling in such a crowded area is hard because the line snags on stuff. Also it's very challenging to strike the right balance between staying far enough away to allow the dog room to work and being close enough to be supportive.
Interior 2 search video - This search was in the tiny bathroom, with a large tub and wheelchair added to make it crowded. Gimme quickly got the hide on the tub. I tried to get her in the space between the tub/wheelchair and the sink and it was challenging. She did finally get in there and then immediately left. She's not normally inhibited by crowded spaces, so I think she knew there was nothing else to find there.
Interior 3 search video - The last search was the whole big room. We were instructed to not tell the dog what to do. Case in point being all the times I tell Gimme, "Thank you, find another one". Gimme rushed in and found the first hide on the green tub in 13 seconds. She finds the second hide on a chair in 5 seconds. She finds the third hide on the red tub in 9 seconds. Hide four on another chair took just 5 seconds. The fifth hide on another chair took 14 seconds. The sixth hide took 18 seconds. Finding the seventh hide took 30 seconds.
When Gimme went back to hides I knew she'd done, Dorothy encouraged me to ask her "are there any more?" It was interesting to see how easily Gimme moved on when asked. This probably makes great sense to her because it's so similar to when I ask "Is this the good track?" in tracking. We also saw her start checking hides she'd already indicated and then moving on by herself. It was cool.
This was a great class and interesting. Unfortunately this week (11/19) Gimme had to miss class. I've wrenched my back and can't do much of anything. I can drive and such, but if Gimme pulled on the line (as she so often does in nosework) it would be very painful for me, which might negatively affect her confidence. We also skipped tracking today (11/21), for the same reason, plus Nadine sprained her ankle.
Interior 1 search video - The first interior search (on leash) was of three carts in the little foyer - set up to be purposely crowded. It took Gimme a bit to find the first hide on the beige cart, because she was inhibited at first by where I was standing. When I moved on a little bit, then she got right in and indicated. She went around a bit but wasn't settling anywhere, so I called "finished" and was wrong. When I gave her more time, she alerted on the red cart. She had shown a little interest there, but not an alert. Handling in such a crowded area is hard because the line snags on stuff. Also it's very challenging to strike the right balance between staying far enough away to allow the dog room to work and being close enough to be supportive.
Interior 2 search video - This search was in the tiny bathroom, with a large tub and wheelchair added to make it crowded. Gimme quickly got the hide on the tub. I tried to get her in the space between the tub/wheelchair and the sink and it was challenging. She did finally get in there and then immediately left. She's not normally inhibited by crowded spaces, so I think she knew there was nothing else to find there.
Interior 3 search video - The last search was the whole big room. We were instructed to not tell the dog what to do. Case in point being all the times I tell Gimme, "Thank you, find another one". Gimme rushed in and found the first hide on the green tub in 13 seconds. She finds the second hide on a chair in 5 seconds. She finds the third hide on the red tub in 9 seconds. Hide four on another chair took just 5 seconds. The fifth hide on another chair took 14 seconds. The sixth hide took 18 seconds. Finding the seventh hide took 30 seconds.
When Gimme went back to hides I knew she'd done, Dorothy encouraged me to ask her "are there any more?" It was interesting to see how easily Gimme moved on when asked. This probably makes great sense to her because it's so similar to when I ask "Is this the good track?" in tracking. We also saw her start checking hides she'd already indicated and then moving on by herself. It was cool.
This was a great class and interesting. Unfortunately this week (11/19) Gimme had to miss class. I've wrenched my back and can't do much of anything. I can drive and such, but if Gimme pulled on the line (as she so often does in nosework) it would be very painful for me, which might negatively affect her confidence. We also skipped tracking today (11/21), for the same reason, plus Nadine sprained her ankle.
Tuesday, November 19, 2019
RFE practice (106)
Gimme was still deep in her false pregnancy during this practice, so most of what I did centered around having fun and rewarding focus. The signs were set up for a course J'Anna and Ginger were entered under.
Heeling warm-up video - This started out well and when she did a nice bit, I threw a toy for her, unfortunately as I tried to grab it for tugging, I managed to poke her eye. I was able to get her to play briefly, but then she got really uncertain about it. It took a couple different rounds with different toys to get her to play enthusiastically. Then we did a couple quick warm-up sequences and ended.
