Winter #3
Going toward an obstacle (dirt road), turning away, paralleling, turning toward woods line The start could have been more “forceful/energetic” I thought. He seemed to stop and sniff but did not acknowledge the scent pads (I need to make sure I have better ground markers for their exact location) His turns I thought were good. Leg 2 could have/should have been more proximate to the road. Good restart after intermediate article. His article indications are a joy!
https://go.screenpal.com/watch/cOViIXnrrjH
A couple of questions: it looks like you’re letting a lot of line out at the start, allowing him to search further and further out. The track starts at the flag/article. What’s your rationale for letting have so much line?
ReplyDeleteWhy do you think the leg parallel to the road should have been closer to the road? Isn’t our goal to set our dog up to succeed? You’re going to parallel obstacles approximately 500-1000 times in training, so start by having the obstacle far enough away that the dog DOESNT notice it. Next time you work that skill, move a little closer. WE don’t know when the dog first notices the parallel obstacle—because ideally your track is set up so that he knows it’s there AND doesn’t give it a thought.
From a training perspective, parallel is a concept skill—one you’ll work, using different obstacles—parallel to woods, parallel to roads, parallel to fences, parallel to creeks, parallel to ditches. All laid so he doesn’t notice the obstacle. That’s how you’ll teach him to successfully navigate that obstacle. It’s not ‘parallel to road, ✅, done, move on.
Next I’d like to see starts, with attention to tracking away from the flag, not circling and crossing the track. And, by all means, use your parallel obstacle concept on each start—one parallels the gravel road (far enough away that he doesn’t notice it); one might parallel dirt road, one might parallel woods etc. ALWAYS far enough away that he ignores it. He’s your dog, your should have an idea how far that is.
I thought this road parallel was a pretty good distance, maybe ~3 yds too close. He stopped and looked at it once, and quickly dismissed it. Perfect. But better if he barely noticed it. We can’t control that to the precision that’s ideal, so know how far that was, add a couple of yards, and apply that knowledge to your start day.
Your most effective training is when you don’t address the challenge head on, but rather sneak it in from the side!