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My parents have had trouble with next door's dog barking for months. Big guarding breed which is never walked/trained or barely interacted with, she barks at anything and everything that moves, morning/noon or night and keeps going when she starts up. She's also very, very loud. Dad works day/night shift and while he can sleep through most things, this dog's barking is seriously affecting his ability to get some decent sleep. The council have had numerous chats to the owners, never asked for any proof of the bark collars etc which have been supposedly purchased for the dog and "didn't work" and have now wiped their hands of it. I would never, ever condone anyone harming a barking dog, but while local councils like ours continue to do nothing about true nuisance barking, then this poor dog won't be the last :cry: You only need to live within earshot of the wrong person. It is one reason why I always keep in touch with my neighbours on whether my dogs are barking, and if I go away for a night I leave a note in their mailbox with my business card and contacts saying that they can call me at any time of day or night if my dogs are making noise. A little bit of consideration for your neighbours goes a long way, takes a few minutes and is good insurance for the safety of my dogs.

If I do an agility class these days I let my dogs out for a quick toilet and a 5 min run before class given they've just spent nearly 90 minutes in the car to get to club. Put them back in the car while I help set up the gear. Give them each a really good warm up and stretch before I work them. The one who is not being trained waits quietly while I work the other for a few minutes and I take it in turns for a few minutes each go. At the end of class I'll give them a run (rarely with other dogs and only those I know and trust, and definitely only ever with small numbers for safety reasons) or a swim if it's warm before they go back in the car. My dogs don't give a stuff about other dogs anyway so doesn't really matter if they get to run with others provided they are safe. To me a good warm up is non-negotiable for any agility dog and bloody hard to do it sufficiently without an off lead run. Giving their brain a warm up also gets them thinking rather than being too high up the arousal curve to give decent responses.

I'll echo the above, and say that to a large extent I have learnt to work with what my dogs see as a reward. Yes they both play tug 95% of the time but there are times where other rewards are more powerful. Darcy plays tug hard - she's very strong. Zee prefers to chase her tug toy than put so much effort into tugging. Just because they aren't tugging with me, doesn't mean they aren't interacting with me. Both love squeaky toys but interact with me in totally different ways. Darcy brings it straight back to me and loves to run between my knees, stand there for a moment of time while I scrub her lower back and bum with my hands and then we start the game again. Zee loves to stand just out of half reach and squeak it half a dozen times before she hands it over. It's just the way she plays the game. Trade her for food and she'll hand it over immediately sans the squeak-fest. Her absolute favourite toy is a half flat soccer ball, not always easy to manage but she loves it so that's what we use. Obviously squeaky toys are out at trials - so I use a tuggy jackpot toy for rewarding both. Darcy will readily tug before a run but loves to head back to camp with her carrying her jackpot toy in her mouth as her reward - either I give it to her as we finish if there is suitable space, or she carts it back to camp and she gets it when we're back. Zee wants her jackpot the moment she leaves the ring, she picks it up just long enough to throw it at me so I'll open it for her. FWIW Both of mine are 1/2 kelpie. Darce is 1/2 Lab, Zee 1/2 BC.

Any dairy farmers around you piper? I can get the old inflations off dairy farmers for nothing, complete with that lovely dairy cow smell. You can buy them new in packs of 4 from dairy supplies stores but the old ones are much more fun given the smell ;) I would give any "retired" liners a good soaking in hot water and soap just to ensure they are totally free of the acids and alkalines used to wash dairy plants (some farmers put a heavy duty alkali wash through just before they change them) but other than that they are just fine, you can rig them up into a tug toy yourself or use them as is. :D Still waiting for my second parcel shipped 17/12. Been processed through the sort facility on the 28th which means I should get it in the next few days

I use far more rear crosses these days and find that Darcy knocks far less bars when I'm not rushing to make FX position. I still find it amazing what she's capable of reading from them.

Was thinking the same thing last night, especially when you add Greg Derrett and Daisy Peel (agility) to the mix for early Feb. as well.

I signed up for Puppy Peaks right from the start. I've found it really good from a practical point of view - having the chance to study SG's mechanics, seeing in real life some of the stuff she talks about that I didn't fully understand, seeing the way she picks up early issues and tackles them head on before they become big issues etc. I've also picked up some good ideas on training, and seeing someone like SG having a bad training session and recovering is good too in a refreshing kind of way - shows that no matter how good a trainer you are, you can still have an ordinary training session - it's how you set out to improve it that counts. Even little things like her critiquing herself on each video has been good - great for critiquing my own training. I'd love to have a puppy to train to take full advantage - my plan is to go through and take some fairly detailed notes on each week so I don't lose it all when we all lose access at the end. I've love a permanent record of the whole video series but that's not likely.

I wouldn't say that you need someone close by - though it's a big benefit. My training partners are 2 hours away, we rarely get together to train however we're only ever at the end of an email for training discussions, motivation, stupid questions and critiquing youtubes if that's what you're after. I would love to have someone on my doorstep but realistically I don't, that's what happens when you live in the dog training backwater of Western Vic. ;) But finding people who you click with is more important to me as a "training partner" than finding someone close.

