Plus One.

Balance

In herding Balance is found by feel. You don't teach it really, the dog just learns by feel. It's natural for most border collies. Some dogs stop short, before hitting that magical sweet spot. And some overrun and miss balance all together. But with a bit of practice and training most figure it out. 

Balance for me- in my life- has been incredibly difficult. I don't feel as though I've found it, nor am I anywhere close to it. Sometimes I feel as though I've gone past balance, and other times I've stopped short.  I'm hoping that one day I'll find that perfect spot- the one where it just feels right. I wish that it came natural, because it's getting real old trying to figure it out myself. 

12 Years

12 years of Awesome. I love this dog more each day. She holds my heart. <3

Happy Birthday (yesterday) Wicca!

Phew.

We survived christmas. It was a lovely day with my family. I cooked, no one died. There was much laughter and excitement. A success I would say. 

I'm still on Christmas holidays. I go back to work on the 4th. So far I've been kept busy, tomorrow will be my first almost full day home. I have to come in for a meeting in the evening. But the day is mine. 

I'm not ready to do a post about the past year, or about what I hope the future will hold. I'm sort of in limbo right now about both of those things. Life sure can. E complicated sometimes. 

The other day I told me nephew that he better stop growing up. Because being a grown up isn't all that much fun. 

Christmas Wishes

It's Christmas again. I'm trying very very hard to get into the spirit of things. I decorated my house, bought cinnamon smelly things, and torture my dogs every day for a Christmas themed group photo. 

It's like the Christmas cheer is just out of my grasp though. Frustrating, and like most things the more you want it the less likely it is to just magically happen. 

Christmas cheer or not, I am hoping for a quiet, happy, little holiday. Time spent with friends, family and myself. Time to catch my breath and get ready for what 2016 is going to bring. 

So Merry Christmas to those that still read my blog. I hope it's bright and merry, full of love, laughter and joy.  <3

Everytime I read it.

Everytime I saw this quote floating around on facebook it stuck with me. So I stuck it on a pretty picture to put on my wall at home. 

Life is so full of Ups and downs and everything in between. I think all the good, the ups, the awesome, the fun are what needs to help us through the not so fun, the tragic, the sadness, the blue days and even the boring ones. 

<3

Learning Stuff

Siren is soaking up life and learning like a little sponge. She is so clever and is a total problem solver. She has great focus, and most importantly the "want" to learn. We are building up food drive (she didn't have any!) and her toy drive is alive and well. She loves to tug, and fetch, and kill stuff. We are working on impulse control and some basic dowhatiwantandyougetwhatyouwant. She is starting to figure that out. 

So far her challenges have been:

Focus. It's short. And she is easily distracted by "shiny" things. 

I don't want to. Already! So young to have these moments. But she is a terrier. So we play the i-know-you-don't-want-to-but-CAN-you games. And she is improving each session. I haven't been brave enough to see if it's working yet. When she throws the "I don't want to" in my face during a training session or real life we just end the game and I play with someone else. Soon I'll see if the training is paying... 

And that's it challenge wise! She is highly motivated and loves to be right. So it's super fun to train her. I'll try and video some trainingn sessions to post here so I can look back and say "LOOK!"

In his dreams.

In his dreams this dog would work work work. All day every day. 

In real life I'm lucky to get to work him maybe two times a week. And that's with me living right across the road from sheep!  

Too busy. Too much real life. Too much work. It doesn't help that it's dark by 5. But I really do wish I could work from home, or something. So that I could work and train my own dogs more than I currently am. Not just in sheep, but in all things. 

In my dreams I suppose! 

She was a show dog...

Siren went to her first dog show. She had a fantastic time and made lots of friends. She was in the Baby Puppy Class- the only Baby Parson, and the only Baby Terrier. So we won a big ribbon, and got to go in the big Best Baby Puppy in Show ring.

She got better and better each time. She was very distracted the first go round (at the breede level) but by the end of the day she was like a little pro. So cute. She is a naturally good show dog- all attitude and is a great little self-stacker! 

We are going to do another one in January- and her breeder wants to take her to a Speciality in the spring. 

I loved her confidence and attitude. She literally bounced into the building. So fun.  

Brit the Rockstar!

99/100 for her last Advanced Rally leg- earning her Rally Advanced title (officially this time!)

And she earned her first CDX leg!!!  It wasn't perfect- in fact it might be the lowest score I've ever gotten. Lol. But- that's what happens when you won't sit! Her sitter was broken- no sitting in heel, no sitting for front, no sitting for dumbbell delivery. Nothing. I suspect it was her way of coping with the stress of the ring. But it also could have been physical from the cement floor all weekend. Either way- sits or no sits. She got a qualifying score. Other than those sits she was great- perfext broad jump, great retrieves, solid stays. A happy dog 

;)

Snow Fun

We got out first Snow yesterday. Today in the daylight it is beautiful. The dogs had a fantastic time on our walk this morning. There was much barking, and running, and rolling.

Oh Vito

Adjusting to the cone was a traumatizing event. But he's over it and ready to get back to the fun stuff.

Vito had an allergic reaction and ended up scratching his muzzle to shreds. Literally. He's on the mend now though! But it is hard to be a short dog in a cone... lol

Pesty

In typical"little sister" fashion, Siren is in everyones business all the time. She is figuring out who likes her, and who doesn't. Sometimes it's hard to be a puppy...

