Class Course - June 9, 2010 Red Ticket Night

I mentioned in an earlier blog that this past week was Red Ticket Night. Click here for details.

In keeping with Red Ticket Night, the course wasn't overly technical, but instead allowed handlers to focus on skills and criteria they had previously set for themselves.

Regardless, there were some challenging parts on the course, especially for our beginner dogs.

The first part was between #3-4. It gave the dogs an opportunity to get used to handlers converging on their path while they were taking the #3 jump. It also gave dogs the opportunity to check-in with their handler's direction and not assume they were heading up the BIG a-frame.

My favorite part of this course is from the triple jump up the a-frame.

It's been my experience that often times handlers don't realize or understand how to embrace their dog's natural jumping extension over the triple jump. In this case, their natural extension will take most dogs out far enough to give them a nice approach to the a-frame (note: small or longer backed dogs may need the handler to move in toward the landing side of the triple to ensure the dog doesn't cut in too early toward the a-frame). If anyone is interested, I'm happy to go into more detail on this sequence. Feel free to ask.

The next section had handlers pulling in too early for the weaves and their dog would by-pass jump #8.

In the next section, handers were able to practice independent weave poles which were very helpful in achieving the next straight line of jumps.

As for what handlers worked on, some worked on handling, some on their contact work, some on independent weave poles and others on reinforcing their dogs for keeping the jumps up. The fun of the classes was reinforcing all of the good behaviors and decisions the handlers and the dogs made.

Red Ticket Night in Class

For this week's agility classes, I wanted to do something a little different. A game. Something that involved a little friendly competition. A creative way to encourage people to focus on the successful agility decisions they make while out on course. Something FUN.

And this is how Red Ticket Night was born.

The goal for each person in class was to earn as many red tickets as they could and the winner was the person holding the most red tickets by the end of the hour. The prize? They got to blindly pick from a bag full of doggy goodies.

Earning a red ticket was easy. At the end of their initial run, they had an opportunity to tell the class what went RIGHT. For each good point mentioned, they earned a ticket. After they were done, anyone who added a positive point not mentioned would receive a red ticket for their input.

Since I also encourage my students to actively work to continue to improve, we implemented the "Goal Rule" which was another way to earn a red ticket. Basically, it was okay to say "I'm going to make it a goal to work on ____ (fill in the blank)" however, if they said a negative statement (i.e. our weave poles were terrible), they lost a ticket.

The course I set up was a fast, flowing course with some handling places, but contained no real surprises. This gave everyone an equal opportunity to focus on skills they already had and to work through any individual issues or goals that had been identified in the past. The course allowed dogs to run and feel a sense of accomplishment and the red tickets set the stage for a positive and successful mind set for the handler. Oh yes, let's not forget the healthy competition and the surprise reward at the end as an incentive for all.

Yeap, the feedback was positive and I know I'm going to have to bring back Red Ticket Night at some point in the future!

Class Course - Sept 2&3, 2009

This week's course was inspired by a challenging exercise I'd been asked to do about 5 years ago.

The sequence I'm referring to is the 6 jumps in the middle of the course that are set up in 2 straight lines. Seems simple, right? : ) Yeah, those who know me know better than that!

Well, I decided to add a bit of additional excitement to this challenge by turning this into a strict jumpers course. By taking out the weaves and using just jumps and a tunnel, this turned into a very fast paced course where everyone needs to be on their toes to be timely - even if their dog isn't the most speedy pup out there.

Another benefit of having a fast paced course is it forces handlers to work on distance. Distance makes for some unique challenges as timeliness and communication are even more important! In this case, body language after the tunnel were key...come to class and I'll be more specific

This is a fun course and the middle challenge certainly is enhanced with the speed. Give it a try and enjoy!

Class Course - Aug 26 & 27, 2009

Last week we pushed out to the #2 jump and this week we pulled to the take-off side. It was nice to compare and contrast the handling for these options.

