Agility Training

Could I get Dylan to pop his weaves? No, I could not. I set up the same scenario as the weekend, weaves to long jump (to tunnel, for added temptation), and he weaved like a superstar. The only thing I could not replicate was the hill, we were going uphill at the weekend and I cannot build a hill in our arena.

We had one really great dogwalk and then the rest were mediocre. I think I’m going to do some back-to-basics stuff with him this week, I need to get the contact board out for a dusting anyway.

Rio only did 15mins before she lost focus. It was a good 15mins, but the class wasn’t ideal for her this week as it was working on foundation contacts and weaves. I have a specific plan for how I want to teach her contacts, and it’s not the same approach we use in class. I realise that’s a bit odd, but after teaching new dogs and new handlers we’ve come to realise that the “ideal” method for contact training isn’t necessarily the practical one for someone who wants to learn for 30-60mins a week and doesn’t really want too much homework. So we adapt, and use a target training, but I want a clicker-trained rear-end behaviour from Ri. Which I will start at some point this month.

Likewise, she’s not ready for V-Weaves yet, so by the time she got to do something she was a little unfocused and distracted. I should have thought ahead and let her skip this week completely. Next week will be more fun (jumps!), and she’s getting a special Rio-only lesson the week after which I’m already excited about.