Does Virtue look stressed in this video of our training from today?
Q: Today, Virtue got to play off leash at our training facility. We got 2 turns as did my daughter and her pup. My daughter and our pups were the only ones there. This video is from our first turn. I cut some of the video (about 20 seconds of sniffing the crate area) because of the time limit. We were to complete a sequence, reward with play and then release Virtue to investigate and hopefully see that the crating area is not a scary place. The trainer stepped out of the building for our first turn and watched through the window. At one point in the video, I go to the door to ask her a question and you can see her in the window. I felt really good about today’s training and wanted to see if you thought that Virtue looked relaxed.
https://youtu.be/NUidUgCe274
A: No. Virtual doesn’t look stressed. Tell me why? What made you feel good about today’s training? Be specific. What do you see in Virtue’s behavior to tell you that he is relaxed, engaged, and responsive?
Now, it isn’t an all or nothing answer as stress vs relaxed is a spectrum. I’m going to say he is relaxed overall in this video. Virtue responds to his cues. He visually checks in with you. He engages in play and shows minimal to no response to environmental distraction. The muscle tension he shows is consistent with a dog working. His movements are smooth and fluid. It’s a distance view, but tail position is either high over his back or down and neutral. Ear position is typically forward. Now, there are moments Virtue tightens up a bit. Minute 1:13 his tail tightens down. He does put his ears into a lateral position periodically. That can be because he is listening for you and that can be a stress behavior. Any stress behaviors I am noting are none to minimal and he maintains his responsiveness to cues throughout. His eyes are either on his next behavior or he looks at you.
Resubmit with answers to the questions I asked for additional coaching if you would like.