Happy Friday and Wish Us Luck!

Happy Friday everyone!

We are off to Calgary tonite....after re-bathing Pixel of course... (she not only got all muddy when the snow melted, but she managed to pee all over herself today!)

I will be back Sunday night with lots of photos, and I am sure a story or two!

Wish Us Luck!

Perpetual Pup

Perpetual Pup, originally uploaded by manymuddypaws.

I love this dog. He is so squeezable. Really. He likes to hug.

Ear Hair and Cute

So this is what her ears like with no trimming...

and after a nights sleep her tail is a little less...puffy..... thankfully! Isn't she cute?

-----

Wicca is sick of everyone talkin' about how cute pixel is...

Geesh....what's the big deal with the blue dog?

I told her it didn't have a lot to do with her color per say, and although she is cute physically she is also very cute personality wise....Cute is not a word I would use to describe Wicca.

Wicca was offended so had a try at being "cute"

I told her she just looked weird now...

The Horror

Step 1) Put puppy on table with a noose. Take Photo of Before the bath.

Step 2) Put puppy (now very pouty) in bath tub, lather, rinse, lather. Take Photo. Rinse.

Step 3) Dry puppy with force dryer- making sure to dry towards the tail. Attempt Photo. Unsuccessful.

Step 4) Trim nails, scissor feet. Don't even bother attempting photo of very miserable puppy.

Step 5) Pose puppy on table with promise of treats. Take Photo.

Step 6) Bribe puppy with aforementioned treat to love her momma again. Unsuccessful.

Well, she is clean. Fluffy (which is not really what we want) and very miserable. She really, really hates baths.

Jolene is going to help me later tonite with her ears, her long belly hair, and the tail of ringlets....

I will post an after, after photo....in the mean time I thought

I'd entertain you all with the torture of a puppy!

dog tired

The girls have a big weekend coming up- so I took the boys to agility last night. That's right.

The boys- as in plural. Vito got to make an appearance.

He ran. He ate som cookies. He socialised. He jumped. He did a few tunnels.

He says it was exhausting.

Grooming and Showing...

Okay Cardigan people. I have Pixel entered in a show this weekend. I am only showing her for experience. I did not buy her as a show dog, and I do know that her coat is incorrect. But- I thought that it would be great for her to experience the show ring- it is something that she can do at a young age- be in the ring, meet lots of people, lots of dogs...the whole works. I want her to look good in the ring though- so it is important to me that I've done what I can to make her look the best I can.

I showed Wicca too and it was great for her confidence- she actually enjoyed it quite a lot. I ended up spaying her at two because there was rarely any competition and well, her heat cycle fell on two very important agility trials...and then of course she does have some conformation faults......although I actually did buy her as a show dog...(that's a whole other story)

Anyway, I need some grooming advice. I am bathing Pixel tomorrow- so that she isn't quite so fluffy still for the weekend. I will trim her feet, and she's got a bunch of long hair on her underside (where her "belly button" is) that I am planning on trimming- with thinning shears so it doesn't look trimmed. It was also suggested to me that I trim her ears...she has long, almost curled hair just on the inside of her ears, and it is kind of tufty there...

Here are her ears...

Any suggestions??

Passing up Fame...

I was approached by the director of a local theater production the other day. He wanted to know if my dog would be interested in playing a small roll in their upcoming play. I was intrigued and asked him to send me more information.

The play is based on Road Dahls "James and the Giant Peach."

One scene calls for a Queen, and you guessed it her corgi. The corgi simply follows the queen around for a few minutes. Although I am constantly explaining the differences between my type of corgi, and the Queen's type of Corgi I was still interested...it's not everday that ones dog has a chance to be on stage.....I was all ready to say "sign us up!" and then I read the email again.

Not only is the play scheduled everynight for a week- but once a day as well.

So I had to pass.

Wicca is upset that she missed her chance at fame :o)

I told her that she's already famous. She didn't believe me.

Beaten...

Doesn't he look beaten???

Poor sad, sad Vito...

He was grumpy yesterday

at daycare.....

Busy Day

This morning Kim, Judy and I went to the Cowly hall for a morning of Rally Obedience. I hadn't been there in ages, and thought it would be good for Wicca to train somewhere "newish" and Pixel has never been anywhere like that before.

It was nice to visit with dog people I haven't seen in a while and catch up on stuff.

