Practice Session, 12.1.2025

 After a few days off for the holiday and a NASDA trial*, we were excited to get back to tracking!

Since our tracking at class (11/25 at Cool Water) went well, I tried to emulate the set-up of those tracks for our practice session. I had watched Susan carefully and made lots of notes; this unfortunately did not stop me from getting so absorbed in the pattern that I sometimes forgot to count how many steps I had actually taken. Happily, slightly lengthier tracks did not seem to pose a problem for Quinn and he was very enthusiastic and generally pretty focused.

There were other dogs, vehicles, and people around, all of which he tends to view as potential new best friends. I was pleased that even with such tempting distractions, Quinn refocused each time. Our "down" at the article was a little rusty but that's my fault for not getting more practice time during the holiday week. We will keep working on that. 

Weather/conditions:

Temperature: 37° F (Balmy!)

Wind: N 2 MPH

Humidity: 61% 

Overall: Pleasant and sunny

 

Track 1: Laid 10:12 AM, Run 10:31 AM

I thought we better do a warm-up run so this included a scent pad at the flag (no snacks, just extreme scuffing) and then about 30 smallish steps with food drop every 2 steps.

Track 2: Laid 10: 17 AM, Run: 10:38 AM

Having warmed up, my next goal was to recreate a pattern from class and see what happened. I did my best Susan impression (nowhere near as good as the real thing) and did 5 scuff steps, followed by about 10 sets of 3 steps, with food drop on the second step of each set. 

Track 3: Laid 10:55 AM, Run 11:05 AM

 

I was just going to do two tracks but the weather was nice and Quinn was super into it, so I decided to make tracks while the sun shone. Apparently I was also really into it because I lost count of my steps and kept going till I hit a good stopping point (based on terrain/landmarks.) I started with a scuffed scent pad with a little food (because he's a good dog), then scuffed 3 steps, food drop (repeat 3X) and then sets of 3 steps with food every third step. 

Goals overall: 

1. Re-establish regular practice patterns and habits
2. Test out track options learned in class
3. Give Quinn the opportunity to figure things out in a slightly lengthier session (both track and time/duration of practice.)

Three things the dog did well:

1. Focused and energetic but organized and manageable at the start flag each time
2. Adjusted to new patterns with more distance very smoothly
3. Noticed environmental distractions but regained focus each time 
4. Everything; he's an actual genius :-)

Three things I would like to improve:

1. Learn to count and walk at the same time (I'm not entirely sure how long any of these tracks were. I don't know that it matters to Quinn but it would be very helpful for record keeping and building distance in a logical manner!)
2. Stay patient until he is really tracking. (I think I did for the most part but in watching the videos back there were one or two spots where I think I got a little ahead of myself. I can SEE the next hot dog and I know he's about to get it, and I start moving a little early.)
3. Generally just getting in more practice. This is a challenge until busy season at my work (mid December) is over but to be fair to him, I want to make sure we both get plenty of practice. 

 * Quinn also competes in North American Sport Dog Association (NASDA) activities. We attended a trial on 11/28 and he put in 3 qualifying runs in Urban Locating (Level II). I was interested to see if he our adventures in tracking would have any effect on his performance. He seemed more confident than usual (especially in a new venue) and very focused, despite major distractions. We have one more trial (12/19- 12/21) and after that it's all tracking, all the time until spring!