Land Series

Oaks

Note: Today I decided to leave each dog at home while I took the other one out to train. I took Lumi out first (Series A and B), later Laddie (Series C, D, and E). While leaving the other dog at home didn't seem to significantly affect my training with Laddie, I found that it was a great improvement for my training with Lumi.

SERIES A. Single land blind (Lumi)

The blind was a duck at 120 yards. The line to the blind crossed a hump and ditch, and passed several trees and a hedgerow.

SERIES B. Speed pick-ups (Lumi)

To me, Lumi now seems prepared for most elements of competition I plan to run her in next year. She's not steady honoring flyers, but that's not something we can work on ourselves. While I want to keep her tuned up on marks and handling, my primary interest today was on two areas that I feel can use some improvement: speed of picking up a bird when she reaches it, and overall motivation for our private practice sessions.

So after running a single tune-up blind as Series A in Oaks Area 3, I took Lumi for a hike on the equestrian trail into Area 1. As we walked, mostly I let Lumi carry the duck she had retrieved when running the blind. Every once in awhile, I would have her sit while I would go out to throw a poorman mark for her, distances ranging 20-50 yards. Sometimes I walked back to the SL to send her, more often I released her on her name without walking back to the SL. If she dawdled on the pick up, which she did once or twice, I called out "stop, leave it", ran to her, and led her some distance away, then re-sent her. Most of the time, her pick ups were excellent.

I also gave Lumi some happy throws with both the duck and a WD I'd brought along during the hike, and Lumi seemed to enjoy the play. But most of all it seemed that she just wanted to walk along serenely with the duck in her mouth.

Click here for a satellite view of Oaks, with Area 1 at the north and Areas 2 (which we didn't use today) and 3 at the south separated by a line of trees and undergrowth. The area in the center is fenced off.

Germantown

Series C and D were on a couple of fields near the Germantown soccerplex that I discovered while driving around exploring with Laddie.

SERIES C. Triple land blind (Laddie)

The first blind was on the left at 100 yards, with the blind in a section of sparsely planted shrubbery. The second blind was in the middle at 240 yards, in unmaintained brush at the edge of the field. The third blind was on the right at 340 yards, also at the edge of the field. All three blinds were unmarked ODs. Click here for a satellite view of the field we used for this series.

SERIES D. Double land blind (Laddie)

The first blind was on the right at 140 yards. The second blind was on the left at 300 yards. The line to the second blind went downhill from the SL, across a ball field, and over a ridge several yards into unmaintained brush. Both blinds were unmarked CCDs. Click here for a satellite view of the area where we ran this series.

Model Airpark

Note: Continuing to explore Germantown, I came across a 50-acre property set aside by the county for remote control model aircraft. Leaving Laddie in the van, I went in and found a wealth of possibilities for setting up long blinds. I set up two, then went back to get Laddie and ran him on each of them. Click here for a satellite view of the field we trained on.

SERIES E. Double land blind (Laddie)

The left blind was at 150 yards against the tree line. The right blind was at 240 yards in open meadow. The field was covered in thick, clumpy grass and sparse knee-high cover. Both blinds were ODs marked by LPs.

I feel that Laddie has been handling well for some time now, but the 240-yard blind in Series E may have been his prettiest ever: four gorgeous whistle sits and casts.

Land and Water Training

Cheltenham

Note: Since today was Sunday, I brought the dogs to Cheltenham. I'm not currently running my dogs with the FT group, but I try to take my turn throwing with them while Lumi and Laddie wait in the van. In addition, we arrive early so that we can train before the other trainers arrive, and we stay late to train a little more after group training is over. Today, two of the trainers from the group also threw marks for Lumi and Laddie after the training was over, the first real marks the dogs have had since November.

Compared to the weather we've been having for several weeks, today was unusually warm, with air temps in the high 60s and water temps in the 50s (one of the trainers lent me a water thermometer). As a result, the group took the opportunity to run three LWL marks as their first series, though some of the trainers opted not to run their dogs on that series. In addition, I ran my dogs on two LWL retrieves as well, one before group training and one afterwards, to finish the day's work.

In the following description, Series A, B, C, and D were run before group training, while Series E, F, and G were run afterwards.

SERIES A. Land single and blind (Lumi, then Laddie)

The land single was a poorman mark at 100 yards. Lumi's blind was at 130 yards. Laddie's blind was at 200 yards.

SERIES B. Land double and blind (Lumi, then Laddie)

For this series, I planted a blind for Lumi at 130 yards and a blind for Laddie at 240 yards. Both blinds were unmarked CCDs.

I then placed two RLs (one per dog), loaded with weighted streamers and aimed right to left at pre-positioned ducks, at 70 yards and on a line to the right of the blind. Finally, with the dog waiting at the SL, I walked out 100 yards on a line to the left of the blind thru a stand of trees and threw a WD right to left onto a road that meandered roughly parallel to the line to the mark.

After throwing the poorman mark on the left, I returned to the dog at the SL, brought the dog to heel facing the RL on the right, and fired the streamer. I sent the dog to that mark on the right, then the poorman mark on the left. After running both marks, the dog ran the blind that had been planted for that dog.

SERIES C. Quickstop drill (Laddie only)

As planned, I ran Laddie on three quickstop drills (see yesterday's blog entry for description), at distances of 70, 100, and 120 yards.

His performance on other blinds, particularly the 270-yard blind in Series F later in the day, give me reason to believe that Laddie is already benefitting from the quickstop drills.

SERIES D. LWL (Lumi, then Laddie)

Normally, Lumi loves water and has historically been more dependable on water retrieves than Laddie. Today, the tables were turned.

Series D was the first water work for either dog in several weeks. The water temp was in the 50s, and Lumi has shown an affinity for colder water, even water with floating ice, in past years. I thought it was warm enough for both dogs to be comfortable in it.

To run Series D, I left both dogs at the SL (a lining pole) and walked around an inlet onto a peninsula, fired the pistol, and threw a WD left to right at 50 yards, so that the line to the fall would include a 30-yard swim. Then I walked back and sent the dog.

In Lumi's case, she seemed somewhat edgy about entering the water and squared the far bank. When she got to the WD, she shook off and then, instead of picking up the dummy and returning, she rolled on it. I called Here several times. Finally she picked up the dummy, carried it a few yards toward the water, dropped it, shook off again, and then started to roll on it again. For those familiar with Lumi, that was highly unusual behavior, and I was convinced that it would be a major struggle to draw her back into the water, if it would be possible at all. So I walked around, and when I got to the same side of the water as Lumi, she ran to me with the dummy. I took it, put her on lead, and took her to the van. I didn't sense that she felt punished, but rather relieved that she didn't have to re-enter the water at that time.

At that point I had a decision to make. If Lumi had that much trouble with the water, and Laddie had so much trouble with LWLs this last summer, was it smart to try him out on the same retrieve? On the other hand, isn't it important to know whether he can handle such minor adversity? My curiosity got the better of me and I decided to run him.

Watching Laddie's retrieve, I wondered whether something other than cold water might have been affecting Lumi. Laddie swam to the far shore, climbed out and shook off, ran to the dummy and picked it up, then ran back to the water and waded right in. As he pushed off to begin his swim back across, I fired my pistol, the same conditioned reinforcer I began using so successfully on LWLs a couple of months ago. When Laddie completed his delivery, I greeted him with enthusiasm, threw a couple of happy throws, and played some tug with him.

SERIES E. Two land singles and a blind (Lumi)

I had planned for Lumi to run the shorter mark first, but as it turned out, the first mark, to the right, was at 100 yards, while the second mark, at the left, was at 80 yards. Both marks were thrown left to right, and Lumi pinned both of them. Then she ran a pre-positioned blind at 110 yards down the middle, an OD marked with an SF. All retrieves were thru several strips of cover.

SERIES F. Two land singles and a blind (Laddie)

The first mark was on the left at 80 yards, thrown left to right. The second mark was on the right near the top of a hillside at 200 yards. I had placed a blind, an OD marked with an SF, at 200 yards down the middle, but Laddie spotted it after picking up the second mark and ran to visit the blind before circling around and completing his delivery, so there was no point in running that blind.

I put Laddie in the van and decided to have him run the same blind the FT group had been running in their second series. That blind was at 270 yards, an OD marked with an LP, thru a narrow keyhole formed by two trees at 250 yards.

Laddie remained responsive on all WSCs, including an Over that was nearly level with the blind. I had been concerned that Laddie would use scent to track the blind, since several other dogs had run it earlier in the day, but as it turned out he took a different route than any of the other dogs had taken. I'm glad my dogs are such good liners, and if this had been an event it would have been better for Laddie to take a line thru the keyhole, but in this case, I was glad that Laddie didn't track the other dogs, so that we had an opportunity to exercise his handling at good distance.

SERIES G. LWL (Laddie, then Lumi)

This was a 90-yard LWL including a 30-yard swim. I left the dog at the SL, walked around the water to fire a shot and throw a duck left to right, walked back, and sent the dog.

