Freya's ob and our goals to 2015

It has a long time since I have done really a obedience training session. New ob rules will come on 1.8.2015. Lots new things to learn but I have had a thought of taking Freya high level with the old rules. We will see how this goes. We would now have 8 months to do it. This means I really need start training on more than couple times a month. It's going to be a hard task for me to keep myself motivated.

So of we went to training ob. We started with attitude work. I hope built up better attitude for Freya than Pixie has for ob. Freya is a little serious to train with. When she starts to work, she is very focused and wants to do every right. I have tried to make her crazy while we work. It has been a little challenging when you have a dog that really thinks what it is doing. I have learned that good ob dog is a little stupid and has not that nerves to get that crazy speed all over again to the same task. I will have a huge challenge to make my little genius fly true every task all over again. I will really do my best to keep training really chancing and motivating for her.



Pixie has been on brake from all the training for 3 weeks and she will continue her brake for few more weeks. Our year ended really sad. Yet again we got a first reserve place this time on EO-team. I can only say that I'm super mad. Pixie is a super dog and yet again I couldn't make her run as super as she should have to get to the EO-team. She is one of the fastest dog Finland but we have had a bad habit of making one mistake runs. First we had a running A-frame problem and then one bar faults (my mistake most of the time). I can only feel shame not to make her shine as she should. Pixie is one of a kind, simply a super star from the first day she was born. I hope that we can get a reserve place to EO. She deserve show her talent in bigger arenas.

Only good thing out of misery was that I got huge motivation to make us better. Pixie will be built again to whole shine after her brake and I have goal to lose weight 15 kg. Learn again to run fast and be better at my foot work. Also my hunger for winning has only gone bigger. Only winning counts if we take a second place we could have done something better. Pixie isn't going to become any younger. It's time to make myself as perfect as possible. She wont lose another run because of me. She will fly and she take what is her to get.


That my thoughts for the year 2015. It will be full of work - blood, sweat and tears. But hell  we are going to do everything what is takes to chase our dream!

Happy new year 2015 to everyone!!!!!!

Freya's agility training

Slalom training

Freya is almost 1 year old so couldn’t resist on starting to train slalom.  I decided to use the same technique that I had used to train Pixie. I put clear plastic rails on the slalom sticks to create a tunnel for the dog. This time I used leash with a help to make her stay in “the tunnel” the first few times. On first session my goal was to make Freya understand keep in the plastic rails. This part went pretty easy.

Second session our goal was to make her do the slalom from both directions and to see does she change her focus from the rails to slalom sticks. This is the most import point in slalom training. When the dog changes the focus straight to the slalom sticks, it is time to start removing them. Our second session was super and Freya’s focus was on the slalom sticks but I only took 2 goes from both sides and left it there.

On our third training session I did first slalom with all the rails on the stick and after I started remove them 2 at the time from the middle. I ended the session with only two rails on the end and on the beginning. Freya was just super. She got the idea of slalom super fast and even tried to accelerate towards the end (this didn’t work out yet). We need to build a little bit of muscle in woods to make hold herself better in the slalom.  Freya has still some weakness in her back part of body and I think she is still growing a bit. So at this point our slalom training will be hold back to wait her get more body control. 

Running contacts

This has so much fun and Freya has been so cool!!!!!! We have started to do running dog-walk between two obstacles so that it will start to work as a part of a course. Also I have started to make handling maneuvers to the end of dog walk. I have made runs behind a jump and ask her to turn with a turning cue. Freya was super in this training session. She didn’t try to jump too early from the dog and turned really well in the end of DW and straight towards me. I always start and end RC session with straight line runs just keep her good spacing to a contact zone as good as possible.

I have also have done now our first real A-frame session. At this point she has just run it over to get used to the obstacle. I could only watch with great fear when she ran the A-frame to first time today. She jumped from front contact zone straight to other contact zone. She did hit the contact but this way of doing the obstacle was totally unacceptable. So no reward and she got another try. This time she really ran the contact obstacle with two canter strike on both sides. This was what I hoped it would be come. After doing a nice ground work with DW, the A-frame seems to come together pretty easy. Freya did 5 nice runs over the A-frame and each time did perfect. Now need to just make as part of course training so that I can do whatever I want and she will do the same way every time.  

Merry Christmass to everyone!!!!!

Merry Christmas and Happy New year 2015!!!

With Lots of Love Team-S<

Puppy- young athlete - super star of agility

There has been a lot of debate about training with puppies and young dogs. Lots of videos has been shared and talked about how too young dogs take part of competitions or are trained with very complex parts in agility. So what is the right age for training? I have really thought about is many times.  I start training my puppies on the first day they come home. First teach them work with clicker and then use shaping to get behaviors that I want. As long as teaching is fun and it done in small amounts I only see this as a beneficial for a puppy and I.

Then comes the specific sport training like agility. When is the right time to start and what is appropriate training for different age levels? I don’t think there is right answer to this. I think it is import to see a puppy as individual because puppies can develop in very different ways. I really have had two really different bordercollies at this point. Pixies body was well developed the whole time she grew. She just got bigger and bigger. Freya on the other hand had lots of trouble with her body and she grew super fast to her full height. She needed to have physiotherapy to make her function normally. You need to have good eye and support team to make as good as you can have to you puppy.

Debate on training with younger dogs, is some times hard follow, because you don’t know which words and sayings means to everyone. I think the most dangerous thing is to have a famous person /trainer post a video of advance training video. Most of the dog owners are really clueless about dogs physics and what is normal movement and so on. This leads to over training and doing things that the puppy might not be ready for.  New dog owners don’t have the skills and knowledge to keep training session short and do things that are easy enough for the dog. Fancy videos don't always show the work and the little steps behind needed to be done to get this point. Amateurs can take it easily as an example and just do seen exercise without seeing his/her dogs skill level. 

