Penny Pictures

Not so wordy today.  I was looking back through some pictures and found Penny's agility class ones.

Here she is on the table with very nice attention. She was a pro at the table.

Jumping. Bad shot, but it makes her look like she was goin' fast at least.

As usual, we were odd dogs out in class. Not the breeds or the usual size for agility. The Doodle owners there were pretty impressed by the Chi jumping 6 inches and less impressed by their dog trotting over the same 6 inches. Of course she had to jump! She's only 10 inches high at the shoulder, not 24+ inches like your dog. 

Gorgeous sunset driving home from class one night.

April Trials

It's been a busy 5 days! On the weekend (April 21 & 22) we went to the Fionavar K9 trial in Olds. Baxter handled the traveling fine, it was really only a hour in the car hardly more than he'd spend if we were going around town.

First and for most, he got his AADC title and a new ribbon for our wall. I though it would be fun to collect title ribbons from the different clubs around here and so far we're 3 for 3! We had qualifying rounds in Advanced Standard, Advanced Snooker and Master Jumpers. I didn't like Snooker for the longest time, finding it very difficult to plan my own course. However, now I think it is one of my favorite games!

Since we've been out of classes for a while now I'm finding it a little more challenging to run the courses. We practice different handling drills at home, but not full courses and certainly not full courses at a masters level like we do in class. Since we've been in Starters/Advanced for 9 months now I've been lulled into complacency. Not worrying about how to handle the course and not really been paying attention to making sure I know where I am going since starters and advanced flow pretty nicely. Masters is a little more tricky!

I blew one of Baxter's Adv Standard runs on the weekend by flipping in a front cross where I shouldn't have and then consequently pushing him off the table - oops. Then in the second master jumpers run I handled a serp/push thru sequence badly resulting in a E and might have missed a jump completely if someone hadn't  pointed out to me that I was missing a backside jump while I walked the course. Time to make sure I have my head in the game.

Last night (April 25) we had Training Troop's Wee Wed Trial as well. I entered in Advanced Standard even though we just got the title and a Steeplechase. It's a good thing that we did just get the title, since we wouldn't have last night. Again he isn't hitting his weave entry. Steeplechase went better, he nailed a hard offside weave entry but then missed the next one and popped out on pole 10. Otherwise his speed and enthusiasm are better at Wet Creek than anywhere else. Aside from the weave issues the steeplechase run was gorgeous, he worked away from me, with obstacle commitment and ran very nicely. He's getting it, slowly but surely.

The plan of attack? I'm going to add more speed into our practices with weaves, working on hitting the entry at speed and not just at a trot or from a standstill. Working a sequence of obstacles before hitting the weaves as well, like in a trial. Possibly opening up that first 2x2 so that he can see where he needs to go. I'm also going to hit up various green spaces for training not just the front or back yard where we've been focusing on.

Agility Trialing

I haven't been trialing very long with Baxter. It took us a long time to be ready. Well, it took ME a long time to be ready! He probably would have been just fine.

Part of the problem was, despite training in agility for over a year I had never actually seen a trial. SuperDogs at the Stampeed doesn't count. So last year when our trainer mentioned they needed volunteers I spent the day at AAC Regionals in Calgary. When you have no idea really what is going on, Gamblers is not a good course to watch to try to figure it out on your own. Thank goodness there is no Snooker at Regionals or I'd have really been lost!

So. Now armed with my idea of what a agility trial sort of looks like, I headed off to a Wee Wednesday trial put on by Training Troop since I was told they are a good jumping off point when you start trialing. Smaller, fewer people, less stress. Again, I just spent the night volunteering trying to get the lay of the land and figure out what I needed to do so that when I entered with Baxter I wouldn't be nervous and throw him off.

Our first trial was a Wee Wed on Aug 31, 2011. We were entered in Steeplechase and Starter Jumpers. I hauled my Dad along to hold Baxter since he doesn't love his kennel and I was worried about him stressing and shutting down because of all the strange people and dogs. He HATES pet stores and I didn't know how he would respond to the barn.

He did great! I'm sure I was a nervous wreck, but he was gold. We qualified in Jumpers! I was over the moon.

It was a pretty nerve wracking jumpers. The course itself was fine. But on our way out to the start line, the little dog the just came off (and was being leashed as we walked in) got away from its owner, tore up and jumped on/into Baxter - who was off leash by then. Now Baxter is not normally nasty, but when some little dog races up from behind and then jumps on him he sounds like he's going to kill it. I had a heart attack that we were going to get banned from AAC in our first ever trial because of "aggression" issues.