Laddie went first and ran a good-looking retrieve, showing no hesitation as he re-entered the water on his return with the duck. As I had earlier, I fired a shot as he pushed off and began swimming. After I fired the pistol, I threw a second duck to my side, and as soon as Laddie delivered his duck, I sent him to the second one.

Lumi went second. Again showing an uncharacteristic resistance to re-entering the water on her return with the duck, this time she only dawdled momentarily, then waded in. Since firing the pistol on LWL re-entries had seemed to act as powerful reinforcement for Laddie a few weeks ago, on Series G I did the same thing with Lumi. The effect was subtle, but Lumi seemed to perk right up when I did so, and after emerging from the water, she bounced up to me with her duck. I had thrown a second duck for Lumi when I fired the pistol, and she happily ran to it when I took delivery on her duck and sent her to the second one.

I doubt we'll have many more chances for the dogs to swim before next spring, if any. I was glad to have today's end on such a high note for both dogs. I should also say, a high note for me. Dare I say it, perhaps Laddie's problems with LWL retrieves is finally behind us.

Land Series and Quickstop Drill

AM: Rolling Ridge

SERIES A. Land double and blind (Lumi, then Laddie)

The double consisted of a mark to the left, thrown right to left at 100 yards, and a mark to the right, also thrown right to left, at 80 yards. Lumi's blind was on a line to the right of the rightmost mark, at 110 yards. Laddie's blind was on the same line to the right of the rightmost mark, at 240 yards.

Both marks were "thrown" with RLs, weighted streamers, and pre-positioned ducks. Both blinds were pre-positioned unmarked CCDs.

The line to the go-bird was diagonally across a dry ditch, with the throw from the right side of the ditch and the fall on the left side. The line to the memory-bird was straight across a wider section of the dry ditch. The RL was behind the closest of a widely spaced line of trees, so that the streamer appeared from behind the tree. The line to both dogs' blinds was past a stand of large trees on the right. The line to Laddie's blind passed under the bough of the closest of those trees.

SERIES B. Land blind (Lumi, then Laddie)

Lumi's blind was 150 yards. Laddie's blind was 180 yards. Both blinds were pre-positioned ducks.

SERIES C. Three quickstop drills (Laddie only)

When Laddie is more than 200 yards from the SL, he frequently reacts to a WS with a quick reversal of direction and a hunt instead of sitting, which unfortunately often quickly gets him to the blind and provides positive reinforcement for the maneuver. I've attempted not to blow WS when he's in what I call the "danger zone", meaning close enough to the blind to spot it when I whistle and run to it instead of sitting. But I've found it quite difficult to resist whistling, for example when it appears that he's about to disappear behind cover or over a crest.

Improbable as it sounds, it actually appears that Laddie has learned to use previous casts during the blind to dart the wrong direction when he senses he's gotten close, in order to draw me into blowing WS and confirming that he should to execute his U-turn maneuver.

When that happened on both Series A and Series B today, I decided to run him on what I'll call a "quickstop" drill. Leaving him watching me from the SL, I walk out to place a blind (today I used ducks), then walk out and cue Back. As he runs to the blind, I blow WS, then cast him straight back to continue. I may do that just once or more than once, and at random distances from the blind. The idea is, Even though you know where the blind is, stop when I whistle.

Today's quickstop blinds were at 50, 80, and 100 yards. Laddie only tried to slip the first whistle. Rather than a Walk Out, I called a verbal Sit, to which he instantly responded. For the other quickstops, he responded to every whistle.

Over the next few days, I plan to build up distance on the quickstops and intermix them with cold blinds. Hopefully, they're similar enough that once Laddie understands that even if he knows exactly where the blind is, he still needs to sit on the whistle, that understanding will migrate to his danger-zone whistles as well.

A slight difference may, however, defeat that result. In a quickstop, Laddie knows where the blind is, though today I placed the birds in cover so that he couldn't see them till close. In a cold blind, Laddie either does not yet know where the blind is, or only suspects where it is. His rule may become, "If I don't have a clue where the blind is, or if I know for sure where it is, I'll sit, but if I'm only suspicious, I'll satisfy my curiosity first, then sit." Hopefully that won't happen, but if it does, I'll need to find a way to address that.

It's not as unlikely as it sounds. Laddie readily responded to a verbal Sit cue on his first quickstop today, but he tends to ignore a verbal Sit cue when he slips a whistle in the danger zone.

Perhaps I can modify the quickstop drill so that it more closely approximates the danger zone state of mind — I'm not sure how yet — or perhaps that will happen automatically as we build distance on the drill. Another possibility is that after he's achieved some fluency on the quickstop, he'll still try to slip an occasional danger zone whistle but will then respond to a verbal Sit. If that happens, I would expect that if I'm consistent for awhile in always following up the whistle with the verbal cue, he'll start sitting on the whistle.

Given Laddie's level of experience and comparing it to well-bred traditionally-trained dogs at similar level of experience, my impression is that this shouldn't be so hard. I don't know how much of it is Laddie's personality, how much of it is the fact that I'm training without aversives, how much of it is the particular training methods I've chosen within that constraint, and how much of it is poor execution of those methods.

Land Series

In the morning, we dropped Mommy off at the fitness club where she gives group classes and personal training, then trained at a nearby sports field before picking her back up.

Both dogs ran two triple blinds. Lumi's blinds were in the range of 70-110 yards. Laddie's blinds were in the range of 110-230 yards. The set-ups included a variety of keyholes and wraps.

In the afternoon, we drove to the power line right-of-way at nearby Harbor Tree Road for a little more work. Lumi ran two single marks (RLs, streamers, ducks) at 70 and 90 yards, then a blind between them at 130 yards. Laddie ran the same two marks, then a blind between them at 240 yards. I then moved the SL and ran Laddie on another blind at 170 yards. All blinds were unmarked CCDs.

Land Series

AM: Oaks Area 3

Note: We got out early Christmas morning, but had limited time before the family would be gathering around to open gifts under the tree. I decided to use a nearby field and a relatively fast set-up that the dogs would hopefully find challenging and fun. I also decided to run a quick tune-up drill before the series, hopefully increasing the likelihood of good performance on the series itself.

When we got to the field, I left the dogs in the van and went out to plant a total of four CCDs, two at each blind. Then I got back in the van and we drove near where I planned to set up the SL. I put both dogs' collars on, the ones with 9" tabs attached, and let the dogs air and play while I set up an LP for the SL, installed the tie-out nearby, and placed the RL for the series we would run.

With everything in place, I called the dogs, attached Laddie to the tie-out, and brought Lumi at heel to the SL to run her tune-up and Series A. When she was done, I brought her to the tie-out (no need to actually attach the lead), brought Laddie at heel to the SL, and ran his tune-up and Series A.

TUNE-UP DRILL: With the dog waiting at the SL, I walked 40 yards from the SL at a 90° angle to the right of the rightmost retrieve planned for the series and placed the bird in a fringe of grass there. I then walked back, lined the dog up on the bird, and cued Back. When the dog got halfway to the "blind", I blew WS, then cast the dog on a straight Back, and when the dog was about to pounce on the bird, I blew WCI. This tune-up drill has two goals: to refresh the dog's WS, and to refresh the dog's quick pick-up of the bird.

SERIES A. Double land blind with poison bird (Lumi, then Laddie)

As planned, Series A consisted of the following steps:

• Use the RL and a weighted streamer to simulate throwing a PB from behind a large tree, left to right at 40 yards, 90° to the left of the leftmost blind. The streamer landed beside a hedgerow a few feet from a duck which the dog had seen placed there earlier.
• Run the dog on the first blind at 130 yards, the blind on the right of the two blinds.
• Run the dog on the second blind at 150 yards, the blind on the left of the two blinds. The angle between the two blinds was 15°.
• Line the dog up on the PB and release with the dog's name.

The line to the first blind was over a hump and dry ditch, then between a keyhole formed by two trees, then between a second keyhole formed by two more trees. A major diversion was a pair of SFs placed along the road by someone else (probably the county agency that owns the property) spaced 40 yards apart and both 30 yards to the right of the line to the first blind.

The line to the second blind was past the end of a hedgerow on the left, over a hump and dry ditch, and thru a narrow keyhole formed by two trees.

LUMI: Lumi did fine on the tune-up and was excited by the launched streamer, resulting in difficulty getting lined up for the first blind, which of course she had not seen placed. She took a good line for about 10 yards, then veered left toward the PB. After that, it was a long, tedious process directing her to the first blind, requiring perhaps 20 WSCs. Lumi remained responsive to the whistle the entire time, though after one sit she barked in frustration, highly unusual for her. On the other hand, her casts were poor. She would turn in the correct direction out of the sit, but then either take the wrong bearing from the beginning or take a few steps in the correct direction and then veer off.

When Lumi finally completed the first blind, I decided that she had had enough frustration and sent her for the PB. After we packed up later, I went and picked up the CCD for the second blind that she had not run.

