Reply With Quotebarry581 (02-25-2015)
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The other night in class, we audited one another's heeling. It was my first time and I am new to this group of ladies who have been in this class together for five years or so. I am the new kid on the block and though I have had and trained dogs for a long time, read a lot of books, etc., this is my first year performing. The class is for performance dogs only and everyone in the class has been showing for decades.
Our heeling is a little rough. We started with positive reinforcement peppered with some negative. Nothing drastic, but lots of "ah-ahs!", "nos", etc. Mostly just getting him to mind versus perform. No games. No fun. No motivation besides a treat. For the longest time we were slow as Linus lagged due to not having a focus and getting in trouble for being in front. So, it was definitely passable in the ring at the levels we showed, but not special. He wasn't necessarily shut down, but there was some stress, certainly.
Now, after six months working with this trainer, I've got a prancing 100 lb dog to keep up with, which is good! But different! And I'm still getting used to it. We have lots of work to do in order to get things where I want them for our CD. We're focusing on his speed and position before we work on precision and smoothness. Once he knows where to be and look and is enjoying it, we'll be ready for the next phase, which will be much easier (I think!).
So, when it was my turn I felt really nervous. And it was definitely not smooth. I felt like such an amateur. But, the comments we received were, "he looks SO HAPPY", "I couldn't help but smile while I watched him work", "he looks huge while he's heeling - so much presence", and "he obviously loves his mom". I'm hoping to add comments like "consistency" and "precision" and "smooth" in the upcoming months.
Meanwhile, we have our first match coming up since summer (other than the two matches we attended at the training center with the people we train with and my trainer) next weekend with the local obedience club and I'm excited to see how he does compared to past matches. It'll be Linus' first novice level match.
barry581 (02-25-2015)
sounds like a good class. Keep up the good work.
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The WindyCanyon Girls (taken Summer 2018)
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Anne said it well. I am glad that you are both having fun, too!Originally Posted by windycanyon
sounds like a good class. Keep up the good work.
Sounds like an excellent class. Glad you both are having fun doing it.
Good training partners make all the difference.
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