The girls did great- Wicca aced the Advanced course, and I was very happy with her heeling. She was forging a bit, and I need to work on calling to front from a halt- but her about turns, pivots, and everything else were great. We also did some normal Obedience at the end- I am happy to report she jumped the broad jump perfect on the first try and did three great drop on recalls! Way to go Wiccie!

Pixel was very cute, and had no problem working in a new place. We did lots of tugging and playing, and of course we did practice some heeling, sits, downs, stand, and a little conformation at the end. She did very good with the "judge" going over her and was quite the little princess. She is very cute. I can't get over how cute she is. Really.

I dropped the dogs off at home and then did some rescue stuff- we had to take a momma dog and her 10 pups to their new foster home out in the middle of nowhere. Of course it couldn't be without drama. Leave it to Natalie and I. Really, something always happens. Without fail. We joke that we are going to die. Together. In her truck. But this time we thought we'd be disaster free because Alana came with us. Not so much. We got stuck out by Stirling- which is about 1/2 hour from home. The truck made some grinding noises, the engine light flashed, and it didn't take long after that for the battery light to come on. Nice eh? So we waited for half and hour for Alana's husband to come and save us.

And now I am home- with a list a mile long of people to call for rescue stuff, 31 emails to check about regionals crap (our club is hosting this summer) and four (plus 2 extras) dogs to entertain. I am about ready for bed.....

6 months

Pixel is 6 months old today!!!

She is looking more and more grown up every day. From this....mid novemberto this- taken a few days ago...

we've been practicing our show dog stuff for next weekend.

Hopefully she acts as grown up as she looks!!! She has been a little demon lately...

Happy Friday

Vito at 13weeks-ish.... cute eh?

40 freakin' things

Okay, I like games, I like tag games, and really I do consider myself to be a good sport.

But 40 things???

Sarah from Dig-it, Fetch-it, Herd-it tagged me in a 40 things about myself game...uh huh...

thrilling no?

Read on if you really think you want to know 40 things about me...

1) I hate Snooker. Surprised?

2) I hate teaching "stay." Surprised?

3) I am bossy.

4) I am disorganised- even though I try really hard not to be!

5) I like to read- a lot. Mostly murder, mystery, scary books.

6) I can read a full novel in two hours. And remember most of it.

7) I have a horrible memory- really. What day is it? What time is that class at? What level is my dog in? That's why I have Sarah. :o)

8) I like dog people, and smart people

9) I have a pretty wicked sense of humour

10) I like to make people laugh (but not at me)

11) I have a fear of failing. (not falling)

12) I used to be really, really shy. Like deathly shy. Like didn't talk for a whole year of school.

13) I didn't have friends in Elementary school. None. Zippo. Loner.

14) I have always sucked with numbers- math...ha!

15) I learnt my times table with a song that I could still chant to you today....(if you begged, and bribed me...)

16) I have few close friends

17) I love orange and green.

18) I hate to do dishes, and fold laundry. Good thing I live alone.

19) I live alone

20) I like reptiles. At one time I had all sorts of lizards and things.

21) I dislike rodents...but am not afraid of them. Probably has to do with the mouse explosion at a place I used to work...one day I'll blog about it....

22) I am smart, but don't use my smarts to my full advantage...

23) I like to write. I took a creative writing class once upon a time. Did pretty well.

24) I read all of the Harry Potter books and loved them...and then the last one took too long to be published and I lost interest so still have not read it..

25) I played Clarinet for 3 years. Hated it.

26) I was in a choir once....my friend and I got kicked out when I poked her in the eye. Surprised?

27) The first breed of dog I loved were German Shepherds. And then I had bad luck not once, but two times in a row. I'll never have another one.

28) I once got lost in the mountains for 9 hours. And almost was eaten by a Cougar. My friend and I followed some cows around thinking they would lead us back to the farmers...smart eh? We were saved. But it was pretty scary. I was 9ish..

29) I have been bit by a dog three times (seriously anyway) Once was a fight. totally my fault. i have a big scar to show for it now. Once was my own dog- wicca. bit my after a front cross. hard. blood. scar. yeah. And the third time was a puppy- i tried to save off the side of the road on the reserve. maybe 9 weeks old. totally feral. good thing I didn't get rabies.

30) I am compassionate. Sometimes too much. I want to save them all. But know I can't.

31) When I was two our house burned down. I can remember it. Weird eh?

32) I have a fear of needles. I can give them, but can't take them...

