Agility Journeys

One of my favorite things to do at agility trials is talk about agility journeys.  There are teams out there that have over come some pretty tough stuff from motivational issues to injuries.  Every story is uniquely interesting.  We see a lot of teams who seem to perform flawlessly in the competition ring.  But what we don't always know is what they have been through to get to that point.

My 2011 agility season started off amazing.  Zoe was performing beautifully - she was totally reaching her potential and we were becoming a rock solid team.  She did everything I asked of her and put her whole heart into it.  We went to CPE Nationals, had the time of our lives, and showed very well.  Her first championship title came in August and she was well on her way towards the second.  Then came the teeter issues.  

I will never know what exactly happened, but at some point, she felt that doing the teeter was stressful and not fun anymore.  Instead of driving towards the teeter and executing with confidence, she would put on the brakes well before the teeter and approach it with hesitation.  My first reaction was panic.  I needed to get her ready before the next trial, which was just around the corner.  We worked a bit, I tried to make the teeter fun and exciting, and she started to regain her confidence. Then, just when I thought she was back to normal, we took another step back.  In hindsight, I was pushing her too fast and stressing her out.  At one point, her lack of confidence started to transfer to other things, and that is when I knew I needed to give her more time.  Losing everything you've worked towards is a scary thought.  I realized that if the teeter is her ONLY issue, I am so thankful for that!

So for the past couple of months, we have just focused on classes that don't involve teeters - pretty much everything except standard.  To my relief, she has been the same teammate I had in the beginning of the year - fast, confident, and happy.  She even earned her second C-ATCH this past weekend on a beautiful Jumpers run - she was 10 seconds under time!  I know she will eventually regain her confidence with the teeter, but for now, I will go at her pace.  I hope it won't take too long, but I never want to sacrifice her love for agility.

Photo courtesy of Herreid Photography

As for Breeze, her journey is just starting.  We have had three trials at On the Run Canine Center in the past couple of months and she has done amazing.  Most of the time, her runs have been focused and she is willing to work as a team.  Her confidence has soared and has unfortunately brought on some issues with leaping contacts.  But otherwise, she is responsive, keeps her bars up, and is totally thrilled with running.  Her biggest improvement, however, has been her ability to focus and remain calm before runs.  She is really starting to fall nicely into a trialing routine and is building her stamina.

Photo courtesy of Herreid Photography

For the next month, I plan on taking a trialing break.  After a trial, there is nothing I love more than just letting my dogs be dogs.  They spend so much time in their crates at trials, that I know they are being deprived of energy outlets.  I am looking forward to having time off work this month and spending more time with the girls.  It will be nice to train without the stress of upcoming trials. I hope that 2012 will start as well as 2011 did!  

        

My Special Breeze

Ever knew a kid who tore the tags off of his clothes because they bothered him?  Who had a limited wardrobe because of the way clothes felt?  Perhaps you were that child?  Well, I have one of those children but in canine form.  Breeze LOVES and ADORES human touch and gets rather cuddly at times, but throw something semi-permanent on her fur and she's got a serious problem.  And unfortunately, she falls victim to this sensation every time she gets a bath:

All of the dogs I have ever owned enjoy rubbing on the carpet after a bath, but never one like Breeze.  This girl will throw herself to the ground and flop around like a dying fish for at least 10 minutes until she is somewhat dry.

Fortunately, this usually isn't much of a problem.  A while back I had tried some essential oils to help with some behavioral issues and this was her reaction to putting a drop on her fur.  I don't think it was the smell that got to her - I really think it was the feel of the oil on her fur.  

Anyways, Breeze may be a nut, but that's what makes her special :)

Fall Time Fun

Well, Fall is upon us and thus it is time for leaf raking, brisk mornings, and higher energy dogs.  Yes, it feels like something was slipped in their water dishes because the pups are more active than ever.  They relish this cool weather and their energy will only increase as it gets colder, which is a bummer because it seems like human energy only decreases with the cold.  Either way, I will attempt to keep them both busy this winter.

We had three agility trials last month and only one in October.  Both dogs had their share of success last month.  Zoe finished up a couple of Open NADAC titles and is now working towards her CATE in CPE.  She only has a few runs left to finish her CATCH-2, but I don't think that will happen until next month with our trial schedule.

