Walter's flyball blog

Walter bids farewell to flyball

2008-12-26T11:41:00.005-05:00

I hereby announce that Walter's days of training in flyball are over. He has patiently humoured me for all this time. But, after some thought I've concluded that the possibility of physical damage over the long term from doing so many boxturns given his big, top-heavy structure is too high. Walter's never been crazy about flyball so it's just not worth the risk. The two of us much prefer agility over flyball and it would be crummy if injuries sustained in flyball put an early end to our agility fun.

Walter's three years of training in flyball have been a fun and challenging journey and I'll miss his flyball training. But, I'll continue to enjoy his flyball career vicariously through watching his mom, who is a fantastic flyball dog! :)

Practice

2008-12-06T12:11:00.002-05:00

Today and the last few practices have been better than the last one I wrote about. :) Back on track with the smooth turn and no ball dropping issues.

Crummy practice

2008-11-01T17:48:00.002-04:00

Today's practice was a step back in time. Not picking up the ball; a slow, awkward turn; really slow to the box...

Hopefully this is just another temporary glitch :)

More progress!

2008-10-25T11:26:00.004-04:00

Ever since Walter finally went back to his smooth, flowing turn (to which I totally credit the music stand knee and subsequent hiatus from boxwork), he has been making a lot of progress in the flyball department. Ok, still baby steps, but I'll take it! Today I could send him all the way from three jumps back, woohoo! Maybe with his smoother turn now, he knows that it will take him less time to get the ball and come back so maybe that makes him less reluctant to go all the way there? Granted, he's a heck of a lot slower on the sendout than the return, but just the fact that he's willing to go all the way out by his lonesome into the Mysterious Danger Zone is great for him.

Also, today for the first time in a long time we put the ball in the unsprung hole instead of on the ledge. Good news, he maintained the flowing turn!

Working with little B. in the other lane up close to their box was a tough distraction for him, but he worked through it, good boy. Oh and same thing with the boxloader holding the lever back - he was confused by that at first but got over it.

No problems with balldropping today except for one time.

Today's reward was his deflated soccer ball which he loves.

Practice - more progress

2008-10-18T18:24:00.002-04:00

The lanes were set up only a couple of feet apart. Walter did head to head recalls against Z. and did just great. Then he did head to head boxwork, with Z. again. Only did one jump this time. I think he did better than last time in that he kind of looked like he was getting used to the concept of there being a dog running right next to him.

Practice

2008-10-11T18:53:00.003-04:00

Now that his turn is nice and smooth again and he's consistently picking up and bringing the ball, today we went back to the tug instead of food reward. Of note, he brought the ball back all the way every time today with the tug whereas before with the food he was more likely to drop it early.

He did head to head for the first time, against Z., lanes pretty close and no gates. With only one or two jumps he did ok, definitely aware of Z. but he still went to his box. But then with three jumps, well that was just too scary so he turned around early and came back without going to the box. Still I was pleased with how he did today, good boy!

Ok this has nothing to do with flyball, but here's Walter relaxing after a productive evening:

First practice at new location

2008-09-20T19:13:00.004-04:00

Although it was Walter's first time at our club's new practice location, and although he hasn't been at a flyball practice in a while due to agility events, he picked up right where he left off last time. Smooth turn with ball being sent from one jump back, pouch treat reward.

Last practice at TTH

2008-08-23T11:01:00.003-04:00

Today was our team's last ever practice at TTH since we're moving to a new facility that's a heck of a lot closer. Hard to believe it's been two full years since we started holding our practices at TTH.

Walter did one session of boxwork. Can now send him from two jumps back, yay! Ball on ledge, turn flowy but very wide, must remember to put wings at box. Pouch reward. He dropped the ball early twice (we were running back over all four jumps), "where's the ball?" and no reward, he demotivates a bit but not too badly. Overall good with decent enthusiasm.

T, T, and Z did just fantastic racing against strange dogs, yeah!!

Practice

2008-08-16T18:01:00.002-04:00

Whaddayaknow, another good flyball practice for Walter! Used the pouch treats again. Worked up to sending him from behind one jump. His turn was nice and smooth again today (no more of that step-by-step turn that plagued us for so long) with the ball on the ledge. His drive to the box was ok, or at least, he wasn't trotting! Haha! Some problems with him dropping the ball early so we removed all but the first jump.

Open practice in Carp

2008-08-09T18:32:00.003-04:00

Turns out there was an impromptu open practice at the end of racing today so I figured what the hey, why not do something with Walter. Did a couple of recalls, then tried some boxwork. He was feeling pretty shy and wasn't really into it, so someone who was only trying to be helpful crouched next to the box and clapped and cheered to try to encourage Walter. Well, that did it, he put his ears back and looked at me in that way that screams "can I just go and hide under a rock now, pleeeeeeeeeease?". He had shut down so we just did one more recall and called it quits. Poor dog. It's a pretty sure thing that he'll never race in a tournament, but even if he can just do full runs in practice I'll be a happy camper.

Practice: Turn-with-ball has gotten smoother!

2008-08-02T13:56:00.003-04:00

Could be that his recent hiatus from boxwork has helped Walter smooth out his turn. The mid-turn pause was gone today. Used pouch treat for reward. His "drive" toward the ball was actually ok today, not fantastic, but better than in a long time. Started him from behind just one jump, with the ball on the ledge and the gutter at the box. Didn't run with him at all. A good practice for Walter, yay!

Practice

2008-07-19T15:55:00.004-04:00

For recalls, we put the lanes right next to each other. Walter ran against Sammy and wasn't thrilled about her passing him but by his third recall he was doing much better. Good boy!

