Paws Express Blog

Rally Trials

2009-04-27T14:33:00.002-05:00

I have gone along to Rally Obedience trials three times lately with some students. About a month ago Cindy, with her Border Collie named Sweetie, and Debbie, with her Westie named Sporty, went to a Rally trial in Gardner, KS (South of K.C.). They just went for one day. I am very proud to report that Cindy and Sweetie qualified and finished their Novice Rally Title! Although they didn't qualify Debbie and Sporty got some practice in going to a strange place and competing.

A week ago there was a trial in Harrison along with their conformation and obedience trials. Cindy and Sweetie entered there and got 2 legs on their Rally Advanced title. Another student, Ladina, and her Labs named Mocha and Ruby, also qualified and finished their Rally Excellent and Rally Advanced titles.

This last weekend Cindy and Ladina were entered in a Trial in Grove, OK. Neither qualified on Saturday but we all learned that we need to work on the Broad Jump more often in class!

No rain this week!

2009-04-23T21:20:00.005-05:00

It has not rained this week and we managed to have classes after all! Monday night's classes were great. I am trying to put more flat work in the classes this year and I am delighted to say that most of the students are actually practicing at home! I am so pleased and feel it is really paying off. We are working with targeting plastic lids with a nose touch. The students worked on that at home and then we put the lid at the base of the Aframe and the dog walk. Many of the dogs really did a great job with it and that has encouraged me to keep working with this in classes.

The Wednesday night classes were a little smaller due to several people being ill, but I had some drop-ins so it was still worth setting up a whole Open Standard course. (It really is a lot of work to set up full courses each week and I greatly appreciate all the work Danny and the students do to set them up!) There is a local AKC Agility trial in a few weeks and I know everyone needs as much practice as possible.

I am going to offer some Rally Obedience classes on Tuesday nights starting in a couple of weeks. I would not do it but I have several people asking for them. I may be offering a basic obedience class later on in the year since I am getting several requests for that, too.

I have an appointment to go to the eye doctor tomorrow. One of the nose pieces broke off of my glasses a couple of days ago. They were probably hit too many times by a dog! I do not think it can be repaired so I guess it is time for new ones. These are two years old and probably needed to be replaced but I was going to keep the old ones around for a spare. Can anyone out there solder glasses back together???

Danny is working a crazy schedule this week - several night and evening shifts - and therefore my schedule has been weird, too. Hopefully next week will be more organized!

New Year of Classes

2009-04-18T12:11:00.005-05:00

I am trying to get in the swing of things on a new year of classes. The Monday night classes consist of a Basic Agility Class at 7:00 and an Agility Handling Class at 8:00. We have gotten in a couple of weeks of classes so far but for the last two weeks they have been rained out. The weather looks questionable for this Monday but I am ever hopeful...

The Basic Agility class has 14 enrolled! That is wonderful and really makes it fun. Nearly all of them are brand new with just a couple returning. One of those is Shane, a sweet but worried Collie. It took him most of a six week class session last fall to feel comfortable going through the tunnel. I am so glad he remembered the tunnel this spring and goes right through.

The Agility Handling class has seven people in it - a good sized class. These are people that have been through Basic classes and their dogs know the obstacles, at least to some degree. I have lots of plans for this class. They are going to learn a lot about flatwork before they get to move into the Wednesday night Novice class. We are also going to really work on contacts and weaves.

The Wednesday night classes were rained out the first week but we have been able to meet for the last three weeks. The first week we did a Clean Run Magazine Backyard Dogs thing that gave me an idea of where they were and who had been working with their dogs over the winter.

The second week we did an AKC Open Jumpers course that had a lot of twists and turns and side changes in it. I was afraid it would be too easy for the Advanced class but it worked out really well for them too. This week we did an AKC Open Standard course and after everyone had worked through the kinks with their dogs I put in a distance challenge. Most could do it but it was at the weaves (yes, I know that might not have been fair) and a couple of them had trouble with the end of the weaves. I need to look for some more weave drills.

I have fewer students in the Wednesday night classes this year, seven in the Novice Comp class and six in the Advanced Comp class. I think the down economy has gotten to some of the regular students and they have had to cut back. (I know I have!) A few have started doing classes at Springfield Dog Training Club since they are teaching advanced classes over there now. Classes at SMDTC are free or very inexpensive for members. I miss visiting with them every week but it is fine me. Everyone has to do what is best for them. This way the students that are coming here get more time on the field and I can give them more attention.

Distance Work

2008-07-06T22:33:00.003-05:00

Our focus in the Wednesday night classes so far this year has been distance work. As it turns out SMDTC held an Agility Seminar a few weeks ago with Kiely Grundahl from OK City and that was her focus, too. She did a great numbers of things that I have already done and some that I have planned, but she has some different approaches and it is always nice to see someone else's take on things. Gives me more ideas on what to do in class. I am going to keep pushing them, even though some of them aren't too sure they want to do distance! It changes their relationships with their dogs and takes them out of their comfort zones.

