Carolina in the "Almost Winter" = More Dock Diving!

Today dawned clear and in the 50s, so the dogs and I met up with a friend and her dog for some dock diving practice. Both Aeri and Kes are entered in their first national level event at the South Eastern Wildlife Expo in Charleston, SC in February, so the more practice we can get on the dock before the big day, the better!

We just practiced Big Air and Speed Retrieve since that's what they are both entered in, no EV this time around.

Notes:

• My throwing is in need of polishing after a break.
• Kes' jumps look very similar to those before our recent break, even with crappy throws, once he got back into his groove.
• Aeri is getting better about holding her stay for the Chase method I would like to use in Big Air.
• Aeri appears to not be watching the toy as she hits the end of the dock, which may explain her flat jumping style in Big Air.
• For Speed Retrieve, Aeri does better if I pull her back, allowing her to maintain eye contact on the spot where the toy went in vs. turning her around and walking her back, breaking eye contact.
• Aeri's swimming is much stronger and faster and she's much better about keeping an eye on the toy even during splashdown - I'm VERY glad I decided to enter her in SR as it'll be fun to see how fast she is!

Snipe was able to play in the lake a couple of times and, with the help of our friend's dog as a role model, she's starting to venture further out. She swam on her own (tho wearing a vest) several times! I'm hoping once the water warms up I can wade out with her and help her gain confidence in the water and when jumping off the dock. It'll be a while for that though, so we'll keep playing in the shallows until then! Light and fun is the way to go!

'Tis the Season

As 2011 comes to a close, I find myself spending more and more time looking toward the 2012 DockDogs season: planning events I want to attend, considering sponsorship opportunities, and looking at my dock diving goals for the next 12 months.

I figured sharing with our fans would be a great way to keep us accountable *and* share some fun stuff at the same time, so here's our list of Team Menapode 2012 Resolutions/Goals!

Team-wide:
- Erin trains for and completes her judging certification
- Attend at least 4 regional events: Carolina DockDogs' events at the Blooming Festival, Ole Gilliam Mill, and Lee County Fair, Dixie DockDogs' event at the Lake Lanier PetFest.
- Attend at least 1 national event: SEWE in Charleston?
- Sign enough sponsors to cover travel costs for all events.

Kestrel:
- Improve Big Air performance to achieve a regional Elite DockDog title
- Receive qualifying legs in Master or higher at a national-level event
- Improve Speed Retrieve personal best time
- Train for and successfully compete in Extreme Vertical at at least one regional event
- Enter IronDog competition

Aerten:
- Complete regional Senior DockDog title.
- Improve personal best in Big Air!
- Jump into the Senior division at a national-level event
- Enter Speed Retrieve in at least one regional event
- Continue to train in EV for a 2013 debut!

Snipe:
- Complete at least one Big Air jump in competition!

Fun in the Sun at the Lake Lanier PetFest

Our final competition of the season: PetFest hosted by Dixie DockDogs in Georgia!

Kestrel *again* pulled out a "longest jump of the weekend" award with a new personal best; a whopping 23'4" jump that also meant he was the only dog who jumped into the "Elite" category for the entire 3 day event! Yay for the original Red Menace! :D

Aeri was on fire and is now consistently jumping into Senior with jumps between 15' and 16'2" (also a new personal best for her).

A compilation video:


The event itself was a good one - cool, sunny weather both days we attended, a great friend to hang out with between waves, and a very welcoming host club! We'll def be back next year!

I'm so proud of the progress I've seen in both dogs during out first season of dock diving competition. We'll be training through the winter and are hoping to start jumping in competitions again in March or April 2012!

"Under the Lights" with Team Menapode: Part 2

We had a *fabulous* weekend!

Both dogs made the finals and placed second in their jump group (Master for Kes, Junior for Aeri) and KESTREL HAD THE LONGEST JUMP OF THE ENTIRE COMPETITION before the finals! Wooo!