Another skill that seemed a bit lacking was the turn away from the handler from #6 to the #7 tunnel. A great skill for dogs from beginner through advanced to work or have a refresher on.

Additionally, being my sneaky little self, I put in a rear cross at #8 which worked the opposite side as we did last week at this same jump (but going a different direction).

Remember, if you learn a skill, work it on both sides : )

Lisa

Class Course - Aug 18 & 19, 2009

This was last week's class course. I'll admit, I threw out the numbered cones and when I came back to practice with my own young dog, was VERY surprised by the challenge I had created in #1 - #6. Actually, I liked it!

Before introducing this course to class, I worked on the beginning sequences with my young and inexperienced dog, Ru. Working with a young dog on a tough sequence really forces me to break the challenge down into manageable parts and I feel makes me a better trainer when it comes to teaching my students.

When I initially started this sequence, I considered keeping Ru on my left and doing a R/C at #4 and another at #5. Seriously, this wasn't so smooth or natural feeling, which surprised me! What I did come up with is marked on the course in both a red path and boxes to outline the steps at each phase.

First, I lead out to #2. After releasing my dog, I faced her path and pushed her out to the take off side of #2 and then F/C to ensure she would take the jump. Next, I found that with practice, she was very reliable on the push out and so I was able to leave a bit earlier to ensure I was ahead of her as she landed after the #3 jump, which put me in a great spot to cue #4 and ultimately #5 - which included a R/C so the dog landed going to the right of the jump. By staying still for just a moment, it allowed my dog to curl in tightly over the right side of the #5 stanchion which set up an amazing line for the weave poles.

Numbers 7 - 20 were much easier and were practiced with both front crosses and rear crosses to keep our skills fresh.

Practice the opening sequence, you may find the subtle body language between #1 & 2, very interesting : )

Lisa

Class Course - July 22 & 23, 2009

This week I thought I'd do a course featuring contacts and a whole lot of other stuff going on.

I lulled my students into a sense of confidence by using the first 4 jumps from last week's opening sequence, but put the table out there as an appealing off-course option.

This is a good refresher for my advanced folks on the art of 'pulling' while still moving forward and it's a great opportunity to introduce the younger pups to multiple body language cues (i.e. the pull AND forward motion). I think this is a long lost skill not mentioned in the latest of handling systems that personally, I think is a fancy term for basics and allows the marketing wheels to churn and offers a place for cash to flow. But, that's just my opinion although I'm getting the sense that people are getting bored with the whole topic.

Back to the course...the contact obstacle placement and course flow gave handlers an opportunity to see whose dogs really knew their contact performance and whose dogs were dependent on their handlers for correct placement. It was an eye-opener to many and gave us a chance to work on 'the fix' and give each appropriate homework.

The superstar on Wednesday was Beth and Cassey. Beth semi-recently had 2 partial knee replacements so part of her lesson each week includes a reminder on how to appropriately use her body and how to run. Remember, she's spent the last decade compensating for knees that wouldn't bend and has really embraced the learning curve on body usage & placement. It showed on Wednesday when she kicked butt and had several absolutely gorgeous moves that I wish I would have been able to video. Kudos to this team for not only getting out there for the mental challenge, but for the physical one as well.

Weave Exercise - July 15 & 16, 2009

After having come back from judging in Louisiana, were the weave-pole performance was to die for, I decided to setup a nice little weave exercise for my class last week.

When folks first saw my concoction, there were definitely moments of shock, which then turned to dismay and a few who said it looked like I had puked up a few weaves and then tossed in some jumps . But as usual, there is a method to my madness...

The spacing on this course is intentionally tight for two reasons. First, it allowed the baby dogs to stay focused and not get too far ahead of their owners. Second, it forced the experienced dogs to collect.

There was plenty of flow through this course and the speed was anything but slow which forced handlers to be right-on with their timing and cues.