LADDIE: Laddie had a sterling performance. He ran the tune-up well, watched the streamer launched toward the PB that he'd seen placed earlier, readily came to heel for the first blind, accepted the small number of WSCs needed to run that blind, ran the second blind just as easily, and exploded for the PB when released, resulting in one of his patented tumbling pick-ups, then raced back for the delivery to complete the series.

Land Blinds

AM: Germantown Playground

General notes: Today we trained in an area in Germantown near the soybean field I mentioned in yesterday's post for Series C, D, and E. The section is labeled "Playground", and that's the parking lot we were in, but of course I set up our courses on the adjoining fields.

SERIES A. Triple land blind (Laddie, then Lumi)

The terrain gave us an opportunity to work with a factor we rarely get to practice much, steep hillsides. Because we were working on a new skill, I decided to run both dogs on the same blinds at the same distances. It turns out that Lumi did better at first, in the sense that whereas Laddie attempted to take an indirect route that kept him on level ground, Lumi immediately took the line I sent her on, even though that meant running onto a sideways embankment. In Laddie's case, I called him back and sent him again, and after that, he held the line I sent him on.

For Series A, the first blind was to the right at 50 yards. The blind was on the embankment to a deep pit, and the line to the blind crossed the banks on an angle, going down and then continuing back up to the blind. The second blind, in the center, was in a similar position on the embankment of another pit. The line to the second blind first crossed a diagonal strip of high cover, then reached the edge of the pit. The third was to the left at 130 yards. The line to the third blind crossed a diagonal strip of cover, into and out of two depressions in the ground, uphill thru a keyhole formed by two trees, and close to a picnic shelter on the right.

All blinds were ODs withour markers.

SERIES B. Triple land blind (Laddie, then Lumi)

For Series B, I placed two ODs at each blind, then ran Laddie at one SL, moved forward 70 yards, and ran Lumi from that closer SL.

The first blind was in the center at 160 yards for Laddie, at 90 yards for Lumi. It was on the corner of a 10' high hay bale. The second blind was at 170 yards for Laddie, 100 yards for Lumi. The line to the second blind passed a large, rounded area of woods and underbrush on the right, then another large, rounded area of woods and underbrush on the left. Each of the areas provided a potential wrap, first to the right, then to the left. The third blind was on the left at 230 yards for Laddie, 160 yards for Lumi. The line to the third blind passed close to where the second blind had been placed, then climbing a steep hill on a diagonal. An area of woods on the left at the top of the hill turned out to exert strong attraction to both dogs.

Both dogs performed well on the first two blinds, and Lumi stayed in control on the third blind as well. On the third blind, she pushed well to the left and required repeated right angle-backs and right Overs to keep her from running to the woods on the left.

Laddie, who ran first on Series B as he had on Series A, went OOC the first time he ran the third blind. Before he accepted a sit cue, he had spotted the third blind. Since I didn't have another blind set up for him, and it was then pointless to run him to that blind, I walked out, slipped on his lead, walked him to the blind and picked up the dummy, then walked him to the van and tied him to the outside of the vehicle at the trunk. I didn't want to put him in the van because I was afraid he'd damage the upholstery as he has in the past, and I didn't want to put him on the tie-out where Lumi was waiting because I didn't want him to see where I was planting another long blind for him. So I left him at the van and ran Lumi on Series B, then went out and planted a blind at 250 yards in a new direction. The line to the new blind was over a variety of changes in elevation at various angles and thru two diagonal strips of cover.

I then got Laddie from the van — fortunately, he had not chewed thru the slip lead I'd used to tie him to the van — and ran him on the 250 yard blind. Again he went OOC, and again I walked out, put him on lead, walked him to the blind that I believe he had spotted so I could pick it up, and walked him back to the SL. There I put him on the tie-out and set up yet a third long blind, this time 240 yards, where the blind was not visible from where Laddie was tied and the SL would be in a different position than the one we'd been using.

I came back to get Laddie, walked him to the new SL, and ran him on the third long blind. This time he remained responsive to all WSs and casts.

Long Time-out versus Non-reinforced Trial

For years I have advocated short time-outs for undesirable behavior such as barking, on the grounds that after about 30 seconds, I can barely remember the transgression, so I figure the dog can't remember it, either. I also don't put the dog in isolation, but rather stand or kneel beside the dog as we take the time-out together in the most boring location I can conveniently get us to. Doug St. Claire wrote in 2004 on the ClickerSolutions list that my version of the time-out was so unconventional that it needed a different name, and suggested calling it a "time-in".

Today's experience with Laddie's long blinds reinforced my feeling that at least for some training, a short time-out is at least as effective as a long one, and I now am starting to think that when using a Walk Out for a slipped whistle, no time-out (or time-in) at all is even more effective.

My reasoning is that a long time-out, such as Laddie's stay at the van between the first and second long blinds of Series B, is tantamount to ending one session on an incorrect response, and then hoping or expecting the dog to perform the same behavior correctly on the first trial of the next session. However, according to what I have read as well as my own experience, when a behavior is not fluent, it's more likely that the dog will perform correctly immediately after an incorrect and non-reinforced trial in the same session, versus at the beginning of a subsequent session, where the dog is more likely to revert to an earlier, incorrect behavior.

Thus I suspect that the most effective use of the Walk Out is as an interrupted trial — where the dog is not permitted to obtain the reinforcement of completing the retrieve but is immediately given another chance — rather than as the negative punishment of a time-out, especially a prolonged one.

Land Series

AM: Oaks Area 1

Conditions: Subfreezing temps, frost on ground, sunny. Son Eric came out with us to videotape.

SERIES A. Triple land blind (Lumi)

The first blind was to the left at 70 yards. The second blind was in the middle at 100 yards. The third blind was to the right at 130 yards. All blinds were CCDs in open meadow, marked with SFs.

The ground was too hard for the tie-out, so I had Laddie tethered to my belt while I ran Lumi.

Here's a video of Lumi in Series A:



SERIES B. Triple land blind (Laddie)

Series B was run from the same SL as Series A, and the first blind of Series B was the third blind of Series A. After running Lumi on Series A, I went out to pick up the SFs from Lumi's first and second blinds, then ran Laddie.

For Series B, the first blind was to the right at 130 yards. The second blind was in the middle at 180 yards. The third blind was to the left at 220 yards. All blinds were CCDs in open meadow, marked with SFs.

Here's a video of Laddie in Series B:



PM: Germantown

This afternoon, Lumi, Laddie, and I trained with a man who also trains with Charlie's FT group at Cheltenham. The man lives in a nearby town and has a young black Labrador. He showed me some areas in Germantown to train that I never knew about before.

The area we trained was mostly open, with lines of sight up to several hundred yards in some directions, rolling hills, a line of trees, a road, and a few strips of high cover. As a result, it appears to be an excellent training area, but it has one problem: apparently it's farmland — soybeans, according to my friend — and the terrain looked like it might not be as easy on the dogs' feet as the meadows and lawns that we usually train on. I later found some other areas nearby that appeared to be better in that regard, which I may try in the future, either with or without my friend and his dog.

Meanwhile, here were the three series we ran on the soybean field. For Series C and D, I threw singles for my friend's dog, and he threw singles for Lumi and Laddie. My friend left after Series D, but with another hour of sunlight available, I then set up and ran my dogs on Series E.

SERIES C. Two single marks and a blind (Laddie, then Lumi)

The first single was to the left, the second single was to the right, and the blind was down the center. Both singles were ducks thrown right to left. The blind was an unmarked OD.

The lines to both marks and the blind were thru a strip of high cover.

For Laddie, the marks were 120 and 150 yards, and the blind was 160 yards.

For Lumi, I moved the SL up so that the marks were 60 and 90 yards, and the blind was 100 yards.

SERIES D. Two single marks and a blind (Laddie, then Lumi)

The first single was to the left, the second single was in the middle, and the blind was to the right. Both singles were ducks thrown left to right. The blind was an unmarked OD.

The lines to both marks were thru high cover, and the second mark was thrown deep into an area of high cover. On the second mark, all three dogs cheated around the widest section of high cover, then turned sharply left to get to the fall. I'd like to run them on that mark again a few more times at some point in the future, starting them closer to the fall and guiding them straight into the cover, then moving the SL back until they can run the mark correctly from distance.

The line to the blind was a little to the right of that area of cover, the rounded edge of which faded toward and then away from the line to the blind. All three dogs took a line well to the right of the correct line, and required repeated Over cues to guide them in the direction of the blind, toward the area of cover.

For Laddie, the marks were 150 and 180 yards, and the blind was 200 yards.

For Lumi, I moved the SL up so that the marks were 50 and 80 yards, and the blind was 100 yards.

SERIES E. Triple land blind (Lumi, then Laddie)

For Lumi, the distances were 70, 100, and 120 yards. The lines to the second and third blinds were thru a strip of high cover.

For Laddie, the distances were 120, 190, and 260 yards. The lines to the first and second blinds were thru a strip of high cover. The line to the third blind was thru a gap in a line of shrubs and diagonally across a dirt road.

