This was our first RFE practice in the new location. The drive is just over half an hour, significantly shorter than going to Pawsabilities. The training space is a little bit small for videoing RFE course entries. We are supposed to have 40x60 and here we'll only have 38x55. I contacted RFE about the available dimensions and they will allow it. The space seems a lot smaller because the ceiling is so low compared to Pawsabilities. The lighting seems dim too, but it looks good on video.
My goal this first time for Gimme was to just have her get used to the location. I started doing our warm-up routine, but not asking much from her. She was trying, but it was harder for her than Pawsabilities; no surprise. After a bit I just let her sniff around and then engaged her in some food play. I totally forgot to bring toys, which I think might have made a big difference.
Various behaviors video - I started with some simple behaviors, "spin" and "around" Interestingly I found Gimme thinks "thru" only works in groups of 3, not 4. Then we did some simultaneous spins, which she does better on the left than on the right. We did some single "turn" to warm up on the right and then she did a right side simultaneous spin better. "Izzy" went well. We did "around" followed by opposite circles, and then the same with "behind" and opposite circles.
"Away" & "back" video - I should have used my platforms, but I was being lazy. We didn't make much progress. Once I got her going I focused on getting her to "wait" for the cue, which is not her best skill. We finally got a good one, so I rewarded heavily and stopped there.
"Center" 1 video - Since she was having a bit of challenge with her "center" in the "away" & "back" practicing, I decided to put some emphasis on it. She used to be very good at this, but somewhere along the way doing the various pivots, "otto" and "izzy", her understanding of "center" position has gotten lax. Gimme is believes the moving part of behaviors starting in "center" pay better. Obviously I haven't maintained value in the position, so she gravitates to where she gets paid. We know who is at fault. Her listening ears were not in the building.
Sidestep in center video - She did okay with this, but I know she can do better. Since she was having challenges with "center" itself, I didn't belabor this.
Heeling for focus video - I thought we'd just do some voluntary heeling to let her choose to work with me. Added some treat tossing to keep it fun. I see I tend to click when she's been out of position and just as she gets in position. I think I need to aim for those moments when she's been in position for a few steps; otherwise I'm actually rewarding out-of-position-then-in-position as a behavior chain.
Finding "center" video - Just a bit of tossing treats and finding "center" to end things on a fun note.
I have since realized Gimme is deeper in her false pregnancy than I realized. I thought we might skip it altogether, indeed it's coming very late, but it's definitely here. Yesterday she struggled with some very basic stuff here in the living room. Today during our walk she couldn't do "otto", the trick she usually shows off. We have another practice scheduled this week - I'm not expecting much. We'll certainly be sticking with the basics.
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