Just eatin' some grass.
Showing posts with label adventure. Show all posts
Showing posts with label adventure. Show all posts
Sunday, April 15, 2012
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Agility and nosework class summaries
Thursday's agility class was nothing new. We need to work on lateral distance more. Otherwise it's continuing on the same skills as the last two weeks.
On Saturday we started an Intro to Odor (nosework) class. This was our first nosework class in almost a year! We've been practicing at home, and with Miki's guidance I've already started him on birch and exteriors and vehicles. However during the past six months I've barely practiced nosework with him in favor of agility and obedience. I was happy to find the appropriate level class for us starting again at a time I could make it.
There is only one spot where we can put crates where the active dog won't see them, and the other two dogs in class are reactive. They were crated in the car and I brought in Dragon's soft crate so that he could get more experience chilling in it. I let him chew on a bully stick for most of class and toward the end I switched to giving him treats for just lying inside.
He did very well in class -- I was quite proud of him! He had never been to that building before, and he was excited to see Miki, but as soon as I gave the cue "searching!" he was off like a rocket, nose to the ground. We did two sets of four hides. I got critiqued on my body language. I usually follow him around the whole time, thinking that that way, he won't know if he's close or not (because I'm not moving in when he is getting close), and I can watch his body language. Miki pointed out that my constant movement may be causing him to be also moving so much that he has trouble slowing down enough to pinpoint the location of the odor. Also I can actually see his body language better if I'm farther away. Yesterday we practiced in the lobby after work and I made sure to stay out of his way. I was definitely able to see more easily how he was reading the wind currents.
On Sunday we hiked five miles with my sister, whom he adores, and a dog she borrowed for the hike. We completed the hike in just under three hours. We had never been to Sunol before, and it was his first time seeing cows. He started to approach with great caution, until one of the cows mooed at him and stood up and we quickly called the dogs farther away. He also allowed four riders on horseback to pass us while beautifully playing the Look at That game. Proud moment!
Monday morning was my second private agility lesson with Susanne Cohen to work on our contacts. There is a noticeable improvement in his comfort level running down the boards, and now we need to work on driving up. My teeter board is the longest one I have (6'8"). Since it's not on its base right now (just pivoting on the metal pipe attached to the bottom), my homework is to put it on the front steps and work on running up and down. As he gets more comfortable I'll put the top edge higher up on the stairs. It will teach him to really drive up the a-frame and dog walk and teeter, as well as help his running contacts. We also practiced the lowered teeter, and with that I'm continuing as before. Slooowly make it more tippy, keeping the exercise high-drive and fun above all else.
On Saturday we started an Intro to Odor (nosework) class. This was our first nosework class in almost a year! We've been practicing at home, and with Miki's guidance I've already started him on birch and exteriors and vehicles. However during the past six months I've barely practiced nosework with him in favor of agility and obedience. I was happy to find the appropriate level class for us starting again at a time I could make it.
There is only one spot where we can put crates where the active dog won't see them, and the other two dogs in class are reactive. They were crated in the car and I brought in Dragon's soft crate so that he could get more experience chilling in it. I let him chew on a bully stick for most of class and toward the end I switched to giving him treats for just lying inside.
He did very well in class -- I was quite proud of him! He had never been to that building before, and he was excited to see Miki, but as soon as I gave the cue "searching!" he was off like a rocket, nose to the ground. We did two sets of four hides. I got critiqued on my body language. I usually follow him around the whole time, thinking that that way, he won't know if he's close or not (because I'm not moving in when he is getting close), and I can watch his body language. Miki pointed out that my constant movement may be causing him to be also moving so much that he has trouble slowing down enough to pinpoint the location of the odor. Also I can actually see his body language better if I'm farther away. Yesterday we practiced in the lobby after work and I made sure to stay out of his way. I was definitely able to see more easily how he was reading the wind currents.
On Sunday we hiked five miles with my sister, whom he adores, and a dog she borrowed for the hike. We completed the hike in just under three hours. We had never been to Sunol before, and it was his first time seeing cows. He started to approach with great caution, until one of the cows mooed at him and stood up and we quickly called the dogs farther away. He also allowed four riders on horseback to pass us while beautifully playing the Look at That game. Proud moment!
