Famous

Our kennel club is having our first Obedience & Rally Trials that are separate from our yearly Dog Show.  It is so exciting & I am on the committee, unfortunately Kort isn't ready to compete at this one but I will be there all weekend ring stewarding.

Amanda put together some posters for us to put up around the city & guess who is front & center!

Doesn't he look smart :)

Lions Dog Guide Walk

Me, Kort & Perkins relaxing. We saw Mac there, he goes to the Daycare where I work :)

Every year the Lions Club puts a walk on at a local park to raise money for Dog Guides. It was held this past Saturday the 25th.

The whole crew, Pixel, Perkins, Kort, Vito & Wicca

Our kennel club donates to it as well as my place of employment, Paws On The Run.
This year I took Kort & Perkins for the walk & was joined by Amanda & 3 of her dogs.
It was lots of fun & a gorgeous day as well.

Getting Healthy

Me & my cousin Ronnie on my 28th birthday, a much thinner me :)

I have fought being overweight my entire life.  In my 20's I lost a bunch of weight.  It was easy, I was young.  I looked great , I felt great, but I was always hungry.  It was horrible.  I have been on a diet of some sort  on & off all my life, I have been to a nutritionist, I have joined a gym, been to exercise classes.  When I turned 30 it became harder to keep the pounds off, 40 was worse, never mind turning 50! I finally decided enough was enough, dieting causes me anxiety, seriously ...I couldn't take the stress & pressure & that is what it felt like.  The pressure from people to keep going, keep trying, "but you look so good" they'd say.  All the time I just felt hungry & miserable :(
The weight has been creeping on for the past few years, especially around my middle.  This year I have felt worse then ever, like a slug.  An unhappy , fat slug. I still did not want to diet however , I just couldn't take it.

At the end of April I went to a Fibromyalgia information talk at the library.  It was put on by a chiropractor, I blogged about it.  I decided I should actually see a chiropractor, do something for myself. I have been going for a month, I can't say I feel any better .....yet.  It took me 50 yrs to get my spine this way, improvement won't be fast.  Today my lower back is really sore, like I  want to cry if I bend over sore. It sucks.

Anyway, earlier in the month Liz & I travelled to Medicine Hat together.  She mentioned that she & her husband started on this eating program that was proven to reduce inflammation in the body. I was intrigued as Liz said it has helped Andy with his sore back.  I researched it more & I liked what I read.  I thought to myself that I was already going to a chiropractor , so why not go a step further & see if healthy eating could also help.  I decided to give it a month, what could it hurt, & I can do anything for  a month.

You probably have figured it out, but I am following the Wheat Belly book.  You remove all grains & wheat from your diet.  I was shocked to learn where wheat is hiding, in salad dressing & licorice for instance.

I have been on it pretty strictly for 2 weeks now.  I have cheated occasionally & felt crappy, really crappy!  I can tell you I am not hungry..at all!  I feel comfortable all the time, is this what normal people feel like? It is amazing to not be hungry, to always be wanting to eat.

I plan to stick with it, as long as I can anyway, no pressure on myself.  I stopped weighing myself years ago & don't plan on it now.  I will know if I have lost any weight according to how my clothes feel.

I am excited & feel better then I have in a very long time, in any case it won't hurt me to eat healthy for awhile.

Hey Diana!!, it's a semi tragically long tracking video :)

Here is Tate doing a very short track at the seminar in Red Deer last weekend.  I only brought him out as the conditions were too tough for Kort who has no experience.  Tate hasn't tracked in the past 6 yrs.  He is very distracted here , wandering more then usual, however he made an awesome right turn!
I put food on the track which was dumb, he kept stopping.
Enjoy!

Let's Get Tracking !

I stayed with Donna & her crew on Friday night, that's Ted & his son Ben on the back of the couch, Tate & Jet, Ben's mom on the couch, & 13 yr old River with Kort in front of the couch

Oh my goodness there is so much information I want to remember from this weekend!  I will blog some things that pertain to Kort, but most of my in depth info will be in my tracking log book.  We were not allowed to video or take pictures, but Donna took pictures of the dogs when we worked with her.  I worked Tate during that time so I have no photos of Kort.

