and week 6 of 2020

Review of January:

His progress at the obedience course is mostly solid. Sometimes dogs are part of the picture, and that makes life a little more complicated – between cautious nervousness and whiny attractiveness. People approaching is still difficult.

He is slowly getting there on the Zen bowl. A few more iterations should help.

I have a constant feeling of retreading the same ground over and over. Reading the plan for January, I wonder if there is even progress, or if I’m too scatterbrained to follow a plan in more than a half-assed version. Like there’s stuff we’ve worked on for months – with no perceptible progress.

Then I remind myself that this week I got retrieve holds of 10 seconds calmly, both in front and beside me, he will do steps while holding – both straight ahead and small bends. I remind myself that an eyefocus of 12 seconds this time last year would have seemed like a pipe dream. I remind myself that those four steps of backwards walking outside would have been impossible too. That backups between my legs was ‘impossible’ only a week ago. That I never even tried a remote target stick before the last couple of weeks. That Spins and Twists are getting more solid by the day – including speed and happy tail up.

Plan of February

I do have too many plans, and I tend to jump on every new ‘program’ that looks like a promising way of progressing. So I made a spread sheet with all those different programs, and discovered – naturally – a lot of overlap, which means I can isolate skills and behaviours that are important (or more important) as well as what builds on what. And then make my own program. More or less.

There’s still masses and masses I have no idea about. Particularly anything to do with physiology and fitness and all that. All I know is he could stand to loose a little weight (so we’ve bought light food), and that the vet hasn’t said anything particular about his body shape otherwise. So I have to presume he’s ‘normal’ by dog standards. (Well, at least his body is normal.)

Social

That should be two instances of training at the Obedience course over the month. My basic weekly plan involves two conscious outings as well (or one course + one outing.

Environment desensitising – skis and the like if the weather turns colder. Otherwise start working on my daughter and her bike.

We are also aiming for a session with his therapist, in a public setting with other people and dogs, to give him some mass training with multiple triggers. I’m a little worried – he stacks easily – but I have to trust the process.

Obedience

Moving on from the basic position changes.

The plan is to have a complete (if perhaps not perfectly polished) first exercise from the TEAM 1 title this month. The exercise as described, is 10 seconds of engagement without toys (but tricks without toy/treat-rewards are fine), then coming to heel on a platform (sit or stand), then pivoting 180 degrees counterclockwise together. We will need to recap his pivoting a little, to make sure he circles all the way in, and follows me around on the last part. Also the ten seconds of play without jumping and nipping is going to take some focus (but now that his spins and twists and surround me’s and counter-surrounds are getting really nice and freestylish, maybe that’s where I should aim).

From Awesome Obedience, we are starting scent work. I’m flailing with NEW! Don’t KNOW! ARG! – and the book (and all I’ve read elsewhere) say “hey – the dog knows how to do this, it’s just us humans that make a big deal out of it.” So I’m breathing, and doing step 1 and seeing how it goes. We are also doing a little Station foundation work to practice that. Again. (Done it before, became half-assed, stopped. Need to restart.) Also a short recap of targeting skills – although that’s kind of a daily thing for us. Jumping and nipping? Hand touch. Precise recall? Hand touch. Position snoot for backwards walking? Hand touch. Handling? Chin touch.

The 19 foundation skills described on the Canis organisation website, I will be running one-per-day, just for variation and keeping skills fresh. Though towards the end of the month I think I’ll start doing two days per piece.

List of 19 skills? Focus, Sit, Hold, Heel position, Walk+Look up, Scent, Target, Recall, Down, Zen, Pivot/Hind quarter control, Stand, Stay, Release, Jump, Bark on cue, Crawl, Contact Other, Scent Trail. (Some of these like the Bark is not particularly relevant for our use – I guess they are foundations for searching/hunting instead, but variation is fun, and putting stuff on cue is one way of reducing it otherwise.) My spreadsheet includes current criteria, next criteria, and aim-criteria for each. (A, B, and Z.)

Project Button

Sometimes he’s great and precise (particularly if requesting treats or chews) – sometimes he’s the piano man, whacking at random.

Steps to Success

Steps to Success and handling – we are continuing desensitising feet to clippers. I am also continuing practice of his Door Zen, but otherwise it’s just business as usual with leash manners, (almost) daily brushing, and such.

Sports

Picking up Rally Obedience again – once a week practicing doing two random skills in a row before reinforcement, but with low precision criteria, and some focus on doing it in a public setting instead.

Agility – start working to practice my footwork for the various crosses. (Front, Back, Blind, Wrap) Also introducing a wobble board as the first hint of a see-saw.

Tricks

Jump over foot, jump over arm. Circling around clockwise and anti-clockwise. Spins and Twists. Crawl. Sit Pretty.

Crafts and Shopping

Make a raised, non-slip platform the length and width of the dog, and at least 7-10 cm high. Make a wobble-board for agility. Buy the obedience training pdf-book from the Canis organisation.

Week 6

I write it as 3 training sessions per day – but my personal schedule determines if that’s actually 6 mini-sessions or 1 long one. I’m also moving the grace-day to the weekend, where it’s easier to pick and choose depending on what’s happening. Also, crafts on the weekend. (Although it’s a little hectic, so we’ll see.)

	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Weekend
Fitness	Hindlegs	Long walk	Forelegs	Long walk, social	Core	Long walk, Research
Session 1	Front cross	Station on mat Mat->Heel	Down on verbal cue, no distance	Mat station -> Heel	Station and pivots	Front cross
2	Pivot	Handling feet	Pivot	Scent intro	Scent	Feet
3	Pawtarget on mouse mat	Restrained recall Course: recall, station, pivot	Front cross	Zen and look up, sit	Feet	Tricks and Grace Rally triple sit + 180 left.

(I wonder if anyone actually reads this far. Drop me a note if you do!)