Sunday was a great day to get out and train because the weather was nice and cool. Our training membership allows us to use the grounds until the end of September. We hope to get out there a couple of more times before the end of the month.
Even though Thunder and Storm didn’t do much at the tests this summer, we feel that the money we spent on the training membership was well worth it. Having access to those grounds and the ponds helped to improve their skills. We probably should have purchased a training membership last summer because I think both dogs would have benefited. Freighter is benefiting because these grounds allow us to try harder things with him at a younger age.
The first set-up we did was a water double and water blind. This double is very similar to the double that Freighter would have run in the Senior test last month if he hadn’t broken. We wanted to try it again to see how he would do on it. The water blind was different from the Senior test set-up because we ran the blind in between the marks which is not allowed in a Senior test. (At the test, the water blind was to the left of the marks.)
Storm did not get to run this set-up since she needed to keep her incision dry. Thunder was up first and he did a nice job on this double, despite the mischief.
Some pictures of Thunder running the double.
After Thunder ran this double, Freighter tried it. The mark to the left could have been a challenge for him because the dog has to swim a bit, then cross a strip of land and get back into the pond to pick up the bumper. Freighter did a nice job on this double.
Next was the water blind. The idea was to keep the dog from getting up on the point of land to the left or the island to the right. Thunder got up on the point of land, but since he won’t be running anymore tests, he got a little break.
Freighter wasn’t getting any breaks. He ended up running this blind three times. The first time he got up on the island which is not what we wanted.
He got the bumper, but we decided to try it again and see if we could get a better line out of him. Remember he had just run marks to the right and left of that blind and that can tend to pull a dog off line. Plus they have a natural tendency to want to get up on land. Many times at a test the pass or fail depends on if the dog stays in the water or gets up on land. This is especially true at the Master level.
The second time Freighter got up on the point to the left.
He was handled back into the water with a right over, (OK a few right overs). Back in the water he was stopped so he could be cast back.
We still didn’t get what we wanted so Freighter got to run this blind again. Third time was the charm because he took the correct line to the blind and did not get up on either the point or the island.
Freighter’s water blinds are coming along, but he still needs more work on them to gain confidence. When he has to pass a hazard or gets out there a ways, he gets a bit unsure. I think this particular set-up went a long way to build his confidence. We don’t always repeat things, but this time we did and I think it helped him to understand.
I love the prancy little arch to Thunder’s neck when he has the bumper. “Look at me! I got it!”
It looks like patience and persistence is paying off. Thanks for sharing.
Such fun photos again. Those pups must be so hungry and tired after a day of training. I bet they are super happy too! They really work hard.
if you are outside today be careful! It is going to be 94!!!!!!!!!!!! Barks and licks and love, Dakota
We didn’t do any training this week. Too hot! Hope you made it through the heat wave and the storms.
We agree we always find the water marks such fun. Glad the weather is good now for training. Have a terrific Tuesday.
Best wishes Molly
I love all of your photographs so much! I love the BIG splash they make when they jump in the water!
Speaking only for myself 😉 sometimes I need to do things a couple of times before I really grasp the concept, for me repetition is key. Maybe it works that way for dogs too?
Good job Freighter!!
Nice job Freighter, you just needed a little on the job training. Nothing wrong with that.
Great series. Third time was the charm for Freighter and I bet you’re right it probably helped him understand. Love the whistle-sit in the middle of the water.
Love the water pictures…especially those big splashes! Him looking back while sitting in the water is just too funny. At least he stopped and paid attention. 🙂
I’m with Marcie. I just can’t get enough of your water shots and the big splashes. Beautiful!
Great pictures and a great training day. I love Thunders ears in the photos! 🙂
Look at all that water! Love the “Big Leap” photo – great shot!
Omigosh. Thunder’s ears flopping about in the action shots is adorable. I know he’s supposed to be a superserious working dog, but it’s adorable. And Freighter’s face in the “whistle sit’ photo is priceless!
So forgive me if you’ve explained this before, but why are they not allowed to cross the land? Is it because it’s out of the direct path? Or is there a specific signal given to them when they’re released that means water-only? Is crossing land a fatal error that automatically fails them during a test?
Not sure I have really explained this before. It is a good question for tomorrow’s post because the short answer is “it depends”. 🙂
I like that you draw diagrams to help us better understand the terrain. Really great training day and lots of great photos, as usual. Glad Freighter worked things out on the third run of the blind!
Can’t pick a favorite photo… always love the awesome water shots, but I also really love the one where it looks like Thunder is running straight towards you.
I agree that having access to a place like that to train is worth the cost, tests or no tests! Glad you had a nice day to train. 🙂
Great photos! I love that Freighter finally got it right. I bet that did build his confidence a lot!
Hi Y’all,
Good boy Freighter.
We’d get the job done, but Humans can be so fussy…there is my way and the right way, but the only one that matters is the Human’s way! Sometimes it’s a little hard to figure out what they want and their way doesn’t always make much sense, except to them. BOL!
Y’all come by now,
Hawk aka BrownDog
Freighter showed good improvement during that session.