Have some fun plans for the summer with trick classes, I really do enjoy training new things with the dogs. Also taking an online fitness class with Bobbie, which should be fun too. Summer is actually my dogs least active time, no one likes running around when it’s hot! But 40 degrees and raining, the dogs can go forever. And Heather too! Next week the HOT WEATHER arrives for real. I can’t really complain, that was one cool and wet Spring, I suppose we’re due some sun. Alas.
In Bobbie’s class she was doing some shaping examples and I realized I had never taught any of these dogs a ‘head down’ behavior. So we played with that this week with the assumption that it would make a cute pose for photos (because that’s what it’s all about, right?). I don’t know how cute it actually is, as they look depressed really, but it was fun to do some shaping again. Looking forward to more!
Interesting fallout from the USDAA trial with Navarre, guess who doesn’t collect anymore? I had given him a break after his big agility weekend and had just been playing with Bright this week, but today I wanted to try some serp options after class and Bright was being a weirdo, so I grabbed Navarre. OMG, he was like, “Collection is for sissies – wheeeee!” So, yeah, we just worked on some simple collection work after that. I’m so used to him being so easy! Always something new in agility.
Bright did actually have lots of good stuff, when she’s not just making things up she’s a good girl:
Haku continues to do well with his dumbbell pickups at the arena, though it’s always nice when he does some munching so he has a chance to see what does and does not get rewarded. I don’t think he totally understands what the criteria is, but I think he’s finally realized that there is something about the pick-up. Amazing what being consistent about what you reward can do. A-hem.
Here is some very unexciting footage of us working retrieves that happened to get filmed today. I was actually pleased to see that Navarre looked actually okay, I felt he was giving it about 50% today, we did a lot of food rewards. Really good retrieves get the frisbee, so/so reps get food, pokey reps get him switched with Haku. He was not into weaving through my legs today, but he was still driving fairly well into his fronts, so I kind of let it go. We’re still experimenting to see what works for him. You’d think that if I were more animated, he would find this more interesting – but, surprisingly, that’s not true. Navarre HATES to be ‘jolly-ed’ along, but he does understand the ‘serious Heather predicts fun stuff’ game.
So we have made progress, but his value for the dumbbell isn’t increasing as I’d like to see. It should be a fairly obvious trade, dumbbell = frisbee, and Navarre loves his frisbee! He’s excited to start the exercise, he’s trying very hard, but the dumbbell (and getting the dumbbell back to me) continues to have very little value for him. My current plan is just continuing on this path, as he is much better than he used to be, but I do feel like there continues to be something missing. I think the problem is that Navarre is an individual, he doesn’t learn like my other dogs, but I keep assuming he magically will! Oh, and his heeling was terrible forging again this week, so, hey.
Oregon Dogs 