Breeze's progress has been exponential.  She is learning the show routine and that she gets lavishly rewarded for good behavior and working with me as a team.  She experienced her first trial on dirt and was a great opportunity to practice working through distractions!  Her sequencing is getting better and her drive is increasing as she gets more comfortable in the ring.  Unlike Zoe, she has absolutely no problem being confident on contact obstacles, however, she has also formed a cape on her back and has found the joy in leaving the contacts before she should.  Luckily, this hasn't been a huge problem, but is something that I am focusing extra hard on in training so that she doesn't form bad habits :)

Below is one of Breeze's recent runs.  It was definitely one of the smoother runs, except for the end.  She is now in level 3 in CPE in everything except for two of the games classes.  As thrilled as I am with her progress, I will be taking it slow with her this fall.  She still needs some time to mature and work up the stamina for two day shows.

Travel to La Crosse

So last weekend I took both dogs to La Crosse, WI to trial at Family Dog Center's new arena.  I have gone there many times with Zoe and we love the small atmosphere and the great people there.  This was my first time bringing Breeze and gave me the opportunity to test her hotel manners and see how she did with a full weekend of runs.

The hotel part was easy - Breeze settled in nicely and was not worried about sounds in the hallway, etc and slept nicely through the night.  When Zoe first started traveling, it took her a little while to get used sounds from other people, but now she is fine.

I have to say I learned quite a lot about Breeze at this trial and I have several things to work on now.  One of our biggest challenges is just getting her out to new places.  As with other new places, she started off the day sniffing the arena and completely disregarding the game.  I think we maybe did three obstacles on the first run.  The second run went slightly better.  She sequenced about 6-7 obstacles before I lost her again.  She did her contacts, but her nose was pretty much attached to the contact the whole way.  I am hesitant to say this was all stress related.  She didn't show any signs of stress before the run - it more seemed like blowing me off.  So before the third run, I did some targeting with her and a lot of tricks and obedience.  If she got a little better with each run, I would be happy, but I certainly wasn't expecting and qualifying runs.

The third run was Snooker, which was tough for us because once she did something out of order, we were whistled off the course.  Rather, I would have liked her to be able to do a few things successfully and then leave like in a regular run.  To my surprise, she seemed much more engaged and made it through the whole course without errors.  I was really proud of her and rewarded her to make sure she knew good things happen when she plays as a team.

After that, she was much more engaged.  There were a couple of sniffs here and there, but I was always able to get her back to me and continue the course. The next day started off much better.  She qualified in standard and jackpot and was starting to get the hang of things.  I had to pull her from a run during the day because she got spooked by something, but she recovered from that pretty quickly.  The last two runs were great - almost Qs by a mere few points.

So besides distractions, the things we need to work on are contacts on different surfaces.  Breeze has been trained almost exclusively on rubber contacts.  The surfaces here were a bit more slippery, so she had some trouble stopping for her 2o/2o contact.  Also, Breeze needs to learn how to decelerate and control her body.  In the video below of her standard run, she over runs a few jumps and though she enters the weaves correctly, she couldn't stop to finish them.

However, in the few trials she has done, she is doing MUCH better at sequencing and gaining obstacle focus.  I also saw improvements in her weaving.  She had awesome start lines all weekend and best of all, her stamina kept up for her first full weekend of agility.  I am excited to see how she progresses this fall.  We have two trials on dirt coming up and I am prepared for her to be distracted again.  But hopefully it will be short-lived and we will be able to work through that.

Meanwhile, Zoe was my rock star this weekend.  She had nothing but perfect runs and is pretty close to getting her second C-ATCH.  It is such a sigh of relief to run her after running Breeze.  Zoe and I are at the point where we really trust each other.  If Zoe is running slow, I no longer freak out and I have faith that she will speed up.  She knows her job out there and tries so hard to do the right thing.  The best thing about her runs this weekend is that she did all of her weaves on the first try and even had a little speed.  This bodes well for our journey in achieving a CATE in CPE, where all runs need to be clean.  Here is a video of one of her standard runs:

Next up is a light NADAC trial at the Soccer Blast: just 4 runs for each.  I am trying to finish up Zoe's open level titles and give Breeze a bit more practice.  It should be a low key weekend before doing a couple more trials in September!

The Trials and Tribulations of Training

I understand that my dogs are not robots.  I try very hard to balance letting them just be dogs and and being model citizens of society.  Lately, its been more of letting them be dogs and that is becoming problematic.  Well, not for Zoe - she has a built in desire to be a perfect angel.  Breeze, on the other hand - if you give her an inch, she will take that and run a marathon.  

So my main focus at the moment is teaching Breeze to behave on a leash.  I know, this should have been done ages ago, but we had other goals to work on at the time.  Anyways, while on a walk, Breeze has a intense desire to chase anything that moves - people, bikers, cars, etc.  I have found success with bringing treats and having her watch me while something goes by, but I don't always have treats on me, and it is very difficult to train if I am walking two dogs.  So I need a back up for when I am not set up for successful training.

