What have you been up to ???

Okay Okay …

I know I haven’t updated on the doggy stuff for a while

so here’s a bit on what we’ve been up to …

On the nose ...
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We’ve started to play with a little bit of tracking. Just simple straight line tracks for now and our aim is to get the nose down and heading in the right direction “on track”! Krash and Carrie are having a go at this stage (yes, a Malinois and a Dalmatian - what a combination!) Chilli might even get a play at it a little later on.
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Krash tends to want to run and often overshoots the food on the track, but that’s okay, so long as he’s following the track. To start with, he was a little confused as to where “tracking” started and that the jackpot at the end was the finish … after a couple of goes he had his nose down so I decided to start putting the harness on him at the start of the track and taking it off when he’d finished – it definitely helped. He worked out that once the harness went on it was time to start "doing something". I think he feels a little bit important too, with his brand new harness – a gift to him from friend Marty – Krash says “thanks”!
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Carrie also joined us to try her paw at tracking and, as you know, if there’s food involved, Carrie will do almost anything! She worked out very quickly that following a track would lead to more and more treats! All going well, we will reduce the rewards vert soon and may also be able to add some curves in our tracks next week.
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Thanks to Kath and Lisa (who are also having a go with their GSP’s learning by trial and error just like me) for trudging along with me and hunting down strange places to play at! Also thanks to Justin who has been ever so patient in answering my never-ending questions on "what to do next"!

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Puppy Stuff
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Party has finally decided that bringing her toy back to me to play with is more fun than zooming around the backyard with it all on her own! Yay - finally!!! Our training basically consists of play, and play, and play, and play … we are implementing a few control games now but I'm very careful not to make things too serious ...
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Getting to know a Belgian is quite different to getting to know a border collie (something I can compare to). They are very tactile dogs and their interaction is often very physical – teaching the boundaries of where that physical interaction becomes bad manners is the challenge. Party is also very stimulated by her environment – new things are sooooo exciting. We’ve been doing lots of flatwork, follow me/my hand and tug rewards beside me (thanks Simone!) and sending out/around cones, poles, trees for a game of chasey reward (she loves that) and sending to the tunnel for a tuggy after a lightning-speed exit!
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We will start some target training this week … hmmm, how yet, I am not sure. Free-shaping is not a Belgians favourite method of learning; they much prefer clear instructions of your agenda and then like to add their “twist” to it! So targeting will be an interesting challenge … stay tuned.
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The serious stuff that pays for the fun stuff …
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Work has been hectic, to say the least and I am sure once “Gorgon-itis” ramps up to full speed ahead we are going to be abolutely frantic! I feel like I’ve been around the world and back in the last month, working from locations all over the Perth outer-metro areas, from crawling around under huge mining machinery, accommodation units, barges and aircraft, trucks, busses, cars ... to inspecting bananas and apples ... all destined for Barrow Island!
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Good news ... the detector dogs arrive in about 8 weeks time … I’m really looking forward to starting work with them and doing what I really came here to do! We’re starting out with beagles, for the beginning of 2010, to be followed up with Labradors early next year. This training will be a whole new learning experience for me … will update when I have more ... if you’re really lucky I might even be able to manage some photo’s!

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Other stuff ...

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One good thing about being busy … I’ve be so busy I’ve managed to break my habit of biting my nails! Yay ... don't ask me how but amongst all the manual work I've managed to grow a nice set of nails (no, they are not false!)
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Also, night trials started this weekend and continue now until March next year - yippee!

Party will be going to some more shows soon (she had one today and was very excited to see the judge!)

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The heat of Summer has got us running with the lawn mower and whipper-snipper as everything decides to start growing at a rapid rate, we need to mulch the gardens (eeewww, back breaking stuff!) and the gum leaves are starting to form their little fire-hazard bundles around the block, poisoning the unwelcomed weeds is neverending and the demand of keeping everything watered is just another task to add to Mum's busy day of looking after the block … don’t even mention Christmas!

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Back to the early bird airport shifts for me again next week for another two weeks ... rising at 2am isn't the easiest time of the day to be asking your body clock to adapt to ... on that note, think I'll be off to bed to put some credit in my sleep bank ...

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All photo's on this post are "Party" at approx. 5 months old, taken today Saturday 31st Oct.

One of these kids is doing her own thing!

Check this out ... I took Party down to the show a few weeks ago just for a social outing with Group 1 (Toy Dogs) ... well ... to give you an idea of size, the other dogs are Papillons and Party is 4.5 months old ...