One thing to consider is that do I train agility if I train basic skills with pillows, boxes, rock etc.? Or is agility training if I use agility obstacles as training tools? I think everything that I teach the dog that has end goal use in agility is agility training. For example I teach a puppy to use its rear end so that it has an idea of 2on2off position later on. I built a training plan to each sport and think which are the basic building blocks that the dog needs when it grows up. 

One of the building block is dogs body control and physical on condition. This is the whole base to every sport. This is something I value the most and this part of training must be done the whole life of the dog. One part of this work is physiotherapy. My dog go for treatment every month. For Pixie this very import so that she is able to give her best and also to keep her body function perfectly despite of her attack injury. Freya started to see physiotherapist from the age of 10 weeks. This has shown how she has grown and what are problem parts in her body. For me Freya has been an athlete from the day 1. My goal has been to give a change for her build a body that is strong as possible and give her body stimulation that helps keep it in a balanced stage. Agility dogs are the super athletes in dog so why not start the building from the day one. 

So should you train with you puppy? Yes, but you should always take one day at a time. Learn how your dog moves, learns and develops. Also take your time to know puppy so that you can really learn see how she develops mentally. This affects how training plan must be built. Take time to get information what is proper exercise  for your puppy at given age (I consider dogs as puppies for their first year of life) and also see your puppy as individual. Some puppies grow fast and some can take years to become ready for certain sports. Use physiotherapist help if you are unsure and from the professional you can get good help how to built up strong body for your puppy. Puppies can get hurt while running in woods or playing with other dogs so physiotherapy checks help you to keep puppy in balance even though something happens. 

This is somethings I have thought about training and young dogs. This is learning curve that never ends and every time I get a new puppy I need to forget the old things and see the new dog as own individual. Pixie was ready to go super runner. Freya needed learn to run after she got long legs and needed some help to become balanced dog. Next dog might be somewhere in between. Something that I have learned from Pixie and Freya listen, watch, learn, wait, seek of information, enjoy and in the end YOU are responsible of your dog. No one else. You make decisions. Remember your dog will do anything for you. Are you taking best care you can of your dog?

MLPF 

See-saw training

I have needed to valuate my training with seesaw before I started to train it with Freya. Pixie does to see-saw ok but she doesn't all to way down. She comes to a contact zone but not the all the way down which makes it little slower than it could be. So here is the way I have started to built Freya's seesaw performance.

1. Bouncing is super cool

At this stage I just but a jump wing under the end that goes down so that the other end stays a little bit of the ground. I use shaping to make a dog to go and hit the contact zone. Just to make is comfortable with the movement and sound.

2. 2on2off position

First I do this with the end of seesaw down. Just shape the 2on2off positions in a new situation. I have done 2on2off position in different object like box and stairs at home so that the dog has already idea what's going on. After the dog has the idea of 2on2off on handled, I change the game by combining the bouncing game. Again I put a jump wing to the other end to make the end of seesaw of the ground. Now the dog has to jump on seesaw to make it to 2on2off position.

3. Go to the end

At this stage I start make the dog run to the end of the seesaw while I hold it up. I reward as soon as the dog reaches the end of seesaw. I lift off the dog from the seesaw for the few first training so that reward come only from running to the end. I do this until the dog is very confident of going all the way till the end.

4. Starting to put it all together

Soon as the dog goes confidently to the end I start lower to seesaw to the ground and wait for the 2on2off position. I still reward the dog of going all the way till end of the board. Gradually I slow the seesaw less and less until it comes down by its own with the dog. At this point I usually start my training with going trough the previous steps just to make sure the dog is tuned to right idea. This helps that the you get forward in every training.

5. Seesaw in distractions and part off course

This is the work I do trough out the dogs life. I start making different distractions like running, turning, putting seesaw after different obstacles etc. This is some thing that has no limits in variation in set ups. Just lots on continuing work.

With this program Freya has pretty confident and fast seesaw. Actually she has made her own sliding style. 2on2off position still need a little patient but we are getting there. Freya is now in stage 4. Hope to move on the stage 5 soon.

That's for now.....

MLPF

Tricks and ob

Pixie had her ostheopathy treatment on Tuesday so we had to take a little slower the rest of the week. On Thursday we trained some "dog dancing" tricks. Our basic trick has been that Pixie can back up around an object. My goal was now to teach her to do a figure eight backing up around an object and I. I have done this combo before but we work on to make even better and also to make Pixie really understand the change of direction between me and the object. Other version of this trick was to make Pixie back up to an object and then go around it. To this combo I also combined a par where we both back up away from each other. These trick are really fun work on even though I don't have plan ever to take part in dog dancing competition.

Here are few part we have trained separately to reach our goals:

• backing up
  • first away from me when I'm standing
  • gradually I start to take steps backwards after Pixie starts to back up
  • then we start doing backing up at the same time
• going around an object
  • this I have done with shaping and I used my divan sofa to make a route that she needed learn to back up
  • next stage was to make this trick work while the object in the middle of the floor in both direction
  • use to same commands to make Pixie go around me
• 8 figure combo
  • first around an object and stop her between me and the object (this part I had to do a lot with Pixie make her calm down enough listen to my cues)
  • teach to the dog to do the combo in both directions and learn to start this combo from my side or from the side of the object
• back up away from me and going around an object
  • first a rewarded back up that went near to an object and then I cued Pixie to go around
  • when the ground work is done well this should come together pretty easily
  • start with short backing up and gradually built up the distance that the dog needs to back up to get an object

Here is a video of our work:


Freya and I worked also on our obedience. I have really been very lazy lately. We haven't really done anything new. I have tried to work on our healing to make as good as possible. I have done some distraction work to make Freya work very intensively. She is gettin better and better all the time. I have also done some work with our stop and laying in healing. Going down is starting to be pretty good. Stopping still has bad and good days. I hope to make the stop faster than it is right now. 

