Uninspirational title, I know, but I'm feeling a bit drained. Eight hour shift at work tends to do that to me. I'm soft.
/nods
Apart from that, I have bits and pieces of exciting news.
First for Charlie. We're starting to retrain contacts- again, for what must be the sixty millionth time- for running using Silvia Trkman's method. So, hopefully, we'll make some progress on that. I'm debating about whether or not to work on Cik and Cap with him, too. Now the rain's let up, finally, we may be able to get into finishing off my jumps and starting on a dog walk which I'm very happy about. We also have our first '11 trials coming up at the end of January: 22nd is agility novice and excellent jumpers at Durack, 29th is agility novice and excellent jumpers at Birkdale. They'll also be Fletcher's first exposure to a trial environment, which'll be interesting- and gives me a segue! Handy.
Fletcher has been with me four and a half weeks, and what a four and a half weeks they've been. He's incredibly fun, but just insane at the same time. I've found that I'm getting less and less concerned with each dog in terms of manners and nit picky control things- as are my parents. Jack wasn't even allowed inside until he was about a year and a half, and that was only to try and keep him in from wandering off to the neighbours. He wasn't allowed to sleep inside until he was eight. Charlie was inside and sleeping inside from the first day I had him, but as a puppy wasn't allowed on the furniture off someone's lap. Fletcher's not only inside but he can launch onto the couches and sprint up and down them, jump all over the place and sneak in an occasional nom on a cushion without issue. Makes me wonder about what my next dog will turn out like.
I'm ordering a copy of The Focused Puppy, 'cause I need one: the book and the focused puppy. I wish I had of discovered it sooner because it looks awesome and has month by month plans for activities and training set out. But oh well. Shall be handy anyway. I've also got four more books I want to buy, but I have to wait for a few more pay checks to land in the account before I extract another one hundred bucks. I still owe Dad $600 for Fletcher- and next Tuesday both doggies are going to the vet for vaccinations so that'll be a big bill, too. And I need a fair few supplies for handraising my new baby sun conures as of next week, so I have to budget that in as well.
I'm patiently awaiting the arrival two tug toys for Fletcher- though Charlie can probably share the bigger one- from Air Dogs and just hope they come before next Tuesday when he starts puppy preschool. Eek, I'm so excited about that.
As far as training goes, we've done a lot of thinking and clicker work, not a lot of formal training. He's pretty good with "sit" and I'm now starting to put a name ("tic") to the right paw lift and wave I freeshaped. I'm going to focus on "drop" and freeshaping for the rest of this week, then get into some more structured tricks as of next week, while still keeping up the freetime sessions so get him using that silly little noggin of his.
And of course. The Video.
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Thursday, December 23, 2010
2011 Should Be Awesome
I got a bit of a timetable for the classes and disciplines being held at our training club for the start of next year, and I'm super excited.
Fletcher's enrolled in a four week puppy preschool course, starting on the fourth of January. After that I'll probably give him a bit of a break for a few weeks- just so he's a touch older- and then he'll be going into Obedience One. After that he'll start down the Rally Obedience course. I'll be putting him into Puppy Gym- which is basically foundation agility- at the club as well once he's a bit older as well, and there's DWD workshops once a month I'm thinking about going along to later in the year with him since I'm almost completely certain I want trial in freestyle.
Charlie's going to be going back into Rally Three- and we're going to work much harder at it this time round. And, I'm very thrilled about this, the Commando course is being put back up again on Sunday mornings so we'll be going along to that as well. Then we have our agility and agility trialling, which I want to do a whole lot more of next year.
Herding lessons are also on my agenda from the middle of '11. Once I have my P plates, I want to start that on a semi regular basis and see what happens with both of them.
We've also got a demo on Australia Day, which is always so much fun- and will be a great experience for Fletcher.
Fletcher's enrolled in a four week puppy preschool course, starting on the fourth of January. After that I'll probably give him a bit of a break for a few weeks- just so he's a touch older- and then he'll be going into Obedience One. After that he'll start down the Rally Obedience course. I'll be putting him into Puppy Gym- which is basically foundation agility- at the club as well once he's a bit older as well, and there's DWD workshops once a month I'm thinking about going along to later in the year with him since I'm almost completely certain I want trial in freestyle.
Charlie's going to be going back into Rally Three- and we're going to work much harder at it this time round. And, I'm very thrilled about this, the Commando course is being put back up again on Sunday mornings so we'll be going along to that as well. Then we have our agility and agility trialling, which I want to do a whole lot more of next year.
Herding lessons are also on my agenda from the middle of '11. Once I have my P plates, I want to start that on a semi regular basis and see what happens with both of them.
We've also got a demo on Australia Day, which is always so much fun- and will be a great experience for Fletcher.
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Update Time
I haven't posted anything for a little while so here we go.
I've had Fletcher for two and a half weeks and so far he's made me laugh and cry and tear my hair out in absolute frustration. We have a few mouthing and biting issues that are slowly- very, very, very slowly- being made progress on. He's more or less got "sit" down pat, unless he gets distracted and then he's off and there's no way to get him back. I've started luring him for "drop" and will keep working at that. He's had an automatic sit and focus for his meals since day two and I started moving the bowl out to my side and up and down yesterday, working on focus away from the food and directed at my eyes. Absolutely no issues with that so far; I put the bowl out to the side the first time and he didn't even look at it, just kept staring at my eyes, so I'm super happy with that. Now if only he could have even an inch of that focused attention for everything else...
He had his second injection last Tuesday and will go in for his third and final in about three weeks time. I've also just booked him in for puppy preschool and he'll start that in three weeks, too. He went for his first proper swim in our pool this afternoon before it bucketed down with rain and seemed to quite enjoy it, so I can't wait until I can start to take him to the beach with Charlie- should only be about five more weeks and then he'll be classified "fully vaccinated" and can go and mingle. As far as his eye goes, it does seem like he has mild entropian in it, and he does tear in it a fair bit- and it seems to irritate him on occasion, especially if he bumps into something- so at this stage I'm almost definitely going to be looking at having it operated on once he's a bit older.
Poor Charlie's been a giant, furry, barking toy for Fletcher to chew on these past couple of weeks. We haven't been to many agility training sessions because of the crappy weather and we're having a short break until the 10th of January so it's a bit of a pain not having any equipment at home. I've got my fingers crossed dad might be able to finally give me a hand over the holidays so I can, at least, get one contact piece finished to practice on. Fletcher seems to have given him a boost, though, in terms of drive. He was so flat and sluggish for a few weeks, I got Fletcher and that Monday at training he was back to zooming about and responding so much quicker. Nothing like a puppy to give motivation. He's had a really long rest from rally classes- not really by choice, more so because of the weather, schoolwork, me being sick, Charlie hurting his leg... every Wednesday there seemed to be something on or wrong- so next year we're going to be back to them and putting way more effort into that than we have this past year. I've also got a big long list of agility, jumpers and games trials that should be on over next year and a lot are within a handy distance so fingers crossed we can do a lot more competing as well; getting my P plates near the middle of next year as well as turning eighteen (therefore not being a supervised junior anymore) should increase our options a bit more as well.
We've got our training club Christmas party on the 19th that Charlie and Fletch will both be going to; it'll be Fletcher's first real outing in such a chaotic environment with so many other strange dogs so I'm a bit nervous but it should all be good. We've also got, on the 21st, a photo shoot for a bit of a media launch thing at the training club as well which is always good fun. And hopefully we'll be able to go out in our dinghy a few times over the next few weeks with the dogs instead of the dog beach- safer for Fletcher as well as not so busy now the school holidays have started.
And that's about it. Busy time coming up, but it's sure to be a whole lot of fun.
I've had Fletcher for two and a half weeks and so far he's made me laugh and cry and tear my hair out in absolute frustration. We have a few mouthing and biting issues that are slowly- very, very, very slowly- being made progress on. He's more or less got "sit" down pat, unless he gets distracted and then he's off and there's no way to get him back. I've started luring him for "drop" and will keep working at that. He's had an automatic sit and focus for his meals since day two and I started moving the bowl out to my side and up and down yesterday, working on focus away from the food and directed at my eyes. Absolutely no issues with that so far; I put the bowl out to the side the first time and he didn't even look at it, just kept staring at my eyes, so I'm super happy with that. Now if only he could have even an inch of that focused attention for everything else...