I have tried just about everything.  She is immune to the pinch collar - the poor girl would choke herself to death if I let her.  I have tried just about every type of harness - she still pulls and with her intensity, the harness usually rubs her skin raw.  The gentle leader was great until she pawed her nose until it bled.  But, I need to make something work, so out of all my options, I am giving the gentle leader another try.  

My first plan of attack is to use booties on her paws so that she can no longer harm herself.  Kind of like how our parents put oven mits on our hands to keep us from scratching chicken pox.  Okay, maybe that was just me.  Anyways, second, for the next week, I will be using one of her meals to train while having the gentle leader on.  In the past, I didn't take enough time to acclimate her to the feel of it on, so now I am trying to go much slower.  After a week, maybe we will try training in the yard or going in the driveway.  But the key here will be to go slow.  

I am not saying that I want to give up what was working before with the watch and using treats.  I just believe in having a wide tool box, and I need another option when I can't give my full attention to Breeze.    

So here she is in her pretty head collar.  So far, she is doing pretty well, but I am guessing it will take a lot of time until I can actually use it on a walk.  

C-ATCH Zoe!

This past weekend, Zoe earned her first agility champion title at the CPE South Paws trial on a fun jumpers course!  It was a bit nerve wracking considering that we only had one shot at it, but I definitely preferred a jumpers course over snooker or jackpot!  

Earning our C-ATCH at this trial was special because not only do we train at the host club, this was the same trial we started at two years ago.  Plus, it was a large trial, so most of our friends were there to celebrate with us.  It turned out to be a pretty cool weekend because there were 9 other champion titles.  The club ran out of both C-ATCH bars and Q ribbons by the end of the weekend!  

Though two years may seem like a short time to earn a champion title, it was definitely not without challenges. Just a few months into the start of her career, Zoe was set back by a small injury.  We took a few months off of training, but it took a while to get back on track.  Her confidence on contact obstacles was almost completely shot and it took a lot for her to become comfortable again.  It took maybe 4-5 months until she was completely comfortable in the ring again.  Now, contacts are her favorite obstacles and will default to them over tunnels.  Our next biggest challenge was speed and focus.  Weave restarts were becoming our nemesis, which can eat up a ton of time.  Plus, Zoe started stressing when the judge was near our path.  She wasn't aggressive or overly scared - she would just notice the judge and lose focus from the run, slowing her down or making her pop out of weaves.

The past six months of our career have been amazing.  The problem areas started to get ironed out and Zoe was becoming a super consistent competitor.  She really seems to enjoy competing and is much more confident.  She isn't the fastest dog out there, but her desire to work with me as a team is incredible and has led to many clean runs.  Speed and focus will continue to be our main goals and perhaps we will try a new agility venue to trial in as well.  As for CPE, I plan to start working towards a CATE title, which is approximately 200 clean runs.  It will take 2-3 years, but we would be one of the few in this state to achieve this title.

Herding Fun Day

I have always thought it was special to see an animal do something that came so naturally.  Having two dogs from herding breed backgrounds, I have always been curious what would happen if they came face to face with sheep.  Being a dog park goer, I hear people say all the time that "that dog is very herdy" or "my dog herds my kids/other dogs/whatever".  But does that really mean that they would excel at the sport at herding?

Today I had the privilege of testing Breeze on some sheep.  The Border Collie Rescue of MN puts on a yearly herding fun day and this year, it worked out in our schedule to attend.  I have to admit that I was pretty nervous that Breeze would just stand there and harass the sheep to death.  Remember the watermelon episode??  Breeze doesn't always react the greatest to foreign things.  But, to my relief, she did just fine!

The small ring was set up with three sheep.  The instructor puts a long line on the dogs and lets them investigate at a safe distance.  When Breeze entered the ring, the first thing she identified was dad (thanks, Chad!).  So she promptly ran under the bars out of the ring to greet him.  Seeing that she might need some redirection, I went in the ring with her and she then saw the sheep.  She then proceeded to chase the sheep.  Thankfully, she didn't nip or bark much, but she was definitely interested in making them move.  In typical Breeze fashion, she went all out at the beginning, exhausting herself before she even got the hang of it.  But soon she figured out that, "Hey, the sheep move when I move...even a little."  And so she got to run around and see what she could do.  After a little while, she started to tire out and she actually started to listen to the instructor, who was trying to guide her movements.  All of a sudden, she started to stay back and be patient.  It was really great to see her listening when I thought her head would just about explode.