Join-up video - My thought with this was to remove any pressure and reward her for choosing to come to/with me. It takes her 35 seconds to make the first choice. The next time was 9 seconds. In 1:30 she was choosing to stay with me.
Set-up and play video - While she understands "set-up", she's gotten fuzzy on the part about getting her heiney fully into a sit; she's hovering in a half-sit. I want to practice this at home. We just did 3 reps and then went to play some more with Terry Pterodactyl. She loves it when I make growly noises and come after her with monster hands. We also did a few click/treats for "release" of the toy. Mostly she gets the toy, but sometimes I want her to let me have it too.
Miscellaneous video - We did just over a minute of miscellaneous behaviors and heeling, then played for almost 2 minutes. Then back to work for a minute, followed by more play. Right now, while deep in a false pregnancy, play creates more energy and focus than food does. It probably always does, but we need more energy during the false pregnancy.
Session 3 warm-up video - Here's a 1½ minute warm-up. Gimme starts pretty loose, but then gets better.
We ended with some more play-work-play and then I let Gimme "win" the toy and take it to the car. I was really pleased to get this amount of play after the unfortunate eye-poke as we started training.
Since then she's pretty much gone out of her false pregnancy, so I expect her to be closer to normal at the next practice. It might take a couple practices before she becomes her usual self.
Heeling warm-up video - This started out well and when she did a nice bit, I threw a toy for her, unfortunately as I tried to grab it for tugging, I managed to poke her eye. I was able to get her to play briefly, but then she got really uncertain about it. It took a couple different rounds with different toys to get her to play enthusiastically. Then we did a couple quick warm-up sequences and ended.
Join-up video - My thought with this was to remove any pressure and reward her for choosing to come to/with me. It takes her 35 seconds to make the first choice. The next time was 9 seconds. In 1:30 she was choosing to stay with me.
Set-up and play video - While she understands "set-up", she's gotten fuzzy on the part about getting her heiney fully into a sit; she's hovering in a half-sit. I want to practice this at home. We just did 3 reps and then went to play some more with Terry Pterodactyl. She loves it when I make growly noises and come after her with monster hands. We also did a few click/treats for "release" of the toy. Mostly she gets the toy, but sometimes I want her to let me have it too.
Miscellaneous video - We did just over a minute of miscellaneous behaviors and heeling, then played for almost 2 minutes. Then back to work for a minute, followed by more play. Right now, while deep in a false pregnancy, play creates more energy and focus than food does. It probably always does, but we need more energy during the false pregnancy.
Session 3 warm-up video - Here's a 1½ minute warm-up. Gimme starts pretty loose, but then gets better.
We ended with some more play-work-play and then I let Gimme "win" the toy and take it to the car. I was really pleased to get this amount of play after the unfortunate eye-poke as we started training.
Since then she's pretty much gone out of her false pregnancy, so I expect her to be closer to normal at the next practice. It might take a couple practices before she becomes her usual self.
Urban (153) & Field tracking (60)
On November 7th, Nadine and I met at Auburn Cinema for tracking. It was cool and the ground was damp, with no real breeze.I laid out an article circle. Gimme was a little slow to start, but then aced it through to the end. The second-to-the-last article was a plastic switch plate. Between the time Cricket ran the track and when Gimme ran it, someone ran over it and smashed it to pieces, spreading the pieces out. Gimme was only momentarily unsure about what to do, but then indicated the largest remaining piece.
Nadine laid an elongated dog's head track for Gimme. In an aerial view it looks more like an anteater. When Gimme got to the nose where the track went forward the week before, she went across to check out the other side, but then came back and made the turn neatly. I don't know if she remembered or if she could still smell the old track a little. I do know when she was much younger she managed to find a pair of sunglasses on one of the Fort Lewis ranges, which had been out there for a couple of weeks, so I don't discount her smelling the old track a week later. In any case, from there to the end of the track she did a great job. She was very happy to find a toy as her last article - which she decided to keep.On November 14th, we met at Flaming Geyser. Nadine wanted to try an exercise she'd done many years ago with Skookum. When she did it, she had a group of 8 friends follow her in a straight line from the start, then she turned 90º in one direction, while they all turned the opposite direction. The test was to see if the dog could still follow the original track.
