Week 25

Twenty-four down (twenty-eight to go.) Do you realize the mid-point in the year is only a few weeks away?

Joy.

Accomplished Last Week:

I cranked out two videos this week (although the ultimate fate of jumps remaining sadly unsettled) plus material for one more.

This week saw the completion of Level Three for both Zachary and Beau (Beau just squeaking by in the waning light of Sunday.)

Core Studies: At last, a breakthrough! After weeks spent dinking around with On The Road Loose Leash with Zachary, making not enough progress to warrant even a footnote here, Zachary now seems to finally get it. (See blogs: Ruts)

Canine Good Citizen:I still have yo-yo on a leash (see Week 24) but he is becoming less… extreme… about it. He’s also spending more time with me than without. At this rate, by the time he’s Beau’s age (in four years) he might actually be good at it.

Zachary’s shiny new Canine Good Citizen manners got a big workout when we went to the Boy Scout meeting in the park. Lots of adults, lots of kids, lots of motion, a few dogs in the distance, a really boring talk (from a dog’s perspective) that lasted 15-20 minutes where I required him to be lying down.

I’d give him an A- on the outing. He needs more “calm” before he gets an A. (In contrast, Beau pulls straight C’s on a good day.)

Rally Not a good week for Rally. I’m struggling finding a place to work on the larger items (serpentine’s, walking backwards…) and I didn’t get time at the Boy Scout meeting like I had hoped.

Weekly Quiz: Zachary’s left turns are a work in progress, but the rest was pretty good. Beau has no problem with this… so long as I’m in the house or yard.

Family Member: Zachary is asymptotically approaching goodness, but he’s remains really far from perfect.

Extracurricular: Finished Contacts (Beau better than Zachary), worked on Retrieve (Zachary better than Beau) – didn’t get to Dance at all.

Just For Fun: n/a

Videoed: TL4 – Crate, TL-3 Leash Manners (Beau)

Released Video: Zachary - Training Levels Three (part 4) with Contacts, Crate, and Heel. Beau - Training Levels Four (part 3) with Distance, Heel, Jump - Broad, Jump - High, and Zen.

Blog: Loose Leash (not), Homeschooling Revisited, Compare and Contrast, Homeschooling - Planning Guide, and Ruts.

Planned for Next Week:

Ok – two weeks left in June, as I’ve decided if the Monday is in the Month, then the week is in the month. So there.

Four more items have been added from my Rally Syllabus, the quiz retains the left turns from last week and adds the left turns from the new items from last week. That’s probably a bad idea, as we’ll get dizzy – we’ll see.

Looking over my plan for June, I note I’ve got some things untouched – and so they have been added (and colored a lovely shade of green.)

I’m going back and thinking again about what it means to Homeschool your Dog and how to create a Homeschooling Curriculum, as I’ve created a web site dedicated to just that. If you’ve read this far and are interested (keeping in mind this site is only a few days only and rather sparse at the moment), visit: http://sites.google.com/site/bzdogs/

(As always, click to see larger)

Week 24

Twenty-three down (thirty to go.) Yikes.

This is the first week in a long time (since March?) that has felt even remotely like a “normal” Canine Curriculum Week. Perhaps next year I should just treat Lacrosse Season (March-May) like Summer Vacation for the boys and plan out activities accordingly.

Accomplished Last Week:

I finally released another video this week (listed below.) Yeah! I have the equivalent video of Beau just waiting to go out, once I figure out if I did the Jumps right (standing vs. running past them.)

Core Studies: n/a

Canine Good Citizen: Worked on Loose Leash quite a bit with Zachary. Instead of a pulling dog, I now have a yo-yo dog that goes to the end, then backs up until he is beside me, then goes to the end again. Not pulling, just making it taut. Fascinating, in a train-wreck sort of way, but not really what I was looking for.

(sigh)

Rally I spent a fair chunk of this week in this corner of the teaching world. You can read about our first try HERE, and we’ve had additional quasi-success/quasi-failures since there. The exercises (at this point) are not the problem. Trying to set up the where’s and how’s to practice them - that's the problem.

Weekly Quiz: Zachary is now officially a cabinet-door closing fiend. It is his favorite thing to do, and every time I open a cabinet door he runs over and stands by, waiting for me to tell him when he can close it. The fact he gets a cookie for this behavior is, no doubt, a contributing factor.

I personally think it’s cute because he had a really hard time learning this trick, perhaps because he is a such a gentle soul. I’m happy to report he now pushes enthusiastically, and even looks satisfied with himself when it bangs shut. (Beau has never had a problem with it, and shuts things with the same bull-in-a-china-shop gusto that he applies to most things.)