So below you can see the short version of the video highlighting her progress in just the 7 short minutes she was out there.  Would I do it again?  Absolutely!  Too bad we don't have a permanent sheep job for her, but I have other ways of keeping her busy.  Maybe we will go out for a real lesson sometime - I think we both would learn a lot.  As for Zoe, she had to sit this one out.  For one thing, the session was full, but someday I may test her on sheep.  I am not sure she has the guts for it, but I am curious how she would react.  I think she would probably surprise me.

Videos are here!!

Wow, two months was a SUPER long time to wait, but I finally have my videos from the CPE Nationals back in June!  Here are some highlights...

Wildcard - This was our very first run of the weekend.  The course was tight and opened with a really odd tunnel entrance.  Many dogs cut through the weaves because the entrance was so close to them.  But Zoe did a nice job and did two sets of weaves.  Not a bad start to Nationals!

Standard Day Three - We had standard first this day, so the ground was pretty dewy.  Both of us took falls, but eventually recovered.  Thankfully, CPE has generous times, so we still qualified :)

Standard Day Two - This was probably our best standard run.  Zoe did great with the DW/Tunnel discrimination and I probably over handled it.  She missed her weave entrance, so I made an unplanned cross.  But thankfully she completed them beautifully once she got in!

Lastly, this was the gem of the weekend, and I will remember this run forever.  Zoe has great distance, but her confidence gets in the way sometimes.  So when we started the gamble and she needed to take two jumps, she just took one and came back.  We had a quick chat about it and finally the light bulb went off.  The ending was nothing but cheers and Zoe ate every last one up.  She LOVES applause and it makes her go nuts.  That was the best moment.  And the icing on the cake was that we just barely made time to make it a qualifying run :)

There is still no word on where the 2012 CPE Nationals will be, but I am very tempted to go.  My first Nationals experience was so great - friendly people, nice judges, and great courses.  I feel lucky to have been at a place in my agility journey where Zoe could participate - totally worth it!

These videos are courtesy of Agile-Images, LLC.

First Trial All Over Again

It seems like yesterday when I first brought out my black dog, Zoe, at her first agility trial.  Well, two years later, I was doing that with a new dog.  I fully admit that I started competing with Breeze before I said I would, but it is so difficult to hold them back.  Breeze and I became a competing team a couple of weeks ago at a NADAC trial.  I did three runs with her each on Saturday and Sunday.  The first run went great - no major distractions and she had plenty of enthusiasm.  There were no Qs for us that day, but I learned a TON about where we are at in our training.  The weaknesses: discriminations, sequencing, and my contact criteria.  Strengths: awesome generalization - no issues with equipment, startline stays, and plenty of enthusiasm.  Her two regular runs weren't bad at all - just some missed discriminations and a couple of knocked bars.  Otherwise, the runs went pretty smooth.  She was just .3 seconds shy of getting a weavers Q, but we had to restart weaves a few times.  Even though she is a pretty good weaver in training, it is a whole different story at a trial!!

The next day we got to run tunnelers, which is a super fun run.  Breeze ran this with no issues and earned her first Q ribbon!  She also earned a Q in regular, so she was already improving.  All in all, I couldn't be more impressed with her performance.  I feel that most of her issues are due to inexperience and the more we trial, the better team we will be.

Ok, not to over shadow Breeze, but Zoe did get her first elite title in Regular :)

So last weekend we drove down to Zumbro Falls and Breeze competed in not only her first CPE trial, but her first outdoor trial.  To sum things up, she displayed great control at the start line and had lovely contacts.  She did the teeter like a champ and showed no fear!  CPE is pretty lenient so while she did veer off course, we still qualified in the standard run.  She also Q'ed in colors and jackpot.  Her sequencing was not bad for a newbie, but there is definitely room for improvement.  Weaves were another weakness.  She is such a great weaver at home and in class, but at trials, she lacks the focus to start them correctly.  But I think this is really an issue of practice that will come with time.

I am excited to compete with her again, but unfortunately we will have to wait until the end of August.  It is really hard to hold back when they do well, but I know that more practice will pay off.  She has proven that she is ready to start competing, so now it is just a matter of giving her experience.  She will compete next on turf and then a couple of trials on dirt, which is very distracting!

Meanwhile, I have a new found appreciation for Zoe.  She has become such a consistent competitor that I can get ready for a run with her and know exactly what to expect.  I have to handle her in a whole different way and that has taught me so much.  I am excited for her future and will maybe try playing in some new agility venues soon.

