Reply To: Lois & Monza (DRTDT)

[Alana McGee]

it’s us again….Today’s theme was “it?s hard to get good help these days?.lol

[b]Assignment[/b]: blind hides, outside.
[b]Location[/b]: enchanted meadow ? grass and leaves. Expanded search area to include the slightly sloped section.
[b]Hides[/b]: 4 blind hides. Monza is capable of counting so it?s time I start varying the number of hides. I use to have a target with food 10 steps into a track and when I 1st started moving it further out, Monza would pause at 10 steps, look back as if to say ?you forgot the target here?.?So I added a 4th hide.

[b]Assitant[/b]: My dear husband who is an engineer, and a stickler for detailed instructions, didn?t listen. To his credit he did 3 hides correctly. The 4th was in the edge of periwinkle crowded behind the raised beds.
[b]Run Order[/b]: Monza was 1st.
[b]Conditions[/b]: early morning, mid to upper 40s, foggy, damp.
[b]Aging[/b]: ~20 minutes

I cut out the 1st 3 minutes. Monza did great in the grass and found the hides in the sloped area first. 3rd hide was near raised beds in grass. Video picks up after we celebrate at 3rd hide and she heads back down to sloped section (so you can see the whole area).

Short story is Rate of Reinforcement plummets after 3rd hide because the 4th hide is a bit difficult and does NOT meet the criteria given to the assistant?.. I give Monza words of encouragement but it was 2-3 minutes before we found the 4th hide. I almost fabricated a success but my assistant does give some hints that we?re close so I stick it out.

You’ll see and hear my comments. Monza really does fine, I’m the one that’s almost a train wreck…. was getting a little anxious and end up stepping on the line, etc. I can’t stand the 40-foot line in these small areas, I may order a 20 footer.

I felt like I was controlling her too much with the line on. I was Soooo sure alll the hides were in the grass….

The good news, although I was quite perplexed as to where he placed #4, I decided to stay calm and see if she could find it. When she starts working behind the raised beds I?m thinking ?seriously?, he put it out THERE?…..? I cringe over the 4th hide wanting to have better control over WHEN it became more difficult for Monza. Plus I cringe over my line handling….it’s not horrible, but it’s because I thought she was looking for bunnies in the forsythia…..not a truffle at the edge…..

OH! I walked the dogs while the assistant set the hides. I left my ‘fabricated success’ hide on the brick foundation near the front door, ~2-2.5 feet off the ground. When we got back to the house, Monza starts air scenting and I remember what I left and I asked her “did you find something?” and she goes over to the spot, puts her feet up on the edge of the bricks and points it out. We had a big party. She was so dang cute about it.

Plan for remainder of week 3: do another set of 4-5 hides in another grassy area of the yard that’s slightly sloped. Then return to meadow and do 3 targets: 1 slightly buried and 2 in grass or 2 buried and 1 in grass? Comments?