I will never again forget to make sure the dog before you is under control before you let yours off leash!

Since that day we've been in 5 weekend trials (4 full weekends and 1 partial) and 3 more Wee Wednesdays so we're still very new to the sport and Baxter is still figuring out the "game." The last few trials have been a little more challenging since my slow and steady dog has sped up a bit and I no longer can front cross everything and have to move it to get into position.

Baxter got his ADC title, the first title I've ever put on a dog in the Dec 2x4 Trial (Dec 10 & 11, 2011.) I was so proud of my little guy. We qualified in 6 out of our 8 runs in his 3rd ever trial including Snooker the first time I ever played that game.

It was a great turn of events from the previous trial, which was our first weekend trial. We only entered 5 out of the 8 runs since I was worried how he would hold up and how tired or stressed he would be. We didn't do very well. Baxter had issues focusing. I was upset because he didn't seem to want to run even though we run master level courses in our agility class. Despite the stress and unhappiness of this trial, I tried again, and boy am I glad I did!

What's up with all this talk about trials?

We've got another one this weekend. In Olds this time, not local. Due to extenuating circumstances I can't spend the weekend in a hotel out there, so we're driving out and back both days. Baxter isn't the best traveler, but hopefully he does alright.

I've got a Blog!

Ahh, that awkward first post. What to say?

I've loved dogs and dog stuff since I was a kid. My parents ended up getting the "family dogs" because of me. As long as I can remember, my favorite thing at the Stampeed (aside from the junk to eat and the rides of course) was the SuperDogs - still is actually!!

I always wanted a dog that could do that, but we'd never had a dog in actual formal training before and I didn't know enough about it to be able to find a trainer and start that journey. The family dogs did do some "agility" but it was mostly jump on or over that rock/log or walk across the top of the log. A lot of the "training" happened during family vacations when we were camping! Considering Mom has an issue with dogs that shed and I was accomplishing this with a Bichon x Shih Tzu I'm fairly impressed with it.

Fast forward and after losing Calvin (said Bichon x Shih Tzu) to congestive heart failure at 13 years old, the house was too empty. I worked in a pet store at the time and convinced my parents to come in and look at a puppy. They were actually supposed to be coming in to look at a black 4 month old Bichon x Shih Tzu, but she was adopted the night before. There was a kennel of little fur balls that had just come in. Little sable puffs with black masks. They were adorable, and terrified. Behold the powers of persuasion (and puppy breath) and Baxter came home with us.

Knowing what I know now, things might have happened a little differently. Baxter was shy, very very shy. He was terrified of strangers. We missed out on a lot of the early socialization that is so important. We had to kennel him for a week and a half when the entire family went on a cruise. The kennel freaked out at Mom when we went to get him saying that Baxter is going to turn into a fear biter and he needs strict training etc etc etc. He also came home a whole lot thinner than he had gone in, I think it took 5 days for him to start eating.

So started my quest for a trainer. When you're trying to find a trainer from outside the dog world it's pretty hit and miss. We hit with a positive reinforcement/motivational trainer that I looked up off of kijiji - we were so lucky. I still remember our first basic obedience class where Baxter had a little area blockaded off from the rest of the dogs - he would sometimes growl at dogs on our walks and I had been told he was "reactive" so I passed this along to the trainer. (Baxter isn't really reactive, he just has a low tolerance for rude dogs.)

A light bulb went off in my head.We learned about clickers and how to use them. We learned about positive reinforcement (R+) training. We did lure the dogs, but were taught about the difference between a bribe and a lure. Baxter loved it. Cookies to do something?! Score! Do something and he gets to play with his fav toy - he's there!

After obedience we signed up for agility classes and the journey began. My scardy-cat little fluff knew what I wanted him to do. He could do it! Chute touches you?! No problem, it was his choice to go in and he gets his ball when he gets out! He might only jump 6" but he tries and he tries for me. Agility has made such a difference in his confidence.

About this time I moved out, but had no yard so I couldn't take him. We kept up on his classes since I only lived 5 min from home. Then my parents went to BC for a week, so Baxter came to my house to be dog-sat. It worked out fine! No yard was no problem, so when my parents came home, Baxter didn't go back "home." Thankfully this has worked out okay, and they got a new little dog with less drive to play, who doesn't shed and just likes to be cute.

We all ended up with what we needed and there started our journey!