Back on Track

I'm not sure who is more excited, the dogs or I. After almost a 4 month break from any formal agility we're shaking the rust off and getting back into the swing of things.

Monday night classes started up in the barn again 2 weeks ago and have been a absolute riot.

First class was awesome - I almost face planted when I tripped in the sand and then almost impaled myself on a jump standard messing up a front cross. I wish I had video to post of what a gong show it was!

After that near disaster I figured I should probably hit the training field one more time before the snow flew. Just to work the kinks back out of my handling so I can run and tell my dog what to do at the same time! So out to Wet Noses we went. The boys were SO excited to be playing. Baxter especially is super enthusiastic and happy to play after some of the relationship and enthusiasm building things we've done on break.

Second class went much better. The boys also didn't play fetch for a hour during the day before class so Baxter actually ran, did single stride weaves and was pretty darn quick. Spencer is doing awesome as well. Still some odd baby dog moments but I'm doing all that I can to build enthusiasm and confidence with him. Currently out of the 3 runs we get in class, Spencer gets 2 - first and last. I've been starting him at 6" and then jumping him at 10" for his second run. He seems happier at 6"? I might just drop him to Specials and be done with it. There really is no reason to jump him 10" especially with his knee.

We FINALLY actually attended a trial as well! As a warm up before we get back into full weekend trials we hit the Oct Wee Wed at WetCreek, running Master Standard and Team Relay.

Happy boys

Spencer was funny, but happy and confident running FEO at 6" Some more silliness on course where he didn't listen to handling and blind crossed me to take a off course a couple times. But I can work with that. I'd rather the confidence to take something of his own accord than for him to be worried that he's wrong.

Baxter tho, he was on fire! Such a happy boy! Standard was a nice, fast run, with single stride weaves 4.21 yps - WITH weaves. Fastest course/best yards per second yet!

Running goobers @ Summer Lake 

It was really nice to have people come up to me after and remark on how much faster he has gotten. Hopefully we can keep it up. He doesn't have the best structure for weaves with the longer back and short, stubby legs. But we've worked on speeding them up and making sure he has good core strength so that he hopefully doesn't hurt himself either.

Team relay was also really nice, although we didn't end up qualifying. Fun thing I haven't thought of before though - if the dogs have a huge height discrepancy  (like 26" and 6") you shouldn't end up with the dogs taking off course jumps (hopefully!)

Getting excited for the CAA November trial next weekend!

Laters!

Worth 1000 Words: V

So warm today, reminded me of summer ...

Loved, loved, loved camping with the dogs this summer! They loved it too.

While we were camping at Farragut State Park back at the end of July the boys were crazy active. I couldn't keep weight on Spencer and Baxter lost 2 lbs that I didn't think would ever come off! Penny was active, but didn't want to spend her entire day at the beach playing fetch.

Love having little dogs that like to swim. However, I don't feel very comfortable with them swimming in water with much of a current. The lake was perfect!

Tugggggg!

Shake

Not just hair.

Hot'n'happy!

Princess' prefer sun worship, rather than water!

Happiest little campers!

Giving Thanks

Today I am thankful for my furry little family. I wouldn't trade them for the world.

My journey and life would not be the same without them. Through thick and thin. Despite unexpected detours, dead ends and occasional 4x4ing off the beaten track of normalcy, they've absolutely been worth it and made it all worth it.

Despite their little quirks and oddities. Despite fears and ingrained temperament issues. Despite everything.

It's not about the destination, it's the journey that matters. I might not know where I am going, but it'll be interesting to find out when we get there!

Good dogs <3

Generalization in Training

 aka what they learned isn't always what we taught (or thought we taught.) Look what I found! Or in this case, remembered. More things I was going to blog about and then completely forgot.

Oh weave poles. Where to begin?

Since weaves were very difficult for me to teach Baxter, they were actually the first obstacle that Spencer learned. I figured if he could learn that, he could learn anything and possibly actually play agility - he LOVED them, and the rest as they say is history.

By that time I had 2 sets of 6 weaves, 1 set of 3 2x2's and 1 set of just 6 weaves, making 12 poles altogether. They have the thin little bases (about a inch across?) not heavy duty weaves by any means. Heavy duty weaves are the ones you will sometimes see in trials, depending on how much money the club has sunk into their equipment. Most of the clubs around here (2x4, Training Troop and Calgary Agility Association) have heavy duty weaves. The bases are a couple (3?) inches wide and the metal is way thicker, so that when the big dogs go through the weaves they don't bend all over the place and rip the stakes out
of the ground.

After I started trialing with Spencer I noticed that he was often very worried about the weaves, to the point where they are a least favorite obstacle (teeter and chute rank right up there too.) Which I found odd, as he LOVES them at home, and in the different green spaces I go practice at.

Not quite this amount of drive for weaves at a trial ...

Sometimes at practice or in trials he would be fine and other times not so much. I couldn't narrow it down to figure out the issue. Is it his leg/knee causing the issue? The angle of entry? Onside, offside, indoor venue, outdoor venue? What?!

Then Regionals. We'd done a few lessons prior to them and I had some good suggestions that were working well on improving his weaves in practice. At Regionals he was fine - however, that was the first time I noticed a correlation in between the weave bases and his performance. All 3 rings at Regionals were running thin weaves.

