Goodies And Contacts

My bag of goodies came yesterday :)

Behold the awesomeness:

I'm particularly eager to watch the contacts DVD, because it's so lovely and relevant.

Speaking of contacts (hello accidental segue), I'm having a small crisis. I love Charlie's 2o2o- I really do. I get ridiculously excited and proud of it. Maybe my enthusiasm regarding all things contacts has to do with the fact that I've finally got them with Charlie, or maybe I'm just a bit strange, but I've started obsessing just a touch.

Our re-debut in novice agility is just under five weeks away, and while I was just going to go out there with what we have at the moment to test it under trial conditions, I'm starting to get the urge fiddle. And I may end up seriously regretting this and have to go and fix the mess I might make, but I can't help it.

Last night at training I tried to change the contact criteria slightly to get rid of Charlie's bad habit of accidental double touching- he literally runs to the end of the contact zone and just stops in 2o2o, which of course makes his back end pop up and drop back down. And that right there is a double touch and we'll be DQ'ed for it automatically if the judge notices. The judge noticing is quite likely since some of the time Charlie nearly handstands he's stopped so suddenly. I'm also a bit cringing and worried about the slamming with his shoulders, especially since they don't seem so structurally sound to begin with.

So the plan is to ignore the double touching for the moment, just until we get past our AD run at Logan, then I'll re-assess and go from there depending on how he does. I'm going to look at getting him to target less with just his feet and more with his rear end to try and get the rock back so he takes more pressure off his shoulders and see what sort of progress we make with that.

And a quick Zeke update. The thing I love most about this dog at the moment (apart from how he always manages to make me laugh hysterically, even if he's doing something evil like herding my feet and eating my toes) is his ability to know when he's working and needs to be switched on. He's always going; he doesn't stop unless he's confined to a crate or ex pen- and even then he'll try really hard to convince me he's got energy left and needs to run about some more. But if I need him for something, and if I'm training him, the spastic, crazy puppy with no self control dissolves into this mature, focused dog that is going to give me a hundred and ten per cent. He just surprises me- and it's a pleasant surprise, but he's just so far away from Charlie in every single way that I'm kind of in the "This is just too good to be true; it has to have a catch soon" stage. Which I don't think it does, actually. I think I've gotten really lucky with a really good dog that, while he's challenging and a real handful, is just an absolute dream to own and train.

I've been doing so much reading on training techniques and exercises and whatnot (looots of Susan Garrett especially), and while they're predominately for using with Zeke it's given me quite a bit of food for thought as well- and I've realised maybe I could actually put what I'm learning and trying out into practice with other people's dogs, not just my own. I've always been so nervous about running/training other people's dogs because I'm paranoid about breaking them or stuffing them up or not being able to control them or do what I set out to do. But running a couple of my friends' dogs at training the past couple of weeks has made that fade quite a bit, and I'm feeling more confident and capable. And I'm starting to think about maybe looking at dog training as a more serious (or as serious as I could possibly be about something) job option. I don't even want to think about touching behaviour modification at the moment, or going anywhere near behaviour modification, because I'm not in any shape or form even close to beginning to be capable and experienced in that area, but basic training stuff I think I could be able to do.

I get quite a few "You're doing so well with your dogs, Emma" comments, which I get a bit fidgety about because I'm cynical and have issues accepting praise- and I like to pick holes in things and be overly critical, especially when it comes to myself- and although I know for a fact that I've got two awesome dogs that make even my huge mistakes with them look brilliant, maybe I'm really not as shoddy a trainer as I think I am.

I'm not big on the planning so I'm just going to see where things take me, but it's starting to look more and more like something I'd really want to consider doing- even if it was just in conjunction with something else. No harm in giving it a go, right?

Final note, just to officially make this post a Ramblin' one: as I'm now officially bird free (save for the three fuzzy, half feathered ones in the fish tank) I don't have a chaotic morning filled with stress and lack of time and fifty kilograms of fruit and veg to chop up, so finally the morning walks will be starting. Charlie only at first since Zeke's a) too little and b) a fruit bar, but we'll both be doing an hour walk, five days a week at least. Combining that with swimming in the river once or twice a day once it starts to warm up again, plus a trip or two to the Spit once a week, and I'll actually have a fit, conditioned dog. Operation "Get Charlie Under Twenty Kilos" shall commence very shortly. Watch this space.