I am doing better with Chase on distance if the sequence is pretty straight forward but if it is difficult or complicated we don't do so well. He seems to get frustrated or confused and takes whatever is in front of him or spins and barks at me. After that I get very frustrated! I am nothing else if not persistent, though, so we will see how it goes this summer.

Nursing the Critters in the Pack

2008-06-18T14:31:00.007-05:00

Nothing that exciting going on but playing nurse for the critters around here lately. A couple of weeks ago Chase sliced open one of the pads on his right front foot. He did not notice it until we started checking everyone's feet because someone was leaving little bloody spots on the floor. I would guess he cut it on a rock while DIGGING in the back yard. He certainly has been doing his share of it lately. I keep hoping he will grow out of some of his digging behavior (He will be seven at Halloween!) but that is not happening. To tell the truth, Hawkeye, the one that will be twelve in September, still has been known to do his share of digging also. I honestly think that Dakota would still dig if he didn't have such bad arthritis in his elbows. Instead he lays right next to whoever is digging and gets the dirt piled up on top of him. Is that his way to vicariously dig through the others?

We finally got Chase's foot mostly healed up and then Monday afternoon Hawkeye would not get up off the floor. Would not even lift his head! I kind of freaked out. I know he has been in great health but he is almost 12 and will not live forever. When we did get him up he would not put any weight on his right front leg. He just held it out to the side and dragged it along. We took him to the Dr. Denise and she checked him over very carefully. Apparently he sprained his front right shoulder and was in a great deal of pain. I usually watch them all pretty close but I didn't see this happen. I suspect he may have done it when they were running in the door for breakfast. They had heard me fill the food dishes and all hit the door at the same time. I do that about half of the time and nothing happened to Hawk before but I don't know what else to blame this on. Danny says I should just give up looking for a cause but I want to do the best I can for Hawk so I am trying to figure out what happened. Yes, I am obsessing!

Sera has decided to take over security for the household. She runs the fence when students arrive and gets so worked up that she pants excessively and her tongue turns purple. We have to keep her locked in the sun room when people come to the door or she scratches on the inside of the door. This is not a good thing. She could rip the grid out of the front door and it can not be replaced at this point. That is the worse thing she has done so far though, so if that is the worse we can handle it. She has also decided she likes being out in the back yard during the day. She naps on the back porch and watches over things. Then sometimes she just wanders around in the back yard and barks indiscriminately at the universe. It really bothered me at first but I am beginning learn to ignore it. OMG! I am turning into Marlene!

Addition to our Pack

2008-05-12T13:04:00.007-05:00

I thought I would write about the changes in our house since Sera moved in. It is very interesting to add an older dog to a pack of mature dogs. Having had three Golden boys in the house for six years, there had been time to pretty well settle things in the relationships in our house.

Hawkeye is eleven and was usually the the leader, but a benevolent one. He took the lead in begging for supper, in defending the house from squirrels, possums and other creatures at the front of the house and he usually had his choice of which fuzzy mat he wanted in the house. In spite of that, I never heard him growl at anyone else, at least not since Chase was very young.

Dakota is nine and was the typical middle child. He was much more quiet and reserved and let his older and younger brothers take the lead in things. He does have more issues with some of the dogs that come to our house for classes and feels the need to be the protector of the back yard. We have to bring him in the house when students start coming around because we were afraid he was going to hurt himself (he has severe arthritis in his elbows) running and barking at the fence.

Chase is six and was the typical baby of the family. He was pushy and obnoxious and thought all the toys were his, but also loving and endearing. The other two indulged him most of the time but set limits with a glare or a lip lift when they were tired of him. He would then back off and try another approach!

Sera was the bottom of the pack of five Shelties at Marlene's house. Marlene had bred her beautiful Bi-Blue bitch, whose name was Blue. There were four puppies and she ended up keeping Blue and three of the littermates, Patty, Zippy and Sera. Later she took in a male rescue Sheltie named Sparks. In my opinion, Patty and Zippy ran the household and Sera took the brunt of things. Marlene took Sera with her nearly everywhere because she was concerned about leaving her with the others without supervision.

Marlene had a stroke on January 4. When we finally found her the next day, the paramedics were called and they took her to St. John's Hospital. We rushed to the hospital to be with her. I knew she would be worried about Sera being at the house with the other dogs without supervision. In the ER, I told her that I would go back to her house and get Sera and take her home with me. I told her I would make sure she was safe and cared for. Marlene squeezed my hand and that was the last communication I had from one of my very best friends.

