weavesweavesweaves.

[AdrianneIsabel]

They were the death of me this weekend. We hit them but each time we needed to re-line up for them. So here I sit at 7am, before I need to get up for work, looking for/reading articles on proofing weave entries.

Seriously. I wasn't supposed to get so into this.

Oh well, now, what did you do to proof your weaves? Frustratingly Sloan almost never misses her entry at my work/training facility so I am sure some of it was the environment/new equip. I have my own set of 2x2s which I can back track in but what other exercises has everyone else used to proof their entries?

 

[SaraB]

Go back and redo the 2x2's focusing on entries. You should be able to send her from anywhere around the 2x2's and have her find the entrance. Imagine there is a clock around the poles with the first pole at 6 o'clock. Can you send her from 8? 10? 11? how about the other side, 5? 3? 2? If she struggles anywhere, move closer to the entrance to help her out and then gradually further away again. Also, practice racing her to the weaves from different angles. Another thing people forget to practice is handler motion, what happens when you flail your arms like you tripped, does it pull her out? What if you do a late rear cross? There is an endless amount of things to proof in weaves.

ETA, The first article "A New Twist on 2x2's" on this page is a good article explaining the clock around the 2x2's. http://www.cleanrun.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=category.display&category_id=457

 

[Shai]

Going back to 2x2 helps. Another thing is nailing entries as part of sequences and at high speed. It's tough and, depending on the dog, far less fun to collect and nail that entry after flying around a course and focusing on sailing over supafun jumps, etc. You want the dog to be not only successfully finding the entry from any angle but actively wanting it, charging it, and smoothly transitioning that speed into collection and settling into the rhythm to power through the poles and accelerate out.

 

[AdrianneIsabel]

Going back to 2x2 helps. Another thing is nailing entries as part of sequences and at high speed. It's tough and, depending on the dog, far less fun to collect and nail that entry after flying around a course and focusing on sailing over supafun jumps, etc. You want the dog to be not only successfully finding the entry from any angle but actively wanting it, charging it, and smoothly transitioning that speed into collection and settling into the rhythm to power through the poles and accelerate out.

I think this could be an issue and I'm not sure how to handle it. She loves going and I know stopping her when she misses the entry and restarting her is a bummer. In the last run of the weekend she got even a little annoyed I think because it took three tries and on the last I had to pump her up with hand clapping and cheerleading which I usually never need (also though she was literally exhausted), in fact in training each of my agility trainers have encouraged me to be as quiet as possible with her because she gets too amped with too many cues.

So re-starting my 2x2 will help this or is this something I should work on with the sequencing? The sequencing seems to be our issue/a new environment. I was surprised she misses even the straight entries.


Sara, thank you! I just printed the article and will be taking the weaves and the article out to a park today I think. More work outside of work will help but I only have two jumps to work on sequence to entrance outside of work unfortunately.

 

[AgilityPup]

When you work her entires are you using a jump, too? That might help a little bit with building up to sequencing.

 

[AdrianneIsabel]

When you work her entires are you using a jump, too? That might help a little bit with building up to sequencing.

I haven't but I definitely will if it will help. She does weaves about 2-3 times a week all by themselves. I've been working on staying in even when I race ahead because (another issue of how I started them) although she's always had lateral distance she started popping when I would run past her. We also run sequence courses at least once or twice a week but these are almost always at my work (an inside facility).

 

[AgilityPup]

SG suggests the jump in her 2x2s video, I believe. And it helps them figure out how to slow down and collect themselves going into an entry. Doing this you could build it up to 2 jumps, 3, etc., so that it's up to a sequence.

 

[AdrianneIsabel]

SG suggests the jump in her 2x2s video, I believe. And it helps them figure out how to slow down and collect themselves going into an entry. Doing this you could build it up to 2 jumps, 3, etc., so that it's up to a sequence.

Thank you, I'll add a jump to our sessions for sure then. It makes sense, really.

 

[SaraB]

I second the adding a jump.. putting it at different angles both at a straight line plus at harsher angles around the weaves. Adding a tunnel before gets them moving as well.

 

[AgilityPup]

^ Tunnel is a good idea too. Never really THOUGHT about that, but I've done it without thinking.

 

[MericoX]

Kiba knows how to weave, but now that I've got real weave to practice with I'm going to start using 2x2-esque way to retrain a better entrance, adding in different angles (like the jumps) and slowly adding a jump and other obstacles to it.

 

[adojrts]

If a person has the experience and the skill to be able to get a raw dog to do 12 poles in 12 days including the dog being able to do 12 poles from anywhere on the arch and jumping......then it takes at least another 30 days to proof and work the weaves in sequencing from all other pieces of equipment.
So if it takes an experienced pro that long it would reasonable that the average owner would take 2 - 3 x's longer
Doing just the weaves does not prepare the dog for being able to do them while sequencing, courses or competing.

 

[Aleron]

I ended up going back and working on this stuff with Whim too, as she wasn't always getting her entries at trials. But it didn't take long to get her really good at it. It sounds like you are almost there on them too. A few things I did to work on Whim's entries was either set up the channel or weave-a-matic so that it was almost closed but not quite. Easy for her to be right and I used it in sequences, marking the entry and rewarding at the end. I also worked just entries with two or three straight poles only, in sequences with marking/rewarding when she got it right. I'd work all different entries in this manner, always marking and rewarding. And it has worked great! She now hits even harder entries pretty reliably and I've only been really working with her for a month or so. All that marking and throwing rewards though did seem to then cause 1oth pole syndrome, so we've spent the last two weeks working on that and it seems to be fixed now as well. Like everyone said, doing weaves by themselves are sort of different from doing them in a sequence where the dog has to collect and hit the entries while focused on running ahead.

I'm teaching an intermediate class at the training club right now and while all the dogs do weaves, to some degree or another most of the students said they wanted better weaves in some manner (better entries, speed, independence, reliable off both sides, etc). So we've been working on a slightly opened channel and mixing it up with straight poles on the course. In just a few weeks of only once a week practice, these dogs are all greatly improving in their weaving with the straight poles when running the course. I think because going back to making it easier and keeping reinforcement high, helps them develop a better understanding. I'm not sure what the protocol is for problem solving with the 2x2 method though.