BOO !

Tate, Kort and I wish everyone a Haunted Halloween !!!!

All Mine !

I am so excited I just can't stand it.....I have purchased a new, used, van! It is a Dodge Caravan & it should be just big enough to hold all my doggy things!
Old Blue is just , well, too old to go on:( He is 20 years old & I have owned him for 17 yrs. I love that van, I bought it when I was showing Drake, it still has Drake's noseprints on the inside back window, I have never been able to wipe them off, & that is where they will remain. I am not getting rid of Old Blue, he will stay with me forever :), but I am excited to be driving in something that I don't have to worry about falling apart before I reach my destination !
Oh, his name will be "Johnny"....short for Long John Silver :))



The best part of this used van !..........

Tracking :)

This morning for fun I put down an 8 step track for Kort, I used a piece of kibble at the front of each step, this was nothing formal, no scent pad, I just wanted to see if he had any interest. He followed the first footstep, ate the kibble, then ran to the last step & backtracked! Not what I wanted, but I was pleased he was interested & his nose stayed peeled to the ground.
I think I will start his training soon as well as start Tate on his TDX....:)

Tate tracking in the spring......

Tate winter tracking......

Tate Urban tracking......

The Right Choice :)

Had a short but wonderful visit with my sister Debra & nephew Aaron yesterday. I have a new respect for being a mother. The patience Debra has amazes me, I don't think I would have been the same if I had kids. I'm just too rigid on having things go smoothly at all times :), never gonna happen with kids, especially teenagers!

Here is a favourite picture of mine, of my niece & nephew, taken a couple of weeks ago on the Lethbridge golf course.
Love you Aaron & Adrienne! ♥

Surprise Visitor!

What a surprise I had today! Liz came for a visit to my work with Gulliver! I love this boy so much, if the timing had been right he could have been mine. I will just have to make sure to visit him alot......

Gulliver at 11 weeks :))......

Gulliver enjoying the scenery with his grandmother Lupine......

Looks like I will just have to wait a couple of years until this beauty, imported by Liz from the UK, has a litter ! Maybe Gulliver will even be the daddy!

Cava......

Just Because

I like them...and I have nothing to blog about !......

Peanut ! :))

I have so many wonderful pictures of Kort. Wendy took these when he was 8 weeks old. I was reminiscing this morning so I thought I'd post some.

In The Blink Of An Eye

I wasn't going to blog about this because quite frankly I'm embarrassed that I let it happen in the first place.

Yesterday Tate, Kort , Perkins & I were out for a walk. I always let the dogs loose in behind the houses in our neighbourhood. There are numerous walkways & open greenspace & we often walk back there to stay out of the cold wind. Yesterday was the same as any other day. I had taken Tate & Kort off leash & left Perkins on. Kort stopped to do his business & I stopped to pick it up. When I stood up, I couldn't see Tate. So I called, 4 times, nothing. I started to walk back toward the entry to the walkways. When I reached the road Tate was still not in site. I made the decision to go right first...calling & calling, nothing.
The things that go through your mind...I knew he had his collar on with his tags so that made me feel better. I knew he was big & black & hard to miss, so that also made me feel better. I knew he was friendly & would come to anyone & not run away, that made me feel better, & worse.
Eventually after not seeing him, I turned & walked left going back up that side of the street. I still didn't see him & I was really starting to panic a bit. Tate is 8.5 years old & he has NEVER just wandered away, granted he is really good at ignoring me :), but eventually he just follows along after, he never walks away, well, until yesterday that is.
He wasn't up the left side of the street either. I was turning back, thinking of going home & dropping off Perkins & Kort, & coming back out, hoping he wouldn't get hit by a car. Then I see him...coming out from behind a house, big smile on his face, galloping toward me pleased a punch. I said something under my breath like, you bugger! Then waited for him to come to me, I told him he was a smart boy for coming back & gave him a big handful of treats.
What could I do, I couldn't tell him he was bad, he wouldn't have understood why, so I just gave him a huge hug & treats & breathed a sigh of relief.
I won't take my eyes off of him again, lesson well learned!

Turkey Day!

All the gang here at my house this weekend wish everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving ! :)

Great Practice

Today Amanda & I went out to Cowley to practice Scenthurdling in a new venue & against another running team.
Kort was awesome...focused, & returned with the right dumbbell each time, super great for running in a new place!
We also did a novice Rally course, I did Kort's off leash & again he was amazing & focused. I have been working alot lately on focus & quick sits. It is paying off.
We were not able to stick around for the obedience but I did manage to practice a sit & down stay.
Liz came out with the 3 remaining flatcoat puppies from her recent litter. I am still in love with puppy #4 who has now been named Gulliver. He will be sticking around Liz's for awhile so I get to "borrow" him from time to time for an overnight visit :)

I love these pictures Amanda got of Kort after our practice today, he is looking so mature......



Perkins came along & posed for some pictures too :)......

Proud Day :)

Nicole, the Therapy Dog Program coordinator for St. John's Ambulance, sent me these 2 pictures from Tate's evaluation......

Tate greets the "patient" in a wheel chair....he made me so proud ♥

Tate after receiving his Therapy Dog Bandanna...he looks shocked !......

Turkey Day Weekend

What do these 3 innocent faces have in common ??......

Lacey......

Coulee......

Perkins......


They are all spending the weekend at my house !
Let the party begin !!

For Free !

In Waterton National Park you get to enjoy dinner AND a show ! :)

Waterton

Magical is how I would describe our time at Waterton National Park. Not only was it Brad & mine's 15th Wedding Anniversary , but it was also the first time, since our honeymoon, we have gone away together alone...seriously!
It was off season so it was like we had the whole place to ourselves. There were so few people there at this time of year & it was just how we like it.
We woke up late everyday, enjoyed champagne & orange juice at 8 am. on our Anniversary, & just enjoyed the peacefulness of the park.
At night we left our sliding door open on the balcony & I could smell the trees & the leaves that had fallen to the ground.
The views that we were surrounded by had me in awe. I didn't want to leave....seriously, there was a gift shop for sale there & I thought how wonderful it would be to buy it & live there year round! Of course there is no cell phone reception!, but I'm sure I'd live :))
We will go back next year for sure, I am already looking forward to it!

The following pictures are of the boat that Brad & I took a cruise on, the day of our Anniversary. It couldn't have been a more perfect way to spend our day :)♥








On our last day Brad & I wandered around the entire park...we came across the Cameron Falls...




That's it for now, I will be posting more pictures, along with some of the local wildife :)

I'm Published!

Thanks to the generosity of Wendy & Marlin, I have finally been able to publish my blog book!!
It is my 2008 blog, enjoy this preview!

ONE COLLIE | Make Your Own Book

Teasers

I'm too tired to post tonight, but here are a few "teaser" pictures from mine & Brad's Anniversary in Waterton National Park.....
What a truly amazing place :)