Friday, April 27, 2012

Wins

I thought I'd borrow a page from what we do at work...think about our last trial and jot down a few wins and opportunities.  It's helpful for me to emphasize the progress we've made from trial to trial.   And writing down our opportunities will help me to focus our training in the months to come.

Wins:
1.  Lexi's table. Not too long ago Lexi would bounce off the table like crazy.  I think she thought it was her personal speed bump.  Also, she got impatient and often lifted her elbows up before the count was finished.  We worked it just a few times, and she seems vastly improved!
2.  Bentley's weave entries.  Last trial Bentley missed several weave entries.  I think he's been rusty, so it's something we've worked on quite a bit in the yard.  This trial he really seemed to go out and try to find it on his own.
3.  Lexi's teeter.  HUGE win!  She showed no fear, no hesitation, and never refused it.  On every teeter she ran to the end and rode it down.  (Now I think it's time to further proof the end behavior).  Just a few months ago she didn't want to get on at all.
4.  Bentley's teeter.  He is going much farther down the end before stopping.  Last trial there was a lot of cajoling and encouraging when he stopped short.  (He did fall off this trial, but that was a product of him losing his footing)
5.  Lexi's attention in Snooker.  My husband chose difficult snooker plans and Lexi stayed with him the whole time (though she wasn't always happy about it!)
6.  Bentley's contacts.  Our criteria for Bentley is 2o2o in practice, and no missed contacts in a trial.  Because of the way that he thinks and works, we accept 4-on, or even bounces (on the a-frame) in a trial.  He didn't miss a single contact!


4 comments:

  1. Wow, those are huge improvements!!!

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  2. Love those photos! Look at the turn Lexi is doing over the spread jump! Sounds like great things happened for both dogs at that trial!

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  3. Great pictures! I love those action shots!

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  4. WOW! You've done so much with Bentley and Lexi, all those improvements are HUGE WINS! Well done!!

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