Keshwar

As PAX already said - the judge. I did the same with Faxon. Would tell him to stand for SFE and then leave when told to with giving an additional stay command. Every Judge commented or asked about why I didn't use a stay command. I explained that he didn't need it. He never broke his SFE. I have seen/heard people in the ring with keys and/or change jangling in their pockets. These aren't a training aid but IMO are a major distraction - unless of course you train with keys and change jangling in your pocket. Bear.

:rofl: As far as the lead goes read the rules and use the shortest you can. Bear.

Nope, but expect to get asked why you didn't use a stay command. Bear.

Relax and have fun - both you and your dog. The biggest problem I see when I am stewarding is that handlers lose faith in their training and dog the moment they walk into the ring. If you have done your practice and know you and your dog can do the exercises keep that faith when you go in the ring. Practice whole heeling patterns without your dog. Even better if you can get someone to be the "judge" and talk you through different patterns. If you make a mistake in the heel pattern (turn left instead of right etc) just keep going the Judge will fix it. Remember that no matter what happens in the ring reward your dog when you finish. Listen to what the Judge is saying and do exactly what they ask. Don't decide you are bombing out and use your time in the ring as a training session. I've seen someone excused from the ring for doing this - the Judge was extremely pissed off. Bear.

Have you talked with anyone else at the club - other instructors, committee members etc? The problem with volunteer instructors is that sometimes they do their own things in classes that may not be supported or approved of by the club. Bear.

I'd report the unauthorized usage of this image to sina.net as they have the audacity to put this at the bottom of the page: Content of this net will publication, all provides by the author, does not represent standpoint of the Sina Net Please respect the intellectual property rights Bear.

Did you click on the link I provided? It gave two contacts and a link to a workshop.

Google is your friend! http://www.dogsnsw.org.au/dancing-with-dogs

This is from Dog Star Daily and looks like an interesting training exercise.

wrong wrong wrong wrong wrong thats just my opinion. Not for use in every situation but sometimes a good correction can make a world of difference. Spreading more scaremongering about training tools as usual. The whole paper makes it seem that punishment will send your animal into a frenzy and will either be scarred for life or turn on you FFS. They have their time and place. When a 50kg dog is trying to take your face off what do they suggest one does? No no you get no treat until you stop rolling your eyes and foaming. Ignore it? Maybe offer it a toy ... I think they need a broader range of experience with some truely troubled or difficult animals before writing things like this. Notice the part that I have bolded for you. They aren't saying don't use punishment, ever. So in the situation you describe I suspect an aversive/punishment may be an appropriate response. Bear.

Both are good. I was an instructor at ACT Companion Dog club - Symonston - until we moved to Yass. You'll find there is a lot of cross-over with instructors amongst the clubs. Bear.

“The Use of Punishment for Behaviour Modification in Animals” This is a position statement from AVSAB (The American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior). There are others at http://www.avsabonline.org/ Bear

For me it's about training be fun for me and my dogs. When it stops being fun it's time to look at what is going on and change, so the fun is there again. It took Faxon and I two years to get a CCD title but we had a lot of fun along the the way - as did a lot of people watching us. There were a few times when I got too serious and stressed about the whole training and trialling thing. I took a break looked at what we were doing and came back trying different methods and both of us had fun again. Bear.

I wouldn't count on that. She definitely has a mind of her own - a proper little madam when she wants. :D

PF - I'll lend you Faxon if you want to trial a bigger dog. As to the original question anything would be easy after getting an Afghan through his CCD. :D Bear.

Letting an affie off lead, particularly an 18 month old, is probably not a great idea unless you want a lot more exercise than you planed for. At 18 mths you can probably go longer than 15 minutes before resting - remember we are talking about a sighthound here. I'd feel comfortable going for 30 min before having a break. Bear.

Did this start happening when you changed to the plastic bowl? just wondering if she is perhaps getting a static shock from the bowl - plastic and nylon can = zap. Bear.

Can someone explain to me how this topic doesn't breach this rule: Just wondering?

We lost Buzzy this morning at 4:30 after a short but courageous struggle with autoimmune haemolytic anaemia. Rest in Peace Matey, we all miss you more than we can say.

If you right click or option click on the photo you want to edit in photoshop you should see an option to edit in external editor. Select this and choose photoshop as your editor. Bear.

It's probably too late to set up anything this year - too hot from now until autumn. We do have the lure coursing machine and pulleys etc the main hold up now is trying to find a suitable location and work out the insurance details. If we get our back paddock down to a suitable level of vegetation we should be able to do it there. There is a yahoo list - lurecoursing-act for people who are interested in getting coursing up and running in Canberra. Bear.

(i) what breed is your dog - Afghan Hound (ii) was the dog obtained as a puppy or adult - Puppy (iii) if obtained as an adult, did the dog have any prior training (eg., ex-show dog) (iv) how was your dog taught the hold/retrieve? eg: clicker training, purely positive, forced retrieve/ear pinch - clicker training, purely positive - back chaining, soaking retrieve object in tasty stuff, etc, etc.. (v) have you previously trained other dogs to retrieve - if you have, did you find this dog learnt faster than you previous dog? - Nope first dog I have done obedience with. My problem isn't getting him to go after the object or to hold stuff it is just getting him to bring it back. Being a sight hound he loves to chase moving objects it's when they stop moving that the problem occurs. This applies to a range of retrieve objects except pine cones - he will happily retrieve pine cones. Unfortunately you can't use a pine cone in the ring. Bear.

I've gotta say I think this is really what it comes down too. What works for you and your dog. Doesn't matter what anyone else says if it doesn't feel right for you or work for you then it won't work. Bear.

My problem with doing signals with your right hand is that you have to twist your body for the dog to see the signal. This forces your left shoulder back which can end up forcing your dog back. This was certainly the case with Faxon, he'd see my left shoulder go back and drop back behind me. Not the desired result at all. I also found the whole swapping the lead between hands clumsy and just another thing to concentrate on instead of giving a clean signal. Bear.

I'm left handed so I hold the lead in my right hand and do all signals with my left. Drives experienced triallers/instructors batty. Bear. Edited to clarify.