RDOC Trial 28th August 2011

La Di Da

Trial on Sunday!

I'm excited :D

I'll definitely have a video- and a decent quality one at that- thanks to my lovely DSLR camera, so long as dad doesn't mess up the technology. I'm hoping it doesn't rain because it's unpleasant enough running in the wet, especially with a fast dog, but not only that this is the first trial I'm going to where none of my close friends are entered so dad and I can't steal any shelter. I need to think about investing in a little shade tent thingy- they're just so bloody expensive, though.

Zeke's a superstar. I get a more solid lead out with him at twelve weeks old than I do with Charlie. He baffles me, though, because he has such a quick snap to being way too over the top and out of control, yet he has such amazing self control and inhibition with everything else. He does seem to be going through a bit of a fear period at the moment which I've never actually had to really deal with in a puppy before, so it'll be a bit of a new experience for us and I'm crossing my fingers it passes very quickly.

I've been doing some weave work with Charlie, working on independence- especially with finding the entry- and I definitely need to keep at it. I'm itching to get my hands on some proper weave, though; stick-in-the-ground with a moose just doesn't work very well at all.

Oh! I've also got exciting news about my a frame. Dad actually bought home some thick plywood the other day, and he's meant to be finishing work up (for real this time) next Monday so I'm hoping an a frame is somewhere in the very near future.

I'm thinking I might drag my jumps and Charlie and the camera and someone to film to the reserve tomorrow if I get a spare moment.

Finally!

I got through to the chiropractor!

Yay!

It took me a month of missed calls but I have an appointment for Zeke and Charlie to get tweaked at four thirty in two weeks time.

Perfect timing since it's a week before Metro and three days before training on a Monday so Charlie can actually have a proper rest instead of needing to rush back into agility straight after being popped back into place.

And I'm almost completely certain Zeke is at least going to need a small re-tweak since he's a meathead and jumps off things he shouldn't and gets stood on and sat on and is just a general psychopath.

Zeke Training: Twelve Weeks

He's just so fucking cute! :D

I've Realised

...that I really, really, really don't have another Charlie.

Today, two things happened.

It rained constantly. Zeke was a total little arse about being in his crate.

He. Barked. Constantly.

I did his usual playing and training and potty sessions, split up by time in his crate which I've been doing for the past few weeks. He's not the sort of puppy you can just have out if you're not doing something with him directly because he will eat you and all of the things you love. And potatoes. He'll steal all of your potatoes and toss them about the place before hiding them somewhere for you to find at a later date.

I thought I'd cracked the being in the crate means simmer the fuck down and relax last week. But no. Today he was barking and barking and barking without a break in between.

And it didn't occur to me until a half hour ago that the only thing different about today is the weather- and what that weather meant for Zeke's several romps down the river. For the past week or so, ever since he decided that sleep during the day was for wussy babies and he isn't a wussy baby anymore, he's been going down the river anywhere from three to six times a day for a fifteen to forty five minute run about.

And it's a run about. He doesn't stop moving for one single second.

But today, because we would have drowned if we'd gone outside, I skipped that in favour of some more intense play sessions inside.

Obviously this displeases His Highness, and obviously he's not one to break the stereotype of kelpies needing a seventy kilometre run every day, and obviously I've got a dog that is going to need his couple of hours of exercise every single day, without fail, or I'm going to have hell to pay.

Charlie spent the whole day asleep because it was raining and that's what he's more than happy to do in the wet weather.

Zeke spent the whole day punishing my eardrums because it was raining and I neglected to rug up, suit up and brave the gale force winds and downpour to take him for a run.

I'm just bloody glad I didn't get Zeke when I got Fletcher because that was solid rain for a couple of months and I think we'd have all gone insane.

I hope the weather clears up tomorrow, or at the very least clear enough that I don't have to wade to get out the front door so Mr Monkey can have his sprint around and I can have some peace.

Yay!

After a million and one problems I have finally put in my Game On Dogs order.

But, disappointment: the ultra light, ultra cheap long line I ordered orginally has disappeared off the face of the Earth so I had to get a big clunky, double the price lead. Urgh.

But no matter.

Hopefully by the end of this week I'll have my awesomesauce box of goodies: Building Blocks for Performance 2nd Edition, three Clean Run special collector's edition for handling; motivation, drive and self control; and handling, Contacts: Bridging The Gap Between Training and Performance, Puppy Jumping, my long lead and the little lamby tug.