Monday morning was my second private agility lesson with Susanne Cohen to work on our contacts. There is a noticeable improvement in his comfort level running down the boards, and now we need to work on driving up. My teeter board is the longest one I have (6'8"). Since it's not on its base right now (just pivoting on the metal pipe attached to the bottom), my homework is to put it on the front steps and work on running up and down. As he gets more comfortable I'll put the top edge higher up on the stairs. It will teach him to really drive up the a-frame and dog walk and teeter, as well as help his running contacts. We also practiced the lowered teeter, and with that I'm continuing as before. Slooowly make it more tippy, keeping the exercise high-drive and fun above all else.
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Agility Foundation, week 5 recap, plus shopping fun
Circle work: jump, tunnel, jump, stop and reward, turn around and do it again. Tunnel, jump, same tunnel again in a tight circle. Doing well with driving ahead toward the next obstacle.
Turns next to the jump standard: 180 post turn, 360 post turn coming over the jump a second time, and front cross. I hadn't done the front cross next to a jump standard before. He's finally starting to develop his collected jumping skills.
We were on the other side of the agility field this time, where all the standard equipment is. (Usually we're on the side that has a jumpers course set up.) We worked with a full-height teeter, just getting the dogs to bang the end and, if ready, go into 2o2o. Dragon happily jumped all the way onto the end. Suzanne said that next week we'll lower that teeter almost all the way to the ground and put sandbags under it and slowly start making it more tippy from there.
We also worked with the dog walk and a-frame for the first time. Most of the dogs were just asked to get into 2o2o at the bottom and the handlers proofed their positioning and movement while their dogs stayed. Tiny Dog is the only dog doing running contacts. I had him walk partway up the ramp and then run off toward a toy thrown forward. Because the a-frame was rubberized, he was able to just walk up it. I was very proud that he had no fear! A couple of times one of his back feet slipped off the side of the walk as he was turning around on it (eep!) but he just pulled it back up and was not fazed. I guess after you fall out of trees a few times, the wide dog walk isn't so scary. I'm not sure how Suzanne will be progressing with teaching this equipment.
Lastly we had the dogs go through a tunnel which had one end right next to the dog walk (we blocked the up ramp) and the other end underneath the middle of the walk. Some of the dogs balked but Dragon had no problem.
We were going to start on introducing the chute as well, but ran out of time.
At home, I bought more PVC so that I could switch out the height of my teeter. I lowered it as much as possible (about four inches at the pivot point) and practiced having him run across with his mat at the end, and again with his foot target at the end. He has more drive to reach the mat quickly because of the stronger reinforcement history, but isn't sure about lying down quickly. He was a bit slower to reach the foot target but did the proper weight shift at the end and held his position beautifully as I moved ahead. I had told Suzanne that I would use his mat on the teeter but I think I'm going to use the foot target at the end after all. It also has the benefit of not sliding around like the mat might, and not creating as much of a height difference when he reaches it.
In preparation for the chute, I folded up an old bed sheet and draped it over a chair, and practiced sending him underneath. No problems with that.
Other agility news: I received Susan Garrett's Success with One Jump DVD for Christmas. I also received some cash which I used to buy her 2x2 Weaves DVD, and I'm going to buy him a soft crate with the remainder. He's been staying on his mat beautifully during class, but I need to start transitioning him to being in a crate and having me leave his sight here and there.
In non-agility news, I took him shopping yesterday. We went to a salvage yard, a hardware store, and even a dog-friendly discount fabric store. He was perfectly behaved. We practiced heeling, and it reminded me that I need to commit to getting him out into various distracting environments to practice this stuff. He lost focus when people were walking by.
Turns next to the jump standard: 180 post turn, 360 post turn coming over the jump a second time, and front cross. I hadn't done the front cross next to a jump standard before. He's finally starting to develop his collected jumping skills.
