Another AKC Course and Problems with the Running A-Frame

On Tuesday, I set up another course designed by Craig Josling.  Here's how I thought I might run the course before I had set it up.

After walking the course, I decided going into the box from 6 to 7 would probably push Belle into the off-course tunnel (which it did), and a better choice was to move laterally away from the dog walk while maintaining pressure on Belle's line to ensure that she went all the way to the end of the dog walk and didn't cut corners and come off the side.

Even on my walk-thru, I completely overlooked the effect the positioning of #8 would have on the dog's path to the teeter.  I failed to collect Belle before the jump and her path to the teeter was longer than it had to be.

I ended up doing a rear cross between 10 and 11 because I didn't get there in time to do a blind cross.  After I watched the video of our first two attempts, I thought I'd try to do a front cross between the teeter and #10.  Yeah, right.  Bringing Belle into collection at #8, meant for sure there would be no way I could get into a position for a front cross after the teeter.  I noticed that the dismount from the teeter got progressively more sloppy (off the side).  One more thing to remember while running.

The rear cross worked fine as long as I didn't say "come table."  "Come table" resulted in an off-course to the tunnel both times I used it.  "Belle" or "right table" seemed to work, but not "come."  The reason for this is because I normally use "come" when Belle is moving toward me or at least perpendicular to me.  In that context, I normally link it to an obstacle name and it serves as either a cue to turn or an aid in an obstacle discrimination.  (I also use "come" in snooker openings when I want Belle to take the jump in front of her if there is one and then come directly to me without taking any obstacles along the way.  In addition, I stand very erect, facing her with my hands low and in front of my body to indicate I want her to come to my hands.)



We ran the course a couple more times today, but never did achieve a qualifying run :(  Belle's A-frame performance left a whole lot to be desired, and when I watched the A-frame clips in slow-motion, I discovered she was putting in a stride between the bumper and the apex.  I tried fiddling with the placement of the bumper and I tried taking it off, but no luck.  I finally, removed the bumper and placed a piece of yellow 1" PVC pipe at the top of the yellow.  That seemed to work, so I guess that's what we will be doing.

Running A-Frame - Rear Cross

I was going to work on the third sequence from Kathy Keats' March series this morning, but since I wanted to rear cross the A-frame, I decided to work on that first.  I've never been able to successfully rear cross the A-frame with Belle.  I am extremely envious of those who can cut across the heels of their dog and the dog doesn't waiver in its path.  When I cross Belle's path, she stalls out at the top of the A-frame.

As I worked through it this morning with Belle, she not only stalled out at the apex, she began stopping at the bottom.  You can see me working through these issues in the video.  After watching this morning's video, I decided the best way to work on teaching Belle to run the A-frame while I do a rear cross is to start very close to the line I want to cross and work on increasing my lateral distance from that line.  Whether or not I want to put the time and effort into teaching it is another matter.

Ironically, when I was working on getting Belle to run the A-frame without sticking, I discovered that a blind cross between the jump and the A-frame was probably a better choice for the sequence I was planning to run.  It has the advantage of keeping me in motion and ahead of Belle.  However, I still think that being able to rear cross the contacts is something that has its place in the handler's bag of tricks, and it is a skill I would definitely want to make sure my next dog and I have.  On the other hand, this is a skill that Belle and I have managed to do without for five years, so obviously there are ways to run successfully without it.

Testing Our Running A-Frame: Exercise 1

Last week I devoted my time and energy to painting the dining room and doing spring clean up in my flower beds.  The dining room is finished, but the work continues in the garden.  However, I finally had a chance to set up a new course to work on.

I chose the March, 2012 set of exercises that Kathy Keats designed for Clean Run since it presents different options before and after the A-frame.  Exercise One calls for several wraps, but the one right before the A-frame presented a special challenge for Belle and me since I want her to do a running A-frame.  I'm not fast enough to stay at next to the jump for the wrap and handle the turn into the tunnel under the A-frame, so I decided we would work on getting the wrap with a minimal amount of handler help.  I thought Belle did a nice job on the A-frame into the tunnel.

