preparing for show...

[mickeymichellie]

I am getting ready to show my boy Xander in the rottie speciatly coming up in April. He is young still, but it seemed like too fun of a chance to miss, since it is being held locally. So a couple questions about preparing.

1) We have been going to a variety of places to practice. His huge downfall is other dogs, so we have been going to places that have dogs, but I can control the situation. However, sometimes he becomes completely distracted and I cannot manage to get his attention back. I am using his favorite treats when we go to high distraction areas. My question is that when he gets really distracted and I cannot seem to get it back, should I get him to one good thing and then leave, or should I wait until he can focus and keep working? Now, before people jump on me, I have tried all the tricks: great treats, being really excited and doing fun things, and anything else I can think of. He will do what I tell him in a half-hearted way, but not as well as he could, and if I have him repeat it he only gets worse. And I do not correct him too much because he will stop working completely.

2) Does anybody have any general suggestion for things I should work on or watch out for? It is going to be the first show he is entered in (I know, bad planning) and he is the first dog I have competed in obedience with. My friends tell me all sorts of things, but it always helps to get more opinions!

[Judi W]

Conformation or obedience?

If conformation, most important is that he know how to stand still while his teeth are examined and his body handled and his balls tickled and that he move nicely on the lead. Practice setting him up in front of a mirror or window so you can see what you are doing and have someone play judge.

[Carina43]

I've had Cooper in a couple of fun matches last fall (yet to do a real one yet!) and he was kind of the same way - he would just get reactive and stupid around lots of strange dogs. And he is just like Xander - he shuts down if he gets too many corrections. I either have to figure out an effective way to ask nicely so he listens the first time, or come down on him like a ton of bricks so he does what I say just because.

What I did (it worked, he was very good in the ring) - got there really early. Walked him around the perimeter until he was used to all the other dogs, and sort of worked in concentric circles until we were mingling with the crowds of people & dogs - by then he was OK and calm, paying attention. Then I put him up in his crate until shortly before showtime so he wouldn't be all tired out.

Oh - I also didn't feed him breakfast (mean mommy) so he was REALLY fired up for treats! He did real well, very attentive and ready to work. Probably did better than me, actually!

Have fun! I'll PM you if I'm going to be there - I'm in MI now but lived in Denver for years and Coop's breeder & litter-sister owner are going to be there. If I have time I'm driving out. :)

[mickeymichellie]

Clarification - obedience and herding. Herding will be easy so I am not concerned there. Obedience is my concern. I wish we were doing conformation, but the litter did not turn out :( . That's ok, he is a great obedience dog, and this gives me more money (as a student) to spend entering shows and training for herding and stuff. Maybe my next one will turn out...

Carina: thanks for the advice, I will try it someplace beforehand and see what happeneds. Let me know if you will be there, I will be there monday, tuesday, thursday, friday, although I will be running back to my area to take care of school stuff when I am not competing. Consequences of being a student.

[Judi W]

I'd say he's pretty young if you have not had a class and ring procedure to work with on a regular basis. Maturity and training take care of the problem, so keep working and remember to be reasonable in your expectations.

[DNeff]

Originally posted by Judi W
Maturity and training take care of the problem, so keep working and remember to be reasonable in your expectations.

Judi hit the nail on the head. He's still a baby. You need to consider what is best for him at this point, and not necessarily what you would like now.
Believe me I know first hand. I had these great dreams of having Riven's CD at two. He's wasn't ready at two. I finally figured out that I need to go by when he was ready, not when I was ready. That schedule is different with every dog.

Rottie boys especially can be slow to mature, don't push him. Pushing him at this age, might kill some of his enthusiasm and desire, especially if he is telling you he doesn't have the skills to cope yet.

I would work on bringing him to distracted places and working on the perimeter. Have some high caliber treats and reward any and all attention and eye contact. Try not to prompt the eye contact, wait him out. If you have him on leash, he won't be able to go visit or be reinforced for watching the other dogs or people. If he can't focus on you at all, move back from the action. If he can focus and offer sustained eye contact slowing start moving in to the action.

The key is, he gets nothing for watching the action and lots of great food for any voluntary eye contact. In the beginning you may just mark the moment he offers you eye contact, with a yes followed by a treat. Gradually you will ask for longer and longer eye contact before you yes and treat.

Always rasie your criteria gradually and get away from luring with the food or using lots of verbal reminders to watch. He needs to learn that looking to you is rewarding and that doing anything else gets him nothing.

If you can get sustained eye contact in the midst of the action, I would begin to work attention heeling at the perimeter. Short (10 paces) patterns, at a brisk pace. Lots of rewards and verbal praise for eye contact and staying with you. Again you gradually work further and further in to the action. If you have loss of quality, move out again and get his confidence back up.

Sounds like you have a great boy, good luck!!

Dawn
U-CD Cammcastle's Mystic Riven CDX OAC OGC NA NAJ NJC TT CGC
http://members.aol.com/dplantier
http://members.aol.com/rottweilerworld

[mickeymichellie]

He is a great boy, and I will work on waiting for his attention instead of demanding it. We go to classes all the time since I work at a training facility, and the way the match situation went in this area was interesting. I had a job on Sundays, and by the time I quit the matches were finished for awhile. I have been to a multitude of shows, he just has not gone with me. He is great is some training facilities, but not in others. Thankfully I live in a very dog orientated area, so I have put out calls to a variety of places to find times when I can go practice there. He will do his best, and I will do his best to prepare him, and no pressure. I am going to practice with him, but I love obedience so it will not be much more than he is normally used to. He enjoys it as long as I do not correct him too much, and I am sure to work in many tricks and things he likes when he seems to get bored. I am running out of tricks to teach!

[Judi W]

Remember however, that you can't use any tricks, food or corrections in the ring, so you have to be well past that in your training.

[DNeff]

Actually you can use some tricks in the ring. Many of us use hand touches, spins, small jumps to touch our hands etc...

The regulations say as long as your dog is under control and the praise is not excessive between exercises it is not to be faulted. I attended an AKC obedience judging seminar with Pat Krause, and she was very clear that those types of praise are exceptable as long as it's not excessive or out of control. Hand touches, spins and small jumps are ways to move your dog between exercises and to set up, they are also tricks.

I've never been faulted doing any of these things and I have done all of those tricks in the ring, every time I show. Most OTCH handlers I see showing are doing the exact same things.

AKC obedience is slowing becoming more user friendly!

Dawn
U-CD Cammcastle's Mystic Riven CDX OAC OGC NA NAJ NJC TT CGC
http://members.aol.com/dplantier
http://members.aol.com/rottweilerworld