On Location...........

In Dorset!!! 

I didn't have as much time to practice Reno's weaves as I'd hoped and it was quite difficult to sneak some practice without having an audience and several Dogs joining in. (As you can tell from the video - the commentary is quite amusing)

I'm working on the assumption that if Reno can train with all that distraction then he must be enjoying it.

As you can see we have now added a 2nd set of poles and decreased the angle to 1 and 7 o'clock. 

I'm not sure if I should be worried yet but Reno's success rate is getting worse. 

He is 100% successfully in the low challenge area but when I move further down the arc into the essential entry area he starts to go into the first 2 poles the wrong way around or goes into the 2nd set of poles.  (I'm not sure he understands that he needs to go ahead of me and turn back into the weaves). With perseverance he does correct himself but he is getting wrong more then right.

I thought that this may improve when the poles were closer together so I decided to try Day 5 last night at NADTC.

The stick in the ground poles won't stay in place in the sand of the Equestrian Centre so instead of moving the poles together bit by bit I decided to just go for it and set up a 4 pole channel. 

In my mind I couldn't see the difference between this and 2 sets of 2 x 2 weaves at 1 and 7 o'clock set at competition distance apart - obviously I was wrong as this session was a disaster. 

Reno blasted through the weaves when I set him up in the low challenge area but if I took him a little further back on either side he kept just doing the last 2 poles.  The poor little lad kept trying and trying but just couldn't work out what I wanted him to do :-(

I've watched and re-watched SG's video of Day 5 and although the Dog isn't getting the entry correct all of the time it is because it is circling the poles rather then going in to soon.  Maybe this is a breed thing?

My plan is to repeat Day 5 (correctly this time!!) this weekend at the paddock and video it so I can see what is happening.  Wish me luck!

Day 2 - Moving the Poles

OK, so we did cheat a bit on Day 1 by having the poles on grass but as I don't have access to a proper 2 x 2 set it's the only way I can use stick in the ground poles.

Today we completed Day 2 in my Garden.  There isn't a lot of space and I didn't set the video camera up very well but you can see that Reno is beginning to dig in and gain some speed through the poles.

My throwing is getting a bit better and throwing under arm has stopped Reno tracking the toy so much.

Unfortunately our starting position is out of shot most of the time so you can't actually so us working the arc.  Generally speaking Reno's success rate was very good and the times that you see him entering the poles the wrong way were when I was really challenging his entry and it didn't take him long to work out the correct entry.

My only concerns with this session were that my Garden is so small I couldn't get that far away from the poles or run very far.  Also, when we practiced the challenging left entry Reno didn't turn very tight.  Maybe this is something that will improve as we go through the training?

We're spending this weekend in Dorset, travelling down tomorrow evening, so I'm hoping to get Day's 3-5 Done whilst we are there (but may repeat day 2 as well).  Especially as there will be loads of room and Wanda (my sister) can help me with the video :-)

Lovely Lincoln

The Brown Doggies and Myself have just spent a lovely sunny weekend at Lincoln Agility Enthusiasts Show.

I'd say one of the best things about the show was spending time with my friends, both from NADTC and fellow Kronik Kid owners :-)

Congratulations to everyone that did well at the weekend. Especially Helen and Lily who won into Grade 2 at their 1st KC Show and to Jo and Zippy (Reno's litter brother) who is now Grade 6 and not even 2.5 years old!!

I've bought myself a lovely little (if not a bit pink) video camera to use at shows so managed to capture Reno's first 3 runs and Kiros's Allsorts Agility.

Kiros ran lovely all weekend with 4 clears rounds and 7th place on Sunday.

Unfortunately I didn't get Reno's best two runs of the weekend on video.  His best run was his first on Sunday (Hannah Banks's Grade 3 Agility) which he ran fast and clear with great contacts until the 2nd from last obstacle - the weaves!!

He really enjoyed the weekend and had great fun playing with all of his Doggie friends and his Daddy, Ronny, but I think the whole thing was bit to tiring for him.  His last three runs blew his brain :-(  I may have to think about only competing one day a week in future?

I was really optimistic at the weekend as it is clear that the only real gap in Reno's training is his weaves. I'm reasonably confident that following the 2 x 2 method until he completely understands them will work but have demoralised myself a little when looking back at my blog from 9th August 2010 when I proudly stated that they shouldn't be hard to fix.  Now, 8 months on, I've still not been able to sort it so is it overly optimistic to expect Reno to be weaving in 4 weeks?

Reno's 2 x 2 Weaves - Day 1



I'm really optimistic about how day one has gone. 

It's obvious that my throwing is a bit suspect - something I'm going to have to improve :-)  - and that Reno enjoyed the training.  He was far more enthusiastic during the 3rd Stage which shows his confidence (and speed) is improving.

Sunny Scunnie!!