We were on the other side of the agility field this time, where all the standard equipment is. (Usually we're on the side that has a jumpers course set up.) We worked with a full-height teeter, just getting the dogs to bang the end and, if ready, go into 2o2o. Dragon happily jumped all the way onto the end. Suzanne said that next week we'll lower that teeter almost all the way to the ground and put sandbags under it and slowly start making it more tippy from there.
We also worked with the dog walk and a-frame for the first time. Most of the dogs were just asked to get into 2o2o at the bottom and the handlers proofed their positioning and movement while their dogs stayed. Tiny Dog is the only dog doing running contacts. I had him walk partway up the ramp and then run off toward a toy thrown forward. Because the a-frame was rubberized, he was able to just walk up it. I was very proud that he had no fear! A couple of times one of his back feet slipped off the side of the walk as he was turning around on it (eep!) but he just pulled it back up and was not fazed. I guess after you fall out of trees a few times, the wide dog walk isn't so scary. I'm not sure how Suzanne will be progressing with teaching this equipment.
Lastly we had the dogs go through a tunnel which had one end right next to the dog walk (we blocked the up ramp) and the other end underneath the middle of the walk. Some of the dogs balked but Dragon had no problem.
We were going to start on introducing the chute as well, but ran out of time.
At home, I bought more PVC so that I could switch out the height of my teeter. I lowered it as much as possible (about four inches at the pivot point) and practiced having him run across with his mat at the end, and again with his foot target at the end. He has more drive to reach the mat quickly because of the stronger reinforcement history, but isn't sure about lying down quickly. He was a bit slower to reach the foot target but did the proper weight shift at the end and held his position beautifully as I moved ahead. I had told Suzanne that I would use his mat on the teeter but I think I'm going to use the foot target at the end after all. It also has the benefit of not sliding around like the mat might, and not creating as much of a height difference when he reaches it.
In preparation for the chute, I folded up an old bed sheet and draped it over a chair, and practiced sending him underneath. No problems with that.
Other agility news: I received Susan Garrett's Success with One Jump DVD for Christmas. I also received some cash which I used to buy her 2x2 Weaves DVD, and I'm going to buy him a soft crate with the remainder. He's been staying on his mat beautifully during class, but I need to start transitioning him to being in a crate and having me leave his sight here and there.
In non-agility news, I took him shopping yesterday. We went to a salvage yard, a hardware store, and even a dog-friendly discount fabric store. He was perfectly behaved. We practiced heeling, and it reminded me that I need to commit to getting him out into various distracting environments to practice this stuff. He lost focus when people were walking by.
Sunday, January 1, 2012
2011 in review
Tomorrow is the anniversary of the first day I brought Dragon home, as an eight month old puppy.
His ear fur was starting to grow in but still short:
January was spent learning all about my playful puppy:
Who still had his baby canine teeth!
He learned how to eat raw meaty bones:
To come when called at the park:
To wear silly clothes:
We explored new places:
Grew some more fur:
Made new friends:
And said goodbyes:
Got a total of two baths:
Learned to swim:
And had many adventures:
Here's to 2012. May it bring many more adventures for our pups.
His ear fur was starting to grow in but still short:
January was spent learning all about my playful puppy:
Who still had his baby canine teeth!
He learned how to eat raw meaty bones:
To come when called at the park:
To wear silly clothes:
We explored new places:
Grew some more fur:
Made new friends:
And said goodbyes:
Got a total of two baths:
Learned to swim:
And had many adventures:
Here's to 2012. May it bring many more adventures for our pups.
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Mendocino Botanical Garden
On Friday we drove and drove and drove to the Mendocino Botanical Garden, which is unusual in that it allows dogs on leash within the garden. I adore botanical gardens, and I enjoy traveling and exploring with Dragon, so how could I resist?
It was a lovely place, with grassy paths by the entrance, giving way to gravel, and then to the natural landscape by the Mendocino cliffs.
Dragon wore a dashing new harness.
If I knew anything about conformation this photo might be useful? I can tell that he's funny-looking for a papillon -- long nose, long legs.
His expression in this photo cracks me up.
Fuschias.
As usual he was very curious about the water below the cliffs.
