[/QUOTE] Ricardo;1038209]Thanks Karen for the drop clarification, we have some work to do.[/QUOTE]
Another thing I meant to mention is that in training, we often (mentally) a "what's more than" game. (This comes from Denise Fenzi). So, for instance, knowing that fronts often get not as tight in competition, (and this is particularly true with little dogs) for my dogs in training, "what's more than a front" for Kodi has become to actually get sent THROUGh my legs at the end of an exercise. For Pixel, who is still learning fronts, HER "more than" (because she's little enoug to do it) is to actually sit ON my feet. It's easy to back them off enough from these extra-close positions.
For drops, what's "more than" a drop? For us, we teach LOTS of practice "back up over a bar and drop without letting your front feet touch the bar". This gets it firmly set in their brain that "drop" means absolutely NO forward movement. Does it hold up in competition? Well, for a little, companion breed dog who REALLY wants to come back to you, you may not be able to get that skid-stop all the time in the higher excitement/anxiety of a trial, but you'll get MUCH less travelling... And because you taught it in a positive manner, as a game, the dog doesn't worry about it and start to come in slow on the recall part. (The kiss of death, in terms of points off)
[/QUOTE] Ricardo;1038209]Another thing, I see in your video that the ring is neatly closed off with lattice. Is this common for competitions in the NE, held indoors and fenced off? I have observed at about 4 competitions here in Cali. They were all held outdoors and on grass. They were fenced in by simple stanchions, maybe 10 feet apart and cordoned off with a single rope about 3 feet off the ground. And the various competition rings were only separated by that single rope! I understand this is the norm here. These are very difficult conditions, not only for Ricky, but for all dogs. I saw many dogs last weekend who would break their exercise when they saw another dog running toward them at full speed or chasing a thrown object in the ring immediately adjacent to them. Ricky and I really need to up our game! [/QUOTE]
I know, I've seen video of Cali trials. You guys have WAY different trial conditions than we do. Yes, even outdoors, most trials in the northeast have lattice gates. Some (PVC gates) don't have the stachions, and these become a BIG problem for dogs who have been taught "go outs" to a stanchion for Utility. (Directed jumping). But you hardly EVER see the "single rope over the dog's head" rings I've seen in Cali trials. ... And CERTAINLY not in mixed breed trials where there are small dogs, where the high rope doesn't even register!
We actually only HAVE a handful of outdoor obedience trials. Our weather is just too unpredictable. Even in the summer, you can find yourself in long, dewy grass in the morning, and heavy thunder/lightening storms in the afternoon. If the rain isn't a problem, it can be 103F with 95% humidity. And for more than half the year, it's too cold/wet/snowy for them to even CHANCE running an outdoor show. As a result, except those who do sporting dog specialties, (Goldens, Labs, etc. who couldn't care less about the rain) most of the people I know trial almost exclusively indoors.
Of course, indoors is not without its challenges, and our dogs have to learn to deal with those instead. The crating areas are usually VERY tight, with dogs' crates RIGHT up against each other. Very often there is little - no warm-up area. Your dog has to be able to come out of his crate, do a couple of stretches, and during the run just before yours, have maybe a 20 feet strip of floor space in front of the ring to get his head in the game. For those of us with little dogs, it's too risky to have the dogs on the floor in the crating area or on the way to the ring. (Going RIGHT under the NOSE of large breed dogs that you don't know) so many, if not most of us carry our toy breeds from their crate to that strip in front of the ring gate.
At the big, multi-ring indoor shows, there are up to 20 rings going at the same time, 5 or 6 of those obedience and rally, the rest conformation. Many of the conformation dogs are not well trained or well behaved, and are an added danger. The buildings where these multi-ring trials are held are large, metal buildings and NOISY!!! Last summer, Kodi NQ'd at one, simply because he didn't hear me call him on the DOR. HE has never EVER not come on a formal recall, and I am SURE it was because he didn't register my voice in the surrounding noise. I called him a second time, and his DOR was flawless. It would have been a mid-190's run... Instead, it was an NQ. Oh well!
At a smaller, 1 ring trial indoors last winter, there were MICE running around the ring when we arrived first thing in the morning. ...plus two cats, who had been put inside the building to CATCH the mice. (How well did THAT work?!?
) Plus, the heating system had these big, foil-y ducts, and a big blower. Every time the heat came on, the noise was incredibly loud and startling, AND the little dogs got practically blown off their feet. There were a LOT of NQ's that day! :laugh:
But we learn to do exactly what you're going to have to do. If you are serious about doing well in competition, make sure you get your dog to run-throughs or matches in the venues where you are likely to compete. LOTS of them. If you can't do that, rent ring time, and train by yourself there. Not AS good, because it doesn't replicate a trial situation (which, as you've found, ups the ante quite a bit!) but at least the dog gets used to working in those surroundings.
Our training building has a metal roof. MY dogs don't bat an eye at the noise of rain on it, but I've seen other dogs who are unfamiliar with the building totally freak out. Likewise, there are trains that come by quite close. My guys don't care. They've heard it several times a week from 9 weeks old. It's too much for some dogs who don't train there regularly.
But even your OWN training place is "diifferent" for a trial, and it can be a big adjustment for the dogs. We have moveable walls, and they are in different positions for a trial than for every day training. There are also lots of unfamiliar, often stressed, dogs there for a trial, who aren't there on "normal" days. The other thing that can be surprisingly stressful in small building trials is the LACK of noise. People are sitting watching, either intent on watching, or trying to be respectful of the team in the ring. As a result, the place becomes as quiet as a church. CREEPY as far as many dogs are concerned. (Again, especially ones who are "regulars" there, and used to it being a different way)
[/QUOTE] Ricardo;1038209]On a positive note, Ricky is catching on nicely to the 4 new drills we learned in class Tuesday night. We practice about 10 minutes for 3 or 4 times a day and he is a quick study. I am fortunate he is so motivated by treats and praise. In between his "school" times, we go for long. casual walks and I let him do his thing (sniffing, exploring within the limits of his leash, chasing blowing leaves, etc.) but he will often stop and let me know he wants to "play" school some more. Yes, you are right, each one of us owns the "best" dog.
Ricky's Popi[/QUOTE]
There are very few dogs who aren't motivated by treats and praise... There are just people who have not yet become believers!
For what I've heard about you and Ricky, it is ALL positive! He's a very young dog, learning at exactly the RIGHT pace for HIM. You work with him diligently and keep it fun. You and he are both REALLY enjoying your training time and the bond that it forges. When something goes "wrong", you analyze it, learn from it, and make a plan to improve it. What could be better!?!?
As far as getting into the COMPETITION ring, while Kodi started at 15 months, this is very unusual, and most EXPERIENCED trainers (which I, of course, was not) don't recommend it. I was lucky that we didn't have a lot of fall-out that had to be "fixed" later by starting him so young. As it was, there WERE (still are) some stressy things that have taken a long time to work through. Would we have had them anyway? Maybe. Who knows? I'm ahead of you, but I'm learning as I go too!
Havanese ARE a soft breed. But if he'd had a stronger foundation before he started competing, maybe we wouldn't have seen the stress things crop up.
Most seasoned trainers have a "sort of" goal of getting their young dogs into the competition ring by AROUND 2 years old. And that is dependent on MANY variables. (For instance, some breeds are harder than others, and intact males ALWAYS take the longest to get reliably ring-ready) There is NO HURRY... Especially with a long-lived, healthy breed like Havanese. I have a friend with the top Havanese in Agility in Canada, and her Hav is 13 years old. She has told me that Bella (you can find her in the agility archives here) really started to come into her own at about 8 years old!