Aerten's full video (had music but it's been removed :( )


Kestrel's full video:


Kes got to do Speed Retrieve again and while he didn't qualify for finals, he still performed well, tying his PB from Cherokee. We did try EV, but Kes didn't really understand the concept. In practice he managed to grab the bumper at 4'6", but in the actual competition he looked at me like I had 3 heads and stood on the edge of the dock and barked - we've obviously got a bit more training to do there before we're ready for Iron Dog.

Given how well the dogs did this weekend, and the prize money they earned paying for their entries and most of my gas, we've decided to drive down to an event in GA hosted by Dixie Dock Dogs. We'll be staying with my friend Heather, so it should be a fun time regardless of how the dogs do!

"Under the Lights" with Team Menapode: Part 1

Kes, Aeri, and I helped at the Carolina DockDogs dock diving demos at the Lee County Fair tonight. I figured that 1. it would be a great way to get both dogs familiar with the dock they'll be jumping off on Sat/Sun and 2. it gives us a chance to give back to our club and share the joy of dock diving with more people.

The biggest news? AERI JUMPED!!!!!!



At the last minute I threw Aeri's life vest in the car just in case. The vest has given her more confidence in the past and has handles that would allow me to lower her into the water if needed, so I figured it might be helpful.

As at the Cherokee event, Aeri didn't want to jump all on her own, but I held the handles and started to lower her into the water and she finished getting in on her own. The next round, I held the straps but she jumped on her own, and then after that I just threw the toy and she did the rest.

After a few nice vested jumps, I went ahead and took the vest off and that's where the video picks up. :)

Kes did nicely as well, especially given that the pool was set up at a *fair*, only about 100 feet from the food vendors, and after dark!

We had a ton of fun and can't wait until this weekend!

Casual Saturday!

The dogs and I got a chance to attend a fun day at a local pool yesterday!  It was a great opportunity to get Aeri jumping off of a low surface (the pool deck) and in a new place in preparation for our next event. 

Dogs are poor generalizers, so making things easy in a new location can often help a dog gain confidence in their performance faster than trying to get them to jump at standard height in the new place where the setting can be intimidating, especially if there are spectators and lots of noise like at most events.

I'm hoping the extra exposure and recent practice will help prevent us from having another "Erin goes swimming" Big Air Wave. ;)

Canine Cross-Training

The dogs and I enjoy activities other than dock diving, too. ;) One of our favorite fun activities is hiking, especially in areas where it's safe for the dogs to go off-leash. Hiking itself is a good workout for everyone - lots of running, jumping, navigating obstacles, and practicing obedience skills - but I realized recently that we can use these fun outings as opportunities to work on specific dock diving skills, too!

Enter my new cross training idea!

One of the trails we frequent parallels a wide, shallow river. This is *perfect* for working muscles for speed retrieve - Kes wades/swim-jumps through the belly-high water which means lots of resistance training for him. Inevitably Kes will end up swimming against the current as well, which also builds the muscles he uses to propel forward as it acts like a treadmill of sorts.




When we first started, I used a life vest for Kes' safety - I didn't know if he would know when to stop and the current can get fairly swift in some spots. He did very well in that first session, so on our second visit to the river I had him just wear his regular hiking harness. His stamina is already improving and he was just as confident without the vest as he was with it!

When we have someone to throw for me I also work on Kes' starts. I stand or crouch on the bank and try various holds to determine which allows him to get the most explosive starts.

In addition to working on muscles for strong swimming and practicing starts for speed retrieve and EV, we also work on balance and body awareness via the uneven river bottom - sometimes Kes can touch, sometimes he must swim - and the rocks that sit in the middle.


The swimming/swim-jumping is great exercise in and of itself and Kes loves it, so we now spend at least 45 minutes at one of the river access points on the trail each time we go.

Aeri hasn't had a chance to come along yet since she's in heat and thus can't be off-leash, but as soon as she's out she'll be joining us as well. :)

Dryland Dock Diving

With the new tool came the desire to test it out fully, so I worked with both dogs this morning.

Kestrel and I focused on finding the best starting position for SR and EV runs, building a cue for gathering himself before taking off, small jumps, and adding speed off the start.

Aeri and I worked on stays, finding the best starting position for SR and EV runs, and drive for the bumper.

