September 30, 3023: a messy session with 2 nice reps
Training plan:
- Only bowl #5 – 2 “Good”s followed by 1 “Get it!”
- Only bowl #6 – “Get it!”
- Only bowl #5 – 2 “Good”s followed by 1 “Get it!”
- Only bowl #6 – “Get it!”
Home position: treat hand on thigh.
Today’s session was messy – my head wasn’t in the game and neither was Chai’s balance in the first part of the session. However, (3) and (4) – the last two bowl reps – looked great. Let me show you those so you can see what we are aiming for!
My goal is a session that looks exactly like this one – minus the paw coming out (see the freeze frame in the video above). We’ll get there!
Plan for the next session:
Practice without a dog first; then repeat today’s session – but shorten it to:
- Only bowl #5 – 2 “Good”s followed by 1 “Get it!”
- Only bowl #6 – “Get it!”
Home position: treat hand on thigh.
October 1, 2023: woohooo! A most excellent session!
Chai nailed this session! The adjustments I’ve made over the last few sessions are paying off: with my treat hand on my thigh rather than behind my back, Chai manages to stay in bowl #5 until the “Get it” marker. By keeping the session short (each bowl only shows up once), she has the stamina to do it all.
I also love how well my different marker cues work in this session. Good choice for this one!
Plan for the next session:
Repeat as above, but move home position of my treat hand behind my back again. This will build a little more duration. Stay at that stage until Chai can stay in bowl #5 until the “Get it” marker with this session profile as well.
The next session!
Because today’s first 4-in session was short and good, I went ahead and implemented the plan for the next one the same day:
I like how this looks. Chai does jump out of both bowls with her back legs, but it happens both times when I’m saying “Get it” (a terminal marker). I’ll count it as a success!
Next session:
+ Repeat just like this one but add the “Four” cue again!
October 2, 2023: adding the “Four” cue
I repeated the same session with the Four cue for both bowls. However, this time, Chai’s back feet came out after every marker. We’ll stay at this stage until I get another session where her paws stay in when I say, “Good” (room service)! (Got video but allowing myself not to edit and share so I get more training and book editing done instead!)
October 10, 2023: back to training after being sick
Wheee, C! This is the first time after being sick for a week that I managed THREE shaping sessions (two hug an object ones and this one)! Slowly but certainly, I’m climbing back out my hole of exhaustion!
More of the same … but this time, I’ll show you a video. As a reminder, the current criteria are:
+ Home position: treat hand behind back
+ Bowl #5: “Four!” cue – 2x “Good,” 1x “Get it!”
+ Bowl #6: “Four!” cue – 1x “Get it!”
We’ll stay at this stage until Chai’s paws stay in bowl #5 until “Get it.” I’ll likely video all sessions, but only show you every second or third one to save on editing time. In any case, I’ll be sure to show you the one we meet all criteria!
October 14, 2023: room service and balancing success in bowl #5!!
Over the last few days, I’ve had daily sessions, but Chai didn’t manage to stay in bowl #5 all the way to my “Get it!” marker. So while I filmed, I didn’t edit these videos – I prefer time spent training over editing! Yesterday, she almost did it – she held her balance until after the second “Good!” Today, she DID it and held her balance in bowl #5 until my “Get it!” (terminal) marker! Woohoo! Video proof of the superstar below:
Session profile of the video above:
+ Home position: treat hand behind back.
+ Transition behavior: blink once.
+ Goal post: stay in bowl #5 until “Get it!”
Notes for the next session:
+ Start with only bowl #6.
+ Single “Good” followed by a single “Get it!”
+ If this goes well, the next session after will have 2 “Good”-s – and then, I will call the trick complete!
October 16, 2023: success with bowl #6!
While struggling to gain her balance at first, Chai found it – and then stayed in bowl #6 until my “Get it!” release! Go puppy!!!
Notes for next session:
+ Same as today, but do 2 room service “Good”s before the “Get it!”
+ Stay at this stage until Chai finds balance right away. Then, declare the trick a success!
October 18, 2023: Chai’s balance improves!
In yesterday’s session, Chai lost her balance after the first “Good” (room service) marker. Today, she made it until the second “Good!” We are – slowly but surely – getting there!
October 19, 2023: duration on “Four” cues in our smallest bowl – marker cue shaping SUCCESS!
SO proud of my superstar! This concludes our “Four” journey! Bowl #6 was the smallest one I aimed for – and Chai just held her duration for 2 “Good”-s until the following “Get it!” Balance queen! Let’s celebrate!