33) I hate doctors, dentists, etc. and avoid them at all costs (I need a root canal...and instead of getting a root canal I spent my tooth money on a puppy! Pixel is way more fun than a root canal)

34) I am impulsive - Pixel?

35) I don't forgive easily

36) I am not religous at all. I used to be mormon. Church every sunday, the clubs that go along with that..the whole works. Weird eh?

37) I have no tolerance for abuse- animal, people, whatever. I am not afraid to step in.

38) I had an uncle that was a Zookeeper. Fun eh?

39) I don't drive. Don't ask why, I can never answer. Soon.

40) I am a procrastinator- my worst trait. Ever.

and you are supposed to post a current picture of yourself. I don't really have any. Sorry.

I tag

Miradukesadie

OneCollie

Days at Daybreake

Enjoy!

3 month plan (long)

I have a very specific plan for miss Pixel- and I have been trying to be clear and consistent with my training. I am following Kim Collins method of training for lots of the foundation skills. Kim's methods are based off of Susan Garrett- and for those agility people you know that her training is VERY specific, broken down, and gets very good results.

Wicca is a great dog, and I am very proud of what I have trained her to do- but there are big gaping holes in my training that at this point are coming back to bite us in the butt....So- with Pixel I am covering MORE of those foundation skills that will help us out in the long run.

3 month plan

The Basics- sit, down, stand- verbal cues only, no luring for any position. We have all of this but the stand still is not quite what I want.

Duration to the Basics- adding a "Stay" cue.

Impulse Control- crate games are going really well- I can totally see how it is building value for working. I have always had dogs who like their crate, but I have never incorporated it into my training. Wow. Is all I can say. I HIGHLY reccomend that anyone training a pup use crate games. Add in more Rule-Outs, incorporate more into training.

Hand Touch- I have hard, repetitive nose touches, now I need to add in "rule outs" (or distractions) At the seminar Pixel had a hard time ignoring the food hand- we need to work on adding more RuleOuts...

Plexi- Once I have a good hand touch, I need to add the plexi in the hand, and then move my hand to the floor, and then just the plexi on the floor. I have a great flow chart from the seminar that has really helped me figure out what the steps are.

Plank Work- staying on the end of the plank (in a stand) no matter my position. This is the first step to a contact behavior. Once all my targeting work is completed on the flat I need to add it to the plank. Her still on the board, staring at my hand with the plexi but not releasing. Once we are past that (with all the rule outs) then you add the release to step off to the target- I won't be quite there yet though in three months. My aim is to have her on the board with rule outs staring at my hand/target.

Accel/Deccel/No Motion Cues- this has been my biggest struggle with Wicca- and it is SO easy to teach....Pixel and I have started already, and she is pretty good- we need to add rule outs (toys)


Jumping Mechanics- jump bumps. which are about 2 inches off the floor- basically we are teaching her to respect the bars- she is rewards for running over them without ticking them. We haven't started this at all, but will be at the end of the three months.

Shadowhandling- basically running with me on the flat- lots and lots of circles, running around pylons, front crosses, rear crosses...She LOVES this game and is pretty good about staying on one side. When she makes a mistake I stop until she comes back to the "right" side.


Body Awareness- backing up, standing in a food bowl (Kim suggested a square plastic tray to start) tricks, getting on the ball, wobble boards. Lots of this we've started, I am excited to shape the food bowl, and we are having fun with the ball and the wobble board.


and amongst all of this I am teaching her heeling, fronts, and finishes!!! It reads and sounds like a lot- but really it is just a few minutes every day- some day we can only manage to squeeze in five minutes, others we can get in a half an hour- but everyday we do something. She is a very smart pup who loves to work for either food or toys, and is always up for a game of fetch. Training her has been lots of fun, and I am pretty determined to do it right this time.

Crash and Burn...and Brilliance

Here is some video from two weekends ago. My friend Dave did the editing. :o)



the first run was the jumpers- finally getting a second Q in advanced. It was a great run- my front cross was a little late but it was pretty amazing that I even got there...

The second run was a steeplechase- she had me completely flustered...

yummmm....

sticks are goooood....

arm changes

wicca is just over 2 years old in this photo...

I have had a chance to think about the things we talked about at the seminar. I have a lot to work on. Wicca was a good girl all weekend, and I definitely have improved since even a few months ago but I still struggle with arm changes. Okay, I more than struggle. I suck.



My dog is confused- and it's no wonder- she has no idea what a "serp cue" looks like and doesn't come into me like she should. I did get some good exercises to help us though. I am excited to try it. As you can imagine I also struggled with a threadle cue...I did however manage to do one on the course we ran first thing Saturday. It was sloppy, but we did it.

Her weaves were good, and her contacts still are solid- she does curl a little if I am far behind, but for the most part she is driving into position just how she was taught. It really is the handling that is the issue, well that and jumping.

I have a lot of specific things to work on after the weekend- which is good. I am confident that I actually understand what it is I am supposed to do and teach my dog.

Kim is a very specific trainer- and gets great results that way. I am not that specific, and it shows in my dogs weaknesses. I am going to remedy them though- one issue at a time.

Wicca and I need to work on:

a serp cue

a threadle cue

understanding decel

understanding a no motion cue

trust in relation to bars. I have started to babysit bars again- something I worked really hard at last year to stop doing...again I have been falling back into that habit...

I also put Pixel in the puppy/novice session on Sunday morning. I have gone as far as I was comfortable on my own and needed some input. Pixel was great, and I learned a lot about how to make my crate games more exciting, what to watch for on the plank, what the next step to targeting is. I got a lot out of just a few hours and it was definitely worth the money. I will blog more about Pixels training in a few days...

Information Overload

First off you'll all be happy to know that I didn't fall on my face, and my head did not explode.


The seminar was full of great information, and lots and lots of things to work on. Kim challenged us all weekend, and I think that everyone who came got a lot out of it. I know I did.


I am still processing all the stuff we did and will have more time, (and brain power) later tonite to blog about it...

Boone and Vito had a great time at Wendy's this weekend- you can see photos on Wendy's Blog

Oh, and the judging schedule for the show at the end of the month came out...Guess how many Cardigans. One. Just like the good old days. I am quickly reminded why I don't bother with Conformation. Oh well. It is all about experience for her anyway!

Happy Friday!

I am off to a seminar this weekend. Should be fun. Hopefully my head won't explode. Or I don't fall on my face. Both of those things could potentially happen...

Here's an old photo of the tri-color b*tches...this was when Gyp first came into rescue...before Sarah was suckered..

Boone (and Pixel) go to the vet

I have had Boone for over a year now and he hasn't seen the vet in all that time. He has been healthy, and I haven't had reason to take him. But there were a few things I wanted to talk to Kendra (my vet) about. So yesterday we trekked off to the vet with plenty of cheese strings in our pockets.

Pixel tagged along as she hadn't met my vet yet, and I was curious as to what she weighed now.

In the waiting room there was lots of spinning. When Boone is nervous, or excited he spins. Like a Sheltie. Trying to manage him, and a puppy, and the leashes, was a bit much so finally I made him lie down so I could untangle them.

They were both good with the scale and hopped right up there- Boone weighs 10kg, and Pixel weigh 7.9kg! Not a lot of difference in weight...

Pixel was very excited to meet Kendra- even more so when she got yummy cookies. Boone was pretty excited too, and wasn't nearly as nervous as I though he'd be.

I talked to Kendra about a few things- one, his patellas- I have seen him hitch in his back right leg. She felt them and didn't think that there was much laxity (sp?) and that it wasn't likely to be a patella issue.

On that note we also talked about his back dew claws. I have a suspicion that it is his dewclaw that is causing him to hitch sometimes- he is very sensitive with them, and I know that the hair has gotten tangled around them before. I have also seen him catch them on runs in the coulees. To remove them is painful though, and he has to be put under, and well, it hurts. So I am still not really sure what I want to do about it. Kendra explained to me the risks, and how it is done. We get dewclaws taken off a lot of the rescue dogs that come in- mostly big back ones that dangle so I have seen dogs who are recovering from it...but it is different when it is your own dog. I am leaning towards having them off....we'll see....

And then we talked about the reverse sneezing that he has been doing for two months. It could be an allergy- which is what I thought when it first started. But now for this long I am not sure. And it's not like he only does it once in a while. It is at least once a day. I am going to switch laundry detergent and move his crate to a new room...

And finally he got a microchip, and Kendra filled out the vet portion of the CKC paperwork needed for a pen number. I have everything in an envelope ready to send. Keep your fingers crossed that CKC approves us.

Words cannot express...

just how cute Boone was in his t-shirt last night....

he looks happy....no? :o)