Progress on Jaspers training. Also, ideas for motivation/drive? - Poodle Forum - Standard Poodle, Toy Poodle, Miniature Poodle Forum ALL Poodle owners too!

Charlottte · 11-30-2011, 12:24 AM

So I've been taking Jasper to agility for around 10 weeks in total (so we're still fairly new to it).
However, I'm still having an issue with motivation. All the other dogs are progressing in the class and me and Jasper seem to be stuck or going backwards. Naturally I feel a bit disheartened. The girl I train with recognised that Jasper seems much more confident whilst training on the lead - it seems to be his safety blanket. As soon as I take it off, he just stops as ifhe doesn't know what to do.

We'd been going for about 5 weeks and he was unsure, which I understand is normal. We then had to take about 8 weeks off due to illness/injury (both me and Jasper! Nothing too serious though), so there was no training at all.
The week we went back. there seemed to be some sort of transformation, he really went for it (without the lead!), running, jumping, even trying the A-Frame although he's terrified of it. So I started to think that he might actually be beginning to enjoy himself.

The next couple of weeks we went back were a bit poor. He seemed to have forgotten what he was meant to do and had to be put back on the lead. Last Sunday we went as usual and he was abysmal (as were a couple of the others). It sounds awful, but he was. He wouldn't go through the weaves away from me and I had to step through them infront of him to tempt him. He refused to jump, went through the tunnel very timidly and by his last run, he near enough refused to jump at all - very unusual.

I currently use fresh chicken or cream cheese (such as Primula) for rewards as he's just not motivated by toys at training.
I've also considered the factors that might be making him feel uncomfortable.
I thought he might just not be enjoying it, but he's active, loves to learn, loves to please and is fine whilst training on grass in my garden.

I then started looking at his reaction while he was at training. The flooring is like bits of materials shredded up (im not sure of the proper name), and he looks like he feels uncomfortable whilst walking on it.
There are also different dogs every week which may be off-putting. A lot of these are pugs which he's scared of.
The other owners who are there with their dogs also stand looking over the fence of the arena which although there's nothing that can be done about it, it seems like he performs better when there's not all the attention on him.

I apologise for the length, but thought It'd be better to set the scene completely. Does anyone have any ideas on what I could try to motivate him? I really want him to enjoy it and I think he will once he knows what he needs to do, but it's hard to train whilst he's so uncomfortable with it.

Searcher · 11-30-2011, 12:19 PM

We are beginners at agility also & have been going to classes since June. We are not close to proficient at it & Dancer was a pretty confident pup to begin with. My first question is how stressed or anxious are you? Is Jasper picking up on your emotions.

How old is Jasper? I am wondering if you are expecting too much. You have only been going for 10 weeks total. If you only did 5 weeks & then had a gap between for the next 5 weeks you are just beginning.

Even after all this time at our classes there are still dogs that are on leash for some of the equipment. Different dogs have different levels of comfort on the various equipment. There is nothing wrong with keeping him on leash until his confidence builds up. Have you pushed beyond his comfort level before he was ready?

At our classes, dogs aren't suppose to interact with each other. There is a bit of down time as you wait your turn & during this time we work on focusing on each other (yes both of us). If you are concentrating on each other you can't focus on other dogs. We do lots of exercises like look at me, heel, figure 8s, etc. It really helps to keep her from running to the trainer (yes, as embarassing as that is she has done that lots of time) & to help her not focus on the treats of other handlers (you'd think that she didn't get premium treats from me). We are now finally starting to see that pay off. It does take awhile.

Also, what are the qualifications of the trainers? How do they go about helping you work with Jasper?

CT Girl · 11-30-2011, 03:15 PM

I am starting agility with Swizzle. He is very nervous around other dogs especially as most of the dogs are bigger (he is a toy). We often have people watching too which is a distraction for him. I know when we started puppy classes it was nerve wracking for him and now we have moved on to obedience and are just beginning agility. I reward a lot in many different ways. Lots of treats (very tiny ones). I have cooked chicken or pork tenderloin so very high value treats. I keep my voice happy and clap or give an enthusiatic good boy when he does something especially something he finds difficult. I play little games with him while we wait our turn. He has almost 100% of my attention (poodles love that). If you think the surface is throwing him off try getting him use to all different surfaces - for example our trainer had us walk over a tarp. My trainer always sets the dog up for sucess and often modifies the exercise for dogs who have an issue. She always ends the class on something easier that the dogs will feel they have it in the bag. Swizzle knows when he does well and does a show off prance. Your dog is very new to this. Things may be moving along faster than his comfort level. Above all class should be fun. Swizzle has gotten to the point where he is excited to go to class which is a huge change from the beginning. If your trainer is not making modifications ask her to. If he can't go through a long tunnel roll it up and have a party when he gets through a small section. If he is not ready for off lead work that is OK he need reassurance of a lead for now. Once he has his bearings and feels more confidence then he can go off lead. I do both on lead and off lead with Swizzle. If I feel he may go off course or have a failure we will do it first with a lead and work up to off lead. The main thing is relax and have a good time with him. Don't compare him to the other dogs compare him to his previous performance. Don't give up; most dogs I have seen really enjoy agility and it is a wonderful activity you can do together.

JE-UK · 12-01-2011, 12:59 AM

Sounds like it may be environment that is a bit offputting rather than the activity.

Can you discuss joining a smaller session with him for a while, or doing some private sessions to build up his confidence enough so that he can begin to tune out the distractions of the onlookers and the Devil Pugs (I know it's not funny for you, but it cracks me up that is afraid of pugs).

SarainPA · 12-01-2011, 08:40 AM

How frustrating for both of you! Here you are trying to do something fun with him and instead it is becoming stressful. I often advise starting back at square one and find out what is causing this reaction. Focus on just one activity and let him feel good about doing it. Maybe he is feeling pushed? I didn't read any of your old posts - how old is he? I know most of our classes around here take a long time to introduce all of the equipment. He sounds overwhelmed maybe? I am sure you want to feel that you are getting value from your class costs, but maybe he would be happier if you did one or two things and then let him just watch. Be careful not to feed into his anxiety..he will then then there really is something fearful out there.
Bet there will come a time when he can handle everything and be having fun!