He had his second injection last Tuesday and will go in for his third and final in about three weeks time. I've also just booked him in for puppy preschool and he'll start that in three weeks, too. He went for his first proper swim in our pool this afternoon before it bucketed down with rain and seemed to quite enjoy it, so I can't wait until I can start to take him to the beach with Charlie- should only be about five more weeks and then he'll be classified "fully vaccinated" and can go and mingle. As far as his eye goes, it does seem like he has mild entropian in it, and he does tear in it a fair bit- and it seems to irritate him on occasion, especially if he bumps into something- so at this stage I'm almost definitely going to be looking at having it operated on once he's a bit older.
Poor Charlie's been a giant, furry, barking toy for Fletcher to chew on these past couple of weeks. We haven't been to many agility training sessions because of the crappy weather and we're having a short break until the 10th of January so it's a bit of a pain not having any equipment at home. I've got my fingers crossed dad might be able to finally give me a hand over the holidays so I can, at least, get one contact piece finished to practice on. Fletcher seems to have given him a boost, though, in terms of drive. He was so flat and sluggish for a few weeks, I got Fletcher and that Monday at training he was back to zooming about and responding so much quicker. Nothing like a puppy to give motivation. He's had a really long rest from rally classes- not really by choice, more so because of the weather, schoolwork, me being sick, Charlie hurting his leg... every Wednesday there seemed to be something on or wrong- so next year we're going to be back to them and putting way more effort into that than we have this past year. I've also got a big long list of agility, jumpers and games trials that should be on over next year and a lot are within a handy distance so fingers crossed we can do a lot more competing as well; getting my P plates near the middle of next year as well as turning eighteen (therefore not being a supervised junior anymore) should increase our options a bit more as well.
We've got our training club Christmas party on the 19th that Charlie and Fletch will both be going to; it'll be Fletcher's first real outing in such a chaotic environment with so many other strange dogs so I'm a bit nervous but it should all be good. We've also got, on the 21st, a photo shoot for a bit of a media launch thing at the training club as well which is always good fun. And hopefully we'll be able to go out in our dinghy a few times over the next few weeks with the dogs instead of the dog beach- safer for Fletcher as well as not so busy now the school holidays have started.
And that's about it. Busy time coming up, but it's sure to be a whole lot of fun.
Monday, December 6, 2010
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Ol' Squinty Eye
Fletch has a squint.
The more fancy name for it, though, is a micropalpebral fissure; basically he's got a small set of eyelids on his right eye.
It's so uncommon that even Google keeps asking me "Did you mean macropalpebral fissure" and not only baffled his breeder but friends of hers who are sheltie breeders (some for forty plus years); her vet; my vet. My vet got onto an eye specialist and that's the only reason we have the diagnosis. Even the specialist has only seen three cases of it. It's never cropped up in the line Fletcher's from before- and they're all really top quality shelties, too.
So Fletcher's a very special little boy. With a squint.
The eye itself appears healthy and normal, and he's CEA tested and cleared as well as from cleared parents, so apart from having the vision slightly limited just due to the fact that the eye is more "closed" than the other, he should be absolutely fine. He may require surgery later on down the tract, either to assist with that vision- if I find it's hampering him for agility or obedience or daily life or whatever- or if the eyelid rolls inwards or outwards and causes irritation and a lovely pile of problems. I'm so used to it now I don't even notice it, and he may even end up growing it out a bit, so all I can do for the time being is keep my fingers crossed and hope for the best.
His breeder feels awful about it, and I feel awful that she feels awful because it's a complete anomaly. There's nothing to suggest that micropalpebral fissures are genetic, it's not common, there wasn't anything else she could have done to prevent it from cropping up- and she gave me exactly what I wanted: a peppy, vibrant pup that I can trial with.
He's also got an unusually outgoing personality for a sheltie- at least at home, anyway, though I have a feeling he's going to be a handful everywhere else, too, when he matures a bit more- and is so much fun I couldn't even consider giving him back.
Though in a couple more weeks, given how much of a menace he is, I may be liable to change my mind about that... :P
The more fancy name for it, though, is a micropalpebral fissure; basically he's got a small set of eyelids on his right eye.
It's so uncommon that even Google keeps asking me "Did you mean macropalpebral fissure" and not only baffled his breeder but friends of hers who are sheltie breeders (some for forty plus years); her vet; my vet. My vet got onto an eye specialist and that's the only reason we have the diagnosis. Even the specialist has only seen three cases of it. It's never cropped up in the line Fletcher's from before- and they're all really top quality shelties, too.
So Fletcher's a very special little boy. With a squint.
The eye itself appears healthy and normal, and he's CEA tested and cleared as well as from cleared parents, so apart from having the vision slightly limited just due to the fact that the eye is more "closed" than the other, he should be absolutely fine. He may require surgery later on down the tract, either to assist with that vision- if I find it's hampering him for agility or obedience or daily life or whatever- or if the eyelid rolls inwards or outwards and causes irritation and a lovely pile of problems. I'm so used to it now I don't even notice it, and he may even end up growing it out a bit, so all I can do for the time being is keep my fingers crossed and hope for the best.
His breeder feels awful about it, and I feel awful that she feels awful because it's a complete anomaly. There's nothing to suggest that micropalpebral fissures are genetic, it's not common, there wasn't anything else she could have done to prevent it from cropping up- and she gave me exactly what I wanted: a peppy, vibrant pup that I can trial with.
He's also got an unusually outgoing personality for a sheltie- at least at home, anyway, though I have a feeling he's going to be a handful everywhere else, too, when he matures a bit more- and is so much fun I couldn't even consider giving him back.
Though in a couple more weeks, given how much of a menace he is, I may be liable to change my mind about that... :P
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
I'd Kinda Forgotten...
...just how much fun a puppy is.
Fletcher's a little troublemaker. He gets into everything he shouldn't, likes to stalk and then attack your feet, chucks a tantrum when he can't go where he wants to go or do what he wants to do, whinges when he's in his crate, is a bit slow to grasp the concept of going to the toilet only outside, doesn't quite understand when he's being told off- either by me or Charlie or Jack or anyone else 'cause nothing really phases him, barks at absolutely nothing and can't be diverted away from it until he's satisified he's "scared it away"...
But my gosh he's an awesome, hilarious, adorable little dog.
Fletcher's a little troublemaker. He gets into everything he shouldn't, likes to stalk and then attack your feet, chucks a tantrum when he can't go where he wants to go or do what he wants to do, whinges when he's in his crate, is a bit slow to grasp the concept of going to the toilet only outside, doesn't quite understand when he's being told off- either by me or Charlie or Jack or anyone else 'cause nothing really phases him, barks at absolutely nothing and can't be diverted away from it until he's satisified he's "scared it away"...
But my gosh he's an awesome, hilarious, adorable little dog.
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Introducing...
Ashmists Rain Dancer!
We ended up making the supposed weekend long trip in just Saturday, leaving at four in the morning and getting home at ten thirty that night which was super handy.
Fletcher's an awesome little dog and I can't wait to start working with him; he's got a lovely personality, not too full on nor submissive, and is pretty toy and food motivated which make things nice and easy training wise.
He's getting along quite well with Charlie and Jack, no issues as of yet. Jack's quite intense about him and obsesses a little bit and Charlie, surprisingly, isn't too fussed. He's pretty much accepted Fletcher as part of the household and that's that.
His right eye's a bit squinty as of yesterday morning before we went and collected him from his breeder's place, so he'll have it looked at when he goes for his check up at the vet tomorrow morning; fingers crossed he's just poked himself in the eye or got a bit of a lazy muscle.
We ended up making the supposed weekend long trip in just Saturday, leaving at four in the morning and getting home at ten thirty that night which was super handy.
Fletcher's an awesome little dog and I can't wait to start working with him; he's got a lovely personality, not too full on nor submissive, and is pretty toy and food motivated which make things nice and easy training wise.
He's getting along quite well with Charlie and Jack, no issues as of yet. Jack's quite intense about him and obsesses a little bit and Charlie, surprisingly, isn't too fussed. He's pretty much accepted Fletcher as part of the household and that's that.
His right eye's a bit squinty as of yesterday morning before we went and collected him from his breeder's place, so he'll have it looked at when he goes for his check up at the vet tomorrow morning; fingers crossed he's just poked himself in the eye or got a bit of a lazy muscle.
Thursday, November 25, 2010
I'm Going To Be Registering With ADAA
Exciting stuff indeed.
Someone I go to training with trials with ADAA because when she started her bitch was entire and, since she is a mixed breed from a non-registered breeder, she couldn't register her with CCCQ. Anyway, she suggested that I look into competing with ADAA in addition to CCCQ; I'm also not classed as a junior handler with ADAA as well as being able to go to more trials and work on some of Charlie's trial related issues since they're a bit more flexible with training on a course than CCCQ are.