Land Series

AM: Cheltenham

General notes: I've seen in the past that Lumi and Laddie are sometimes less responsive at Cheltenham than elsewhere, which I attribute to the many strips of high cover criss-crossing most of the fields there. Therefore, I decided to dial back our distances for today's training, watch for high quality responses to all handling cues, and then over several sessions try to build up to longer distances. For Lumi, I'd hope to build up to 150-200 yards, for Laddie, 400 yards or more.

Today was sunny with temps in the mid-twenties and a gusty, frigid wind.

Although we ran in three separate locations and orientations, our three series this morning had several things in common:

• They were all triple land blinds
• All blinds were CCDs
• The lines to all blinds were thru several strips of high cover, and most of the blinds were in high cover, all but two with no markers

SERIES A. Triple land blind (Laddie, then Lumi)

The first blind was to the left at 50 yards. The second blind was down the center at 80 yards. The third blind was to the right at 110 yards.

SERIES B. Triple land blind (Laddie, then Lumi)

The first blind was to the right and atop a mound at 60 yards. The second blind was to the left at 90 yards. The third blind was down the center at 120 yards.

SERIES C. Triple land blind (Laddie, then Lumi)

The first blind was in the center at 70 yards. The second blind to the right at 100 yards. The third blind was to the left at 130 yards, on the ground at the left of a mound.

PM: Oaks Area 2

SERIES D. Land double with a blind (Lumi, then Laddie)

Last time I used ducks in the set-up with blinds, I tried using RLs for PBs, and both dogs had a drop-off in handling responsiveness. In addition, I don't like using birds in the rain because they don't last as long when they get wet.

But today we had a dry day, and I'd like Lumi and Laddie to retrieve birds regularly, though not as PBs just yet. I think training with birds is good for the dogs' motivation, and of course I don't want them to lose their ability to run series that combine marks, blinds, and birds.

So Series D was intended as an easy reintroduction of such a series. We used RLs, weighted streamers, and ducks for the double.

The first mark, the memory-bird, was on left, thrown left to right at 70 yards. The second mark, the go-bird, was on the right, thrown left to right at 40 yards.

After the dog picked up both marks, the dog ran a blind on a line just slightly to the right of the line to the left mark. For Lumi, the blind was at 70 yards. For Laddie, the blind was at 240 yards. Both blinds were unmarked CCDs. To avoid confusion, I left the dog at the line and went out to pick up the left streamer after the dog completed the double, before running the blind.

Land Blinds

[Note: This morning, sheets of ice covered the roads, our van, and the walkway in front of our house. As I went out to warm up the van, I slipped and fell on the steps. With that, I decided not to attempt the one-hour drive to Cheltenham, but rather to train locally. I also decided to let Lumi sleep in and just run Laddie on some long blinds.

As I drove away from the house without having yet decided where to train, I glanced at a power line right-of-way, with pairs of high steel towers carrying cables overhead, only a few blocks from home. After parking and exploring, I decided to run Series A in that field.

After completing Series A, I followed the power lines with my eyes and caught sight of a large open field half a mile away. Noticing the woods and partially visible homes to the right of the field, I decided to see if we could gain access. I found a parking space in a neighborhood immediately adjacent to the field I had spotted, and that's where we ran Series B, C, and D.]

Hadley Farms Drive: Power Line Right-of-way

SERIES A. Triple land blind (Laddie)

The first blind was to the right at 120 yards, midway between a clump of white grass and an old wood pile. The second blind was down the center at 200 yards, thru a keyhole formed by a clump of underbrush on the left and an area woods and underbrush on the right. The blind was placed at the edge of the woods 30 yards past the keyhole. The third blind was to the left at 250 yards. The line to the third blind was thru a keyhole formed by another clump of underbrush on the right and a hedgerow separating that part of the field from the adjacent road on the left.

All blinds were CCDs. The second and third blinds were marked with SFs.

Laddie handled well on the first two blinds, but three times, he went OOC on the left blind and wandered to the left of the hedgerow rather than thru the keyhole. In each case I called him back and resent him. Reflecting on that procedure after Laddie had completed the blind, I concluded that calling him back does not cause Laddie's WSC responsiveness to improve as well as a Walk Out, and decided that I'd use a Walk Out for future slipped whistles as much as possible.

Harbor Tree Road: Power Line Right-of-way

SERIES B. Triple land blind (Laddie)

The first blind was to the right at 150 yard, thru a keyhole at 100 yards formed by a fenced garden on the right and an old work area with debris, including plastic bags, on the left. The second blind was to the left at 300 yards, across a small creek and next to an area of woods and underbrush on the left. The third blind was down the center at 410 yards, thru a keyhole formed by two power line towers. This was the longest blind Laddie has ever run.

All blinds were CCDs, the first one marked with an SF.

Laddie had a slipped whistle at 380 yards the first time I sent him to third blind, and I used a Walk Out to bring him back on lead and resent him. He was responsive throughout the next send-out, including a WS and left Over cast at 410 yards.

SERIES C. Triple land blind (Laddie)

The first blind was to the left at 110 yards, the far side of a log and in front of thick woods. The second blind was down the center at 160 yards, planted in open meadow. The third blind was to the right at 370 yards, thru a keyhole formed by two power line towers.

All blinds were ODs, the center one marked with an SF.

SERIES D. Single land blind (Laddie)

After running so many long blinds, I thought it would be good to remind Laddie that some blinds are closer, since he'll be presumably be running Senior blinds in the spring, at least some shorter than 100 yards. For Series D, I planted a single blind at 70 yards in front of a section of woods, an unmarked CCD placed under the 8' high branches of a large tree.

When I lined Laddie up on Series D, he looked toward the open area to the left a couple of times, and each time I said Nope, causing him to look again in the direction his body was facing. He apparently found the picture confusing and looked up at me with a quizzical expression at one point. When he finally dutifully looked where his body was aimed and I cued Back, he had a rare no-go, as if to say, "This can't be right, there's no room to run in that direction." I reset him and again cued Back, and this time he lined the blind.

Land Blinds

[Note: I've decided to help out with the FT group, watch and ask questions, but not run Lumi and Laddie unless invited to do so by one of the leaders. So this morning I drove to Cheltenham early and ran the dogs on Series A and B while waiting for other trainers to show up. Then I left the dogs in the van while I participated in the group's first series and part of their second series. At that point, I took the dogs to another part of the property for Series C, after which I gave them their breakfast in the van and drove home. As we got near home with only an hour or so of daylight remaining, I set up Series E and F for them at Oaks Area 2 before finishing the drive home.]

Cheltenham

SERIES A. Triple land blind (Laddie, then Lumi)

The first blind was to the right at 80 yards. The second blind was to the left at 120 yards. The third blind was down the center at 180 yards. All blinds were unmarked ODs.

The line to the blind on the right was past two trees on the right, with the intent of training the dogs to be comfortable running past nearby trees when so directed. The blind to the left was thru a keyhole formed by two trees. The center blind was thru a large area of standing water and past a large tree on the left.

SERIES B. Double land blind (Laddie, then Lumi)

The first blind was to the left at 80 yards. The second blind was to the right at 200 yards. Both blinds were unmarked CCDs.

The line to the left blind was past a tree and a mound on the left, then just on the other side of a strip of high cover. The line to the right blind was thru a keyhole formed by two trees at 170 yards.

SERIES C. Triple land blind (Lumi, then Laddie)

The first blind was to the right at 90 yards. The second blind was to the left at 140 yards. The third blind was down the center. For Lumi, the third blind was at 150 yards. For Laddie, the third blind was at 240 yards. All blinds were unmarked CCDs.

The line to the right blind was thru several strips of cover, and the blind was planted in cover. The line to the left blind was past two nearby trees on the right. The line to Lumi's third blind was thru several diagonal strips of cover, and the blind was set deep in a clump of cover. The line to Laddie's third blind was thru several diagonal strips of cover and up a hill, with the blind 20 yards to the right of a large tree.

Oaks Area 2

SERIES D. Triple land blind (Lumi)

The first blind was down the center at 90 yards. The second blind was to the left at 130 yards. The third blind was to the right at 180 yards. All blinds were CCDs marked with SFs set deep in the ground for minimum visibility to the dogs.

The center blind was in open field. The line to the left blind was beside an arcing stand of trees and undergrowth, so that the line ran past the end of the stand and then continued straight as the stand angled away to the left. The line to the right blind was thru standing water, with the blind in open field.

SERIES E. Triple land blind (Laddie)

Series E used the the same SL as Series E, and Laddie's first and second blinds were the same as Lumi's second and third. Laddie's third blind was down the center at 200 yards, an unmarked CCD.

The line to Laddie's third blind was thru a keyhole formed by two trees.

Land Blinds

AM: Sundown Road Park

General notes: Steady rain, temps in 30s and 40s. Terrain is lawn with minor elevation changes, today muddy with numerous areas of standing water. All blinds were CCDs with no markers.

