The Spotted Devil

Thanks @KobiD! Yep when you do dog training like this it becomes a journey of education and understanding. There’s no end goal! Just awesome byproducts

About 10 min in? I was first up. ETA: I think they’ve trimmed the start when they were sorting tech issues so watch right from the beginning.

I'd be more worried about whether the dog would slip and injure itself when driving out of tunnels or on tight turns.

Thanks Roova - it was really fun actually. Like chatting with old friends.

Thanks Barb - hand is coming along really well. Needs more strengthening so my OT has sent me home with some strange plasticine type stuff to do exercises with. Shoulder is rather crappy still - so very frustrating!!! I just suck it up for the most part.

Glad you enjoyed it Barb! I had to race off to Physio afterwards!

You can watch it here: https://recallers.com/vip-guest-pass/live-cast/

Busted!

On the 11th @Panto but a good omen nonetheless Puppy spam on FB if you can bear it :D

Oh congratulations!!!! How lovely!

@blackas my litter of 5 are fat and stunning at only 12 days old. At the moment I could be easily convinced to keep them all but I reckon once they hit 8-10 weeks I won't have a chance of keeping up with them and sending them off to their new homes will be a bit of a relief I know Em will feel that way hahahaha

Meant to say that I feed Artemis - mainly because the ingredients suit my Dalmatian (low purine diet is critical) and the Springers do well on it too. It's easier for me to buy it in bulk at breeder rates. I also like that they won't sell in pet shops that sell puppies and kittens. Candidae is good stuff too.

Exciting!!! Despite all the dire online warnings about mixing dry and raw there is not one scrap of evidence that it is a problem. I generally dont because they are 2 different feeding paradigms...so I might put dry food in a food dispensing toy or scatter it on the lawn for a younger dog or mix with a dollop of yoghurt/sardines/egg and lots of water for an older, highly active dog or a lactating bitch. Most of the raw I feed is as edible bone so chicken frames, lamb necks, turkey wings etc and they are fed outside. Sometimes I might add a bit of mince to dry food and use it to stuff a Kong with. My girl has a litter of pups at the moment and she's eating huge amounts. I have no issue with adding some extra protein to her dry food meals. Most critically with puppies is to not delve into raw unless you are very experienced. Especially a large breed. You only get one chance to grow them right. I recommend my puppy people feed a high quality fit for all stages dry food for the most part and raw, meaty edible bones for about 10-20%. Add different taste experiences to the dry food (sardines, egg, yoghurt etc) and you can use cheese, choppped raw chicken necks, lamb heart, chopped cooked chicken meat, healthy commercial treats etc for training. The Ca:P ratio in growing puppies is so so critical. And keep them lean.

In addition, Susan looks after her alumni line nothing I've ever seen in online courses - opportunities for free and heavily discounted ongoing membership abound. And more challenges!

My lot just crack it when they get knocked off their favourite teat! The times I have woken in the night thinking someone is getting squashed!!!

She always offers a money back guarantee within a time frame on all her courses anyway.

Some of the videos are super quick and others are longer. The thing is, if you don't understand the layers of learning and you don't know how to problem solve then you won't get the full value. I watch the videos in the evening instead of TV....plan out my training for the next day. Sometimes I might watch an Agility specific video (H360 not Recallers) multiple times until I'm sure I get it. And I video my own training. Think. Plan. Do. Review.

That's good to hear. I haven't had to use it yet. I did buy latex free sponges as I quite like that method.

Bugger @Rebanne sorry to hear your little boy is struggling. Hopefully once he gets a bit stronger he'll be able to fend for himself much better.

Good point @Rebanne I am blessed with a bitch that will eat ANYTHING and EVERYTHING in sight. I have never seen her refuse a meal. That makes my life a whole lot easier. She's on AB's for mastitis and the vet asked how I was going getting the meds into her. I literally laughed out loud It's just another excuse for something disguised as mince! Then I gave Em a biscuit for lying so quietly for her ultrasound. She devoured it in a nano second and the vet finally understood what she was dealing with

I feed a mix. Normally Em has Artemis dry, yoghurt and twice weekly I substitute this with chicken frames, lamb necks, turkey wings or similar. Every now and again I toss in a whole egg (home grown!) or tinned sardines and for training she gets cheese, 4 legs, chicken, lamb hearts etc. During pregnancy I increase the quantity depending on her body condition. I'll tend to increase protein too because she gives everything to her babies so a quarter raw chicken rather than a frame. Em's babies are currently 5 days old. Normally her dry food ration is 1-1.5 cups per day. At the moment she is having 2 cups dry plus yoghurt topped up with water for breakfast. Lunch is raw - so quarter chicken OR lamb neck OR chicken frames stuffed with forequarter beef mince/lamb hearts OR turkey wings. Dinner is 2 cups dry food plus yoghurt and something extra - egg, sardines, mince, hearts etc. I will likely add a 4th meal in soon. The main thing with her raw meals is that they they are low fat and high protein. I take the skin off the chicken etc as with the amount of food she just gets the runs.

To be honest I'm more concerned that you've been playing frisbee with a dog < 6 months for 2 hours a day! I have working Springers and I would never recommend this to tire a dog out. Highly active youngsters can do themselves a lot of damage chasing balls and frisbees repetively. It is extremely bad for their growing joints and tendons. Personally I would be taking the dog for a physical exam with an extremely knowledgeable vet and/or a physio. It's possible that she has injured herself whilst chasing it and is in no hurry to do it again. Either way please relegate the frisbee to the recycling bin. Mental stimulation and controlled retrieves (Gundog) style are a much better way to tire your youngster.

I agree. I'm actually lead animal behaviour/welfare for a company that is commercialising virtual fencing for cattle. And it is SO much further advanced than the dog containment fences in terms of welfare.

I feed a fit for all life stages now - even a pregnant or lactating bitch gets the same Artemis. I do add in fun stuff like sardines, egg, yoghurt, quarter chicken and forequarter mince too.

I see your point but I guess I live in a whole other training world. My dogs are always given guidance and so are those owners and dogs who train with me. "No" or "leave it" simply become associated with the undesirable event and actually become a cue! Mr TSD left his dinner plate on the floor (go figure!) and I turned around to see my dogs making a CHOICE to not lick the plate. No worried faces, no commands, just dogs who have self control. It's not how I've always trained but it's how I will train forever more. It's more fun, more reliable and way less stressful for all of us!