I'm also on the hunt for a couple of tug slip leads.

It's a dangerous thing, me having money in my bank account.

And to finish off, my favourite photo I've ever taken :)

'Cause They're Cute

My dogs got swag.

Ramblin'

Aaaaaaah. Just under six weeks until our re-debut in novice agility.

SO SCARED.

I've put so much time and effort into reworking these bloody contacts and if it all goes to pieces when we trial I'm out of ideas. If we DQ in everything I don't care, I just want the contacts. I'm not even going to care if I don't get a well behaved start- if Charlie gives me contacts, he will be showered with doggy brownies.

I know he can do it consistently, perfectly. I just can't say that'll happen when we put it in a ring.

I have had the absolute crappiest week, most of which was to do with me being sick and the Commonwealth Bank being a dick. So now my order for a whole whack of training stuff has been cancelled and I need to place it again because it took me a week and a half to get to the bank to get my security questions changed so I could transfer the payment.

And then to top it all off, my computer was a total right-off yesterday and while it's been behaving itself so far this morning (touch wood) I don't think that it's the end of my woes.

On the positive side, I did get my replacement SD card in the mail yesterday. Finally. It's only a class four, though, which ticked me off because I thought it was a class ten and I didn't buy one for that very reason. I haven't tested it out yet in regards to filming with the bigger card so I need to do that today. I really do think a little camcorder thing would be a better option, though, for filming.

But anyway. I haven't got any videos of Zeke since he was eight weeks old because of the stupid thing so it might have to do for now.

Speaking of Zeke (I am trying for some coherent thoughts in this mess), he's so much hard work. He's fun, I love him to bits and he's exactly what I asked for, but my God he's intense.

We've been doing a lot of shaping- everything he "knows" has been shaped which I'm very chuffed about; that was one of my goals, hehe- and while he doesn't have a cue to anything really except for sit and drop, the latter he's still in the very learning stages of, he does have a fairly impressive range for an almost twelve week old puppy.

What have we been doing so far... He's been going to a mat; targetting a cone; putting feet on a box and rotating around in line with my front; some very beginnings of focus (in motion and in front); get it; give (still a work in progress and has varying degrees of success depending on whether he's in monkey mode or not); go play; getting in a box; recall work; 2o2o (which isn't proper, it's just something I ended up shaping when he jumped on a box and only got his front feet off); forward focus and drive to toys and food; self control with the crate and ex-pen on exiting which he's super solid at now- I even have to actually touch his collar as well as give a verbal before he'll budge, which I think might be because when I was doing this he was always getting put on lead before coming out.

So he's pretty awesome. And it's only about two and a half weeks until he can have his final puppy vaccine and he can go everywhere. Yaaaaay!

Charlie's been doing some getting in a box work as well. I'm still concerned over his back again, but I haven't managed to get a hold of the chiropractor yet so that's been a bit of a hindrance. He's being such a princess lately so I've been ignoring him in the hopes of snapping him out of it; he's just gone super sensitive and if anyone even so much as breathes in an annoyed way he slinks and does his huge worried eyes. It's driving me crackers. Urgh.

Baby Dog Has Focus!

Awesome photo a friend of mine took of Zeke and I on Sunday at the demo :)

He was supposed to be hopping on his mat, but still: focus! :D

What A Weekend

Busy busy busy.

But awesome.

Zeke first, since he's the youngest :)

What. An. Epic. Puppy. This morning he was a bit less on the ball- delicious duck poo and it was stinking hot for only a quarter past ten in the middle of August. But even still.

Ten and a half weeks old, barely done any sort of "real training" much less trained in the middle of a ring with tonnes of people pressing up against the sides... And he didn't even notice anything but me. I got awesome tugging out of him, he did his mat and his target and his feet on the box despite having only started learning the very beginnings of each a few days ago. He didn't try and run off to say hi to people or to play with Lewis. He was just awesome and I was so surprised and so proud of him. For being a real handful of a dog he has his moments where he just blows me away.

