Wednesday, February 27, 2013


Good Morning, Mum just watched Susan Garrett's third Webinar for Recallers 4.00 and look how exciting life is going to be for me now!

Framework for Inspired Learning

( the reason for this particular font can be found at http://www.edge.org/conversation/disfluency)

1.         Know exactly what you want.

I want Bob to wait at the start line, quivering, just waiting for my release but never releasing until I say the word GO.
I want Bob to come at squirrel speed to me any time I give one call, even in the house.
I want Bob to weave at breakneck speed no matter from where I send him to the weaves.
I want Bob to have the tightest turns round jump wings no matter where I am on the course.
I want Bob to have absolutely solid 2on2off contacts no matter where I am on the agility course.
I want Bob to really work for me at distance.
I want Bob to walk loose lead beside me no matter where we are or what is going on around us.
I want Bob to love lying on my lap when I’m watching TV.
I want Bob to go see the elderly and look up at them cutely on my command.

2.     Visualise the Benefits

When Bob can wait whenever he is on the startline, I will be able to enter the agility ring with confidence that Bob’s focus is on me and his work and that we will have great fun running the course.
When I know that Bob has squirrel speed one calls 100% of the time we will be able to enjoy walks wherever we are without being concerned, say, if I see a dog on leash who might not want other dogs to visit it.  Also, it would save his life if he happened to be running straight toward a road.
When Bob weaves at breakneck speed if I send him to the weaves from anywhere on the course, I will have the confidence that yes, we will make G7 at Kennel Club as well as Champion level at UKA.
When Bob has very tight turns I will have confidence that our speed in agility will always be the optimum we can achieve on the day.
When Bob has solid 2on2off contacts I will have confidence that he will always stop and never fly off the end of the contacts how Dylan used to.
When Bob works brilliantly at distance, it means that me, as an older agility competitor will not have to rely on running at the breakneck speeds of Shaun Hunt and Greg Derrett, and that Bob need not be limited by my own running speed.
When Bob walks loose lead beside me wherever we are, we will walk confidently down streets, around the rings at trials, in fact anywhere and I shall be so proud of my naughty Bob.
When Bob lies in my lap when I’m watching TV in the evenings we will have the warmest snuggles on cold winter nights.
When Bob goes see the elderly at the Care Home that he visits, he will impress with his tricks, but even more so by looking adoringly at the elderly clients so that they really believe he loves them.


3.        Strategically introduce working stress.

a)       Duration
b)       Distractions (your dog’s five senses, hearing, sight, taste, touch, smell)
c)       Distance (away from you or something your dog loves or fears)

Unique approach to introducing stress training to your dog.
First teach the dog a joyful response to stress training before introducing this stress into training. – Crate Games

4.       Break your targeted behaviour down into small, more manageable responses.


 







Take into consideration the complexity of the behaviour, environment, or dog’s natural drives. (Sprocker Bob loves sniffing).
Don’t be trapped by the limits of your own perception.
Focusing on training small responses leads to big successes!

5.        Balance value and distractions strategically.




Reinforcement empowers choice.
Control the level of intensity of stress (or distraction) for the dog.
You control outcome of an inappropriate choice.
Remember 80% success guideline


.
Mastery = Synchronised Desires
Foundation layers build mastery from understanding.
Work = Play & Play = Work
Joy in training

Here we come again – upwards and onwards to RECALLERS 4.0

Thursday, February 21, 2013

Hi there,

It's been a little while since I updated my blog.  Mum has been struggling with me because I didn't understand exactly what she wanted when she asked me to wait in front of the jump and I kept jumping up on her and grabbing her coat, so she decided it might be a good idea to go back to the critical core games of Recallers.  Over today we did these in the garden.  


Crate Games

Walking with Mum in RZ 

Collar Grab
In this game Mum practised restraining
me on my collar as well because I get very
silly doing this when we have a toy and I need to
learn to do this whether with food or a toy.

This is me doing my favourite trick
Sit Pretty
I am really clever because I stay in my Sit Pretty
even when Mum throws lovely treats, like little
pieces of steak all around me.

And this video shows that I can play tug without actually
climbing all over Mum when she asks for the tug and then a sit.

Wednesday, January 30, 2013

Well we had some fun today again - get to do loads with the Say Yes to Contacts Course with Susan Garrett.  Today we practised with me needing to nose target to a piece of plexi glass, and I managed well and we even got to the point where Mum didn't have her fingers over it.  I was pretty good too because when she dropped treats not onto the plexi I manage not to take them!



Then later on we played in the garden before Mum had to take Grandma to get new frames for her glasses.  She broke these when she fell over on Sunday.   I just didn't want to have to wait at first, but finally I gave in. I love the seesaw and have done it without chairs and tables, but the reason we are doing this, is to check that I don't get scared and slow down at its pivot point.  I don't care about that at all!


We played crate games too.  I'm not used to using Ponto's big soft crate but it is safer for me to run fast into.


Finally, we played chasing around a post, one day Mum says I will be running down the dog walk, getting my contact then racing to this funny looking post and tight turning around it.  Today is just the beginning.


Sunday, January 27, 2013

Sunday today and Mum and I have already played a lot of games, I found walking on lead downstairs at heel or side and going back up easy - Mum was pleased.   Yesterday I did some jumping in the garden.  Ponto had a quick go too, she's at the beginning of the video.  Really Mum videoed this because she is practising her Front Cross and she realised how flappy her arms are when she watched this.  We're going to have another go today.



First though, I'm having a nap while Mum works really hard to get the skeleton argument for her assignment for her MA.  She has chosen to do: Jane Eyre and Wide Sargasso Sea are both hybrid texts, which sounds pretty complicated to me, but she has read loads and is going to use arguments by Bakhtin, Bhaba and Spivak she says.

Enough for now, I'm going to sleep for a couple of hours, then it will be time for a long walk at the beach.

See ya
Bob

Saturday, January 26, 2013

Good morning
Saturday today, yesterday I went to agility training, there was still snow on the field but we managed to get a lot done, some slices, front cross turns and generally lots of fun.  I was naughty though and lifted my leg on the entrance to the tunnel (I wasn't supposed to be going through it) so Mum say's I've got to learn not to do that because it would be dreadful to do it at a show.
This morning I did lots of playing while getting my breakfast.  Just take a look at the videos here and you'll see what I was up to.  Also played retrieve with my tennis balls, cookie in the corner and some other good chase games too.



Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Hello again

Today it has been pouring with rain all day.  We only went for a short lead walk today because it was so cold and wet but Mum was so pleased with me because I hardly pulled at all and only needed her to stop a couple of times even though all the three big dogs were with us, usually it is me an Mum on my own.  

We played indoors as well today then Mum compiled these little videos of today, yesterday and the day before of each game.   The first one is hand targeting, the second is me on the travel plank and it was so wobbly because it was on the wobble cushions, the third was a make do plank across with a table (we used dog beds) at each end.  That was a bit springy but didn't faze me at all.  Hope you enjoy watching the show.

Wonder what we'll do tomorrow.

Bob





Hello again

Well we are working hard on our Contacts Course but Mum and I discovered that our Crate Games have been getting slopping.  Basically she had been accepting C.R.A.P. (Continually Reinforcing Ambiguous Performances) and not keeping to the important criteria, meaning I have to sit when she touches the crate door.   The video here shows how much we had slipped, even though I stay in the crate but often standing.  The end part is what we did this morning back to Stages 1, 2 and 3 and we definitely began improving again. 



We've videoed lots of our progress so will show you how our nose targets and plank work are going soon as well.

Bye for now
Bob