The Spotted Devil

Hi nessa704 - welcome to the forum There is no short answer! You definitely need a lot of reliable off leash control before you start doing agility. Most handlers that are new to the sport are desperate to work their dogs over obstacles but it's worth remembering that you spend 90% of an agility competition run running between the obstacles! I didn't start my Dalmatian in agility until he was 2 because he lacked the mental and physical maturity - if they learn that they can run out of the ring it's not an easy thing to re-train. However, by the time I started with Ziggy he was really focussed, I started off leash with him straight away and he picked it all up very quickly. My current pup will start agility when she hits 12 months because she is extremely focussed and is reliable off lead at age 5 months. There is so much you can do before you touch a piece of equipment - teaching your dog how to learn is really important as is finding out what motivates your dog - food, toys, tug, praise etc Personally I do obedience and agility with my Dally and plan to do obedience, agility and retrieving with my pup. Some people prefer to focus on one sport - it's your choice but you still need control no matter what discipline you compete in.

They do actually engage with and lobby both animal welfare scientists and farm animal producers in Victoria. It's not "news worthy" but it is happening behind the scenes.

Mr TSD is still laughing about my stack A HUGE brag for Ziggy......not trialling related but I'm so chuffed: click here

Mrs RB - there has been some limited work done on the application of the whip in racing. One of the interesting things to come out of it was that the whip is applied poorly by a very large percentage of jockeys. If you apply the basics of operant learning, for example, we use a lot of negative reinforcement when it comes to training horses - it works incredibly well if applied correctly. For example, apply pressure with legs, horse moves forward, remove leg pressure. A very basic example but the same applies to racing - apply pressure with whip, horse moves forward, keep applying pressure with whip (which is what happens quite a bit) - the horse stops responding to the whip pressure. I don't have the details of the study at hand but was discussing the results some time ago with the author.

I thought the stack would be popular Funny thing at the time I thought I took ages to get up - geez the knees are starting to ache now though! I enjoyed your videos too smisch! Must get some decent weavers so Zig can practice properly and be as fast as Den great recovery on the stack really nice run, Zig is such a good boy, he is really responsive to your handling & calls Thanks Vickie - really nice of you to say (about Zig not the stack ) and means a lot I think we both have the potential to get faster and tighter. He's such a big striding dog - feels slow on course but he really eats up the ground.

No - I'm doing a PhD in canine welfare/behaviour and have also a strong research interest in cat welfare/behaviour. I like to challenge assumptions - very beneficial when it comes to animal behaviour! ETA: More questions! How do you know she is serious? Does she growl? A dog can growl in play. Is it an issue of possession do you think? Is it simply reinforcement history?

Not sure that would cut it if I was marking (lollipop's response) With the photo...just to be annoying ( ) is the dog play bowing or just getting a better grip and angle on the 'tug' toy? Maybe look at the tug game itself - is it serious? What is the outcome of such an encounter? Does one dog generally get the toy over the other? Why tug at all? Is there a point at which play can escalate into aggressive behaviour? I'd rather propose more questions rather than give you the answer you're looking for

Agree with corvus - read a great chapter on play in cats in a book called "Play Behaviour in Humans and Animals". Really interesting and they argued against several theories I was familiar with. Might be getting too detailed for what you're after though.

Rozzie, if you add the working lines ESS into the mix, they are smaller than a regular ESS, a lot less coat and feathering and run and retrieve like little energiser bunnies. Mad, they are! There is a Welsh Springer that does agility here and looks somewhat more heavily built to my untrained eye.

Nicole - what a gorgeous dog and doesn't she run like the wind It did look really nice but it sometimes feels different when you're in amongst it. Congratulations

Well done Ptolomy, RV & little Strauss Oh, Vickie I AM envious of your start to the year!!! Congratulations And stuff training We had a "mini" jumping trial this morning....2 rings only, set up 6am (), start 8am and home by 11am, which was fortunate as it warmed up very quickly and had hit at least 30C by the time we packed up and headed home. First up for Zig and me was Open Jumping....despite me stacking it (too much looking at the 'pretty doggy' as one of my wonderful mentors chastised me) Ziggy ran clear and we got our 2nd pass Thanks Mr TSD for taking video - Then it was time for our first Excellent Jumping run (ever!) but the heat took it's toll on dog and handler. Ziggy tipped a couple of jumps, which is always a sign he is hot/tired and I sent him off course Thanks to Luke (of Luke and Barkley Inc ) for taking video ( ) as Mr TSD took his Dad home. My MIL stayed with me and very much enjoyed watching all the dogs run around and everyone was most lovely and welcoming

I didn't charge the clicker with Little Em. Just waited until she looked up at me, clicked and treated. She worked it out very quickly. I don't look for or expect a head turn but do look for at least an ear flick as the clicker can blend into the sound environment for young pups that are highly distracted.