Here is video of work in Ob and some tricks:


That's all for now...

MLPF

Freya's contact training

Today we had a another training session with running contact. I had goal to make full runs on dog walk and make turning exercise. First we did few straight runs. Freya did pretty well. I saw from the video that I need get her focus more lower. She touches the contact zone pretty well but sometimes she does it too high for my taste. I really would love to have two video-cameras- one on the side and one in the front. I could see better how different touches look like. It really is different what I see from the side and how it looks from the front. I still have problems to see when does more jumping type step. More work for me.

Turning has been easy to work with. I use same cue that I have used when taught her to turn around a jump. I have used long jump pole to make it little bit easy for her and to prevent her coming down too early from the dog walk. I have still to teach her going behind a jump after rc and go forward a long distance. Here is video from today:

Freya is really super to train. Even though she has mild ADHD sometimes, she can concentrate super when we work. We have more to learn in normal living so that she doesn't need to love everybody so passionately. Also she has some issues when it comes to passing unfamiliar dogs. One on one situation still needs some work. I don't like that dog makes any sound when it is passing. Freya is so unsure that she need to bark sometimes. We are getting better and better at it. This is our biggest issue that need to be worked on.

That's all for now...

MLPF

Running Contacts and almost good runs

Running Contacts

I have done more training with Freya's running contacts. First I have worked on her turnings and her running to an obstacle. Our first session was really good. She did really nice turns and went without mistake straight to a tunnel. I did my training from the middle part of the dog walk and also did this exercises when she did the whole dog walk. She did miss few contacts but all together Freya did really well!

Our last session from Thursday wasn't that good. Freya had really problems touching the contact when she was on my right side. On the left side did just perfect. This was really weird because her right side has alway been the "better" side. I forgot my video camera so I don't know did I do something different or has she got some kind of muscle problem. We will find this out this soon in our physiotherapy session. I also need to film our work more.

Training agility

I have started make Pixie do again her 2on2off contacts on A-frame. Our competition A-frame just became a disaster. I had enough doing fault on that. I didn't give up on our A-frame but we started to focus our work on gallop step after she comes over the peak. She really needs understand that she need to make one real gallop step and not jump or slow down. So this will our winter project.

Pixie and Freya also trained side release (this is probably isn't the right saying). This an import skill to make starts even smoother and also make them also more easy. This is something I haven't really tough Pixie. She has done this on her own. So it was nice really work with them. I still a problem of forgetting to make my move to towards a takeoff side. Here is our work from this exercise:



Competitions

Pixie and I had a competition weekends. We had good moment and not so good moments. A-frame mistakes were part of the problem but I go to train with them the next weekend. Our work can be really good when we have it all together. Course running is starting to feel really easy with Pixie and feels super. I made few handling mistakes but we very close start making nice clear round. Our team work and feeling is really good right. Here are few of our competition runs from the last few weekend:




More work ahead but it will be fun and I have the best team in the world!!!

That's for now!

MLPF

I think I have a little genius :D

Running contact project

I have tough Freya left and right turns on a jump. Tik as cue going right and cap as cue going left. At first I did it around a stick and then round a jumping wing. My plan was to use this also as cue when she need to turn after a contact zone. I used a stick again to help her figure the turn better. This has worked really well so far. I have always done first straight line rc and after that done some turning ones to a toy or to a tunnel. Freya has really good ability think and she changes her behavior really well if don't get reward. Our RC's will need a lot of work but o'boy love to work with them with Freya. She is just super!!!

Pixie and I had a long conversation about running A-frame. She has a habit of missing her A-frame contact in a competition. So I started to do just one at practice and if she missed it she needed go on a brake. This started to really make a change and her drive started to be on right level. I also used a box for a while to get go a little bit lower again. We will see will my work get results. We have two days of competitions in this coming weekend. I can only hope!

Obedience

Freya had training session where we worked on our laying down. This seems to be the hardest task. She just want to do active stuff. I have had a little problems to make her understand that laying doing is also a very important task. Leaving a toy to wait seems to be the best way to keep her mind in focus. We a long way before she will be ready for trial in this area.

I have started distance control training almost every day to make her body get used all the movement. Freya has improved a lot and all her changes a starting to be ready. Now we just need to work on repetition and of course little by little distance. Freya had a problem of going on side ways while she did the changes of positions. This was solved when I put her on a edge of a carpet. She didn't want to go over the carpet line and this is the way learned to control her side way movement. Freya is just so cool!!!

Clicker training

I had a fun evening few days ago. I took a piece of mouse pad and started to work on paw touch on it. My goal was to get the paw touch to a stimuli control. Paw touch has just a trick I have used to get a focus with my dogs but I want to improve clicker training skills and really make under a cue. I had so much fun to watch how differently my girls learn.

Freya got the idea pretty quickly and stopped paw touching the mouse pad until I said a cue. She only tried few times. She really used her brain to figure out what would bring the  reward. Louise just hit the target with super power and did this in many session before she could wait. After she got the idea of waiting the cue her drive went really high but she could herself from hitting the target. Pixie was the hardest one. After didn't get a click from hitting the target she started to do many trick she new. It really showed that none of them were really under stimulus control and she couldn't just do nothing. I needed to catch even a little moments that she went away from the target so I could give her the cue. It took a long while but she got a hang of it after multiple session. I really recommend this kind task to everyone. It really teaches you so much about your dogs and of course improves your training skills.


That's all for now!! Enjoy your time with your dogs!!

MLPF

Jaakko and Tanja our VIPs for last week

We had Jaakkos training last week. Pixie and I had really good time and we found our flow feeling. I had still work with my foot work. Also I had problems of handling tunnels while I walked the course. This came out as a problem of not remembering what's next. So I had a really big thing to improve. Pixie just flied and turned really well.

