Wait a minute!

I have been very naughty and have not been training 'waits' with Sixx.  Oops.  I'm a bad girl because it's like the most simple and fundamental part of agility but it's so simple it's easy to let it slide.  Susan Garrett always says the more simple a behaviour is, the easier it is to loose it!  I will fix it though.  I know why I let it slide - it was the fact that I'd done loads of 1 jump work from a restrain and thrown the toy a lot so I have neglected to build value for the jump from a wait.  Ipso facto when I put Sixx in a wait unless she can see the toy out ahead of her she knows that she probably isn't going to get an instant reward and really does NOT explode of the start line!  I guess I've been too predictable and she is showing me what I've trained (or haven't trained!).  Because of that I didn't want to put her in a wait very often and then when I did I've just been releasing her and not going back to reward her. Silly me!

Sixx & Ditto

Sixx also doesn't have a great deal of drive for the 'dead' toy, so I'll go back to using Poppy as competition. I stopped doing it because Sixx was buggering off with the toy but I'll just have to deal with that somehow.

Anyway it was Monday so we had training class.  We did some grid work, a little bit of tyre - Sixx's first time through the tyre and she did really well.  She did crash in to it once and it landed on her but she didn't mind and it's nice and padded!  We also did a little bit of contact end position.  Sixx is kind of putting little steps in, rather than just firing into position.  It's quite possible I shaped that by accident!  When we use food for training she picks up on the tiniest little thing, a movement or a touch and thinks that's what I'm asking for.  It's brilliant for shaping specific things but she's a bit better with the toy as a reward sometimes because she doesn't think quite so much!  

I still feel really tired from camp!  When I'm tired I feel a bit overwhelmed by teeny things and Sixx's wait was bothering me but I do realise that she's only 1 and we have loads and loads of time to work on things like that.  I did some training with her this morning using the little terriers as bait while she sat in a wait and she was really good so I know it wont take long to fix.  At least now I'll be more aware of rewarding her waits in new environments instead of assuming we've 'done that bit'!

After our lesson the dogs all had a lovely time running around and then had a little play with the hose.  Sixx is obsessed with the hose the way I would like her to be with her toy!

Nicola was being her usual self and when I tried to lie down for a little rest she thought it would be funny to video me being feeble!

I wanted to take Sixx for a swim today and there's a perfect bit of river in Newport Pagnell that has a little beachy bank so I dragged Adam all the way over there only to find some lads fishing in our perfect spot!  Curses. I tried getting Sixx in another bit but she wasn't having it!

Not going to swim but not coming out either!

Grumpy face!

 

Happy 1st Birthday Little Sixx!

Sixx is one today!

Yesterday she had her first ever swim in the river - I had to encourage her in by having a paddle and she kept standing on my feet!  Adam eventually 'persuaded' her to go a bit deeper and she swam to the opposite bank - I thought she'd got stuck but them she swam back as fast as possible!  After that she did it another couple of times, really fast though!  She loves water but she's just not confident yet :)

3wks

8wks

15wks

6mths

9mths

10mths

12mths

Love, love, love her :) :) :)

D Force Camp May 2012

OMG I just had the most amazing week at camp!  In fact it was so much fun that I forgot to get many pictures and video!

Camp started on Monday 21st May - it was held at Stonham Barns in Suffolk, which is a lovely campsite with a Bird of Prey Centre and shops, a showground and a Dog Training Centre all on the same site.  Before we left the weather had been miserable, cold and wet and I have to say that I did have my reservations about staying in a tent for a week!  I needn't have worried because although the first night was freezing, the rest of the week was glorious - we were so lucky!

On the first Day we had a little introduction and played some really funny games in small groups so we could all get to know each other.  We played Dan's version of £1million Drop and it was HILARIOUS!  After the games and stuff Dave got us working our dogs through some 1 Jump exercises in groups which I love.  In the evening we went to the pub for a meal - weirdest pub ever, that actually closed at 9.30pm!

On Tuesday Sian Illingworth came to train us for the day - we weren't sure if she was going to make it as her smashing dog Eddie had just had a serious operation on his back.  I love training with Sian, she's great fun.  We were split in to two groups and I was in Group A with some of the loveliest people ever!  Sixx was brilliant, we did front crosses in the morning and rear crosses in the afternoon.  Sixx only did small jumps and she was fantastic!  She was flying around and really trying for me.  My handling needs work though!  Apparently I run really funny too, all choppy and short striding so I'm going to learn to run properly!!!  Dan also did a really interesting Shaping session but I just watched so Sixx could have a nice break.

