Carlasl Posted January 14, 2010 Report Share Posted January 14, 2010 I am excited! Maya and I are starting a 6wk agililty foundation class. Of course I have been working with her on lots of foundation stuff already, but it will be good for her to start going to some group classes now and work on focus with distractions. She is 9mo old and we are going to take this 6wk class then take two months to really have our foundation stuff down pat. Then we will start obstacle training when she is 13mo old. She is such a smart girl and loves to learn new things, but has some fear tendencies so I am not sure how things are going to go long term (teeter noise is my biggest fear), but we are going to give it a go. She is SUPER toy motivated and loves treats, And really most of the things that she seems scared initially have just taken her getting used to them on her own (clicking and treating help a lot) and playing the gimme a break game, works really well with her. I think if we just go at her pace and keep it fun she will do just fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Root Beer Posted January 14, 2010 Report Share Posted January 14, 2010 I hope you have fun!! As far as the teeter thing goes, there might not be any problem. I know I will always be concerned about that with future dogs, but I have to remember that most dogs really are not truly phobic of teeter noise. If you are at all concerned about noise, you might step out when the teeter is being introduced to the other dogs in the class and expose your dog to the sound gradually. That might not be necessary, but if it makes you more comfortable and confident, then it's a good thing to do. I wish you the best! All dogs are different and you'll learn a ton! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IPSY Posted January 14, 2010 Report Share Posted January 14, 2010 Know how you feel , my little guy is 7 months now. Its so exciting to be starting their first agility class. I cant wait Enjoy yourselves ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wyzenny Posted January 14, 2010 Report Share Posted January 14, 2010 That's so exciting! Zen and I start our first class on Wednesday. Your dog sounds a lot like mine .. similar fears and similar fears to my own! Noises scare her at times but I know we can all work through it. She's done all her foundation work and is a marvelous little girl. She's very motivated and loves her tug toys. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cody & Duchess Posted January 14, 2010 Report Share Posted January 14, 2010 Cody (age probably about2.5 yrs old) has taken 3 agility classes. First- I thought there was no reason for us to take it because we probably will never compete. This website convinced me that it would help build his confidence. Cody is a goof ball. My expectation were- hope he has fun. He has floored me every class. On the second class he succcessfully complete a mini course (A frame, tunnel, 5 jumps, tunnel, inner tube jump) we were both so excited. This week he did a course that weaved the tunnels under the plank and he did that great also. Best advice I got here - keep it fun, don't build the stress. oh yeah....3rd piece of advice - Keep it fun. Cody- a nervous type dog, now loves agility. I love this board - has made me a better dog owner. Have a great time at class. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MicheleS. Posted January 14, 2010 Report Share Posted January 14, 2010 Chase is a fearful boy. I was concerned that he wouldn't even come out of his shell to participate besides worrying about teeter noise, etc. The instructor was aware of Chase's fear issues and we must have handled everything appropriately enough for Chase. I've now got a a little speed demon dog that can't seem to get enough of agility class! He's almost a different dog in agility class Always have fun. Enjoy your classes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carlasl Posted January 15, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 15, 2010 Thanks everyone! She did fantastic, she has been exposed to the building off and on since she was about 12wks old, but it has been several months since we have been there so I was hoping she wouldn't be to overwhelmed, after a little bit of initial insecurity she was great, giving me all her tricks lots of eye contact, and even tugging a bit, she also relaxed and totally chilled several times. I brought her "Mat" for her to sit and get a massage during the instructing part and she just laid there and got a nice massage. The only issue I seem to have with her in group settings is that she resource guards her bag of stuff I always bring, if any dog looks like it is coming near her stuff she growls at them and would give them a snap if I let it go that far. I usually just try to redirect her and re-focus attention, if anyone have any ideas about handling that I would appreciate it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Root Beer Posted January 15, 2010 Report Share Posted January 15, 2010 The only issue I seem to have with her in group settings is that she resource guards her bag of stuff I always bring, if any dog looks like it is coming near her stuff she growls at them and would give them a snap if I let it go that far. I usually just try to redirect her and re-focus attention, if anyone have any ideas about handling that I would appreciate it. LAT while the other dog is still a good distance away. Gradually decrease space. And have people give her some space for a while. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diane allen Posted January 15, 2010 Report Share Posted January 15, 2010 Y'all probably know this...but do remember that young dogs go through several fear periods - when things which they've seen all their lives suddenly become The Very Evil Thing! I'm not certain of the time frames - seems like 7-9 month is one of them (though my youngster just forgot to have ANY fear periods, ever!). So if some fear rears its ugly head - fret not. You might just have to "leave it" for awhile, come back later, and it will (with any luck) be Nothing To Worry About! diane Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mariji Posted January 17, 2010 Report Share Posted January 17, 2010 How exciting!!! We are starting Motivation and Control class soon with my pup and Myla is moving into Intermediate! Yay. As far as teeter you can start desensitizing that now. My girl is 6 months and i put a plank of wood on the ground with a tennis ball and she had to move around on it, then we upgraded to putting a small paint can underneath so it moved like a teeter then we ran across it. At first she was a bit tentative but after 10 minutes was having blast trying to balance and stay on the plank. We are lucky we have a teeter so we can bang it and reward her when it bang i even have the teeter sit a few cm's off the ground and she jumps up on it causing it so slam down at which point she is rewarded. If you can think of anything to do with what you have at home that may be similar to that. Get a plank and lean it over something and push one end down so it bangs or maybe gets someone to help you. You could even make a teeter, ours was so easy to make. Good Luck!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IPSY Posted January 18, 2010 Report Share Posted January 18, 2010 Why are you using the treat bag ? If you really dont need it , get rid of it. Unless I misunderstood and you are talking about a gear bag? If thats the case , leave it somewhere away from your chair or space and go to it without her to get something out of it. I would discourage that behaviour from the getgo. She has so much to learn and focus on , dont let her wast her time and effort worrying about "her stuff". maybe you can stick whatever you use at class in your pockets ? Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carlasl Posted January 18, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 18, 2010 Yeah, I mean gear bag, not a treat bag (I just use my pockets, unless I am using hotdogs then I do use a bait bag lol). Yeah, you are right I will just put my stuff where she cant see it, very simple management duh.... And for Mariji- I am doing a lot of pre-teeter work with her, waiting for my husband to cut some plywood for me so I can make a buja board, I have a tippy board that we do the bang it game with. I am thinking I would like to use the two table teeter training method with Maya, I was reading the two part article in clean run about it and I am going to talk to my trainer and see if we can do that in class (or I will come and work it on my own in the building). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mariji Posted January 18, 2010 Report Share Posted January 18, 2010 Fantastic! Pre teeter work really helps. Just make sure you go slow if she is a little fearful one tiny scare could ruin everything. My girl is a very outgoing pup but the seesaw banging naturally was scary as it was "the unknown" , after some pre teeter training i have seen her go flying over the seesaw with no fear at all. (unintentionally of course, i would recommend keeping them from doing so but i was stupid and had out both dogs whilst only training one, my pup is so reinforced by watching me and my older one train that she will fly over anything given half the chance ) The two table method i think is brilliant. Just because i had trouble teaching my older one the teeter as she is a slightly nervous dog. She would get to the tipping point and slow down. So I used a jump pole to stick up one end and practiced getting on and off the end whilst it wasn't tipping. Then moved to having a chair under the other end so it tips only a little and play the bang game. After working on running over the teeter and recorrecting some naughty behaviours caused by my bad timing with rewarding, if she sees a teeter that is the first thing she will do because it is reinforced so highly with steaks and her tennis ball, she now will run full speed to the contact zone end while it is still in the air and hasn't started to tip and push it down into her 2o2o position. So i would recommend the bang game it really helped my girl! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IPSY Posted January 18, 2010 Report Share Posted January 18, 2010 Why dont you check out cleanrun.com just to get a idea of how the wobble board and the tippy plank are made and you can have one made for pennies at home. These two items are sooo useful when teaching balance and conditioning exercises. Good luck and have fun.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IPSY Posted January 18, 2010 Report Share Posted January 18, 2010 Me again ....if you can ..why dont you subscribe to cleanrun ..its a great training aid for agility , lots of exercises and problem solving articles. I found it to be extremely beneficial when training agility for the first time and everytime after that. Its just compact with everything from building the canine athlete to your own physical awareness , very useful when starting out. And of course great information for beginner to seasoned competitors . Im pretty ssure you would love this magazine . It even comes digital or by magazine . Enjoy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carlasl Posted January 18, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 18, 2010 Already ahead of you IPSY I have had a digital subscription for a year now and already have a tippy board and Just need DH to use the table saw and cut the piece of plywood for the buja. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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