CPE Nationals

CPE Nationals was more than I ever expected.  First of all, we had the best weather possible - cool and overcast.  Really???  After record heat and an incredibly long winter??  We certainly lucked out!!  Second, we had the most awesome volunteers helping to run this trial as smooth as butter.  Third, the trial consisted of wonderful people who loved doing agility with their dogs.  And finally, we got to show off all the hard work we've done over the past two and a half years.

I am sooo proud of how Zoe did this weekend.  She was extremely focused and gave it her all.  She attacked the teeter as if she was never afraid and finished every run with a big Zoe grin!  The best moment for us was Jackpot.  We casually did our opening, doing her favorite obstacles and ended in a great spot as the buzzer rang.  We headed for the gamble and just after Zoe took the first jump she came back confidently to me as if that was it.  Well, not quite.  There was still another jump, tunnel, and final jump.  This could not possibly be explained on paper, but the maneuver required a jump away, come back for the less-obvious tunnel entrance and a finish jump.  So...after a chat for a few seconds, she finally got the message and finished the gamble.  It was amazing because something just clicked and she knew exactly what to do.  If you saw the video, you can actually see the point where it clicked in her brain.  And it turns out, we made it in just enough time!!  Everyone cheered (Zoe's FAVORITE) and she did zoomies all the way out of the ring.  She was just beside herself!!  I LOVE it when she is that excited.  She KNEW she did a good job and I was very happy for her.  So this was our favorite moment of Nationals.  Nothing else could top this.

We ended the trial with eight qualifying ribbons and a plaque for 5th place in games (20'' class).  We came and did our best.  I can't ask for more.  But what was also great is that all of my friends were having a stellar time too.  I saw people qualify in classes they haven't for a very long time.  I saw people do so well that they ran faster than any other dog out there.  I saw people make friends.  I made friends.  I saw people help each other.  And help each other some more.  Whether it was catching a stray dog or giving course advice, everyone was in it for each other.  

The whole thing had a summer camp kind of feel.  There were various activities, people were camping, people were stolen away from their daily lives.  People were having fun.  There was camaraderie, compassion, and excitement.  Everyone shared the same passion - working with their dogs.  

I feel so incredibly lucky to have been a part of this event.  I know there could have been many things that could have held us back.  I feel lucky to have shared this with the best of my friends and that they too had an incredible time.  It was truly an experience of a lifetime!

Dogs see the world so differently...

Having obtained Breeze at a young age, I have watched her grow up and learn about the world around her.  Generally, she is a pretty confident dog, but every now and then, she comes across something that rocks her little world.  Why she would be taken aback by a watermelon is beyond me.  What could it possibly have that poses a threat??

Luckily, I've got the tools to help her through this potentially-traumatic situation.  But it certainly reminds me of how differently dogs view the world!

Agility With a Side of Rain

Apparently the May MMBC NADAC trial is notorious for bad weather.  That is why I bought water-proof shoes last year and ran out and invested in rain pants last week.  It turns out that those were the best purchases ever.  Saturday started with an already soaked field with a few sprinkles mixed in.  I'm thinking "Not bad, glad I have my rain gear."  Zoe was jazzed by the cool wet weather and for the first time made elite time and earned her first two elite Q's and first open weavers Q.  So now I'm thinking, "Wow, my dog thinks this is awesome...we are going to have a great weekend."  Little did I know, it was all downhill from there.

After a brief respite from the rain, it started to rain hard.  Three dogs before our run, the trial was on hold and I was stuck scarfing down my lunch with Zoe at my side in a crowded tent.  No big deal...I didn't want to savor my food anyway.  So then the trial begins again and it's finally our turn.  We start our run and Zoe looks unusually distracted and even starts to veer away from me.  Crap.  Quite literally actually as she never got a proper walk and chance to eliminate with all of the steady rain.  So our run ended with an E....there is definitely a first time for everything.  At least I couldn't blame her given the conditions and in the end, she was a happy camper.

The rest of the day was a wash - no pun intended.  As the rain persisted, the ground got soggier and soggier.  Zoe became less enthused about the weather and had to slow down to avoid slipping...good girl.  No more Qs for us, but we had a good time braving the elements.

Sunday came and I thought it would be a new day.  Instead, it was a repeat of Saturday plus severe weather.  We ran our first 4 runs, NQed in all.  Mostly chalking that up to soggy fields and bad footing.  Ok, there was some tunnel discriminations Zoe and I had to sort through as well.  But mostly the soggy fields.  By noon, the weather turned south and we headed back to the comfort of home.  It was no longer about the Qs...just staying safe and dry.

