The Spotted Devil

I'm very happily ensconced at Hastings for Agility on Sundays - however, I'd like to add another training session to our week as I really don't have the ability to train at home (TINY backyard!) Plus, we often miss out on Sundays for whatever reason....trialling, long weekend, travel away etc. and I really need to work on Ziggy's confidence. I know there are one or two clubs with LONG waiting lists - happy to put my name down for the future but would like to get something going fairly soon. I live Bayside but I'm happy to travel for a good club. Thanks

Hands off Bonnie!!! He's ALL mine I'm sure I could talk Ziggy and the OH into it....now to work on the cats

I've decided that stacking puppies is an art in itself LP - it's actually easier to see more when they're just running amok, especially with all that fluff to cover up their angulation. Piglet needs a more girly name....she's quite a looker! ETA: Some lovely group photos but the out-takes are fantastic

That is well worth a brag all of its own LMAO you'll have 4 dogs in All Age soon (Darn! Lost my casual handling job now :D )

What about "close" as a whole new word? As far as I understand you can use any word as long as it's English. I think ETA: Sorry, just re-read your post...can't use close Maybe "look"?

Lovely perspective Mrsdog I'm focussing on obedience at the moment, have put showing on the back burner for a little (time factor), enjoying agility training (when we make it!!!), have dabbled in retrieving with a friend's dog (now THAT'S an addictive sport!!!) and would love to do tracking and endurance (easy for him!) with my Spotted friend. Once Ziggy has his CD title I plan to focus more on agility. Thank you for that reminder! The only thing Ziggy cared about when we won on the weekend was the possibility of chewing on the trophy or playing tug with the ribbon What made my day more than ANYTHING was his madly wagging tail during the heel work, the look of confidence in every exercise and his ridiculously over enthusiastic recall And this is from a perfectionist who has learned to change her definition of "success"

I met the puppies (And laffi too :rolleyes: ) I didn't get too much of a chance to get close and cuddly as poor LP was trying to wrangle a very strong and fit Dalmatian who just wanted to do his own thing I think I like the boy, though, with all that amazing attitude but there are a couple of very purrdy girls that I like the look of too Hey, Bub! laffi likes us better and is staying longer

They look suspiciously like Clean Run tug toys....poor Ziggy

I train at Hastings - relatively small club but some very knowledgeable agility people. Training is on Sundays - not 100% what time for newbies but if you want more info please drop me a PM and I'll try to find out this Sunday when I'll be going along

Thanks all - Hastings have got a trial at the end of the month....as I train in agility there I'd like to support them with my entry. Plus, it will give Zig a few weeks to freshen up and give me a chance to tighten a few things up that I'm not happy with (think whining for the duration of the stays despite being solid as a rock :D ) laffi - really looking forward to meeting you

Me again Well, just to prove it wasn’t a fluke Ziggy has done it again......95/100 and FIRST PLACE! I thought he worked even better today – someone mentioned that the judge was quite a hard marker (fine by me!) His heel work was full of wags and focus after some initial distraction, his stand for exam was solid and his recall was hilariously fast and accurate. He's had a Buster cube full of kibble to tide him over until his proper dinner and I'm having a cuppa! Congratulations on the agility results, ♥-smisch-♥, Levi and mntgood....especially in the midst of such terrible weather

Thank you! Some photos of the lad with his ribbon/trophy here Well done glorybea!!! You must have been over the moon!

Some great agility results Nice work!!! Can't wait to start running Zig in agility

I just happened across a lovely vet who is very open to discussing vax protocols Makes a nice change from my (otherwise) fabulous usual vet who will only give a C7 to dogs or F5 to cats. If anyone would like the details please feel free to PM me

Thank you SO much for all your good wishes - lovely to have so much support It was a very long but very satisfying day - The Spotted Devil himself has absolutely crashed Oh, and SO nice to have that first trial out of the way.....it's must be more than 10 years since I've last trialled