Frame Fun - Variations on Exercise 7

Although we put in too much time working on the A-frame yesterday, I decided since Belle was eager to go out and play, we'd give Exercise 7 a go today.  It is almost as cold as yesterday and there is a stiff wind out of the north, but once again we have dodge the snow and/or freezing rain that was predicted.

In Exercise 7, the approach to the A-frame begins behind and to the right of the plane of the start of the A-frame.  The handler has two choices here:  1) She begin with a running start, using enough lateral distance to manage the push to the hoop after the A-frame.  I felt this gave Belle the most momentum.  2) The handler can lead out laterally and behind the dog and use a start line stay.  I felt Belle didn't develop quite enough momentum given the approach to the A-frame in this sequence.

I used Lisa Selthofer suggestions for Micro Training and you will see two of our three "one minute" sessions in the video.  Once again, I really liked the result.  Although I would have preferred a slightly lower hit in the yellow, given the angle of approach, Belle did a very nice job.  I notice that I could have kept up a higher energy level between sequences--it should be easier to do that when the weather is nice.

(Due to wind noise, I replaced the original audio track with music.)

Frame Fun - Variations on Exercise 6

What a beautiful day it is outside.  The sun is shining and there is no wind!!!  I worked on the sixth exercise from Nancy Gyes' "Frame Fun" with Belle and Libby.  Belle did really well today.  I noticed while editing the video that I didn't reinforce her A-frame performance with a "yes."  Although it didn't faze her in the least since I haven't used any NRM's while training the running A-frame, it still couldn't hurt to emphasize that she is doing a really good thing when she hits the yellow.

I also gave the sequence a go with Libby.  You'll notice she's not as motivated as Belle so I had to resort to carrying around her special toy--a soccer ball.  I haven't really done any serious running contact training with Libby, but she has had plenty of experience leaping over the yellow--she loves to fly.  When we tried it the first time, I assumed she put in three strides on the downside and missed the yellow.  However, the magic of slow-motion video showed me she clearly did the descent with one stride.  I'm glad that I placed the stride regulator a little higher for Libby than I did for Belle.  She came down exactly where she needed to in order to hit the yellow on her next stride.

I had decided last month to forgo working on a running dogwalk until the weather was warmer.  However, I've been working indoors with a travel board to increase Belle's drive into a 2o2o position, and it seems to be working.  Since a running dogwalk is much harder to train (IMHO) and because lots of USDAA courses really, really test the abilities of the handler whose dog does a running dogwalk, I may not re-attempt teaching Belle a running dogwalk.

Frame Fun - Part Two

The fog condensed on the contact equipment yesterday and froze, so Belle and I had a day of rest.  Today, it is quite windy and about 36°, so we had a go at exercises three and four from Nancy Gyes' Frame Fun.

I over-pushed on exercise three and had a devil of a time getting Belle to come through the hoop at the end of the exercise.  On exercise four, I could have easily relied on a push to the tunnel after the A-frame, but I wanted to see what Belle would do if I did a blind cross.

Looking at the A-frame performances, none were as deep as I would like.  However, each and every descent was done in two strides, and Belle did manage to at least nick the yellow every time.  Additionally, it looks like I'll have to put marks on the A-frame so I know exactly where to place the stride regulator, since even the frames done with the SR were not as deep into the yellow as I would have hoped.

Frame Fun

Enough snow has melted that I was able to set up a course designed by Nancy Gyes for her Clean Run "Power Paws Drills" series.  She named this particular set of sequences "Frame Fun."

In the exercise we did today, the major decision the handler must make is on which side of the A-frame to run when she sends her dog over the A-frame.  I tried it both ways, and I think that running on the right side of the A-frame gives the dog a more flowing (and faster) approach to the A-frame.  In another three months, that advantage might no longer matter to Belle, but for right now it seems to give her a better chance of hitting the yellow.