On the ball front: Didn't warm him up with any tossed balls, just went straight into some dead ball retrieves (no jumps or box involved; someone would bounce the ball or I would throw it to them and they would set it at their feet) and it was totally lame. Like, *totally* lame. Well, on the bright side at least Walter's not lame and is totally fantastic on the health front! :-)

Open practice in Navan

2008-07-12T15:45:00.001-04:00

Walter did some recalls at the open practice held Saturday evening during the open practice of FBI's "Come Fly in July" tournament. He's not bad at the running towards me part of flyball; it's the rest of the game that we're having trouble with :-D

Practice: new strategy

2008-06-28T16:58:00.000-04:00

Trying yet another strategy for helping Walter in his flyball student career: Have decided to not do any boxwork at all for a while, but instead when it's his turn we just play fetch with the ball being thrown up the lane (no jumps though) towards where the box would be. He brings it back for a game of tug. The idea is I want to see him as excited to play fetch at practice as he is at the local field, or at least close to that level of excitement. If he's not excited about chasing a live ball at practice, how can I expect him to be excited about going after a dead one, nevermind a dead one where he has to do a weird acrobatic maneouver before taking it? Over a few practices we'll ease into the ball becoming gradually less live and more dead.

Today he was definitely into it, no problem running up the lane all by his widdle self to chase the rolling ball. I hadn't removed the jumps and they kind of got in the way (if I had perfect aim, or heck, even decent aim, it would be a different story) so next time I'll move the jumps out of the way first.

Practice

2008-06-14T18:13:00.002-04:00

Instead of doing boxwork we worked on getting him to take a ball from someone's hand. At first he wasn't into it, so L threw the ball for him a few times. After that, he decided it was an ok game to play. For his second session, K held the ball for him.

He's dropping the ball not long after picking it up, but I'm not too worried about that at this point.

Open practice (big grassy field)

2008-06-04T17:31:00.002-04:00

Today was Walter's first time at the open flyball practice. His degree of interest was actually surprisingly high given that it was a fairly warm day. Did a few recalls and one round of boxwork. The practice leader suggests instead of using the music stand, to have someone hand him the ball after he does his turn, but only if he does a good smooth turn. So, homework is to get him taking a ball from my hand and other people's hands.

Boxturn breakthrough!!!!!!

2008-05-30T16:58:00.004-04:00

As I was watching Walter do his slow-mo, step-by-step turn today at home, it suddenly struck me that he goes straight up to the ball. Impossible to have a flowing turn with that kind of approach. At least, impossible for Walter. If only there were something for him to go around, like a knee, or something, to shape an arc into his boxturn.

So I tried putting the gutter at a 90 degree angle to the box, creating two separate paths, one for his approach to the box and one for his departure. Didn't work: he used the departure path for his approach as well as his departure.

Ok, back to the idea of something more knee-ish. Having no spare knees around, I grabbed the next best thing: a music stand. I put it so that one of its feet slid under the box to stabilize it so that it wouldn't get knocked over if Walter should brush against it. The gutter went in its usual place.

Well, holy moly! Instant boxturn transformation! I was amazed, thrilled, and perhaps even stunned as I watched his first try at it and saw the old, flowing turn he did once upon a time many, many moons ago. Unfortunately, with the box sprung and his new style, his mouth isn't in the right place yet so the ball was shooting out way in front of him. So, I unsprung the box. Success!! His next try, same thing! Woo hoo! Grabbed the camera to get some video of this momentous occasion. :-D

An aha moment?

2008-05-29T21:40:00.004-04:00

Have the box at home this week. It's now being fully sprung every time, but Walter continues to do his slow-mo turn. (only when the ball is there. without a ball, it's a normal, flowy turn.) Dang.

The aha moment is that I think I might have found a way to help motivate him for going to the box.

You see, one of Walter's favourite activities, nay, perhaps his very most favouritest activity ever, is playing fetch. With a ball, tug, flying squirrel, whatever. When we play fetch, he has to earn the throw by doing a trick or three for me. (Sit, down, stand, left, right, hand touch, and bow are the extent of our current reportoire. Should really work on expanding that, but oh well.) He gets all excited while doing the tricks, knowing that the throw is coming up.

SO.... this week at home, instead of holding him and trying to rev him up and bowling him to the box, I've started to have him to do a trick or two before letting him go to the box to get the ball. It seems to be working! He gets all excited doing the tricks and then runs the whole 3 or 4 meters to the box faster than ever before. (which, for the record, isn't exactly the speed of lighting. more along the lines of the speed of rumbling thunder.) Of course, as previously mentioned, the turn is still slowmo, but hopefully this is a step in the right direction!

Team practice

2008-05-24T20:02:00.005-04:00

Another so-so practice for Walter.

I really want to get the box sprung as soon as possible so that he breaks the habit of his step-by-step boxturn. Sent him from behind either no jumps or just one jump.

Even being sent from so close to the box, he has so little forward drive at practice. Ok, let's get real here - make that none at all! Should work more on dead balls in lots of different places. Brought the box home to work towards getting it sprung.

Here's a little video of today's practice as well as a clip of his mom in the racing lanes! I think she's the prettiest and awesomest Flyball Dog ever! :^)

Back into it

2008-05-23T19:32:00.005-04:00

My my, Walter's flyball has been terribly neglected lately due mostly to agility and Lucy's flyball tournaments. At the Trenton tournament last weekend a lightbulb came on for me: Now that Walter knows how to settle and relax flyball-ringside, it's time to key him back up and get him tugging in the midst of all that noise and activity! So I brought out his new favourite tug and we tugged while the races were going on. He did pretty well.

Yes, his new favourite tug is one that's been kicking around buried in the car trunk for a while that we had hardly ever used. Well, a while back we drove to a park and I realized we hadn't brought his usual fetch/tug toys so why not try that one. A few outings with that toy and he's crazy for it now! It's the pocket fire hose tug from Crash Test Toys. I cut the loop handle to make a longer non-loop handle with a knot on the end. Only problem is, it's so short that he sometimes catches my hand, owwwwwwch. An order for a new longer one has been placed. :-)

This is the tug we've been using for tracking and as I said he really, really loves it. So, gonna start using it for flyball in the hopes that his enthusiasm for it will transfer to the flyball game.

Did some dead ball retrieves rewarding with this tug today. Oh yeah and he seems to prefer being held by the waist instead of the collar. Can't wait to get back into flyball practice and get this guy on track! How sad that it's two years ago June that he was first introduced to the ball with the turn. Sigh!!!

