How do I de-motivate my dog?

[Frogs & Dogs]

There have been a couple of threads recently on motivating our dogs to do sports. I sort of have the opposite problem, and wanted to see if anyone had advice for me.

 

Kit has an awesome off switch, and for that I'm thankful. But when she's on, she ON. She finds EVERYTHING is motivating: any kind of food, the chance to interact with a person (even if they're trying to ignore her), tug toys, other dogs, discs, agility equipment, literally anything. This sounds great, but it can lead to problems....

 

- Last week in agility class, we were introduced to the teeter. She was so intent on getting the cheese from the instructor that she didn't even realize that the teeter was moving beneath her. Once she was off, she tried to go back for seconds. The instructor said "I've been mugged!"

 

- Doesn't matter what piece of equipment we're doing - she's all about it. I aim her in the right direction and let go, and she's off like a bullet. Sounds great, but I can see how this is going to turn into a huge problem when we get around to actually running courses. Asking for a sit before the obstacle only increases the drive, because she sits there staring at it and getting more and more excited.

 

- She seems to have issues waiting her turn in agility class. She's fine until she hears someone trying to motivate another dog. Then she responds as if they were speaking to her. She almost strangles herself on the leash trying to pull her way over there. This can lead to very loud squealing and sometimes choking.

 

- I tried using tugs as rewards instead of food, but she just about ripped my arm out of its socket.

 

- We love disc and play a couple of times a week. Problem is, she voices her extreme impatience by barking insistently until I throw the disc. This is particularly bad when there are lots of people watching (maybe she feeds off of my nervous energy/excitement?). I've started waiting for quiet before tossing, but she doesn't seem to be getting it. And in competitions, the clock is ticking, so we can't really do that. I finally got her to quit barking in excitement in agility class (usually in anticipation of the release) with a squirt bottle. So far that's holding (keeping my fingers crossed).

 

At home, she's actually reasonably calm. I have some makeshift agility equipment in the backyard and we play a few times a week. She gets excited when she realizes what we're doing, but never gets over-the-top excited. I can tug with her at home just fine. We practice "takes" with the disc and she barely blinks at home. Her leash manners are passable except in highly-stimulating situations.

 

So how can I bring down the drive a notch or two without sacrificing the good parts? How do I turn a highly-stimulating situation into no big deal?

[Mariji]

I know exactly what you mean. We have a few dogs at our club like that. People marvel at the drive but don't realise that all that drive makes the control part hard.

 

First I wouldn't tug with her, I have only ever seen that fuel the fire and psych them up even more. Food is generally more demotivating, although I can argue that point with my dogs, in high drive dogs you'll find that tugging just sets them into a frenzy.

 

I would only ask for calm behaviours, whatever your criteria is you'll get. She shouldn't be allowed to play agility if she's clawing on the end of her leash, screaming at the top of her lungs or any other nonsense behaviour. Start with away from agility before you ask for that control on the equipment. Practice walking around the equipment sitting at a start line and various other calm behaviours. If she isn't calm then she doesn't get to play, saying this you may have to start at a point where she can't even see the equipment. Try shaping basic behaviours, it may teach her to be a little bit more patient. Shape something new at your classes.

 

Once you've got her to a point of being calm before you even start, you can work on each obstacle. Teach her contacts and make sure she knows them, you will need them when running courses trust me. If you've built enough value in contacts it will be one way to slow her down. Break each obstacle into tiny pieces, for the seesaw I would teach her to contact at the end by jamming a jump bar on the other side to hold it up. Then back chain across the obstacle. That way if she goes flying across it full speed it doesn't matter she should stop to contact on the end. That's why I see the contacts behaviours as so important as it may be your only means of stopping a screaming freight train when on course.