If the handler chooses to run on the left side of the A-frame, whether she does a front cross or a blind cross, her dog's path from #4 to the A-frame will tend to flatten out.  The handler who runs on the right side of the A-frame can hold her position (red handler) long enough to shape a straighter approach to the A-frame for her dog.

I discovered that it was easy to push to #6 too soon.  One of my early "switch" commands caused Belle to consider turning into the #3 tunnel!  On the other hand, I also messed up pulling Belle to #6 when I ran on the left side of the A-frame.  The original exercise called for jumps, not hoops, and the #6 hoop is not that easy for the dog to see from the A-frame.

Running A-Frame - 02/01/2012

Despite the snow, we've been going out almost every day to work on Belle's running A-frame.  We do four to six A-frames (without the stride regulator) and then spend 10 minutes or so playing--mostly find the tennis ball in the snow :-)  With the warm weather we've had over the last two or three days, the snow is about 90% gone.  So today I set up a short course around the A-frame to test Belle's ability to do a running A-frame when I do a front or blind cross right before it.  Since this is a skill we haven't worked on yet, I put the stride regulator on for the first few attempts.

Then came the moment to remove the training wheels and see what Belle would do.  I wasn't able to move fast enough to see if Belle did the descents in two strides when I did the front crosses, so I opted for a blind cross which enabled me to get far enough ahead to see what Belle did.

Running A-Frame - 11

Saturday, I went through a couple of long threads on Linda Mecklenburg's forum site regarding training a running A-frame.  On Sunday, Belle and I went to a CPE trial.  My primary concern  was how the running contacts would go.  Well, they didn't go all that well.  Belle missed the yellow five out of six times, although we only got called for one missed contact.  On the bright side, she did come over the apex of the A-frame without tentatively putting down one front foot at a time.  She  just didn't come over the apex with enough conviction to carry her far enough down so that her next stride would be in the yellow.  I gave her a big "Yes!" on each of her A-frame attempts so that she would realize I do indeed want her to just keep moving on the A-frame.

From the information I was able to gather on Saturday, the time has come to discard the props and see if the A-frame behavior will hold up without them in training.  It is also time to start running sequences that mimic an actual course leading into the A-frame.  I was quite shocked yesterday when I ventured out toward the field.  Despite the snow, the A-frame was clear and the snow was only 3-4 inches deep around it.  I gave Belle one pass at the A-frame with the stride regulator and no PVC box.  Then I removed the SR, and we tried again.  Imagine my joy when she nailed the contact!  We tried a couple more times, and she nailed it each time.  I finally had to get my camera and record the moment.

Upon until now, we've been practicing with a straight approach to the A-frame.  I can't run in the snow, so there's no point in trying to set up a partial course.  So I did the next best thing and set up four hoops as shown in red.  The footing was a little deep for Belle, but on her second try on each side of me, she managed a two-stride descent.

  
Since it is not safe to work on the dogwalk outside, I'm planning to use a TOTO for the dogwalk at our up-coming trials.  Once spring arrives, we'll work on it some more.

Running A-Frame - 10

The snow has been keeping us out of the agility field.  Sunday, Belle and I went to a practice afternoon hosted by an instructor from Moline at the QCDC.  She set up a jumpers course and managed to give us five different courses without having to move a single obstacle.  This gave me a chance to try some of Linda Mecklenburg's handling techniques, and it was pretty cool.  By handling smart, I was able to get down field of Belle and use motion to cue her as to what was coming up next.  I wish Ed had come along to video.  The run and decelerate that I was using Sunday was just so different from what I normally do, yet Belle understood what I wanted.  It's a different style than I would use on a NADAC course, but I'm hoping to do as many USDAA trials as I can this year, and these skills should come in handy. 
 

The contact equipment was set up off to the side for people to practice with their dogs while waiting to run.  Belle did fine on the A-frame which was set at about 5'.  Monday, I stopped by a friend's agility facility to do a few A-frames and dogwalks.  Her A-frame is slatted and was set at 5'6".  It turned out to be the worst A-frame session Belle and I have had.  (It was so bad, I couldn't bear to edit the clips into a video.)  She kept putting down one or more feet above the stride regulator.  I even tried moving the SR closer to the apex and removing the PVC box so we could concentrate on the stride after the apex and not worry about the contact zone, with no luck.  I don't know if she was tired from Sunday or if it was the height of the A-frame, but it was disheartening.