I also trained with Freya for the first time with Jaakko. She was really good and she did really nice work with some difficult handling like away turn from me. I had some problems with my foot work again. I was little unsure of her work and didn't do my best relaxed handling. It is just hard sometimes to just do as normal when you have a new puppy in your hands. Freya hasn't show super speed. She concentrates really well and wants to do everything right. I that she will pick up some speed as we started work more and more in agility.

In Finland autumn is long on the way and we had few rainy days so we did some living room training and long walk in a forest. Here is our video where Freya does show some of tricks and Pixie works on her working dog trial ob.

Pixie and I went to competition last Saturday. We didn't do any clean runs but I learned a lot. First thing was that I watched people to walk the course and I could see how people looked around after every tunnel. Then I really realized what Jaakko said to me later on that week. People went really clueless after each tunnel if didn't really handle them. I also learned how my kneeling really affects my moving and how my dog works. I have unnecessary "kneeling" to each reverse turn. My thought have been to make Pixie collect more. So unneeded - she could read me better if I just did it and moved. This day learned more how to be on the right place on the right time. This is some thing I really need to work on because I do the unneeded slowing down too naturally. Yet again new habit to brake. Here is our few runs from the weekend:



We went to also do some training on Sunday. Pixie and I worked on our team work and I tried to learn the new things that I needed to improve in my handling. Pixie did also some super running A-frame work. Freya worked on her running contact work. I really hope that she will get as cool running contacts as Lilli ( Jenny Damns dog) has. She has started to get the idea. Some times she just jumps but most of the time she is starting to be super good. I also stared our Project Runway. This a training scheme that I teach her to approach a dog walk always in a straight line even if I send her in a steep angle. Here is a video of our work so far:



Today we went to see Tanja our physiotherapist. Freya is fine now. Her body has over come the problems she has had. YEE!!!!!!!!! Pixie has a hard stomach area again. We need see if it's the grains that I have in our training treats or something else. So trick grain free diet for her and we will see will she goes better. I can't thank enough Tanja. She makes my girls fly without pain. Now sport dog should without some physiotherapy in the training schedule. Especially agility can be really tough on dogs. Take care of partner!!

That's all for now....

MLPF

Agility hype

We had a nice competition last weekend. First course we took one bar, even though we had a change to do it again. Other it felt very easy and smooth ride. On the second course I handled Pixie to a wrong tunnel so no stories from there. Last we had a jumping course. It was very fast and straight lined. We might have our most perfect run. Pixie worked like a charm. I waited on the right spots and Pixie turned really tight. The reward was a winning run (1./69!!!!!!). I really felt like million dollars! Here are some photos taken by Jukka Pätynen (Koirakuvat)

Freya has also done agility and she getting better and better. Sometimes she still little unsure but when she get the point she goes with will speed. In running dog-walk she just discovered jumping from high over the contact zone. So we have had little conversation about that but after a few tries without reward she started to get the point- it better run all the way down. :D Here is some video of our and also some work with Louise.

OB

Freya had her first group training in ob. She did really good even though we had problems with her social behavior. She just wanted to meet everybody so I had to reward her a lot to keep her focus on me even though she went by another dog team. She did really nice training with "box" and Freya is starting find the right spot. Soon she can start doing the box from longer distance. She also did some nice heal work and recall training. Laying down is still a little hard task for her. Why should anyone be 2 min in one place?? There we have a big job to make it reliable. This time she was also heard two different gun shots and she was fine with them so at this point I could say she ok with shooting.

Pixie also did some working dog trial ob. Sending forward started to work but she still turn only side ways and not straight back to me when she goes down. I have used to toys, one in the end, one as a reward from turning. I guess I just have to do little bit more to make her turn back at me on a straight line.

Her retrieve has been successfully change to coming back in front of me. Also recall has been changed so that she come first in front of me. I have just used clicker to make this new place a super place. I have train everything ready in my living room and after this I have use these new cues in open field training. This change have been pretty easy but I know that old things might come up when she gets little unsure. So more work in different places and situations should do the trick.

Pixie's training update

Last competition in obedience

Pixie has improved a lot in ob. Her drive in heal work has gone much much better. I have also been able make metal object retrieve better even though she hates the metal dumbbell. It has been just perfect when doing the more moving task but yet again laying down and sitting was just terrible. She just went to Hawaii island and didn't do them in competition. She just dropped down from sitting and took a side way position in lying down. She just simple hates in being in one place and wait. Otherwise Pixie did pretty good last competition in OB. We will stop competing in ob because the next stage would be National team and in Finland we have the world’s best team. I just don’t have the energy work with Pixie in that level. She is little too steady dog to be super obedience dog.

All pictures by Sirpa Saari. Thank you a lot again!! These pics are just super! 

New goal in a tracking trial

Pixie has done tracking since she was a puppy. I have dreamed of going to a working dog trial with her. Her tracking is in pretty good shape. I need a little work on her stick work. Sometimes she runs too fast to notice the marking sticks that she need to find to get all the points. This week I worked on her working dog trial ob. She did her first jumps on 1 m jump with dumbbell. Pixie did pretty well. Her jump was strong and she didn’t hit the jump after a little touch. She also did the trial A-frame which is a 2 meter high and steep climbing obstacle. Pixie did with strong and wise work. She did it with nice speed and good controlled landing. Pixie did it well also with dumbbell. So I just need to get it all ready and I hope to get her a tracking title next spring.

Agility training Jaakko

After going thought the course I had a feeling that it could be done. I had maneuvers planned and I was sure Pixie would work like a charm. The truth was totally different. We started to work out on first four jumps and it felt like a nightmare. I was too fast, I was in a wrong place, I waited too long and sometimes too less. The flow that I had in mind was totally gone. I was feeling overwhelmed again. It felt like we couldn't make it even though it was a pretty simple task.