Another invention

The EV rig is great, but without a base it doesn't help me much for groundwork on land. Team Southern Charm (you can find them on facebook) has plans for a base for the EV rig that looks quite promising, but I haven't gotten around to asking Scott if he'd be up for making one, so in the mean time, I'm exercising my creativity. ;)

I was at Target last night getting some odds and ends and saw clothing racks on sale - they are freestanding and fairly tall (5 foot ish), so for $9 I figured I'd give it a try.

This is what I came up with:

 This is the full set up.  The bumper is secured to the two ropes with binder clips and the ropes are adjustable by either the sliding knot near the top, or by untying the knot and tying the ropes shorter.

The base of the rack is supposed to have wheels, but since this is something designed to be as stationary as possible for my uses the wheels are still in the box.

I did have some trouble with the rack falling over when Kes pulled the bumper off the first few times, but that was solved by attaching the bumper lightly so it released more easily. You could also stake the rack down fairly easily using tent stakes and the base's cross bars.

Here's a close up of how the bumper is attached.  The bumper *is* moth eaten thanks to Kestrel's kill shaking prior to the video - I'm very glad I used the already damaged one for this!


The binder clips work so well that I may switch to using them instead of magnets on the EV rig too - even when barely holding the bumper strings, the bumper doesn't fall off with slight movement, an issue on the EV rig, and it also means there are no heavy pieces of metal on the ends of the bumper that Kes can bruise me with. ;)

Video to come later today or tomorrow - both Aeri and Kes got to try their paws at working with the new set up and I'm thrilled I got it on tape!

Stay (*not* staaaay.....staaaaaay........staaaaay.....) Part 2

Have a rock solid stay in all sorts of settings off of the dock? Now you're ready to start introducing the various aspects of your routine on the dock. 

Again, start small.  Can your dog hold position when you walk away a few steps away?  Half the length of the dock? The full length of the dock? When you're holding his toy?  What about holding position when you stop and turn toward them?  This pause and turn is often the cue many dogs see *right before* you give them their release cue, so many dogs creep or break here. Treat each of these aspects of your routine as a new distraction and train through them as needed.



If your dog creeps or breaks, use that information!  Next time, try breaking your action that triggered the self-release into smaller pieces - walking a shorter distance and adding a step or two at a time instead of 5', turning around 1/4 way instead of all the way, holding the toy still in your hand instead of swinging it, etc. 

A note about rewards for staying: The most powerful reward you have is releasing the dog to jump, so use it wisely.  If you *always* reward with a jump you further emphasize the pattern of "place dog - handler walks way - handler releases dog to jump" which will add to the anticipation. 

It is wise to keep your dog guessing, especially in this setting where anticipation of release can cause so many issues.  I often will walk back to Kestrel or Aeri to reward a stay - with a toy or food, whichever the dog prefers and you have handy - so that they learn that the pattern sometimes changes and their best bet is to remain in place vs. trying to anticipate what happens next.



Once your dog is at least 90% reliable with the full stay on the dock, you can start introducing consequences for breaking or creeping.  Your dog wants to jump, so taking that away usually is the only consequence you need, but how you apply that can vary. 

The simplest option is re-placing the dog and trying again.  If you do this, keep an eye on your dog as you walk away - a quick re-place is more effective than one that happens after the dog has already run half way down the dock.

A more severe response would be removing the dog from the dock completely for breaking or creeping.  You can do this immediately after the first break/creep or institute a "3 strikes rule" that allows for 2 re-places on the dock before removing them completely.  Having another dog jump before you try again can also be useful here.


Once you decide on what you'll do if your dog breaks or creeps, be sure to enact the consequence *every* time - if you occasionally give into the pressure of competition or impatience you will find that your dog is more likely to "test" your rules about stays while on the dock.  This is due to the power that random reinforcement has - the slight possibility of a reward will encourage your dog to gamble that the next stay is one that they can break or creep on and still get their reward!