This morning, I took a broom and cleared off the A-frame as best I could.  First, we did two passes with just the stride regulator.  Belle floated over the apex like a butterfly and landed below the SR.  Since her rear foot/feet were hitting above the yellow, we then did two passes with the SR and PVC box in place, and they were perfect.  As soon as the snow melts, I'll try raising the A-frame to 5'3" and find out if Belle can still nail it.

Running A-Frame - 9

Yesterday, I tried placing the PVC box about an inch below the top of the yellow.  Belle hit deeper in the yellow to clear the box, but at the same time, she placed one fore paw above the box almost every time.  The criteria of Rachel Sanders' method is one stride in the blue after the apex and followed by all four feet in the yellow.

In response to "Running A-Frame - 8," Karissa asked why I had abandoned the stride regulator since Belle is hitting close to the apex on her first stride.  I stopped using it because it was one more prop to fade, and it didn't seem to make that much difference.  However, I decided I'd give it another go this morning.

I also made a couple of other changes:

1.  I had started to fade the top piece of the PVC box.  I replaced the two pieces with a singe length of pipe so there is no gap.

2.  One end of the box has regular 90° elbows; the other has 3-way elbows.  (I mistakenly called them "tees" in the video.)  I've been placing the regular elbows at the top of the box.  Today, I turned the box and placed the 3-way elbows at the top.  This raises the top of the
box about 1" above the surface of the A-frame and makes it more visible.

The top pipe of the box remains about one inch below the start of the yellow.

Here's the video showing yesterday's efforts and today's.  I cannot believe how well Belle did today.  Today's A-frames were from a stay without much handler motion.  I will gradually add handler motion and a moving start, remembering to focus on the criteria set forth by Rachel Sanders.

Running A-Frame - 8

I've continued to work almost every day with Belle on her running A-frame.  The PVC box is completely in the yellow, and I have removed an eight inch section from the top piece of it as I begin to fade it.  The A-frame is still at about 4'6".  I'm not doing as many reps since Belle has the basic idea.  I'm also doing at least one pass beginning from the side with the box and ending with the side without.  I'm having Belle do that one from a stay position, and she's getting better and better about hitting the yellow without the box.  (Note:  This is most definitely not part of Rachel Sander's method.)

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Well, I set up the video camera so I could make sure we're still on track.  Unfortunately, I found that Belle is hitting high in the yellow and she is not hitting with all four feet.  You'll notice on the video, I thought she hit the yellow with all four feet every time.  Shows how important it is to video each practice session.

Running A-Frame - 7

After I wrote my last post, I re-watched the "problem-solving" section of Rachel Sanders' DVD.  Belle and I are about a month into our re-training, and she is doing really well, but she still doesn't realize that I want her to come flying over the apex and hit once in the blue and then hit the yellow with all four paws.  She can do it if the box is there, but remove the box and the behavior chain breaks down and she will most likely jump from just above the yellow.

The solution for that particular problem is that the box must be faded, which is what I began to do in my last post.  However, giving the whole process further thought, I have to accept the fact that I began the whole re-training process with unrealistic expectations.  I was hoping Belle would have a consistent running A-frame contact with just one month's work.  I can see she is improving from week to week, but I also can see it will take at least another month or two of training for a running A-frame to become second nature to Belle.  Since that is the case, I decided, I would try one more time to train Belle to hit a little lower in the box before fading it.  Rachel addresses this issue by moving the box closer to the apex and then gradually moving it back until it is completely in the  contact zone.

So yesterday, I moved the box up the A-frame about 20".  I think 12" would have been a better choice, but hindsight is 20/20.  I also lowered the A-frame back to about 4'6".  By the time we finished our afternoon session, the top of the PVC box was about 5" above the yellow.