So now we have an addition to our pack, a nearly ten year old Sheltie. She was the bottom of the pack in her old house but she is determined to not stay that way here. There are lots of changes in our pack, some subtle and some not. Thankfully we haven't had any major problems and now I think we have been together long enough that we are going to be able to avoid any serious fusses. She is settling in and seems very happy, although Dakota would like her to move on to another home!

Back to Classes

2008-04-27T21:37:00.007-05:00

The last few weeks we have been settling in to a familiar routine of teaching Agility Classes again, although we have also been dodging rain showers much of the time. One evening last week it was not rain but lightning that caused us to cancel a class. The weather looks calmer and drier but cooler this week, perfect for Agility.

I especially appreciate my assistant instructors, Ginger, Cindy, Katrina and my husband Dan who will also be teaching some of the time, and all of my returning students. This year we will not have the help of my close friend and fellow instructor Marlene Figge, pictured here with her Sheltie Sera (who has come to live with us now). Marlene was a huge part of our program and I know the returning students miss her, too. It is rough some days, but she would be the first one to tell us to get back out there and train our dogs! Her sister Peggy told me that training and showing her Shelties and teaching classes with us were the highlight of Marlene's life since she retired a few years ago. I know she would want us to continue working our dogs, and hers, in spite of her loss. Everyone's support is helping me enormously as I go on and continue classes without her.

Next weekend is the local AKC Agility trial and everyone around here is gearing up for it. Many of my competition students will be entered, and most of the ones not entered are working at it. I was the chairman the last two years but this year it is in the capable hands of Sue and Lori. Thank you ladies! It is a big undertaking but I know you are more than equal to the task. This year I get to enjoy the trial by entering my dog and watching and supporting my students. I am really looking forward to it.

This trial will be Chase's return to Agility competition. He is my amazing Wild Child Golden Retriever that amazes me, frustrates me and thrills me, all at the same time. He is six and a half and still acts like he is about 18 months old. We have done pretty well in Obedience and Rally in the last two to three years, having completed his CDX and RAE, and in the Novice level of Agility, but I don't feel like I am up to the task of handling him in more advanced classes. He is so fast on a course he could overwhelm anyone. Wish me luck and we will see what happens!

Strike!

2008-03-26T23:46:00.010-05:00

The show is finally over and it is time to get back to normal life. I have another picture to post before we move on. Here is a picture of Belle, Martha and Pearcy by the famous pump in front of the porch at the Keller's home. These two kids (their real names are Te'lyse and Caleb) took Hawkeye out on stage for his first scene and his curtain call. They were really good to him and loved to feed him LOTS of treats. For some reason he adored them and would follow them anywhere!

Theater is a transient thing for those that are addicted to it. Everyone works their hearts out, some for four or five months and some, like us, for four or five weeks. In the end they strike the set, put away the costumes, cry a few tears for the good time they have had and everyone goes home, all the time planning which show they are going to work on or audition for next. No one gets too attached to any one show or any one part. I am not addicted but I do see the allure. There is always a fresh start to look forward to. I think I like things that are more permanent. I think I like to have more time to work on things and get them right. Yes, I am a perfectionist! They don't have the time to be that way.

There are very few opportunities for dogs to do theater in Springfield so it is just as well that I am not addicted. Hawkeye had a good time, Mom and Dad got to see their oldest boy on stage and we have pictures to look at for years to come! What more can you ask for? What? They are doing Annie this fall at another theater downtown? Would Hawkeye like to reprise his role and star as Sandy again? Who knows what will happen by fall. I just know for sure that I will have to recover from this show before I think about that!

Canine Actor

2008-03-12T21:21:00.008-05:00

I have had several people try to convince me to start a blog so I thought I would try it. I always seem to have more things started than I could finish in a lifetime so I am not making any promises on how often I will post on this but we will see how it goes.

Today was a busy day in the life of Hawkeye, my 11 year old Golden Retriever. He is currently appearing in a production of the play 'The Miracle Worker' at Springfield Little Theater. He is involved in a run of 16 shows in 18 days and we are already getting pretty tired. Today there were 2 shows for some local school groups, one at 9:00am and one at noon. We only had about 45 minutes between the shows, barely enough time for a short meet and greet with the first audience in addition to squeezing in a trip up the street for Hawkeye to the only grass within 2 blocks of the theater!

Above is a picture of Hawkeye with Anna, Natalie, Julie and Mike in a scene from the show. I am a very proud stage Mom and I think he is doing an outstanding job. I know that to them he is kind of like a prop, but I feel he really gives authenticity to the show. Today one of the kids in the show came by and asked me what Hawk's name was. Although a bit puzzled, I told her his name and spelled it for her. She laughed and said she thought it was 'Hot Guy'. Maybe that should be his new nick name!