SERIES A. Triple land blind (Lumi)

The first blind was down the center at 70 yards. The second blind was on the left at 100 yards. The third blind was on the right at 130 yards.

SERIES B. Triple land blind (Laddie)

The first blind was on the right at 130 yards. The second blind was on the left at 140 yards. The third blind was down the center at 240 yards, thru a keyhole at 180 yards formed by two large trees.

Notes on performance. This was the same location where both dogs showed a decline in performance yesterday, when we trained with RLs and ducks. In today's work, both dogs were back to the confident and responsive form they'd been showing before yesterday morning's session.

Land Series

AM: Sundown Road Park

The terrain at Sundown is mowed lawn with a few minor elevation changes. Several of today's blinds for both dogs were run thru keyholes formed by a variety of trees and chain-link fences. Temps were in 30s and 40s with overcast skies and little wind.

SERIES A. Triple blind with poison bird (Lumi)

First, I placed six blinds, three for Lumi and three for Laddie.

Then, with Lumi at the SL, I used an RL to "throw" a PB, consisting of a weighted streamer and a pre-positioned duck, at 50 yards to the left of the leftmost blind. Next, I ran Lumi to each of the three blinds. Finally, I sent Lumi for the duck.

All blinds were ODs without markers. The first blind was to the right at 90 yards. The second blind was in the center at 120 yards. The third blind was to the left at 140 yards, between the second blind and the PB.

SERIES B. Triple blind with poison bird (Laddie)

With Laddie at the SL, I used an RL to "throw" a PB, consisting of a weighted streamer and a pre-positioned duck, at 50 yards to the left of the leftmost blind. Next, I ran Laddie to each of the three blinds. Finally, I sent Laddie for the duck.

All blinds were ODs without markers. The first blind was to the right of the PB at 140 yards. This was the leftmost blind. The second blind was to the right at 160 yards. The third blind was in the center at 240 yards.

SERIES C. Hip-pocket double with blind (Laddie, then Lumi)

This course was intended to resemble a Senior-level Hunt Test land series, though the hip-pocket configuration may be somewhat more difficult than a typical Senior-level test. In place of throwers, I used RLs with streamers and pre-positioned ducks.

The first mark, the memory-bird, was thrown right to left from behind a large tree at 100 yards. The second mark, the go-bird, was thrown right to left so that it landed in front of the tree at 50 yards. The line to the go-bird was to the right of the line to the memory-bird but in line with the line to the "thrower" for the memory-bird, making this a hip-pocket double. After the dog picked up both birds, the dog ran the blind, an OD at 140 yards.

The line to the blind was to the right of a white sports pole resembling a large lining pole, and thru a line of small trees that traversed the line to the blind at nearly a right angle. The OD was placed without a marker five yards inside the large area to the right of the field, covered in unmaintained, knee-high, clumpy grasses and weeds.

Notes on performance. During the blinds for Series A, B, and C, both dogs showed considerable agitation and slowed responses to handling compared to recent sessions. I believe that was because of the presence of the ducks, especially for Series A and B when the duck had been "thrown" but not yet retrieved while the three blinds were being run, but also for Series C, when both ducks had already been picked up.

Apparently, using an RL for the PB represented an unusually high level of conflict for both dogs. I missed the quality of performance both dogs have been giving recently and decided not to use any ducks when running blinds for the next few sessions. When I do reintroduce ducks, I think at first I'll make the blinds shorter and use wider angles between the PB and the blinds.

Another indication that the dogs were affected by the presence of the birds was that Laddie chewed thru the cotton leash attaching him to a tie-out behind the SL as I was running Lumi on Series A. I thought it was interesting that, after he chewed thru, he did not leave the area of the tie-out.

After we completed the morning training, I purchased a 4' chain lead for use with the tie-out, to replace the lead Laddie had chewed thru.

PM: Oaks Area 1

Today, we received a mail order for six camo canvas dummies (CCD) with orange ropes. For Series D and E, I placed the CCDs as blinds while the dogs waited in the van, then ran each dog, the other dog waiting behind the SL, Laddie fastened to the tie-out during Lumi's turn.

Because Laddie did not do well on the last blind of Series E, I then had him wait in a stand of trees while I placed another CCD for Series F, then ran him on that single blind.

SERIES D. Triple blind (Lumi)

The first blind was to the left at 50 yards. The second blind was to the right at 120 yards, in a wide gap between two trees. The third blind was in the center at 140 yards, thru a keyhole formed by two trees.

Lumi was responsive on all WSs, but her body language was not quite as confident as it has been in recent days. I suspect this was a lingering effect of this morning's work with ducks.

SERIES E. Triple blind (Laddie)

The first blind was in the center at 140 yards, thru a keyhole formed by two trees. The second blind was to the right at 240 yards, again thru a keyhole formed by two trees. The third blind was to the left at 340 yards, once more thru a keyhole formed by two trees.

Laddie's work on the first two blinds was satisfactory but not great, perhaps owing to lingering effects from this morning's work with ducks. Laddie became unresponsive on Back casts at around 300 yards on the third blind, and I had to walk up until I was much closer to him before he would take a Back cast to that blind. I attribute Laddie's difficulty with this blind primarily to the distance, which was longer than all or nearly all of the blinds he's run in the past.

SERIES F. Single blind (Laddie)

This blind was 270 yards. Laddie was responsive on two WSCs, the second at around 200 yards. Although he then veered too far right, I considered him to be in his danger zone, meaning that he was fairly likely to spot the CCD and not sit if I blew WS, so as planned a few days ago, I did not whistle, planning to wait until he was well past the blind. However, Laddie crossed a small ditch, then looked to left and spotted the CCD, which I had placed on the far bank of the ditch. So I think my decision not to blow WS was the correct one, since it's likely that if I had whistled, Laddie would have spotted the CCD about that time and slipped the whistle.

Land Blinds

AM: Oaks Areas 3

SERIES A. Double land blind (Laddie, then Lumi)

The first blind was to the left, an OD visible from the SL, at 120 yards. The second blind was to the right, an OD also visible from the SL, at 140 yards.

Because of ditches, rises, and depressions in the terrain, the first blind had seven elevation changes, with the dog temporarily out of sight behind a ridge at one point, while the second blind had five elevation changes.

The first blind required the dog to pass thru a depressed area with standing water, alongside a line of trees and underbrush on the left, and later thru a keyhole formed by a gap in another line of trees and underbrush. The line to the second blind was past a tree on the right which had the potential to act as a wrap. It turned out that a more influential factor was a white utility pole at 200 yards from the SL, on a line slightly to the left of the line to the blind. The blind was on a sideways embankment, and both dogs stayed in the depression to the left on a line to the white pole instead of running on the embankment.

Although these were relatively short blinds, they both had enough factors to require several WSCs. With one exception, both dogs had excellent responses to every whistle sit and every cast. The exception was a slightly delayed sit by Laddie on his first WS, when he ran a few yards further before turning and sitting. Because his sits have been so good lately, I decided to treat that as an incorrect response and called him in. He came running with his usual exuberance, whipped around at heel bouncing and ready for another send-out, and showed excellent responses on his WSs the rest of the series.

Both dogs were off line to the left as they ran past the second blind, setting their line toward the white pole and off the embankment on their right where the OD lay. In each case, I let the dog go thru the danger zone, about 20 yards beyond the blind, then used a WS and angle-in with come-in whistle to direct the dog to the blind. Neither dog made showed any inclination to slip the whistle and hunt.

Although both dogs made today's series look easy, I don't think it would have been easy for them in the recent past and was pleased with their performances.

Land Blinds

General Notes

This was a dreary day, with temps in the 30s and 40s, overcast skies, and intermittent rain and hail.

All blinds today were run with ODs. If the blind was not near a landmark visible from the SL, I used an SF to mark the blind, pushing it well into the ground to make it as inconspicuous, except for its bright orange color, as possible. Since dogs are said to be color blind, the goal was to make the SFs virtually invisible unless the dog was quite close.

The last few days, I've moved to running Lumi on shorter set-ups than Laddie. Today I did that with both series of triple blinds. My procedure was as follows:

• With dogs waiting in the van, put down the LP for the SL and plant all six blinds.
• Bring out both dogs and snap the tie-out lead to Laddie's collar. (As mentioned in an earlier post, both dogs wear collars and 9" tabs during all practice these days, in preparation for steadiness training for flyers when the opportunity presents itself.)
• Give Lumi a little practice heeling to the SL.
  
• Run Lumi on her blinds.
• With both dogs waiting, go out and pick up any SFs that were needed to mark Lumi's blinds in open field.
  
• Put Lumi in a down near the tie-out. She doesn't actually need to be on the tie-out, but sometimes I have the sense that she wants me to attach the lead to her collar for some reason, so I do.
• Give Laddie a little practice heeling to the SL.
  
• Run Laddie on his blinds.

Details of today's sessions follow.

AM: Brook Knoll

SERIES A. Triple land blind (Lumi, then Laddie)

In this series, we practiced a picture that Alice Woodyard once suggested the dogs learn to deal with: Picking up one blind in close proximity to a potential wrap, then picking up another blind on a line close to the first one but past the wrap.

