After Memorial Day Weekend, I prepared to amaze you with a new video of Lilly showing off her trick called BALANCE. It’s essentially where she sits up like a chipmunk. It’s actually an old trick, but over the long weekend she suddenly could pop up from a seated position without any help from me.
That help? I had to pick up her front feet, cue BALANCE, then let go. As long as she is focused on something a bit above, she is fine. Sticks work better than toys or food.
I don’t know how it happened, but I thought FINALLY! Finally, Lilly can pop up into this position on her own.
I also assumed the new feat would stick, so I didn’t run inside for the clicker and cheese to make sure I could mark and reward the breakthrough.
Usually, once Lilly “gets” something, the clicker isn’t necessary.
Alas, I haven’t been able to get her to repeat the feat.
I tried to get a new photo of the finished trick, but the one day last week I had time to try, Lilly had her own agenda. Based on both her and Ginko’s behavior, I’m guessing there was a bear nearby. That smell overrode my requests 10 fold.
So, this photo taken a couple summers ago will have to do.
My Mistake?
I didn’t fade the help soon enough. It’s a classic problem. Do you know how to fix that? Or when is the best time to fade any “help”? I know the idea is to fade early, but how early?
Maybe I should have called this post: Can this trick be saved?
Unicorn of Lilly Training
Perhaps an unassisted BALANCE will enter the hallowed halls of never-to-be-seen again … kind of like that ONE time Lilly did the agility teeter without fear.
Well, KB … I’m going to try Laurie’s ideas when I have the patience for it. Nothing worse than trying to train a sensitive dog, if you are at all crabby.
I’d never exactly identified the problem as “fading the help too late” – but I think that I make that mistake all the time. The hard part is that with a dog with fears (like K), failing at a trick can make her scared to ever even try again. So I help and help and help.
I guess that I’m NO help to you on when to fade the help, except that it needs to be earlier than I do!
Actually, Laurie’s advice sounds really good. I’m going to try to implement it with the almost impossible caveat that I can never let K fail…
Good ideas, Laurie. I’m glad you didn’t just tell I’m completely screwed. :o)
There are two ways to approach this, I’ll post my favorite one.
Give her less help with each successive trial. For instance, do it your regular way the first three or four times – the full “help.” Then on trial #5, try to exert less help. So if you’re actually picking her feet up in the first 4 trials, how about just tickling her feet in trial 5. And have your clicker handy! So that if she even *begins* to rise up, you can mark it and reinforce it.
Continue with the reduced level of help, and even fading/reducing your help as much as possible, clicking (of course) every time she helps out by popping up.
I’d keep sessions short — count out 30 treats or so and stop when the treats are gone.
Once you get to the point where she’s anticipating your help and moving on her own, I’d then go ahead and add the cue. Say the cue first, right before you think she’s going to move on her own. I know you already know this. 😉
Debbie, I’m trying to fade my help (as in picking up her feet and helping her into the position). I’d like her to hop up into the BALANCE position without my physical help.
I’m a bit confused. What cue are you trying to fade?
Why not just go back to using the clicker and lure her into the behavior creating a large cue (a hand raising above her head or the action of helping her up with her front paws for example) with the lure and click for either the finished or parts of the behavior. You can then begin to refine that cue once she’s performing the behavior routinely.
I try not to assign a verbal cue to a behavior until I know that the dog actually has the behavior down.
What don’t I understand?
I have no answers for you, but I feel your pain …:)