9 Years Old

It's my birthday. I should get to eat it. Not stare at it.

Further torture by making her hold it for a photo. lol

I wanted to get her a real ice cream cone, but that will have to wait until later today. She was pretty delighted with this giant cookie though! She ate the whole thing, and shared with no one. It's her birthday after all. ;)

In celebration of her 9TH! Birthday here are 9 interesting facts about the Woo. 

9. It's common knowledge, but still interesting- but she can open the fridge, the cupboards, pretty much anything she can get her teeth, or feet around.

8. She has no conscience. Consequence or Reward is of no matter to her. There is only momentary guilt at being caught.

7. She is a snot. A typical corgi. Friendly, nice to meet ya, and then walk away. Unless there is food. Or you are in her select group of friends.

6. She LOVES her friends. And will always abandon me in a hotel to sleep with the friend.

5. She used to hate cuddles. Now she chooses to sit next to me on the couch, or sleep next to me.

4. She hates her feet being touched. But will tolerate it for a cookie. But it better be a big one.

3. She loves to shred cardboard, and is obsessed with paper. She once ate my cable bill. I thought I had paid it, and then I got a notice in the mail...

2. She never gives up. Or Forgets. Cookie under the couch? No one rests until it is saved (eaten).

1. She Woo's when she is happy. Not a bark, not a whine, but a Woo. Hence her nickname. It melts my heart.

Happy Birthday Wicca!

Here's hoping for many more Birthdays and continued attitude, happiness, and Woo's!

5th Year!

1/52 Brit, originally uploaded by manymuddypaws.

This will be my 5th year participating in the Flickr group 52 Weeks for Dogs.

The group has not only kept me on track and motivated to take photos, but has also challenged me to become better with my camera!

In fact, I've only had my camera for about six years and my photos have come a long way. AND- I even take it off the Auto setting for the most part now. ;) I've never taken a class, but I fumble around or google, or ask friends when I need it.

This year Brit will be my project dog. She's a tricky one. Her split face is hard. Either over exposed, or too shadowy... But she is a fun dog so I'm sure I'll get lots of great photos this year!

2012 and looking forward

2012 was a hard year. A year of heartache, struggles, and change. It wasn't all bad- there were lots of laughs, good times, and great dogs. But for myself I found it a struggle.

Wicca was officially retired. October of 2011 was her last Agility anything. She came out one last time for Rally, and although in the moment it was fun I still have some guilt about the discomfort she felt afterwards. It's funny that she is everything I could ever want for in a dog. And her body gave up long before was fair. It was a heartache that took a really, really long time to get over. If possible I love her even more since her retirement from dogsports. It's hard to explain. But I am happy.  She is still happy, sassy and her normal bossy self. A Normal Dog Life.  I let her have free reign on off leash runs, and as long as she is not completely retarded on a walk she is mostly sound. I did say that I wanted to start tracking with her. And I never really got around to it. lol. BUT- I am signed up for a long distance Tracking Coach thing. I am hoping to get up to Calgary to meet with the instructor so I can get started. I do think she would love it.

Pixel was hurt. Pulled from Regionals after one day. Recovered. And then hurt again. She is recovered but will not be returning to agility. Although her Xrays came back great she is not structurally sound enough for the sport. The risk is too great for me. A hard decision but one that is right for me, and for the long term health of my dog. We did try for our CDX more than a few times this year. But we are still one leg away. Some confidence issues, combined with some physical ones made our time in the ring challenging in one way or another. She has matured a lot this year- and seems like she has finally grown up.  I have her entered in January for another go, fingers crossed our training holds up. I've started Utility training- it will be more than a full year of training before we are ready, but that will be what we are working towards this year! We are not training or working on heeling at all- she knows how to do it and I don't want to ask her to have her neck craned like that anymore than I need to. The utility stuff will be fun because there is so much MORE than just heeling. I'm looking forward to teaching new things to her. She's a thinker.

I stopped even pretending to train Brit for agility and switched gears to herding, herding, and more herding. With some obedience/rally thrown in for good measure. Agility is not in her future. (It's mostly me, not her- and a whole blog post on it's own) We will continue on this herding adventure- where I learn something new each and every time I go, and the feeling I get watching her work brings a smile to my face. I can't even help it- even when i should be getting after her I smile or laugh, or just watch her do something naughty. lol. It's hard to explain. But I love it and it is like nothing I have ever done.  Obedience is still something we are working on- heeling makes me nervous but at this point I am working on bringing her focal point lower- to my right hand. Hopefully this will be easier on her neck, and on my heart. I entered her in a Rally Advanced run in January- and am hoping to hit the Novice ring in the spring. 