 

If you don't want her to bark don't accept it, I know that may be hard and you may only get her to be barking quietly but it would be best to start now and be consistent! My 2 yr old screams on contacts when nose touching so I took away the nose touch as she can't hear me release her and now she just growls under her breath. She screams at me if I ask her to come back to me and set her back on course and I just wait till she is quiet even if we are running a course at a competition. My criteria is more important than the comp. You should never lower your criteria just because you are at a comp. On the weekend in a Games run I had to score 200 points in 50 sec, we had only a couple of seconds left and had an A Frame and 2 jumps to do. She went flying over the Frame and one back foot slipped off the contact so I waited until she put it back on before I released her even though I knew we only had a couple of seconds left to finish. You should always be consistent especially with a high drive dog.

 

Try tiring her out before you run. Take her to release some energy before you train and then ask for some basic behaviours. If she cannot even do those then there's no point in asking her to do anything harder. She will learn she has to play by your rules to get to run and your rules mean being calm before you start. As for on course I don't think there is much you can do except building a fantastic foundation of all the obstacles so she can't hurt herself.

[Root Beer]

I recommend the Off Switch Games from Control Unleashed.

[rushdoggie]

This screams for Control Unleashed. Have you seen the book?

[Carlasl]

Another huge shout out to Control Unleashed, Sounds like exactly what your dog needs, not to be de-motivated, but to learn how to focus and be controlled in highly arousing environments.

 

Get the book and there are several DVD options out there as well.

[SecretBC]

I think you should read Susan Garrett's book, "Shaping Success." Her dog, Buzz, was exactly like this and in her book she discusses how she survived. The entire book is about the struggles she had with Buzz and how she overcame them.

[Alaska]

Regarding sitting in front of the first obstacle, one thing you can do is not have the next step always be to take the obstacle. Sometimes release the dog to run to a toy or treat that you toss BEHIND them. That way they learn not to focus on the obstacle but on you, to see what you want them to do next (i.e. run to the tossed reward). Because she will have to be thinking at least a little bit to pay attention to you, the thinking tones down the mindless excitement a bit.

[Frogs & Dogs]

Thanks for the suggestions everyone!

 

Class went a little better this week. I started by arriving 10 mins early so that we could do some control exercises in the parking lot and on the way to the agility field. She was relatively calm most of the way - we'll keep working on that. During class she was still VERY interested in running over to the assistant to jump on her, but she minded me pretty well with a little management. I think part of the problem here is that the instructor and assistant reward with cheese (yum!) to motivate all the other dogs, whereas I reward with the lowest-value treats possible (cheerios and dog food), just to keep her under threshold. So naturally, she's looking toward them when her attention should be on me. But if I upgrade to cheese, then we'll really have problems.

 

We are working on getting contact performances solid. There are certain pieces of equipment that she realizes have a contact zone at the end (A-frame, dog walk), and certain ones where she's still learning that (teeter). I have a ramp in the backyard with a target plate at the end, and she never blows a contact on that thing.

 

I own a copy of Control Unleashed. From my readings, it seemed to be geared toward fearful and/or reactive dogs, which Kit is not. However, I didn't get all the way through it (yet). Will give it a second look. I've never heard of Shaping Success, so I might check that out, too.

 

Alaska, I like your suggestion of throwing a toy behind the dog to get them thinking about what you want as opposed to how much they want that obstacle in front of them. Kit quivers with excitement at the start line, and it would be nice to tone down the anticipation a little bit. I've done a few "fake out" exercises with her where I'll put her at the start line and give the hand signal for stay. Then I say "ready, ready, ready...." and do/say everything possible except the release ("okay") to see if I can get her to break the sit. She's pretty good at this game at home, but I'm thinking it wouldn't work as well in class (too amped up). I might give it a try next week.

[pammyd]

Everyone thinks they want a motivated dog until they get one hart work!