In the evening we got an Indian Takeaway which was delicious and some of us stayed up quite late playing drinking games - so much fun!

Wednesday was Lucy Osborne training, contacts and weaves in the morning and handling in the afternoon.  Sixx had a rest in the morning as she can't weave yet but she was fab in the afternoon.  I had a crate at the field for her and left her in it while she wasn't working.  Dan did a recall workshop before the afternoon session which I watched as Sixx was resting!  It would be great to have two dogs really because there's so much to do you can easily split the sessions so that each dog gets a break.

Dan and his giant hand

Thursday was Dave training and the morning session was foundation games and gridwork. I think this was my favourite session of the week, it was so much fun.  In the afternoon we did handling and actually some quite tricky little sequences - I was very proud that Sixx did really well.  Dan ran her for me so I could watch and she just looks so darn cute!

 

It was such a fantastic experience - spending time with Sixx and lovely people who share my passion for dogs and training.  What an amazing week, one I'll never forget.  Thanks Nicola for getting me a space - I wouldn't have gone if it wasn't for her!  We had such a giggle :)

Olivia looking after Hattie

Whoops

Monday training was actually on this week which was a bonus!  Even though I train on my own a lot it makes such a difference having someone give you instruction.  My brain is very small so I get confused very quickly so I need a lot more practice having someone else set me a sequence - I've gotten so used to doing my own thing!  We did an interesting foundation exercise which really highlighted my weaknesses!  It was only the anti flick exercise that I do with toys but with jumps added and it was interesting that Sixx blatantly ignored me and went for the jump/toy!  I'll work on that!

On Wednesday we had a lesson with Dave.  I was gutted that Sixx and I didn't get a space on Dave's weekly classes :(  Our lesson was great though, we did some running A frame to start.  She's brilliant, she seems to understand the criteria.  She did try and sneak out of it a couple of times - she doesn't really like doing anything that isn't her idea!  Dave said I should start doing turns off of it now, making sure she jumps the stride regulator before getting the toy.

One glaringly obvious mistake that I've made is not doing enough throwing the toy over jumps from a wait. She knows if it's a straight line of jumps she'll go for it, or if I'm restraining her but if I put her in a wait and lead out to do a front cross she literally trickles off the start line!  It's so funny how my mistakes show up so obviously in her behaviour!  That's my homework then.

On Saturday we've got the contacts workshop that was cancelled due to the hurricane (it wasn't actually a hurricane but it was pretty bad), and on Monday we're off to camp! Yippee! This is our schedule, obviously we aren't going to be able to do the weaves, not sure about the contacts but I'll still learn a lot from watching everyone else.

Camp schedule!

 

Teeny little new born Shetland foals awwww :)

So things I need to work on are;

Waits - throwing toy (as Dan said on Monday I need to be a bit more unpredictable with my rewards)

A Frame + turns

Flatwork games

Halcyon Days

The rain has stopped at last and we were granted with two absolutely glorious days.  Perfect spring days, beautiful sunshine, warm but not too hot. One of those weekends you take a mental snap shot of because we don't get many! I took full advantage of it and painted the jumps I got the other day outside in the field with Sixx helping me.  I got some wings from the lady that runs Little Revel End.  They aren't in the best condition and Adam is going to repair four of them but I sanded and re painted the rest so they'll last a few years I reckon.  I got loads of poles too which I desperately needed.  Adam said he would have made me some more wings and I'd love him too as he makes them really well and they last forever but he's so busy with work I didn't want to pester him when he finally gets a break to make jumps for me!

On Saturday they were shooting on the farm next door to my field and Sixx couldn't care less - there were loads of men with dogs shooting quite close but she was oblivious!  She sat right next to me while I painted, waiting to get to work.

When we'd finished at the field I dropped Sixx at home and went to visit my friend who is fostering a cat and her kittens for the RSPCA

They were just starting to open their eyes and one of them was really feisty and hissing at me when I picked him up!  Angry little thing! 

This morning (Sunday) I had a little bit to finish on the jumps so Sixx and I went to the field again and when I'd finished painting I set up a load of jumps.  The grass had been cut so I did the a frame a couple of times.

We ended up doing practically none of this and spent ten minutes working on waits because Sixx just couldn't keep her bum on the floor!