You can click on this link and scroll with the "next" button to see a handful of flower photos from the garden.
I was quite happy that Dragon did not get carsick despite the long drive through the hills. I gave him a dose of Dramamine before we left, but it seems that he's slowly becoming less prone to motion sickness.
It was a lovely place, with grassy paths by the entrance, giving way to gravel, and then to the natural landscape by the Mendocino cliffs.
Dragon wore a dashing new harness.
If I knew anything about conformation this photo might be useful? I can tell that he's funny-looking for a papillon -- long nose, long legs.
His expression in this photo cracks me up.
Fuschias.
As usual he was very curious about the water below the cliffs.
You can click on this link and scroll with the "next" button to see a handful of flower photos from the garden.
I was quite happy that Dragon did not get carsick despite the long drive through the hills. I gave him a dose of Dramamine before we left, but it seems that he's slowly becoming less prone to motion sickness.
Sunday, September 4, 2011
Agility lesson recap; pride festival
On Friday we had another private agility lesson with Maureen Strenfel. We spent most of the hour learning sends. It feels like we're doing "real" agility moves now, haha! It was very exciting.
At first the sends were with Dragon lined up right in front of the jump. I would take one step with the foot next to him, point that arm forward, and say "go." He was to run ahead and take the jump, then wrap around the upright to return to me for his reward. We added some angles and a little distance. Then we switched to learning our first truly fancy handling move -- sending him past the jump, to turn around and take it on the way back to me. Oooo. I had to really work on my coordination and body movement here. I have to make sure to stand all the way to the side of the upright, so that there's enough distance that he doesn't get confused and think he should take the jump on the way out. Then I have to make sure not to turn my foot toward the jump as I step forward to send him (this was really hard!). Then I turn toward the jump after he's crossed the "refusal line" (the imaginary line extending from the jump bar). Needless to say, both the dog and I will need to practice this one a lot.
Finally we pulled over another jump and did a sequence! I would send him around the back of the first jump, turn, and run together over/past the second jump. Now I need to make a second PVC jump to practice with at home!
Today we stopped by the Oakland Pride Festival for an hour or so. I carried Tiny Dog through the crowds and we saw all manner of people dressed in unusual ways, as well as plenty of children. He was a bit overwhelmed (loud music and an overload of people), but I don't think that the stress was greater than his excitement at seeing all the new sites. At least, I hope not! I think that overall it was a good socialization experience. We rode the subway to the fair and back, and as usual he was a good boy for that, though he did attempt to chew on his crate pad once.
At first the sends were with Dragon lined up right in front of the jump. I would take one step with the foot next to him, point that arm forward, and say "go." He was to run ahead and take the jump, then wrap around the upright to return to me for his reward. We added some angles and a little distance. Then we switched to learning our first truly fancy handling move -- sending him past the jump, to turn around and take it on the way back to me. Oooo. I had to really work on my coordination and body movement here. I have to make sure to stand all the way to the side of the upright, so that there's enough distance that he doesn't get confused and think he should take the jump on the way out. Then I have to make sure not to turn my foot toward the jump as I step forward to send him (this was really hard!). Then I turn toward the jump after he's crossed the "refusal line" (the imaginary line extending from the jump bar). Needless to say, both the dog and I will need to practice this one a lot.
Finally we pulled over another jump and did a sequence! I would send him around the back of the first jump, turn, and run together over/past the second jump. Now I need to make a second PVC jump to practice with at home!
Today we stopped by the Oakland Pride Festival for an hour or so. I carried Tiny Dog through the crowds and we saw all manner of people dressed in unusual ways, as well as plenty of children. He was a bit overwhelmed (loud music and an overload of people), but I don't think that the stress was greater than his excitement at seeing all the new sites. At least, I hope not! I think that overall it was a good socialization experience. We rode the subway to the fair and back, and as usual he was a good boy for that, though he did attempt to chew on his crate pad once.