I didn’t end up testing the tissue item – I couldn’t find the box I was using (I think it was re-purposed during allergy season) and so abandoned it, and neither dog seems capable of reliably Bowing on the first cue despite several weeks worth of effort I dumped into it. It’s possible Bow’s physical cue looks (and the oral one sounds) too much like “down” and I need to rework them. It’s not a problem bowing, it’s a problem knowing I want them to bow.

Hitting the "Easy" button is always a favorite, and both dogs are pro’s.

Family Member: n/a

Extracurricular: We were very busy working jumps (both high and broad) as well as contacts.

Just For Fun: Done! Yes, this was cheating, a bit, as both were already pretty good at it. I’m going to switch to Backing up while facing me to finish out the month, and call it a twofer.

Videoed: TL4 – Heel, TL4 – Jump – High, TL4 – Jump – Broad, Tl3 – Contacts

Released Video: Zachary - Training Levels Four (part 2) - Distance, Heel, Jump-Broad, Jump-High, Zen.

Blog: Rally Syllabus, Six Cone Rally – Practice #1

Planned for Next Week:

We’ll have a new outing this week – the Boy Scout meetings are moving to their summer digs, in a place where dogs are welcome. Zachary, sporting a brand new scarf just for the occasion, will hopefully put his shiny new Canine Good Citizen manners to good use.

The next set of exercises from the Rally Syllabus has been added, and last weeks were moved to the Weekly Quiz. I threw in some Dance items, since anywhere I practice Rally (other than at home) will have enough space to do them.

(As always, click to see larger)

Week 23

Twenty-two weeks down (thirty-one to go.)

Wednesday was the Canine Good Citizen test - and Zachary passed (see CGC Test Results.) Yeah! Since there are many different flavors of “passing” (or not) depending on the evaluator, one has to ask the question: But did he deserve it?

And the answer is…Yes. Not with a Gold Star, mind you. I had to work way too hard on the Loose Leash/Crowd/Reaction to Another Dog parts for him to be considered an “easy” pass. But sometimes a ‘B’ is a good as an ‘A’, and Wednesday night was one of those times.

That said, I’m going to keep some Canine Good Citizen items on the Weekly Worksheet for at least a few more weeks, just to see if we can’t give those areas he had the hardest time with a bit more (or a lot more) shine.

Accomplished Last Week:

After all the cramming we’ve been doing of late, I sort of let the rest of the week slide by after the CGC test. Oh well, summer is almost here and with luck that will mean an abundance of Homeschooling time to make up for it.

Core Studies: n/a

Canine Good Citizen: (see blog posting: CGC Test Results)

Weekly Quiz: I’m embarrassed to admit we didn’t do enough Weekly Quizzes this week to reach minimum progress.

Family Member: n/a

Extracurricular: We worked on Scenting, with only marginal improvements. My problems are all me and not them. I just haven’t come up with a good way of presenting things yet. Then, to make matters worse, I didn’t make it back to my Icky-Stranger’s office on Friday to retrieve my “articles” before she left for the weekend. No articles = No practices.

(sigh)

Just For Fun: n/a

Videoed: n/a

Released Video: n/a

Blog: Last CGC Pre-Test Outing, CGC Test Results, What's Next?

Planned for Next Week:

Per my blog posting this week, with the completion of the CGC Class, I’m going to give Homeschooling AKC Rally Novice a try as one of my 2010 Goals was to enter Zachary in a Match (or Show) by the end of the year. I hope to have time this week to develop some sort of Rally Homeschooling Syllabus. Right now I’m targeting a Show that is usually held in October, which is four plus months away.

This doesn’t mean I’m not going to continue on Training Levels! In fact, Rally Novice covers much of the same ground as Training Levels, so work on one is really just work/practice on the other. It also means I’ll have great On The Road testing opportunities, like Crate (since dogs must be crated for Rally Walkthru’s) and Go To Mat (since the dog needs someplace to Chill), plus all the usual Obedience things. Rally also does Fronts and Finishes, which will give me incentives to finish (pardon the pun) those icky beasties up.

Since Rally covers many of the Weekly Quiz items from last week, I’m just going to ditch that quiz altogether and move on to other things (mostly from Help Paw).

(As always, click to see larger)

June Syllabus

Ah, the lovely month of June…

According to my “Master Plan”, I should be finishing up Training Levels Four this month.