It took only few obstacles and I was in trouble again. My foot work in forced waltz was wrong and it made Pixie refuse from a jump. It was hard to think my foot work and still keep focus on the next task. I really have hard time to keep my mind and coordination in the same rhythm. Next problem situation was reverse turn that I did in wrong place or too so or even yet again with wrong foot work and body position. At this point I started to be totally whipped. I started to have enough of failing at this point. It really started to feel that I just have two left feet and really badly working concentration.

One error in my training came to action. Pixie read the course and didn't listen to my maneuvers. This is some that I done wrong. I have let her go to obstacles with so on so handling and I haven’t kept strict rules how to respond to my handling maneuvers. It’s not her fault. I just have used sometimes an easy way out of handling situations. I have let her read the course and not to really pay attention to me. I have let her fly with bad handling if it has work in that situation. This has cost me that sometimes she reads the course more than she listens what I say because haven’t kept clear rules what my different movements mean. 

This was a hard training mentally but I can go back and train some more. We still have a goal. Even the road to it seems to be painful and hard from time to time.

That's for now!! 

MLPF

Feeling is getting better.

We have had a long brake from agility competing. We have just trained and try to find our team work. Training hasn't gone well. I have had huge problems to get through a course without mistakes. Pixie has dropped par or two and my handling has been simple horrible. Piece by piece we started to make better and better parts during different courses. Best thing was we started be relaxed again. No hurry, no worries, just time to find ourselves again.

Last weekend we had a competition in Kirkkonummi. First course was super. Pixie only did contact mistake in A-frame but otherwise it was very nice run. Both us were relaxed and I kept in my mind a thought that I was there for Pixie and only for Pixie. This thought really helped me to concentrate to handling and keeping the contact to Pixie. Second run was a little disaster. Pixie did super running A-frame but crashed the jump and we needed to take a little brake. She also dropped also from dogwalk. So we had little cracking in our team work.

The third course was a team jumping course from WC 2014. It was cool to be able to try a course from WC. This was almost perfect run. Few turns went to too long but otherwise we were a team and we had a relaxed feeling. This is how agility should feel. We had so much fun. I so clad we had found our team spirit and right feeling. Just loving agility again.

Freya has been doing herding. We have still a conversation going about does she work for me or have her own fun. She has improved a lot and her herding drive is going higher and higher. Freya is getting better in stops and both of her flanks are opening. She also did her first flank training in a pen. At first she had her weak moment and lost her drive, then she collected her thoughts and she worked really well in tight space. Kaisa a few moments with her and she worked like charm. I have still a lot to learn how to give her commands with my body and voice.

Obedience training with Pixie

We have had our traditional autumn obedience boost. I have had a goal to make Pixie have more drive in her obedience work. We have done super short training and we have done only small parts of the tasks. After this small work we have done whole chains in different places.

Pixie heal work has been improving the whole time. She has got more drive and we got very good tip from Tarja Melakari. We have had a problem of loosing a contact. I have usually just stopped and started again. Tarja suggested that every time Pixie lost contact or walk too hard on the leg, we turn to a left and stop. After she corrects she gets reward. This is like a active way to correct the heal work and dog gets a reward from right work. This really started to pay of. Pixie contact just went better and better and also her position in the side got better. Pixie is a sensitive dog and this was a first good advice that made her drive rise. Thanks a lot Tarja!!!!!!

Second tip from Tarja was to change retrieve return and coming to my side so that Pixie goes from behind me. This really worked like a charm. Her drive went high and her coming to heal position became faster and better. Also this helped her retrieve returns. Although this has been hard to change when we have done competition training. Pixie still need a hand signal to change the way she return with a dumbbell. I hope to make this work because she works much much better this way.

In recall we have had problem with stop that Pixie won't stop in full force. This was solved with little help by rewarding her from behind. This was done with an assistant that had a ball. After I said stop she tossed the ball and I released her to the reward. Only few repeat with this and she had super stop. This work was rewarded us our best score in recall in competition last weekend.

All this work has really improved Pixies attitude and drive. So we had a competition last weekend. She started really nicely but as soon as she went to ring drive went down. She was sloppy and went down while sitting in place. She also missed down position in Z-walk. Pixie wasn't the best she could be at the competition. Only thing that come from our work was super recall stop. Other wise she did everything lower from her usually self. Sometimes it hard to work with a dog that has very small high drive working mode. Pixie does almost everything with canter and so but there is no spirit in her work. I just hope that she will do a bit better in a competition in few weeks.

That's for now... Next we will have some agility news :D :D :D  

Freya update :D

Freya’s herding

We have started to do stop and naming flanks. It has been very hard task for me. She super fast and her herding instinct has grown stronger and stronger which means that it has been harder to put term to her herding work. I have haft to run a lot but in the end it has paid off. Freya has started to be easier and easier to handle and she has starting to also give up on sheep when asked.

Today we worked on our away driving of a herd of sheep. First they ran away one time before we got a right place to balance pull from a big herd. On first try Freya try to make quick on strong rushes but soon she calmed down and started to run the herd in balance.

Our second task was to make a drive in a balanced position. I left Freya on down position and moved behind a herd of sheep. Freya was on a long leash but worked on loose leash the whole time and kept nice balanced place so that the herd didn’t run away. This was first time she worked on really calm and listen what I said. Actually she really sensitive and I had problems to keep myself calm and not give her unwanted commands. Freya also gave up sheep easily and we could walk away with loose leash. Just a super moment! 

Obedience Freya

Freya has been working on positions in healing. I finally found way to make her stop fast. I started to turn right in front of her after a cue. Soon Freya got the idea and started to do fast and accurate stops. I did this for few times every time we trained it and now she stops even if I keep walking on. Time really flies and I had forgotten how I thought this cue to Pixie. Down positions has been improving and it’s almost ready to trials.