In summary, keep the following in mind:

Things *to* do

• Be aware of your routine on the dock: how you place your dog, how you walk away, what you do with the toy, etc. and work on teaching your dog that they are not release cues, too.  Dogs are keen observers and often detect patterns we don't even realize we're creating, thus adding to their anticipation.
  
• Be consistent in your response to breaking or creeping. Dogs thrive on predictability and patterns and you don't want to create a canine gambling problem!
  
•  Have patience when training the stay and when responding to breaks and creeping.  Getting frustrated won't do anything to help you or your dog and can create negative associations with the dock.
• Practice, practice, practice!  The more variety in practice the better!
  

Things *not* to do:

• Never allow your dog to continue down the dock after breaking or creeping.  Running and jumping after a self-release will reinforce that behavior.
• Don't expect your dog to hold a stay in a situation with more distraction, distance, or duration than you've been successful with in practice.

Stay (*not* staaaay.....staaaaaay........staaaaay.....) Part 1

I had a fellow dock diving friend ask me how I train stays today, so I decided I'd create a post in case my suggestions can help others, too. 

My friend has a dog who enjoys the sport, but holding a stay is incredibly difficult for him in the high energy setting of a dock diving event and she was hoping for some tips that go above and beyond the usual "just take him back and reset him each time he breaks" advice.

The biggest challenge for a dock diving dog is maintaining a stationary position while the object of his desire (the toy) is moving away from him; he knows he will be released and he's often highly aroused just by the presence of the toy itself, let alone all of the additional distractions on and around the dock at a competition.  In general, the anticipation of the release to a strong motivator is the reason behind creeping or outright breaking of position on the dock.

A dog might have an awesome stay under distraction elsewhere, but the high toy drive that makes for a good dock diver will work against you on the dock!

Before you even start stay training on the dock, make sure your dog understands what you want from him in a lower key environment.  

I use clicker training to teach stays initially because the extra precision of the click as a marker can be very helpful, especially with busy dogs!

I start by asking for a sit (or down, your preference) and clicking as soon as the dog gives me the position.  The click/treat is the release at this point and the "sit" cue means "sit until you are released or I give you another cue" (implied stay). An implied stay eliminates the need for another cue (i.e. "stay") and removes the very human temptation to repeat the word stay over and over during the exercise. ;)

I gradually increase the time between the dog getting into position and the click/reward - I don't generally increase the duration by more than 2 seconds per repetition at this early stage.  As the dog progresses, I will ask for a shorter sit every once in a while to keep things interesting, rather than continually making the task more difficult for the dog.  I always start with duration, too, to keep things simple for the dog.

Once the dog is comfortable with 15-20 seconds, then I will add more time on each repetition (perhaps 5 seconds or so) and I will drop the clicker in favor of a verbal release cue.  The verbal cue is given exactly where I would've clicked, so it also acts as a marker in some respects; the reward is given after the verbal cue.

Be careful when choosing a release cue - many people use the word "OK", but then realize at a later point that they use that word in a lot of situations where it's not a release for the dog.  This often will require extra work to teach the dog what tone or hand signal means the word is a release vs just part of an unrelated conversation.  For around the house and on the dock I use "OK", I use "Free" in other more precise settings - this is just what works best for us. You can use any word you like, even "asparagus", just make sure you'll remember it when releasing your dog.

If the dog breaks position before the click or release cue, I take it as info to make the duration/distance from me/distraction easier rather than correcting. It is not the dog's fault that I increased my difficulty level too quickly.

I'm a firm believer that a dog breaking a stay during training is just them trying to figure out the game vs "disobedience"; it is up to us humans to figure out how to help the dog understand the exercise more clearly without assuming that the dogs "know better".  After a break in position I will often ask for a shorter stay immediately after, reward, ask for a stay slightly longer (baby steps!), reward, and gradually surpass the point where he broke - no need to "correct", just break the behavior into smaller parts!

Once your dog is successful with the basic stay training foundation you can start to add more difficulty, but keep it simple.  *Never* increase more than one aspect of a stay (the length of time, distance from you, level of distraction) at a time - your dog will struggle with the huge leap in difficulty.  Stay training should be a game for the dog, not something to be dreaded!