And the boys. Vito had a pretty exciting year- earning a few Q's even! At this point he is the only dog I have that can do agility, and he physically is not able to do much. I worry about his crooked leg with anything more than once in a while. He's my buddy through and through. The dog ALWAYS at my feet. That's not about to change anytime soon.

Boone is Boone. A year of just being a dog. He goes through cycles of strangeness. And then back to a relatively normal, goofy dog. He's a funny dog who is happily going through life with little expectations and lots of fun. 

And myself. A full year of independence. Crazy really to think about that. I think I have changed the most this past year than in any other time of my life. I started thinking about myself a little, and not so much about everyone, and everything else. I lost passion, and then found it again in something completely different. I lost heart, and while I am still searching for it I can almost feel it. This year I have shed more than a few tears. But I am strong. I have discovered that I have an inner strength I didn't know I had. I lost confidence, in myself, my training, and my teaching. I am working on getting that back. But it has been hard. And will take some time to build. It's like I am rebuilding who I am. Finding myself I suppose- even though I am now 30 and should have known myself by now I think. 

Many things happened this past year to change who I am. But there are only two that I feel comfortable sharing with the universe. 

My mother breaks my heart. And I finally admitted defeat. I gave up, and although there is guilt with that decision I am happier for it. I love the person she is under the disease, but am no longer willing to watch it happen. Instead of trying to fix it, I embrace the rare moments of normalcy, and walk away from everything else. It is intensely private but is a big part of this past year. That decision changed me.

I quit Rescue. Burnt out. To a crisp. I am glad to not have that extra stress, the cramming of stuff into every empty second, the heartache that comes with dealing with what people do to dogs. Relief. A deep breath after being dunked under water.  That's what it feels like. 

This year, 2013 is going to be better. Better for me, Better for my dogs, and Better for my Friends and Family too! Our small agility family lost more than it's fair share of dogs. My family has had plenty of heartache. It's time for the good stuff.  The stuff that makes you smile, makes you want to hug the person next to you, makes you want to scream from the roof top. The kind of stuff that makes you belly laugh. 

Some things are going to be different this year. Not goals, Not resolutions- they just are. I've always been relaxed about stuff- decisions, life, whatever. What happens happens. But this past year I found myself stressing about too much. Worrying about things I have no control over. I cannot change how people think, or feel. It is up to me to change how *I* think about it. So no more bitching, no more whining, and less worry. Instead I will try to DO SOMETHING to change the things that stress me out- Stressed about money? Spend Less, Make more. Stressed about a decision? be rational, but don't debate about it forever, go with your gut. Those are just two of my most common issues. lol. And it is easier to type than to actually do. And that is what this year is going to be about. Doing. 

So I officially declare 2013 my Year of Doing.

The Year of Doing what makes me happy
The year of Doing what is best for the future.
The year of Doing things that need to be done. 
The year of Doing things that are hard
The year of Doing things without thinking too much about it!
The year of Doing what is best for me. 

The list could go on and on. But these are the main ones. The ones I need most to think about and Do. 

2013 is gonna be a great year. It's gotta be better than 2012. So here's to Doing!

After I published this I saw this gem on facebook. It goes so well with what I am trying to say, and how I am going to try to be a better person. 

 

Vito's Life Lessons Wrap-Up

I belong to a Flickr group called 52 Weeks for Dogs. This has been my fourth year participating. A Photo a Week is harder than you'd think! But it was a lot of fun, and I really enjoyed the theme I had set for Vito's year. His "Life Lessons" often brought me the inspiration for the photo, which is not what I had anticipated!

I did up a slideshow of his year. It's about 4 minutes long, but he's cute so maybe you won't notice the length. ;)

Blue Sky Day!

Wicca is a leader

Pixel

The princess was not happy about sitting in the snow.

this photo cracked me up. lol

Ready for Action

She wanted the toy more than the dog for once!

I love the sun flare in this.

Happy Leo

Leaping Leo! (for a toy!)

and Wicca found a hole, and could not be dragged away.

Herding for the Holidays

I've been off work since the 24th. And I am loving the break! Sleeping in, walking the dogs, visiting family and friends. Wonderful.