We have also improved our healing work by working on in turns. Freya uses her back side really well. Our only problem seems to be that does moves too much and sometimes her bottom is behind my legs. I have just ignored the over turns and we have done it again. She has catch up really fast to hold her right position on my side. I also have made healing work on the right side just make body work both ways and keep her straight.

Freya's retrieve has also improved. I still work on our lift and return from short distance but I have also started to do speed work. In speed work I through a dumbbell to long distance and as soon as she catches the dumbbell I show her toy to make her run super fast back at me. It has worked really well. I still work on the separated pieces of the retrieve but the whole chain is getting better and better.

Freya's agility

I have started to teach Freya handling maneuvers. She has been fast learner and she seems have already a quiet good obstacle focus. Sometimes we do have problems if I keep a toy in my hand. Freya has a habit of changing side to my hand that has the toy. We have done some basic training to change to focus to my handling and it starting pay off. Other wise Freya and I have big tool box to handle different course combinations. Although she has only done maximum of 3-4 obstacle training. Usually I train maneuvers with 1-2 jumps.

Freya has also started to do 2on2off on seesaw. This will be her only obstacle that she will have stopping contacts. I have just shaped the position and teach her that to keep the position before I say "come". She has had her good and bad moments. Hardest thing has been when I have gone behind her. Freya wants to face me so had some difficulty make her give up on my face and focus on the position. Now she has started to do the whole seesaw. It has started to be easier to keep focus to the front with secondary reward a little away from the seesaw. It still a long way from ready but we are getting there. 

Living room ob and search work at fake ruins

I got a autumn flu last week. So I needed get dogs some activity without wearing me out. So we got a change go to fake ruins to train search. This was Freyas 2nd time at this place. She had two persons that in the hiding at the first round. First person was pretty easy. She was hidden in a concrete tunnel. Freya needed to enter it from a little hatch. She did just brilliant.

Second person was hidden in a wooden maze on a open field. First she got a scent but couldn't find a right pile. When she located the right pile she needed to find right route to target person. It took a while but didn't give up and found a way in from the roof the maze. Freya has really got a talent to searching. I have really started warm up to a idea that this would be one our sports. She loves to run and find people.

After this training I really got sick and I needed to do even more quiet training. So it was time to enter our living room to a special carpet training. Big pile of treats and clicker only thing you need to make dogs days super as ever. My plan was to teach some basic stuff. I ended up training more one thing together.

Freya trained her sit, down and stay while healing. I can only say that she was super good. I got finally stop fast and accurate. I did this with turning strait back at her few times and after that she got the idea. I did find out that she got little depend on the hand movement so needed also train healing while my arm was moving in different directions. But in the end we got it all together. Now I just have take this all to different places and make it work as well it did at home.



Second thing Freya work on was backing up a figure 8 between my legs. It took only one little finger target help to make her go backwards and rest just went like a charm. Circle round my right leg was much easier than the circle round my left leg. We are now at a point that she can make the whole figure 8 with few rewards. It will take just a little bit more training and we will have it. I o'boy she does it fast!! :D

Third thing we worked on was object retrieve. I used gloves, phone cover and wooden stick. I wanted Freya to learn to return any item I wanted. This is one part for SAR work where she need to find object left by humans and bring them to me from marked area. She has done already research part but our retrieve hasn't been good enough that Freya would return the items to me straight away.

Pixie worked on a working dog trial recall and retrieve. The difference from ob is that she need to come in front of first before she goes to healing position. This actually worked really well. I did first just position in front of me and then I did recall from few meters. Retrieve training I started from the front position and gave her the dumbbell and moved few cm just to make come to me again. After few of these session I did the whole retrieve chain and to my surprise Pixie just did it right!! Smart girl!! Now we just need to take it to bigger scale and get few more session. I think that will it.

So even when you can do lots of things in your living room. Even if you train for competition level work.

That's for now!!!

MLPF

Agility update and summer feeling

Pixie has been so cool in agility. I have been inspired by the videos from European Open. I noticed the speed and freedom of movement in during the courses. Especially Jenny Damn and Lilly video really impressed me. I could see that I have a brake on all the time in agility. So got really a boost to change a bit of our way of working. We have been training ever since more faster ways move on the course. I have bed habit of staying and waiting Pixie and also to try to make her slow down all the time. I have know tried to make our work faster and more fluent. So far so good!!! I so hope we get to experience one day WC or EO. Pixie is a dog that has all that it takes to be successful in those competitions. We just need to take our work a little bit father again.

I can only just say that our training has really change since these feelings from the videos. I have found the fire to do agility again. Pixie has also grown a lot in a year. As team we have had our very downs and we have had to rise and fight again. But I can see know our goal and route how to get there. I think there still be up and downs but Pixie deserves to get a ticket to conquer the world.

We have a dream. We have a destination, We have a goal. We are ready for the journey.

Freya has been working on jumping technique. She has improved millions miles! She has done basic work out and the rising series. She has been super! Her back legs are starting to work. Still not perfect and still we need physiotherapy but we are getting on a right directions. She has also started to work on the running dog walk. I have just tough her run over a plank. First she just run pass it but soon she got the idea. We will how this project will go on. Start was ok.

We also spend 3 day at my parents summer cottage. Three days of full of swimming and running. Here are some feeling from our little holiday:

More Sheep herding and ob

Sheep herding

I have to start with our sheep herding. Freya went to second training last weekend. First we did some basic moving of sheep. Freya started to have nice tiptoe movement and waited the sheep to move. We started to name her movement straight to sheep to "walk on". I have decided to use English as my cue language. Freya also did some work off leash of finding of flight distance of sheep. She worked really well and Freya has been very light to control. This sport is really taking me to a new place and really like it.