Friday night was the meet & greet where Jean Blondin got right to work interviewing each person to find out exactly where they were with their dog.
There were people working at all different levels with their dogs,  as well as working at different disciplines.  There were SAR dogs there, CKC trackers & Schutzund trackers. We had total novices & very experienced handlers, we also had a police officer working his dog.

My group consisited of an Airedale named Reggie, A Weimeraner named Hickory, A Gordon Setter named Echo & a Begian Terveran named Allie.

Tate already tracking as we approach our scent pad

We started on Sat. morning with Jean Blondin.  Jean is a retired RCMP officer of 33 yrs who has worked  25 of those years with the Police Dog Services.  He had fun stories to share about catching bad guys with his dogs :) He won the 1993 Canadian Police Dog Championships.
Jean had all of us lay a fairly long track to start, straight for about 100 yds, left turn for about 25 yds, right turn for another 100 yds to the glove.  They aged about 10 min.  It took him about 5 min to realize this was way above Kort's head :)  We stopped right away & headed back talking about his plan for Kort.
On Kort's next turn we did "trenching", basically dragging your feet & digging up the ground for about 10 ft. to begin.  Food is then placed along the track with a jackpot at the end.  Kort followed along fairly well but didn't have much drive.  So Jean had me hold him & let him watch as he laid the track, every few steps he would come back to Kort & hold the food under his nose, but not let him have it :)  As he was laying the track he was talking & taunting Kort, asking him if he wanted the food etc.  When Kort started the track this time he was all business, very eager to get going, I stayed right at his side as instructed, with my hand down at ground level the whole time, showing him the track.
I liked Jean, he is a no nonsense guy with a sense of humour, some found him off putting but I did not. His leash handling methods are much different , his approach to missing corners is different  , there is just way to much to write down in this post.  From Jean's methods I am taking away the trenching , & taunting, but not the more relaxed corner methods.

Tate on his first leg at the Red Deer College

The afternoon was spent with Donna doing CKC style tracking.  Donna has been tracking with her dogs for yrs & has numerous TDs, TDXs, UTDs, UTDX, & a Tracking Champion!  She is a CKC tracking judge as well.
Tate got to play here as we were laying longer tracks at the college & I knew from the morning lessons I couldn't do this with Kort.
Tate's first track was a straight line with a right turn to the glove.  Tate was pretty rusty & it was hot hot! The grass was dry, not ideal conditions, but we did our best, Tate was thrilled to find his glove :)  We then went to a field where we laid tracks for each other, Tate's was a long leg with a marked right turn, then a blind left turn.  He was rocking it!  He found his right turn but for the life of him could not find the left turn, this was the blind turn so I didn't know if it went right or left, I ended up asking Donna to tell me which way it went as to not let Tate get discouraged.  The ground was somewhat mucky but it was weird that he couldn't find it, could have been the heat.

Happy Kort carrying his glove all the way back :)

Sunday morning we had Dan Waters.  He does Schutzhund style tracking, meaning footstep tracking. Dan is a very serious competitor & has won numerous titles & a World Championship a few years back.
I told him Kort was a beginner so we worked on short grass with a treat in each footstep.  This is very time consuming, you have to scuff the ground first, then place the treat. Dan's style is much different, he wants a totally relaxed leash, no tension, complete silence except for a NO if the dog is off the track & a YES when he comes back on, stressing a QUIET , CALM, no & yes.  Kort did fairly well, but only took the treats from the right foot side lol!  At the end, Dan had us walk back the other way on the track letting Kort pick up the treats he had not gotten, & yes, I said walk back along the track.  Dan does not stress about going back at this point, it's all encouragement & motivating for the dog right now.  Later he had me lay a longer track with a right turn down a gentle slope to see how he did.  Kort was totally turned off from some smell on the ground & kept jumping off the track, he wouldn't even look at the food!  He did manage to get focused on the hill but something was on the ground at the beginning.
This is the style I have chosen for Kort, footstep tracking.  Dan also showed us how he teaches article indication, but I am not to worry about that for awhile he said.