Video from our last event

I finally got the video of Kestrel's jumps at the Carolina DockDogs Cherokee Dock Warriors event uploaded! Enjoy!

In which the EV rig goes to the lake

The EV rig is now complete, so it's off to the lake to try it out! Both dogs were jumping up for the bumper on the rig at home; Aeri was so keen on it that I had to put her up to allow Kes a chance to try it out as well. Perhaps EV will be her fav dock diving element?!

(Video Notes: I call my dogs names, but in jest, I say "frick" twice in the video, and yes, Aeri is fine LOL)



Guess we have some more work to do. ;)

They're here!

The bumpers arrived speedily from Dokken in MN! The bumpers do NOT have magnets attached, so some finagling with attachment options was required.  I tried two main versions, pictured below:

Attachment type 1: Metal D rings tied to ropes

Attachment type 1: The D rings worked ok, but there was so little metal in contact at any one time that they didn't stick very securely to the magnets on the arm of the rig. Tying required a lot of the rope as well, making the bumper hang a bit closer to the arm than I would've liked.

Attachment type 2: Metal rope clamps

Attachment type 2: This ended up being the method I stuck with - the clamps were a bit tricky to put on securely (you need tools, not just your own fingers LOL), but once on, the additional metal in contact with the magnet makes this more secure. I do still need to play around with magnet placement to ensure maximum contact on the arm, but it's serviceable for now.

A note to those using these bumpers - they are NOT very durable.  Kestrel had one in pieces within a few minutes of bringing it to shore after a retrieve. Make sure you have a good "drop it" with your dog or you will need to buy a gross. ;)

On Air

It looks like I made it into a short Youtube video the Visitor's Info Channel put together for the Cherokee Dock Warriors event! My interview (and a Kestrel cameo) is at the end.  Please excuse the horrible hair - that's what high humidity does to a gal!

Vocabulary

Here's a short vocabulary list for those of you new to the wonderful world of dock diving dogs!  Terms are arranged alphabetically.


Big Air (aka BA): The most familiar form of dock diving. BA measures the horizontal distance a dog achieves when running and jumping off of a 40' long dock.  Distance in measured in feet from the end of the dock to where the base of a dog's tail enters the water.  The world record is currently 28'10".


Chase method: A technique that involves putting the dog in a stay on the dock, releasing him, and then tossing the toy so that the dog "chases" it off the dock. Often works best when the dog has a chance of catching it in mid-air.
 
Dock diving: The sport this blog is about. ;) In its most basic form it involves a human tossing a toy into the water for a dog to retrieve from the dock surface.  In competition it may include measuring distance from dock to the base of the tail as it enters the water, the speed with which a dog retrieves a bumper held at the end of a dock diving pool, and/or the height a dog reaches to grab a bumper suspended above the water.

DockDogs: My preferred dock diving venue! Splash Dogs, UKC, and Ultimate Air Dogs are other venue options.

Extreme Vertical (aka EV): The category of dock diving that involves seeing how high a dog can jump for a bumper suspended 8' off the end of the dock and above the water's surface.  The height is measured from the top of the dock to the base of the bumper.  The world record is currently 8'0".


Iron Dog: Teams that compete in BA, SR, and EV at the same event accumulate points to determine the top overall dog, often referred to as Iron Dog competition.

Place and Send: A technique involving tossing the toy into the pool before setting the dog up and sending him to jump.  This is often the method of choice for dogs new to the sport since it does not require a stay like the Chase method does.

Pond event: A competition that is held in a location with a natural body of water.

Pool event: A competition that uses an official DockDogs dock and freestanding pool.

Pop: A term that describes the height (or lack thereof) a dog achieves as he pushes off at the end of the dock. An optimal pop for a given dog should result in longer jumps in Big Air.

Speed Retrieve (aka SR): The category of dock diving that measures how quickly a dog can retrieve a bumper held at the end of the dock diving pool.  Dogs are set up at the 20' mark on the dock and released after a countdown or light signal.  The world record is currently 4.62 seconds.