All in all, I can't say it was a terrible weekend.  There was good teamwork, excited dogs, and fun conversations.  I am quite pleased with Zoe's effort, especially showing that she can make elite time.  After that, it didn't really matter how we did.  I am just glad that we got through the weekend safe and that it will go down as a very memorable agility trial!

Riding the Wave

I really cannot complain about the past two months.  I could highlight our stellar Q-rate, but what I've really been impressed with is how focused and consistent Zoe has become.  I also think I have improved greatly in reading what makes her run better and being where I need to be to help support her.  I enjoy the fact that CPE agility is challenging, but never so much that I doubt we can meet the challenge.  Right now, we are 8 runs away from our C-ATCH, which is CPE's Agility Trial Champion title.  If Zoe keeps up her pace, we should be able to accomplish this towards the end of the summer.  It would have been really exciting to get our CATCH at the CPE Nationals event next month, but we would need at least one more trial before that to do so.  Either way, the Nationals event should be a blast and I am really looking forward to meeting more people who enjoy the sport of agility.

This past weekend I also got the opportunity to run Breeze at a Fun Run again.  She did great this time and being on turf, there were far fewer distractions than in the horse arena.  She hit her contacts beautifully and did a nice job following my lead.  I can really see the difference, however, between her and Zoe because our teamwork is not quite solid yet.  I am still learning what handling works for her and she is still learning how to read my cues.  At this point, it's just going to take practice.  She seems to really be enjoying the game and I am excited to start her in competition this summer.  Thankfully, spring is finally here and we can start practicing in the back yard again!!

Gearing Up for Nationals

I couldn't have been happier with my little black dog at our last trial a couple of weeks ago.  We went a perfect 10 for 10 that weekend and earned our last two titles in Level 4 CPE.  It was our first perfect weekend and extended Zoe's streak of being a steady, consistent dog.  Though I am very satisfied with how Zoe has been running, there are definitely a few key things that we still need to work on.

Our main goal is to ramp up Zoe's speed.  On a scale of 1-10 (10 being fast), Zoe typically runs at a 6.  I know she can get faster, and she has over time as she gains confidence.  Last week, we visited a new trainer who I think will be a big help with this.  Unsurprisingly, it will be me who will have to do most of the work.  I have always fought a balance between cheerleading Zoe and letting her do her thing.  On one hand, I need to encourage her to keep going, but on the other, I don't want praise to lose its meaning.  She actually does a nice job running on her own, so I need to learn to give her more efficient feedback.  We will also be working on her teeter confidence.  Zoe had an unfortunately quick learning experience with the teeter, so now we are going back and teaching her that the teeter is not so scary and can actually be a fun game.

Though I am excited about this new class, it means a big transition in our training.  I've really gotten comfortable in my current class and have developed a great relationship with the trainer and other students.  It's hard to know when to move on, but in any sport, change is a necessity.  Zoe and I have become such a better team over the past year, and I owe a lot of that to the things I have learned from my current trainer.  Namely, I've learned a lot about how to think outside of the box.  The most obvious course path isn't always the easiest.  Also, I need to be aware of my voice: my pitch and tone, the commands I use and how often I use them.

It's wonderful to do well in trials, earn titles, and collect ribbons.  But what excites me most is how far we've come and discovering just how much there is to learn in the world of dog sports.  Like most hobbies, there is a sense of fulfillment and pride as you achieve small accomplishments along the way towards a long-term goal.  But what makes agility really special is that you get a relationship in return - both with your dog and with others who share your passion.  Maybe that is what makes it so addicting!

Spring Agility

Well, the agility spring season is in full swing.  Zoe and I went down to La Crosse, WI earlier this month and also traveled to Isanti, MN last weekend for agility competitions.  Zoe did wonderful both weekends and had a perfect day in Isanti, going 4/4!  The weekend in Isanti was particularly special since one year ago Zoe was struggling to come back to competing after her injury.  One year later, she is now having fun and becoming a consistent competitor.  She is truly a great teammate to have - she has a nice combo of handler and obstacle focus, is a hard worker, and seems to enjoy the sport.  I am hoping that things continue to go well until the CPE Nationals event in June!

Meanwhile, Breeze is progressing in her agility training.  Her style is completely different than Zoe and is thus making me a much better handler.  Where I need to encourage Zoe, I need to subdue Breeze.  She goes at things will full force and needs to learn how to control her young body.  She lives to work and let's nothing get in the way, even when she gets caught up in the cords of the tire jump :)  She'll make a fantastic agility partner, but we've got lots of work to do before she competes.

