Puppy news!
March 28, 2011
Betty dancing!
Thursday morning course of classes came to a fun end with a competition over a baby agility course! I spent most of the morning giggling as I watched my clients become competitive, obviously in the nicest possible way, but it did lead to some funny moments! We had a spare pair of hands for the older group for some action shots!
Harley and Rosie in the baby class are very much in love, sadly poor Lexie just got to look on as they didn’t seem to notice she was there! Harley played so gently with his little girlfriend!
I hope you appreciate Betty’s new trick, she dances round the kitchen now at feed time, sometimes it looks just like dancing, sometimes waving, on occasions she stays in a sit and waves her paws! I am hoping to get a command for all of those in timeJ it all started as a high five!
Marion and Sid
Georgie and Lara
Naomi and Nelly
Phil and Scruffs
Naomi and Nelly
Pie and Mel’s babies!
March 26, 2011
Here is a photo of Pie and Mel’s babies, I think they look like Pie already, fat and gorgeous :)!
Smita sent me a lovely photo of Harley, a GSD puppy some of you will have met on a Thursday morning! Harley is growing so fast, he is going to be a really big lad and is already a great example of GSD with an amazing temperament, a real credit to Smita and the breeder!
Thanks to Graham for another brilliant photo of JJ and you! JJ is another ambassador for his breed, he is such a big softy!
I have got behind with the blog again this week, I had a small eye operation that went really well but I had booked some time off work and Annie came over to drive me back and forth! Amazingly well-timed time off with the weather we have had this week, Annie and I had a lovely time sitting in the garden soaking up the sunshine!
The worst thing that has happened is I broke my phone and being off work I hadn’t done a back up of my diary!!! For anyone that has an appointment booked could you ring me please to confirm, in case I have forgotten your appointment?
Pie and Mel's babies!
Harley is growing up! (Thursday morning class)
JJ and Graham!
Teaching dogs to come to call! and photo’s of some new clients!
February 28, 2011
The slide show of photo’s are 3 dogs belonging to Amy, they are one Dachshund called Monty, one mini Dachshund Mikey and a gorgeous Chihuahua called Henry!! In case you haven’t guessed Henry is my favourite 🙂 and Amy now sends me regular photo’s of him!!
The recall subject is not to do with them but I wanted to show you the photo’s 🙂 Amy does seem to have a gift!
I was thinking about recall after Jane had asked on the last blog, as you know I spend a lot of my working day teaching recall and I also have to teach my dogs to be good at coming too! As I walked by the lake last week I could see 2 Mallard ducks some way ahead of us sitting still. The dogs hadn’t noticed them, mostly as they were still, I knew that as we got closer the ducks would take off. What I didn’t want was for Pie and Betty to chase them, I do not let me dogs chase any birds or animals if I can help it to keep their recall strong! I knew that if I had Betty and Pie thinking about me and along with that their brains in gear I would have a chance, I called them both to me, rewarded and continued, I repeated the recall a few times and threw in a few downs on command too. I had a pocket full of tit bits of course, so they were both rewarded generously. As the ducks spotted us and took off I had just called the dogs, both dogs responded to me and did not chase the ducks!!! A big test for Betty, but one that I helped her to resist in every way I could. If she had failed I would not have been upset with her, but I would have known to work a lot harder, as it is I will most likely get complacent and have to work harder later in the year 🙂 but for now we are on track!!!
I have sadly neglected the blog over the last 2 weeks, I have been busy at work but outside of work I have been creating a few little drama’s that have kept me really busy!! I usually keep this to dog training but I feel like sharing today:)
First I crashed my car, I know that no one hits anything in a car on purpose but I was totally stupid! I was in a car park at night, there were some boys playing football and in truth I was looking at them rather than where I was going, concerned that the ball may come my way and with it one of the children, bang I hit the lamp-post, I wasn’t going more than 10/15 miles an hour and you should have seen my poor car:( not good!
Since the holidays I have had 3 colds on the trot, yes 3 just as I was getting over one the next one started! I feel very uncomfortable in my work constantly blowing my nose, and yet that seems to be most of what has been happening since Christmas!
