Added some new video on the YouTube channel of the boys doing poor man’s triples, which means that I am using a hand held launcher to get the third mark down, I am a “poor man” with no helper. I try to post video that has errors and mistakes so you can see how I am dealing with them – perfect performance videos don’t teach us that much. Both the boys have needed to improve memory abilities and I had hoped that practicing triple marked retrieves would help with this and it absolutely is working to improve their memory and focusing on remembering the “picture” they see for each mark so that they can come back to it.
Q exhibited absolutely lovely steadiness and nice manners walking up to the line. I have really really been working on that with him and it is paying off as you will see. He’s always been a nice steady dog because I trained it that way from the beginning (note to self, do this again with next pup). We had a bit of a power struggle with the “hold” when delivering the first mark, this hand held launcher bumper he really wanted to play with, throw up and pick back up, and I am making him hold it for the entire time until he is lined back up for the next mark and I’ve said where’s your mark and know he has the picture, so I am making it intentionally more of a training moment but this is to develop a strong hold. It keeps him focused if he is holding it and then when I send him for the next mark he is ready, you can see that when he finally holds properly and focuses so it is working. Then he had a good hold for the next ones though I reminded him by telling him to hold. (I will probably get him up on the table at home and work on this OUTSIDE the field environment) Watch very carefully when I send him for the second mark, he is still holding the bumper from the first mark and almost imperceptibly starts to go before sent but catches himself. I did not notice this until watching the video, which is why we should all be video taping our runs to catch these things. I was super pleased with Q’s focus and watch how jazzed he is and happy to be working with me, love this little guy!
Prinz did really well on his memory, he is the one with the bigger problem in that regard, it could be his cataracts, and he is using more nose than I realize but he did a really nice job. He is starting to look like a more experienced dog when marking the triples, he looks over but keeps his position so that he can find the picture again (before introducing triples he was bouncing all around and losing the sight line, so teaching triples is really helping with that). After I fired the “go-bird” with the hand held launcher the first one was a dud and went about 2 feet, he broke and got it, I am not too mad at him for that though still something to work on with breaking birds, I almost just can’t blame him and chose not to make a big deal of it, but we can work on stays with breaking birds back at home. He stayed steady for the next one which fired properly around 80 yards and waited until I sent him. I love his little bark from excitement as he shoots out, he did need to hunt around for the go bird, it may have landed in some water I’m not sure. He went right to both memory birds and was super jazzed and acting like a young pup, wanting me to toss fun bumpers afterwards. Love seeing my older guy still loving this stuff, watching his video I thought he just looked really engaged and focused.