Training agility entirely at home

Marq has zoomie problems. He doesn't focus. He doesn't pay attention. He makes up his own courses as he goes along. He'll do fine while at home for the most part, being attentive towards my body language and voice commands, but at trials I am non existent to him.

Ok, got a bunch of questions.

How long has he been trained for agility?
What is his skill level? Please give LOTS of detail.
What focus skills does he have and have you proofed them? How and Where?
Have you taken him to other agility fields and/or fun matches for training before trialing?
Does he give any other stress behaviours at trials or in training? Other than the zoomie's and making his own course?
Please give details as to what he does and what you do when he gets this way?
Is he faster at the trial then in training?
What are your control points like? i.e contacts, startline's.

That is a start, I'll probably have more questions.
Got a video of training and/or a trial that we can watch?
Lynn

I started training him the basics about a month or two after I first got him January of 2006. So I guess that makes it about two years.

Marq has his UKC Ag 1 agility title. He hasn't been able to earn any other titles in NADAC or CPE. At class or at home he can complete full courses cleanly and smoothly following my commands and body language. He somewhat understands rear crosses, sometimes spinning instead of a smooth turn. He knows all obstacles, though we are right now re training weave entrances using the 2 by 2 method because that was one thing I always had to help him with, retry, and babysit him on always. He knows both 2o2o and running contacts and will do one or the other depending on my body language(ie: I have a command and my own physical cue that shows him I'd prefer he'd stop) and the obstacle(never 2o2o on the teeter). I've never taught him any distance work or layering. If he sees a tunnel, he usually goes for it no matter what. I did successfully get him to understand which to choose between a contact obstacle and tunnel once at a class, however he's since backslid - after he became nervous.

I first made it very important to teach him to focus on me far before I ever took him to classes. I used the clicker in my own back yard where I knew there'd be birds as distraction, my main worry. I have tried to train to get his attention with other dogs as distraction.. oddly enough.. the dogs are bigger distractions to him than even the birds. That is one thing I don't think I've ever really gained his focus over.

Marq has only ever done agility in three places really. The correctional training club(both indoor and on the same fairgrounds in which the trials are held), an excellent advanced agility training class(indoor for all but one class), and my backyard. There are no fun matches in my area, unfortunately. I looked two yaers ago. I was dead set on taking him to these before I ever put him in a trial.. but that was impossible.

Marq's zoomies aren't the typical stress that I usually see(considering more than half of my dogs are rescues with abuse in their past). At trials his startline stay broke down and was completley non existent. Things as little as saying "No" to him will cause him to stress, so I'd always let him break it. From there on, he'd zoom off, running at top speed completing the course the way he chose to do it. There were many times where he would run out of the ring in chase of a smell or dog, I'd run after him, grab him and haul him right back into his crate. Not long after that started happening, if he'd hear stress in my voice he'd run into the direction of his crate, seeking a safe place. Last I knew, we fixed this and he was at least finishing(very messy, ugly, off course filled) courses with me.

Ok,
I would say that you have changed your criteria, it is loose and it has changed from training to trialing.
No or imcomplete proofing.
No or imcomplete obstacle discrimination training.
No or imcomplete rear cross training. What about Front crosses?


Pick a contact behaviour, train it and don't change it. Then there is no confusion on the part of the dog, what his job is at the contacts. (of course teeters are different)
Retrain your startlines and proof them, don't change them.
Those are key control points on course, if at anytime we change our criteria regrading them, the rest of the run soon follows suit.
You need to train obstacle discriminations.
You need to train him to call of obstacles after you have sent him to them.
Revisit your focus work and proof him on leaving the ring before you trial again.
If you need to know how to do any or all of these things, let me know.
We can go through them easily and sharing sequences/exercises to get what you need for each.
These are not uncommon problems and I am confident we can provide you with the info to solve them.
You can train all this and more without ever saying 'no' to him or any other negative word, you can also keep the negative reinforcers to a min as well.
All this can be trained purely positive. At this point, I think he is worried, confused, needs more training and is probably offering 'his own courses' in attempts to please you because that is what he knows. You will be surprised at how fast you can turn this around and be thrilled with the results (your dog will be thrilled too!!


Take care
Lynn

You need to train obstacle discriminations.
You need to train him to call of obstacles after you have sent him to them.
Revisit your focus work and proof him on leaving the ring before you trial again.

Ok,
For obstacle discriminations, start easy, and don't start with a tunnel if he is a terminal tunnel sucker (hoover lol).
Now you have to be able to reliably be able to send your dog to any piece of equipment, if you can't then you have to go back and train this, from all angles and positions for the dog and the handler. And with the handler being static (not moving forward). You also need to be able to recall your dog over or through obstacles, this is also a great time to practice those startline stays!

Start with the tire and a jump or jump/tunnel. Set them up about 15 ft apart (the closer they become the harder the discrimination) side by side. Facing in the same direction but with one angled off slightly away from the other one. (if this doesn't make sense, let me know and I'll try to get some diagrams to you or post some diagrams)
Start closer to one of the obstacles and about 10 -12 ft away (or closer if you have to). The goal is for your dog to take the tire without any kind of body language or movement from the handler, that they move forward and take the obstacle on a verbal only. Don't use your dogs name, just say 'tire', give huge rewards if he does it. If he has trouble understanding, put a target on the ground on the other side to encourage him. With some dogs, in the beginning, they need the handler to support the line with their body language and to give a hand signal. But each time the dog successfully does the obstacle, next time use less of a hand cue signal etc until they can do it on a verbal only. Give one verbal and only one verbal command and don't say his name with the obstacle name, you don't want to have his name as part of the cue. Don't talk (encouragement, good boys etc) to him while he is going forward to the obstacle, so many people at this point give a second command and the dog head checks, spins or comes back. The distance that you start away from the obstacle depends on your dog, some dogs need to start closer and progress to longer distances, others can start further away, you know your dog best, start at the distance you KNOW he will be successful at. Don't get greedy. When the dog can do that obstacle 3 times (and only 3 times and don't get greedy!) move closer to the other obstacle, at the same distance away and work it.
Start the training session with this work, the dog needs to be fresh, DON'T drill. If he is successful doing each obstacle three times, QUIT. And move on to other training or just go play with him or go for a nice relaxing walk.
The goal is for you to be able to send him to each obstacle on a verbal and at a distance and for you to be able to stand between the obstacles (with distance back from them) with your dog beside you and for him to choose the correct obstacle. After each obstacle he should come back to you, rewarded, set up for the next obstacle and sent. As he understands the game, change the obstacles. But be careful, make sure which ever obstacles that you use, that he knows that obstacle inside out, and all the required behaviours for doing that obstacle safely, like contacts or weaves.
Then you can recall him, leave your dog in a stay, stand beyond the obstacles and between them (remember to start by being slightly closer to the obstacle that you want in the beginning for success). Give him the cue 'tire', reward. You can also recall him to you by using your recall word without him doing either obstacle, this is very valuable to train as well.
If at anytime, he doesn't do the obstacle that you desire, move back to the point where he was successful and stay there for a couple of sessions. Then try progressing again.
If any of this doesn't make sense or isn't perfectly clear, ask and I'll try to explain it better.
And no matter what happens, don't get frustrated or tell him 'no', he is learning and is trying to do his best, give him every chance to get it right no matter how long it takes. Some dogs get this game very quickly while others can take weeks. Don't drill !!!! Keep sessions very short and happy, even if they are not going as you want, there is always tomorrow or the next day.
This is a good start, when you are having success, let me know and we ll start on the other issues. Of course you can also train different focus games away from the agility equipment which wont over face him or stress him.

Good luck
Lynn

Nice tips!

teaches him to make his own strategy on how to finish the course efficiently.