Since dog registration is free with intial sign up I'm going to wait until I get Fletcher and then register both him and Charlie so long as there isn't an age limit for signing them up. If there is I'll just put Charlie down and register the little fluff butt when he's eighteen months old; ten bucks is hardly going to break my bank account.
Apparently I can use either a pet name, kennel name or another "chosen" name when I register the dogs, but I don't think I could be bothered coming up with something for Charlie. And I'd feel pretty silly about it ;P
Someone I go to training with trials with ADAA because when she started her bitch was entire and, since she is a mixed breed from a non-registered breeder, she couldn't register her with CCCQ. Anyway, she suggested that I look into competing with ADAA in addition to CCCQ; I'm also not classed as a junior handler with ADAA as well as being able to go to more trials and work on some of Charlie's trial related issues since they're a bit more flexible with training on a course than CCCQ are.
Since dog registration is free with intial sign up I'm going to wait until I get Fletcher and then register both him and Charlie so long as there isn't an age limit for signing them up. If there is I'll just put Charlie down and register the little fluff butt when he's eighteen months old; ten bucks is hardly going to break my bank account.
Apparently I can use either a pet name, kennel name or another "chosen" name when I register the dogs, but I don't think I could be bothered coming up with something for Charlie. And I'd feel pretty silly about it ;P
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Something That's Ticking Me Off
Fletcher is going to be my first purebred dog, my first dog from a breeder, and my first dog coming to me without having been desexed previously. Charlie was nine weeks old when I adopted him, but the AWL has a policy where all their dogs and cats, regardless of age, are desexed before rehoming- no matter their age.
I'm not crazy enough to have an entire dog running about the place and my fence is only four feet tall- and the gate's even shorter- so I'm going to be getting him neutered at four months.
But, for some reason, the very fact that he's a purebred dog from a breeder seems to make every single freakin' person ask me if I'm planning on breeding him.
What. The. Hell.
I have no interest at this stage in my life to do conformation with a dog; I don't have the capability to safely and securely house an entire dog or bitch at this stage in my life; I've never expressed a desire to breed a dog before in my life; I don't have the time and money to put into breeding; this is my first sheltie and everyone- apart from "doggy people"- seem to find it odd that I have no desire to breed Fletcher when he's older.
I'm getting him for a pet and for an agility dog, neither of which require him to be entire so he's being snipped at sixteen weeks old and that's that. Just because he's purebred, just because he's got oodles of CH dogs in his line, doesn't mean he should or is going to be bred.
If someone else asks me if I'm planning on breeding Fletcher, I'm going to scream and throw something heavy at their head.
I'm not crazy enough to have an entire dog running about the place and my fence is only four feet tall- and the gate's even shorter- so I'm going to be getting him neutered at four months.
But, for some reason, the very fact that he's a purebred dog from a breeder seems to make every single freakin' person ask me if I'm planning on breeding him.
What. The. Hell.
I have no interest at this stage in my life to do conformation with a dog; I don't have the capability to safely and securely house an entire dog or bitch at this stage in my life; I've never expressed a desire to breed a dog before in my life; I don't have the time and money to put into breeding; this is my first sheltie and everyone- apart from "doggy people"- seem to find it odd that I have no desire to breed Fletcher when he's older.
I'm getting him for a pet and for an agility dog, neither of which require him to be entire so he's being snipped at sixteen weeks old and that's that. Just because he's purebred, just because he's got oodles of CH dogs in his line, doesn't mean he should or is going to be bred.
If someone else asks me if I'm planning on breeding Fletcher, I'm going to scream and throw something heavy at their head.
Monday, November 22, 2010
Creepy Old Jack
I took Jack along to agility training tonight; I sometimes take him along but since he's old and has arthritis he can't do a whole lot and just spends the time sitting there, "talking" to everyone about everything. But he seems to enjoy going along just to get loves and treats and pats from other people and he even had a bit of an off leash wander with one of the puppies that's been newly aquired by two of the other handlers who go and train, too.
He's pretty darn good with puppies just- as the title suggests- is a bit of a... creep. He spent the whole time wandering about with his nose right on the pup's bum, looking like he was going to hump him- and then he did try to have a go at his head but I pulled him off.
So I'm feeling fairly optimistic about how both Jack and Charlie are going to go with the introduction to Fletcher on Sunday afternoon. They've both had a couple of play sessions and meet 'n' greets with puppies in the past few weeks and done pretty well, being gentle and considerate. Charlie does get a bit too interested and obsesses which is partly why I have the ex-pen, to give Fletcher some breathing space and vice versa. Jack's quite patient, he just has the humping fascination and a short temper when he's in a bad mood, so I'm going to have to watch him with that just while Fletcher's settling in.
All in all, it should go relatively smoothly- though of course now I've put that wish out there things are going to be absolutely terrible.
Only five more days until we pick him up and six days until he comes home :D
He's pretty darn good with puppies just- as the title suggests- is a bit of a... creep. He spent the whole time wandering about with his nose right on the pup's bum, looking like he was going to hump him- and then he did try to have a go at his head but I pulled him off.
So I'm feeling fairly optimistic about how both Jack and Charlie are going to go with the introduction to Fletcher on Sunday afternoon. They've both had a couple of play sessions and meet 'n' greets with puppies in the past few weeks and done pretty well, being gentle and considerate. Charlie does get a bit too interested and obsesses which is partly why I have the ex-pen, to give Fletcher some breathing space and vice versa. Jack's quite patient, he just has the humping fascination and a short temper when he's in a bad mood, so I'm going to have to watch him with that just while Fletcher's settling in.
All in all, it should go relatively smoothly- though of course now I've put that wish out there things are going to be absolutely terrible.
Only five more days until we pick him up and six days until he comes home :D
Friday, November 19, 2010
I May Be Having A Small Amount Of Anxiety...
I've got everything I need for Fletcher as of this afternoon. I've got toys, a cheap collar and lead- because no doubt it'll be chewed and grown out of in a flash- food bowl, basic grooming supplies, his crate and ex-pen. I'm all prepared.
But I'm starting to fret.
Now I'm not normally a worrier. Today, for instance, I was driving and nearly clipped the side of a little white car after I accidentally veered into the lane on a roundabout. A bit later, on another roundabout, a guy was being lazy with his indicators, I pulled out to go round and he was coming around to I had to floor it and shoot off to avoid getting collected by the idiot. My heart rate stayed normal, I didn't give a toss about either, while my mum had more or less put her foot through the floor, had her eyes bug out of her head and was throwing out a variety of colourful words.
I'm not sure if it's because I'm actually meeting the person who intentionally has bred such a carefully thought out puppy and I'm worried about letting them down with raising, training and caring for him. I'm not sure if it's because I'm just doubting my capabilities. I'm not sure if I'm overthinking the whole situation.
I do know that it has a bit to do with Charlie.
Because my mum had just cleaned the car and has an aversion to dog fur I had to leave him at home while we went and ran a few errands; he normally comes so he was a bit sulky and clingy when we got home. I bought him a cow squeaker which he loved and played with enthusiastically for a whole ten minutes before he squeaked it too hard and the squeaker popped out. So with it more or less broken he turned his attention to searching for other things to play with and happened to spy the assortment of toys on Fletcher's crate in the ex-pen.
That's Fletcher's space- like Charlie's space is his crate and my bed- and I'm being very strict with keeping that space individual for each dog now it's getting closer to Fletcher coming home, so the pen is closed and Charlie's not allowed in there. He's been pretty fine with that, tapping on the door occasionally but he's not whinging about it.
Whether it was because he's in a really sooky mood tonight combined with being able to see but not get to the new toys he hasn't been allowed to touch, or something else I haven't been able to put my finger on, but he has been a pain in the butt. He parked himself right next to the pen, right where I need to have my chair at my desk, and just whined and whined and whined, throwing in the occasional focused attention at me.
He's been so clingy tonight and so whingy it's got me all anxious about what he's going to be like when we come home with Fletcher in nine days time. Me being away for nearly forty eight hours isn't going to help matters; I've spent a night away from him before, but not within the last year and a half and it's always been only twenty four hours at the very maximum. I've been homeschooled for the past two years, I only work two three and a half hour shifts a week, don't go anywhere but to work and dog related things that he comes to as well, and he's so used to having just me with him all the time, not having to share me with anyone; he's very attached to me and acts up when I'm not about to keep an eye on him- running off and playing on the road is one of his favourite past times when I'm at work and my mum loses sight of him for a split second. He doesn't have separation anxiety, he just only really listens to and enjoys being with me over everyone else.
