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Lab_Rat
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RS - Tassie mostly lays her own tracks for her own kids. I think the first time Rory tracked anybody else was at his track 1. I was training both of mine but found it a little tricky as they both tracked differently and I was finding it hard enough to get my head around 1 dog never mind 2.

Having 2 though means you can always go and set one track for dog 1, then go off and lay a track for dog 2 and then come back and run dog 1 on their track then dog 2 on their track :thumbsup:.

I like the social side with humans to training dogs, so if this is a sport where I have to go it alone, I will probably pass! More fun and motivating to train with others. We'll see :)

What beautiful spring weather!! But blurgh, my nose is running and I am sneezing all over the place. I NEVER get hayfever, but I don't feel sick so I am putting it down to hayfever? Might need to raid the dog's first aid kit for Ruby's AH's :laugh: Really feel for everyone who suffers bad hayfever every year, this is new to me and it is awful!

Edited by RubyStar
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RS in my very limited experience it is pretty easy to train two dogs at tracking. You just have to be aware that they may be completely different tracking styles and you have to remember what dog you have! For example, Ari is a nose deep in the ground kind of girl, but she'll fall back on air scenting and she's very obvious when she does it. Lulu is a ranger and zig zags over a track as opposed to staying directly on the track like Ari, and she doesn't track with her nose deep. Lulu is also a steadier, slower worker than Ari (so much that I had to have a friend take over handling Ari half way through the season because I couldn't keep up and worried I'd fall over!)

regarding training - depending on whether you plan to commit to heading to Gnangara every Saturday for training, depends on whether you will have a training group/partner. At the start of the season TrackWest divides people into groups (espeicially newbies who are placed with an experienced handler/trainer). The groups might change slightly throughout the year but mostly you stick with the same group. Everyone lays tracks for everyone else at training on Saturdays (so you come along with lots of articles that smell like you stuffed down your top LOL), however, if you decide NOT to come to training and to go it alone, it's not hard to teach them to track you. The idea is that they are learning to track the article/scent on the ground, and not the end result of finding a person (although if they are highly social sometimes this is a huge reward and a great way to start training)... which is why it's easy to lay your own tracks with articles and then take the dogs through. it's handy for them to know this.

There are certain things you can train such as article recognition (you don't really want a dog that doesn't acknowledge an article, and there are simple ways to train this) but the BIGGEST thing you have to learn is reading and trusting your dogs decisions. You also have to be prepared for dogs that have been predominantly obedience dogs, that they might struggle initially with the concept of leading you, instead of taking direction... which is why it's important to begin training on a specific harness/training gear so that they quickly learn what it means when you put that harness on!

hope that helps :)

Oh and forgot to add, people definitely drop off the radar as the season goes on. Usually when it's colder/wetter :laugh: but us crazy dedicated nutters keep coming. you can always join a different group though. AND baby dependant I'll probably start training in parks in the evenings in later summer - it's safe and challenging for the dogs. You'd be welcome to join me :)

I'm suffering badly this year from hayfever - nothing new, I suffer every year, except this year I can't take anything!! I have been shocking so far, and I haven't even hit my worst months yet, which is usually december and January. I've been told that this year is particularly bad, and lots of people (and dogs) are suffering earlier than usual. it doesn't make me feel any better - it's draining and I feel tired and unmotivated... I dread going outside because I worry about how affected I'll be. it sux!!

Edited by SparkyTansy
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Thanks so much for the explanations, ST thumbsup1.gif I think Millie would take to it much better than Ruby, because I get the middle finger and she takes me on a while scent hunt when I get her out of the car if I'm still attached to the lead eek1.gif Not a very good obedience dog laugh.gif I'd be interested to see if this could be converted into some decent training. I'm well aware that there is a whoooooole lot more to tracking than a dog who likes to sniff the ground, but I guess it's maybe a starting point laugh.gif She may be crap at it, I dunno, she usually has her own agenda embarrass.giflaugh.gif I think she'd drag me along, while Ruby would plod along.

If you do anything in the park, I'd love to join you :) Even just to get a feel for what is involved and if it's something I like, maybe take it on properly.