Lumi: For Lumi, the potential wrap was a large, barn-shaped shed to the left of our course. I started Lumi by running her to a 70-yard blind angled to the right. I then ran her to the left blind at 120 yards, on the corner of the shed. Finally, I ran her to the center blind at 160 yards, a few degrees to the right of the second blind and the shed.

Though normally a good liner, Lumi did not keep well to the line on the third blind, but veered to the right, well away from the barn. Once she'd gone reasonably far and showed no sign of self correcting, I blew WS and cast her on a silent left angle back, which she took to the blind.

Laddie: Though Laddie ran from the same SL as Lumi, and was able to watch Lumi run her blinds from his tie-out stake behind the SL, and Laddie's course was in the same general direction as Lumi's, all Laddie's distances were longer than Lumi's.

For Laddie, the potential wrap was a stand of trees and undergrowth about 90 yards behind the barn-shaped shed, again on the left of our course. I started Laddie by running him to a 140-yard blind angled to the right. I then ran him to the left blind at 210 yards, on the right corner of the stand of trees. Finally, I ran him to the center blind at 210 yards, a few degrees to the right of the second blind and the stand of trees.

Unlike Lumi, Laddie took a good line on his third blind, but then wrapped to the left. Our line of sight was not impaired, however, because the stand of trees is at the bottom of a deep valley, and by the time I blew WS, Laddie was on his way back uphill, and he and I could see each other over the trees. Laddie was responsive on that WS, but the cast he took was still too far to the left, taking him into the "danger zone" (see yesterday's post) but without him spotting the OD. As I had planned and described in yesterday's commentary on "danger zone refusals", I let Laddie keep running uphill until he was well past the dummy and more than 30 yards away from it, thus outside his danger zone. I then blew WS, he sat nicely, and then he took a nice angle-in cast straight to the OD. It was good to see a solid WS at 300+ yards.

PM: Oaks Area 1

SERIES V. Triple land blind (Lumi, then Laddie)

Lumi: Lumi's blinds were 60 yards to the left, 140 yards thru a keyhole to the right, and 90 yards down the center. All blinds were in open meadow. The course was within a 90° angle.

Laddie: Laddie's blinds were 170 yards to the left, 220 yards thru a keyhole to the right, and 300 yards down the center. All blinds were in open meadow. The course was within approximately the same 90° angle as Lumi's course.

Notes on Series B: Both dogs showed excellent response on all WSs and all casts. In Laddie's case, that included several challenges he might not have been up to a few weeks ago:

• On the first blind, I accidentally forgot about the danger zone and blew WS when Laddie was a little off line but within 10 yards of the OD. As he turned to sit, his body language showed that he had spotted the OD, but he sat anyway. Yay!
• On the second blind, his last cast was an Over at 220 yards, meaning that he responded well to a WS at 220 yards.
• On the third blind, Laddie's last two WSCs were both at 300 yards, both to the left of the blind. In each case, Laddie sat immediately, then took the Over cast to the right. The first time, he took a few steps and became distracted by something. The second time, he ran straight to the blind.

Series B was not a trivial course. The terrain at Oaks is thick, clumpy, calf-high cover with uneven footing, and the field is home to a large quantity of wildlife, including a herd of deer who stood watching us from about 250 yards from the SL, a bit to the right of our course.

On the other hand, the series could not have been too challenging within the dogs' current level of development, because both dogs did well.

We've been doing some difficult things for several weeks — poison birds, long water blinds including some with obstacles, new concepts such as wraps, the offline drills, and more recently the conflict drills. It has been good the last few days to run some courses where the dogs could excel. But soon, I guess I'll see if I can find some ways to raise the ante again.

Land Series

AM: Oaks Area 2

SERIES A. Convergent land double and a land blind (both dogs)

Both marks were "thrown" with an RL, using a weighted streamer and a pre-positioned duck.

The right mark at 100 yards, the memory-bird, was thrown first, right to left. The left mark at 70 yards, the go-bird, was thrown second, left to right. The line to the memory-bird ran thru the line to the go-bird.

After the marks were both picked up, the dog ran a blind to the left of the left RL. For Lumi, the blind was at 160 yards and the angle between the blind and the left RL was 15°. For Laddie, the blind was at 180 yards and the angle between the blind and the left RL was 30°.

Neither dog had difficulty with series. After picking up both marks, Lumi lined her blind. After picking up both marks, Laddie required only one WSC for his blind.

PM: Oaks Area 2

SERIES B. Double land blinds (both dogs)

For Lumi, the distances were 50 and 120 yards. For Laddie, the distances were 160 and 210 yards.

Danger Zone Refusals

In today's work, I began a new handling procedure to deal with a particular problem. In this section, I'll try to explain the background, theory, and approach I'm taking to address the issue.

Both of my dogs exhibit a common problem: If I blow WS when the dog is near the retrieval article, the dog is likely to spot the article and run to it, pick it up, and deliver it instead of sitting.

I'll refer to the proximity of the article as the "danger zone". The size of the danger zone varies depending on the dog's experience and skill. An FC AFC Lab might have a danger zone of two yards, meaning that the dog is reasonably likely to slip the whistle if the handler blows WS within two yards of the bird but will be responsive at greater distances. For Lumi, I'd say the danger zone is about 15 yards. For Laddie, I think it's currently around 30 yards.

I find danger zone refusals complicated. While slipping a whistle is undesirable, retrievers are bred to retrieve, and a dog who spots a bird and runs to it, picks it up, and delivers it is doing exactly what she was born to do. My understanding is that if a handler blew a WS when the dog was a few yards the bird as a "safety whistle" in competition, in order to stop the dog from running past the bird and possibly out of sight, and the dog then turned and ran to the bird instead of sitting, most judges would not take away points for such a refusal.

Acceptable as it may be to a judge, every time the dog practices a danger zone refusal, she is reinforced for slipping the WS. The reinforcement is even stronger if the handler then blows a come-in whistle, which is not unusual. In an event, the handler might do that, for example, to try to influence the judge in thinking that the dog is still under control. Even in practice, a handler might do that out of habit, if the handler's habit is to blow come-in as the dog is about to pick up the bird. Whether the handler blows come-in or not, danger zone refusals are highly reinforcing for slipping whistles, and predictably, the more danger zone refusals my dogs have had at times, the less reliable their WSs have become.

For some weeks, I've been using the Walk Out (WO) procedure to prevent my dogs from reinforcing on slipped whistles. The procedure was extraordinarily effective with Lumi, whose WSs have become nearly automatic. However, the WO is more difficult with Laddie, first because I work him at longer distances than Lumi, and secondly because he's so fast. By the time I've taken a few steps, he's swooped around, picked up the article, and run to meet me with it.

As a result, I've felt that I needed a new way of dealing with Laddie's relatively frequent danger zone refusals.

After some discussion in private correspondence with Alice Woodyard and Jody Baker, I've come to understand a rather simple approach to addressing the problem of danger zone refusals: Don't blow WS when the dog is in the danger zone.

In some set-ups, this approach wouldn't work, because if the dog ran thru his danger zone, he might go out of sight. But in many of our set-ups, I can just let Laddie keep running, then stop him once he's outside his danger zone and not likely to spot the bird as he turns to sit.

The strategy also might not be appropriate in a test, because the danger zone for some dogs might be larger than the judge's tolerance for the dog being off line. But my dogs and I have months of winter weather before our next test, and my expectation is that Laddie's danger zone will become significantly smaller during that time.

Why should Laddie's danger zone shrink? My theory is this:

• If you blow WS, and the dog sits, and then you cast the dog to the blind and the dog is able to find the article, then that is highly reinforcing for sitting when whistled. One reinforcer is simply the cast, because receiving a known cue is a conditioned reinforcer. Of course a more important reinforcer is getting to the blind and finding the article, possibly the single highest reward for a retriever.
• If at the same time that you are practicing a string of successful whistle sits, you can also avoid practicing refusals — in particular the danger zone refusals — you are building an ever larger differential between reinforcement history for the correct response and reinforcement history for the incorrect response.
• As Matching Law results in the dog becoming increasingly likely to sit when whistled, the dog's tolerance for the distraction of the nearby article also increases, causing the danger zone to shrink.

Today, I found not blowing WS in the danger zone surprisingly difficult for the handler. When the dog is close to the article but running past it or, worse, veering away from it, you really want to stop him and get him going the correct direction. But I'm going to try my best to resist that temptation in those situations and see if I can take Laddie to the next level.

Land Blinds

AM: Oaks Area 1

SERIES A. Triple land blind (Lumi only)

For Lumi, I set out three ODs with SFs in open meadow. Running them in ascending order by distance, the first blind was to the left at 80 yards, the second to the right at 110 yards, and the third in the center at 160 yards, on an angle 30° to the flanking blinds.

Lumi was responsive on all WSs and made good starts on all her casts, though on the last blind, she began digging back toward the flag to the left and took several WSCs to get her veering more to the right.

