sheena

We are over near Coffs Harbour, on a cattle farm. We came out to Tamworth for their trials last year including the ADAA Grand Prix & then spent some time up at Manilla, where OH went paragliding. It looked like so much fun I want to do it next year, even though I have a phobia about heights :D Clean Run have a new DVD on free postage at present...it is a six DVD set on Foundation Training for just $74.95. If I didn't already have a bookcase full of DVD's then I would buy it.....I am still tempted Here's the link http://www.cleanrun.com/index.cfm?fuseacti...p;ParentCat=449 A good book to get before you choose your pup would be The Focused Puppy, also on free postage. I have the book, but honestly, I think I will just have to trust the breeder to choose one for me, when I get my new pup (can't wait)

I recently dog sat my daughters two little dogs. For dinner I gave them kibble with a bit of kangaroo mince mixed in. The girl dog chucked hers up straight away ...it looked like a big sausage, & she proceeded to re-eat it straight away (it staid down). The second night the same thing happened & the third night she got just kibble & egg & she didn't chuck. So I figured it was the roo mince.

I have a Black Dog one, but from day one, I couldn't get it to stay open. It kept snapping shut on my fingers, which didn't hurt much but was un-nerving. I tried oiling it etc to no avail. Finally I forced it open & sort of bent it into shape but of course now it wont shut properly, but better than snapping my fingers. :D

I have received my above-mentioned treat pouch from Clean Run, & I must say, I am very impressed with it. A bit of a "rolls royce' it has lots of different compartments, one for your clicker & another which is a dispenser for poo bags on a roll. The pouch itself has a simple opening & closing mechanism which is not dependant on hinges which can fail (as we all know). It simply has a magnetic catch. It has a clip on the back to fasten to your belt & also loops to put a belt through, but no belt comes with it. A plastic zippered sandwich bag fits inside perfectly to keep it clean, & best of all, Bindi thinks that the treats that come out of it are the best Ooh that looks really good! I've been using my doog for classes but can't quite fit my phone in and my car key and fob, so this one might be a winner! There's a spot for everything plus two D rings on either side, but it is not at all bulky, just well thought out If you email Clean Run before you order, they will reduce the postage to $7.90. Sounds like more people might have new treat pouches :D

I have received my above-mentioned treat pouch from Clean Run, & I must say, I am very impressed with it. A bit of a "rolls royce' it has lots of different compartments, one for your clicker & another which is a dispenser for poo bags on a roll. The pouch itself has a simple opening & closing mechanism which is not dependant on hinges which can fail (as we all know). It simply has a magnetic catch. It has a clip on the back to fasten to your belt & also loops to put a belt through, but no belt comes with it. A plastic zippered sandwich bag fits inside perfectly to keep it clean, & best of all, Bindi thinks that the treats that come out of it are the best Ooh that looks really good! I've been using my doog for classes but can't quite fit my phone in and my car key and fob, so this one might be a winner! There's a spot for everything plus two D rings on either side, but it is not at all bulky, just well thought out

Have a look at the Clean Run web site www.cleanrun.com. They have all their Clean Run DVD's on free worldwide postage at present. There is a mile to choose from & I am a bit of a collector

I use Nuheart on my BC...it is for heart worm only & main ingredient is ivermectin 136ug. Same ingredients, but more economical then the other more popular ones.

Ok...so you've got me there....what is a Thunder Coat & how does it work :rolleyes:

I wasn't into clickers either (probably out of ignorance) until I went to a Dancing with Dogs, seminar & she showed us how to use it & how to do "free shaping". It's a great training tool & much better than simply using the word "yes". My dog understands that "yes" means the same thing, but when I bring out the clicker, she will do summersaults to please me & get my attention. :rolleyes: Free shaping is a lot of fun for the handler & the dog.

This is a very interesting thread, so I must add my own story. I grew up on a sheep station & we had working dogs which were always chained to a kennel (if not working) & tossed a bit of old roo for dinner. No affection was allowed, though I remember sneaking the occassional cuddle in & loved it when one would have pups. I don't think any of our dogs were desexed, as pups were sometimes found inside a hession bag in the dam. If a dog was no good then it was disposed of. Terrible, I know but that was the way it was back in the 50's. Life was tough & everyone had to pull their weight. In the 60's our family moved to Sydney & I was never allowed a dog...only cats, budgies & guinea pigs. About 30 years ago, I moved back to the country & started farming with my two little kids & my OH, who later gave me my first border collie , for my 40th, from a BYB out of working lines. She was a great little dog, but sadly she died of a tick at about 6 months. We were all devestated & a year later we bought another BC from the same BYB. She came with all sorts of health problems, including a leaking bladder, which the Vet never seemed to be able to fix. Because of this, she was never allowed inside, but had a nice cosy verandah to sleep & eat. She was so smart & became my constant companion & loved to help out with the cattle. We made the hard decision to have her put down at the age of 13 after becoming arthritic, incontinant, deaf, blind & demented. The day we arranged for the vet to come out, she wondered off into the bush. Two weeks later someone found her & we had to go through the whole sordid thing again. It took me two years to get over her enough that I could start to think of getting another dog. This time we decided that BYB's were not for us & also decided we would get a different colour. That's how Bindi came into our lives 3 years ago. At the time we didn't know much about training dogs or about this thing called "agility", she was just going to be a companion. But she was way too lively for that. Honestly we didn't know what had hit us, when she came into our lives. Her idea of fun was "if it moves..chase it, if it stays still, then tear it to bits" We got interested in agility, I took her to obedience & started her on agility when she was old enough & she took to it like a duck to water. Twelve months ago I entered my first trial with her (virgin trialers) & we got a Q the first day...well I was hooked & of course the rest is history. I have become an agility junkie & can't get enough. I am now looking forward to getting our second dog maybe in about 12 months time. ETA All our BC's have been a learning experience, but this one is different...she has taught us HEAPS & turned our world up-side-down & on it's head. :rolleyes:

I have received my above-mentioned treat pouch from Clean Run, & I must say, I am very impressed with it. A bit of a "rolls royce' it has lots of different compartments, one for your clicker & another which is a dispenser for poo bags on a roll. The pouch itself has a simple opening & closing mechanism which is not dependant on hinges which can fail (as we all know). It simply has a magnetic catch. It has a clip on the back to fasten to your belt & also loops to put a belt through, but no belt comes with it. A plastic zippered sandwich bag fits inside perfectly to keep it clean, & best of all, Bindi thinks that the treats that come out of it are the best

Have you tried to teach Ellie the "clicker". It has to be taught so that the dog puts real value on the click & understands what it means. If you can clicker train her, which shouldn't be too hard if she likes food, then do some "free shaping" with her using the clicker. Of course do all this without your other dog looking on which will only distract Ellie. Make it as easy as you can for her to learn, if you know what I mean (in an udistracted environment)

My 3 yo girl gets this as a preventative....so far so good, but she is only young, time will tell, I guess

Yah...got it...thanks

Is it just me or my computer, or has the format changed suddenly on the forum. When I click on the last reply, I only get the last & the first, then have to go hunting for the rest

Yeah...she has a nice style, so I think I will stick to it. To stop her messing up in trial situations I think it will only come when she no longer gets distracted. At training, she is perfect even with the other dogs practicing alongside her.

I have only been trialling for 12 months so I am pretty inexperienced when it comes to judging courses, but I think I have learnt enough in that twelve months to be able to access a course to be either ridiculous or down right dangerous (sometimes both). I get a little angry when I pay good money ($8 a run) in NSW & have to make the decision to run a crap course & make the best of it, or pull my dog out. Of course a judge that sets up one crap course usually sets up crappy courses for the rest of the day. I am making a mental note of these judges & in future will treat their courses as "training runs" & not ask my novice dog to do ridiculous things that confuse her or put her in danger. I'm not going to get a qualie on them anyway. Thank goodness in NSW trials we have a different judge for the 2nd day. Looking forward to seeing you at WAGG, AD. We are going there to try & get our final pass for our AAD Title. She got all her other ones at the Grand Prix.

Seemed I've stumped all you agility people out there Hard to imagine that no one has an opinion on the subject. Has no body ever tried to change their dog's style of weaving

My sentiments entirely....why do they do that. It just seems very counter productive, especially for novice dogs to try & do tight, crappy courses. It should be all about the dog having fun & these courses certainly are not much fun. If the judges want to govern the number of qualies they get, then can't they simply make the time tighter. We are heading to Queensland in a couple of weeks to WAGG, to test out some Qld courses. expect them to be different though, as it is ADAA.

Definitely breed related, especially with terriers. I have never had or heard of a Border Collie humping anything. Border Collies are too busy rounding the "whatever" up, to think of having sex with it Definately a "little man thing"

Looks great...but I think a lot of dogs would freak out if you put the vacuume cleaner on them

Yep....I had one of these things when Bindi was younger, mainly to stop her chasing the cows & chooks. I also have a hand held ultrasonic device, which would be great for stopping your dog humping. When he humps, you just push the button. It doesn't hurt him, just startles him with a sound only dogs can hear & is unpleasant to their ears. He would soon start to associate his behavour with the unpleasant sound & stop it. You can probably pick them up cheap off Ebay but I got the best....it's called a Dazer....great for all sorts of bad behavour. No good if you have more than one dog though as the second dog will also hear it if he is within it's range.

That's it JRT's must suffer from "little man syndrome"

My dog does a fairly consistent, moderately paced, weave pole performance & hardly ever mucks them up in training. She sort of skips through them. I try all different ways to get her to miss them, but she enters well & sticks to it. However in a trial situation, she is not so reliable & will sometimes miss an entry or pull out towards the end. I have given her a bit of training using Susan Garetts 2 x 2 system, where she trains the one step with off-set poles. I havn't continued with it as my instructor advised me not to change her style. I think when they do the one step weaving, they are less likely to pull out as they get into a rythme. Does any one else have an opinion on this.....should I keep going the way we are or teach her the one-step.

You get food grade bone meal of it could be called meat meal, from the produce store. I used to give it to my chooks.