In a way your dog IS reactive if she is screaming at things - its just not reactive like you expect

Some of the control unleased exercises will really help

 

Your reving her up in the stay at home is cool, but dont take it straight to class, build up the distractions. Start in the house, then the garden, then out on walks when there is noone there, then when there are a few distractions, then when there are some dogs running about - then in the agility class

Its a v big step from home to the class

 

Try lots of impulse control things - no pulling on the lead, wait at door, wait for food

In class I would do lots of heelwork, stays, focusing. Pretend you are taking her to the start line but if she gets OTT calmly walk away and do some stays or something

Same with the disc - if she is screaming just put it away and walk away, if she is sitting calmly with eye contact then she gets to play

[Root Beer]

I own a copy of Control Unleashed. From my readings, it seemed to be geared toward fearful and/or reactive dogs, which Kit is not. However, I didn't get all the way through it (yet). Will give it a second look.

 

Control Unleashed is actually not specifically a reactive dog program. It can be used, and used very effectively, to help a reactive dog, but it's application is far broader.

 

CU is actually geared toward dogs who need to learn self control and/or focus, regardless of temperament. In fact, CU works best with dogs who are not reactive or fearful (although, again, it can certainly help reactive or fearful dogs).

 

Please do give it a second look. Particularly the section on off-switch games. Go right to page 154. You can always go back and pick up other pieces to use with your dog later.

[Woffie]

Autumn did not come with and off switch.

[Frogs & Dogs]

Autumn did not come with and off switch.

 

Yeah, neither did Kit. It took me a year to get her to the point where I could actually take her to agility class in the first place. Sounds like a long time, but I'm a first-time dog owner and didn't really understand what I was getting myself into when I adopted her. I'm not one to give up, though, and we're learning together. As pammyd said, a dog with this sort of drive is hard work. It's a darn good thing she doesn't try these shenanigans at home anymore.

 

In some ways, I'm probably overstating the case for how bad this problem is. Kit is absolutely loving agility, and I love doing it with her. Our instructor keeps threatening to dog-nap her. She has incredible speed even while I'm trying my hardest to slow her down. She usually follows my cues pretty darn well, which often surprises me and the instructor, consider how amped up she is. I think part of my frustration is that we're sort of in a unique situation in our beginners class. The other dogs in the class need encouragement (in the form of food, praise, etc.) to get them to do the obstacles, and since they're in the majority, the class is geared toward them. On the other hand, Kit's combination of very high drive and zero fear means that she thinks every piece of equipment is the best thing she's ever seen - there's no chance of her missing that hoop, going around that jump, or balking on the teeter. When we're lined up in front of an obstacle, I need to start INSISTING (to the instructor/assistant) that I get a second of impulse control out of her BEFORE they start calling from the other end of the set of obstacles to get her attention and encourage her to come. Their presence there is enough enticement in itself. If I did it their way, I'd be hanging onto the collar for dear life while she lunged at the equipment frantically until I finally let go, at which time she would do everything perfectly and in record time, get fed, and walk away having learning nothing - NOT GOOD!

 

Our instructor keeps telling me that a local agility guru who I know fairly well started out with a very high drive dog, just like Kit. Now his dog is 7 and absolutely amazing. Still high drive, but so focused that they're my favorite team to watch at trials. His method of keeping the dog under threshold is not something that I see often, but maybe that's because I'm still new to the sport. He remains very quiet throughout the whole run, only saying the dogs name calmly when he needs to get her attention. Everything else is hand signals and body language only. She's wicked fast, and considering the speed, fairly accurate, too. I wonder if I'll have to learn to stay silent to get Kit to stay under threshold.

 

*Unearthing CU now.*

[Root Beer]

The other dogs in the class need encouragement (in the form of food, praise, etc.) to get them to do the obstacles, and since they're in the majority, the class is geared toward them. On the other hand, Kit's combination of very high drive and zero fear means that she thinks every piece of equipment is the best thing she's ever seen - there's no chance of her missing that hoop, going around that jump, or balking on the teeter. When we're lined up in front of an obstacle, I need to start INSISTING (to the instructor/assistant) that I get a second of impulse control out of her BEFORE they start calling from the other end of the set of obstacles to get her attention and encourage her to come. Their presence there is enough enticement in itself. If I did it their way, I'd be hanging onto the collar for dear life while she lunged at the equipment frantically until I finally let go, at which time she would do everything perfectly and in record time, get fed, and walk away having learning nothing - NOT GOOD!

