Tassie

That's a pretty good year's work, RS - especially when you add in your super Uni results

I'd be asking them about that I reckon. I put in (another :laugh: ) order a couple of weeks ago - was shipped December 7 - in Australia December 15.

Nice one Tumbleweed! _ Congrats to you and the kids. :D

What a fantastic year you guys have had - you must be over the moon.

:laugh: I like that luvsdogs - pretty much reflects what I do. I'm a bit of a believer in "less is more" - a lot depends on what I'm training, and how much time I actually have.

Owey, that is just the best news. Henry is such a good looking pup, and you're all going to have lots of fun with him. Can't tell you how much I admire the way you and your family have come through your tragic experience with you lovely little Bailey, and how happy I am that you got such great help from dancinbcs and the BCC of NSW, and that you have stuck with our lovely breed (not that we're biased or anything. :laugh: , Looking forward to the continuing adventures of Henry!

Sounds like you and Mindy have made a really good start. Those other passes will come surprisingly quickly, I'll bet. :D

OSS - what a good girlie the Dobe was. A friend's barn cat/momma cat would 'help' with training with my first BC. One of her ways of helping was to chase after the DB then sit near it. No way was Sam going anywhere near his DB with the cat there. Same thing whe Momma cat decided to be part of a figure of 8 post :laugh: . Your proofing was obviously way better than mine :-)

That is great news to read. I was just wondering a few minutes ago how you and he were going - but didn't like to bother you by asking. Still sending beautiful Tasmanian summer healing energy your way. And about the b-a-t-h - or he'll start putting on the I'm a poor sick lad act to get out of it. :laugh:

That sounds like a good plan. I'd probably still be marking and rewarding appropriate walking - e.g. including you in the picture - making his own choice to slacken the leash. That shouldn't conflict with anything in Shirley Chong's program.

OK – since I’m an idiot and mixed up my 2012 and 2013 - good start – can see why Kirra rolls her eyes at me and nips me to get my handling better! So --- Kirra • Keep her fit and happy first and foremost • Keep having fun in rally – aiming for RAE • Running agility for as long as she wants to – more Masters and Open multipliers if they come • Keep going with Track & Search – maybe heading towards TSDX Rory • Have him ready for Open obedience – he’s almost there – stays need some proofing • Keep working towards UD • Tracking – hopefully finish TCh (giving him a Dual Ch :D ), and go on to Track & Search • See if I can get him ready for agility trialling - or at least have fun trying :) • Get the other 5 legs he needs for RAE, and then have fun trying to get multipliers And try to find some time to do some more DWD training with both dogs.

Haven't used the LLW one, but I have successfully used her retrieve one. Will be interested to see any answers to this one.

When I was a kid, people nearby had a tame budgie that lived free in the house most of the time. It was quite the sight to see their big yellow lab boy lying on the floor, being groomed by the budgie. :laugh: If the grooming got too ticklish - round the eys for example - a big lab paw would come up and ever so gently brush the budgie away. :D At about the same time, we had a big grey cat, who while a fighter outside, learnt to co-exist peacefully with our free-flying budgie in the house. Found the cat one day in the bird's sunroom, curled up sound asleep on a couch, paw over his ears, while the budgie happily clattered a toy on the wooden floor just beside him. Nedless to say after that, the sliding door into that room was propped shut with books while we couldn't supervise.

My two are fed equal amounts morning and night - times are dependent on what we're doing. I always try to give a meal at least half an hour - usually more - after vigorous exercise, and at least one hour (preferably more) before something like agility trialling. No particular reason, except that it fits in with our routine, and they seem to settle well. Although my breed are not particularly prone to bloat, it can happen, so I feel more comfortable if they have smaller amounts in their stomach - and also - that's the reason for the big separation between exercise and feeding.

Nice to have a bit of a win, anyway. staffyluv. Yes, the putting the dog on the other side of you - or you between the dog and what the dog wants is quite powerful - I'll someimtes accompany it with saying to myself and the dog - "Nothing to do with you - trot on" - or something similar - that's for me more han for the dog - helps remind me to stay focussed and calm LOL. That was nice of that guy too. :)

Oh poor HHH (on the personal hygiene front) but for the continued improvement - and the barking and "attitude" :laugh:

I was just thinking it was that time of year, RV. So sad that there are no goals for your dear Toby this coming year - but goodness, you and he did such a great job - you must have been proud writing his update. I normally don't write goals down - thinking I might moz myself :laugh: - but I might do a little bit this time. My two did me proud this year - Kirra - 9 titles across 4 disciplines - Rory - titles across 4 disciplines, so they owe me nothing at all - but anyway .. Kirra - My feral girlie will be 11 at the end of February, but she will continue to run agility as long as she is fit and having fun. No other goals - except for me to keep improving my handling. The fact that she has lost a yard or two in speed helps - but she is still hair-trigger to handle. - She got her TSD title this year - loves that - so we will keep trialling in TSD - looking forward to the urban track next trial. - She has her RE - so we will keep playing in Rally - try to get enough consistency to work towards RAE. - If I can find the time, would love to do some more DWD work with her - need to find some more creativity within myself, apart from the actual training. Rory (It's almost four years exactly since my lil big man made the big trip over from Perth. So grateful to winpara for letting me have him. :D ) - aiming to start trialling in Open obedience in March. Also working on UD exercises just in case. Still need to do lots of proofing against distractions, and to make stays really solid. - Looking forward to tracking season to try to finish his T.Ch (to give him his dual Ch (T) and then move on to Track & Search. - Keep having fun in Rally, and trying to handle more precisely (note this is not a goal with Kirra - she doesn't do precision LOL) - 5 more legs to RAE for Rory. - With the help of a friend, see if I can get him into the agility ring - I've kept him out because of my worry about his attitude to other dogs, especially if they get in his face, but he is learning self-control and focus, so it might be do-able. - and - try to find/make the time to do some more DWD - at least HTM - he so loves to heel, and can be quite flashy. Need to get off my butt and teach him the whole range of positions.

Well done Ptolomy and Scoota.

Good news! Hope the patients continue to improve - and their poor people can get some proper rest. Thanks for updating.

Good to see that update, DBS - it's promising that you're seeing improvements, however small. It's all going in the right direction. Positive vibes still heading your way. :)

Sounds like a tanty to me, staffyluv. :laugh: My agility feral girl does a major screaming tanty (souinding like she's being murdered) if she's left in the car while I take the boy off to do something which Kirra thinks she should be doing - something with jumps, or tracking etc. She couldn't care less if he's only going to do obedience :laugh: . Just at a quick read, since he puts so much value on saying hi to the other dog, I'd be doing a few turn and go moves first - maybe reward with ball, then if he's really compliant, you can cue him to say hi - briefly - then turn and go - if he does that nicely, reward with a turn back to go say hi. (Hope you have some cooperative dog owners around :D .) Rinse and repeat - trying to get the turn and go in before he gets too fixed on the saying hi bit - and for the last 'go' - reward with great excitement and a nice game with the ball. Lots of purposeful changes of direction, with marking and rewarding as he pays attention again - can often help with the pulling while walking, too.

Thanks for the update - so glad he is still hanging in there. Poor lad, he's putting up a good fight. Our strongest positive vibes coming from down here in the Apple Isle - where there are very, very few of the horrible critters, thank Dog.

Hi mumscats. First of all, I am sorry for the loss of your old dog. It's always hard when we lose long-time companions. I do think you have made a wise decision to spend some time working with your youngster before getting another dog. You haven't mentioned what breed she is, and whether she is still entire. (That's relevant because some bitches do struggle with pre- and post-season hormonal disturbances.) Very hard to tell from an 'over the net' description, but on the surface it would seem to me that the training you have been doing with her has not been as effective as you or she would like, and that there is a fairly high degree of confusion in her mind. To me on the face of it, this sounds as though there is a lack of communication going on. Perhaps it might be more effective to show her what you do want in various situations, rather than correcting ineffectually particularly without showing her alternatives, for which she could be rewarded.I'd think there are a couple of almost separate issues involved - the formal obedience training (which when it all boils down is just 'trick' training) - and the interactions with other dogs. To be honest, if she were my dog, I would be looking for some one on one help with a trainer who would be able to look at the two of you in different situations, and be able to make suggestions based on those observations. I'm not sure where you are, but if you're in the Melbourne area, I would be making some contact with Cosmolo or Erny - both DOLers, whose opinions from reading them over the years, I respect. Good on you for asking for help for you and your girl - sometimes we just get iourselves into a rut that we just can't seem to see a way out of without someone else having a physical look at what's going on.

Thanks for putting that up, zeebie. It was a super day - lots of people - exhibitors and general public, and lots of positive media coverage. The organising committee did a great job .

:laugh: Well sounds like they're well on the mend :D