weave progress?
Hi there,
I'm new here!
Was reading through this thread and wondering where the OP is at and if she was able to get any video of their progress?
I think Aleron nailed it--the dogs need to understand the concept of how to drive away from you first before you can really train this specific skill. Driving away from you is essential in agility handling as well so its an important skill to have. I also love the ex-pens idea--very smart!!!
I have dogs with very good (my 1st agility dog) and awesome (my 2nd dog) weaves. My first dog was only trained on channels in the beginning. He did okay with them, but never understood the concept of difficult entries. I did go back once I got more educated and added in some 2x2 work and it definitely improved his entries. My younger dog has excellent, independent weaves, I was complimented on them just last week! I trained him using both 2x2s and channels.
The 2x2s develop the concept of how to enter from ANY direction, and the channels teach them to DRIVE with speed down all the way to the end.
I also think WAMs are good for footwork if you can get your hands on some, but they're not the only tool I'd use.
Personally, I am not a fan of the guides, though I know some people who have said they help smaller dogs... I dunno, I dont like anything that has a "prop" you have to fade.
My disclaimer--I have taught foundation agility classes--and I will say that 2x2s were an extremely difficult concept for my students to grasp. And this was over the course of me teaching them for at least a year! Your timing of the marker (clicker/verbal) and reward delivery has to be excellent to really make it stick. That said, I dont think you should give up. Slow it down, and like others have said, I think lumping and not sticking with one method may be the problem. That Mary Ellen-Barry article is very good, I would be sure to download that if you have not already. I also think a private lesson if you can swing it is a good idea.
Am interested in an update and/or any video if you have it!