I was so sure he'd be over the moon with a "new toy" to play with- and one that would play back to boot- but I'm starting to doubt that. I really don't want to have Charlie sulking as well as Jack- that's a given, 'cause he's a grumpy old man. I don't want him to feel put out by Fletcher at all; I want them to love each other immediately and get along really well. Charlie loves puppies- but I don't know how he's going to love having one living with us and having to share me. For the next week I'm going to spend a whole lot of time with him, which might make matters worse but I just feel really quite guilty about getting another dog at the moment and I need to baby him for a bit.
So a pretty pointless long ramble of a post, but I'm all overly emotional and need to vent somewhere :)
But I'm starting to fret.
Now I'm not normally a worrier. Today, for instance, I was driving and nearly clipped the side of a little white car after I accidentally veered into the lane on a roundabout. A bit later, on another roundabout, a guy was being lazy with his indicators, I pulled out to go round and he was coming around to I had to floor it and shoot off to avoid getting collected by the idiot. My heart rate stayed normal, I didn't give a toss about either, while my mum had more or less put her foot through the floor, had her eyes bug out of her head and was throwing out a variety of colourful words.
I'm not sure if it's because I'm actually meeting the person who intentionally has bred such a carefully thought out puppy and I'm worried about letting them down with raising, training and caring for him. I'm not sure if it's because I'm just doubting my capabilities. I'm not sure if I'm overthinking the whole situation.
I do know that it has a bit to do with Charlie.
Because my mum had just cleaned the car and has an aversion to dog fur I had to leave him at home while we went and ran a few errands; he normally comes so he was a bit sulky and clingy when we got home. I bought him a cow squeaker which he loved and played with enthusiastically for a whole ten minutes before he squeaked it too hard and the squeaker popped out. So with it more or less broken he turned his attention to searching for other things to play with and happened to spy the assortment of toys on Fletcher's crate in the ex-pen.
That's Fletcher's space- like Charlie's space is his crate and my bed- and I'm being very strict with keeping that space individual for each dog now it's getting closer to Fletcher coming home, so the pen is closed and Charlie's not allowed in there. He's been pretty fine with that, tapping on the door occasionally but he's not whinging about it.
Whether it was because he's in a really sooky mood tonight combined with being able to see but not get to the new toys he hasn't been allowed to touch, or something else I haven't been able to put my finger on, but he has been a pain in the butt. He parked himself right next to the pen, right where I need to have my chair at my desk, and just whined and whined and whined, throwing in the occasional focused attention at me.
He's been so clingy tonight and so whingy it's got me all anxious about what he's going to be like when we come home with Fletcher in nine days time. Me being away for nearly forty eight hours isn't going to help matters; I've spent a night away from him before, but not within the last year and a half and it's always been only twenty four hours at the very maximum. I've been homeschooled for the past two years, I only work two three and a half hour shifts a week, don't go anywhere but to work and dog related things that he comes to as well, and he's so used to having just me with him all the time, not having to share me with anyone; he's very attached to me and acts up when I'm not about to keep an eye on him- running off and playing on the road is one of his favourite past times when I'm at work and my mum loses sight of him for a split second. He doesn't have separation anxiety, he just only really listens to and enjoys being with me over everyone else.
I was so sure he'd be over the moon with a "new toy" to play with- and one that would play back to boot- but I'm starting to doubt that. I really don't want to have Charlie sulking as well as Jack- that's a given, 'cause he's a grumpy old man. I don't want him to feel put out by Fletcher at all; I want them to love each other immediately and get along really well. Charlie loves puppies- but I don't know how he's going to love having one living with us and having to share me. For the next week I'm going to spend a whole lot of time with him, which might make matters worse but I just feel really quite guilty about getting another dog at the moment and I need to baby him for a bit.
So a pretty pointless long ramble of a post, but I'm all overly emotional and need to vent somewhere :)
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Beach!
We went to an off leash dog beach this morning and had a ball. I did forget the leads, though, and luckily we had a piece of rope in the car since Jack isn't very... reliable... off lead and doesn't really listen to, well, anything.Charlie got chased by a small and fluffy, which wasn't far since just seconds beforehand I'd told him he couldn't chase the small and fluffy.
And they're now completely zonked out for the rest of the day, which is very handy indeed.
I love how Jack just completely ignores ninety nine per cent of everything I say in this video...
Sunday, November 14, 2010
Bit Of Obedience
More or less exactly as the title says.
Just a bit of obedience- leg work and sit front foundation- from this afternoon.
Just a bit of obedience- leg work and sit front foundation- from this afternoon.
Introducing...
Fletcher!
The breeder got back to me today about which puppy out of the three boys was mine, and his name's officially on his microchip papers, too. Just two more weeks to wait, and then I'll have the new fur baby home.
Very, very, very excited :D
The breeder got back to me today about which puppy out of the three boys was mine, and his name's officially on his microchip papers, too. Just two more weeks to wait, and then I'll have the new fur baby home.
Very, very, very excited :D
Friday, November 12, 2010
A Crate And A Jump And A Strange Dog
My ex pen still hasn't come, though my crate arrived this afternoon which is kinda whacky considering I ordered the pen on Sunday night and the crate on Wednesday afternoon. But anyway, it's lovely and apparently Charlie thinks so too because he is choosing it over his forty two inch one. I'm so completely baffled. He opens the door up and crams himself inside, curling into a little ball and going to sleep. I'll probably end up with the sheltie by himself in the huge crate and Charlie all alone in the small. Go figure.
In addition to the lovely new crate, I finished painting my first jump the other night and got around to snapping a couple of pics this afternoon. I'm quite impressed with how nice it turned out, if I do say so myself, particularly since it was made solely from bits and pieces we had lying about or my dad "borrowed" from work.
In addition to the lovely new crate, I finished painting my first jump the other night and got around to snapping a couple of pics this afternoon. I'm quite impressed with how nice it turned out, if I do say so myself, particularly since it was made solely from bits and pieces we had lying about or my dad "borrowed" from work.
Monday, November 8, 2010
It's All Happening At Once!
As it's all turned out, I'm no longer getting the little bitch puppy from the breeder I was going to go with, but am instead getting a dog- seems I am destined to always own males, despite my best efforts- pup from a different breeder but the same line. I'm not sure exactly what pup out of the litter I'm getting since there are four boys and they're still a bit young to have their personalities all emerged and displayed to the world, but the breeder will have a better idea in another week or so, once they're a bit older and more mobile.
Even more exciting is that the pick up is from the twenty eighth of November! So quite a few weeks earlier than I would have had with the bitch pup since this litter was born earlier. Hopefully dad will be co-operative and I should have the new fur baby home at the end of this month, in just three weeks time. She's going to be sending me through some photos of the puppies, too; some ones of them younger should hopefully be coming through shortly and in the next few days she's going to take some more recent ones and send them as well. Yay for pics!
This does, however, mean I will most defintely need that short term loan from my parents (rats and their inconvenient times to get sick...) and will have to poke and prod dad to get the fence done a whole lot quicker than he was perhaps hoping on and planning for.
Nothing like a motivator to spur on some action.
I also painted the uprights on my first jump yesterday, with the second coat done this morning. It looks very snazzy. And it's red, which makes it that much cooler
^ . ^
Even more exciting is that the pick up is from the twenty eighth of November! So quite a few weeks earlier than I would have had with the bitch pup since this litter was born earlier. Hopefully dad will be co-operative and I should have the new fur baby home at the end of this month, in just three weeks time. She's going to be sending me through some photos of the puppies, too; some ones of them younger should hopefully be coming through shortly and in the next few days she's going to take some more recent ones and send them as well. Yay for pics!
This does, however, mean I will most defintely need that short term loan from my parents (rats and their inconvenient times to get sick...) and will have to poke and prod dad to get the fence done a whole lot quicker than he was perhaps hoping on and planning for.
Nothing like a motivator to spur on some action.
I also painted the uprights on my first jump yesterday, with the second coat done this morning. It looks very snazzy. And it's red, which makes it that much cooler
^ . ^
Friday, November 5, 2010
ZOMG! I Has Jumps!
I do indeed. And it's very exciting, especially since they cost me absolutely nothing.