SERIES B. Triple land blind (Laddie only)

For Laddie, I used the same SL as I used with Lumi for Series A. Leaving both dogs at the SL, I went out and removed the SFs for Lumi's first and third blinds, then ran Laddie.

Laddie's first blind was to the right at 110 yards, the same placement as Lumi's second blind. His second was to the left at 180 yards. His third was down the center at 290 yards. The angles for Laddie's blinds were a bit narrower than Lumi's because of the added distances.

Laddie lined the first blind to the right, then easily handled the other two. He sat immediately on all WSs except one, all at distances greater than 100 yards and one at over 200 yards, and cast enthusiastically and accurately. Watching your dog respond so nicely is beautiful, even touching.

On the last WS for the third blind, Laddie was veering to the left at 260 yards and had already responded to an angle back to the right earlier. When I whistled the second time, he apparently glanced toward 2 o'clock, spotted the SF, and ran to it.

Combining Sit and Come-in Whistles

As Laddie approached the third blind after slipping the last sit whistle, I blew come-in. In the past, I've thought that that had some effect of nullifying the slipped whistle, but Alice Woodyard explained recently in private correspondence that it may do that in an on-looker's mind, but it doesn't help the dog's understanding of the WS, and may even cause some deterioration by reinforcing the slipped whistle (known cues can act as conditioned reinforcers).

I think I blew the come-in whistle with the idea that you can strengthen a cue if you give it just before the dog performs the behavior correctly. Since I anticipated a picture-perfect pick-up and delivery, blowing a come-in whistle was intended in my mind to connect the come-in whistle with that response.

However, on reflection, comparing the cost of reinforcing the slipped whistle with the negligible benefit of reminding Laddie what a come-in whistle means, the net effect was probably negative. I'll try to remember not to do that so often in the future.

Handling Drills

AM: Brook Knolls

SERIES A. No-target drill combined with blind (both dogs)

Distances were in the range 100-200 yards. For Series A, I pre-positioned a duck at 200 yards, ran two no-target send-outs in different directions, then sent the dog to the duck. On the no-target send-outs, I blew WS and cast the dog in various random directions 1-3 times before calling the dog in with Here.

Despite the distance to the duck, both dogs veered toward it on both no-target outruns and lined it when sent to it.

Both dogs showed good to excellent response on all WSs. Laddie's casts were also excellent, whereas Lumi's were inconsistent, evidently influenced by suction from the duck.

SERIES B. No-target drill combined with blind (both dogs)

Identical to Series A except for placement of the bird and orientation of the send-outs.

SERIES C. Conflict drill at 20 yards (both dogs)
SERIES D. Conflict drill at 20 yards (both dogs)
SERIES E. Conflict drill at 50 yards (both dogs)

Description of conflict drill follows.

Conflict Drill

Watching Lumi's difficulties with the no-target drills again today, I came to the conclusion that despite all her training, she still does not have sufficient reinforcement history for taking a cast away from a known target in a direction where she cannot see or scent an alternative target. Although my focus the last few days has been on the WS, I decided that for Lumi, solving that underlying problem was also a high priority.

So for the second half of this morning's sessions, I set up some simple conflict drills, as follows:

• Place a bird some distance from the SL. Today, we did two series at 20 yards and a third at 50 yards.
• Place the dog beside the bird, at a distance of about five yards to the left or right of the bird.
• Return to the SL, face the dog, and blow WS to get the dog's attention.
• Cast the dog with an Over away from the bird.
• As soon as the dog takes the cast and runs a few yards, blow WS, then call Here, and reinforce with a high value reward. This morning, the reward I had available was happy throws with a 2" dummy and a game of tug. Next session, I plan to bring along some high value treats as well.
• After performing an Over cast on each side of the bird, randomly selecting which side to do first, send the dog to pick up the bird.

I designed this drill for Lumi but let Laddie practice it also, rather than leaving him on the tie-out the whole time.

Laddie: As I expected, this was an easy drill for Laddie at both distances. His only difficulty was that occasionally he interpreted the Over as a come-in, anticipating the games we'd play when he returned. In each case, when I blew WS and re-cast Over or an angle back away from the bird, he took the second cast well.

Lumi: As I also expected, this was a difficult drill for Lumi, but I was surprised at how difficult it was. First she would interpret the Over the wrong direction, and when I instantly blew another WS and cast her away from the bird again, she just sat there and stared at me. For me, this is a an example of the moot distinction between learning and voting. Was Lumi being disobedient, or had Lumi not learned the cue? It's inconceivable that she was misunderstanding my intent, but it's entirely conceivable that she was misunderstanding the value to her of carrying it out, and in that sense, she had not learned the cue. Perhaps that's what disobedience always amounts to.

In any case, Lumi's performance at 20 yards was reasonably good for Series D, and her performance in Series E, despite the added distance, was still better than her performance at 20 yards in Series C had been. Hopefully, a few more sessions of the conflict drill will fill this crucial gap in Lumi's development.

Handling Drill

AM: Oaks Area 3

With time short, I ran the dogs alternately on no-target send-outs, distances in the range 50-120 yards. The terrain is the most varied of the three Oaks areas we use, criss-crossed with ditches and mounds and dotted with trees. Temps were in the 40s and a steady rain was falling.

In today's send-outs, I chose a series of visual target and handled each dog toward that target, then reinforced with come-in whistle, happy throw of 2" WD, and game of tug. Both dogs had excellent performance on both WSs and casts, and seemed to be having a great time.

Mixing No-Target Drills with Cold Blinds

I've been thinking that after we have continued with the no-target drill for a few more days, I'll start to mix in cold blinds, that is, have the dogs actually find a dummy or bird on some of their send-outs. At least in the early going, I'll still use plenty of no-target send-outs. Once I see that the dogs remain responsive on all WSCs even when a retrieval article is found, we can increase the ratio of cold blinds. It may be that over time, it will be effective to maintain a mix of no-targets and cold blinds, increasing the ratio of no-targets as a tune-up for a particular dog any time that dog shows a deterioration of responsiveness.

Drill

AM: Oaks Area 2

Today, we only had time for a short session, which we used for the next increment of our work with the no-target drill.

For today's work, all outruns were in the range of 100-150 yards.

SERIES A. Three send-outs, followed by WS, come-in whistle, happy throw with 2" WD, and brief game of tug (both dogs).

Lumi: Excellent work.

Laddie: One pop. Other than that, excellent work.

SERIES B. I modified the no-target drill as follows:

• Send dog from heel on Back cue.
• After random distance, blow WS.
• Instead of calling dog in as in Series A, cast the dog in some direction.
• As soon as the dog takes the cast, blow WS.
• Blow come-in whistle, happy throw with 2" WD, tug.

For the first send-out, the extra cast was a left Over. For the second send-out, the extra cast was a right Over. For the third send-out, the extra cast was a right angle back.

Lumi: Excellent response on all cues except for slow responses on second WS. Hopefully that will extinguish as Lumi learns that the game is about responding, not hunting or retrieving.

Laddie: Excellent work in all respects.

It occurred to me that eventually we can enhance this drill with a PB to be retrieved after the set of send-outs and returns. At first, the PB can be hand thrown and well over to the side. Over time, I can use the RL, streamer, and a pre-positioned bird, and gradually tighten the angle between the send-outs and the line to the PB. When the dogs are ready for that, it will hopefully help to develop a high degree of responsiveness to WSCs even in the presence of a known retrieval target.

The dogs could do that drill right now, but I don't think they'd enjoy it, and it would show up especially in Lumi's body language. Instead of pushing the challenge, my goal is to build a high reinforcement history for the simple act sitting on the whistle.

Of course, some additional work is also being accomplished. Both dogs wear their tabs every day, hopefully helping to neutralize the presence of the tab in support of steadiness training at a later time. In addition, I'm also using the tie-out for both dogs, hopefully getting Laddie comfortable with it. And in addition to those elements, we also work on well-mannered heeling from the tie-out to the SL on each series.

Drills, Blinds

AM: Oaks Area 2

SERIES A. Remote casting drill (Lumi only)

See previous entries for description. For Series A, Lumi started 50 yards from SL, and a duck was pre-positioned 50 yards from SL. WDs were thrown at 45° angles to the line to the duck.

Lumi needed two Back cues to get on line to the duck.

SERIES B. Remote casting drill (Lumi only)

Same SL and dimensions as Series A, but in a different direction.

For Series B, Lumi needed several Back cues to get on line to he duck.

Analysis: Unlike Laddie with this drill, Lumi does not appear to be making fast progress in her learning. Presumably retrieving the unseen duck is not sufficiently reinforcing for responding correctly to the Back cue to cause those responses to improve, or the test's construction doesn't enable her to learn how to obtain that reinforcement.

In addition, based on Lumi's body language, she does not find the remote casting drill enjoyable. Perhaps as Alice Woodyard suggested with the offline drill, the RCD's high level of conflict — having to ignore the WDs and take a Back cast to an unseen article — has a cumulative demotivating effect.

