ness

Oh yes its amazing how a well trained dog helps . Gina let me do a bit of heelwork with one of her standard poodles when I was over in WA and it was a good learning experience. When you don't have to concentrate on the dog its much easier - apparently I had a much better sense of rythmn and my turns were a lot smoother and less jerky then when I handled Ness. I also got to do some heelwork with two of Sandi's NSDTR's - Blaize and Scoota. That was a lot of fun as they are both very pushy workers and I thought Ness was pushy. They took pushy to a new level - but pushy in a good way. Gave me a much better feeling for what I needed to do to improve Ness and what I was aiming for in the long run.

ROFL I was told the only way BCs can heel is with there heads UP .

My thoughts are if I had access to contact equipment on a frequent basis (as in ideally daily for a few short sessions throughout the day) then you might be able to get a reliable running contact through muscle memory. I insist on a 2o/2o at training now but do let my criteria slide in a trial. Its a retrained contact anyway and I find (at least from the 1 trial I have done since) she was 100% reliable with her contacts. She isn't overly fast anyway but still use to manage to rush off the end of the obstacle and jump the colour. I need the speed of a running contact and the fact is she now keeps her head down and its changed her wait shift by insisting at training on the 2o/2o. Sure its not as good as a 2o/2o at a trial but particularly with the scramble she struggles with the position so as long as she gets her contact thats fine with me.

Ness trains me

your not suppose to make excuses - didn't we just cover this in the other thread

Bought that upon myself didn't I . Nope I know I don't and I don't need others to tell me anymore.

hehehe yes so do I leopuppy - I get those sort of emails every day of the week , sometimes I need to be bought back down to reality so I don't get so full of myself.

Hmm I actually like the cut to the chase type of feed back leopuppy - once you get over the initial shock of hearing it the first time . Then again it depends some people can be pretty blunt and you can feel right at home with what they have to say. Maybe thats because now I am training by myself its that sort of feedback you start to desire. It also comes back to having confidence. When your running on a high its far easier to take criticism then not. Part of the reason I even dared club ring training last week was because Ness had put in a stunning session on the Monday evening and I just figured nothing anybody could say was going to wipe the huge grin I had off my face from ear to ear.

Yes wheres my rock its HUGELY a confidence thing. I have finally stopped doubting Ness's capabilities and that came with the no longer making excuses for her. Oh nooooooo shoey is stalking me again .

I keep saying its a result of the "WA water" its done something to her .

Yes Shoey, However I have to say I have had far less mistakes and far more success with her UD training to date since getting my WA help. I am getting less stuck and continually moving forward even though things might not go quite according to plan. I am also learning when to back up a bit and how far but importantly how not to get stuck in a rutt. Whatever its working and that I am soooo glad I went.

Oh yes wheres my rock - at least they both know I am actually training and trying to apply all they say and I am always trying to give them lots of credit for it as well .

Oh yes the yeah but...... crowd - who I use to belong to. Gave up making excuses when I went to make an excuse for Ness not working over in WA and then less than 5 minutes later Gina had her heeling like a pro. Same enviornment. Same everything - apart from maybe the same belief in Ness that she could do it. Don't think I have made to many excuses since I have returned - if we have an off training night half the time its because I haven't completed my end of the bargain. I got a first hand look at what happens when I don't plan my sessions last night. Ness was a ratbag.

Yes my instructor here that I catch up with occasionally now (she was instructing at a club I became a member of last year but I won't go into the details here) - not enough though as I loved being picked to shreds - mostly its my handling that needs the work now, is like that. She is a former ANKC judge but after a long long time in the trialling game and the atmosphere of the trialling scene over here she has decided to not trial her current dogs and just enjoy them as pets without the undue pressure of trialling. As for people like me being a godsend to trainers - hmm Gina and Sandi are too polite to say otherwise but I am sure sometimes I do harass them to much. But sure I put in the hard yards with the information they give me. I guess I am just lacking confidence to sort of go ahead without the assistance as I have never trained a UD dog before and I am trying to avoid making all the mistakes I have made with my training to date. Muddling only gets you so far (CDX title ), not sure I could get through a UD title without the help I have had to date.