Team practice - racing against Sammy

2008-03-29T11:27:00.004-04:00

First practice in a while due to agility activities. Tried something I don't think we've done before: racing Walter against another dog (Sammy). He was in the right lane, Sammy in the left, and someone held him for me while I stood around the fourth jump. He was very aware of Sammy's presence and kept messing up his turn, either not doing it at all or forgeting the ball, but he was starting to get the hang of it after a few runs. It was fun and I'd like to do more of it at our next practice (which won't be for a while due to other activities) so he really starts to get it.

His only reward today was the long fleece tug which he enjoyed.

Team practice

2008-02-23T16:12:00.002-05:00

Used the ball tug today for his reward which he really liked. Gotta figure out how to get him driving to the box more. A LOT more. :-)

Team practice

2008-01-19T17:59:00.000-05:00

Some good news today: several of his turns were actually pretty fluid. We were "sort of" springing the box today, which could be a factor.

Team practice

2008-01-12T14:09:00.000-05:00

Brought out the secret weapon today!! Gave it to K./J. to do a reverse recall and Walter was more than happy to run away from me to get it, over all four jumps. I feel so betrayed.

Very exciting news regarding some of the other green dogs: we used the knee technique to try to help them maintain the turn while picking up the ball, and it worked! It really worked!! T., T., and Z. tried it and were really getting the hang of it.

Team practice

2008-01-05T18:29:00.000-05:00

I forgot to bring my secret weapon to practice today, so couldn't try my new idea. But, I did have some midrange special treats to reward Walter with and he seemed to be somewhat more interested than usual. Just did one jump today.

Goals progress report

2008-01-01T10:45:00.000-05:00

Here's what I wrote this time last year:

"My goals for Walter's 2007 flyball year are for him to do independent full runs as part of a line-up. Once he realizes that he's supposed to pick up the ball and bring it, then the rest will fall into place... Come on Wally, we've got all year, you can do it!!"

Well, he's not quite there yet. Ok, he's got a long ways to go, quite literally. He doesn't like to run on ahead of me, even if starting from only two jumps back, nevermind four. The exception to this rule is if no one else is around, in which case he's not shy and does it no problem. On the bright side though, we finally managed to convince him of the merits of picking up the ball and bringing it, so that's one hurdle overcome.

By the end of 2008 it would be great if he can (a) catch the ball from a sprung box (which we only just started to do last practice); (b) drive out ahead to do the run even if people are around; (c) smooth out his turn; and (d) do it all in head-to-head and in a lineup.

Ohh!! I just now thought of something that may just help him learn to love driving out ahead of me in a busy flyball environment. I'll try it at our next practice.

Team practice

2007-12-29T15:51:00.000-05:00

Not much new to report lately. Still farrrr from drivey on the run-out. Good news today is we found something that works to get T. to keep his turn on the box: K. is to run up close to the box with him. Seems to have the same effect as the knee technique.

Oh one last thing, today we started to get Walter ready for triggering the box. The boxloader (J.) crouched down keeping a hand on the trigger. Of course this confused Walter the first time, but then he got used to it. :-D

Walter's year in summary

2007-12-23T14:47:00.000-05:00

As far as Walter's flyball career goes, he still hasn't graduated from high school, but I'm still having fun and he's still kindly obliging me. Below is a compilation video of Walter's 2007 year in flyball (following the agility stuff).

Team practice

2007-12-15T14:01:00.000-05:00

There's hope for Walter's flyball future yet. On one try, with someone holding him at the start and me up closer to the box then running back with him, he dropped the ball a bit early so I said "where's the ball" to make a point. Well, he looked around for a second and then went all the way up the full lane all by himself, and the boxloader had put another ball in so he grabbed it and brought it back. This is a step in the right direction because normally he doesn't have this kind of forward drive when lots of people are around. So yeah, one step back, two forward, or occasionally vice versa is the story of Walter's flyball progress. :-)

Team practice

2007-12-01T21:31:00.001-05:00

Today's goal was to reward with the tug only, no treats for anything. Used the ball tug and it worked great; he gladly traded the ball for the tug just about every time.

His turn seems to be getting smoother, but still lots of room for improvement.

More distractions today, that being Zara, Milo, and Guinness doing boxwork in the other lane (not all at the same time obviously!). No gates at all to separate the lanes. He handled it well in that he didn't show much interest in them, but it will take some time before his drive gets up to what it is when no one but me is watching him. :-)

Team practice

2007-11-24T15:11:00.000-05:00

Following Walter's two steps forward, one or two steps back approach to flyball, he didn't want to do an independant full run today with so many people around. He did head to head runs with Sammy in the other lane and someone else helding him so I could stand up close to the box. It went ok.

When we drive to Walter's favourite walking place, he barks in the car like mad, and the rhythmic sound of it reminds me of a flyball dog in the lineup waiting for the race to start. Maybe someday that'll be him... or maybe not, that's ok too.

Team practice sans team

2007-11-10T17:38:00.000-05:00

Today's team practice was cancelled, but since I was in that end of town anyway for the agility trial I figured I'd stop in for a quick practice. For the first time ever, he was doing independent full runs with the ball in the (unsprung) hole! The bad news is, he clocks in at about 7 seconds, losing tons of time with his "how not to do a boxturn" boxturn. Hopefully he'll soon figure out how to pick up the ball and do the turn in one fluid motion.

Team practice (TTH)

2007-11-03T12:37:00.000-04:00

Since he no longer needs super duper treats as a bribe to pick up and bring the dead ball, for the first time ever Walter's boxwork was rewarded with the tug instead of treats. (He's always tugged for the recalls.) It worked great! C. held him behind two jumps (we only had two jumps per lane today) while I was close to the box, then we ran back together after he got the ball. Like at other recent practices, a couple of times he didn't pick up the ball, but a simple "where's the ball?" and he'd go right back for it. No signs yet of him dropping the ball early in anticipation of the tug because a couple of times he accidentally dropped the ball after clearing the last jump but immediately picked it up and brought it all the way to the tug. Fingers crossed that that holds. He seemed to really enjoy this because he was doing his excited agility-start-line bark while C. was restraining him and he tugged harder than ever, seriously digging in and even vocalizing while tugging.

