To, 3 months
3 months already! As we're taking her puppy tricks further, I'm noticing an interesting thing that was never an issue with my other dogs - she gets unsure and gives up really quickly. I tend to raise the criteria very slowly, mostly by jackpots rather as waiting them out, so I never had a "give-upper" before, but when To thinks there might be more to it, even when I keep frequency of clicking really high, or when I introduce something new - like a 2nd object for one object into another trick - she will simply leave and lie down a couple of meters away, whine or start to give kisses. I had to hide the 2nd object in my lap and expose it VERY gradually to not stress her out with "what is THAT about", so this trick is taking a bit longer. The same with pivoting - she was great with target and actually offered it randomly even without it, but when I tried a flat target, she did two great tries that I rewarded and then she just left in horror that there is something wrong with that target! She gets over it eventually, but she sure gets me wondering how to work around it sometimes! So interesting - different dogs, different challenges - love it!
I just wish we could walk in our woods again, but we have really crazy weather with so much ice that the trees are falling down, so woods is really dangerous right now, I can hear trees falling down all the time... - so we need to walk on ice in the fields instead... 🙁 I'm amazed how well the dogs can run on it though, given I can hardly walk!
Hi Silvia !
To has always beautiful attitudes !
During year 2012 at club, we welcomed in beginners agility class a wonderfull and very clever 6 months BC with blue eyes whose name is Google and every body love him. Google seemed to really love agility, but when I tried to learn him some too static tricks -- 2o2o or paws touch or 4in or any shaping tricks, Google give up after 2 or 3 tries and -lie down a couple of meters away- Google really prefers action and is learning really better in action with speed or based on instinct.
To loves her tricks, also static ones -- it’s just when she is unsure that she gives up, so I need to be VERY gradual with progressions and very generous with the rewards. The better she understands the trick, the more she loves it, but when unsure, my other dogs will start throwing million things at me -- and To will leave. Hopefully, that only shows her will to be right -- that will be a nice change after Bi -- with no will to be right 🙂
Ah is To going to make you an even better teacher than you already are 🙂 Thanks To. We like to have a mentor that is being challenged!
Always something new, with every new dog!
Oh they are all so interesting!!! My Min Pins never stop offering things, but Spur will and does that same kissing thing, I think!!
I am sorry about your ice. We had that years ago and it was no fun.
I hope we get some videos of To soon. her photos make her look SO cute!!!
I agree with Shona ! yay! To is going to enlarge your already hugely deep well of ideas Silvia 🙂 very good for us, your students !!
Could the ears be any cuter?!
Maybe it is just these pictures but I think she looks like she is very aware if doing things right, especially the third and fourth ones look like “Yes? Is that what I am supposed to do?” 🙂
Really adorable!
Yes, I guess there is something good in every characteristic they have!
To is so sweet, and my she is growing 🙂
One of my Afghans is doing just that, getting unsure, and shutting down, so I’m following your work with To with great interest.
And for the ice, get Swedish Icebug shoes! I don’t understand how I managed before I got my first. They give you a very good grip on ice, and there are different models, for hiking, jogging etc. And they are very durable 🙂 Wish they had a doggy model, my dogs are not so good on ice as yours.
http://icebug.se/en/
Thanks for the links, those do look interesting! And yes, I’m normally very good at “reward anything, select for more with jackpots”, so I’m surprised this happened to me as I keep frequency of rewarding really high -- and yet she still decides things are too hard sometimes! She actually does it well -- and then say “oh no, that’s too hard”. For now, I just switch to another trick and then try to think of more gradual progression till next session.
Yes, switching to another easy fun trick is the best way to reassure -- barking trick is also good to reassure and chain tricks !
Bina is the same. I never changed that and I have her for 4,5 years. She gets unsure, gives up and is sooo frustrated if she thinks she did something wrong. I need to take every new trick slowly, raising criteria is mostly done by jackpots.
I have a hard time to get her on balance disc. In her mind that is something to step around, not ON 🙂 (2 of them, she is a big girl)…But as with everything I put mind to it…we will find a way.
Maybe start with other objects at first -- like folded blankets, cushions and pillows -- and then add balance discs as just another object?
now you have one like my tarn! the more difficult ones make us better trainers 🙂
Silvia, could you please update regularly on how you deal with To’s insecurity during shaping? I have the same problem with Art and it’s only getting worse, so we could really use some tips.. We didn’t have such problems during puppy class as he mastered those tricks rather quickly (well it happened a few times, but he quickly got over it), but now I just don’t seem to be able to teach him any new (harder) tricks. Today we tried ‘coin in a tiny jar’ trick and after a few tries he actually managed to get the coin in a jar but then after a few fails he gave up and lied down. We did some happy tricks after that and tried again later -- he succeeded once, but then he randomly decided that this is to hard for him and lied down. And it’s happening with other new tricks to. If he doesn’t know exactly what I want, how to do it and if he has to put a lot of effort in it, he prefers not to do it at all. He absolutely loves doing tricks that he knows well though.. It’s happening in agility as well, we’re just starting but if he (or rather -- I) makes a mistake and I try to get him to re-do sth, he gets really distressed and sometimes just wanders off or starts to playfully run around me (probably to calm me?!) or finds himself a tunnel and starts running through it (and yes -- he absolutely loves tunnels as he can’t make a mistake there..). He definitively is a BIG challange but training is more interesting this way I suppose. And he is teaching me a lot for sure :))
Have fun with To, she’s absolutely adorable!! <3
I just went with the same tactic as I used for Bu -- reward everything, JP the best, and it really helped her to keep trying. But why are you making him redo things for your mistakes? Just keep going and reward something good and when trying something again, put it in a different sequence and add lots of tunnels to keep him happy and make it look different. I never stop/redo for my (handling) mistakes, only for training mistakes (knocked bars, missed contacts or weaves).
Thanks for the advice, I will try doing the same and see where it goes. 🙂
Hmm for example: I send him to wrap around a wing, he starts to run in the direction but then pulls off. Then I usually try to redo right away, except I run a bit closer to the wing so that it’s more clear. He’s new to agility so it makes sense that he doesn’t have great obstacle focus just yet but sometimes he does wrap when I send him from a certain distance, and sometimes he pulls off (although the distance and everything is the same), so I can’t really say whose mistake is that -- his or mine for expecting too much. Anyway, making it look different could work, thanks for the idea. 🙂
It’s not too bad even if you keep going in situations like that and just reward more when he does take the jump… I think once he understands the whole thing better + is really into it, the problem will go away anyway -- it did with Bu, she handles any redoing perfectly now.
Thanks a lot for your help!
He mastered the coin in a jar trick!! -- rel="nofollow ugc"> Your advice really helped, thanks! 🙂
Great!