Fast forward to Nationals, or specifically the warm up ring at Nationals. The weaves had thick bases. My baby dog acted like he'd never seen a set of poles before in his life. At the time I didn't realize that toys are okay in the warm up ring, so I had nothing with me to use as a reward. Tried a few obstacles, then the weaves. Nope. Not weaving on those to save his life. We spent the entire time in the ring trying obstacles - weaves - more obstacles - more weaves. Nope, nope, nope.

Weaves? What weaves? I've never seen these before

After the debacle in the warm up ring I also had Steeplechase, just to warm both dogs up to actually running at the venue. Spencer's ring had thin weave bases, so I thought we'd be alright even if the course was 2 x12 weaves. Nope! Since the last time I tried to get him to weave was on those weaves with the bases that were apparently going to kill him, he refused twice on the poles the first time through until he realized that they were thin bases and then all was well. 2nd time through the weaves, not even a moment of hesitation since he knew they were "safe."

So, on to making the weaves at home harder and the bases more noticeable so that the don't phase him in a trial - and then to take that show on the road!

Fluff vs Squiggles

Sidney (aka Squiggles) is my parent's dog that they got to replace Baxter after I kidnapped him that fateful long weekend some years ago. She isn't the easiest little dog to get pictures of, but these didn't turn out half bad. There is more about Sid in Replacement Baxter. But really, you can't just replace Baxter, he is irreplaceable!

I don't mind Shih Tzu crosses, although I will probably not own one. My childhood dog growing up was a sweet Shih Tzu mix with a little smush face. He was cute when his fur was longer and he looked like a teddy bear - he was less cute when shaved bald like a rat with a fluffy tail. Calvin was a good little dog. Sid isn't quite my idea of cute, but she has a good heart and is a friendly little thing when she stops alarm barking at it.

In the end, I think my parents (or at least my Mother) is happier with this deal. Baxter sheds, Sid doesn't. Mom hates fur!

Full Frontal ... 

Tongue shot!

Little faces

I love my goofy Fluff!

Bronze Award of Merit & Trial Review

Oh wow, so this is 2 months late but, better late than never, right?!

Baxter earned his first post ATChC title, the Bronze Award of Merit at the Nationals warm up trial on 20-July before we left for vacation and I didn't even realize it. He also finished his ExSt Bronze at the same time. I might not have even realized it now, except someone told me at Nationals!

In my defense though, I didn't realize that Challenge Q's can count towards Standard runs once you are into post-ATChC titles. I knew he only had a few more standards to go, but I thought we still needed 3 to finish both those titles. Hyper Hounds trials are good luck apparently.

 I guess it's good that we got something out of his 1 qualifying round out of the 6 we were entered in.

They were nice courses. There are some judges out there who just make some really nice courses, there is still a challenge, don't get me wrong, but some courses are just more fun than others. These were nice courses. Baxter ran well and should really have come away with 3/6, but he was called on a dog walk contact that I thought was alright and then he was over time on a jumpers course. Either way there were some nice moments in all of them, some good distance on gambles (just not on the main gamble of course) good weaves on the standards.

This is the second time that he has been over time on Jumpers and it concerns me a little. There were no obvious bobbles or sloppy, loopy lines/handling. Maybe I could have been faster, I'm not sure? Maybe it was just that he was a little tired coupled with how crazy hot it was. Maybe I'll have to make the move into vets sooner rather than later. Hopefully it was just too hot for him.

I had also entered Spencer in the 6 runs, which I should have known better. He doesn't have very good heat tolerance and I usually only run him in 3 a day at a regular trial. Why I thought 6 was a good idea is beyond me looking back it it. I also didn't fully realize how bad he is in the heat, so at least this showed me exactly how little heat tolerance he has when working (as opposed to chasing a ball in a field) before we went to Nationals. I ended up pulling Spencer from his last 2 Jumpers runs because he was not looking happy at all. I know I can probably drag my unwilling dog around the course, but I want him to run with enthusiasm and be happy out there!

So we pulled. But I learned a few things. That's what it's all about right? The journey. Slowly we're getting there, my baby dog and I. He's getting more confident as time goes on. Kind of reminds me of this article I recently saw posted on Facebook. No we're not perfect, but we're learning as we go.

We also had fun hanging out at the BBQ after the trial. Spencer got to play, or at the very least interact appropriately off leash with 6 Shelties. Baxter was okay with it until we went in the house and he was supposed to stay outside, and Penny didn't get lost (she's tiny, it's often a concern!)

Time Flies

Today was Training Troop's Aug Wee Wed Trial. Steeplechase and Master Jumpers. 2 years ago about this time Baxter and I entered our very first AAC agility trial (first dog performance event period) and got his first Q ever in Starters Jumpers.

It would have been nice to have gone to the trial, however, agility (trialing at least) is on a bit of a hiatus at the moment.

It's certainly amazing how time flies. It certainly doesn't feel like I've been playing this game for 2 years!

2 years of learning how play with my best little fluffy buddy in a meaningful way, to teach him, motivate him and to grow my relationship with my dog to where it is now. The changes  and personal growth in the 2 years have been pretty amazing.

I was looking back on old emails, and found the one for our first dog class. 15-Jul-2009 started us on this journey. It's been an amazing 4 years so far and I'm so lucky from a "pet dog" person perspective to have found positive training and gotten onto a better track.

I couldn't have asked for a better partner to learn with either. Thanks Fluff. <3