Head to head and opposing recalls went well with Zara although he was definitely aware of her being in the other lane.

Dogzworth open practice (Guides Canins)

2007-10-21T23:04:00.000-04:00

Several of our team members went for a shared practice with Dogzworth at their practice facility, which was the first time there for all of us and our dogs. His turn is looking better and better each time lately (i.e. not pausing mid-turn), although the ball is still just on the ledge, not in the hole yet. Here's video of his last "run" of today's practice. Kindly ignore my ridiculous arm waving.

The most exciting thing about the practice was that Zara has started to "get" how to pick up the ball while maintaining her turn! Ping-ponging between turns with a ball and without a ball was key and she did several gorgeous turns with the ball.

Team practice

2007-10-20T22:57:00.001-04:00

What's really working well is having someone else hold him behind a couple of jumps while I stand between the box and first jump. His turn is becoming smoother but it may be because we only put the ball on the ledge in front of the hole today, making it easier for him to pick the ball up. A couple of times he didn't bring the ball but it wasn't a big deal. Rewarded with a new kind of treats today which he seemed to really like.

Saturday October 13th - team practice

2007-10-13T19:08:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Today's one boxwork session went nowhere fast. He tended to either: (a) try to pick up the ball but it didn't come out of the unsprung hole easily enough for him so he left it, or (b) pick up the ball but not do the turn, or (c) not even try to pick up the ball. This was disappointing because he's been practicing the turn at home with the ball in the unsprung hole almost every day and has been doing very well. Maybe I should have warmed him up with a dead ball retrieve, but I didn't want him going the wrong way again so I didn't.

2007 entries to October 13th

2007-10-13T10:56:00.000-04:00

Walter's 2007 journal entries to October 13th are archived here.

Saturday October 6th - team practice

2007-10-06T19:08:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Once or twice he tried to not only cheat by only putting his hands on the box to grab the ball, but also he went to the right instead of to the left after picking it up. But he did do a few successful ones as well (still very slow-mo with the pause mid-turn). Then we tried some with someone else holding him behind a few jumps, me up close to the box. For the first couple he did the turn but didn't pick up the ball. Then he did one or two good ones. Also, did some recalls from the box with him getting passed into by Sammy and that went fine.

Saturday September 22nd 2007 - team practice

2007-09-22T19:08:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

First flyball practice in a long while due to all the agility stuff lately. Dead ball retrieves are still good although he's still not very drivey on the send out. We start at 2 or 3 jumps and after he gets the ball run all the way back and he carries the ball all the way. :-) But... still turning the wrong way.

Thursday August 25th 2007 - team practice

2007-08-25T19:07:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Continued progress with the dead ball retrieve: He's sending to the dead ball on the ground over three jumps then carries it all the way back. If he's made to bark first he gets a bit more pepped. :-) The only thing is, he's turning the "wrong" way pretty much every time - d'oh!

Thursday August 22nd 2007 - practice at nearby abandoned field

2007-08-22T19:06:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Practiced dead ball retrieve over/back two jumps at the nearby abandoned field. Drive ~70% of what it is at home.

Monday August 20th 2007 - practice at the agility field

2007-08-20T19:06:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Practiced dead ball retrieve over/back two agility jumps at the agility field today. His drive was good, ~90% of what it is at home.

Saturday August 18th 2007 - team practice

2007-08-18T19:05:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Progress today! Started with dead ball retrieves (ball on the floor) over/back one jump in the runback area of the hall while other dogs were working in the lanes. Then, we did them over one jump and back over all four (ball still just on the floor). Wonder of wonders, only one time did he ignore the ball - the rest of the time he brought it back all the way except when I slowed down and looked at him. Keep running all the way back and he carries it all the way back. Woo hoo! Rewarded with chunky canned dog food. He's still quite slow and unmotivated on the run-out compared to at home, BUT he's taking the ball and carrying it over the jumps which is a huge step. Of note, with the ball on the ground he's turning the "wrong" way 80% of the time! Anyway, brought two jumps home and gonna try to get in some outdoor practice with that this week. In other news, Zara and Milo are now doing full runs!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thursday August 9th 2007 - practice at nearby park

2007-08-09T19:05:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Did two dead ball retrieves (no jump) at the nearby park. His drive was way down from what it is at home, BUT he did run to the ball and bring it back.

Monday August 6th 2007 - home practice

2007-08-06T19:04:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Dead ball retrieve over/back one jump is going great at home! He's really excited about it and tries to break free of my grip while revving him up. Only doing 2-3 per session. Need to take this on the road and do it at various places.

Saturday July 28th 2007 - team practice

2007-07-28T19:04:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Boxwork was lame as usual today. Seeing the progress the other novice dogs made today (see entry on Lucy's flyball page!!!), I'm going to do some homework with dead ball/toy retrieving and try going back to rewarding with treats instead of tugging the ball to see what that does. I really like the deadball retrieve exercise over jumps that the other dogs did today (I didn't try it with Walter) and will focus on him being able to do that before taking the ball from the box. Being passed into by Sammy went fine.

Saturday July 14th 2007 - team practice

2007-07-14T19:02:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Walter wasn't in the mood to tug the ball today; I wonder if it's because my hands were bare, having forgotten my tugging gloves. Anyway, on the times that he took the ball he dropped it quickly, BUT on the bright side the choppy turn he's been doing when the ball is there is getting smoother. Also, did head to head recalls for the first time (and there were no gates or barriers between the lanes) and all of the dogs handled it really well -- I was so impressed!

This video shows a relatively smooth turn (used to be even more choppy/step-by-step) but a quickly dropped ball:

Interesting that he's on his right lead when about to turn left. The rest of today's video shows he does this consistently.

Saturday June 30th 2007 - team practice

2007-06-30T19:02:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Wow, he was even less motivated today than he usually is at flyball. Refused to take the ball several times. He got a bit more energized when we started from three jumps back and I ran with him.