ROFL Leopuppy - you guys go have some really good trainers over there to. I guess maybe its not that we don't have good or great trainers more to the point that they aren't very willing to share and want to keep all there secrets to themselves. The crowd I know over in WA however (even before I met them and just through there responses to questions posted on lists) were more than willing to both provide a suggestion and happy to receive feedback on whether there suggestion worked and suggest modifications which you may try. I guess the real difference is there willingness to share any information they may have and don't in any way feel intimidated by the thought that somebody may take there information and manage to train something better then they have. Might just be because I am an outsider but I didn't get that impression from hanging around the rings over there and think they treat everybody the same way. There have been others from other states who likewise have been happy to help and assist with information.

ROFL nope I don't under estimate myself - just need somewhere to go to get help for me .

LOL wheres my rock we will come visit you too - I would have been coming to Melbourne in May because my parents are driving over and offered to take Ness and I but its on the same time as Nationals . Both the Obedience and Agility Nationals are in Melbourne next year so we might make plans to come visit. Gemma must be all grown up now - I demand new photos . I didn't say there weren't brilliant trainers in Melbourne - just not in SA LOL. Yes one on one is certainly the way to go.

ROFL PAX , Got to line a job up there first. But its seriously tempting me at the moment. I want to go back on another holiday but I don't think I'll be able to force myself into coming home again.

Well helen Gina was over here at the Pet Expo (god a long time ago now - back in March 2005). Ness and I were helping on the Aussie dog stand and she was doing demos on the stage. She wanted to know if she could borrow a dog. Now Ness was just lying around the stand off-lead, Gina comes and asks if she may borrow Ness and Ness just wanders off with her. She did ask me for her lead ROFL. Second time she was using a friends BC first and Ness was trying to drag her way onto the stage ROFL. I have some brilliant backing thanks to that demo. I was also fortunate enough for Gina to steal Ness for a little while on the Monday while we were out watching the obedience trial and show me a few things about teaching her heelwork. Ever since I have been in very frequent email contact with her and a long and well planned trip over West - just so happened that we also polished and commenced our very short trialling career in open - CDX 3 from 3. Funnily enough before that Ness wouldn't work for anybody else. Gina was able to take her and work her then we go to WA couple of years later and Ness didn't have a second thought about coming back to me when Gina worked her. In fact it was embarassing because Ness was doing really quite nice work for Gina (after she had done a really pathetic job with me :D ) Couldn't convince her to handle Ness in the ring but didn't need to as we got through anyway.

Alright since Helen did mention names, Yep it was the absolutely wonderfully fantastic Gina guru. OMG do I owe her a huge amount she has shown me so much and totally turned my girls trialling career around, not to mention the way I go about my training (which is an entire thread in itself - most of which I have elaborated on in other threads recently - shoey's thread comes to mind). But there are a few other not quite so prominently talked about trainers over there who aren't quite so well known outside of WA but who are equally as nice, generous and fantastic as both Gina and Sue and who do just as well in the trialling circle - people such as Sandi Gee with her wonderful Lara and her tollers.

Will PM you Cosmolo.

Very exceptional cosmolo (I would move there in a heart beat if I could find an appropriate job - I so didn't want to come home) :D and they are all so supportive of me rather than the seemingly constant criticism and remarks made over here. WA trainers are way ahead of most of what we have here (with the occasional exception). We have a few but most aren't that open to sharing their secrets for fear you will then beat them and its sort of leave you to your own devices. Not saying they are all like that. I have been fortunate enough to also get some help from a good delta trainer here (who has also been an ANKC judge) as well but I just really like the approach of those "select few" over in WA and their generosity of information and time should be highly commended. .

Hmm I travelled all the way over to WA to get private lessons :D . I am seriously considering doing it a second time. ETA. And I do daily lessons via email complete with video every couple of weeks.

I have an average sized BC girl and she has a 36" Vari-crate. Its perfectly sized. When I went to buy a crate I asked around the BC breeders and friends on what size crate I needed and that was the recommendation.

Hey t(AD)pole, I might be interested in the pattern. We are just in the process of getting a quote on materials to make some.