Mirroring and immersion training

We know we all learn from "mirroring". We do it almost automatically or unconsciously. Ever notice how when people are standing around talking, we often end up in the same stance. If one person is crossing their arms, very often the rest will, too. If one person rests on one foot, soon more in the group with, too. It's fun to watch that stuff happen.

Animals do the same thing. Like when one dog picks up a stick to play, so often the other one will, too! Mirroring.......it's just something we do. - Not sure if I can call my weave pole training this morning as mirroring? I have done this before.....run Roscoe right ahead of Spur, to speed up Spur's weaves. Spur gets worried at times, and even though he loves his weaves and is quite good at them, we lose speed when he is worried. Run Roscoe through them ahead of him? NO worries, man, he ROCKS.........screaming after Roscoe doing the fastest, nicest weaves!!! It's useful, I think. It's amazing, really. I need to film it.

Immersion training? What the heck? On Patricia McConnell's blog she mentions that......

"IMMERSION–patients are immersed in therapy. Standard physical therapy was one hour a day, several times a week. In contrast, this therapy uses what they call “massed practice,” in which patients work for 3 to 6 hours a day. Think of how fast people learn a foreign language when they move to the country in which it is spoken, instead of practicing an hour a day…"

Good GRIEF, can you imagine? 3-6 hours of training? OK, no way, I can train and I have stamina, but 3-6 hours? NO. This reference is about working with stroke victims to help them regain the use of parts of their body.

However............I do think it may be useful with some of my work. As you know, my never ending quest for answers to Spur's running contacts brings me to wondering WHY am I having such a hard time with it. I can teach a dog to weave. My dogs weave. They love it, they know it, they weave. No wondering what's required, they weave. I wonder why I can teach a dog to weave SO well, so quickly, yet I am really struggling with running contacts. Roscoe was solid on weaves in two months. Seriously solid! Spur, about four months. Not solid, but really good. OK, so one thing I did was a sort of immersion therapy (training). I trained twice/day for five minutes. Every day, for two months. Spur, I did it for four months. Maybe if I had trained four times/day with Spur he would have been solid in two months? The training is short, seriously like five minutes each session. Can I use immersion training with Spur's contacts?

Maybe! I tried it last week. We had really good weather, so I could training every day. I decided that since he was really happy doing it, and since I have really messed up his contacts (he's quite good at running at top speed and missing it - bad trainer!!!), we could train up to 8 times/day. Five minutes only, but that many times. I never did manage to get in that many, but I think one day I did 7! The most repititions we did were 10. Most were between 5-7 repititions. I am using the electronic hit-it board. He is getting it. Getting it quite good now!

Me? I am sore. All that running, OI! I know, it's only like 5-7 times the length of the dog walk, but Muffin Heads, it's SPRINTING. I am sore.

Today I tested my training. I brought it to a new location. DAMN, he did it five times BRILLIANTLY !!!!! We had to do one re-do where he DID hit the contact zone, but not the hit-it board, so the beep didn't occur. That's fine, I just continued around and did it again, BEEP = JACKPOT!! YAY!!!! He isn't at top speed, but he loped each time. Not once did he trot, so I am feeling pretty pumped about things!!! I think he is really starting to understand. I think it is working. He seemed SO proud of himself! I was happy, he was happy, OH happy day!!!

My "immersion training" will have to wait a few days. This bad weather isn't good for running his dog walk. But, I am feeling like MAYBE we are on the road to getting this. FINALLY!