Phase 4 is the dog's true introduction to corners. After 2 session of open corners, we shift to 90 degree corners for the remaining 6 natural field and urban lawn sessions. Interspersed are more curbed-island serpentines with 90 degree corners supported by curbs if you can find them.
Gretzky P4.1.1 135 degree open right turn, 75 yards and 30 yards. Gretzky starts out with clear commitment and keeps himself close to the first leg. At the corner he shows loss of scent, finds the new leg quickly and is a rock star. Really nice for a first corner. They won't all be that good I am sure. Lots of fun at the glove.
Gretzky P4.1.2 135 degree open left turn, 75 yards and 30 yards. Not quite as focused at the start but good. Note on the first leg he is downwind and so I am holding him with increase tension and raising my arm. At the corner he needs to search a little more and finds the new leg quickly.
Gretzky P4.1.1 135 degree open right turn, 75 yards and 30 yards. Gretzky starts out with clear commitment and keeps himself close to the first leg. At the corner he shows loss of scent, finds the new leg quickly and is a rock star. Really nice for a first corner. They won't all be that good I am sure. Lots of fun at the glove.
Gretzky P4.1.2 135 degree open left turn, 75 yards and 30 yards. Not quite as focused at the start but good. Note on the first leg he is downwind and so I am holding him with increase tension and raising my arm. At the corner he needs to search a little more and finds the new leg quickly.
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Phase 4.2 Urban Lawn Open Turns. 100x30 & 100x60, 15 minutes old. Just like 4.1 field tracks, but on a short sports lawn with whatever contamination might be present.
Session 4.2.1 Urban Lawn Open Turn. Gretzky approaches the flag excited to be there. Note I approach at an angle - a start is just a corner you have not tracked into. If the dog is having trouble, approach straight-on. He finds the leg and commits nicely. I am happy to follow 10-20' behind him, you can often see the 10' knot on the line in front of me. Gretzky has great concentration and focus. When he notices contamination, he corrects himself quickly. There is a side wind from the left to the right so you can see me holding him with increased tension when he is off to the side a couple of feet. He is good about coming in for the tiny treats. About 3:55 in the video, there is a big diversion but he eventually goes back to work. At the corner, he bends almost in the right direction but gives up and looks around; so when he gets close to the right direction again, I start to follow easily to help him understand what is correct. This is typical for initial corners. He seems to like the mower's furrows more than the track. But patience works things out and we have a party at the glove.
Session 4.2.2 Urban Lawn Open Turn. There is a long walk to the start of the second track and Gretzky is hot and less interested when we get there. So I approach the start flag straight on but he is still distracted at the start. Note a returning mower had run over the 30-yard flag while crossing the field right before we started the track - the kind of contamination money can't buy. I am quick to help him there. Notice him speed-up after his treats. Gretzky is just being introduced to corners, so he is not quick to find the new leg. But with patience and practice, he will get there. Here he settles in nicely after a lot of searching and attempts in the wrong direction. The distant distractions on both tracks are excellent practice for him. Big Party!
Session 4.2.1 Urban Lawn Open Turn. Gretzky approaches the flag excited to be there. Note I approach at an angle - a start is just a corner you have not tracked into. If the dog is having trouble, approach straight-on. He finds the leg and commits nicely. I am happy to follow 10-20' behind him, you can often see the 10' knot on the line in front of me. Gretzky has great concentration and focus. When he notices contamination, he corrects himself quickly. There is a side wind from the left to the right so you can see me holding him with increased tension when he is off to the side a couple of feet. He is good about coming in for the tiny treats. About 3:55 in the video, there is a big diversion but he eventually goes back to work. At the corner, he bends almost in the right direction but gives up and looks around; so when he gets close to the right direction again, I start to follow easily to help him understand what is correct. This is typical for initial corners. He seems to like the mower's furrows more than the track. But patience works things out and we have a party at the glove.
Session 4.2.2 Urban Lawn Open Turn. There is a long walk to the start of the second track and Gretzky is hot and less interested when we get there. So I approach the start flag straight on but he is still distracted at the start. Note a returning mower had run over the 30-yard flag while crossing the field right before we started the track - the kind of contamination money can't buy. I am quick to help him there. Notice him speed-up after his treats. Gretzky is just being introduced to corners, so he is not quick to find the new leg. But with patience and practice, he will get there. Here he settles in nicely after a lot of searching and attempts in the wrong direction. The distant distractions on both tracks are excellent practice for him. Big Party!
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Phase 4.3 - 4.12
Poorly logged, sorry.
4.3 Curbed Island Serpentines. 9/16/2017. Done at a school parking lot and at a park and ride. Some of the gaps were a little extra wide but Gretzky used his nose to search and find the track on the flat. Gretzky did a nice job.
4.4 Field Corners. 9/19/2017. Natural Field Single Corners. Windy. Gretzky overshoots corners and looks around but not being organized - he loses focus and needs a little help. Second track is similar but he only needs a hint at the corner.
4.5 Urban Corners. 9/20/2017. Urban Lawn Single Corners. Windy. Gretzky handles first track corner nicely. Overshoots second track corner and not quick to find the next leg even when he crosses it several times.
We went to Maryland for our National and got to do one practice session (4.4 again) at Fairhill where he did quite nicely. When we got back two weeks later, I had misplaced the camera and so we did the rest of the Phase 4 natural field and sports field sessions without filming. Gretzky did very nicely in the field in the taller grass - he seemed to have gain both some size and some confidence over the break. The sports field tracks went well also although he still needs more experience with contamination. So far, we have only done two of the three parking lots tracks but he did nicely.
I'll return to better logging for Phase 5.
Poorly logged, sorry.
4.3 Curbed Island Serpentines. 9/16/2017. Done at a school parking lot and at a park and ride. Some of the gaps were a little extra wide but Gretzky used his nose to search and find the track on the flat. Gretzky did a nice job.
4.4 Field Corners. 9/19/2017. Natural Field Single Corners. Windy. Gretzky overshoots corners and looks around but not being organized - he loses focus and needs a little help. Second track is similar but he only needs a hint at the corner.
4.5 Urban Corners. 9/20/2017. Urban Lawn Single Corners. Windy. Gretzky handles first track corner nicely. Overshoots second track corner and not quick to find the next leg even when he crosses it several times.
We went to Maryland for our National and got to do one practice session (4.4 again) at Fairhill where he did quite nicely. When we got back two weeks later, I had misplaced the camera and so we did the rest of the Phase 4 natural field and sports field sessions without filming. Gretzky did very nicely in the field in the taller grass - he seemed to have gain both some size and some confidence over the break. The sports field tracks went well also although he still needs more experience with contamination. So far, we have only done two of the three parking lots tracks but he did nicely.
I'll return to better logging for Phase 5.
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