Saturday June 23rd 2007 - team practice

2007-06-23T19:02:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

He did three decent turns with the ball in the unsprung hole in a row so we left it at that.

Saturday June 16th 2007 - team practice

2007-06-16T19:01:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Well, not his most stellar practice as he needed extra encouragement to take the ball. Perhaps the summer heat is coming into play as the hall was quite warm and he gets demotivated in the heat. Yeah, that's it... ;-)

Saturday June 2nd 2007 - team practice

2007-06-02T19:01:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Sent him over one jump to get the ball from the unsprung hole, then taking the one jump on the way back, then tug with ball. He did a couple of very nice ones (though still pausing mid-turn) but got bored quickly at which point I ran with him more.

2006 entries

2007-05-29T10:56:00.000-04:00

Walter's 2006 journal entries are archived here.

Saturday May 26th 2007 - team practice

2007-05-26T19:00:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

More progress! For his first turn with the normal ball in the unsprung hole, he paused, sniffed it, said "Hey, this ain't no treat ball" and didn't take it. Same for the second so I went and picked up the ball and we tugged with it. From then on he picked up the ball every time, bringing it to me for a game of tug. He's still pausing midturn but I'm confident that will fade once he forgets about the whole treat-ball/non-treat-ball guessing game. Didn't use any jumps for today's boxwork. Now if only I can manage to keep all of my fingers until he can transition to bringing the ball for an actual tug... :^)

Wednesday May 23rd 2007 - supplementary outdoor team practice

2007-05-23T19:00:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Seems to be working - Walter brought the regular ball all the way! Didn't do a lot though because it was warm and the mosquitoes were coming out.

Tuesday May 22nd 2007 - home practice

2007-05-22T18:58:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

I have a gut feeling (or perhaps a desperate hope? :-) that I may finally have found the trick for getting Walter to bring the regular ball! The idea popped into my head this weekend at the Trenton tournament watching a dog whose tug sends her too far over the top so she's rewarded by playing tug with the ball. Well, Walter loves to play fetch with tennis balls, and he enjoys tugging, so I put two and two together and decided to try putting away the treat ball; instead, his reward for taking the ball is we will play tug with it. So yesterday and again earlier today I grabbed some gloves and we played tug with a tennis ball away from the flyball equipment. Like any game of tug he enjoyed it; the hard part is figuring out how best for me to get a grip on the ball without getting my fingers dented by his teeth! This evening I put the normal ball in the unsprung hole and he was bringing the ball all the way to me, and he seemed to be having a lot more fun! The first few "turns" he cheated but then I backed him up all the way to the kitchen and he was doing the turn again, though still pausing mid-way. Can't wait for team practice to work on this some more.

Thursday May 17th 2007 - supplementary outdoor team practice

2007-05-17T18:58:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Walter did well with bringing a low-value-treat ball to me.

Wednesday May 16th 2007 - home practice

2007-05-16T18:58:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Walter has been doing his pause-turns for a regular ball at home this week, bringing the ball almost all the way to me.

Saturday May 5th 2007 - Team practice

2007-05-05T18:57:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Started with recalls past 4 or 5 dogs lined up, no problems. For today's boxwork session we alternated between treat ball and no ball, about 7 or 8 turns in total. The turn was fine with no ball but he was hesitating mid-turn when the ball was there the way he did last week. Darn these dogs with good memory! but once he realizes we're not trying to trick him I think his flowing turn will come back.

Saturday April 28th 2007 - Team practice

2007-04-28T18:57:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

It became clear today that Walter is really, really taking his time to sniff the ball before deciding if he'll pick it up or not. (treat ball = pick it up and carry it; regular ball = maybe pick it up, maybe not, and if he does he'll only hold it for a second before spitting it out) He puts his hands on the box, pauses to sniff the ball before he picks it up, then hops his feet onto the box to finish the turn. Seeing as this alternating between treat ball and regular ball isn't having the desired effect, we're going to only use the treat ball for several sessions. Only when he's got that part down will we gradually and slowly introduce a regular ball.

Saturday April 21st 2007 - U-Fli (Carp Curling Hall)

2007-04-21T18:56:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Walter kept us company at Lucy's U-Fli tournament today, which was the first time both dogs were crated (as opposed to staying in the car) at an event and it actually went quite well. To prevent a day-long barkfest their tarps were placed so as to block their views of each other, and both dogs were quite quiet. Also, he settled nicely when brought inside the building a few times.

Thursday April 18th 2007 - home practice

2007-04-18T18:56:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Have had the box at home this week. Haven't had to use the treat ball at all; he's bringing a normal ball back from the ledge consistently. The problem is without much room to get up any speed, he often cheats the turn.

Saturday April 14th 2007 - Team practice

2007-04-14T18:56:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Some more work with the treat ball and one jump. To prevent him from dropping the treat ball like a kong to make the treats fall out, I put one big piece of treat inside instead of a bunch of small ones and wouldn't give him a treat from my bait bag until the ball was in my hand so he'd still associate the ball with a treat as much as possible. A few times we snuck in a normal ball and he picked it up every time, but he dropped it sooner than he would drop the treat ball. Next practice, we'll put the treat ball in the unsprung hole.

Saturday March 31st 2007 - Team practice

2007-03-31T18:55:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

For various reasons Walter hasn't had a flyball practice in a month but he had a pretty good practice today in that when he went to fetch the treat ball from the ledge from behind one jump, he had good drive forward and didn't need me to run with him, which may just be a first. On his second set however his drive was fading, and sneaking in a regular ball didn't exactly fool him. Recalls running past Zara in the lineup area went fine.

Saturday February 23rd 2007 - Team practice

2007-02-23T18:55:00.000-05:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

More good work with the treat ball. Warmed up with only one no-ball turn, then with the ball on the ledge and one jump. For one turn, we sprung the box just so that he'd get some exposure to the noise. And for one turn I tried not running with him quite as far, but he didn't get all four on so I didn't try it again. For passing, we did something new today which is Walter does a full recall and then another dog does a full recall in the opposite direction after we pass them. All the dogs handled this well.