Running A-Frame - 6

It's been about a month since I began working on a running A-frame with Belle.  She is consistently hitting inside the box with all four feet.  I have been unable to get her to hit two or three inches lower in the box by using a stride regulator, so I decided to not use it for the time being.  Since Belle hits the yellow even when the A-frame is in the middle of a sequence, I decided to start fading the PVC box.  This morning I replaced the top pipe of the PVC box with two shorter lengths so that there is a gap in the middle.

I ran Belle once over the A-frame with a whole box, and then replaced it with the one with the gap at the top.  The first time, I had her do the A-frame from a sit stay and just sent her to a hoop afterward.  Since that worked, I started sequencing work.  Unfortunately, I didn't press the button hard enough with my gloved thumb, and the video camera wasn't running.  I'm pretty sure she got four feet in the yellow each time though.

I also had Belle run across the dogwalk once and it was beautiful.  I have decided to use "easy" as she approaches the down ramp to remind her to run through the yellow and not jump.  I realize this makes Belle's dogwalk not truly independent, but it is a vast improvement over her TOTO dogwalk.

I ran two more A-frames with Belle so I would have some video to analyze.  Here are our efforts.

Reality Check - Running A-Frame Training - 4

After Thursday night's disappointing performance on the A-frame, I reviewed the "Case Studies" section of Rachel Sander's DVD.  As counter-intuitive as it seems to me, her recommendation for a dog who hits too high is to move the box up on the A-frame and then gradually move it down.  I decided to give that a go as soon as the A-frame is free of ice.  I also think I'll see if we can do without the stride regulator, since it will be an additional prop to fade.

Saturday, 12/17/11:  The weather didn't really clear enough to try out the course I set up on Friday.

Sunday, 12/18/11, morning:  There is hoar frost this morning, but I  went out to the field to see if the A-frame was clear of ice.  Since it wasn't slippery, I ran Belle across it a couple of times without the stride regulator.  Then I moved the PVC box up about 9 inches. And did a couple more passes.  She nailed it, so I raised the A-frame one link and move the box down a couple of inches.  Belle was still hitting squarely in the box, so I moved it down another couple of inches.  The top edge is now about four inches above the yellow.  This afternoon, we'll go out again and I'll set up the video camera.  If it warms up enough, we may even be able to use the dogwalk.

Sunday, 12/18/11, afternoon:  I videoed our efforts this afternoon.  After watching the video, I had to face the fact that Belle is not ready for the addition of a sequence before the A-frame.  She must first become consistent in where she hits after clearing the apex.  Included in Rachel Sanders' DVD are 13 pages of notes.  This paragraph in particular is one that I will have keep in mind when we are training:

Once the dog can successfully perform the A-frame with a front cross and a push past, you can do some minor sequencing FROM the A-frame to other obstacles. When the dog is successfully performing these sequences and you have raised the A-frame to full height, you can start sequencing TO the A-frame. Sequencing to the A-frame is more difficult for the dog because he must learn how to negotiate being off balance as he enters the A-frame and how to regain his
balance for the apex stride. 

Running A-Frame Training - 4

Belle and I are continuing to work on the running A-frame, and we're progressing very quickly, as you'll see in the first video.  Today, I really pushed it and set up a course around the A-frame.  I also tried taking the box off the A-frame to see how well the behavior would hold up.

I decided I really want Belle to hit a few inches lower in the yellow.  I added a stride regulator below the apex, hoping to train Belle to land further down the A-frame after cresting the apex.  This is really the most critical stride in Rachel Sander's running A-frame method.  The dog has to land far enough down and in control of its landing so that both rear feet hit the A-frame and the dog can use them to push off for its bounce into the yellow.  If the dog lands too close to the apex, it will be difficult for him to make it to the yellow in one leap.  If the dog lands too far down the A-frame, he may leap over the yellow.  Also, if the dog doesn't have his body under control as he comes over the A-frame, his rear legs may very well fly up higher than his top line--not a very safe behavior.