Reno had four runs on Saturday at Scunnie and Ann kindly videoed three of them.  This is his first run of the day, Graded 1-3 Jumping. (The others are a bit dark and difficult to see.  I must get myself a video camera)

This is the first time that I have really had an opportunity to see how Reno is running and it has opened my eyes to a few things.

1. Reno is a sensitive boy but is happy when he knows what his criteria is.

2. He has absolutely no idea what I want him to do in the weaves.

With hindsight I should have stuck to one method of training and persevered with it. 

I'm very lucky to be able to train with someone who's opinion I rate very highly, Jo Rhodes, and after discussing my fears with her we have decided to re-train Reno purely on 2x2's.  

I'm getting a copy of Susan Garrett's video that I'm going to study and video everything I do so that I can make comparisons/alterations.

Obviously this will mean not doing weaves at all for a while but, as luck would have it, I don't have anymore shows booked after Lincoln until High Peak on 14th May.  So a good 3 weeks of re-training (and beyond if necessary).  Thanks to everyone who has offered me advise as to how to help Reno with his weave problem. 

One of the major positives from the show were Reno's contacts.  Although a little slow and hesitant his "nose touches" were excellent.

On Sunday I went to Chesterfield for a training afternoon with Nigel Staines.  I was a little apprehensive about how Reno would be as he was unfamiliar with the venue and some of the Dogs he'd be training with but had nothing to worry about.

He got more and more confident as the afternoon went on.  His contacts got faster and faster whilst still maintaining his criteria (apart from when I was a prat and released him early - being timed makes me do silly things :-) ).  Most pleasing of all was that he had absolutely no issue with the See-saw on either days.

I'm looking forward to Lincoln Show mainly because Kiros will have two runs per day.  As for Reno...I'm just going to have to decide if I can run each course depending on where the weaves are.  Still it will be a great opportunity to meet up with friends :-)

Red for Reno!!!

I ran out of time to post this on my Blog last night.......but then adding it as a separate post does add to the dramatic effect!!

Last weekend was the first out door Agility Nuts show of the Summer.  The entries were quite small but it was nice to see some new faces at the show.

Reno's first run was a bit crazy but he began to calm down and work really well as the day went on.  His jumping course was nice and flowing with no weaves so I thought he'd enjoy it and I was right:-)  A clear round and he won the class.  His first red rosette!!

This was swiftly followed by his second when both Reno and Harley ran clear in the open pairs to win that class as well.

Reno continued to run nicely on Sunday and came 6th in the Jumping Gamble.

Kiros couldn't be out done by Reno of course!!

He was clear in 3 classes on Saturday - 2 x 1st's and a 2nd.  On Sunday he ran every course clear and won every class!!

I think the rest of the Veteran's dread seeing him in the queue.  One of the competitors said, "Maybe he'll slow down a bit when he gets older?  How old is he?"  Me, "Almost 11"  Other competitor,"Oh, Maybe he won't then :-)"

This Saturday we are off to Scunthorpe.  No runs for Kiros but 4 for Reno so I'm hoping for some nice waits and contacts.  If he has a go at weaving that will be a bonus.

A stitch in time...............

saves nine - So my Gran used to say.

If I'd just took a bit of time to update my Blog on a weekly basis I wouldn't have to spend so long updating it now!!

So a quick update from where I left off........

Reno ran OK in Feb Dog of the Month.  He used the excuse of visiting the Judge rather then weaving but wasn't eliminated until he backjumped (my bad handling).

The next weekend (5th March) Bob Sharpe came to train us at NADTC.  His session concentrated on handling and jumping.  It really played to Reno's strengths and my little boy impressed Bob with his skill and confidence.

After that (13th March) came the last Agility Nuts of the Winter Season.  I was Judging Gamblers Agility so struggled to concentrate on running Reno.  Here is Reno's Agility run.

Thanks to Katie for sending this to me.  I'm not sure why he chose to bail out of the Weaves.  He looks like he is going to do them and, when he eventually decides to concentrate, completes them easily.  The elimination was my fault as I forgot the course.  Good criteria on his A-frame the first time but not the second (I think the tunnels confused him) and a nice see-saw:-)

His other runs were similar.  Some good bits and some not so good bits.

All in all I was pleased with the way Reno was improving and was optimistically looking forward to Anthony Clarke's training on 19th and BCC of GB Show the next day when disaster struck!!

Reno wasn't himself at all at Anthony Clarke's training......He was really stressy.  The See-saw really freaked him out and for a while I couldn't even persuade him to go into a tunnel.  It was such a shame as Ant is a great trainer but I didn't get full benefit from his experience as most of the session involved me trying to coax Reno around the course playing tuggy after every other obstacle.

I wasn't sure it was a good idea to go to the Show the next day but it didn't turn out too badly.  Reno's waits and contact criteria were excellent.  With the exception of a missed weave entry his jumping run was great and the only problems with his Agility was his weaves and see-saw.

The weekend after the Dogs and me took a well earned rest in Dorset.