 

I ran into the same kind of thing waaaay back when I started Agility with Speedy. The instructors wanted me to rev him, rev him, rev him. I thought they were crazy. He needed to be calmed down!

 

After training and running with a dog who does need a good bit of revving (Maddie), I do understand where that comes from. If I had known what I know now, I would have insisted on handling Speedy quietly and working on his self control, as I did later with Rally and Freestyle. He was never going to demotivate or slow down. He would have needed to learn to use his brain, though, if we had gone further with Agility.

[MrSnappy]

She has incredible speed even while I'm trying my hardest to slow her down.

 

Why would you slow her down? Don't slow her down - agility is about control AND speed, slowing her down will just demotivate her, and it's a lot harder to get speed back when you lose it. Stop trying to slow her down, start trying to handle more efficiently!

 

When we're lined up in front of an obstacle, I need to start INSISTING (to the instructor/assistant) that I get a second of impulse control out of her BEFORE they start calling from the other end of the set of obstacles to get her attention and encourage her to come.

 

Pardon my confusion - why are your instructors calling her over obstacles? Who's running your dog, you or them? I don't understand why they are calling your dog - your dog should be taking her cues off you and driving to the end of the obstacles because you asked / taught her to, not because someone else is calling her. Tell them to stop calling her, period, and run your dog yourself. They shouldn't be involved in your run at all.

 

His method of keeping the dog under threshold is not something that I see often, but maybe that's because I'm still new to the sport. He remains very quiet throughout the whole run, only saying the dogs name calmly when he needs to get her attention. Everything else is hand signals and body language only.

 

That's exactly how agility should be handled. Your handling cues your dog, your voice is only there for emergencies. You don't see it often because humans are verbal creatures with a poor understanding of their own body language, so they default to voice instead of actually handling their dog. If you learn early to stop talking and start handling, it's a lesson that will stay with you for a lifetime. I'm still trying to unlearn all the shouting and "calling every obstacle" habits that we were taught back in the day, and it's frustrating as heck. I wish I'd known that back then. Lucky Dexter gets the benefit of all the screw ups I inflicted on my other dogs over the years.

 

RDM

[SecretBC]

. I wonder if I'll have to learn to stay silent to get Kit to stay under threshold.

 

YES!!!

 

Where did you get the idea that agility is about screaming and flailing about?

 

I had a student with a VERY VERY VERY high drive Aussie bitch. Starting out, this dog was completely out of control, barking & biting at the handler. The handler was doing every possible thing to make the situation WORSE -- She kept getting louder to try to be heard over her dog's barking, her pitch kept going higher and more frantic, and she waved her arms around like a windmill.

 

When I explained to her that she was coming across as a frantic handler it made a big impression on her. When she ran silently and with her arms quietly by her side, suddenly the dog (more or less) stopped barking and was able to focus more on her. As a high drive herding breed, the sounds & movements coming out of her handler were driving her bonkers and the excitement of agility was already enough for her.

 

I understand there ARE dogs out there who need to be encouraged along with movement and high pitched praising voices, but your dog is not one of those.

 

There is nothing more beautiful than a fast, dead silent run.

[Mariji]

I thoroughly agree! At the clubs I have trained at I was constantly told to be louder and excite, even squeal. I don't say anything except for the occassional obstacle command even then if I am doing my job right I should know where she is going. Myla just recently received her first title and and the judge commented on how silent my run was but that it was fantastic because I was in all the right places to direct my girl around the course fast and clear. If I get loud and say unneccessary things she isn't focusing on what she is doing, she is focusing more on all the stuff I'm saying. Maybe for a beginner dog you may need to encourage them around a course verbally but it is almost completely pointless for a dog with experience or a high drive dog.