(I can hear the laughter from here)

Of course, that assumed the CGC test was going to be mid-may and not tomorrow (some 3 weeks late.) Then again, if you look at what I’ve got left (included at the bottom of the June Syllabus for easy reference) you’ll quickly see I probably wouldn’t have made it anyway.

No matter – we shall press on and hope that with summer’s arrival we’ll magically find extra time that we aren’t finding now (hint: my son will be out of school, which could either be a good thing (no studying, projects, or Lacrosse) or a bad thing (depending on how the vacation, Lacrosse camps, and camping winds blow.)

There are no more classes or tests on our horizons (near or far) and so our motivation must come from within.

(As always, click to see larger)

Week 22

Twenty-one down (thirty-one to go.)

Wednesday is the Canine Good Citizen test and I already find myself looking… beyond… which is probably not a good thing.

However, as I type this, it is late Monday evening and I fear there is little else I can do at this point that will significantly improve the outcome of the test. I still think Zachary will fail Supervised Separation (it won’t even be close), is iffy on Reaction to Another Dog (he’ll want to go visit), and is hit-or-miss on anything that requires moving from Point A to Point B in a coordinated fashion (those doggie smells on the tan-bark are a huge distraction.)

Am I sad? I suppose. Failure means I will need to find another time to take the test, as him receiving his CGC Certificate remains a goal for this year and I know he is capable of it.

Am I proud of him no matter what? You bet! His greeting behavior toward people is almost perfect. Yes, he can still blow it, and might do so on Wednesday. But there’s a bright and shining light at the end of that tunnel and I know it isn’t just a train.

Accomplished Last Week:

Core Studies: !@#$ Sit-Stay. The only bright side to this is that I now have dog who can go from a Down to a Sit at 40’ on a hand signal (my hands on my hips – usually accompanied by a glare on my part.)

Canine Good Citizen: (see blog posting: CGC Class #5)

Weekly Quiz: Both boys passed everything but Bow. Beau is perfect – but only so long as I am standing next to the sofa. Zachary is perfect – but only after two (or three) cues. Both will be practicing some more this week.

Family Member: News flash! I have now officially passed Zachary for “No paws on the console”. Yes, we really have been working on it for 5 months! Not very often over those 5 months, I’ll admit. In fact, exactly twice every two weeks (ie: going to the groomer and back again every other week) for the last 5 months, which were the only times he rode in the “problem” car.

Today, as a final test, I took him (alone) across town (~15 minutes) and back, and I’m pleased to say that while he wasn’t perfect (he still taps a paw on the console every so often) he never once tried coming into the front seat nor did he ever put his weight on the console – and that’s good enough for me.

Extracurricular: We did just a bit with contacts (Beau is awesome, Zachary… isn’t) but spent most of our time with Retrieve (grabbing the bumper – both dogs doing great) and Scenting (with the icky-stranger-scented lid – and again, Beau is doing better, but Zachary is coming along, too.)

Just For Fun: n/a

Videoed: n/a

Released Video: n/a

Blog: Connections, A Better Idiot, Better Idea?, CGC Class #5, More Interesting than Dirt

Planned for Next Week:

With no classes after the test this week - or anytime in the near (or far) future - I’m finding myself feeling wonderfully “free” and a little bit adrift.

This week, my goal is to figure out what I want to accomplish over the summer and how I’m going to accomplish it. The most likely answer is “Rally” – but as Wendy doesn’t teach a Rally class (sigh) and I'm not feeling like going anywhere else, I’m going to have to think of how (and where) to do this solo.

The Weekly Quiz items are (mostly) taken from "Dance" and, once again, 8/10 points for the week will constitute a "pass" of the item.  Trick of the Month starts the June trick (syllabus to be posted tomorrow, but already written.)

Quote of the Month is also on this worksheet - "Do or do not. There is no try." - Yoda (and, while hard to imagine, if you actually haven't seen the movie there's a clip on YouTube HERE.)

(As always, click to see larger)

Week 21

Twenty down (thirty-two to go.) This is the last full week of May.

My goal, as stated in Week 20, was “to re-establish the previous class times and habits before something else (like gardening) sneaks in to take its place.”

And, for the most part, I think I did.

Accomplished Last Week:

The main focus last week turned out to be Extracurricular Activities – how better to merge back into regular classes than to start with fun things, right?

Core Studies: Still trying to get a solid Sit-Stay from Zachary, and we still aren’t there yet. The hardest part is walking the 40’ away from him (ie: when my back is turned.)

