Countdown - 11 days!

The good news is that with a modest amount of work last night I managed to fade moving my feet from the "finish" command (at the end of the recall the dog sits - straight! - in front of and facing the handler, and then on finish command moves into heel position, sitting by the handler's left side).  Yay Sealy!    Dogs finish either with "flip" on the left side (moving towards the handlers and then pivoting) or a "swing" (moving forward to the handler's right, and pass behind the handler's back, ending up sitting by the left side.)   I've taught Sealy both ways to finish, but always liked the flip better, so worked last night on fading my feet for that one.  A little bit of work, quite a lot of success!   One goal down, three more to go - now my goals are to work on with Sealy in the next ten days are:

 

1) getting Sealy to have a quicker, straighter automatic sit during the heeling and figure eight exercises (I tend to drop my left shoulder back, and could do a better job easing into the halt with my footwork);

2)  a semblance of a straight front after the recall (as opposed to bouncing off me);  and 

3) getting more distance away from her on the stand.

PS Today marked the usual "boom" of the change of seasons here in New York.  It's hot like summer!  (Although not yet humid, thank goodness.)  Tomorrow is supposed to get up to 89.  Way too hot, way too early to my way of thinking, but then I actually do like snow...