[mum24dog]

That's exactly how agility should be handled. Your handling cues your dog, your voice is only there for emergencies. You don't see it often because humans are verbal creatures with a poor understanding of their own body language, so they default to voice instead of actually handling their dog. If you learn early to stop talking and start handling, it's a lesson that will stay with you for a lifetime. I'm still trying to unlearn all the shouting and "calling every obstacle" habits that we were taught back in the day, and it's frustrating as heck.

RDM

 

Sorry to drag this up after a month but I have to say that you can't be that prescriptive about "how agility should be handled". As in anything, it depends on both the individual handler and dog.

 

It's easy to say use your body to handle and keep your mouth shut, but how about if the handler can't run fast enough, or how about if the handler, with all the hard work in the world, is never going to be coordinated enough not to misdirect the dog at times?

 

Verbal direction comes in very handy in those circumstances.

 

"Work with what you've got" is good advice.

 

Here in the UK two handling styles are apparent - in the south there is more of what you approve of and further north handlers are often more verbal. Successwise it isn't an important factor. There are more top handlers from the south but there are a lot more people competing there to so it isn't surprising. Get north and south together and there is no obvious inherent superiority of one style over the other.

 

If you take my daughter's BC, he's been taught a lot of verbal commands but most of her handling is physical. If I have to run him it's virtually all verbal. There are very good reasons for that.

 

I do agree with the advice to calm down given to the OP though.

 

Pam

[MrSnappy]

Sorry to drag this up after a month but I have to say that you can't be that prescriptive about "how agility should be handled".

 

Sure I can. I think that's how it should be handled, and I said as much. It's not really different from you dragging up an old post to tell someone what you think they can and cannot believe or say.

 

My other belief is that you following me from thread to thread to argue that verbals are good in agility is a really strange hobby. Just sayin'. Is it going to last a long time? I promise you, I do understand what you're saying - no need to keep talking at me about it (oh the irony is almost beautiful, really).

 

RDM

[mum24dog]

Sure I can. I think that's how it should be handled, and I said as much. It's not really different from you dragging up an old post to tell someone what you think they can and cannot believe or say.

 

My other belief is that you following me from thread to thread to argue that verbals are good in agility is a really strange hobby. Just sayin'. Is it going to last a long time? I promise you, I do understand what you're saying - no need to keep talking at me about it (oh the irony is almost beautiful, really).

 

RDM

 

Think about it - we both have an interest in Agility, so we're bound to meet up in the same threads.

Trust me, I'm not stalking you.

 

I've had a busy summer and only just found time to catch up here, hence my latching onto old threads. I shall probably disappear again for a while soon as real life picks up again, so you will be able to rest easy.

 

You can be a touchy lot on here.

 

Pam

[AgileBC]

I haven't read everyone elses posts yet, but it sounds like to me that she lacks self control.

I would say start with some of susan garrett's crate games or maybe control unleashed. I haven't read control unleashed but have heard good things from others.

I have done crate games and loved it as did Kyla.

 

 

Something you could start with is the "zen game".

Your goal is to hold a treat in your hand and to get it your dog has to look at you, not the treat.

 

To start, hold the treat in your hand. The dog will probably paw, mouth, etc. at it. (if shes really rough, you could wear a work glove at first) wait her out.

The second she stops touching your hand, say "yes" ! (or click, if you clicker train, or use another marker word) (a marker word simply marks exactly when your dog did something correct/that you wanted, so it should be short)

Immediately after you say "yes" open the hand and give her the treat. Do this a couple times.

After a 5-10 repetitions of the above, stop and end the lesson.

 

For the next lesson hide some treats in your other hand. Again offer the original (closed) hand with the treat in it. When your dog stops messing with your hand, mark and reward her BUT this time give her a treat from the other hand instead of opening the first hand. Now for the next repetitions, sometimes give her the treat in your hand, sometimes from the other hand.

 

Keep working in small steps, when your dog is getting the hang of doing something besides going at your hand try something else: wait (don't reward) until you get a glance towards your face, then reward.