Congratulations capanash Wish I'd known who you were as we were also there! Ziggy got his first CCD pass this afternoon with a score of 95/100 and first place The general air of astonishment when the judge announced "the Dalmatian" was absolutely priceless I was doubly proud of the young lad as, during his sit stay, he was approached by a GSD....Zig did his absolute best to stay sitting and leaned back at an impossible angle to avoid the dog. Eventually the GSD jumped at him and Zig was forced to leap backwards/sideways in order to get away, right into the Jack Russell next to him! The judge was absolutely lovely and said it wasn't our fault and let us re-do our sit stays. Zig was solid but unfortunately the lovely little Jack lay down - after we'd finished I offered to do another stay whilst reinforcing with food to make sure the Jack wasn't frightened. The judge basically said that I lost most of the 5 points with my handling (too quick on the turns etc).....typical! Seemed like a well run trial (not much experience here!) - lovely ribbons & trophy plus 3 packets of 4-Legs dog food - which is what I use for training treats so very handy. In the AM trial, Zig worked beautifully but the judge had to fail us on the heel work (he was SO apologetic ) as Ziggy just would not drop properly on the cold, wet grass! So unlike him and, although I was disappointed, I really had nothing to complain about as the rest of his heel work etc was lovely and showed so much promise. I think we ended up with 82 NQ so it would have been a nice score! Congratulations everyone on your results!

I would suggest LOTS of clicker training or similar to manage those restless legs - I know my Dally would go completely mental without his regular walks/runs/training so best of luck!

Aaaaaghhhh! I just bought a book!!!!! Typical

For anyone who hasn't got their entries in, the Dally Club of Victoria are holding an endurance trial on the 6th June....all details HERE :rolleyes:

Food is surprisingly effective as a training aid and, if used correctly, does not mean your dog will become dependent on it. The 'shovelling' in of the food is only used to teach the dog that the heel position is the best place to be in the world. I actually shaped the heel to begin with but will certainly try the former method for my next pup. Once they get the hang of that you can use a marker (I use a clicker) and begin to reinforce the position every few steps - you mix it up so you are reinforcing randomly. Then mark the behaviour but use food from a container held by someone or hidden by a tree so that having food on you (or not) doesn't become a cue in itself. At Sue Hogben's recent seminar she said you are not ready to trial until you can build duration to 5 mins of heel work without a reward! Not sure that I will be quite that prepared for CCD but it's certainly a goal. The trick is to practice duration heeling as a separate exercise in big circles and different speeds but without the addition of halts, drops, stands and turns. My favourite Sue Hogben quote: "Dogs that don't perform are either confused or underpaid" I hope that helps - best of luck ETA: Ziggy just had 2 cups of dry food for his dinner and he had to work for every last scrap.....speed drops/sits, steady feet on the sit and stand, finding heel, holding the article without chewing....etc. He's owed at least another cup of dry food for dinner and is as keen as mustard to do another session but I will give him a break and finish training later.

Love the stacked photos You know my criteria, LP...I'll have the naughty one please

My entire Dally is highly motivated to sniff and pee A couple of things that I do - which have been backed up by my attendance at Sue Hogben's seminar - firstly, make sure the dog is HUNGRY and have some super, yummy tasty treats that won't break apart. Start just with flat work and practice the two food game....so working on your left or right side, reinforce the position by throwing food in front of you ("Get it!"), then turn and run in the opposite direction - as soon as the dog catches up with you (you need to indicate left or right side), reward immediately, 1 or 2 paces, throw food etc. The dog learns that you are a more reliable source of food than if he remains sniffing on the ground for leftovers. There's lots of variations on that game that you can utilise in flat work and on the course. Another thing that I do at the end of training is reward Zig by allowing him to go and have a good session of sniffing, peeing and scraping - it's taken patience and persistence but he really understands when it is allowed and not allowed. Also, don't let your dog disengage from you when you have stopped training - give him a clear 'ok' command that means he is now ALLOWED to sniff. Once you believe your dog truly understands that work means work, I would consider removing the dog from the training environment without fuss and putting him in the car/crate. A simple non reward marker that works very well as long as you have done your preparatory ground work. I don't even bother with a correction - Zig either couldn't give a toss or refuses to work. It is much easier on both of us if I use motivation. Hope that makes sense - on the better side of a migraine so head is just a little fuzzy today

I would love to do agility with a Poodle one day - Mini or Standard would be awesome In years gone by I also handled a Tibetan Terrier - he was a hoot and great fun.....like a mop on speed '; <---- sorry about that....curious foster kitten exploring keyboard!

Laffi - if you can, do get out to a trial and volunteer to help. Over the Easter trials I was too busy going from stake to stake but I did get the chance to place blinds out for some restricted retrieves once I'd finished. I learned SO much in that short time.....you get to see how much harder it is for the dogs than it looks, particularly through water and terrain changes and you also get to see the full spectrum of handling in terms of how it affects the dog. Well worth it!