Fire and Ice Frisbee Competition

Breeze made her competition debut last weekend, but it wasn't in the agility ring.  Twin Cities Disc Dog Club held their annual frisbee competition out in Plymouth last weekend where we got to finally show off our skills.  It has been pretty darn cold lately, but luckily the weather warmed up a little just in time!

So basically, disc comps work like this...you get two 1-minute rounds to get in as many throws as you can.  The further your dog catches the disc, the more points you get.  Extra credit for jumping catches.  There are two divisions - novice and pro.  The novice competitors get to throw five yards closer than the pro competitors. 

There were 11 dogs in novice and we ended up in 2nd place!  Breeze did absolutely great except when it was time to pry the disc from her jaws :)  We took the conservative route, trying to get in more accurate shorter throws.  Turns out it paid off and we now get to move up to the pro division next time!

All in all, the day was really fun.  The event was actually a part of a larger city-wide festival, so there were lots of people watching and wanting to pet the dogs.  Breeze did a nice job behaving herself and didn't jump up on anyone.  She showed nice control and played nice with the other dogs.  She has really matured leaps and bounds over the past few months.

I'm not sure when the next disc comp will be, but I am excited to try it again on green grass :) 

Trick Training: Chores Aren't Just for Humans

So here I am in the dead of winter.  The backyard is frozen, agility trials are scarce, and the dogs are going crazy.  I usually try to fit in a training session each night, but to be honest, I've been a bit lazy, so we keep practicing the same tricks over and over.  I decided it was time to get our brains in gear and try some new stuff. 

When I was thinking of what to teach, I figured it might be a good idea to teach something useful.  Why not teach the dogs to put their toys away??  Chad's always complaining that I don't clean up as much as I should, so I'll just pass that duty along to the dogs!

Trick training is a great mental workout for dogs, but it is also equally challenging for the human.  Each dog learns differently and has unique strengths and weaknesses.  Shaping is like a puzzle: you need to figure out how to split the behaviors just right so that the dog can be successful and maintain motivation.

I first started this endeavor with Breeze.  Breeze is a workaholic and a quick learner.  She generalizes well and has a very good memory.  The main challenge with putting toys away is that it requires the dog to manipulate another object.  So far, most of my training has revolved around Breeze moving her body.  When I give a cue, it usually means to do something with her body.  When I tell her to go out and jump, it means run towards the obstacle, jump over the obstacle, and come back.  Not run to the obstacle, move the obstacle 5 feet away, and come back. 

The closest thing Breeze knows about manipulating an object is fetch, so I started with this.  I put a basket in front of me, threw a toy, and when she brought it back, I clicked for dropping it close to the basket.  Now one tiny hiccup in this matter is that previously, I had trained Breeze to put her feet in a bowl.  Unfortunately (or fortunately) she generalized this to the basket and whenever she came back, she put her front feet in the basket.  After a few sessions, the toy was dropping in the basket along with her feet, but she wasn't really understanding that it was the toy that was supposed to be in the basket, not her feet.  Finally, after about a week of training, she finally got this concept and the rest was downhill.  I added distance between myself and the basket and added more toys.  She generalized beautifully to other objects and this is what I got:

Zoe was a different story and challenge.  Zoe is a confident but inhibited dog.  She plays with her toys gently whereas Breeze tears them apart.  She fetches, but only with objects that really excite her.  Bring in the squeaky tennis ball!  Zoe is very paw oriented and when I ask her to interact with a toy, she is more likely to paw it than mouth it.  But a ball that squeaks is much more fun to chomp on, so I started with this.  Zoe didn't grow up with shaping training (due to a novice trainer), so she will wait and wait and wait patiently until asked to do something.  I wanted her to get the idea that a ball dropping in the basket equals treats.  So I literally had to sit there with the ball above the basket, have her grab it, and let gravity drop it in the basket.  Over and over and over and over again. This lasted for quite a few sessions and for a while there, I was a little worried she wasn't going to get it.  But SLOWLY I moved the basket away to the side and low and behold she turned her head to drop it in.  Once she made a solid connection that ball in basket = treat, it became much easier to increase the distance of the basket and have success.  We are now at the point where I can throw the ball a few feet and she will retrieve it and bring it to the basket.  Yay!  Success!  However, when I introduced a NEW object (i.e. a stuffed toy), we practically had to start over at step A and repeat the whole process.  I am sure the process will be speedier, but it still demonstrates the vast differences in how my two dogs learn.  Here is Zoe's progress so far:

 

My goal is to continue teaching new tricks regularly.  For me, the hardest part is choosing a trick and figuring out where to start with the training.  For Breeze, the next trick will be wrapping herself in a blanket and after one session, she is catching on fast! 