Since spacing was tighter, I required my advanced folks to stay ahead of their dogs. This included:

• a front-cross between #5 & 6,
• handlers to be in the middle of the #8 weaves so the dog had to find their entry with the handler 3+ poles ahead (a great skill we don't often practice)
• a TIMELY front-cross between #10 & #11 requiring handlers to pick-up their dog immediately and wrap them around the last pole
• to have the handler be ahead and between the #12 & #13 obstacle so the dog had to seek out the #12 jump
• I did require a rear-cross after the #15 weaves to the #16 jump AND
• a well executed & timely rear-cross between #17 & 18 which resulted in the dog wrapping to the right of #18 and still make the #19 weave entry

There certainly were a ton of skills going on here and a multitude of weave pole entries to boot!

A couple of side notes. The #8 & #10 weaves were also channel weaves to help my baby dogs out a bit (although we didn't open them up more than 2 inches) and once folks were timely with their cues, the teams did GREAT and had a ton of fun!

Class Course - April 15, 2009

This course is courtesy of someone, unfortunately I don't know who! Except for a few minor details, this was the setup when I arrived on Wednesday evening, so I used it. : )

While the course wasn't hard, it did point out a few training holes for some of my students. Most notably was the serpentine at the start. I think part of the challenge was the lack of momentum starting this sequence and the handler's urge to move & run prematurely.

Several handlers attempted to start this sequence on the landing side of #1, but facing the #2 jump. They were surprised when their dog failed to take the first jump and moved in between #1 & #2. This was easily resolved by having the handler shift their hips so they were facing #1 and drawing the dog onto the correct path.

Another issue that occurred was that handlers began to move too soon and the dog's came over the first jump, but went between jump #1 & 2 as the handler turned toward their left to run down the line and get to the landing side of #3. This was another easy fix where the handler's shoulders stayed facing the 3 jumps.

Several handlers were stuck in a pattern of repeating the same mistakes mentioned above and so that signaled me it was time to change things up a bit to get them thinking differently. These handlers needed assistance to understand how their body language cues their dog and so, I had each handler run #1 - 7 with either their hands to their side or behind their back.  It's amazing how taking away the swinging arms forced handlers to concentrate on their shoulders and hips to relay information to their dogs.

This worked out beautifully and also made the teams successful. For the heck of it, why not try this yourself? It's and eye opener!

On a personal note, I ran Ru for a few minutes last night and was VERY pleased with her enthusiasm.  As she gets more confident, her speed is increasing and last night I finally got a glimpse at what I'll be working with. As hoped, she's going to be a fast little thing and I'm going to have to start working a bit of distance now. I also need to go back and work my contacts. While she wasn't blowing them, I'm hell bent to be very specific about my criteria and that's what I need to hold myself accountable to.

The next few days are supposed to be nice out so I'm hoping to get some more practice time in with her.

Class Course Analysis - March 18, 2009

One of the things I like about this class lesson is the funky lines in the beginning. 

While the dog's path between #1 & the weave poles looks straight on, in reality (on our course), the entry to the weaves wasn't so straight on so students had to be sure to work the entry.

We also worked to get the dog to wrap tightly around the left stanchion on jump #3 on its way to jump #4. We then pushed dogs to jump #5 and allowed them a wide turn for a better approach to the #6 weaves while the handler did a front cross.

The next series of obstacles that was a fun challenge was #10 to #16. After the a-frame, folks did a front cross to send the dogs to jump #10. There was a mere 12' here so the spacing was small and needed to be precise.

After the front cross, handlers were encouraged to RUN and push the dogs to jump #12 rather than go into that corner pocket. After the dog took #12, handlers were encouraged to turn and RUN to stay in front of the dog. The ultimate goal was to do a front cross between #15 & #16.  The front cross turned into the greatest challenge, not because people couldn't make it down there, but they had to fight the urge to jump in toward the #15 jump which tended to push the dog into the tunnel.