Well, it's actually just a single jump for the moment as we were trying out another prototype, but the good news is we've got the uprights more or less down for the other five- they just need bases and the bars and it'll all be dandy. It looks huge to me- the distance between the two uprights- but according to the ANKC rule book it's the minimum distance so... Maybe I'm just imagining things.
I've only got the two cup heights at 500 and 200; Charlie jumps 600 normally, but because we haven't got such a huge area for me to set up courses I didn't want anything higher.
Even Jack can have a go at such a low height- though he does more hop/walk over the bar than actually take off and jump.
Well, it's actually just a single jump for the moment as we were trying out another prototype, but the good news is we've got the uprights more or less down for the other five- they just need bases and the bars and it'll all be dandy. It looks huge to me- the distance between the two uprights- but according to the ANKC rule book it's the minimum distance so... Maybe I'm just imagining things.
I've only got the two cup heights at 500 and 200; Charlie jumps 600 normally, but because we haven't got such a huge area for me to set up courses I didn't want anything higher.
Even Jack can have a go at such a low height- though he does more hop/walk over the bar than actually take off and jump.
Monday, November 1, 2010
Wahey For New Plans
Just when I had started to bring up the making my jumps out of metal, my dad conveniently "remembered" that he had some glue thing that is specifically made to stick pipe together.
>.>
He's had it the whole time, too.
We tried it out yesterday and it works brilliantly, if coming out a little bit messy, but that's not really an issue. So now we have a nice, easy, cheap and definite way to make a bucket load of jumps- we just have to figure out how to make the bases and ta-da! Emma will be content.
I got my fencing supplies and, because my parents ended up paying eight dollars out of the total for getting my awards at school, it only cost my about eighty five bucks. Super bargain and made me breath a bit easier about my cash limits. We'll hpefully be able to, at least, make a head start on putting it up next weekend since they're out again this weekend and I'm so ridiculously excited about finally making a move on it all.
Up until yesterday evening, just before I went to sleep, I had forgotten about the stupid three dog permit. I had a rant to my mum this morning and she, like my dad, just told me to not even bother registering the new puppy; if we, for some strange reason, got an inspection and pigs started flying, we'll just all lie through our teeth and/or hide the dog. My upbringing is full of deeply installed morals and respect for "authority".
:D
>.>
He's had it the whole time, too.
We tried it out yesterday and it works brilliantly, if coming out a little bit messy, but that's not really an issue. So now we have a nice, easy, cheap and definite way to make a bucket load of jumps- we just have to figure out how to make the bases and ta-da! Emma will be content.
I got my fencing supplies and, because my parents ended up paying eight dollars out of the total for getting my awards at school, it only cost my about eighty five bucks. Super bargain and made me breath a bit easier about my cash limits. We'll hpefully be able to, at least, make a head start on putting it up next weekend since they're out again this weekend and I'm so ridiculously excited about finally making a move on it all.
Up until yesterday evening, just before I went to sleep, I had forgotten about the stupid three dog permit. I had a rant to my mum this morning and she, like my dad, just told me to not even bother registering the new puppy; if we, for some strange reason, got an inspection and pigs started flying, we'll just all lie through our teeth and/or hide the dog. My upbringing is full of deeply installed morals and respect for "authority".
:D
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Too Many Options
I've been putting together a list of things I need to get before the little pup comes home and, my word, it's frightening how expensive it's going to be. I keep making things worse for myself, adding on extra things that I think, "Hey... That'd be handy... Wonder if I can find it online..."
And then of course I do and I can't stop thinking about how useful it'd be. And it gets added to the list.
My two books should, hopefully, be arriving if not by the end of this week then sometime next week. I've got- and am loving- my FURminator. So now I've got this nice long list of various things and I'm trying to prioritise what's so important it needs to be bought before we collect the little fluff bum and what can wait until my bank account total has a little more numbers strung together. My issue isn't that I can't afford everything it's that I'm going to have a whole pile of cash coming out within a very short period of time and there isn't going to be a whole pile left. Not only do I have to pay for the actual pup but also, more or less as soon as we get home, there'll be a vet visit for a check up and vaccination, then another vet visit a couple of weeks later. Along with food, since the puppy has to eat. And that's going to easily all add up to over a thousand bucks. Easily.
I may end up taking a short loan off my parents again just until I get some more pay checks.
But the point of this was I was lurking through Sheltie Nation and came across the crate section. People kept mentioning x pens and of course I had to go have a squiz. Now I'm set on getting one because of how super handy it'll be, having a bigger area that the pup can play in and still be contained without having to pop her in the crate. I'm definite on having her spend time bonding with just me, bonding with Charlie and Jack, and learning to entertain herself. I can also use it outside, when I want her with me but not crated and not underfoot when I'm working Charlie. The only issue, apart from working it into the budget, is our house is small and, even though I have the biggest room in the house, I'm going to have to be doing yoga every time I want to walk around where I'm planning on setting her up.
I spy yet another room revamp on the horizon. My dad's going to kill me.
And then of course I do and I can't stop thinking about how useful it'd be. And it gets added to the list.
My two books should, hopefully, be arriving if not by the end of this week then sometime next week. I've got- and am loving- my FURminator. So now I've got this nice long list of various things and I'm trying to prioritise what's so important it needs to be bought before we collect the little fluff bum and what can wait until my bank account total has a little more numbers strung together. My issue isn't that I can't afford everything it's that I'm going to have a whole pile of cash coming out within a very short period of time and there isn't going to be a whole pile left. Not only do I have to pay for the actual pup but also, more or less as soon as we get home, there'll be a vet visit for a check up and vaccination, then another vet visit a couple of weeks later. Along with food, since the puppy has to eat. And that's going to easily all add up to over a thousand bucks. Easily.
I may end up taking a short loan off my parents again just until I get some more pay checks.
But the point of this was I was lurking through Sheltie Nation and came across the crate section. People kept mentioning x pens and of course I had to go have a squiz. Now I'm set on getting one because of how super handy it'll be, having a bigger area that the pup can play in and still be contained without having to pop her in the crate. I'm definite on having her spend time bonding with just me, bonding with Charlie and Jack, and learning to entertain herself. I can also use it outside, when I want her with me but not crated and not underfoot when I'm working Charlie. The only issue, apart from working it into the budget, is our house is small and, even though I have the biggest room in the house, I'm going to have to be doing yoga every time I want to walk around where I'm planning on setting her up.
I spy yet another room revamp on the horizon. My dad's going to kill me.
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Coooooones
We have proper little training cone do das. My mum bought them in a pack of four from Big W last Thursday and I've been working with getting Charlie to nose target one when asked to "touch". It's in prep for the running contact work we were going to do at training on Monday, but the weather was out to get us again and brought out the whole stupid "Let's storm NOOOOOOW" attitude it's been doing of late.
So it was cancelled. Grr.
Fingers crossed the rest of the week stays dry and we can go Friday evening. It sucks not having any equipment at home, but hopefully I'll be addressing that issue over the Christmas holidays.
Charlie's doing awesome with the cone work, though, and I'm getting good distance and speed from him now I've stopped with the clicker and treats and switched him over to a verbal marker word and his tiger tug as a reward. I don't know whether it's because I worked him for nearly a year without the clicker or just him being quirky as per usual, but he's a bit funny like that: I can use the clicker and treats with a fair amount of success to start a behaviour off, but once he's progressed a bit I more or less have to change tactics completely to finish off training or he's so sluggish and dull the whole thing is just boring for both of us.
Complicated doggy he is.
So it was cancelled. Grr.
Fingers crossed the rest of the week stays dry and we can go Friday evening. It sucks not having any equipment at home, but hopefully I'll be addressing that issue over the Christmas holidays.
Charlie's doing awesome with the cone work, though, and I'm getting good distance and speed from him now I've stopped with the clicker and treats and switched him over to a verbal marker word and his tiger tug as a reward. I don't know whether it's because I worked him for nearly a year without the clicker or just him being quirky as per usual, but he's a bit funny like that: I can use the clicker and treats with a fair amount of success to start a behaviour off, but once he's progressed a bit I more or less have to change tactics completely to finish off training or he's so sluggish and dull the whole thing is just boring for both of us.
Complicated doggy he is.
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Puppy Breaths!
The litter was born via c-section this morning consisting of a single, hefty (300 gram) bitch.
I'm about to burst with excitement. Photos will be following when I get some sent through from the breeder.
She is exactly three years and two weeks younger than Charlie ♥
I'm about to burst with excitement. Photos will be following when I get some sent through from the breeder.