Ringing in the New Year with Agility

We finally got to play in NADAC again this past weekend.  While we only picked up 3 Q's, I felt very good about how the weekend went.  First of all, NADAC is becoming more challenging for us.  I now have Zoe in the preferred category, so she is jumping 20'' which shortens the standard course time by a few seconds.  Also, we are running in Elite Regular, which also shortens the course time a bit too.   Time is now our nemesis, which is humbling, but also changes my attitude regarding competition.  We missed several Q's by only a few seconds - less than a second in two of our runs.  However, in most of these runs, Zoe ran clean, fast, and focused.  Running fast and focused is something she has been improving on greatly.  She isn't the most driven dog out there, so she still gets distracted from time to time by smells, the judge standing on the course, shiny things, etc.  In the past, I've really had to cheer lead her on to get her head in the game.  This weekend I did a bit of cheerleading, but it was more to pick up her speed.  I had very few problems with her wandering, which was a major improvement.  And while we had problems making time, she was still running fast.

On to the other good stuff...we got our Open level Touch N Go title.  Two of the three Q's we go this weekend were from the Touch N Go course.  Zoe really demonstrated how much she loves this class.  I really think her favorite obstacle is the A frame.  In CPE Full House or Jackpot, I will try to get in the A frame at least twice.  She always speeds up for it and will defer to it in a discrimination.  I haven't heavily treated the A frame, so she just seems to have an intrinsic motivation to go over it.  So when she got to do it twice in the touch n go course, she was jazzed.  Both of these classes were run at the end of the day and in both, she ran over 4 yards per second.  So the combo of contacts, tunnels, and no jumps equals jackpot for Zoe. 

Also, we got our first open level chances Q.  This was a surprise for me because I was unsure that we made time.  Our first challenge was a tunnel/a frame discrimination with the tunnel being the correct and outer option.  This was frustrating to see because this same discrimination was in the chances course the day before and Zoe took the A frame despite my desperate pleading.  However, this time she got it and continued on.  Midway, she got a bit stopped up because she had to do a distance 180 to a jump.  She didn't get it at first, but then I reset her and sent her out.  Once she knew what to do, she flew and finished the course with speed.  I was concerned that the reset took too much time, but fortunately we made it.  I've always been confident in her distance skills and she is comfortable with it as long as she knows where she is going.  I was glad to see it pay off this time!

I did a lot of thinking about NADAC yesterday.  I mentioned it changes my attitude because unlike CPE, I know that Q's are not easy to obtain and the runs are slightly beyond our level speed-wise.  So when we NQ, I actually feel better about it than if we hadn't qualified in CPE.  I am sort of at a crossroads with NADAC.  I can always go back to novice and get more titles there.  I can also change her to skilled, which would mean jumping at 16'' and a time break.  But this would set us up for a MEDAL, which is the skilled equivalent of a NATCH.  I need to think more about what titles mean to me and what my long-term career goals are. 

Ultimately, I think it is up to my patience and whether or not I think Zoe can get there.  No matter what I choose, she will always be having fun and I will be lavishly rewarding her.  The difference will be our Q rate.  I think I can handle NQs and still feel good about the runs.  Regarding whether or not Zoe can get there time-wise.  Currently, I am optimistic.  We didn't miss our regular runs by much - especially the one we missed by .7 seconds.  If she speeds up her weaves and dog walk, we'll have a few more seconds.  Also, running on dirt speeds her up too.  In the past, she has run regular courses at elite-level speeds, so I know she can do it.  I also am banking on her gaining speed as she gets older.  Confidence equals more speed and training and maturity also equals more confidence.  So I think if I stick it out, she will eventually get there.  I am also learning more about what motivates her.  I am learning to rotate treats and use the ones that are really special to her.  I also need to incorporate more play in our warm up.  Finally, my goal for training this year is to treat more for shorter sequences and not just at the end.  She consistently speeds up at the end of courses and I think it is because I mostly treat at the end too.  I think if I reward her in the middle of courses in training, her head will stay in the game throughout the entire run. 

My schedule this year will involve much more CPE than NADAC, but my goals for NADAC will transfer well to CPE.  NADAC is always a nice breath of fresh air because of the smoother courses and fewer games.  Next up for us will be CPE in Ham Lake in mid January!