Kort was such a good boy this weekend, so grown up & well behaved :)

Like I said there is just way way to much to blog, but I am thankful for the experience to see 3 different disciplines of tracking, & for the knowledge that Donna, Jean & Dan shared with us.  What an amazing seminar!!

Tracking !!

Today I am heading to Red Deer to participate in a tracking seminar !  It has been years since I've been to one.  It is being put on by my good friend Donna Brinkworth who herself is a tracking judge.  It was under Donna's instruction that Tate & I received our TD in  2007, I couldn't have done it without her, tracking with Tate was difficult, he was very soft & worried about making a mistake, but we pushed through under Donna's expert guidance. I have the highest respect for her!  Tracking is her passion :)  I will also be staying at Donna's house, so we get to talk "track" in the evening as well !

We will be working in sessions with a retired RCMP member who is a renowned dog trainer - Jean Blondin, winner of the Police Nationals one year. We will also have a session with Dan Waters, who is an IPO Nationals winner and WUSV competitor. Then everyone will have one session with Donna. There are trackers coming from as far as Montana to attend. It will be an informative, fun weekend. :)

I had entered this seminar with the hope of tracking with Kort, but I haven't put enough time into him for him to truly understand what he needs to do, so I will be tracking with Tate & then apply what I have learned to Kort.  I would love to put a UTD on Tate, as far as I know there is no UTD collie in Canada.

Tate winter tracking on the sidewalk

Beautiful left turn in the snow

Kort's first lesson, learning footstep tracking

 

Cupping the scent in the footstep

Quick Trip

Today I joined Liz for a quick trip to the Medicine Hat dog show.  It was fun just to go down for a few hrs, watch some friends & their dogs & come back home.  I had also put in an order for Jill Cookies so I picked them up from her at the show.

I walked around some of the booths & was so excited to find a Flatcoated Retriever pin!!!  My first piece of Flatcoat jewellery :)

Spring Training

Spring has finally decided to make an appearance :)

Our obedience class has been moved outside now, it is wonderful to be outside working !  It is also great for distractions for the dogs, lots of things to take their minds off of working :)
At our class on Tues. night Kort worked extremely well.  I have to say that he is getting much better knowing that I expect him to work, no gawking at other dogs or handlers.  It is awesome to be working with a dog who likes to work for me, even with all our challenges Kort has always tried his best.  He enjoys being with me & I think it shows.

On Wed. nights we have Agility class, we were off for 10 months so are trying to get back into shape...ok, I  am trying to get back into shape :)  Last night we worked on weave pole entries.  Kort is awesome when weaving with the poles my my left, but if the poles are on my right he misses the entry & has trouble popping out.  We worked on discrimination between two obstacles close together, threadles, & serpentines. Kort is doing well with serpentines, probably because my timing in better, I still have timing issues with the threadles but made some progress.

I am really busy, between training in 3 dog sports & then competing in the 3 venues as well.
This Sat. I am driving to Medicine Hat for the day to watch the Dog Show.
Then next weekend I am attending a 3 day Tracking seminar in Red Deer put on by Donna, my tracking instructor from Thunder Bay!!

Life would be pretty boring without my dogs!

Amanda took some pictures at our Obedience class on Tues. night.....

Calling into heel from a distance

In a sit stay

Beautiful Attention!

Happy Birthday to Kort!!

Today Kort is 5 years old!!! Wow!

We are going to Calgary for a Scenthurdle trial, what a great way for him to spend his day, with all his doggie & human friends.

I still think of him as a puppy, my baby boy. :)  He just doesn't seem to be mature to me, I'm not sure why!  Amanda says he is looking very mature these days, I just don't see it.