I had the brainstorm today to decrease the length of the boxes sides.  This gives Belle a smaller target to hit and I can place it further down in the yellow.  I also lowered the A-frame back to about 4'8".  Belle was hitting close to the top of the box, but she didn't touch it and she was driving further into the yellow.  When we practice again, I'll probably try moving the bumper down an inch and see what effect it has on where she lands in the yellow.

Running A-frame Training - 3

I took the video camera out to see how Dusty and Belle were progressing.  I have added handler motion to Dusty's grid work.  I was very disappointed to see that he was not getting all four feet into the box.  Unfortunately, I didn't catch it until I watched the video in slow motion.  I will have to go back to no handler motion until he understands he is to collect his stride for this grid exercise.  If need be, I will place a gate about 10 feet from the PVC box and see if that gets Dusty to think about what he is doing with his legs.



I started Belle on the A-frame Saturday.  After sitting down and re-watching the section on Rachel Sander's DVD demonstrating to introduce the actual A-frame to a dog that has been taught TOTO, I decided to back up a couple of steps and make sure that Belle was confidently hitting the box without needing a release command to exit the A-frame.  Thanks to my lack of consistency in using a TOTO, she didn't have much trouble with this.

After trying that exercise from different positions on the downside of the A-frame, I placed Belle in a stay and had her perform the entire A-frame.  After I viewed the video, I realized she was hitting quite high in the box, and sometimes she was even hitting the top of it.  Rachel Sanders explains this is due to not landing far enough from the apex on the downside of the A-frame.  Her suggestion is to try a stride regulator, which is what I did.  It seems to work.  The next time we work on this, I will probably move it another inch or two lower.



One thing that really impresses me about training Belle to do a running A-frame is how it eliminates all the extra steps she was taking as she approached the apex and when she was on the downside of the A-frame.  She just comes smoothly over the top, something I don't think she was ever able to do before.  Here's a compilation of video clips which demonstrates how Belle's A-frame performance was deteriorating.  I also included one clip from today's work to show how much smoother Belle's performance of the A-frame is already.  

Running A-Frame Training - 2

Today, I moved the grid out into the field and set up several hoops before it and and one on each side after it.  I filmed my back chaining work with Dusty.  I can see I'll have to remember to always release him with "Okay."  He's so over-eager, I don't want him to have to wonder if he can go NOW.  He definitely needs a clear cut release word.

I forgot to set up the two jump standards at the end of the grid when I moved it.  As you'll see in the video, I don't realize it until I started working with Belle.  In addition to adding a short sequence before the grid, I also placed a front cross between the grid and the last obstacle on our final three runs.  On our second attempt, Belle does not seem to pick up on the front cross cue and fades to her left.



A word about Rachel Sander's method:  The grid we're working with right now is the foundation for a running A-frame.  For most dogs the end goal is to hit once after the second jump and then to hit the box with all four paws on the next stride.  (A few small dogs may require two bounce strides before the box.)  With Belle, I'll work with the grid for another week or two until I have proofed every contingency I can think up and she is able to come straight through the box without the guidance of the two uprights most of the time.  Then we will start back chaining on the A-frame itself.

I anticipate the same process with the grid will take at least twice as long with Dusty.  Once I begin adding handler motion and other obstacles, his excitement level will go up dramatically.  So I will be breaking the training process down into much smaller increments for him.

Running A-Frame Training - 1

Wednesday, I added some handler motion to the jump grid.  Belle did quite well.  In the afternoon, I introduced some speed into our approach to the grid.  Tomorrow, I plan to move the grid out into the field so I can set up hoops around it so we can begin working on the grid as if it were an A-frame in the mid of a sequence.  Here's a short video from our work Wednesday morning.



After giving it some thought, I decided I'd see if Dusty could control himself enough to hit the box in the jump grid.  The first time, he soared over it, so I worked on back-chaining it.  I began with him mid-way between the second jump and the box, and worked our way back to setting up before the first jump.  I can tell that it will take longer to train Dusty since I could hear his nails ticking against the PVC box.  There will be no introduction of handler movement for Mr. D until he can get through the box.