Oh, and herding. ;)

Last week I took a trip out to an arena near Nanton. Just to scope it out. See what it was like. I planned to work Leo because I didn't know what the sheep would be like. Jenny said that if the sheep were doggie it would be good for her to work because they just run to the person. And she was right! I worked Brit for just a few minutes and she had fun. Rushing into the corner for them and zipping around. I loved the confidence I saw! Leo was pushy. And the sheep weren't helpful. lol. But he had fun.

Yesterday I went out to Altapete for another lesson with Scott. We worked on her stops. She MUST LIE DOWN WHEN I TELL HER TO. Ya. lol. I was proud of her for not melting even with a lot of pressure, and she wasn't nervous of the sheep at all. She worked for almost 45 minutes and by the end we were both understanding what we were supposed to do. It doesn't sound all that hard- walk in to her to prevent her from making a mistake (i.e coming forward on a lie down). Simple right? Not so much apparently. lol. But we did it, and I get the concept. Now to put it into action!

Today we went in the opposite direction to Phantomridge. Just some informal herding fun. It was a great day. Yummy food, good company, great weather and even some Baileys...

this is Nim. And my most favorite herding photo that I've taken to date. I didn't take any photos of my own dog so this will have to do. ;)

Brit was zippy and I worked her only for a short time her first turn. Just a few quick flanks and lie downs (and they were good ones too!!!). We quit while she was still amped up for more. Her second turn was in the big field and she worked with no hesitation. I am pretty proud of her! Here's hoping that more positive experiences will just continue to build back that confidence.

I worked Leo too. He is coming right along. We've been working on Lie Downs and such in the yard. With the excitement of a toy or the other dogs. And it has payed off. He worked pretty well today. He is so different than Brit. Pushy, and forward. lol. It's like I am relearning everything. But I am having fun learning with him! He is a good teacher.

So yes, I am definitely enjoying my holidays and taking advantage of each day. I have a few days left- I go back on Wednesday. So I have a few more days to get in some more herding, relaxing, playing and fun!

Country Boy in the Big City

This handsome fella is Try. He is belongs to my friend Jenny at Altapete Stockdogs. I get to puppy-sit for a few days- we are pretty excited! Puppies are so fun! Because he is a "country boy" he has much to learn about City life- people, noises, cars, different surfaces, and all that stuff we take for granted.

His first city lesson was about Tim Hortons. He learned that drive-thrus are pretty awesome and dispense things called Tim Bits.

Next we went home to introduce him to the crew. Mr.Confidence had no problem meeting everyone and made quick friends with Boone.

 A quick romp in the yard (where he chased the cat, stalked the corgi, stole Boone's toy and ran around like a yahoo)....

 And then we headed out to do some visiting at the local pet stores. Teaching him first that car trips are great! (you get cookies, and you get to go somewhere fun!)

Wicca came along to show him there was nothing to be afraid of when meeting new people.

He is a quick study and Wicca showed him how to steal things off shelves, clean up crumbs and mooch treats from the staff.

Now we are at home having a nap after such a busy afternoon!

His adventure will continue tomorrow with a trip to the bank, and to meet my nephew. ;)

Lucky

For Me

and for them. Well, this is what *I* gave them.

 

the dogs have a lot of friends and have almost a whole toy box full of new stuff! Lucky Dogs.

Do you Believe in Santa?

Believe in Santa 51/52, originally uploaded by manymuddypaws.

Vito sure does! And he's hoping that the big guy wasn't watching when he did all those naughty things this past year. Time will tell I suppose! ;)

Christmas Torture, I mean photos...

the official one. (as seen on facebook) ;)

Bruce even got in on the action...

So Cute!

They look happier without the hats.lol

Version 2 (after Leo said he could not possibly sit for one second longer.)

I hope everyone in blogger land has a great Christmas!!! Cherish every moment!

We interrupt our regular programming...

For some puppy pictures!!! This is Kit. Who is freaking adorable- and a really great pup. She will grow up to be a hard working stock-dog. But for now she is a typical, rambunctious puppy.

She is at my friends Louannes and while I was waiting for a lesson today I took her out to play. Freaking Cute. Gah!

Seriously, isn't she adorable? All Puppies are cute but she takes it to a whole new level....

A Christmas sort of day!

Slowly but surely I am getting ready for Christmas. Today I was very christmas-y.

I tortured the dogs with their annual Christmas photo...

(A Sneek Peek of Mr. Leo participating!)