Obedience

Freya has been working on her basics. We started to work on stand and laying down during heal work. I first have started to make stand and laying down separately around me. Now we work on these position while I walk. Next stage is to bring them to real heal work. I haven't still been happy with her stopping speed so we a big project on that.

Also I have started to do staying in a group. This has been a little challenge for us. I think one of the reasons is that Freya thinks she need to offer some thing new while I just stand and wait. So we need to built this behavior from very little pieces so it will calm and stands distractions.

I think our best ob moment so far was training at my friends training field. When we were training two boys came to play soccer at the same field. Freya worked super! She didn't pay any notice to the boys and even work on when they kicked a ball next to us. I can just say- super puppy!!!

Pixie and I have been working on our team spirit. I have done very short training and praising her all the time. My goal is to make us work better together and with higher drive. Our 30 sec training has already done miracles. Pixie still works like charm in the more difficult task. I hope that soon we make everything together and make us work us team even better. Short training has really give us both more energy and the precision has improved a lot. Will I compete in Ob... I don't know, but I see as project to improve my skills as a trainer and improve our team work.

Next time some our agility work!

MLPF

Sheep herding

Last weekend we spend a day in sheep herding school. This was Freya's first time doing sheep herding. I wanted to know how she would work and would herding be something that Freya would like to do. First round was just horrible. Freya just barked and jumped all over in the line. My thought was that this will be a horrible day. Kaisa Hilska ,our trainer, just told me that this is normal with young dogs. It still didn't make feeling any better at this point.

On the second round we started to see will Freya have natural flanks. First she tried to come close and took after that some distance and look away. After a little brake she started to found the flank in both directions. This was really exciting watch when Freya started to use her genetic skills. I was just amazed. At that point I really knew we people get to involved in sheep herding. This is the sport where dog need to have own ideas and skills.

Third round we started to see will she have natural way to find balance in when she controls the sheep. This was pretty wild. Freya kept going on flanks at first and didn't really find the balance point. When she founded the balance point she started come forward right away. This a little problem because Freya didn't have any control commands yet. So this was our homework for the next. We need get "lay down" command better before we can start practicing moving in a balance with the sheep. In the end this day was so super and learned so much about my border collie and I now could tell better why have certain abilities and habits. Super super day!!! Thanks Kaisa!! Herding will be something we will work on in the future.  

Some much more to tell.. Until next time.

MLPF

OB training boost

Agility seasons biggest competitions are over. As usual I get ob training boost. All my girls have been working to improve their ob. It has been nice to train something else than agility even though we have done that also. This has been time to also really take some extra time for Freya.

Freya has been working on her heal work. We have done simple few steps work in different places. She has done super work. I always super treats when we do heal work. I want to make sure Freya does her heal work in maximum drive. It has been working on really well. My plan is also to make all the basic work ready in different places before we start making duration.

Other thing we have been working on is retrieve. I begun the retrieve with shaping of the griping of the dumbbell. First stage was a nose touch of dumbbell and after that Freya started to open her mouth and lifting the dumbbell. Next stages was her gripping the dumbbell when I was holding it in front of her. At this point I started to say "thank you" as soon as she took a hold of the dumbbell. We did this few sessions. Then I wanted Freya to hold it for few seconds. This point it is important to make successful sessions. After few times she started to notice that she needed to hold the dumbbell until I said thank you. 

So now I had the holding and giving up the dumbbell ready. Next stage was to bring this all to my side as this is the right place where she need to give up the dumbbell. First I just give her dumbbell and as soon as she gripped it I said "than you". This I did few short session. Next I started to hold the dumbbell little bit lower so that Freya needed lift the dumbbell up to be in right position. Did this until the dumbbell was on the floor. Next was to put the dumbbell on the floor so far that she needed to lift of from my side and go and retrieve it and come back. This stage I needed few times wait awhile that she offered the right place but soon she got hang of it.

I have still started every training session with short retrieves so that she remember the right place. At this point I have made few throws. Freya has super but I always make sure she is in the right mood and doing basic training every time makes sure that Freya has the right idea. I have also started to work on the speed with separate exercise. Freya also lost a little bit of tight grip. To that I changed for heavier dumbbell and this has been working. If the problem comes back with lighter dumbbells, I just need to do some holding training again.

Pixie has also worked on hear retrieve. I have done 30 s - 1 min training session of her just lifting up the dumbbell. My hope is make her drive rise from lifting the dumbbell. Pixie has nice retrieve but she has little bit slower return than the retrieve speed to the dumbbell. After lifting training we have done retrieves from short distance so that dumbbell is between Pixie and I. My goal is to train the retrieve chains last part stronger than it is. We will see will this improve her whole chain in the retrieve.

That's a little bit of our ob training! Now we need to get going to herding training... Freya will meet sheep for the second time... I'm so excited!!!

MLPF

Here is a video of Freyas training 6 months old:



Here is also video of Pixie in national team tryout:

National Championships 2014

It our first in a Finnish Nationals. Pixie was really good but our road came to end on weave entry. In the end I was really pleased with our work during to whole weekend. Pixie did super on all the critical obstacles and she jumped super!!! This weekend I saw us as a team. Pixie had found her fighting spirit and you could see that in all her jumps. She did superb. I have to focus a little better to my work and really live in every moment. We are so ready for National team tryouts.