 

The goal in the end is: You hold a treat in your open hand, you dog automatically looks at you, you reward. (sometimes giving it to your dog, sometimes releasing the dog to your hand to get the treat)

 

Remember to work in small steps.

 

 

Other things to work on: staying in a crate with the door opened until released (crate games focuses on this) and waiting at an open door until released to go out (a big safety thing anyway)

 

Self control is a wonderful thing in a BC once you have it

[AgileBC]

Regarding sitting in front of the first obstacle, one thing you can do is not have the next step always be to take the obstacle. Sometimes release the dog to run to a toy or treat that you toss BEHIND them. That way they learn not to focus on the obstacle but on you, to see what you want them to do next (i.e. run to the tossed reward). Because she will have to be thinking at least a little bit to pay attention to you, the thinking tones down the mindless excitement a bit.

 

AWESOME point! This is also great for dogs that have startline breaking issues.

[AgileBC]

I wanted to echo the props to Susan Garrett's Shaping Success book. It's a great read that talks about setting solid foundations for CONTROL AND DRIVE at the same time, and how she worked though things with Buzzy, her "wild child".

 

My pup Kyla has an off switch but had absolutely no self control when I got her at 8 months old. It took 2-3 months of work before she could focus on me and what I wanted to do if there was a toy present. (she seriously was deaf to the world when toys were around) We went back to basics, taught everything with food first. If she couldn't focus with the frisbee out, the frisbee went away. If she could focus on what I wanted her to do, we would run and get the frisbee together as a reward.

 

We did some crate games (not the whole set at first because there was no dvd out at that point) which helped a bit too. Later I read Shaping Success and there are tons of useful things in there that I still use sometimes (and have filed away for whenever I get a second dog).

 

I still teach most things with food first, then toys. Mostly because you can be more precise with food most the time, and get more reps in. Tug is Kyla's main reward for agility. (besides Jackpots after running a competitive run lol)

 

One thing that I gained from SS was when tugging, the dog only "gets" the tugtoy when released to get it. AKA I am able to swing it around her head and she will not grab it until told ok! I don't do this often, just when I was teaching this control and randomly to proof it.

[AgileBC]

Why would you slow her down? Don't slow her down - agility is about control AND speed, slowing her down will just demotivate her, and it's a lot harder to get speed back when you lose it. Stop trying to slow her down, start trying to handle more efficiently!

 

 

 

Pardon my confusion - why are your instructors calling her over obstacles? Who's running your dog, you or them? I don't understand why they are calling your dog - your dog should be taking her cues off you and driving to the end of the obstacles because you asked / taught her to, not because someone else is calling her. Tell them to stop calling her, period, and run your dog yourself. They shouldn't be involved in your run at all.

That's exactly how agility should be handled. Your handling cues your dog, your voice is only there for emergencies. You don't see it often because humans are verbal creatures with a poor understanding of their own body language, so they default to voice instead of actually handling their dog. If you learn early to stop talking and start handling, it's a lesson that will stay with you for a lifetime. I'm still trying to unlearn all the shouting and "calling every obstacle" habits that we were taught back in the day, and it's frustrating as heck. I wish I'd known that back then. Lucky Dexter gets the benefit of all the screw ups I inflicted on my other dogs over the years.

 

RDM

 

LOL It doesn't sound like she needs too much encouragement! I don't know how far along you are in training, but this is a VERY GOOD POINT. I would start using a target (w/ food if shes not trained to a target) or toy if you MUST have something for her to drive to. Then run to the target or toy with her and party (with more treats from YOU or playing with the toy) with her! : ) That way at the end of the sequence YOU are the focus for her, not the trainer/assistant. If you think she will run around the obstacles to get to the target/toy have someone very passively (not looking at her and not talking to her) stand there and cover it with a foot if she comes around for it, until you get her back to you. That way she doesn't get to self reward and only gets the reward after she's played the game with you. I agree you should start getting her attention on you, not on the trainers.