I also did a lot of socialising with Zeke- might as well make the most of an opportunity. It's not everyday you have so many weird and unusual sights and so many people just waiting to introduce a puppy to. I walked him all around the different stalls, he met all these people from babies in prams to seniors, we wandered up through the crazy ride alley of the oval which was full of screaming and running kids and flashing lights and loud noises and sudden movement and he wasn't bothered by anything. Balloons popping right by him: nah, couldn't care less. He had a fair bit of play time with the other dogs in the team as well which was good for him and today he even did his very first tunnel which he loves. After only a few attempts I got it semi curved- and it's a bit, heavy, dark tunnel as well. He rocketed through it- faster than I anticipated, actually, so I was a bit off guard when he launched at the toy- without issue. We did some running to a dead toy as well and God, if I think Charlie's fast to run I think I'm going to get a rude shock once I start Zeke.

Charlie was his usual special self :) He did semi-good heelwork, with moments of wonderfulness and moments where he was just like lalalalalalala. Did all of his stays and his recall at the end like a pro, and he loved his agility runs at the end as per usual. He was only nailing his weave entries if I "helped" him find the entry by checking him slightly to bring his speed back a bit, and even though he absolutely hates these weaves (they're short, and flimsy, and the spacing's off, and he only sees them a half dozen times or so a year at demos) and I don't blame him, I really do need to start addressing his entry independence.

Overall we had an absolutely awesome weekend; it was a lot of fun, I've got two very tired doggies who won't bug me for at least a couple more hours, and I got a very pleasant surprise in the form of a focused Zeke.

Zeke's performance this weekend has made me even more excited about the future with him. I think he's going to shape up to be a really special dog; he has every element he needs to help him do bloody brilliant in pretty much any area, so now it's all up to me to make sure I keep him on the right path and don't stuff him up.

No pressure :P

This Ought To Have A Meaningful Title

Can't think of one, though.

Ah well.

Still waiting for my replacement camera card. So fucking pissed off about the stupid thing. Grr...

But anyway. Zeke's getting another outing into town today, except he'll be sitting with my mum outside of the Marketplace while I run in and have a look for a camera bag and get some photos printed- or rather ordered to be printed. It worries me, but I'm giving her strict instructions and kibble and running as fast as I can around Big W.

My room is slowly taking shape; picking up my new secondhand corner desk tomorrow. I've always wanted a corner desk :D I saw this awesome one on Gumtree for only seventy bucks, pretty good nick, lots of extra storage, and only at Birkdale so dad and I are taking the trailer over before I leave for the fair tomorrow morning. The photos I'm ordering to be printed today are of Charlie, Zeke and Fletcher and will go up in my room as well once dad gets around to helping me put some nails in my walls.

Ormeau Fair tomorrow, and I'm excited and a bit nervous at the same time. Zeke and I are in the "puppy demo" along with Catherine and Lewis, who's a nine month old Cairn terrier and will be doing the more advanced puppy stuff. So far Zeke's started going to a mat, getting on the box, getting in a box, and I'm starting some hand and cone targetting today as well and maybe break out the tippet stick if I get time. We haven't got a finished behaviour, but the beginnings of quite a few, so I just hope it's enough to make Zeke stay focused and actually do them tomorrow. I'm a bit worried because he's so playful and dog focused at the moment and Lewis is going to be out there with us, but I'm not giving Zeke any breakfast and I'll just have to be super fun and upbeat and exciting.

And I need to keep in mind he's ten weeks old and never done this before.

This'll Be Interesting...

The only thing I've worked on with Zeke since I got him is keeping his pointy little fangs to himself (with very little success, I'm not afraid to admit), a bit of offered focus and focus in motion, tugging, the very start of sit, and offering behaviours because it was pissing me off that he'd only throw a sit my way. Now he's a bean and doesn't stop moving :D Win!

I sent a confirmation email back to Maree about the demos and she replied with, "Will your puppy be old enough to do a 'puppy demo'?"

And since he's coming along anyway, I figured why not, may as well give it a shot. It'll basically just be Maree explaining about how we start puppies at the club, with some play and focus, and if anything it'll be an awesome opportunity to at first see how Zeke reacts to that sort of environment (ring with people all around) and an equally awesome opportunity to train and work him in such a distracting place.

And socialisation! Is it sad I'm so fucking excited about being able to socialise my puppy? Ormeau Fair has become like a mini EKKA- there's tonnes of people, loud rides, chaos, noise, running kids... So much to see, so much to do, so much potential to expose Zeke to. Yay!