How much work would the dog have? The difficulty is that if you want a dog with drive enough to hunt you have that excess energy to deal with when they're not working. I really can't comment on any other breed as I haven't lived with them but you'd need to thorougly research the lines as there are some splits between show and working. Personally I think my working lines ESS is perfect but not everyone wants to live with an energiser bunny She is very soft and sweet and snuggly though and is just a delight to have around. Not much coat to worry about and a bit smaller than the show Springers too.

Hey that's awesome RS Congratulations!!!

It's times like this I really don't miss having TV.

Good on you amypie! I love running Open and have been entering Zig in JDO since our 2nd trial. I use them for fun and building speed and confidence as I just assume they will be too hard to Q and thus I tend to relax a bit more. They are also great for me to learn to walk/remember courses. I'm often surprised how close we've come to getting a pass and how many distance challenges Zig nails. We only have one pass in JDO but it's a hoot. In terms of building value for jumps, try some different handling skills with just 2 or 3 jumps and reward from the correct hand - eg rear crosses, front crosses, tight wraps, serpentine, straight line run (throw food or toy) etc Gets them thinking and carefully watching your body language for the next cue - although this can backfire

Ziggy has had a nice break although with our first Jumping trial for the year this Sunday we have been tightening up rear crosses, wrapping around jumps, run home and the weavers. Little Em has been playing hard and is progressing well for a young 'un....heeling, automatic sits, sit on the run (for retrieving), sit stay, drop, informal recall, formal front, nose target to hand, free shaping, dummy retrieve etc.

That's so sad Pers I remember crying uncontrollably when it hit me that my beloved 18 year old Burmese girl wasn't coming home with me. It was all so surreal and it just wasn't like me at all. I'm so glad I was there to walk her to the bridge though. The staff were lovely and guided me through the cremation process and told me we'd sort the account out later. Still brings tears to my eyes I've done my fair share on the clinic side but it doesn't prepare you.

Ziggy (the Dally) and Dizzy (the foster failure kitten) do tag team for Miss Emily Just reading that thread on rough puppy play makes me realise how much thought I put into matching personalities. Zig really is incredibly patient and gentle but will put Em in her place in a controlled way if necessary. But she does all the submissive stuff and then steals his toys anyway

The ever-gorgeous Lucky I'm so sorry that you parted company today What a beautiful photo horus You gave him another chance and he repaid you a thousand times. Run free Lucky.

I was still living at home with Mum and Dad (in WA) when I saw an agility demonstration at Perth's Royal Show. I thought to myself that our 2 year old ACD, Dolly, could do all that standing on her head. I was right I joined an obedience club and we were out on the main arena doing agility demos with the club 12 months later. Dolly gained her CDX title and 2 legs of her AD before I retired her. Agility was very different back then and she just couldn't cope with the size of the spread. I was a pretty crappy trainer and it was very old fashioned paddock bashing, correction based training. Dolly was devoted to me but I never even got close to tapping her potential. The turning point for me was seeing Sue Hogben compete in the obedience ring with one her Goldens: Dancingate Golden Tonka. Glorious, bouncing, happily working dog - I knew there had to be another way... I had the pleasure of Dolly's company for 17 years. When she passed away I had my heart set on a male Golden Retriever - I couldn't have another ACD as I was afraid of always comparing them with Dolly. Then I thought about getting a challenging dog....maybe a Setter? Had to be something elegant and handsome but dog sports were always at the back of mind. I was talking with a work colleague about breed choices and she told me about her 2 Dalmatians. I laughed and commented on how stupid they were :D She told me to ring her breeder....I did and the rest, as they say, is history Then a few years ago I ran one of Lablover's dogs in a retrieving trial - I had a ball and ran him again at the Easter Trial in Novice and Restricted. We had 6 runs per day for 3 days so it was a real crash course and LL was competing with her other dogs in All Age so I was on my own essentially. I was hooked! When it came time to consider my next pup I remembered that I'd always wanted an ESS as a kid (the ears :D) - LL quickly educated me as to the differences between show and working lines and suggested I speak to her friend who breeds them. I'd always planned to do obedience and agility with her as well but retrieving will be the biggest challenge as the breed is more commonly used in field trials. I was pretty full on with my ACD but my Dally has taught me balance in training and competing - you can't ask too much from him or he will shut down. Keep him fresh and keen and he will work his Spotted Heart out. Time will tell with Miss E. I seem to be a bit of a breed tart ;)

I camped at a very dog friendly place in Gundagai earlier in the year. I think they had cabins as well but most places don't allow dogs inside, which is one reason why I camp. Oh boy, but it was cold My Dally is not very snuggly but he curled up under the doona with me at about 2am even with his coat on - at least I stopped shivering :D

It does come with time - you need to build confidence too though. Don't get caught up in always stopping when they make a mistake as it can really slow them down. I only practice weaving poles when Zig is really fresh and hungry so he drives hard for the treat that I toss forward at the end. Train simple straight line sequences - try running hard with the dog (I really rev him up!) and also send him ahead to finish the jumps on his own to encourage independence. More experienced triallers will have more ideas.

RS - 3 in total

Just checked the rules - yep DQ for 3 or more faults