I bet she can't do that when she grows up!

Can't get this song out of my head!

Ever had that, when you can't get a tune out of your head?!

I have just spent the morning slashing the bush next door, and I am sure the ear muffs had this song hiding in there somewhere ...

(click on the picture to hear Kate Miller-Heidke's song "The Last Day on Earth")

Bridges ... reflections on life

This really touched my heart ... so just have to share it with all of you!

Click on the above picture, it will take you to a you tube clip,

click on "full screen" and turn your sound on ...

It's so true.

Friday Night ... in Prison!

Well ... there's a first for everything and I have to say I never expected to spend Friday evening in jail! I just love Fremantle ... and the atmosphere on the weekend evenings is so comfortable, enough to give you that "let's party" feeling ... let all your worries go, join the party goers and enjoy!

Great coffee, great food and great locally brewed beers ...

then there's the prison ...
now seriously ... do we really look like criminals?

of course not!!!

Some colleagues from work, Julian, Me, Debbie (Pete's wife) & Pete, ventured out and braved the dark and dingy Fremantle Prison twighlight tour. Here's a few pic's we took ...

Solitary Confinement: a stool and a bucket ...

the Gallows ...

a typical cell ...

Original paintings by prisoners in some of the cells ...

The Exit!

Stairway from the morgue ...

Julian, Me, Peter and his wife Debbie ...

it really wasn't that scary!

Trialling ... back into full swing!

It feels like ages since we've been in full swing with trialling ... I've missed a few trials in the last few months so it was good to get back into it with last Sunday's Agility Club Agility, Jumping and Strategic Pairs trials, followed by this Saturday at the Shepherd Club and a double header at Rockingham Dog Club on Sunday. OK, I slept in on Sunday morning so missed some morning runs ... but I do have an excuse ... two weeks of 4am starts at work I think is good enough reason.

Last weekend I ran Ticket in her Open and Masters jumping, a really nice effort on Richard’s Masters course I must say, just one bar down but some really nice work, and a great run in Open Jumping with a handler error! After her 2nd run I felt that she wasnt quite right, maybe a pulled muscle or something ... so I scratched her from the agility classes. Her visit to the bowen therapist on the following Monday confirmed my suspicions ... pinched nerves.

Qualifier for that day was Carrie, with partner Meg (Gillian’s sweet little BC), in Masters Strategic Pairs, and also taking 3rd Place!

More nice Masters Jumping runs with Ticket this weekend, although no qualifiers, still really nice runs from the little girl. Although a really hot afternoon on Saturday, Ticket just keeps on keeping on.

Here's a link to video of her last run at Rockingham, a really nice open, flowing course by Sarah Wickham: http://www.youtube.com/user/westurnborders#p/u/0/FlqP1CdU9eU.

Next weekend off ... then the first of the night trials on Friday 30th October ... roll on Summer!

Would he protect me?

He’s strong, he’s tough, he’s handsome,

he’s got muscles to die for … he’s awesome!
He’s loving, he’s gentle, he’s affectionate, he’s faithful …

but would he protect me?

I have often wondered … if I was ever fronted with the situation where I was in danger of being hurt or assaulted, he would protect me?

I was comforted the other night when we went for a run, a passer-by appeared to be admiring Krash as he approached, and Krash returned the gesture with a rumble as he approached and a definite growl as he came close … not sure what he would have done if I hadn’t had a firm hold of the lead ... well, at least I know he has an opinion and isn’t afraid to let someone know what he thinks.

OK, he might have four legs but he’s still awesome!

Beeeep! Beeeep! Beeeep! Beeeep! Beeeep!

Beeeep! Beeeep! Beeeep! Beeeep! Beeeep!

Don't you just love that sound first thing in the morning?!

... especially at 2.30am?!

Well, I’m half way thru my 2nd week of my first airport shift!

4am starts …

I never realized just how many people are actually out and about on the road at 3am. There are some positives ... ummm, the radio still plays some great songs, I have the bathroom all to myself and you don’t have to fight the hum-drum of peak hour traffic.

It’s certainly a matter of discipline, working out when to catch your sleep and making sure that you do. I have a whole new appreciation for all of those shift workers out there whose worlds revolve around shift work jobs that keep our world ticking over.

Now, just got to figure out how to get up without disturbing the rest of the household!

Hmmm, back to normality next week … well, as normal as my life could ever be!

Just getting to the start line ...

