One Collie...Two Actually :): October 2011

Sunday, October 30, 2011

Me & Woody

I forgot to post this picture Brad took of Woody & I just before he left yesterday :)
It's a horrible picture of me because Brad is really slow to take them, & my face was sore from smiling!!...plus Woody kept moving !

Friday, October 28, 2011

Woody

Tomorrow Woody leaves for Calgary. He is going on a trial with a family, they have an 11 yr old son & a 5 year old Pomeranian.
Paws crossed everyone in hopes this will be his forever home, he deserves it :)

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Training Troop Videos

Here are Tate & Kort's videos from the trials this past weekend. they show all the boo boos made by the boys & myself :) they are also fairly long & contain music I have used before, so you can watch them or not :)
If you do watch them, you will see that on Tate's very last run of the weekend he finally had to bounce around the ring , he thought he had been well behaved long enough!

Monday, October 24, 2011

Training Troop Trial

Tate shows off his ribbon......

It was such a great weekend at the Training Troop trials in Balzac AB. The trial is fun & full of good sportsmanship & humour.
The boys were so good for me but we have things to work on.
Tate finished his Starters Standard title giving him his ADC ( Agility Dog of Canada ) award!! He is now in Advanced in both Standard & Jumpers. However, now that he is in Advanced we really need to work on those weaves. He wasn't trained in the same manner as Kort & I can really see how bad his weaves are , in particular, he doesn't even look for his entry. In Advanced he really needs to have weaves. Tate also competed in Gamblers but wouldn't go out to the tunnel, my fault, I should have backed up & sent him, live & learn :)
In Jumpers he had a clean run but I did some really sloppy handling in one tricky spot causing him to be overtime :(
Kort was awesome, he got a Gamblers Q & a Standard Q.
In both Jumpers & the other Standard runs he was clean, but due to "table issues" he ran overtime. The killer was yesterday afternoon when he was just 1.36 seconds overtime :(
My instructors, Amanda & Sarah, have talked to me about his table problems & I am ready to listen :)
At times I think I know what is best for my dogs, & I can be very stubborn, right Sarah :) :) , but I do listen to what they are saying, & I do take it in, it just takes me some time to sit back & process what I have heard & then make my plan to go forward.
The instructors I have here in Lethbridge are awesome, it shows in how good Kort is compared with Tate.
Tate is good, don't get me wrong , but in AAC agility it really shows the holes in his training. AAC is so much harder then CKC, less time for one thing, & slight mistakes like a simple spin in front of the jump will result in an NQ, it makes you become a better handler for sure!
All this being said, I will definitely go to this trial again, I loved it !!

Friday, October 21, 2011

More agility !!

I'm off to my first, & the dogs first, INDOOR agility trial this weekend! I don't normally like to do indoor agility, I find it so hard to run in dirt or mulch, but I want to get in as many trials as I can before the year ends. This is also a very popular trial with lots of fun things going on like a Hallowe'en costume contest, stay tuned for results & video next week :)
Have a good weekend everyone!!!

Saturday, October 15, 2011

Whatever It Takes

Today I took Tate & Kort to an Obedience fun match. I wanted to see if Tate showed any interest in novice work in hopes of entering him in our Lethbridge show next month, sadly he was like Eeyore in the ring :) Ok Tate, I get the message, only agility for you :) :)
I had a plan for Kort as well. He has developed stress in the Obedience ring, most likely do to me moving forward too fast. The last few trials he has shown extreme stress when entering the ring, he won't give me eye contact, he yawns & folds his ears sideways, he also lags horribly!! Kort has always had good heeling, not great, but way way better then he has been doing in the Open ring :(
Today I paid my money for a novice run, but between dogs I took him in the ring to set him up only. My goal was just to get eye contact at first. It took a bit of doing the first time, I had to tap him on the head finally to get him to look at me. As soon as he did I said "good boy"! & ran from the ring to his crate to give him his reward. It took 4 times doing this before he entered the ring with less stress. Then I went from a sit to a fast, another sit , a right turn , sit & ran from the ring again for his reward. By the end of the day I was able to do a tiny heel pattern with his full attention !! I will continue this until he is happy again entering the ring, then I will bring back the other stuff, slowly this time though. I have pulled him from every trial I entered this year & I may not enter next year at all either. I will do whatever it takes, I am determined to get Kort's UD, but not until Kort is happy again :)

Thursday, October 13, 2011

Still Looking....

Woody has been with me for 6 weeks now, he is still looking for his forever home ......

I ADOPTED YOUR DOG TODAY
I adopted your dog today
The one you left at the pound
The one you had for several years and no longer wanted around.
I adopted your dog today
Do you know he's lost weight?
Do you know he's scared and depressed and has lost all faith?
I adopted your dog today.
He had fleas and a cold,but don't worry none.
You've unburdened your load.
I adopted your dog today
Were you having a baby or moving away?
Did you suddenly develop allergies or was there no reason he couldn't stay?
I adopted your dog today
He doesn't play or eat much
He's very depressed, but he will learn again to trust.
I adopted your dog today.
And here he will stay.
He's found his forever home and a warm bed on which to lay.
I adopted your dog today.
And I will give him all that he could need.
Patience, love, security, and understanding.
Hopefully he will forget your selfish deed
Author - Unknown

Sunday, October 9, 2011

She Did It !!!!!

My friend Diana who lives in California just fulfilled one of her dreams! She completed the Tevis Cup. I am no horse riding expert but this is a HUGE deal among the horsey people. It is 100 miles of endurance, through bush, hills, cliffs etc, and a huge section of it is at night.
Last year was supposed to be the year she competed but her horse Ali'i came up lame & she had to scratch, it was so sad as she had trained so long for it. One year later & she finished !!!
I am so happy for you Diana, big big ((((((hugs))))) for you & Ali'i!!

Here are some pictures of Diana & Khemali'i taken last year during some endurance training rides......

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Tate, reborn

Since Tate was neutered he has been feeling better then he has in years as well as gaining weight finally :)
He stayed with Wendy while Brad & I went to Waterton & as usual she captured the Tate I know & love ♥ thanks Wendy !!!!