Yes! Email them ASAP and explain. They are generally very good about it. As above - CR have some of the best service you'll find I put in my second order Saturday and didn't receive a shipment email until early this morning which is unsusual. I was waiting for a similar email to LP's - having my order partially canned for being too bulky :eek: Turns out one of the lollycadoodle (sp?) toys was sold out so they credited my c/c for the sake of getting it to me. Normally you'd receive an email to let you know prior or the chance to chose another toy but I gather they are kind of busy. ;) No biggie, I think the girls have enough toys- they would disagree

At that price for the PacSac beds I ordered 4 - and I have two dogs ;) Just hope my order doesn't get canned like yours LP - given the postage price was something like $168 if I hadn't chosen free shipping Then again getting my order canned will be much better for my credit card

I'm staying away from this thread from now on - maybe someone should start a "Clean Run Addicts Anonymous" thread Just placed my second order for PacSac beds, some stick in the ground weave poles and some of the wool felted toys. All good value items though Piper - I have one of those octopus toys, the leather strap holding it all together didn't even make half a training session. It ended up in the bottom of the toy training box for a while but I've recently dragged it out and rehashed it thanks to a half dead tug lead. Zee loves it :D

I'd get a dedicated LPG Ford Falcon wagon, which is what I've got now. I do a lot of kms but only fill it probably twice a week @ $60 for country Vic gas prices. (I've put 120,000 kms on this car in two years). Plenty of room in the back for the two dogs, including the spare tyre against one side of the cargo area. Heaps of space in the back seat for trialling gear - crates, gazebo, chairs etc, or for bigger weekends away for camping etc with the dogs.

Wow TSD - you had a sensational day yesterday, congratulations What a way to finish off the trialling year :D

Mine arrived today as well. Tried the Hurrta Fleece jackets on the girls. Darcy's 20" fits ok, but I'd like a touch more length over her bum like in the promo pic. Zee's 18" doesn't. Despite me measuring her several times and checking it against the neck and girth measurements it is too small, she fits into Darcy's 20" ok but then it looks too baggy in some places. Bugger!!

Yes I do - but it's been ages since I read it, I can bring it Saturday if you're trialling and you'd like to take a look. Oh yes please Jess Will be one of those days as several people want to look at the Chilly Buddy coats I bought too. Have thrown it and some other similar books in with my gear. ;)

Yes I do - but it's been ages since I read it, I can bring it Saturday if you're trialling and you'd like to take a look.

Mine are pretty simple - that my dogs have a healthy and happy 2012 :D As for training goals Darcy: * Keep up her awesome jumping work in Masters :D * Retrain her into a running A-frame over Summer. * Fix her sh*tty dog walk contacts Zee: * Continue to build her confidence in the ring with plenty of fast and fun. * Put her back through 2 x 2 training this summer. * Having her well and truly ready to go into JDM (she's just got her JDX but is not ready for Masters).

From my understanding - if you miss a jump, it is a DQ because you went off course. If you miss a jump and go back and redo it (and the dog hasn't taken another jump or obstacle instead causing it to DQ by going off course) then if you go back and do it it is a refusal/fault and you end up with a NQ. Because I don't have anything riding on it, I don't care if I DQ or NQ, to me it isn't a Q! So I will try to do whatever will keep my dog's motivation up If you go past a jump and continue onto the next obstacle and take that, then you're DQ'd. If you miss a jump/obstacle by passing the plain of that obstacle then technically it's a refusal and thus an NQ. You can go back and do that obstacle in correct order but you've still incurred the refusal. That said, I have seen YouTube videos of dogs here in Australia clearly passing the obstacle plain and not being called a refusal. We have judges here in Vic who will call a refusal for a badly timed head check. But that's an entire thread on it's own ;)

TSD - forgot to mention screw up cookies. I do the same thing - they are known by a less PC term here though. ;)

If I've built sufficient value in taking a jump then they should take what I point them at. If they don't, then there is a reason why they haven't taken the jump - highly likely my handling. So no I don't make them go back - there's no point.

You're not trying Ptolomy - I put mine in - $371 .... and who said anything about "need" That makes me feel better and x 2 on the "need" comment

Too true tlc - common sense, add some common courtesy and it's so much better for everyone. Sadly, like "common" sense, common courtesy isn't too common these days either. So wonderful to hear some good stories I met a lovely gentleman up the lake the other night, he was laughing at my dogs hanging out of the car waiting intently for their release cue. He wanted to know if they were any good at mustering him up some fish cos he wasn't catching any.

Shits me how many people think they have the right to abuse people when they are doing the wrong thing themselves. I think it's part of the "busted" process - blame everyone else and hope to god someone is stupid enough to accept it. Darcy grew up with my horses so she barely acknowledges them, Zee's taken her lead and does the same thankfully. I always call my two and keep them at my feet until they've gone past. Was down the beach one day when a lady brought her horse onto the beach, beautiful big clydey cross who was very obviously feeling his Spring grass and lack of winter work. He seen the dogs at a distance and threw a hissy fit so she bailed off him and walked him up to me and asked if my dogs were okay with the horse and if I could continue throwing the ball into the water like I had been. She lunged him in a big circle closer and closer until there was only a few metres difference in the girls' ball fetching path and the horses lunge circle. Every time they were headed at each other he chucked another big hissy fit and bucked and carried on, after about 20 or 30 mins he finally started to get over it (glad I wasn't riding him!!). She finally got on him and he was all fine, very hot and sweaty but a real sook - such a beautiful boy. We had a good chat and we've seen each other a few times down there now - I always recognise the horse because he's such a gorgeous boy :D

Are you camping at the site? Ensuite site sounds like a great idea My set up will be fine, just hate the stuffing around of camping in wet weather. Last time I camped it got down to -4 both nights, so pretty confident I'll survive.

Everyone turns a blind eye to me having my dogs in the work car providing I keep it clean. I always swear to keep the new car clean, and end up getting them fully detailed before handing them back to avoid the potential buttkicking