"The spirit, the will to win, and the will to excel are the things that endure ... these qualities are so much more important than the events that occur."

Vince Lombardi

When a puppy arrives at our home, you can pretty much guarantee that it will never leave.

Ticket came to us in May 2003 as a happy little border collie puppy and we created a web page for her, as we do for every puppy that joins our family ...

along with this webpage came the above quotation ...

Like they say: be careful what you wish for and be careful what you name your dog ... little did I know how appropriate this quotation would be for this little dog who turned out to have so many more challenges in life than most canine companions or team mates than I've ever had before.

Wow, what a journey it has been so far ... just getting Ticket out of the car at training (to stand beside me), just getting her to do one thing for me at training, just getting her to trust me, just getting her to a trial, just getting her to the start line, just getting her over the first jump, just getting her around the course, just getting her to trust me to know it's safe to run off lead, just getting her to focus on me and ignore strangers, just getting her to the airport to travel to the Nationals in Melbourne, just getting her to trust me in a strange unvisited place to stay with strangers, just getting her to the ring at a National event, just getting her to the Royal Show this year, just getting her to stay at the start line with all those strange people surrounding her and watching intently ... little do they know, the troubles Ticket has had to deal with and what an achievement it was for her just to be there!

I'm proud of you little girl!

Thank you for trusting me.

" ... these qualities are so much more important that the events that occur"

I don't care if Ticket takes a trophy home or not, I don't care wether she runs clear or not, I don't care for her to be an Agility Champion ... because in my eyes, she is already a champion, she has taught me perserverance, she has taught me patience (much more than I had before), she has taught me to take home what's important to me ... what I love, not what I strive for.

As Lanny Bassham says ...

it's not what happens to you in life that's important, you have no control over that,

what's important is how you react to what happens to you, and what you learn from that.

Party ... quiet time!

Yes, it does happen ... not very often but it does happen ... and this time we managed to get a few pic's to prove it! Party sitting still ... taken Friday 2nd October.

... aint she just the cutest little Mali pup?!

Perth Royal Show 2009

Thank God it's over! We say it every year,

yet year after year we go back for more!

It's exciting, it's fun, it's stressful and it's very exhausting;

but we survived another year and here's what we did ...

Saturday 26th & Monday 28th September - Agility & Jumping

This is the first time Ticket has been to the Royal Show ... in previous years I haven't been game to let her loose in such a crowded environment and, given that her biggest fear is the approach of strangers, she coped incredibly well. She had to cope with walking through crowds to get to/from exercise areas and also competing in a ring completely surrounded by strangers, up to 4-5 deep on some sides. She was focussed, held her start lines allowing me to lead out some 4-5 jumps and she tried very hard to do everything I ask of her on course.

As a dog trainer, I feel that I have actually achieved much of what I set out to do when I first took this troubled little girl on at 2 years old. As a team, I feel that we both achieved a lot this weekend, our trust in each other grew and my team mate still gave me her very best in one of the most stressful situations she has ever had to deal with. Well done little Tick - I am proud of you!

Carrie also flew the flag for the Dalmatians, and without making a comic of me, she made a good impresssion in both Masters Classes! and still the only Dalmatian competing in agility in WA.

Sunday 27th September - Group 1 (Toy Dogs) Showing

Sunday was Group 1 Day (Toy breeds, including Papillons). Mum and Rene showed the Pap's and little Tiger won his class for the breed.

Certainly glad I didn't have to go on Group 1 day ... needed a day off inbetween Sat and Mon.

Thursday 1st October - Group 5 (Working Dogs) Showing

The biggest challenge was getting there with two entire males and one very "nearly" in season bitch in the one car! They were all very good and we all got there and home in one piece. Unfortunately I forgot to take photo's of Hunter (Mum's border collie) however, plenty of pic's of the Chilli & Krash (Malinois) ... and a big thank you to Andrea Carde who was there to from dusk to dawn helping us, including showing Chilli for Best of Breed and snapping away with the video and camera too ... thank you Andrea! Will upload video's to you tube soon!

Pic's of Krash (Ch Vanrusselhof Krash) and Chilli (Ch Vanrusselhof On Fire AD JDX GD) ... Krash won Challenge Dog and Best of Breed for the Malinois, Chilli was Challenge Bitch and Runner-up Best of Breed.

Both were great ambassadors for the Belgian Malinois breed,

greeting the public with lots of licks and cuddles, adults and kids alike ...

... and the end of a very long day ...

till next year!