Saturday February 18th 2007 - Team practice

2007-02-18T18:55:00.000-05:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Last week's practice was cancelled because TTH was in use for an event. Another good practice. Some progress with the treat ball on the ledge: we added one jump and I run with him part way to the box. He's maintaining the turn even with a boxloader.

Saturday February 3rd 2007 - Team practice

2007-02-03T18:54:00.000-05:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

A good practice: Mr. Shy Guy took the treat ball from the ledge maintaining the turn while the boxloader was standing on the box with back turned. We jokingly pondered if a magic treat ball is legal at tournaments. We couldn't come up with the answer but it will be quite a while (if ever!) before Walter would be ready to race anyway!

Saturday January 27th 2007 - Team practice

2007-01-27T18:54:00.000-05:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

I learned something new about Walter today. Well, it's more of a confirmation of something I had suspected, which is that he learns/performs much better when no one's standing too close and watching him (except me of course). We did the first few turns with a boxloader, and he took the treat ball from the ledge but very hesitantly and only put his hands on the box. But handlers were short today so we put the box against the wall so that the boxloader could go and help dogs at the other stations. What a difference: All of a sudden he was taking the treat ball from the ledge AND maintaining the turn! Wally is definitely not the type who likes to show off for other people! :-)

Saturday January 20th 2007 - Team practice

2007-01-20T18:53:00.000-05:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Recalls: no problem. Boxwork: Tried once with the regular ball but it wasn't happening. Switching to the treat ball, he took it from the unsprung hole but didn't do the turn. For now though we'll take that. He really does not do his best work or learning at flyball practice; he seems stressed and pre-occupied and I'm sure it's even worse because he doesn't get any exercise beforehand. Oh well! Not everything in life or dogsports comes easy so we'll keep at it.

Wednesday January 17th 2007 - home practice

2007-01-17T18:53:00.000-05:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Hallelujah again! More progress! Today I used only a normal ball, not the treat one. After a couple of no-ball turns, I put the ball into the unsprung hole and Walter picked it up! This is the first time he's done that. I think the trick with him is to make him believe that treats come out of the ball, even non-treat balls. So even though he dropped it a few feet after doing the turn, I went and picked it up and made as if the treats in my hand came out of it. I was so thrilled that he was picking up the ball that I temporarily relaxed the turn criteria, although by the end of the practice he had gotten in several with the turn. Hopefully after he really gets the hang of it I can fade the treats and bring the tug back into it.

Tuesday January 16th 2007 - home practice

2007-01-16T18:52:00.000-05:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Hallelujah! Progress! I have the box at home this week so I took advantage. By the end of today's short practice session, Walter was not only picking up the treat ball from the unsprung hole but also maintaining the swimmer's turn! Really revving him up, running with him, and cueing "hit it" were key for maintaining the turn.

Saturday January 6th 2007 - Team practice

2007-01-06T18:51:00.000-05:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Boy, this dead ball retrieve thing at TTH just doesn't seem to be happening! May try going back to the treat ball instead. Did some runs where I run with him to the box and back, then did the same thing as the last to run in a lineup of our house league guest, then Sammy, then Walter.

Monday January 1st 2007 - Goals for 2007

2007-01-01T18:51:00.000-05:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

My goals for Walter's 2007 flyball year are for him to do independent full runs as part of a line-up. Once he realizes that he's supposed to pick up the ball and bring it, then the rest will fall into place... Come on Wally, we've got all year, you can do it!!

Saturday December 30th 2006 - team practice (TTH)

2006-12-30T18:46:00.000-05:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Did some more dead ball retrieving stuff in the fenced off runback area. Although he picked the ball up a few times, he really wasn't into it today. I'll try bringing more enticing treats next time, and I think that with flyball being his first activity of the day he simply has too much energy/edge to concentrate on something so boring as picking up a dead ball. I'll try sometime soon to exercise him before practice to see if that makes a difference. Also, he did a few no-ball box turns being sent from about 20 feet back.

Saturday December 16th 2006 - team practice (TTH)

2006-12-16T18:46:00.000-05:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Tried some dead ball retrieves but once again he had no interest (although he'll do it at the local field), so out came the clicker which was much more successful. Seems we'll have to work up to it by spending some time clicking dead ball stuff at practice. No rush, I'm sure we'll get to the end product sooner or later!

Saturday December 9th 2006 - team practice (TTH)

2006-12-09T18:46:00.000-05:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Not much to report. Did some recalls and no-ball boxwork.

Sunday December 3rd 2006 - Walter's first house league

2006-12-03T18:45:00.001-05:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Today was Walter's first house league event! Since he doesn't yet do full runs, he did some recalls instead:

- First race: Did one recall only, in the warmup. No problems although I realized as I looked back at him that I had run all the way to the back of the run area, forcing him to run on his own through an area with a lot of activity on both sides of him. He looked somewhat nervous doing so (and I felt like such a goof for inadvertently asking him to do that) but he came straight to me and did some good tugging. Thank goodness he is such a good dog and forgives me for making mistakes!

- Second race: Walter ran recalls as the last dog in the line-up. I ran only a short distance past the timers and he did just great, preferring to tug than to get treats.

I was very happy with his performance and am inspired to continue working on his dead-ball retrieve!

Saturday December 2nd - home practice

2006-12-02T18:44:00.000-05:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

I haven't been doing much dead-ball retrieve stuff with Walter too much lately so I got a practice in today. He now goes to the dead ball and brings it 3 or 4 steps towards me, in my living room. I'll try it outside somewhere soon.

Saturday November 18th 2006 - team practice (TTH)

2006-11-18T18:38:00.000-05:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Did some recalls and no-ball boxwork. Rewarded with tug only, no treats, which was fine with him.