She is exactly three years and two weeks younger than Charlie ♥
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Fuuuuuur
Yes, my awesome grooming tool arrived.
Yes, I made poor Charlie deal with me plonking him on the table and giving it a test drive.
Yes, I did "ooooooh" when I started to get nice big fluffies out of his coat.
It doesn't work miracles on him, like I expected, but it does get quite a bit of the undercoat out. Charlie's got a strange mixture of fur, some of it like human hair and really long and coarse, other bits are dense and puppy fluff, and then there's a whole pile in between so he's not an easy dog to brush with just one tool. I mixed it up with the FURminator and his crappy comb and did a pretty good job if I do say so myself. He also loves it, which I'm very happy about. The slicker is his worst enemy and he fidgets like mad when I try to go over him with it, but I managed to get him to lie down on his side while I line brushed with the FURminator and the little precious went to sleep.
I've also decided that the table on the veranda will not do as a grooming table and I'm going to make my own. Scary stuff, all my DIY projects on the to-do list. I think if I get a metal folding table that's nice and sturdy I can stick some pyramid matting on it for the dogs to grip and that way it can double as a washing table, too; my back is very happy about these plans.
Yes, I made poor Charlie deal with me plonking him on the table and giving it a test drive.
Yes, I did "ooooooh" when I started to get nice big fluffies out of his coat.
It doesn't work miracles on him, like I expected, but it does get quite a bit of the undercoat out. Charlie's got a strange mixture of fur, some of it like human hair and really long and coarse, other bits are dense and puppy fluff, and then there's a whole pile in between so he's not an easy dog to brush with just one tool. I mixed it up with the FURminator and his crappy comb and did a pretty good job if I do say so myself. He also loves it, which I'm very happy about. The slicker is his worst enemy and he fidgets like mad when I try to go over him with it, but I managed to get him to lie down on his side while I line brushed with the FURminator and the little precious went to sleep.
I've also decided that the table on the veranda will not do as a grooming table and I'm going to make my own. Scary stuff, all my DIY projects on the to-do list. I think if I get a metal folding table that's nice and sturdy I can stick some pyramid matting on it for the dogs to grip and that way it can double as a washing table, too; my back is very happy about these plans.
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Adventures In Metal
For the past few months, every now and then I'll pick up a bit of pipe, take it to my dad and wave it in his face chanting "jumps, jumps, jumps" until he gets up to help me with yet another prototype.
None have worked. Something about my dad being a perfectionist and the pipe being round and the jump cups not sticking...
Whatever.
The point is we're now looking at making some metal ones- the uprights, that is, with the bar a bit of the aforementioned pipe. Dad's a self taught welder so it should be interesting; once my fence is finished and he's recooped from the stress of it all, we'll be looking into getting started on some of my agility equipment. I'm hoping I can track down- or have dad "borrow" some from work- bits of metal to make the jumps out of that aren't going to break my bank account further than it already has been. He's also had a "brilliant idea" on how to make my proper set of weave poles with a metal base and pipe poles. He kind of had a heart attack when I requested a set of twelve, and the relief was evident when I reconsidered the future use of the weave poles and changed to two sets of three- handy for teaching channel weaves.
I've also located some rather conveniently shaped bits of metal under the boat that could be used as a starting base for either a dog walk or, with a bit of hacking, seesaw. I've got to get my creative hat on, my dad motivated, and some spare cash to devote to building it all.
And I've tracked down some pretty reasonably priced star pickets from the local farm supply store. $4.60 for a five foot picket- seven of those to add onto the five ones we found in the back garden along with the roll of dog wire should bring the basic fence to a fairly low total cost of just over $160. Not including the gate, but I'm sure dad can just knock one up with bits and pieces laying around here- and we're going to dismantle the Fence to Nowhere, the old bird house feeding thing that is never used and the weird log do-da that dad made ages ago to get the corner posts. With the left over concrete from cementing my cockatiel aviary, that's cutting back some costs as well.
It's all falling into place, but my puppy still hasn't been born yet; the breeder has said she'll email me as soon as there's any news, and today is day sixty three of the bitch's pregnancy, so surely I must hear something soon. Tension... It's killing me slowly.
None have worked. Something about my dad being a perfectionist and the pipe being round and the jump cups not sticking...
Whatever.
The point is we're now looking at making some metal ones- the uprights, that is, with the bar a bit of the aforementioned pipe. Dad's a self taught welder so it should be interesting; once my fence is finished and he's recooped from the stress of it all, we'll be looking into getting started on some of my agility equipment. I'm hoping I can track down- or have dad "borrow" some from work- bits of metal to make the jumps out of that aren't going to break my bank account further than it already has been. He's also had a "brilliant idea" on how to make my proper set of weave poles with a metal base and pipe poles. He kind of had a heart attack when I requested a set of twelve, and the relief was evident when I reconsidered the future use of the weave poles and changed to two sets of three- handy for teaching channel weaves.
I've also located some rather conveniently shaped bits of metal under the boat that could be used as a starting base for either a dog walk or, with a bit of hacking, seesaw. I've got to get my creative hat on, my dad motivated, and some spare cash to devote to building it all.
And I've tracked down some pretty reasonably priced star pickets from the local farm supply store. $4.60 for a five foot picket- seven of those to add onto the five ones we found in the back garden along with the roll of dog wire should bring the basic fence to a fairly low total cost of just over $160. Not including the gate, but I'm sure dad can just knock one up with bits and pieces laying around here- and we're going to dismantle the Fence to Nowhere, the old bird house feeding thing that is never used and the weird log do-da that dad made ages ago to get the corner posts. With the left over concrete from cementing my cockatiel aviary, that's cutting back some costs as well.
It's all falling into place, but my puppy still hasn't been born yet; the breeder has said she'll email me as soon as there's any news, and today is day sixty three of the bitch's pregnancy, so surely I must hear something soon. Tension... It's killing me slowly.
Monday, October 18, 2010
Waaaay Too Much Time
I was given permission to get a puppy and two months later we visited the AWL and adopted Charlie. It was all very instant, with little time to really prep in the same way I'm prepping for my sheltie since I had no idea what sort of dogs were going to be available the day we went, what dog I was going to adopt, what gender I was going to end up with- I was hoping for a bitch, ended up with a dog, though- and there was a whole less of the anxious anticipation I'm getting now; there was also less time for me to ponder over names.
Charlie was called Crunchie- the litter he was in were all named after chocolates: Picnic, Snickers, etc, etc- and he was renamed on the way home in the car. It was either that or Harry, since he had that sort of look about him.
My puppy still hasn't been born yet, though it should be within the next day or two at the latest, and even though I'm still not one hundred per cent sure that I am getting a bitch, I'm left with a whole lot more time to kill and knowledge about what my future dog is going to be which means I'm going through dozens and dozens of possible names.
I'm big on finding a name that fits the dog, not me just flinging a name I love at it, so I've got a short list drawn up that I'll hopefully be able to pick a perfect name off:
Female
Lyric;
Myah;
Mia;
Flo; and
Willow
Male (just in case)
Fletcher;
Jif; and
Zeke
So now I've just got wait oh so patiently until the pups are born and keep my fingers crossed that one of those names fits my new fur baby. And if none of them do, it'll be back to the drawing board and I'll try not to think about how much time I've wasted pondering over these :P
Charlie was called Crunchie- the litter he was in were all named after chocolates: Picnic, Snickers, etc, etc- and he was renamed on the way home in the car. It was either that or Harry, since he had that sort of look about him.
My puppy still hasn't been born yet, though it should be within the next day or two at the latest, and even though I'm still not one hundred per cent sure that I am getting a bitch, I'm left with a whole lot more time to kill and knowledge about what my future dog is going to be which means I'm going through dozens and dozens of possible names.
I'm big on finding a name that fits the dog, not me just flinging a name I love at it, so I've got a short list drawn up that I'll hopefully be able to pick a perfect name off:
Female
Lyric;
Myah;
Mia;
Flo; and
Willow
Male (just in case)
Fletcher;
Jif; and
Zeke
So now I've just got wait oh so patiently until the pups are born and keep my fingers crossed that one of those names fits my new fur baby. And if none of them do, it'll be back to the drawing board and I'll try not to think about how much time I've wasted pondering over these :P
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Awaiting The Arrival Of... The FURMINATOR!
I came across a couple of reviews and mentions of the FURminator, particularly in relation to long haired double coated breeds- hello little shelties of the world- and curiosity got the better of me: this was also just after my mum had melted into a pile of emotional goo about the "huge amount of dog hair all over the floor", so when said reviews and mentions included "reduces shedding" I figured if it'd help get my mum off my back and the hair on the dog instead of the floor all the better.