Instead, handlers needed to be patient and do the front cross closer toward jump #16. Once the front cross was taken, it put the handler in a great position to handle the remaining part of the course.

The last challenge was going from the #19 tunnel to the #20 tunnel. The 5' of space from the exit to the entrance forced handlers to really work the last tunnel and not take it for granted.

This was a runners course!!!! : )

Class Course - March 11, 2009

While designing this course, I thought I'd be creative and add 2 sets of weaves in the same area. I'll admit, I was secretly hoping I'd get a few worried looks from students who might be concerned their dog would be confused.  Well, I certainly was disappointed and thrilled with how everyone handled the challenge without a moment of doubt - Joke was on me !

The next challenge was to stay ahead of the dog and execute efficient front crosses between 8 & 9, 9 & 10 and 12 & 13.  

This required students to send their dog, refrain from going down to the obstacle, trust their dog, work on body language, plan their front crosses & RUN!

Have fun with this course!

Class Course - March 4, 2009

For class course challenges, I often take the course from a previous week, make some interesting changes by adding in what I feel is a great skill to be practicing and keep a few things the same. Of course my students don't realize there is a plan to my madness and they come in thinking "Oh, this is just like last week..." WRONG!

Each week I want to challenge my students to think and not become complacent.  However, at the same time, I want them to recognize patterns and to tackle them with confidence. That's why along with the new challenges, I will often keep similar sequences from prior weeks so they have an opportunity to run them again and solidify their skill.  This helps the skill become ingrained & become a natural part of their skill set.

Check out last week's course as compared to this week's course to see the differences.

On this week's course, I made a few subtle changes such as a  chute, a serpentine (which happens to be taken twice from two different angles) and I adjusted the #9 jump and the #11 & #12 jumps so that the angles were more exaggerated.

After running the course, here are the skills I had each team work on:

1. Leading out to the end of the chute, making eye contact with the dog and using their lead hand, to "draw" the path from the jump to the chute entrance.
2. Picking up the dog on the right side after the chute and sending them to the #3 jump.  Most handlers wanted to immediately start turning toward the #4 jump prior to the dog's commitmet and needed to be reminded to have their shoulders facing #3, to have their weight on their right leg and to be supporting the jump with their right arm.
3. In the #3 to #4 serpentine, handlers need to be sure to call the dog over #4 by dropping their right hand to their BACK (in this case, right) leg.  Be sure not to lean forward, which encourages the dog to by-pass #4 (not what you want).
4. Send the dog up to the #7 jump and do a Front Cross closer to the a-frame vs. a F/C closer to the #7 jump which results in a bad angle to the a-frame for the dog (although an experienced dog should be able to compensate).
5. Be sure to push up to and support the #9 jump.  Check out the handler path I've posted in green - it's different from the real world where most handlers chose to follow their dog down to the end of the teeter.  This is where independent contacts come in handy and I highly recommend you teach them to your dog (this also means you need a clear criteria of what the contact performance should be) so that you can stay out of the pocket after the teeter and put yourself in a better place to manage jump #11 & 12.  By staying out of the pocket, handlers are able to get themselves to the landing side of the #11 jump, which provides a clear and smooth path for the sequences' to come.
6. The next challenge was #18-20.  There are several ways to work this sequence.  Wed's classes worked it with front crosses & Thurs' classes worked it by using a post turn and then a f/c so they picked the dog up on their right and pulled them between the serpentine jumps.

Class Course - Feb 25, 2009

This course is a take-off from an exercise from the Stacy Peardot-Goudy Novice seminar Ru & I attended.  The main difference from Stacy's course was that she had another tunnel approximately where the #10 & #11 jumps are located.

The biggest challenges were:

1) #3 to #4 (people didn't drive down to the tunnel exit to pick up their dog - remember, where the dog's head goes, the rest of the body will follow. Get the dog's head turned toward the #4 jump, don't assume they're going to automatically turn into you especially since they see the dog-walk as they exit the tunnel.