Sunday November 12th 2006 - private lesson with Theresa Rector

2006-11-12T18:37:00.000-05:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Did some recalls, no problem with that and he did some marvelous tugging, both before and after using treats for boxwork! His turns were sloppy so we didn't bring in the ball. Instead, Theresa gave me a terrific lesson on shaping him with the clicker to retrieve a dead ball. I've never been shown how to shape before, but I've read a bit about it and had started to shape to teach targetting, and I can see now how excellent it is for teaching a dog to think. Practiced some more dead ball stuff afterwards at home and I will make this a priority for at-home training for the next while. At home I used a regular tennis ball (not the magical treat one) and by the end of today's sessions he would go to the ball (unprompted) and start to open his mouth.

Saturday October 21st 2006 - team practice (TTH)

2006-10-21T18:37:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Began the day by putting the treat ball on the ground a metre or so in front of the box. Set him up in front of the first jump and released him and he ran all the way by himself over the four jumps, got the ball then ran back to me. The first couple of times he missed the first jump after getting the ball but corrected himself in time for the remaining three jumps, but on his third try he did all of the jumps: an independent full run, just without the box! ;-) Later on when everyone arrived we put the treat ball on the ledge and I now had to run with him more instead of sending him from all the way back (he seems to lose some of his forward impulsion when there are other people around but I'm sure this will change as he gains confidence in his task). Towards the end we tried putting a regular ball on the ledge and darn his nose, he could tell the difference so we will have to work on that. Due to various circumstances, Walter's next practice won't be until mid-November.

Saturday October 7th 2006 - team practice (TTH)

2006-10-07T18:37:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Great news: Walter is now consistently taking the magical treat ball from the ledge! Jenn suggested a brilliant idea a week ago, which is to cut a slit in a tennis ball and put treats inside, and practice having him get the ball and being fed the treats from the ball. So I've been doing that this week, and it has worked! He took the treat ball every single time today, never leaving it behind, including once when it fell off the ledge, always bringing it straight to me. The first time we put the ball on the ledge today he only put his hands on the box, so we did another warm-up turn without ball and he got all four on the box every subsequent time except one of the first attempts. We progressed to starting him from two jumps back, me following along beside him as far as the first jump, and starting from a few jumps back instead of right at the box seemed to make it easier for him. I videotaped today's session and from watching in slow-mo I can see that his earlier attempts were kind of unsure, footwork-wise, but by the end of the practice he was starting to look like a pro. He seemed to really enjoy today's practice, which was nice to see. At the next practice (which will be a couple of weeks from now) we'll start fading out the magic treat ball.

Saturday September 30th 2006 - team practice (TTH)

2006-09-30T18:36:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Nothing new to report. Didn't try the ball today, but homework is to cut a slit in a tennis ball and put treats in it, and Walter gets the treats from the ball after retrieving it.

Saturday September 23rd 2006 - team practice (TTH)

2006-09-23T18:36:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Walter had last week off to recover from a minor medical procedure. Today's practice wasn't exactly stellar, but he did show a smidge more interest in the ball than last time. I really do need to work on that.

Saturday September 9th 2006 - team practice (TTH)

2006-09-09T18:35:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Gave Walter last week off so that Lucy would have my full attention at the new venue, so today was Walter's first practice at TTH. For the first time, I tried running with him rather than just trying to send him ahead over a jump which hasn't been interesting him. This really worked! I ran with him from three jumps back, have to run with him almost all the way to the box for now, then we run back over the three jumps. He stayed interested and excited for all of it. That is, until we brought the ball out and put it on the ledge. He nudged it with his nose once, but then on subsequent tries he would have nothing to do with the ball. I tried charging it up and throwing it to the boxloader, throwing it away from the box, handing it to him, nothing worked to get him interested in the ball which is strange because outside of flyball he likes balls. So my job is to get him excited about playing with the ball in various different environments. Later, we did more "runs" without the ball but this time with Sammy doing runs in the other lane (gate dividing the lanes). Except for the first try in which he bypassed the box and wandered into Sammy's lane (due to the wing being on the wrong side), the exercise went well.

Saturday August 26th 2006 - team practice (inside BF)

2006-08-26T18:35:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Walter got all rangy and hyper at being ignored inside the school (leash tied to a post instead of crated). Tried bringing in the ball but he just wasn't interested in it today so instead I worked on sending him from behind one jump which went well enough. Also tried removing the eavestrough for a couple of turns and he maintained the swimmer's turn (no ball involved). Also Jenn sent him while I boxloaded, which was brand new for him. After mountain-climbing the box a few times he started to get the idea. Maybe next time I will be able to call him to increase his speed to the box.

Saturday August 19th 2006 - team practice (outside)

2006-08-19T18:34:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

(Walter had last week off so that I could take Lucy to watch a flyball tournament after practice.) Today we only did boxwork (one session) since it was hot and humid. Started with some turns, then backed up a bit farther, then brought in the ball. I charged it up, then we put it on the ledge and he did it, yay! The second time he got the ball but then dropped it before reaching me, I think by accident. The third time I charged it up again and he did it well like the first time, so I called it a day to end it on a good note.

Monday August 7th 2006 - team practice (outside at TNT with Pam)

2006-08-07T18:34:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Walter had an off night. He started with a nice turn, then he was inconsistent (sometimes he'd go towards the box but turn around before hitting it). Pam wants me to really get him excited about the turns, each and every one, and if I run out of "excitement steam" after only three turns, then the boxwork should stop for that session. We didn't bring out the ball because he was not being consistent on the turn. Walter was the last dog up tonight so I blame his inconsistency on the looming darkness since the box is black making it hard to see, plus the fact that we didn't have proper wings which may have thrown him off a bit. (Yes, I know, excuses excuses... :-> )

Thursday August 3rd 2006 - home and informal team practice (outside)

2006-08-06T18:32:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Have been practicing about five minutes a day this week since had the box at home, putting a jump 15 feet back. He has no trouble being sent to the box from far back at home, so hopefully if we practice this enough at home he'll be more comfortable doing it at the team practices. Was able to send him multiple times. Here are some more photos:

Also, today some of our team met at an off-leash dog park to get in some more boxwork practice. For the first time ever, he took the ball from the unloaded box (from the hole) while doing the turn, several times (but not consistently yet). However, I had some serious competition in the form of a big puddle in the grass nearby. Walter loves nothing more than a good splash and/or swim so it was hard to get him to come to me after getting the ball since he just wanted to take it and go and splash around. Bringing out the best-o-the-best treats helped somewhat. All I can say is thank goodness they don't put water traps as distraction tests in flyball events!