Kort is the first collie I've had that thinks the world revolves around me.  Tate is very independent, he can take me or leave me haha!  My other 2 collies, before Tate & Kort, loved me, but Kort worships the ground I walk on lol!  He is very much a mommas boy & that's ok with me.  He is always near me, he likes to snuggle right up against me, he makes me happy  ♥

Happy Birthday to my little Peanut!!

Oh My!

Purpose   of the EMG Scan...
 
To detect and identify abnormal function of the spine and muscles.  Abnormal spinal muscular function leads directly to abnormal nervous system imbalance. 

Surface Electromyography (EMG) scan ..... As the muscles are controlled by nerves, this scan measures how well the motor nerves are working by reading the amount of current or electrical conductivity found in the musculature. Any muscular imbalance or misalignment of the joints will cause a disturbance in the nerve, thereby causing an abnormal amount of electrical current flowing through your muscles which is recorded by the EMG device. Thermography..... The device measures the skin temperature adjacent to the spine. The skin is the largest organ of the body and the blood vessels under the skin work as the body’s thermostat. Like the body’s organs and glands, the blood in itself is controlled by the autonomic nervous system. Both sides of your spine should be at the same temperature when all is well. If the communication between the nervous system and the blood vessels are disturbed, it causes the body’s thermostat to malfunction, producing an imbalanced temperature reading along the spine. This thermal scan therefore monitors how the autonomic system of your body is doing and indirectly the associated organs at the various adjacent levels. I had this done a week ago , yesterday I got my results This is my spine, yikes!!! Green is Mild, Blue is Moderate, Red is Severe, & Black is off the charts bad :( I'm not sure what the white is but it shows that the subluxations in my spine are having an effect on my muscular system.  Both sides of the spine should be the same, without the pretty colours :) The spine houses all the nerves that control everything is the body, so if the nerve signals are interrupted then the body doesn't function properly, there is a chart of some of the things that could be affected when the spine is out....for instance I found it interesting that Chronic cough is under a category where I am having issues in my spine.  I have had a cough for 5 yrs that my Dr said was allergy asthma. I have begun my adjustments & will have another EMG done in one month & will post the results. I am not a full believer right now, I will wait to see how I feel in a month, for now I just know that I am willing to try anything as nothing else has worked. Also, it is not just adjustments that are involved.  Dr Helen has a wellness class that is mandatory to attend, as we all know, it is about the wellness of the entire body & mind that promotes healing within the body. Wish me luck!

Dad

Oct 2007

I haven't thought of my dad in awhile.  He passed away in July 2010 & as the years go by it gets easier, kinda.
Dad had Parkinson's & Dementia.  Both horrible & they go hand in hand.  When he was first put into a facility he was pretty advanced & it didn't take long before he couldn't speak anymore.  I left Thunder Bay in 2007 & by the time I went back a year later he was pretty bad :(

Yesterday I was in Safeway & an older man walked past me, I had to do a double take as he looked so much like my dad.  Same build, same balding head, glasses, he even dressed similar.  It hit me hard & I teared up, right in the isle way.  I really had to concentrate on snapping out of it or I would have actually started bawling right  there.
Later last night my sister posted on Facebook that she had just woken from a dream with my dad in it.  She cried & cried because it was so real.  When I told her I had also had a "dad" experience as well, she said that in the dream it was only herself & I who were talking.  So after nothing, both of us had an experience on the same day, just hours apart.
I wonder what dad is trying to tell us :)

I am always posting pictures of dad before he got sick but I'm going to post a couple when he was quite advanced.  This is my blog, my diary, I didn't post them before because I thought people would find them too awful..... but I don't care, this is dad, this is what the horrible disease did to him,  this is how I remember him & it sucks.  It doesn't bother me anymore to see them, enough time has passed, I just know I miss him.  He was a sensitive, generous, man who loved nature & birds.  I have gotten that from him, Debra as well.  Funny, we are the 2 that were "visited" by him yesterday .

Dad's Birthday, March 19 2010