This afternoon, I introduced a new drill intended to address these concerns (see below).

SERIES C. Triple blind (Laddie only)

The first blind was to the left, a duck at 170 yards placed midway between two widely spaced trees. The second blind was to the right, a duck at 180 yards placed in front of the back tree of a small stand of trees. The third blind was down the center, a duck at 210 yards placed in the open to the left of a small stand of trees.

Laddie's performance was excellent in most respects, but he slipped a whistle on each of the first two blinds, resulting in being called back to the line each time.

Analysis: Unlike Lumi, Laddie is continuing to slip whistles despite extensive practice on blinds. Presumably, retrieving the blind without first being called back to the line is not sufficiently reinforcing to extinguish the slipped whistles, or Laddie has not learned that he can avoid being called back by sitting when whistled.

Although Laddie handles better than many of the dogs I've seen qualify in Senior tests, his inconsistency on WSs would prevent him from succeeding at higher levels of competition.

Hopefully, the new drill I introduced this afternoon will help Laddie improve his consistency on WSs.

PM: Neighborhood Lacrosse Field

Both dogs, perhaps like all field dogs, tend to break down in their handling reliability when they have reason to think they know where the target is, despite the fact that much of Lumi and Laddie's recent training enables them to practice not making that mistake. In addition, because of the conflicting forces operating on the dog, the cumulative effect of these exercises may be demotivating, especially for Lumi.

To address those concerns, I invented the following drill for this afternoon's work with both dogs.

No-Target Drill

The no-target drill simply involves handling the dog in an open field with no retrieval objects.

In today's version of the no-target drill, I was primarily interested in introducing the game:

• Send the dog out from heel with Back.
• Dog can veer but not pop. If dog pops, call the dog back to the line, put the dog on the nearby tie-out, and switch dogs.
• After the dog goes out a variable, unpredictable distance (today in the range of 50-80 yards), blow WS, and when the dog sits, blow come-in whistle. As dog races back, throw 2" WD, and when dog retrieves that, play a short game of tug.
• If dog continues to perform correctly, give the dog three to five send-outs before switching dogs.

Analysis: When the dog responds correctly, the primary reinforcers are a race back to the SL, a happy throw with a 2" WD, and a short game of tug. The come-in whistle is strengthened by the primary reinforcers and becomes a conditioned reinforcer, and that in turn reinforces the WS and turns it into a conditioned reinforcer for the outrun. I believe that, given both dogs' personalities, the outrun is also self-reinforcing, so that the opportunity to continue playing the game is also reinforcing.

Notes on performance: Both dogs went thru a stage where they popped rather than continuing out. This is presumably because, even though both dogs have long known to go out on a blind until stopped, the no-target drill causes them to anticipate the reinforcers, beginning with WS, and they attempt to short circuit the outrun. But putting the dog on the tie-out without reinforcement when the dog pops enabled both dogs to learn quickly that only the outrun enables them to obtain what they desire — the runback, the happy throw, and the game of tug — and soon neither dog was popping any more. For what it's worth, Lumi figured that out a little sooner than Laddie.

I was pleased to see that both dogs seemed to adore this game. Once the popping stopped, both dogs were making their outruns at a full gallop, and Lumi was faster on both her outruns and her returns than I've seen her in weeks. Her speed and bounciness were full of joy. I'm glad to see her acting like that, because I have been starting to worry that Lumi's soundness was failing, as her performance seemed to be gradually slowing down the last few weeks. Her behavior on the no-target drill suggests that the problem hasn't been soundness, it's been motivation. This is consistent with Alice's analysis on several occasions in the past, though it's taken me awhile to figure out a drill that Lumi could learn from and still enjoy.

Over the next few days, I'll try increasing the range of distances, including outruns to 200 yards or more, and also gradually and unpredictably adding one or two casts before calling the dog back for reinforcement.

Drills, Marks and Blinds

AM: East Norbeck Park

[This morning the dogs and I dropped Renee off at a fitness center where she trains clients in Pilates, then we drove to a ball field not far from there for some easy field work. Weather was sub-freezing temps, an icy wind, and snow flurries.]

SERIES A. Remote casting drill (Lumi only)

50 yards from SL to Lumi, 100 yards from SL to pre-positioned duck, WDs thrown at 45° angles. Lumi responded correctly to the first Back cast.

SERIES B. Double blind (Laddie only)

Left blind was a duck at 170 yards, right blind was a duck at 200 yards.

Laddie lined both blinds.

SERIES C. Double blind (Lumi only)

Same blinds as Series B, but first I moved the SL 100 yards closer to both blinds, so Lumi's blinds were 70-100 yards.

Lumi also lined both blinds.

SERIES D. Converging land double with blind (Laddie only)

Marks were "thrown" with RLs, weighted streamers, and pre-positioned ducks.

First mark (memory-bird) was to the left at 140 yards, thrown left to right. Second mark (go-bird) was to the right at 100 yards, thrown right to left.

After Laddie had picked up both ducks, he ran a blind on a line between the two marks, a duck at 200 yards.

SERIES E. Converging land double (Lumi only)

Same as Series D but without the blind.

Drill, Blinds

AM: Oaks Area 1

SERIES A. Remote casting drill (Lumi only)

Lumi at 50 yards from SL, OD at 100 yards from SL, WDs on 45° angles. Lumi required a total of three Back casts to the OD, remained responsive on both WSs.

SERIES B. Double blind (Laddie only)

The first blind was to the left, a duck at 70 yards in open meadow. The second blind was to the right, a duck at 250 yards, thru a keyhole formed by two trees at 130 yards from the SL.

Laddie lined the first blind. On the second blind, he veered enough first left, then right, to justify handling to maintain a narrow corridor before the keyhole. But he seems to have grasped the keyhole concept. After the second WSC, he headed midway between the trees and from there lined the blind. He showed good responsiveness on both WSs and good accuracy on both angle back casts.

SERIES C. Double blind (Lumi only)

The first blind was to the right, a duck at 70 yards in open meadow. The second blind was to the left, a duck at 130 yards in open meadow.

Lumi required two WSCs to the 70-yard blind on the right, remaining responsive on both WSs and reasonably accurate on both casts. She lined the 130-yard blind on the left.

Drills, Blinds

AM: Oaks Area 1

SERIES A. Remote casting drill (Lumi only)

40 yards from SL to Lumi, 90 yards from SL to duck, WDs at 45° angles. Lumi took the first Back cast to the duck. Yay!

SERIES B. Double blind (Laddie only)

The first blind was to the left at 250 yards, a duck placed next to a fence that ran slightly converging on the line from the SL to the blind. The second blind was to the right at 400 yards, a duck placed in front of the back tree in a small stand of trees.

The long blind was easily Laddie's longest ever. I was pleased to see that he remained responsive on WSCs even at those distances.

SERIES C. Remote casting drill (Lumi only)

Identical to Series A except for orientation of the send-out. Again Lumi responded correctly on first Back cast.

Drills, Marks and Blinds

Local Estate

[Today we trained on the property of a family that lives nearby on Brink Road, who has given me permission to use his land for training Lumi and Laddie.]

SERIES A. Remote casting drill (Lumi only)

Placed Lumi in sit 40 yards from SL, between SL and pre-positioned duck at 90 yards from SL. Threw WDs to both sides at 45° angles to the line to the duck. Returned to SL and cast Lumi with a straight Back.

When I cast Lumi toward the unseen duck, she focused on one of the WDs and required several WSCs to get her to the duck. She remained responsive on every WS and cast, but for the first several times, only took a step in the direction cast before digging back toward the WD.

SERIES B. Triple blind (Laddie only)

The first blind was 130 yards to the right, at the corner of a woodsy outcropping from the right edge of the field. The second blind was 200 yards to the left, up a steep hill. The third blind, at 210 yards, was on a line slightly to the left of the first blind.

Laddie had no difficulty with any of these blinds, lining the first and third and requiring only one WSC for the second.

SERIES C. Remote casting drill (Lumi only)

Identical in dimensions to Series A, but with a different SL and orientation.

This time, Lumi took the first Back cast straight to the duck.

SERIES D. Three singles and two blinds (Laddie, then Lumi)

For the marks, we used RLs with streamers and pre-positioned ducks, and all marks were "thrown" left to right.

The first mark was to the left at 70 yards. The second mark was to the right at 80 yards. The third mark was in the center at 100 yards.

After the dog picked up the third mark, I ran the dog to a blind at 90 yards on a line to the right of the rightmost mark, on the right corner of a long stand of woods.

Finally, I ran the dog to a second blind, on a line slightly to the right of the first blind and on the way up a steep hill. For Laddie, the second blind was at 200 yards, 20 yards in front of a woods marking the edge of the property. For Lumi, the second blind was at 120 yards, saving her a long run up and down the steep hill.

Both dogs easily pinned all marks and lined the first blind. Lumi also lined the second blind. Laddie required three WSCs for the long blind, and showed excellent responsiveness and good casting accuracy on each of them.