Saturday August 5th 2006 - team practice (outside)

2006-08-05T18:50:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Started with boxwork. A few warmup turns, no ball, me sending him. We also worked on someone else sending him and me being closer to the box, and we did some work with the ball with someone holding it for him. We did two-lane passing with Tashtego, no problem there. I noticed today that Walter is soooo much more comfortable now with being held by someone else for the recalls and passing exercises; he used to squirm around and try to get away but now he waits quite patiently.

Saturday August 5th 2006 - team practice (outside)

2006-08-05T18:33:00.000-04:00

Saturday July 29th 2006 - team practice (outside)

2006-07-29T18:31:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Started with two recalls, now over three jumps, success. Then did a couple of turns, no jump, no ball. Then we introduced the ball for the first time! We tried it two ways: with the ball on the ledge and with someone holding the ball. He did best with someone holding it for him since he didn't quite figure out how to coordinate being on the box and grabbing the ball from the ledge at the same time, so he tended to do the turn and not try to take the ball. However, he did two or three successful turns while taking the ball from a hand! This was a very nice first practice with the ball. Then we did two-lane passing with Sammy, the two lanes being about 3 or 4 feet apart, and we released the dogs such that there was some actual passing action happening. They both did great with that. Finished off with a few more box turns, but left the ball out of it since by now he was pretty hot and getting tired. Sent him from right behind the first jump and he was a bit hesitant but did it eventually.

Saturday July 22nd 2006 - team practice (outside)

2006-07-22T18:31:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

For boxwork, someone held him behind the first jump and I stood between them and the box, then ran with him back over two jumps. It was the first time that he was sent to the box by someone other than me and he wasn't overly enthusiastic, but he did it nonetheless. Recalls were over two jumps, and he didn't deek out around them. Passing with Tashtego wasn't a problem.

Saturday July 15th 2006 - team practice (outside)

2006-07-15T18:30:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

I gave Walter a few weeks off so I could better focus myself with Lucy and make sure she's comfortable doing flyball outside. So his turn was understandably a bit rusty at first, but he did a couple of good ones. Managed to get one jump in too. For the recall, to ensure success we only did it with two jumps, and he did great and got in some good tugging action. Passing with Abby went fine.

Saturday June 24th 2006 - team practice (outside)

2006-06-24T18:30:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Walter seemed unfocused and kept running around the last jump on the recalls. On the bright side, he seemed even more comfortable at being held by someone else for the exercises.

Saturday June 17th 2006 - team practice (outside)

2006-06-17T18:29:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Walter showed a marked improvement in his comfort level at being held by someone else for the passing and recall exercises! He was held by Jennifer, Chantale, and Kenton for the various exercises and remained relatively calm for all of them. Today we added in one jump for the boxwork (still no ball involved). For recalls, we did all four jumps, but he consistently deeked out after the second jump, so that will need some work.

Sunday June 11th 2006 - team practice (inside BF and outside)

2006-06-11T18:28:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Today was the first time I brought both Lucy and Walter to flyball practice at the same time. Started with box work indoors; Walter did fine although we didn't spend too much time on it. Did recalls and passing work outside and he did well, not much to report there. Here's a photo of Walter doing the passing exercise with teammate Tashtego:

Sunday June 4th 2006 - team practice (outside)

2006-06-04T18:28:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Walter's first flyball team practice! Emily and Sammy were out on healing/recovery breaks, so it was just Abby, Tashtego, and Walter, and thanks to the weather finally cooperating, our first ever outdoor team practice! Warmed up with a bit of stretching first, then the first round of boxwork. Used the tug only, no treats and he wasn't as tug-motivated there as he is at home. But after a few clumsy warm-up turns, he was getting all four on, although not exactly what I'd call fast. Then, recall over three jumps. He did fine over the jumps -- it was the getting him to wait calmly with the handler (Jen) that was the challenge. But I have confidence that once he goes through it a few times, he'll realize there's nothing to it and be just fine. After practice we stayed at the field to do a bit of agility.

Saturday June 3rd 2006 - home photo shoot

2006-06-03T18:25:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Took some photos with the flyball box today since we'll be returning it at tomorrow's practice.

Wednesday May 31st 2006 - home practice

2006-05-31T18:24:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Having joined a brand new flyball team with Lucy, we have been borrowing the flyball box for the last week and a half. I was having tons of fun practicing on it with Lucy and decided to see if I could get Walter up on it. After a few days of gradually moving the eavestrough closer and closer to the box, he was getting one, then two, then all four paws on the box. He now consistently gets all four on the box and I can send him from 3 to 4 metres away. He'll do it for treats or for a ball, but the tug provides him the most motivation. And so Walter told me that he wanted to join the flyball team! He hasn't been to a team practice yet, but he's met most if not all of the other team members through team walks at a local park. (Note: I pushed my luck a couple of times and rested a ball on the box's ledge, but each time I did that Walter broke his form and only put his hands on the box to grab the ball and then run off, so I'll hold off on that until he's had more practice sans ball.)

Monday May 29th 2006 - catch-up entry

2006-05-29T18:23:00.000-04:00

(Backfilled in October 2009 due to impending closure of Geocities)

Walter's first foray into the world of flyball was in the winter of 2006 in a beginner's course. I had gone through a beginner flyball course with Lucy the previous fall, and I had practiced some of the homework with Walter at that time, so we had a bit of a headstart. I found that Walter got bored sooner than Lucy did since he doesn't share Lucy's tremendous treat motivation drive. But he quickly picked up on the over-and-back with the eavestrough setup (he turns counterclockwise), and recalls went fairly well although he didn't like me leaving him behind. Unfortunately he didn't get up on the box by the end of the course. I blame this on me not having anything decent to practice on at home -- the home setup I used for Lucy (carpet-covered plank leaning against a wall) was no good for Walter because it was too small, and I hadn't gotten around to constructing something better.