Clean runs!

Really enjoyed our class tonight.  Both Lexi and Bentley ran clean (and were the only ones to do so on the first attempt) and I was very proud.  I took the time to draw it up because I was so pleased with their performance.

Diana was kind enough to actually put it together with the Clean Run Course Designer.  She is the best.  Thank you, thank you Diana!!

Here's how I handled it with Lexi.  Maybe I can get Jonathan to chime in tomorrow with how he handled it with Bentley (I forget!)

Front cross from 2 to 3, send to the tunnel.  RC flip from 7 to 8 into the tunnel.  RFP from 8 to 9 over the a-frame (yes, that's an a-frame, ha!)  No forward motion, but a release/send with my arm out to push her over 10, and a FC on the landing side of 10.  Lexi on my left into the weaves and around over the a-frame again. Forward send over 17 and a FC (serious decel!) to 18 to get the 180 and avoid the pinwheel.  RC on the flat between 19 and 20 and send to the tunnel.

A few notes.  My trainer recommended that I send over 17, trust Lexi and FC between 18 and 19.  I tried it and it actually worked out nicely, though I'm not sure if I'd see that/try that myself.

The only slight bobbles in the original run were the fact that she ran into my leg at the landing side FC at 10 (though she was trying to get on the correct side of me) and then I almost pulled her completely off of 18 because I decelerated to much.  I was able to save it and push her over without a refusal.

Disappointing Final Class

Last night we had our final class. The set up was a full course (jumpers with DW) with multiple sends and recalls to be identified and then performed. I have been working on these with Lexi for the past few weeks. Clearly she hasn't mastered them, but she did not run one segment of course correctly. She cut behind us multiple times, failed to read our body language, etc... It was really frustrating. I expressed that I was frustrated because I felt that as handlers, we had broken a dog with a lot of potential. Unfortunately, I think our instructor agreed (not that Lexi was broken, but that she could be really good with the correct instruction.) She even said, "I really like her..and I don't normally like dogs other than my own". Sigh.

I asked her if she thought Lexi had improved over the 7 week course. She said yes. But, she said that she felt like we as handlers had improved more than Lexi has as far as getting her the correct information. I guess that's good. We can't teach her if we don't know what we're doing, so we'll have to keep working on it.

I'll post the "course map" with analysis another time.

I am attaching 2 videos from a segment some friends of mine are calling "How would you handle this?" My friend went to a Daisy Peel seminar, and was presented with some tough sequences.

Here is how I would handle them...






Apparently I misread both course maps, so here are the "actual" sequences, and how I would handle them.