For our track we both walked the first leg, me first, then Nadine. Then at the top and out in the open, I turned 90º right (red line) and she turned 90º left (green line). Cricket ran the exercise first and had no problem - she briefly checked a few feet down Nadine's leg, but then turned back and stuck with my track.When Gimme ran it, she first tried to turn right. When I didn't go with her she continued to search around me in a circle and when she found the leg to the left with Nadine's scent she went with it - tracking to the end. Technically Gimme was correct to want to go to the right, since that track had newer-Nadine smell from when she ran Cricket on it.
We are going to do this exercise again, but will do two completely different track sets, so the dog doesn't get misleading training. I also think it might be a good idea to lay a track where the contamination layer joins the track a short distance after the tracklayer starts, so the dog has both the start article and a section of track to work from.
Thursday, November 14, 2019
Nosework class (6/40 & 1/41)
On October 29th we did all our nosework searches in the dark. We've done this every year just before Halloween. We dress up the dogs in glow-in-the-dark necklaces and bracelets and there are some glow sticks around the area. I've had videos turn out in a minimal way before, but this year the camera wouldn't even focus. Actually there was more light this time because they had two strings of lighted jack-o-lanterns and skeletons. I think they provided enough light to "confuse" the camera, so we didn't get anything usable.
In any case, Gimme did fine, as she always has. She just motors around and finds the hides, then tries to get my attention. As we repeated the searches, I learned to "read" her necklaces, so I could sorta tell what she was doing.
On November 5th we had a fun series of interior searches. We had to break up all our treats into tiny pieces, so we'd have enough. The idea was to continue rewarding our dog for 30 seconds and we were being timed. Naturally Gimme thought this was a great idea.
Interior 1 search video - This first search of just one hide was in the foyer. Gimme went right to the tub, but it took her a bit to decide exactly where the hide was. Most of the time for this search was spent rewarding Gimme.
Interior 2 search video - This search was in the front of the room, separated from the back two-thirds by ex-pens. Gimme found the hide in less than 10 seconds. Again she enjoyed the prolonged reward strategy.
Container 1 search video - This search was on leash with one hide. Gimme noticed the thing on the cable, which will later be part of a high hide search. She was the only one to notice it without the hide actually being there. She found the container hide soon after.
Interior 3 search video - There is just one high hide in the front part of the room. Gimme immediately runs to the other end to check the boxes where she last found a hide. She finds the hide in 55 seconds. We were still supposed to prolong the rewarding as much as we could and as close to the hide as possible, so I had her put her feet on me.
Interior 4 search video - Again just one high hide, but in the back part of the room. Gimme found it very quickly, 20 second faster than the prior high hide search. This is the one she saw during the container search. The only dog in class with comparable skill level is August and his nose is already a foot closer to the high hides.
I was glad to see Gimme doing so well in class despite motherhood. She usually does well despite her condition, but sometimes I see a little less focus. I love to see her having fun.
In any case, Gimme did fine, as she always has. She just motors around and finds the hides, then tries to get my attention. As we repeated the searches, I learned to "read" her necklaces, so I could sorta tell what she was doing.
On November 5th we had a fun series of interior searches. We had to break up all our treats into tiny pieces, so we'd have enough. The idea was to continue rewarding our dog for 30 seconds and we were being timed. Naturally Gimme thought this was a great idea.
Interior 1 search video - This first search of just one hide was in the foyer. Gimme went right to the tub, but it took her a bit to decide exactly where the hide was. Most of the time for this search was spent rewarding Gimme.
Interior 2 search video - This search was in the front of the room, separated from the back two-thirds by ex-pens. Gimme found the hide in less than 10 seconds. Again she enjoyed the prolonged reward strategy.
Container 1 search video - This search was on leash with one hide. Gimme noticed the thing on the cable, which will later be part of a high hide search. She was the only one to notice it without the hide actually being there. She found the container hide soon after.
Interior 3 search video - There is just one high hide in the front part of the room. Gimme immediately runs to the other end to check the boxes where she last found a hide. She finds the hide in 55 seconds. We were still supposed to prolong the rewarding as much as we could and as close to the hide as possible, so I had her put her feet on me.
Interior 4 search video - Again just one high hide, but in the back part of the room. Gimme found it very quickly, 20 second faster than the prior high hide search. This is the one she saw during the container search. The only dog in class with comparable skill level is August and his nose is already a foot closer to the high hides.
I was glad to see Gimme doing so well in class despite motherhood. She usually does well despite her condition, but sometimes I see a little less focus. I love to see her having fun.
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