 

The calling to the trainer w/ food thing seems to be pretty common for less-motivated dogs starting out. I do feel for you that you are having to adapt so much in a class not suited to your dog. Hang in there! Be persistent with your instructor too and let her know why you want to do something differently for your dog. I know I would have fun adjusting and working with a different type of dog, hopefully your instructor will embrace it! : )

[Frogs & Dogs]

First, let me apologize that I forgot all about this thread. My last visit to the BC boards was a while ago, so kudos to you guys for keeping this going while I was falling asleep on the job! Sometimes I leave for a while, but I'm never really gone.

 

To respond to a few comments...

 

MrSnappy:

I guess I am trying to slow her down because the instructor wants us to have more control. I didn't realize that speed would be hard to get back if we temporarily put it aside. I'll keep that in mind.

Regarding the instructors calling her over obstacles, I agree with you 100%. It's SO annoying. Again, the class is tailored towards dogs with less drive - dogs that need to be encouraged to do the obstacles by any means necessary. Everyone sort of gets lumped together, even though I'm facing very different (but no less serious) issues.

I'm starting to see the wisdom in running Kit silently. I feel like at this point we don't have the experience to do that yet (she's not going to know where to go next when her 27mph self gets ahead of me), but we'll get there eventually.

 

AgileBC:

"Zen game", staying in the crate with an open door, and waiting for a release in front of an open door are all things we've worked on and mastered. Same for tug toy games and ball games (not allowed to retrieve it until released). Targeting is something we started at the beginning of agility class, and by the second week we had everyone in stitches because Kit was not only doing it, but was doing it was such gusto that she was purposely rearing up and pouncing on the target, and then looking up expectantly for her treat. I guess the trainer prefers to use herself rather than the target as something to drive towards because some dogs don't find targets particularly enticing.

 

As far as progress...

Right now I feel like our progress has mostly stalled. Same tired story: my issues aren't being addressed because they're very different than the issues that other class participants are dealing with. We're definitely going to be moving to a better facility within the next couple of weeks, and if I'm really lucky, we may be switching instructors as well.

We seem to have gained a little more control over the enthusiasm surrounding the teeter - I think that was the worst - we just needed 5 minutes alone with the teeter an no one else there to hold it steady or offer treats. As it turned out, the instructor with treats was the source of all excitement. Remove that and the teeter turned into no big deal.

Contact zones are coming along nicely. I've heard that that's key for a drivey, speedy dog - slows them down like nothing else.

Footwork in the weaves is gorgeous, and with nice speed to boot. I've started removing the guides.

I was pleased to discover a few weeks ago that we've mastered serpentine movements with sets of 3 hoops/jumps. More than anything, I think Kit has learned that if she went over/thru the last one from left to right, that the next one should be right to left (as opposed to watching me for cues), but still, she's doing it, and with nice speed, too.

 

If anyone knows of some control exercises that haven't been mentioned here yet, I'd be anxious to hear them.

[MicheleS.]

I feel your pain I was in the same situation as you with a driven, fast dog. I felt the initial class I was in was geared more towards the other dogs in the class, none of which shared my issues. I also didn't feel as though the instructor had much experience with a dog like Chase. I quit that class and found another instructor and class. This instructor had a dog much like Chase and she definitely understood my issues and has helped and is helping tremendously. I still felt I lacked in my handling skills. I had very little experience in agility, only trialing one other dog, and she ruined me for what was to come because she was simply perfect. Perfect speed, and she covered my butt on all my handling mistakes. I look back and see that now. I may as well have been starting at square one with Chase. I was forever wishing Chase would just slow down, can't we just slow him down a little bit!? This is chaos! So, for more information and knowledge, I am now also taking private lessons from another instructor in addition to my class. She loves his speed and has helped me understand my dog and is really working on helping me with my handling skills. I'm working hard towards being able to trial him and I'm really looking forward to the day when I can. He's probably ready, but I'm not.

Sorry I can't give you advice because I consider myself a newbie, just wanted to let you know you're not alone. Trust me, things will start to come together with experience and time