The elusive EV bumpers

One of the toughest things I've found while gearing up for EV practice sessions is finding genuine EV bumpers.  The EV bumpers in competition are a nice foam material and have strings on both ends for hanging, but in all the sporting goods and pet supply stores I've been in all I can find are the stiff, bumpy vinyl bumpers with only one string (if any)! Argh!

I hopped on the DockDogs forum last night and found a lead I'll be following up on tomorrow: model #DDR1 is as close to an official DockDogs EV/SR bumper as one can find and it can be ordered directly from Dokken by calling (507)744-2616.  Bumpers are about $7 each and are not listed online.

Paws crossed that the bumpers are in stock and ship quickly!

Edited to add:

I called Dokken today and the bumpers were in stock and their customer service is great!  Two will fit in a flat rate envelope, 3 may, but if not will only cost a few dollars more, bringing shipping to somewhere between $5-$7.  I'm expecting to get them Wednesday or Thursday!

Hand-held Extreme Vertical Arm

Kestrel has finally shown more interest in the bumper used for Speed Retrieve and Extreme Vertical, so I'm planning on starting formal training for both soon.  He entered his first SR competition at the Cherokee Dock Warriors event two weekends ago, and while he didn't make the finals, he did well for having never practiced this format before. Now that I know he can do SR, I have my eye on EV and Iron Dog - Kestrel is entered in EV at the Lee County Fair event in about a month, so we need to start working!

The Menapodes and I practice at a local marina.  We're incredibly lucky to have our choice of docks with boat ramps for easy exits, but because it's a marina and not our own dock, affixing an arm for EV practice is not possible.  This means that we have to be a bit creative when it comes to tools for practice.

Enter the EV rig build project!

Needs:

• low initial cost
• light enough to hold in one hand
• ability to adjust height as the dogs progress
• as similar to the regular EV setup as possible

Supplies:

• 4'-8' extendable painter's handle
• 5' wooden broom handle with threaded end (cut to 3')
• threaded pvc elbow
• duct tape
• earth magnets
• d-rings
• EV bumper from Dokken

Assembly:

1. Assemble supplies

2. Screw handles together with elbow

3. Stick magnets to duct tape (keep dogs away - magnets are dangerous if swallowed!)

4. Tape magnets to fixed length handle; space them so that the tape is the same distance apart as the EV bumper is long.

Bumper ready!

Total cost was about $30, excluding the cost of the bumpers.  All of our build materials are from the local Lowe's home improvement store.

I'm waiting on my bumpers to arrive - more pictures and hopefully a demo video to come once they arrive!

What are Menapodes?!

I figured that we should get this question first thing since it *is* in the blog title afterall!

Menapode is the plural of "menace" which, in our crazy house, is a term of endearment for some of the hilarious dogs we share our home with.  Our house has 2 menapodes, but 3 dogs total - one dog is the "good one" and hence has not been given the "menace" title.  We <3 you Z!


Who are the menapodes exactly? 

The original 'pode is Kestrel, aka Stardog's It Happens, Red Menace, Kes, Kesserole, etc. Kestrel is an Australian Cattle Dog (possible mix) that our family adopted from the Spartanburg Humane Society. Kestrel was a most challenging puppy, but he's matured into an awesome dog and now is either in training or competing in dock diving (obviously), agility, disc dog, and schutzhund. Kestrel has never met a stranger and if you meet him you'll understand what it means to be "kessed". He's also a master sock thief with advanced "sock-dar" capabilities.

Kestrel at his first competition in Nashville, NC (photo courtesy of Uniwolf Photography)

 

 

 

 

Our "minipode" is Aerten, aka Aerten van Sinova, Minipode, Aeri, Canadog, Podeling, etc. Aerten is a Belgian Malinois from Sinova Kennels in Ontario, Canada.  She has been a dream puppy after Kes, but she does have her menace moments.  She's currently in training for dock diving (again, obvious) and schutzhund.  She likes to make her opinion known both on and off the dock as you can see! 

Aeri at her first competition in Cherokee, NC (photo courtesy of Uniwolf Photography)

More to come on exactly what Kestrel, Aerten, and I are up to in another post!