Practice for the upcoming AKC trial - Page 1

Yes yes, I know AKC Ob is not popular amongst many here, but I don't care. I'm having fun with my dog in multiple venues :) Right now, I'm not in a condition for heavy duty bitework but I'm not giving up training, period. SO with that being said, I had my boy take some video of the Open A exercises, minus change of pace (because lets face it, I'm not running right now if I don't have to) and the figure 8, group exercises. Any comments or pointers? Super nervous already.. trial is this Sat/Sun.
 

do not move your left arm, you will see that in AKC OB, the handlers keep their arm slightly bent and still.

your dog looks happy working for you, something that many of your competitors wont.

have fun.

I agree about the arm and that your dog is having a blast. Take a deep breath and just enjoy the experience! You are out doing something with your dog, that is what matters.

Clearly you have already realised you need to tidy up on
the Present and Finish elements;  nevertheless, this dog
does work nicely and looks happy about it, so kudos to
you.  Try to relax when you get there, as you know it'll either
come together on the day, or it won't !

Never mind about fellow posters lack of interest in Ob, it isn't
all of us !  Just carry on doing what you feel comfortable with
and having fun, your dog loves you for it.

Melissa,
You and Nero look great.....don't worry...... Relax and just go have fun .
Nero looks like a happy, happy dog.....I especially like his retrieve return.

Sending you good luck wishes and relaxation vibes.

I look forward to hearing of your adventure. 

Cheri
 

You needn't keep your left arm still if you don't want to.  The rules state that both hands may be swung freely at the sides of the handler, OR the left hand (holding the leash) may be held against the belly.  But once you pick one, you must use the SAME position for any heeling the whole way through, or it can be considered handler help.

BE PREPARED for the judge to not be ready for your dog to come so quickly!!  Many dogs, at best, come at a happy trot or slow gallop.  I once had a judge ask me to do the DOR again (no penalty to me) because they were not expecting my dog to respond so readily.  I do not know if you've ever done a CDX before, so I figured I'd throw that out there.

Your dog looks very nice.  This is the kind of heeling I appreciate.  Happy without "limping" or crowding.  Purposeful, thoughtful work.

I'm sure you know that your retrieves won't be near that distance xD!

Well, I'll trade you OB dogs tomorrow .  If he stay for the sits and downs, I see 2 high 190 scores coming. I understand why you finish him in different ways during practice. I  do that too.  You know what the judges will be looking for in the trials. The drop on recall, retrieves, etc.....all perfect.  You won't be losing many, if any,  points on any of those exercises. Your hand position during the heel free looks fine to me. Just be consistent.  I couldn't tell if you were giving him both a verbal command to finish and a handle signal. Don't use both. There is nothing to worry about as far as I can see. You have done a beautiful job with him.

People who look down on AKC OB have generally never tried to title a dog in any of those venues.

BTW, you may already know that the heeling exercise will be much shorter in the trials than you are showing in your video. It only lasts a minute or so and is over before you know it. Right turn, left turn, about turn, slow, fast, normal is about it.

Thank you all for the encouraging comments!!

I was not completely doing the finish because he's big into anticipation, which is what happened over the high jump. He was anticipating the finish, so I'm rewarding out in front. He is SO mindful of personal space that bringing him in closer on the recall or retrieve is nearly impossible. I've been correcting him closer the entire time I've been training with him... he crashed into me once on a recall. I did not correct him for it but he has made sure to slow down and park his rear before that ever since. I think that is my biggest training issue with him. My other boy doesn't care, he'll bowl me over. Not Nero, and its worse now that I'm carrying.

Xeph, our very first trial in Novice, there were numerous people there who were in awe of his recall. One lady told me it gave her goose bumps LOL We missed out on a first due to handler error (hands were not by my sides when I called the recall.. the only rule about hands that I've really seen!) I've seen a few trials, and you're right. Most dogs come at a walk or trot, maybe a slow canter.

Nero knows hand signals too, minus one for finish but I haven't been using them. I'll reinforce them before we venture for the elusive UD, and add one for finish. Question about that, can you use any hand signal (like a made up one?) for finish? I don't like the finger, arm swing that I see most people use. I don't think I taught one for stand either. Hmm.... well, not going to worry about that right now.

I'm super guilty of watching my dog while heeling. I love to watch him looking at me and I think I've trained myself to always pay attention to what the dog is doing. Muscle memory is a pain to over ride. LOL And yes, I believe the rule book says arms are allowed to swing freely. I would follow them if it said my left arm needed to be in a certain position, and I've seen most other competitors with it plastered to their stomach, which I find looks a little strange and unnatural, but hey, whatever helps you :)

I've been practicing the long sit/down out of sight and in sight, with other dogs working, balls being thrown, cats doing ninja back flips in front of him (he does not particularly care for cats, though he won't eat them because I told him not to ha ha), kids screaming like banshees etc... in the house, in stores, in the yard and I have my fingers crossed that he will stay where I put him LOL

And just for a little variety, I've been setting my kids up like jumps and having a little fun :) They think its a great trick! He is such a fun and willing dog to work. I think he would turn himself inside out if I asked him to. Love that dog!

Blitzen, no tradesies LOL Like I think you said before, I'm just hoping for a qualifying score. Ribbons are a bonus, but that's not why we're going :)

Melissa

Do you use his name before giving a command? That may cause him to anticipate.  In practice I use different finishes too so my dog doesn't anticipate. Whatever you do, don't change much now. It's too close to the trial dates.

You can  use any hand signal you want for the finish, just don't use both verbal and hand signal. I use 2 for the finish, one to indicate finishing to the left, another that indicates to the right. I do that because I'm dual training in rally and some of those exercises require both finishes. In rally one can use verbal and/or hand signals.  For now you really only need one, the left judging by your video. Do you ever finish him to the right?

 I just hope for a qualifying score with my dog, but I think your dog is a lot more accurate and better trained; I'd expect him to earn a very  good score. In the end it's the green ribbon that matters though. I never remember the scores anyway. Good  luck!!