She also managed to stick her head right on a wet jump and get covered in paint, you can't see it very well but she has a big splodge right on top of her head.

 

She's just too cute!

Brilliantly this years winner of 'Britains Got Talent' was a girl called Ashleigh Butler and her cross bred dog Pudsey.  She's a grade seven handler and Pudsey is an agility champion.  I don't know her but she's really well known and liked in agility and the partnership she has with her dog is awesome.  I'm so pleased that she won, she's clearly worked very, very hard to get to the level she is at and if you believe the papers she's now heading for Hollywood!

Eyes wide open

Sometimes I forgot how beautiful it is where I live because it's right on my doorstep!  For the last couple of days I've taken Sixx to the field for five minutes training before we go on our walk. There's a walk along the river that I hardly ever go on for some reason but I decided to go today and was reminded just how beautiful it is.  The dogs loved it too although Poppy was the only one brave enough to go for a swim in the river!  Sixx is desperate to go in but she hasn't built the courage up yet!

At the field we just did some drive exercises and tunnel quickly.  I was going to do a couple of running a frames quickly but the grass is too long in the field and she wouldn't have been able to see the toy! She was great apart from breaking her wait a couple of times!  My bad because I realised I reinforce her waits everywhere else but as soon as we get near the equipment I am always releasing her so that's something I need to be more aware of.

It wasn't me.......honest!

Yesterday I had my first proper one to one with Dave and the universe decided to honour us by making it summer for the day!  It was so warm it was t-shirt weather which is odd because I still have some radiators on in the house because it's been so cold!

I took Monty to get treated by Dave as he's been a bit lame and stiff on and off and I've been worrying that there's something sinister going on.  I've taken him to the vets a couple of times but I just don't really believe what they tell me - they've been wrong so many times in the past that I've completely lost confidence in them!  I trust Dave 100% and I knew if there was something wrong that he would find it.  As it turns out there was nothing horrible going on at all, just a pulled muscle on his left foreleg so I have to keep Monts on lead for a couple of weeks and do stretches every day.  Brilliant. I changed Monty's food about a month ago too - he was just looking old and his coat was dull.  He's been on Royal Canin since he was a puppy - he used to have a sensitive stomach so we kept him on it as it suited him but I decided to change him on to Barking Heads which is what all the others are fed on.  He looks loads better already :)  Dave was very brave because Monty is terrible for being handled by strangers (completely my fault for not socialising him enough when he was a pup) and he's a big dog so it's really anti social of me to have this massive grumpy dog.  Dave won Monty over though and in the end Monts just laid down (thanks to Nicola for the constant stream of sausage too!).

Sixx was a little dude in her lesson although with her big wooly coat she felt the heat really quickly and had to have frequent breaks! She was flanking me a bit which was annoying!  As Dans classes have been cancelled a lot in the last few weeks due to the weather wrecking the field I've been training on my own a lot.   When I'm confident that I know where I'm going Sixx whizzes along but the minute I'm unsure she totally feels it and loses confidence.  I just need to have more lessons where someone else it setting a sequence for me to remember so I get more confident at remembering where I'm going!  Nicola said at one point Sixx was so tuned in to me she was like a little mirror image of me, following my shoulder line, shame I think I sent her the wrong way!  Dave did a couple of bits with her and she ran really well for him.  Luckily I have another lesson booked next week and then I think it's camp the week after - so exciting!

Unfortunately both Louie and Monty behaved appallingly when we went for a walk with Nicola, Mookie and Floozie with both Monty and Louie having a dig at poor little Flooze.  I had Monty on the lead but I wasn't paying attention and didn't realise he come face to face with Floozie, he did his horrible noisy aggressive I'm going to kill you thing.  Nicola said he'd bitten Floozie on the head :(  He's such an arse and I know it's completely my own fault, I take complete responsibility.  I'm a pretty useless dog trainer so I probably should never own the types of dogs that I do! Sorry Nicola.  Having said that then Louie decided to be a freak and had a go and Floozie too!  WTF!  God knows what I do to make those boys so anti social.  The terriers aren't like that and Sixx is the friendliest dog ever. ? Mistakes I've made I guess. It makes me feel rotten when my dogs behave like that and I know that Nicola works really hard not to put Floozie in situations like that and then I go and let them all down by not paying attention. :(

Louie is the Lego version of Darth Vadar