2) #13, #14 & #15 - If handlers met the dog at the end of the #13 tunnel, they were behind for the straight line of jumps coming next on the course which resulted in dogs curling in toward the a-frame.  

The key to this sequence is to push the dog into the tunnel, stay on the right side of the jumps (dog on left), get yourself to the landing side of #14 while keeping your left lead hand pointed over the jump and at the dog (so you're looking over your shoulder) and to make eye contact with your dog as they came out of the tunnel - these two strong signals are a clear indicator to the dog of your expected path). As the dog moves toward the #14 jump, the handler can execute a front cross between #14 & #15 and move down the line toward #16.

3) The next challenging place on the course was #18 - #20.  An earlier front cross before the a-frame should easily put the handler on the other side of the a-frame (dog now on left) and ahead of the dog.  By being ahead of the dog at the #19 jump, the handler can cue an "early" (code word for TIMELY) front cross prior to the dog taking off for the jump and by using the right hand, which indicates the side the handler will be picking the dog up on upon completion of the course.  

Immediately after picking the dog up on the right, the handler must FULLY turn to the left and commit their movement to the tunnel so the dog isn't left wondering if they're going back up the a-frame of to another obstacle on the way to the tunnel.

This last sequence is a true test as to what our shoulders are saying.

4) Last, but not least, handlers need to drive down to the end of the weave poles, especially since the poles are heading toward a wall.  When heading into a wall, dogs tend to pull-up and handlers can't afford to do the same.

Overall, this course was run best when handlers chose to be SILENT rather than racing to throw out verbal command after verbal command.  Running the course using mainly body language allows handlers to focus on the task & skill needed in the moment since this was a fast moving course that required handling.  Verbal "here's" and "come" wasn't going to cut it on this one because there were so many options and so much real estate to cover between obstacle #1 - #22.

Give this course a try and see how it runs for you.  Remember the points mentioned above and thank you Stacy for a wonderful course with a ton of exercises.

Agility Class Course - Jan 28, 2009

Details coming soon.

Agility Class Course - Feb 4, 2009

Details coming soon.

Agility Class Course - Feb 11, 2009. Where's the Best Path?

When first looking at this course, the optimal path isn't immediately clear.  As a matter of a fact, it's not clear at all!  

Most handlers put in a pinwheel in the beginning, attempted a push to the jump after the tunnel, maybe a rear cross to the jump prior to the tunnel and on it went.  Lots of fancy foot work and a ton more praying that it would have the desired effect on the dog.

I've attempted to put the optimal path down to the left, the first part is done in red and the second part is done in green.

The goal for this path was to decrease the handler standing time, to decrease the fancy footwork, to increase the dog's speed and clarity of the path being created for them and to keep it FUN.

By starting with the dog on your right, pushing up to the jump after the teeter and immediately working via a straight line down to the tunnel entrance, you're trusting your dog to take jump #4 so the handler can execute a timely front cross at the tunnel entrance.  This path also allows the handler to get down in between jump 6 & 7 for another front cross.

What is key to this front cross is to begin execution as you are in front of the jump up right on the LEFT side of the jump and pull down to jump #7 (don't just "cross" the dog's path as that puts your motion heading toward the wall that the dog walk is on (wrong direction!). In other words, move from the left of jump #6, down to the right of jump #7 in this pattern " \ " and not like this " - ".  Clear as mud?

From the table, push to #9 and then treat 9-11 like a serpentine.  The same with #15 - 17.  Push down to the dog walk contact, don't hesitate to go in a little deep here and then pull back, treating the next few obstacles like a serpentine as well.  Remember to face your shoulders toward the dog and have your hand back behind you indicating the path.  After all, if your shoulders are facing forward, your dog should run parallel with you and not pull into the desired obstacle.