I did some Christmas Shopping!!! I was able to cross two people off my list which is great!

And I bought a new Tree. My little one was cute, but I needed something bigger to help me to get into the season. So I bought this beauty. It was on sale even for 60% off! So I don't even feel bad spending money on it.

Merry Christmas to me. ;)

On Building Brave

The other day I blogged about Brit's lack of confidence and courage when it comes to working sheep. She had one bad experience and now she is afraid. I wondered aloud about what the plan would be. How does one go about fixing that? I of course had no idea. lol. Well it's a good thing I happen to know someone who does!

Brit and I had a lesson with Scott Glen (of Altapete fame) yesterday morning. It was fantastic and I left with my head reeling with information, and the thought that my dog can get over this. We did a few various exercises- all with confidence building in mind. Brit had a blast and was running around like a yahoo for the most of it. Scott had lots of good suggestions and thoughts. Like take for example her bad stops- she generally always takes a step or two before lying down. It is likley the pressure of the sheep that actually makes her stop, not me. And that right there could be a pretty big part of our problem. If she is being "stopped" by the sheep all the time it could be wearing her down. Makes total sense. I had never really thought about it like that before.

Some of the close up work was scary for her at first- working in tight quarters with sheep flying every which way was interesting. lol. She got the hang of it though and worked through being uncomfortable. We (well I say we, but Scott did most of the work) managed to get her to bite- twice! And even a few air snaps. Wrinkled lips and everything. I was impressed as I really didn't think we'd be able to get her to. She needs to learn that she has options- and that there are things she can do when she is facing a ewe. Biting is a tool she will need.

Scott has a really cool way of explaining things. I tried to remember all his little sayings but a whole hour of information flooded my brain. Thoughts of "give up control, let her be bad, jazz her up with my voice, faster is better" are floating around in a jumbled mess in my brain. lol. I am going to go back for another lesson with him after Christmas and then work with my other two instructors and see if we can't keep up the confidence stuff until she is ready to be serious again. I have no idea of a timeline at this point. I forgot to ask cause my brain was over filled. 

I have decided though to start doing lessons with Scott every once in a while- maybe once a month or so? Just to help keep things on track. He really is a Wizard when it comes to stockdogs- he certainly has an eye for stuff. He pinpointed all of Brits weaknesses in five minutes....

I'm feeling pretty lucky to have Scott so close!

Relief

Is as simple as an x-ray. Pixels radiographs look great. Her hips and spine look very normal and healthy. Phew.

Last Weeks Lesson

You don't have to have it all figured out to move forward 49/52, originally uploaded by manymuddypaws.

Vito's Life Lessons : Week 49

You don't have to have it all figured out to move forward.

Vito is so smart.

Highwood Stockdog Series- Round 2

Well this round didn't go as I anticipated.

Brit had an incident with a cranky ewe last week at my lesson. She was chased and threatened and of course being the chicken she is would not stand up to her. Sigh. So we tried our best to get the ewe moving and let Brit take control but it didn't end so good. So I was worried going in to the trial that she would be afraid to come up behind them. My plan was to just jazz her up and let her bowl them to me. lol. Good plan eh?

The first round she did manage to get them going- but it took quite a bit of time and encouragment from me. We finished strong though, and I let her run them a bit to get some excitement built for the next one.

The second round was rough. She couldn't lift them at all. And after a few seconds of watching her worry about it I marched up there to help her out. With the help of a guy from the chutes we got them moving ourselves and then I sent Brit behind them so she could feel as though she did it. LOL.

So no glory this time, but I was still happy with the work she did on the first round. She had to really push and she did it, but she just didn't have enough confidence to do it a second time. I know that my dog is a bit of a chicken. She has no eye, and won't face off a ewe. Heck, we couldn't even get her to grip at the lesson last week.... I am pretty sure this likely won't ever change. I would be very surprised if it did. Brit's kind of an open book.

So I am not sure what the plan is. I have zero experience with this in relation to stock. But I do know that if this is like any other bad experience it will probably take quite a lot of good experiences to overshadow the bad. I need to find some local sheep that I can use. Once a week won't be enough to get over this, and I can't afford more than that. Gas, Time, and Lesson costs add up pretty fast!

The next trial isn't until the end of January so we have a while- but if her confidence isn't up by then I am not sure if I will just pull her, or forfeit my run and go with her. Time will tell I guess!

