Yep,  another post..it has been a while but here goes:

I am training to get Val ready for her first Master APLA test in the Fall and would like some opinions (especially from those who have seen her work/test) on what I need to focus on, and what are the most common things/reasons young dawgs fail.......

Here is my (unbiased) opinion of her strengths and weaknesses:

-Marks: Grade: A-
-Desire: A+
-Nose: B+ (hopefully allergies won't be a problem in the Fall)
-Handling:  Land blinds: B+  Water: C+ (I grade this in regards to taking casts
-Point: B+
-Steadiness: D (in upland)  A- (on marks)
-Retrieve: A+ (always to hand with no commands..verbal or whistle)
-Responsiveness: A+
-Obedience: A

(By the way...Andrew agrees on the grades above)

I would love to hear your comments (judges..where r u?..Doug and Mike?)

Thanks,

Robert

what about blinds

He mentioned them, B for land and C for water.
Work on here steadiness Robert and water use your training tools and get her to take casts a little more reliable.

Note on casts. Max has been doing fantastic on water blinds and taking casts, Yesterday he refused a cast and got corrected, last time I had to correct him.

But I think you are there. Go visit Mike and let him observe.

Sending you a PM also.

Land Blinds: B+ She responds well, takes 99% of casts and is improving daily on sitting quicker...she has taken her time and "hooked" to the left on whistle sits but with some nicks with the collar, is doing much better.

Water Blinds: C+ I try to incorporate some "old fall" suction to challenge her in relation to responding to whistle and her line and casts...I do need to work on using the shore-line as suction to assure she understands she must take my cast regardless..

She does "bug" a little but only after we have run a couple of blinds (in a double-T setup) to the back pile..she can usually see the "over" marks...

Upland series, it's likely the one that gets the most dogs, that is just a guess.
On the blinds, are you running cold blinds ?
I assume you are. Your post is a bit confusing on that.

I would say your blinds have to be good, as they will include alot of suction from the marks and terrain to pull the dog off course. Also be prepared for a channel blind..

Upland steadiness, I see it fail a few.

From a scoring standpoint, steadiness effects you in at least two columns..... Steadiness and cooperation, so it hits hard.....

Depending on how a creep/CB is interepretted you can get hit pretty hard there.

Learned from expereince.

"most common areas dogs fail"

1) Blinds and 2) bird grabbing/steadiness in upland by far the top two, vast majority of reasons for failure. Blinds put more dogs out but that is probably only because if they dont get past blinds they don't go to upland.

I would not recommend running MPR until the dog is solid (test ready) in everything, particularly these two areas. It really helps to run some Senior or Seasoned events to get the dog use to $60 retriever tests before you drop twice that on an APLA event.  Count on any shortcomeings/ issues you see in training escalating in the excitement and distraction of a test environment.

Good Luck!

Most of the dogs Ive seen go out in tests fail themselves and were in a lot of instances in the position to fail before they ever got to the test because they just werent ready yet. That being said, the test is very difficult with the margin for a passing score in the masters very thin. As an amateur, I still consider myself very much a rookie handler and there have been tests Ive made the wrong decision in when to handle etc that have cost me a pass. I would set the expectation that a pass isnt the only measure of success. As you prepare and start to run masters the experience you gain as a handler can be a success as well. The APLA master test is as nerveracking and as about as much fun as you can have with your dog out side of hunting. Over prepare and try to underwhelm your dog with the test.

While limited, Id be more than happy to share what experience with these tests with you and Andrew. Give me a shout.

Upland and water sink more dogs than just about anything else. I would say water blinds being at the top of the list for water. Water is where dogs pass or fail in virtually all of the retriever games.

The majority of dogs fail because they are not ready. Not because of the test setup. Number two issue I would say is handler error. Do your training right and your handling will fall into place. It is an OJT deal. No amount of seminars or articles can take the place of experience. You have to pay the price on the line

Good Luck,

Gary

PRG

Thanks to everyone for the input. Val and I are still working hard but need to work on blinds with suction, steadiness, and upland...looks like we will be making trips to get some bird work b4 the test...

Something too that happens alot. When you are working on a problem area, don't leave out the other areas. There is a fine line with enough work on areas that the dogs needs work and maintaining the areas they are good. If you work on blinds more than marks and upland, your blinds will be great and marks and upland not so much. We all need balance.