Then I saw the price tag and I just about died.
Eighty plus bucks for a brush. A brush.
It'd have to do something amazing- more amazing than strip a poodle worth of fur out of a dog- for me to fork out that much cash; I don't mind spending oodles on my pets, but keeping in mind I've got a nine hundred dollar dog to buy, another crate, maybe a flight for the puppy depending on what happens with driving down and whatnot, food, a spey, vaccinations, multiple collars and leads (because I have bad leash karma and they will be chewed within five seconds of first using them), fencing and star pickets- for a start- along with keeping the rest of my pets well looked after on my rather modest pay means I have to be realistic. And eighty bucks for a single brush just isn't so.
Of course I ran to eBay in a mad panic, hoping to maybe come across a secondhand one I could snatch up for a fraction of the cost and found dozens of the damn things for no more than $16, new, still in the packets, with free postage and handling. I've ordered a medium one and I should have it by the end of the week at the very latest. Although it apparently isn't as effective on shorter coated breeds, I'm going to subject poor Charlie to my first fumbling attempts at line brushing once it comes and see what it does. I won't have to use it on the sheltie until she's older and got her full coat in, but practice makes perfect and it ain't ever hurt anyone- though Charlie may object to that.
I've also got my fingers crossed that my first ever international order- Sheltie Talk (the breed bible and a book all scared newbie sheltie parents need to have) and the Illustrated Guide to Sheltie Grooming (since I am such a bumbling fool when it comes to the more intricate art form of grooming long coats)- arrives safely sometime in the near future; I had to order from Alpine Publishers in America since both books apparently don't exist in Australia. How handy. Both books are quite cheap but the postage is nearly $30 which boosted it up quite a lot.
My poor, poor bank account. It's had a couple of hefty sugeries of late and it seems that just when it starts to recover I'm back in there with scrubs and a scalpel.
Then I saw the price tag and I just about died.
Eighty plus bucks for a brush. A brush.
It'd have to do something amazing- more amazing than strip a poodle worth of fur out of a dog- for me to fork out that much cash; I don't mind spending oodles on my pets, but keeping in mind I've got a nine hundred dollar dog to buy, another crate, maybe a flight for the puppy depending on what happens with driving down and whatnot, food, a spey, vaccinations, multiple collars and leads (because I have bad leash karma and they will be chewed within five seconds of first using them), fencing and star pickets- for a start- along with keeping the rest of my pets well looked after on my rather modest pay means I have to be realistic. And eighty bucks for a single brush just isn't so.
Of course I ran to eBay in a mad panic, hoping to maybe come across a secondhand one I could snatch up for a fraction of the cost and found dozens of the damn things for no more than $16, new, still in the packets, with free postage and handling. I've ordered a medium one and I should have it by the end of the week at the very latest. Although it apparently isn't as effective on shorter coated breeds, I'm going to subject poor Charlie to my first fumbling attempts at line brushing once it comes and see what it does. I won't have to use it on the sheltie until she's older and got her full coat in, but practice makes perfect and it ain't ever hurt anyone- though Charlie may object to that.
I've also got my fingers crossed that my first ever international order- Sheltie Talk (the breed bible and a book all scared newbie sheltie parents need to have) and the Illustrated Guide to Sheltie Grooming (since I am such a bumbling fool when it comes to the more intricate art form of grooming long coats)- arrives safely sometime in the near future; I had to order from Alpine Publishers in America since both books apparently don't exist in Australia. How handy. Both books are quite cheap but the postage is nearly $30 which boosted it up quite a lot.
My poor, poor bank account. It's had a couple of hefty sugeries of late and it seems that just when it starts to recover I'm back in there with scrubs and a scalpel.
Thursday, October 14, 2010
This Is Just Classic XD
So of course I have to share ^ . ^
WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
(Dog Trainer Version)
Author: Unknown
Pavlov: we fed the chicken on the opposite side of the road each day at 4p.m. until the chicken’s autonomic system actually began causing the chicken to cross the road at 4 p.m. without even questioning the “why.”
B.F. Skinner: on prior occasions when the chicken voluntarily crossed the road, this behavior was followed immediately by a reinforcing consequence.
Cesar Milan: I bullied, chased, poked, and intimidated the chicken until it raced across the road, because I am a strong leader.
Barbara Woodhouse: You just say, “Walkies” with the right accent and place a crumpet on the other side of the road.
Karen Pryor: by associating R+ with road crossing and P+ withstanding still, with a VR schedule, and offering a reward in keeping with the Premack principle, we increased the intensity and frequency of the road crossing behavior.
Bill Koehler: a few well-timed pops on the choke chain and the chicken was cheerfully to crossing the road.
Nicholas Dodman: I gave the chicken fluoxetine, sertraline, paroxetine, carbamazepine, and azapirone and then it was happy to cross the road.
Patti Ruzzo: I crossed the road, pausing every step to spit a treat out of my mouth like a human pez dispenser and the chicken followed along catching the treats.
Electric Collar Advocate: whenever the chicken does not cross the road I give it an electric shock. But do not worry, the shock is no more than you would feel if you walked on a carpet wearing socks and it does not bother the chicken at all. The feathers standing up and the smell of burning flesh mean nothing. In fact, they are happier having nice clear communication than they would be otherwise.
Yuppie: chickens are just like little people in feather jackets, and if you love them and give them diamonds and feel sorry for them all the time, they will be happy to cross the road for you.
Paris Hilton: Because I put it in a Gucci bag and carried it.
Shelter director: Any chickens that do not cross the road will be euthanized for their own good, and the others we will ‘adopt’ out tomorrow for only $200 each. Please send us money so we can keep doing more of this important work!
HSUS member: I do not know anything about animals, I have never been around animals and am not really fond of animals, but we passed a law mandating that chickens be kept without cages because animals belong only in the wild and cannot be happy coexisting with man, so now they are walking wherever they want.
PETA member: chickens have the right to live in world without roads. Any chicken that lives within a hundred miles of a road is suffering an inhumane existence and might eventually be hit by a car so we should kill it today to ensure that it does not die tomorrow.
WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
(Dog Trainer Version)
Author: Unknown
Pavlov: we fed the chicken on the opposite side of the road each day at 4p.m. until the chicken’s autonomic system actually began causing the chicken to cross the road at 4 p.m. without even questioning the “why.”
B.F. Skinner: on prior occasions when the chicken voluntarily crossed the road, this behavior was followed immediately by a reinforcing consequence.
Cesar Milan: I bullied, chased, poked, and intimidated the chicken until it raced across the road, because I am a strong leader.
Barbara Woodhouse: You just say, “Walkies” with the right accent and place a crumpet on the other side of the road.
Karen Pryor: by associating R+ with road crossing and P+ withstanding still, with a VR schedule, and offering a reward in keeping with the Premack principle, we increased the intensity and frequency of the road crossing behavior.
Bill Koehler: a few well-timed pops on the choke chain and the chicken was cheerfully to crossing the road.
Nicholas Dodman: I gave the chicken fluoxetine, sertraline, paroxetine, carbamazepine, and azapirone and then it was happy to cross the road.
Patti Ruzzo: I crossed the road, pausing every step to spit a treat out of my mouth like a human pez dispenser and the chicken followed along catching the treats.
Electric Collar Advocate: whenever the chicken does not cross the road I give it an electric shock. But do not worry, the shock is no more than you would feel if you walked on a carpet wearing socks and it does not bother the chicken at all. The feathers standing up and the smell of burning flesh mean nothing. In fact, they are happier having nice clear communication than they would be otherwise.
Yuppie: chickens are just like little people in feather jackets, and if you love them and give them diamonds and feel sorry for them all the time, they will be happy to cross the road for you.
Paris Hilton: Because I put it in a Gucci bag and carried it.
Shelter director: Any chickens that do not cross the road will be euthanized for their own good, and the others we will ‘adopt’ out tomorrow for only $200 each. Please send us money so we can keep doing more of this important work!
HSUS member: I do not know anything about animals, I have never been around animals and am not really fond of animals, but we passed a law mandating that chickens be kept without cages because animals belong only in the wild and cannot be happy coexisting with man, so now they are walking wherever they want.
PETA member: chickens have the right to live in world without roads. Any chicken that lives within a hundred miles of a road is suffering an inhumane existence and might eventually be hit by a car so we should kill it today to ensure that it does not die tomorrow.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Yet Another Puppy Update
I emailed the breeder aaaaaaaaand...