Canine Good Citizen: (see blog posting: CGC Class #4)

Weekly Quiz: Both boys passed staying in a car when the door is open (although Beau has a hard time with distractions)… and that’s it. Zachary did noticeably better as the week wore on Sitting after a Knock on the Door, but didn’t meet my “5 passes” criteria to check it off his Middle School checklist. Beau doesn’t have a problem and passed that one easily. I didn’t do Attention or Go To Mat (I’ve got to stop putting duration activities in Quizzes.)

When it came to Excited Family Members, it all depended on how excited the family members were and when they were excited. I could jump around until I’m blue in the face at 2pm and the dogs would probably sleep through it. If I even look like I’m going to move at 7pm, they are raring to join me. In the end, I decided they weren’t even close enough for government work, and so no check marks for either of them.

Family Member: n/a

Extracurricular: I decided to give TL4 - Scenting a go using Canning Rings. That was “fun” (see blog posting: Good Idea?) Beau is doing beautifully on his Contacts. He just needs to be videoed to cross of TL-3 and we are already working on TL-4. Zachary is still playing 101 Things to do with a Contact Board, and while he settles down to running the board by the end of the session, he always tries several dozen other things first and shows no sign of realizing when the click is going to occur (at the end of the board.)

Just For Fun: There’s a story as to why I haven’t been working on the Trick of the Month, and perhaps later this week I’ll put that in the blog. Until then, take it on faith that you won’t be seeing that particular trick (Circle Around Me) on any list of mine any time soon.

Videoed: n/a

Released Video: n/a

Blog: Good Idea? and CGC Class #4

Planned for Next Week:

Once again, the emphasis for the week will be on Canine Good Citizen. Assuming the weather gods are with us, this will be the fifth and final training class (although at the moment things are looking a bit iffy) with the test the week that follows. I’ve got that sinking feeling that Zachary doesn’t quite have it all together to pass all 10 test items at once, although I think on any given day he could pass any one particular item. I just don’t see him being consistent enough to pass all 10 on one particular day.

The only things that change this week were the Trick of the Month (put in for Zachary, as Beau already knows this one) and the Weekly Quiz. I decided to have it be a final test of known tricks from “Just For Fun”. Given my requirement for 8 out of 10 points, with no zeros, I believe both boys should pass all items. The only iffy one is Zachary doing Bow– I’m not sure how well he knows the cue, and I usually have to do a few warm-ups first (not allowed in Quizzes.)

Now that I have more “personal” time, I’m hoping to get back to writing Extracurricular Activity (ECA) Checklists. Alas, having picked off the low-hanging fruit long ago, I find myself facing topics I know next to nothing about so we’ll see how that goes.

The other long neglected item is the Photo of the Week. Many of the remaining items require actual thought on my part (as in: I need to pick the poem/story to illustrate before I can take the pictures to illustrate it) which is always more problematic than the actual photography itself.

(As always, click to see larger)

Week 20

Nineteen down (thirty-two to go)

The main accomplishment this week was the successful conclusion to my son’s Lacrosse season – a season that saw the demise of scheduled canine homeschooling tuition time in favor of moments slipped in here and there as time allowed.

My goal this week is to re-establish previous tuition habits before something else (like gardening) sneaks in to fill its place.

Accomplished Last Week:

After reading a post in the Training Levels group, I decided to give Beau a try at 101 Things to do with a Box. He normally hates this game, but for some reason he was surprisingly willing. Perhaps the relative “neglect” he has been getting with regards to clicker-work made him more amenable to it that he usually is. Whatever the reason, he did so well (and I was so tickled) that I uploaded the video clip soon after.

Zachary has quite a few 101 Things… video clips at this point and I hope to compile them together and release them next week.

Weekly Quiz: No surprises here – both dogs passed the first four items without problem (including sitting while the door was opened and closed!) and Zachary totally bombed the Sit after a knock on the door (it wasn’t even close.)

Extracurricular: TL4 – 101 Things…

Videoed: TL4 – 101 Things…

Released Video: Beau – Training Levels Four (Trick)

Blog: Call Your Dogs

Planned for Next Week:

Technically, this week should still be all about Canine Good Citizen, but I’m afraid if I don’t restart scheduled homeschooling time right away something else will create a habit in its stead.

Besides, I’m coming the conclusion that Zachary will probably pass most things on the test, but fail the Supervised Separation in spectacular fashion. I hope I’m wrong, I think this week in class will be quite telling, but I’m not at all optimistic.

(As always, click to see larger)