I swear that puppy has had more socialising work done in the past two weeks than both Fletcher and Charlie had in the first few months I had them. In addition to him going to agility training on Monday nights and puppy preschool on Tuesday nights, once I start Charlie back at Commando he'll come along to that on a Sunday morning, and I'm going to see if I can go along to the puppy preschool class on a Saturday morning as well. And I'm still trying to get him into town at least once a week for an hour or so- but he's just getting so bloody heavy and won't be fully vaccinated for another month, gah- as well as taking him along to trials and in the car. He has his ten week vaccination on Wednesday, then it should be four weeks and then he can have the final booster shot and he'll be set! And then the fun can really begin, because he'll be going to even more places. And we can go to the beach once it warms up, and we can do longer stints in town because I won't have to carry him and get aching arms.

Fun fun fun.

Books And Whatnot

I've decided I don't really know what I'm doing with Zeke- which isn't all that surprising considering that he's only the third puppy I've ever had and the previous two weren't exactly "normal". He's testing everything I thought I knew about raising a dog and I'm a bit lost a lot of the time with where I need to be with him.

Having tried a few different things and got nothing from them, as well as coming to the realisation that my family are ignorant morons (though I've known that for a while, actually) and Zeke is waaaaay too dog focused for my liking, I've ordered Ruff Love off Wag School Books and when it arrives the monkey will be entering into that particular program and we'll see how it goes. I've also got a couple of extra books coming from the same place: The Puppy Primer and Shaping Success because both looked interesting and I'm weak when it comes to resisting books that would be right at home in my little library.

I got an email this morning from Maree with a couple of extra upcoming demos at the end of the year, so I need to do a calendar check; I also need to ask her tomorrow about when the next Commando class is starting, or if it's started already. We've been trialling the past two Sundays, but still. I'll have to write a note on my hand or I'll forget to ask her again- and I may need to write a note to the write the note.

I was going to go dock diving with Charlie this coming Saturday in the afternoon, buuuuut I totally forgot all about the demos at Ormeau for the fair. So dock diving will have to wait. Too many things!

Jimboomba 6th August/Logan 7th August

First time we've ever done two comps across two consecutive days, even though we only had four runs in total which is what we'd usually do at one comp.

It was stinking hot today once the sun came up, but if there's one time Charlie doesn't let the heat bother him, it's when he's running at a trial.

He was bar knocking again both yesterday and today; he's definitely out and I need to give his chiropractor a call tomorrow and make an appointment. I'll take Zeke along as well because it's super duper important he's always in place as he's growing so he forms properly, and he's such a nutcase he's got an even higher chance than Charlie of being out on a regular basis.

But anyway.

The run down.

Jimboomba, 6th August:

Our first run, JDO, was a tricky course, with a huge exclusion zone and quite a few traps. Everyone was walking it with D: expression on their faces, and there weren't many Qs- we were listening for huge cheers as an indicator, because anyone who qualified that run certainly deserved it. Once you were running it, though, it was an awesome course and it flowed really well. Charlie was a super kelpie: he absolutely nailed it all. Lead out (with a tunnel as the first obstacle, too, which surprised me), weave entry and didn't pop, got the distance without even trying, but he knocked a bar in it and we NQ'ed.

Then we had a bit of waiting to do, so I fiddled with my camera, watched some of my friends' runs, and then we had our JDX run. Naughty Charlie. We haven't been running straight after Ranger (crazy arse vizsla owned by a friend of mine) at the past few trials- but this time we were, and if there's one dog that Charlie can't watch run a course without getting worked up it's Ranger. So I didn't get a lead out, which made me in the totally wrong spot for obstacle two and then getting to three, so Charlie took an extra jump and tunnel. Rest of the run wasn't that bad, but the start was bloody awful.

Logan, 7th August:

JDX, our first run, wasn't that fab. No start line stay (which made me nearly cry because I was so sure I must have totally destroyed any chance I had of getting one ever again and I was out of options), a run past the third jump for a refusal, a bar, and then I couldn't get to where I wanted to in order to front cross in time, and he went into the tunnel. I got him out before he'd finished it, but it was too late and we DQ'ed for wrong course. Ah, well.

Second and last run of the day and weekend was JDO. He stayed! That alone made me happy. I think I was a bit too far in for the angle and he blind crossed me after the second jump, but he went into the tunnel anyway; sometimes it's good to have a tunnel suck dog. Did the distance, but knocked another bar, then another bar went down just after he came out of the tunnel for the second time. Missed his weave entry and popped at ten poles; with the new rules in place, if your dog misses some poles and you continue it's merely an NQ, but if you go back to fix them you DQ whereas it used to be the other way around. I wasn't going to let him continue for popping so went back to make him do the last couple he missed and so we got DQ'ed. The last stretch home was a bit messy, but we had good bits in there.

