Excited today ... off for training with a top handler Anthony Clarke
http://www.acagility.com/wordpress/

Should be interesting ...


... Well it was brilliant, if not a little cold!
By planning the racing line between sets of obstacles and then having careful positioning at the next one where the dog needs to turn you can minimise the distance and optimise the speed.
Lots of enthusiasm encourages your dog to be quicker, as long as all the basics are in place (e.g. contacts, turns where the dog is following your shoulders etc). After all moving as quickly as possible for 30 seconds ought not be too arduous!

Also some of the lines were to the wings of jumps if you required a turn.
Not getting in the way but doing a back cross very close to the dog so they don't swivel!
Thinking about what the dog can see as they turn and where you should be.
Not being afraid of a fast dog but embrace that!

Working on a arc if coming round obstacles to optimise speed and line, sometimes you need to slow down to get the dog to turn rather than speak - so pauses are good too.

So things to work on ...

Sort out the dog walk contact independently and don't use in full training until I am happy with the change as it will devalue it every time we get it wrong.
Treat training like a competition and do it as fast as possible
Make Dylan wait until I am in position at the start, so I minimise my running
Get fitter!

When Dylan met Parker!

With the winter season upon us and less shows to attend ... well we need a rest anyway! ... it is time to consider winter training and things to work on ...

For us that is 2 things ...

1. Dylan's dog walk contact. At the moment he has a "running contact" which means he has not been taught to stop on the contact as so many dogs are (2 feet on the contact and 2 feet on the ground).

2. Dylan needs to be more confident to work away from me without looking for me and me being right next to him.

So number one has already been started. We had a 1-2-1 session with a trainer called Pam somewhere completely different from our usual training. My theory was that asking him to do something new in a new place might be easier since dogs generally don't generalise. Dylan (as usual) was quick to learn a stop at the end of the dog walk, with lots of reward (tuggy & treats) actually on the dog walk. Then we worked on trying it in different ways, different directions until he was anticipating the "stop" command. I need to time my word "stop" to perfection otherwise he stops half way down and not on the contact.

We then had a show this weekend ... not a Kennel Club one, but a local one at our club. I was able to practice the stop in the ring at full speed ... fantastic as Dylan got it. He didn't completely stop but he slowed down, shortened his stride and waited for me to say go. He didn't miss a single contact.

So I need to continue with the re-enforcing in training and proof the stop with reward, me running past and so on. I can also practice "stop: down" on walks, in the garden so he comes to recognise the word as stop and stay there until I release you with a "go" or "ok"

The second aim came about during the stop training as Pam noticed that he is always looking for me and it would be great if he could finish the dog walk without checking where I am! Wouldn't it be useful if I could send him on the dog walk and then position myself for the next obstacle! We will be combining our usual weekly training at the club with some 1-2-1 sessions their and with Pam I think to work on this. However I also know this will come with experience and we must remember Dylan is not yet 3 years old yet and still quite young & my own experience of agility is only with Dylan!

So I need to tell you my latest news ....

... that says it all really!! We has a really really really good weekend! 6 wins over 3 days - the best average for us. Our first Grade 5 show by Dog Vegas (they run quite a number of KC shows throughout the year) and well it just all came together. 5 jumping wins for which we were given lovely blue glasses as trophies (I have 9 of these altogether now from the other DV shows I have done) and the lovely glass one shown for the agility!

What can I say ....

We did the Letchworth Show at Shuttleworth a month ago and really didn't get it together at all, with only 1 clear round which resulted in 13th place as it was an ABC (anything but collie) agility qualifier for Crufts - I was indeed very pleased with that round, but for Dylan it was slow because he was trying but not always getting what I wanted! The rest of that show, we made mistakes in every run, but it is all learning.

With a month's break we trained hard (well normal really but working on the turns and consolidating the dog walk contact) and then off to Dog Vegas which had been moved from Bakewell to Southwell. We camped - it was cold but the weather actually stayed surprisingly fine. Our first run was a jumping and we nailed it ... every twist and turn! The second run was a jumping and again we nailed it - wow! Dylan is so quick that if I don't get myself in the right place and time my moves to perfection he can go a different way.

With confidence building I had 2 agility runs that day, but both were an utter disaster!

Day 2: Started again with a jumping win and again we nailed it .... that's it 3 jumping wins qualifies you to win out of grade 5 to 6! Done! BUT no I wanted the agility win too. The agility that day was a money winner called Dog Vegas Money, not a bad run, but not clear - 10 faults I think (didn't look). Next we had another jumping and again we nailed it .... I was beginning to realise that I wasn't having to think too hard either and was trusting Dylan and just responding to him .... being a coach (that's me for canoeing that is) I know that when you stop thinking so hard it means you do actually understand & the fact that I had replicated success over 4 courses was excellent!

Day 3: Jumping again and again we nailed it! Unstoppable! Next agility ... a nice course with some twists and turns ... 2 lots of 6 weaves and the dog walk in the middle but after a sharp turn ... so hopefully Dylan wouldn't be going too fast over the dog walk! Well I beasted him down the dog walk and it worked ... he got his contact beautifully but then went right after the next jump instead of left! Never mind, called him back and off we went trying hard to focus! Seesaw, jump, right back onto the A frame, right off there, jump, jump, past the first tunnel entrance and back into the second, then the stretch home ... Clear! It was a combined grade 3-5 agility so lots of dogs all completing against each other. But yes ours was the fastest time ... we won our agility!

We had 2 more runs that day ... the other agility was awful, not a particularly safe course as we had to send the dog through a tunnel under the dog walk (in itself ok) but then you wanted to run where the dog walk was, so had to go round ... anyway we were in fact okay with that part and made a pull in mistake. The last jumping was funny. We were both tired, me particularly and I put a foot wrong and pulled Dylan off a jump which he than back jumped so being eliminated ... I just laughed as it was such a silly mistake! The rest of the round was perfect!

So what a year we have had! We won out of Grade 1 on 17th March 2012 at the Easter Dog Vegas having started agility competitions in June 2011. Won out of Grade 2 on 12th May 2012 at Godmanchester Spring Show, won out of Grade 3 at the start of summer (July 23rd) at Adams Agility Show and out of Grade 4 on 26th August at the Summer Show at Littleport with this final win out of Grade 5 to Grade 6 on 29th Sept 2012.

Dylan is amazing ... but these poos are!