Dog Memory

[Edraith]

So a few weeks ago I attended a dog cognition seminar, all studies done at Duke. I knew my pup has good memory  -  hide a treat in the house, she will check all known locations quick before looking for where it is now, for example. Even if it was days ago. She of course scored 100% in memory tests.

I see this on courses - the second run of the round is often worse. She remembers the last time she passes through an obstical and which way she went after it, and will go with that - so say you go through a hoop then turn right, then later through that hoop and turn left. The time, she will want to go right. She really heavily predicts. There are times I look up and she's doing the last half of the prior run, becuase last time we came through there, that way was most recent! Often our misses on these double runs, are litterally, her running the 'right' course at the wrong time, totally oblivious to where I am. It cracks me up at the same time as being super annoying  I try to be on top of it, but she usually overcommits and takes at least one out of order before I get her back.

I was wondering, does anyone elses' dog have such strong memory and actually struggle with double runs? First one is good, and second struggles? Or if the same spot is gone thru in the same direction, especially two things in same order then a divergence, they default to how it was last time?

I know the saying is "it's humans' handling fault" but uh, yeah. Sometimes it's obviously something else too! Our dogs aren't dumb...and at least mine definitly has good memory and tries to predict - and has the confidence to commit and turn her ears and eyes off to me  If I miss R1, it was me screwin something up. If we miss R2, it is almost always her totally remembering&predicting the wrong course and doing what she thinks it should be xD

[Billie Rosen]

Interesting.  I think the dog cognition students are fascinating!!!!!  I have watched quite a few of Cameron Ford's webinars and it is really interesting to watch the dogs with strong memories vs. those with problem solving aptitude. 

[Edraith]

Yes, our SAR team hosted his cognition seminar earlier this month. Edraith was strong on both. If you follow his FB page you saw us in one the clips he posted, or I have it on my ig @sunguramy

[ricbonner]

Happens all the time.  We call it "patterning".  With a really sharp dog, after being handled through the same course as few as just 1 time, it can then run the course on their own.

We (the folks I train with) use this in training to proof handling cues.  We run a course, then run a course that is almost exactly the same except for 1 turn or discrimination.  The goal is to have the dog adhere to the cue rather than their memory or personal obstacle preference.

We also use this to build confidence and handling distance.  We run a sequence once with normal distance, then repeat the same sequence a few times with more handling distance each time.  Because the dog has their memory to rely on they know the path and usually become comfortable running out on their own fairly quickly.  Basically we lower the level of challenge of figuring out where to go (by repeating a path) and increase the challenge of working farther away from the handler.  So that way the dog can use all of its coping/learning capacity on dealing with the just the distance handling without the added cognitive load/stress of finding a new correct path.