I only got video from Logan since dad (and his phone) gave me a lift up there, so voila! :)

Weeeeeeeeeeee

Trialling tomorrow afternoon/evening at Jimboomba, then again early Sunday morning at Logan. Two JDX runs and two JDO runs across the weekend, and I'm feeling pretty positive about them given how Charlie's been running lately and how we've been working together.

I've also got my new camera to try out, so that's going to be an extra bonus.

I'll be getting a lift to Jimboomba from one of my friends from training (which friend that is remains pending on a certain rottie bitch and whether or not she comes into season), so Zeke's staying at home in order to not complicate matters, but he'll be coming along on Sunday since dad's taking me.

So I'm totally pumped for the weekend :D I think it's going to be a good one.

Herding Dogs Are Kind Of Pathetic

And Even More Socialising

Zeke's starting to feel a bit heavy to lug all around town for an hour, so instead today our socialising adventure had us sitting outside one of the entrances to the Marketplace. It was actually better for people exposure than walking about because oh my goodness, there were so many different people walking past. There were quite a few wheelchairs, a few people using walking canes, lots of prams, bikes, and people ranging from babies up to a few who looked to be in their eighties. He had pats from a half dozen or so different people; some adults, an older lady and a kid who couldn't have been more than four or five. And Zeke got lots of treats for his excellent manners.

We also just sat there, with Zeke on my lap, and I fed him pieces of kibble for calming observing the people walking past and the cars driving around the car park.

I got asked if he was a shepherd puppy again, as well as quite a few people asking me, "Did you just get him from in there?" and gesture to the pet shop windows behind us. Perhaps not a good place to have sat? :P I tried not to sound too repulsed when I answered, "No, definitely not, he's from a breeder".

One of the ladies who stopped to pet him had about as positive an opinion about the pet shop as I did. She asked me in this restrained voice, "Did you buy him from the pet shop?" and when I said no, we're just hanging about for socialisation, she told Zeke, "Oh you lucky puppy, you've got a really good owner". Made me feel warm and fuzzy, hehe. We bonded for a few minutes over the plight of pet shop puppies and Zeke got pats- and he didn't use his teeth, thank heavens.

Overall, I think I'm actually doing okay socialising my dog this time round. It's helping that he's such an outgoing, engaging little guy who wants to be friends with every dog and person he sees. I'm going to keep up the trips into town, but I really can't wait until he's fully vaccinated and has long enough legs to keep up for walking because he's going to be way too big and heavy way too soon to carry about.

Training Tonight

Still feeling like I'm actually clicking with Charlie, so that was awesome :) He did lovely weaves, awesome contacts- though I need to watch him hitting the a frame once and then backing up if he overshoots because that'll get us DQ'ed at a trial. We desperately need an a frame at home to really work on refining his touch, and since I'm going to have a lot of extra cash soonish, it might actually become a reality. Even if I have to actually hire my own dad to build it, it'd be worth it.

Zeke came to training tonight as well and oh my gosh, I was so sure someone had swapped my puppy when I wasn't looking. He was so bloody well behaved. Didn't chew his lead, didn't bark, didn't carry on. He sat there, tied up, without a care in the world. He's got more manners tethered than he does crated. He had lots of meet and greets and he's a very social puppy with other dogs. Nugget's been eating something over the past couple of weeks because I swear he's literally twice as big as he was when I saw him Monday before last. But the size difference didn't bother Zeke even slightly, as you can see:



I love having a dog that wants to interact with other dogs, though now I've said that it'll develop into an obsession I'll have to work to fix... But at the moment, I don't care. He so confident and happy and playful and cheeky. I've got a super painful cut on my palm from Mr Zeke's teeth today, and I could throttle the little shit at least a dozen times a day, but I love him to bits.

Hectic day tomorrow, as will every Tuesday evening for the next few months. I'm at work from two until five thirty, then I have literally five seconds to grab the dogs, my bag and the crates and get in the car so we can head off to puppy preschool at six o'clock. Then Charlie's got demo class from seven thirty until eight thirty. Then it'll be home to sleep :)