ness

Ness missed that memo as well. She must have got the same one Xena got .

Yes but most of the people who ask these questions and hang out in these threads are not breeders and as TSD said most are pet people who have purchased a dog who is more often then not desexed and won't be contributing to the gene pool in any manner. And that is just one example - you can see others - this dog has not put a foot wrong in a trial ring yet regardless of where we have trialled (so we aren't just talking one home ground).

Since you don't venture into the brags thread or the training talk thread JoeK here is a link to my "weak nerved" dog working at a trial the other weekend . She has been an absolute delight to train for the most part and is a blast to handle on the agility course (when she isn't injured). http://www.youtube.c...u/0/KjLv8YSZiss

JoeK its a sport and its about having fun with whatever dog you take on and making the best of what you have ;). I don't consider I wasted valuable training time - its not about the end goal - thats icing on the cake its about the journey. Things happen at various points on that journey that are outside of your control and you make what you can out a of particular situation at a particular time. Having a dog out of action through injury for nearly 8 months you would also probably consider a"waste of valuable training time" but it happens.

TSD but I was told I should - when Kenz was 16 weeks old - hmm so the 191 the other weekend was a figment of my imagination since she was never going to make it as an obedience dog . And for the record she was sitting on a 190 at another trial back in April (before her extended injury break) and wasn't interested in her tug either before we went into the ring or after we came out but I wouldn't say she was going through the motions in the ring she was pushy, flashy and certainly "in drive". ETA. Can you honestly imagine Kenz relegated to a backyard!!!!!!!! - eeek.

You can work through a dog with a weak nerve and get them playing the same everywhere regardless - I know you can I have done so and have the results to prove it ;). And yep I was told she was the wrong dog for the job - just don't take no for an answer . In the end I would have said its not about having the dog "tug" its about having the dog work at a level your happy with - enthusiastically, full of focus for the task at hand and giving you their all. Funny there are still a few situations my young dog will not tug in (I can count them on one hand but none the less still there) yet she can still work in those environments and give me 100% effort.

Well done Chloe and Peppi - fantastic work .

Next Saturday - hoping to find somebody to video but will have to hope my friend has finished with her flyball by the time we do the demo. Found out the area we have to work with is 30 x 15 so HUGE!!!!!!!

Kavik - well my Dad is an Astrophysicist but just so happens to be handy with a saw as well . I got lucky. Mine is also wee-saw adjustable . Its not quite competition specs because we didn't have a long enough trailer to bring back a long enough plank but its close enough .

I got my dad to make me a see-saw - cost around $70 for materials in the end .

Thanks yeah that is the kinda the logic I was working on - so much space but I guess thats good in a way Kenz likes to get up a bit of speed . Maybe I should supply ear plugs it could get a little noisy. And yes I know if it was a comp I wouldn't really want it but I am less fussed with it being a demo. If she lets out the occasional enthusiastic bark I am not to concerned.

Demo . And bedazzledx2 since you know the set up - I gather we have the entire "grass" area. Well if you can call it grass. The area where they run agility (or have the two rings set up for the show dogs). I don't normally give as much thought to a competition routine but I want it to look specky since we are the first routine in the demo .

Thought instead of starting a new thread I'd bump this one - I am having a logistics dilemma for my routine for the royal. 3 props - a chimney, a rooftop and a chimney sweep brush - each get used a bit the chimney gets used for the starting move and is probably the most used prop. Question is how do I lay them out - the area we get I think is pretty large and the audience are all down the one side of the area. I was either thinking a triangular configuration with the chimney placed kind of in the centre of the arena and the other two props in either front corner. The other alternative would be all three towards the front of the arena in a straight line. Any ideas .

Congratulations SLLH and Nik on your passes and yep you better post in the brags thread .

both mine go through stages of "offering" heelwork on normal walks. Ness if I have food on me and Kenz will if she is hoping I might produce a toy or just bored . I would say mine are fluent - if I asked they would. If I wanted to "test" a behavior in a particular situation then I would set up one in order to test it. I guess it comes down to whether you plan a session or whether you just run one for the sake of it. I also normally walk both dogs together so it would be impractical to try and get them to both heel because it would mean they couldn't be in 100% accurate position. ETA. I forgot to add the amount of physical stress the dog puts their body under during a prancy animated full eye contact heel position isn't something I would want to subject my dog to for extended periods of time on a normal walk. Its an unnatural position for the dog to hold and requires a level of physical stamina in order to achieve it.

bedazzledx2 your lucky a chunk of food in the face works. I had a handful of food, was dropping it on the ground and nope the frisbee was much more exciting. I thought I would train a session in the yard and well guess Kenz had a fairly rigid view of what her reward should be and it didn't seem to mesh with mine on this particular occasion. Oh well frisbee worked sort of and dog was happy .

Sheena when I emailed them I just asked for the yellow stuff to make an agility tunnel and they knew what I was after - think its actually called mine flex.

Think it depends on the individual - my "oldie" is 11 in a few weeks, and a Border Collie yet out ran her young sister at the beach yesterday afternoon (but the youngster is still recovering from a shoulder injury) and we are just back from a walk up the creek and the oldie enticed the youngster into a game of zoomie chasey. I keep thinking she has slowed down but she has never been super active and if anything she is being more feral now then she was when she was younger.

RS mine doesn't look as good as yours but it did enable to me salvage 2 trashed fleecy tugs Kenz had and create a new one .

Must be time for a Zac photo update bedazzledx2 .

AD maybe if I had three I might be a little more strict but with 2 its not normally a problem - and besides mine don't seem to end up tying me in knots anyway ;).

You could enter Open Jumping if your dog is fine with the weaving and can do distance challenges. My youngster entered both Novice Jumping and Open Jumping when I entered our first ANKC trial but she was happily running the trialling courses at training and was a good weaver and distance worker. I was also prepared if the distance challenge was to complicated to go over the line and assist her.

About the only "rule" I have when we are out on a walk is no pulling. I don't care where they walk or if the cross in front or behind me. Both of mine will "heel" if I need but normally I just save that for the trial ring . I run agility and don't have any problems with mine crossing behind or in front.

You have done really well with Toby RV and wish you every success in CCD when you get there. I so know what its like to have a "stressy" dog. I still can't get over the fact how far my stress head has come in the last 18 months. From a dog who you couldn't get a person in the ring at the same time, never mind get a hand on her to manage a SFE without her crumbling to a dog who worked the round she did for me last Saturday. So moral of the story is never give up :D.

Nice work Kallistar . Good luck.