We played barrels today, this time we practiced wraps and post turns with the dog starting on the handler's left. In a post turn, the dog starts on the left and ends up on the left. In a wrap, the dog starts on the handler's left and the handler does a front cross to have the dog end up on the handler's right.
Pearls:
- While reviewing our video, I noted Jackie looking back at me and even pausing or stopping when I gave the barrel cue. "Check check!" and "Jack Jack!" (our nickname for Jackie at home and how we often call her onto the sofa for cuddles) sound very similar. Jackie was probably confused that I was using a recall signal while driving her toward an agility obstacle. I need to consider omitting this verbal cue, or come up with a new verbal cue for wraps and post turns
- Where your feet are pointing is very important, so be mindful to point your feet, body, eyes, arms and hands clearly and deliberately
Videorecording training sessions is valuable for many reasons; what I did not notice in real-time turned out to be important after reviewing our video:
