Where the spooky things are...

Brit isn't afraid of the spooky woods, and the fog, and the goblins that may be lurking.

She has a secret weapon

 A magic stick. 

Poor Leo is unconvinced that a simple stick can protect him.. 

I tried to tell him that Goblins and Witches and Zombies and such are just make believe. He didn't believe me...

Have a Happy Halloween :) And stay safe. Find yourself a magic stick and you'll be just fine....

Princess in th Fog

We had the coolest fog today! On our walk today I couldn't resist stopping for some photos... So SPOOOOKY, just in time for halloween...

Pixel was bored by the whole thing and would have preferred we kept playing and walking. ;)

On training for obedience...

I've been training training and training some more. Pixel, Brit and Leo are all in various stages of training for the obedience ring. So I try to squeeze in at least one session a day.

I typically train them all in the same session- and it is often a bit of a challenge for me. Switching between their personalities and needs is a lot of work. But it certainly keeps me sharp!

Pixel can work for long periods of time for one larger reward. She is able to switch between exercises and such quite easily and likes a lot of physical grabbing and tugging as rewards. Cookies bring her a bit lower than a toy- which brings out the best amount of drive. Especially for heeling. I normally start with her weakest thing and end on the easiest.

Brit is a softie and I need to always be sure that I am being clear about what we are working on. She is easily overwhelmed by challenges and would like to quit if the pressure is high. We work on short, fast bits of exercises. Rarely putting them together. Her rate of reinforcement is high- but super variable. I need to keep her guessing or she is the type of dog who thinks she deserves the reward and can sulk about it. The toy brings out the best- but it's a challenge to use it with her for heeling. She is so literal in her thinking that placement of rewards is super important for her- the toy clouds that a bit. I also need to be careful not to overdo my enthusiasm as it weirds her out.

Leo can work for longer periods of time but on one or at most two different things. He does not switch gears very well and struggles to change to something different. He can be a frantic learner so when I am teaching him something specific or mechanical I use food and a clicker as it tends to slow him down a bit. For heeling though we use a toy. For that I want pushy and in full drive mode so it works well because that's how he is when the toy is the reward. I have to be careful to not be too physical with the rewards or he gets careless and the lesson becomes about impulse control- not on whatever we started with.

All so different. And all so awesome. I love dog training!

I'm going to try and get some video this weekend of heeling. I love heeling. Teaching it. Training it. Watching it. Definitely one of my most favorite things.

Cypress Hills

Last field trial of the year. First successful time in intermediate for Leo. Biggest outrun ever! He placed second both days. And first overall. I'm proud of us. It's been a lot of work. Like a lot of work. It feels good to have progress. Of course I want more progress. The driving especially. And for whatever reason he would not take a flank on the fetch. We will be working on that!

Brit was terrible. And then not. She crossed over the first day. I think she lost sight of her sheep... Second day was better. I sent her on the flat side- up the hill. Hard to miss them that way.

Good times with good friends. As always I had a good time. It was a small trial and everyone was super friendly and helpful.

I really need to remember my camera. Video of that outrun would have been awesome!

One thing I learned from the weekend. Whistles. I need them. Like yesterday. Too bad it's dark now at 6pm so I'm super limited about when I can train...

Dogs and Sheep

Just some dogs. And Sheep.

:)

Thankful

Today's Message. Be Thankful.

And not just because it's Canadian Thanksgiving. Well maybe mostly because of that. But also because it is important- to be grateful. For everything you have, and all the people, and pets, and health, and stuff, and just well everything. Don't be one of those people who complain about what they don't have. Take a second and look at what you do have. Appreciate it. Because there are always people who have it worse, or would be happy with even a 1/4 of what you have. So be Thankful. I know I am.

Instagram

I joined, I mean re-joined Instagram! Apparently I joined when 200 weeks ago, posted two photos and then never went back (I only know this because it told me.)

I've been actively posting away. I actually enjoy it only because then I don't need to bore all my Facebook friends with my obsession with sky photos. ;)

Anyway. Find me if you want. ;)

Wicca

I love this dog more each day. As if that were possible. 

Frog in Underwear

Apparently this is actually a thing. A kids show, or cartoon, or something. Animals wearing underwear. It is a little creepy, and a lot funny. I bought it at the dollar store of all places. I figured the dogs would enjoy it. I didn't take into account the awesomeness of photos with the creepy little fella. lol

So I present the Frog-In-Underwear series.

That last one is highly inappropriate. But hilarious. Really.