Expanding - Plus 4

2016 is my year to expand. Expand my knowledge, growing and always learning. Expanding personally and building new skill sets and life directions. And Expanding our family by one more set of 4 paws!

10 Weeks

Introducing Tana! Tana is 10 weeks old now and she's a Flat Coated Retriever from Saskatchewan, Canada. She's from the same breeder as Rosey, Prairielight Kennels.

"Remus" Rainesgift Over the Moon

"Splash" Ch Prairielight Truth or Dare CDX, WCI, JH 

8.5 Weeks

We chose the name Tana after the shocking and powerful spring/summer in Northern Alberta with the Fort McMurray fire. The name Tana, "Fire Goddess," has it's origins in Greek (thanks google!), but has been adopted by Faery Traditions and its definition is so fitting for who she's turning out to be.

"She appears as liquid fire, sometimes molten magma, but at others simply plasma in a liquid-like form. Sometimes she appears as lightning, arcing from the sky and into the earth. She is often dancing wild, ecstatic, sparks and flames jumping from her burning aura as she moves. She is the explosive power of all fire, whether that be in the smallest candle flame, or in a raging inferno, or the nuclear processes in the heart of every star. She is the geo-thermal power in the center of the earth, as well as the heat and adrenaline in our bodies. She brings both change, and destruction, as heat can cause chemical changes in objects (as in food being cooked, or stones changing characteristics when exposed to higher temperatures while forming) or even completely obliterate them (a forest or building burning to the ground in a raging fire)." 

9 Weeks - On our way home

Our little fire goddess has kept us on our toes and is always happy to try something new! She is amazingly respectful of Rosey and Sam, not once jumping on them or grabbing at them (yet!). She has amazing self-control already (sits before exiting her crate, quickly learning to wait for her bowl to get to the floor before eating, It's Your Choice game was very quick!), and loves to run. 

So much to learn! So much to teach! I'm so grateful for all the amazing resources online, I feel like I can pick and choose to make the exact right training plan for this puppy. And so many great trainers out there to go to for help when I get stuck! 

Some of my resources so far:

Sophia Yin and her checklist

Chris Puls and her amazing training plans 

Julie Daniels and AG160 at FDSA

Sylvia Trkman and Puppy Class (and amazing student videos)

Plus all the great classes I've taken at Fenzi (Nosework, Focus, Play, Behavior management/rehab) and everything I've learned trying to build a relationship with Rosey and Sam!

Fretting over the little stuff is getting in the way of the big picture

Why is it so difficult to put the behaviors we've been working on for so long all together and finalized? It seems like I'm always waiting for it to be perfect, but things are never going to be perfect. (See Denise Fenzi's blog from today for her view). The slightly crooked behavior on their contact board, the not 100% confident weaves, even their jumping form, it's all a continuum that can go on forever!

While trying to train Rosey how to do her walk contact, I struggled and struggled. It was a real game of whack-a-mole that never ended! As soon as we were able to teach her one thing, she would start a different behavior. I think she finally decided that the end of the dog walk was filled with so much stress that she would avoid it all together! I ended up taking a summer and started training a running walk contact using Sylvia Trkman's method. I no longer had to worry about perfection, and neither did she, and we started to have fun!

The walk contact is still an issue realistically hasn't been "fixed," but it is consistent and I know where our weaknesses are. Her striding lands her comfortably inside AKC's contact zone (yay!), but too high for USDAA. I'd love to put more criteria on it or train it longer, but at 8yrs old, I don't know if the effort is worth the time. I'd much rather be out there running with her and having fun than worrying about a walk contact. Maybe it's a gamble, but with a little management from me, it's consistent and hasn't been an issue for a while. Doesn't mean I don't dream about perfect easy contacts, but with our past, I'm content with where we are at and I'll keep reinforcing what I need while practicing at home.

What I've learned about the whole process is to spend a little extra time at the beginning to assess their natural tendencies, what their body type is, and what they like. Some dogs have a huge powerful stride. With high arousal from a trial, it's unlikely that this type of stride will naturally flow into a dog walk contact. Other dogs are small and have short quick strides that naturally move them through the contact zone without a second thought; a running contact would be lovely with this type of dog.

It's not just the dogs. I am able and love to run, so a running contact for my long legged & lower drive dog is perfect. Someone with a fast, powerful dog and have trouble keeping up with them, will benefit from a stop of some sort at the end of the contact. There's no way to get down there in time to tell them what to do! In this case, it's up to you as a trainer to make the stopped behavior REALLY fun and totally worth their time. Easier said than done for some dogs :)

Take a look at your dog's structure, its temperament, it's drive to play the game. What best suits them? Can it work for you? There's so much more to a contact behavior than what everyone else is doing, each dog is so unique and it's up to you to be their advocate to make this game the best it can be!

Starting in the middle

“Begin at the beginning and go on till you come to the end: then stop.”

– Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland

I am far from the beginning of my journey, but where exactly does the beginning start? While I've had my current dogs for a while (5.5 years and 2.5 years), agility has been a part of my life for 5 years, and I've been dabbling in photography for the past 10 or so years, I still feel quite like a beginner in all these areas.

Me:

My interests include dogs, agility, photography, my husband, and insects. Yep, insects. Although this blog is directed towards agility, consider this your warning that insect photographs may pop up occasionally. My hubby really enjoys taking apart and putting back together our home, so I anticipate some photos of our ongoing projects also making an appearance.

My dogs:

Rosey – Prairielight Once Prairie Rose

Happiest around water

        Being a Flat-Coated Retriever, her outlook on life is something I cherish and aim to remember when ever things get tough. Her goal in life is to play hard, love lots, and enjoy every moment that comes her way. I like to think that she’s the type to tell you a joke and you both laugh at the punch line.

        Agility hasn't been easy with her. It’s been a long path full of learning about each other, about communication, and about listening. I was committed to giving her an outlet for her energy before I knew enough about the sport to teach her how to get there without frustrations. Luckily we both have learned a lot and are finally figuring things out.

Samantha – Sammy Sweetheart

Waiting by the bed

        Sam is black German shorthaired pointer rescued from the Arizona Humane Society and we got her when she was around 2.5 years old. She came with a complicated past that included multiple homes, the last of which she was forced out of because of too many dogs. I could probably write a paragraph on her neuroses that could or could not have resulted from her past, but instead I’ll say we have overcome most of them and are working on the rest.

Sam is a sweetheart with a wild streak. She’s the type to stand next to the bed (and head on the bed) for and hour until you wake up to invite her up for a cuddle. But she also gets moments of pure abandon that are little more than “zoomies” and make me wonder if she’s at times possessed by a demon.

Agility has been an adventure with Sam for different reasons, mostly an exploration on gaining trust and learning self-control. Once we establish the ground-rules, things hopefully will start to fall into place.