Leo, not so much.

Pixel, on occasion.

Baker, not so much.

Back to Leo again.... (NO PUPPIES WERE HARMED IN THIS PHOTO)

Stalking the Stalkers....

Boonie is always up for a Buddy.

and of course, everyone needs a BFF.

Raising Siren

Raising a puppy is hard work. They really are like little sponges who soak in everything that happens, everything they see and do. For better or for worse. ;)

It's a big responsibility. Making sure you are raising a well adjusted dog who is comfortable in their own skin and in life. Add on performance sport expectations and goals and you are adding in a million extra things to teach them about. 

I learned the hard way (with pixel) not to be too concerned about doing everything perfect. I am enjoying this puppy immensely and am just letting her be who she is. I'm merely her life guide at this point. Lol

She is about 10 weeks? Maybe 11 weeks? So far she has learned some real life skills:

Recall

Her name

How to potty outside

How to travel in the vehicle

About the torture of crate training. Learning to be quiet in said crate is a slow process....

How to eat treats

How to get stuffing out of a kong

How to greet people- tail wagging so fast that she almost lifts off the ground 

How to read other dogs body language. No. It sounds simple. But it isn't. 

She has been to a handful of new places and after the first day has explored her environment with he confidence you expect in a terrier. She has spent time at friends houses and workplaces. 

She has met a lot of people. Probably over 50 at this point. Mostly from my arms but she is pretty sure the whole world loves her. Which is exactly what I want her to think. 

She has met lots of dogs. Some nice ones. Some not so nice. She has been growled at. She has been snarked at. And she has learned that life goes on and it's no big deal. She has played with other puppies and a few adult dogs. She has also seen dogs and not been allowed to engage. She thinks this is the hardest. 

The two things we've spent the most time on, and the things I think are the most important-

Trust in Me. Our relationship is coming right along. She knows I'm "the momma" and is actually a little too attached in my opinion. But I think it's a phase so I'm not doing much different at this point. She knows that I'm the keeper of a things fun and that I will throw her toy or play with her for as long as she wants. She knows that my lap is the best place for a nap and that I'll always save her from the cat. 

How to learn. She is so smart. And confident. A fantastic pairing. She catches on to concepts fast and will always try and try again. She knows how to offer behaviour to get a reward, and has pretty good listening ears for a baby puppy. Mostly learning is done in small little spurts- she can perch, spin, sit, down, and stand. We have started shaping some things- like running around a pylon, waving, and a back up. She is a fan of action. So we do lots of playing and Running and chase games. She will even do stuff for a toy which is amazing to me for such a young dog. She does love her stuffies! 

So yeah. That's all the stuff so far in the life of Siren. I'll do a post like this every few weeks so I can look back to see where we are and where we have come from. ;) 

Here are an assortment of photos of some real life experiences she's had since I brought her home. 

Fitting In

Siren is fitting in really well. I've actually never seen some of my other dogs accept a dog so quickly. Wicca is even playing with her. Which is both terrifying and cool all at once. Lol

Thankful

It's the Canadian Thanksgiving weekend.

Traditionally a time spent with family, friends, and reflecting on things that you are thankful for. My family has always been very traditional about things like this. And this year is no exception. My sister and I are making dinner, and we will all come together and be merry.

It will be nice to have everyone out, and I can't wait to spend the day with my sisters kids. But it will be hard because I really struggle with the whole pretending things are just fine attitude. My family seems to excel at that. We will not talk about the elephant in the room. My mothers rapidly declining health, and certainly there will be no thoughts about what it will be like next year if she is not here anymore. Because saying stuff like that out loud is just not done. Instead we will be thankful for the time we do have as a family, and for the love that holds us together. Sometimes that's all we have I guess, the moments.

My own little family, who has just grown by one naughty terrier, remains my rock and the glue that holds me together. I am thankful for all of them. And the opportunities I have had, and the doors they have opened. I am very lucky. <3

Brit Update

Brit is my go-to dog. She comes to nearly every class or workshop to demo stuff, and is just the MOST perfect dog in the house.

We are training for Open since she got her CD this summer. The broad jump remains an issue- so I likely won't be entering her in November. She is 99% at my house, at the park, and at the training building. But the very first time at each location she walks it, or mis-jumps it. Some theories on that is the surface change. Brit has a bad rear end, and I wonder if she can't push off well enough? We've gone back to doing some strengthening exercises to see if that will help.

I need to go back and get on last leg in Advanced Rally. I got a nice letter from CKC saying that her Excellent legs she got in the summer are void because she needs one more advanced. lol. Apparently I need a secretary...

I haven't done much herding with her. No trials at all, but I do let her work a lot of the time. She has a good time as long as things are fun and easy. The second she gets to her invisible line thats it. LOL. But she mostly has a good time. And when she listens she actually looks pretty good!
 

Brit is enjoying our new country living a lot. She LOVES to run. Full out. As hard as she can. And this place has tons of room for that. She also is happy to sit out in the yard and watch stuff. She sits out there for hours when I'm home.

Mostly Brit just has a good time. If its training, walking, running, or playing. Brit is all about a party. ;)