Freya has been doing ob. We have had a retrieve project. I have worked on her lifting off  the dumbbell, holding off the dumbbell and running with the dumbbell in a separated parts. Yesterday Freya really got the idea of holding the dumbbell. I think we starting to be closer and closer to get it all together. I have tried to make all the parts as good as possible before I will put them all together. Time will tell how I will do... :D

Freya also visited osteopath Leena Piira for a first time. Freya has still a signs from injury from puppyhood. She was very round when she came home and she was fixed by Tanja. Her thoracic vertebrae was curvy and made her round shaped. She was fine after Tanja treated her few time but sadly she has still signs of the same injury. It had come from hit to body sometime during her puppy hood. Now we need to keep doing some exercises to make her better and that she grows without pain. Freya was pretty normal herding dog structure which means partly that she doesn't have very well angulated legs. Time will how she will grow but at this point we lots of different exercise we need to do make her stronger and that she will have better control of her body. So no jumping for some while........

That's just quick note from our doings. Happy Midsummer to you all!!!!!!

MLPF  

Long time since last update....

I have been so lazy lately to update my blog. Pixie and Freya have done lots of things. I have also learned to be a better in a chicken-dog course. The course thought me to be faster and plan better my training and I really learned how to use better basic clicker training trick like nose touch. This course really opened my eyes how to you can  really affect dogs  mind and work ability with simple exercises. Both Pixie and Freya did super with distraction training in the course. I also really liked a lot working with chickens. I would recommend this course to everyone that wants become better trainer. Thank you a lot Trainer's Choice!!!

In agility Pixie and I have finally started to get our things together. I have started to trust her in every situation and I see the ghost dog while I walk the course. I have done a lot also mental work. This road is never ending but o boy it feels like a million dollars when it all comes together.





Freya has done work in agility and obedience. In both she has done well. In ob we have started box training, healing and other stuff. Freya is really super fast so it has been challenging to treat in the right moment. I just have to get better. In agility Freya has running to toys between wings and tunnel. Few days ago we also did some see-saw hitting and 2on2off position.

Freya went to also a jumping class with Vappu Alatalo. This a little shock trip for me. I have noticed that she is little clumsy in the forest and she don't jump very smoothly. Pixie has been natural born jumper from day 1 so it has been little worrying to notice that Freya doesn't have good natural jump. Our training proved my fear. Freya couldn't get the basic jumping sequence right at all. Her jump was stiff and she couldn't find any rhythm. I just hope she will get much much better. Agility is a jumping sport and if the basic brick isn't alright it will not be a the dog sport for her. Here is best part from her jumping training:



Here is also video of heal work training from today. Freya is good but I way too slow to catch the right moments to reward. Her attitude is really nice.



That's for now... We getting ready for National Championships and National team tryouts.... It's going to be so cool!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Agility competitions and Freya's training

It's been too long time since a nice update. Pixie and I have been competing in agility for few weekends. Our best moment where in Alen Marekovic courses. They where fast but still really challenging. I really liked the way the courses flowed. I think I might have a new favorite judge in agility. Here is our runs from ATT (second video was unsharp):



Next day we went to compete in Kirkkonummi. Yet again we had some nice runs. I was little unfocused and I lost Pixie once and missed her slalom mistake but o'boy we had some good time. I have started find a right pace for us and I have started see where I can use Pixie ability to read to course. Our team work is starting to look really nice. I just need get in a better shape. While I write this I have a flu so I have a little set back to my own training.



I have been really satisfied in our progress in agility. It has taken lots of training as a team and for as competitor. This journey is just in the beginning but we have found we right paths.  Moving to Turku was one the best decisions I had ever made. Work with Jaakko and Janita has improve my handling and understanding of the dogs. It was amazing to see how much I got results with Louise too. With Pixie it has taken much longer but I have started understand my super dog. I can be honored to have her in my life. I think we will have even more adventures coming ahead. Pixie has the talent to be a star. It will just some time to make myself work the best for Pixie. I'm loving this journey everyday even more.

This has been also time when I get know my new puppy. Freya has grown really fast. She has had super attitude to work. I have been working on some tricks with her. I use shaping to teach her to offer actions better and better. Freya is starting to be a little master of finding out what I want. Although she has sometimes moment when she gets "angry" is she won't get the task fast enough. This can be also my weakness. So we have still work to do with our team. Here is our video of the latest tricks we have been working on:



We have got shaping challenged from our friend where Freya must keep a sausage in her mouth without eating it. I have started this progress by starting to train retrieve basics which holding and taking the object from the ground. When she get the holding part ok, we will challenge ourselves with the sausage. I have done this with my two older dogs Thelma and Louise. I think I will make goal to repeat this picture with Pixie and Freya (Mayday 2008):

That's all for know!!! Have fun with your dogs!!!

MLPF

Freyas training and Pixies ob

It has been so cool weeks! Freya has grown fast. She has been working on ob work. Heal work has been started a little bit super treats and I have given a cue to heal work starting position. I have managed to make my side Freyas favorite place. I think it a nice start for ob task. ;) She can also concentrate in every situation. She has done ob basics in agility training, in ob competition, in a mall yard and so on. I my goal is to generalize all her learned things to all situations. I only do stuff she knows already. All the new tricks I teach in a quiet place for a few first times. Here is our video of some basic ob things:

I have also started to work on some tricks that improve Freyas body awareness. I begun with backing up. This is the basic move that she need to handle to be able to learn more complex versions. Backing up teaches her to use rear end and this is useful to many other tricks. She has also learned to go around a bucket when she standing on it with her front feet. Yet again more awareness to her back legs. I have also taught her some silly trick like spinning, paw giving and so. These are tricks that teaches her how to work with me and I learn how to work with her. Here a video of some of our work:



Pixie had a ob trial. I liked her attitude a lot in trial but we had a problem with distractions and it didn't look that good overall. I was still pleased with her work. I have decided to change our ob goal working dog trials and we will have goal to enter to a tracking competition in the autumn. Pixie need to change her working style a bit for a working trials and we need to change our recall and retrieve routines because she has to come in front of me first. This will be a fun project and it will give new motivation because we will have lots of new things to learn.

Here is our last ob competition:



This is all for now!!! I will a big agility update soon.

MPLF