Challenge #2 – Bad Dog Agility Academy

Challenge #2

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  • Susanne says:
    May 12, 2020 at 9:49 pm

    Challenge 2 sent. Not sure if I accomplished it correctly. He is always supposed to have eye contact with me when exiting a gate or door and before we tug. Thanks for your help?

    • Esteban Fernandezlopez says:
      May 13, 2020 at 6:24 pm

      I think I’d like to see a re-do on the gate work, with an emphasis on a clear marker either “yes!” or “excellent!” or whatever your word is. It’s not clear to me what your marker word is, so it’s probably unclear to your dog as well. You can enter through the gate first–that part is ok. As the dog comes through after being released (and note that your dog was reluctant to come through on one of the releases, showing some confusion over cues), go ahead and mark eye contact even as he moves through (he doesn’t need to stop and face you formally in a “front” position) and **immediately** reward with the toy. The delay between your mark for eye contact and the presentation of the toy “get it!” is too long, so you have to resort to calling him to you or catching his attention with a verbal of some sort.

      A tip for all release work (you don’t have to re-do the first part) is to let the dog have all four feet on the ground, and immobilize the toy by trapping it against your thigh (he’s a powerful tugger and can self-reward otherwise).

      Overall, a very good job! Re-doing the gate stuff will help you clarify your cues (is “excellent” a mark or is it praise?).

  • bsr7673 says:
    May 7, 2020 at 7:10 pm

    I have a question regarding the challenges using a gate. I have only a wooden gate (not so good for video and seeing both sides of the gate) going in and out of my yard. It is not an easy gate to open and my dog never goes through this gate.

    Can I substitute using a baby/dog gate in my house? Any other suggestions? I also have a door from my garage into the back yard that might work…
    Thanks!

    • Esteban Fernandezlopez says:
      May 8, 2020 at 11:04 am

      Yes, any of those are ok. Doors are ok, like front door or back door–anywhere your dog might rush out ahead of you and not pay attention.

  • Kristen says:
    April 19, 2020 at 10:03 am

    On 2.2, does a performance meet your criteria if “Get it” is used in place of yes, get-it? (as in, mark with the tug cue).

    • Sarah Fernandezlopez says:
      April 19, 2020 at 11:40 am

      For this, we want you to mark the eye contact/focused attention with a marker (click or “yes”). Over time, you can drop the marker and just give your tug cue. But in the initial teaching phase, you want a very clear mark of the correct behavior.

      For the purposes of the challenge, we want people to practice using their precise marker cues.

  • LauraL34 says:
    April 18, 2020 at 7:43 pm

    I need one of those secondary gates 🙂 I did the best I could with going in and out of the back door….into the house with a black dog, not sure how best to film that.

    TJ spent some time sitting at that back door looking at squirrels and chasing them when he was let outside this morning, so I was glad that he saw me get the toy down and chose to play with me instead of running for squirrels!!

    • Esteban Fernandezlopez says:
      April 21, 2020 at 5:05 pm

      Well done! This is a game you’ll want to play when trials resume, to continue to build focus and drive and value for the venue. As good as my golden looks now in the yard, she’s going to struggle in new places, so when it’s time, I will focus on that, lowering criteria, moving her closer and farther until she can tug with focus and enjoy it.

  • Barb VE says:
    April 18, 2020 at 10:50 am

    I put it all in one video.

    • Sarah Fernandezlopez says:
      April 18, 2020 at 10:51 am

      Fabulous 😀

    • Esteban Fernandezlopez says:
      April 18, 2020 at 11:50 am

      I just reviewed your video, great work!! That’s the foundation for excellence.

      • Barb VE says:
        April 18, 2020 at 2:28 pm

        Thanks, Esteban. He is so much fun to work with. I had been planning to start entering him in AKC in late June. Now, of course, who knows.
        We are doing the UKI video trials. I can recommend them for people who are “more than ready” to start trialing. Alas, video at home doesn’t cover the best part of trialing: seeing your friends; watching the great runs and hanging out in the agility atmosphere. But it does give you a chance to pit your training up against some pretty challenging and interesting courses.

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