The bitch is due from Saturday :D Which means, all going well, my sheltie could be joining my furry family in early December.
I'm emailing the breeder again on Sunday for an update and keeping my fingers crossed so tightly I'm in danger of cutting off the circulation.
Two months will feel like forever but I know it's going to fly by so quickly I'll be scampering around like a lunatic to get everything organised O.O
The bitch is due from Saturday :D Which means, all going well, my sheltie could be joining my furry family in early December.
I'm emailing the breeder again on Sunday for an update and keeping my fingers crossed so tightly I'm in danger of cutting off the circulation.
Two months will feel like forever but I know it's going to fly by so quickly I'll be scampering around like a lunatic to get everything organised O.O
Friday, October 8, 2010
Charlie And Jack Bob For Chunkers
From the other day; it was warm, I had a bucket, some water and some Chunkers that needed to be used.
This happened.
This happened.
How Time Does Fly...
Yesterday- 7th October- was Charlie's third birthday and I can't believe how quickly the time's gone! On December the twelfth I'll have owned him for three years, too. It's both mind boggling and uplifting to look back over all those months, remember where we used to be- with the fear aggression and lack of focus and bolting and yadi yada- and where we are now. He can be the most infuriating, frustrating dog to work with, but he is a whole lot of fun.
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Puppy Update
Not very new, but because I'm slack I'm only posting now.
After an exhausting search involving a seriously unpleasant experience with a rather suspicious breeder and some major disappointments, I do believe I have found a breeder- and a backup breeder should the need arise.
I was all set to go with a Scotsdream puppy, due end of October, but the breeder emailed me with the news that the bitch wasn't actually pregnant. I'd kind of fallen just a tiny bit in love with this breeder and her dogs, so it was a real shame. She said she'd be more than happy to put me on a reservation list for a litter planned for early next year, but with the puppies not being ready to go until the end of June/beginning of July, it was really pushing my ideal time frame.
So I headed back to another breeder, Hillswick, I'd emailed who left her phone number for me to call for a chat. Technical difficulties aplenty, but I finally managed to speak to her and got a really good vibe about the whole thing. And she has puppies due end of October, which will be ready to go end of December/early January; perfect timing. She's all the way down in Orange- a twenty four to twenty six hour round trip by car- so if I am able to get a suitable puppy from her I'll either have it flown up to collect at the airport, or convince my dad that taking a weekend road trip would be just dandy; it would mean I could scrape together a whole more hours for my learner's, anyway.
Very exciting stuff, and I can't wait until the puppies are born so I know exactly what's happening and when.
After an exhausting search involving a seriously unpleasant experience with a rather suspicious breeder and some major disappointments, I do believe I have found a breeder- and a backup breeder should the need arise.
I was all set to go with a Scotsdream puppy, due end of October, but the breeder emailed me with the news that the bitch wasn't actually pregnant. I'd kind of fallen just a tiny bit in love with this breeder and her dogs, so it was a real shame. She said she'd be more than happy to put me on a reservation list for a litter planned for early next year, but with the puppies not being ready to go until the end of June/beginning of July, it was really pushing my ideal time frame.
So I headed back to another breeder, Hillswick, I'd emailed who left her phone number for me to call for a chat. Technical difficulties aplenty, but I finally managed to speak to her and got a really good vibe about the whole thing. And she has puppies due end of October, which will be ready to go end of December/early January; perfect timing. She's all the way down in Orange- a twenty four to twenty six hour round trip by car- so if I am able to get a suitable puppy from her I'll either have it flown up to collect at the airport, or convince my dad that taking a weekend road trip would be just dandy; it would mean I could scrape together a whole more hours for my learner's, anyway.
Very exciting stuff, and I can't wait until the puppies are born so I know exactly what's happening and when.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Just A Few Tricks
I've triumphed over technology and ended up with not a bad little trick video, if I do say so myself :)
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
What A Little Sook
We went to our usual Monday evening agility class last night and, since my instructor's dogs were all broken or being unco-operative, she was just setting courses for us. For the last run, we gave her all of our own dogs to run, one after the other. The other worked well for her, then came Charlie, who apparently is a bit of a mummy's boy and doesn't like running or working with anyone but me. I feel so loved.
Though his lack of enthusiasm for the whole thing could also have been contributed to by the bag full of treats he'd snaffled while my back was turned >.>
Though his lack of enthusiasm for the whole thing could also have been contributed to by the bag full of treats he'd snaffled while my back was turned >.>
Thursday, August 19, 2010
The Real Stars...
This is Charlie. He's a kelpie cross border collie that I adopted from the AWL on the twelfth of December 2007 when he was just nine weeks old. Along with his nine brothers and sisters, he'd been dropped off there the week before I brought him home. The exact two breeds I'd been looking for combined into an irrestible bundle of chocolate and white fluff, I couldn't resist him.
We went through the usual puppy trials and tribulations- I slept on the couch for six weeks because, with no crate and a loft bunk in the same room as my brothers, doing anything else wouldn't have a practical way to potty train. No crate also meant he was tied to my bed on a lead, which he proceeded to chew through almost every night. I must have gone through a hundred bucks just on leads in his first year.
But we got through it and he started at puppy preschool a bit later than I anticipated because of dog training club having a break over Christmas and then a string of wet weather days that resulted in training sessions being cancelled. It was during these first classes that I realise Charlie had serious issues with fear aggression, to the point of full on attacking other dogs when he was on lead. Off lead he turned into this crying mess that would hide behind my legs. It took nearly eighteen months, but we got to a good point where he almost looks forward to greeting other dogs- so long as they're not German shepherds.
We've explored different training techniques through our forays into obedience, rally obedience, tricks and agility, and we've both decided that the clicker is our favourite. So we use that for pretty much everything behaviour related. Charlie's been through obedience and rally obedience classes of varying levels since graduating from puppy preschool, and started foundation agility training at six months, which was basically just tunnels and flat work, but all still very important.
We started trialling in agility and jumpers in the middle of 2009 with the CCCQ. Charlie, being a mixed breed, is on the Associate Register. We got our first title- JD -in July 2010, and need just one more qualie to get JDO after his name.
I absolutely love Charlie, even though he can be a complete pain to work sometimes and has annoying little quirks that tick me off. He's a blast to run and when he's switched on he's a dream to train. We have a lot of fun together and I'm looking forward to seeing what the future years have in store for us.
__________________________________________
I will also be getting my first purebred dog from a breeder hopefully within the next six to twelve months. After so much research and decision making I thought my head might explode all over my desk, I've decided on a shetland sheepdog. I will be doing much the same with my new pup as I have done and continue to do with Charlie- obedience, agility, tricks- and may, depending on the dog, get into canine freestyle as well and start trialling in obedience or rally obedience. I would also like to do herding and flyball with both dogs later on down the track.
More information on my future pup will be posted whenever I have it as well as her own introduction section when I get her. I'm so ridiculously excited XD
More information on my future pup will be posted whenever I have it as well as her own introduction section when I get her. I'm so ridiculously excited XD
First Things First
A bit of an introduction, just to get the ball rolling.
My name's Emma; I'm a seventeen year old Australian from the mostly sunny state of Queensland. I got involved with dog training in early 2007 with my family's older staffy mix, Jack, and by December of that year I was the proud owner of my first dog, Charlie; pup number two should, hopefully, be coming sometime within the next year. Agility trialing has been a passion and past time of mine since mid 2009. In addition to dog training and trialing, I enjoy taking photos of animals and landscapes and writing whatever new idea has popped into my head.
This blog will be solely for the purpose of rambling on about all things related to my dogs- be that agility, tricks, my puppy quest, outings, whatever- and extra dog related points of interest.
And I think I'm actually going to be disciplined enough to keep it up to date this time.
My name's Emma; I'm a seventeen year old Australian from the mostly sunny state of Queensland. I got involved with dog training in early 2007 with my family's older staffy mix, Jack, and by December of that year I was the proud owner of my first dog, Charlie; pup number two should, hopefully, be coming sometime within the next year. Agility trialing has been a passion and past time of mine since mid 2009. In addition to dog training and trialing, I enjoy taking photos of animals and landscapes and writing whatever new idea has popped into my head.
This blog will be solely for the purpose of rambling on about all things related to my dogs- be that agility, tricks, my puppy quest, outings, whatever- and extra dog related points of interest.
And I think I'm actually going to be disciplined enough to keep it up to date this time.
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