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Rafting adventure! (image heavy)
Today Dragon and I, along with my parents, my aunt and uncle, and their dog Tori, took a rafting trip down the Russian River. It was a very mellow section of the river, and the rafts were inflated and very stable. I was still a bit nervous that Dragon might get an upset stomach from the movement (he gets carsick sometimes) or that he would be stressed that he was trapped on a strange object in the middle of a river, but he was a champ. I was so proud of him -- he spent most of the ride calmly standing at the front of the raft, garnering comments about being the caption of the ship or the mermaid at the prow.
I brought along his orange floaty ball and tossed it into the water here and there. He happily pawed and mouthed at it in the shallows, and twice he went in deep enough to swim for it. However he was clearly reluctant and did not actually enjoy swimming. I was disappointed about that, but maybe in time he'll come around to it. I did buy him a tiny doggy life jacket in case the current swept him away. Indeed he jumped from the raft into the water once toward the beginning of the trip (I think he saw something intriguing in the water), and one time he lost his balance and fell in (surprisingly, that didn't happen until almost the very end of the five hour trip). I had his leash clipped to the top of the life jacket and so was able to quickly reel him in without any panic on his part.
Of course, I took a ton of pictures. I'm including some family photos along with the dog stuff this time:
He has skinny chicken legs when he's wet.
Tori enjoyed swimming.
She did not enjoy the raft, and her parents had to coax her in...
Only for her to hop back out on the other side.
Totally wet from his jump into the water.
He had great balance on the side of the raft.
With my mom.
DUCKS
DID YOU SEE THOSE DUCKS
BETTER LOOK FOR MORE DUCKS
Tori frequently jumped ship when the raft went by shallower water. Here she's humoring her parents and staying in, but you can tell from her closed mouth and pinned back ears that she's not pleased. By the end of the day she was resigned to staying in.
My dad, the best paddler.
Dog or giant ball of lint?
There were plenty of downed trees on the banks. Sometimes we weren't so great at avoiding them.
Dragon has moved to the prow.
We stopped for lunch and my dad peeled a cucumber. Dragon really liked eating the skins!
Sticks! Tori's favorite part of the day.
Dragon kept stealing her sticks.
What an a-hole.
Myself.
One of the few times that Dragon lay down on the raft.
It only lasted for a few seconds each time.
My dad loved the rope swing.
We all had a great time and plan to repeat the trip next year!
I brought along his orange floaty ball and tossed it into the water here and there. He happily pawed and mouthed at it in the shallows, and twice he went in deep enough to swim for it. However he was clearly reluctant and did not actually enjoy swimming. I was disappointed about that, but maybe in time he'll come around to it. I did buy him a tiny doggy life jacket in case the current swept him away. Indeed he jumped from the raft into the water once toward the beginning of the trip (I think he saw something intriguing in the water), and one time he lost his balance and fell in (surprisingly, that didn't happen until almost the very end of the five hour trip). I had his leash clipped to the top of the life jacket and so was able to quickly reel him in without any panic on his part.
Of course, I took a ton of pictures. I'm including some family photos along with the dog stuff this time:
He has skinny chicken legs when he's wet.
Tori enjoyed swimming.
She did not enjoy the raft, and her parents had to coax her in...
Only for her to hop back out on the other side.
Totally wet from his jump into the water.
He had great balance on the side of the raft.
With my mom.
DUCKS
DID YOU SEE THOSE DUCKS
BETTER LOOK FOR MORE DUCKS
Tori frequently jumped ship when the raft went by shallower water. Here she's humoring her parents and staying in, but you can tell from her closed mouth and pinned back ears that she's not pleased. By the end of the day she was resigned to staying in.
My dad, the best paddler.
Dog or giant ball of lint?
There were plenty of downed trees on the banks. Sometimes we weren't so great at avoiding them.
Dragon has moved to the prow.
We stopped for lunch and my dad peeled a cucumber. Dragon really liked eating the skins!
Sticks! Tori's favorite part of the day.
Dragon kept stealing her sticks.
What an a-hole.
Myself.
One of the few times that Dragon lay down on the raft.
It only lasted for a few seconds each time.
My dad loved the rope swing.
We all had a great time and plan to repeat the trip next year!
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