First I need to start by saying, I need to blog more! I do understand that! There is just not enough hours in the day!! Anyway..... I will try to blog more in the future!
The past few sessions Rave and I haven't been seeing eye to eye on our training. The hardest part about training is breaking down the language barrier. After doing this you should have no problem having all kinds of success, but getting past that could take a while. Some dogs you can figure out quicker than others.... Some not so much. After exhausting my tool box full of training tools I was not only tired but VERY discouraged! Going into a training session discouraged is no way to start training. But with all the work we were putting in there just wasn't enough progress in my mind. But finally today! progression!!!!!
In the past Rave would do 2 really good hit its on the box and then we would change her picture by moving jump boards or adding the ball and she would totally shut down. It just blew her mind every time. I couldn't understand why, but once she would fail she would run into her crate and just look at me. I couldn't even pry her out. Talk about discouraging. Not only did I have a dog that didn't want to work with me, but a dog that had lost all trust in me. So to build confidence and trust in me we worked on some tricks. I also listened to the brilliant words of my full of wisdom mother, she said, I think you just need to sit down and have a talk with her, one on one. Hmmmmm she is a dog you know?! Well, okay. Must have worked! Today not only was she totally driving to and from the box, but she failed twice and worked through it both times. The other thing we have run into is the leaving me to go to the box. She also powered through that tonight as well. I could send her from about 10 feet to do hit its off the box. Time to add the ball! I will start by velcroing it so she gets the idea of not only where her mouth needs to be, but where her feet need to be in order to keep her turn snappy and consistent. Good thing she likes a ball! and she drops the ball for the tug! Even better!!!!
Once I have more help I'm going to have someone hold her 15 or so feet from the box and I am going to call her to the box as soon as she lifts off to commit I'm going to yell her name and run away! This should build her confidence going into the box and help her drive to me off the box! The more hit its I do without the ball the harder it will be to add the ball, so I do try to keep these to a minimum and as soon as she is totally comfortable with her picture of the box we start to phase in the ball more and more each session.
The other thing we've been playing with is her speed over jumps. Thank you to my friend Colleen from X flyball for the brilliant ideas to get her driving and powering better over jumps. Who would have thought if you take out the first jump from the box the baby dogs can gather more speed to power over jumps, who would have thought?! DUH?!?!!? By taking out this jump it gives the babies 25 feet instead of 15. By doing this it can take the bunny hopping over jumps and turn it into streamline power jumping. Thanks again Colleen!
I will edit video and post it soon!
Happy Training!
Lyndsy and Rave
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Would taking out that jump help an older (4 years) dog who isn't streamlined on the way back?
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