And just to add insult to injury when eating my tea, that I had cooked including the filleted salmon, I got a bone stuck in my throat! I have been eating fish for years and never have I had that happen before, but it was well and truly stuck! I won’t go into details but needless to say I did try to remove the bone! The next morning I was still suffering and rang the nurse, who recommended going to A and E, so off I went. 4 hours later, having had a camera down my throat, the bone was still hiding and I came home! I feel like my year so far has been a comedy of errors! Roll on February:)
In between my personal drama I noticed that spring is on the way and spring makes me smile :), there is a change in the air, the sap is rising, the birds are singing and the ducks are pairing up on the lake. I so love my home, the countryside gives me a constant source of entertainment, yesterday a Fox ran passed as I was getting dressed, a big red chap with black tips to his fur. I ran to another window but couldn’t see him, returned to dressing as he returned along his first path, hot on a scent and he spent a few minutes checking out the possibilities, giving me lots of time to watch him:)
This morning as I crossed the front paddock a Monk Jac deer shot out and ran along the fence, looking for an opening gave me precious moments to study her and to recall Pie and Betty, I was so pleased that Betty responded to me:)
It is very important to me that my dogs do not chase or harass the wild life. At this time of year coming into spring the deer could be pregnant, I would not want my dogs to cause her to abort. It is all too easy to forget that wildlife reproduce and if dogs chase them, there off spring is put in danger. I am not sure how anyone can let a dog think it is okay to chase deer and yet leave sheep alone, and I don’t recommend trying that one.
I am glad to hear some of the puppies at class are also managing to recall and not chase, keep it up!!!
And here are some of the new Puppy’s attending classes!!
Betty learns to get in the car all on her own!
January 10, 2011
Betty is fairly light so I haven’t felt the need to teach her to get in the car on her own, but I noticed this week that I was being a bit silly especially as she can jump like a stag when the fancy takes her! I think that she is the right age to learn now too, I worry about the soft joints on puppies up to about 8 months, from an agility training point 12 months is the youngest age I would start them, but for a heavier breed I would wait even longer! For jumping in the car eight months seems perfect, plus the weather on Sunday was great and I had a lovely time outside dog training for the first time in some weeks!
Teaching a dog to get in the car is no different to any other training exercise, correct help, food and repetition makes perfect! I had Betty on the lead and a pocketful of titbits. I began by showing Betty the food and threw a titbit into the boot of the car, she put her front feet up to look, but made no attempt to jump in, I put my hand under her bottom and gave her the minimal help, obviously once in she could eat the titbit, I praised her and asked her to get out again. I repeated this several times, still she made no attempt to lift herself, she needed a bit more of a clue! I moved away from the car and ran at the boot, as we arrived I gave a lift on her collar and she jumped in! We repeated this until I did not have to use the lead at all, each time I praised her and gave her a treat. I took her out in the car to train away from home, when we were ready to return she jumped in the car herself! Job done, as long as I put her in the car daily for a week or so to ensure she remembers!
While talking about cars, Betty travels in a crate, a soft one that is secured in the car, so that in the event of an emergency stop or worse, neither Betty or crate will hit me in the back of the head. Pie always wears a dog harness secured in the back to make him safe also. Please make sure your dog is secure in the car, I do not want to hear that one of them has caused anyone an injury nor been injured because they were travelling loose!
Megan, Betty’s sister!
January 7, 2011
Thank you Sue for sending the photo’s of Megan!
Pie the stud!!
January 5, 2011
Well my poor Pie I maligned him, he is a stud!!! Annie came over with little Mel again and he did his duty, with some enthusiasm, though it seemed to take me lifting him on to her back for him to remember how to do it!! Annie was not at all complementary about him, but as she is Pie’s breeder it is all her fault anyway! 🙂 And at the point neither of us thought it was going to happen I told her she could have him back! When I realised that was unlikely I told Pie that if he wasn’t going to use them he could go to the vet for castration! Maybe that is what did the trick:) We will see, hopefully around the 7th March.
Some photo’s of Betty with Mum Gracie and Daddy Pie!
Avril Munson's Blog 