And yep, this hayfever sucks big time! I am sitting inside a building at work and still sneezing my head off. The bin under my desk is half-filled with tissues already embarrass.gif

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My dogs are starting to drive me insane :mad

Banjo decided 2 weeks ago that while he wanted to eat his biscuits he just looked at me pathetically and on checking his mouth out his gums were very red :eek: It took a few days for it to subside and didn't go away completely so I got the vet to check him out when out taking bloods from Dare after he was born. Bloods were also taken from Banjo and the results were a bit iffy. Nothing major but more things slightly off than you would like and a few that the pathology clinic put down to technical but could tie in with the other results! After chatting with the vet nothing seemed to fit but we have decided to get his teeth properly cleaned to see if it was a tartar problem (even though his teeth aren't that bad...) so he is booked in for that this Thursday. I will also get them to re-run the blood to see if anything has changed and also do a more in depth blood work as one of the things a few of the changes can suggest is thyroid issues. He has also been getting very grumpy with the other dogs and has had a go at Varda quite a few times this week (which has never happened before!) The main blood issues was increased CK level. The platelets and calcium were low and there was an issue with his glucose (decreased I think but can't remember 100% but there was a note that they could be technical...

Then today Jive was eating a few mouthful of biscuits then whimpering and running away from them before going back and eating more (particularly if I stood next to her) :eek: She didn't end up finishing them either :( Her mouth looks fine and she happily ate a Dentastick...

So any ideas on what is going wrong?!? They are on different biscuits :o

ETA: After getting better Banjo's gums had a relapse of being very red and not wanting to eat at the beginning of last week as well...

Edited by mirawee
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How old is Jive?? Could hers be teeth?

CK is a measure of the enzymes that are released when muscles are broken down...............

One of my dogs had Myofacial Myosytis - causes pain especially around the jaw and can cause eating issues. It also eventually causes muscle wastage around the head and jaw, he went from a Boofy Stafford head to a pointy cone head

Edited by OSoSwift
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Jive is only 8 months Oso so I really don't think hers could be teeth :o

ST, at this stage I really want to get his thyroid levels checked as red gums actually comes up as a symptom of hypoparathyroidism... and increased CK levels also come up as a hypothyroidism symptom (or heart attacks but I think we can rule that one out :laugh: )

I will also see if I can get him in to see Deb Nook...

ETA: I actually don't think Banjo's is teeth either but I figure it doesn't hurt to try - except my wallet :eek:

Edited by mirawee
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Jive is only 8 months Oso so I really don't think hers could be teeth :o

ST, at this stage I really want to get his thyroid levels checked as red gums actually comes up as a symptom of hypoparathyroidism... and increased CK levels also come up as a hypothyroidism symptom (or heart attacks but I think we can rule that one out :laugh: )

I will also see if I can get him in to see Deb Nook...

ETA: I actually don't think Banjo's is teeth either but I figure it doesn't hurt to try - except my wallet :eek:

Hope you get to the bottom of both dogs issues mirawee and its nothing serious.

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hey mirawee just wondering if i was able to grab those tickets for the thursday? if yes do i need to come for a drive or can you email them lol just wondering otherwise i gonna go see what iga have for sale all savings are a bonus for an expensive day out lol

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Alright I keep procrastinating and can't decide...

Do I enter the State Obedience trial????

I am doing RallyO on Sunday with both Banjo and Varda - although Varda will probably be a write off given the weather forecast of 27C :o Entries for the States close on the Monday... I would be looking at doing RallyO with both dogs and CD with Varda at the States. I can't make decisions any more :laugh:

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I'm having similar indecisions about the State Trial, too! I know I am entering (though not sure why, haven't trained this year!!) but I just can't decide what to enter.

Ruby in UD is a definite (she needs all the experience in there that she can get, so eventually we may get a pass!)

Millie in Open is also a definite.

But do I put Ruby in Open also? Do I give Millie another bash in UD? Do I put them both in Rally? Don't think Ruby would appreciate 3 times in the ring. And it would stress me out going from ring to ring, dog to dog (not sure how Ptolomy does it!!!!!! eek1.gif)

Can't be wasting $$ and enter everything and decide later, either.

Decisions, decisions!!

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