Plans are in the works to try and get our own sheep- we have a friend who has some space on her acreage... But there are lots of fences to fix, and a slight weed problem to deal with first.. Maybe we need to get a goat first to eat all the weeds.... ;)

The video of her first run

Lookin' good in Plaid

 Boone had a great time on our walk today. He loves to wear his coat (I think it acts almost as a thundershirt and gives him some added confidence). He even flirted a bit with a friends Kelpie!

Getting into the Spirit

A week ago I said I wasn't going to put up the tree, or decorate, or really put any effort into Christmas. But yesterday I decided that I was grumpy enough, and maybe some Christmas Cheer is what I needed.

So yesterday afternoon my sister and my nephew Nolen came over and helped me to Christmas-ify my house. Okay, Nolen mostly played with Pixel and asked a lot of questions but Sabrina was a big help.

So my tree is up, and a few christmas decorations are making an appearance. I'm hoping that it will help to get me out of this funk.

I used to LOVE Christmas- my favorite time of year. Now as an adult not so much. I think it's because when I was little the whole season was warm and wonderful. The feel of the season was easy to grasp. As a kid you see what is in front of you- not the behind the scenes. For the past few years I've felt ripped off- not gift wise. (in fact I am not a big gift person, though I do like to shop for others!!!) But rather a strange empty feeling. It's hard to explain...

As Nolen gets older I am noticing that Christmas is certainly more fun- he is definitely the highlight! So here, to pass on some good holiday cheer- a cute kid, a dog with antlers and a purdy little tree...

and my new most favorite tree decoration. Boone. Handpainted and everything. I love it. 

Pixel Update

I took Pixel to Calgary to see her rehab/chiro vet yesterday. I've been nervous about the appointment for a few weeks. She hasn't been quite right for a while, and I suspected something "big" was going on. Of course, always the pessimist, I was thinking a disc issue or something of the like.

She definitely was in need of an adjustment but Veronica doesn't think there is anything too major going in. I feel like a weight has been lifted off my chest. 

Pixel had a few ouchie spots- her neck being the biggest one. From heeling of course... She had a few adjustments in her neck/shoulder area and Veronica showed me how to feel if one side was tighter than the other. I should be able to work it out on my own with some light massage if I catch it in time. She will be taking a few months off from heeling though. We will have to work on some other training things and get back to the quest for a CDX in the spring...

Her lower lumbar and pelvis was also out. Pixel didn't appreciate this adjustment at all... But I think she is feeling better because of it. She also got a Traumeel injection which will help her to feel better. 

Pixel was also booked for X-Rays but unfortunately the machine wasn't working properly so we will be going back next week for them. I am getting her spine, and hips xrayed just to be sure. Veronica couldn't tell for sure about her hips- I've been concerned because her sits have gotten sloppier and sloppier, often sitting so far back on her butt that her legs stick out. Is this because she is lazy? Or uncomfortable? At this point it is debatable so I have some exercises to do to work on getting her more in an "up" sit. X-Rays will tell. If she is displastic it is not the end of the world- there are plenty of dogs out there with Hip Displasia that still do things. Of course I hope she isn't because it will be just one more thing for me to worry about. lol.

Displastic or not we will be doing things a little differently in the future. Apparently my Cardigans are made of glass and need to live in a bubble. It is frustrating at times, but I need to just deal with what I have. And I have another Cardigan who will never play agility again. The risk for a back injury (which could be life threatening) is too great for me. She obviously is compromised structurally to have some much wrong with her at a young age- and with very limited agility in the past 5 months! Agility is probably not even the cause of all of this- she hasn't done anything in months! And still her back, and pelvis are more than a little sore. That's alarming for me. Aside from bits of obedience she hasn't done anything outside of real life. And if real life makes her lame, well that's a problem. So we will be moving on to something else for Pixel too. Which makes me sad to type because she really did like agility and it was something we had fun doing together. She is only two Q's away from an ATCHC. But I'll take my dogs health and longevity over a title any day. There is no question or regret for me. I am thankful to have at least caught this before her injuries were severe enough to warrant no fun (like Wicca). At least Pixel is still able to go back to some sports- Scenthurdle, Obedience (with a new heeling style) and maybe we'll pick up something new like Tracking...

So for once I am feeling Optimistic. The world is not over. My dog still has a long, healthy, painfree life ahead of her. And I am very grateful for that. This has been keeping me up at night for a few weeks. I'm looking forward to some sleep! 

Adventures in Herding

A video montage from Sundays Herding fun. Enjoy!