Puppy Antics

Well I can't believe it but Ditto is 8 mo old now! Where did the time go?

She has been quite the little character! Here are some random photos.

She tried to climb the ladder when I was painting, played with the aloof sheltie,
& got her head stuck in a ball!

Training is going well I think - she's quite willful so she can be challenging, but she loves to work & learn! She can now do a teeter & is starting to learn a 2 on 2 off contact for the frame & dogwalk. We have started some jump work & we are still playing lots!

I'm enjoying her so much!

Drum Roll Please........

Last weekend we went to a wonderful trial in Lethbridge hosted by the Go Dog Go kids.They have such a wonderful group there, they set a great example for agility clubs!

I just took Bizzie & Blast & stayed in a hotel (haven't done that for awhile)

Bizzie & I still have lots of work to do - we had no qualifiers all weekend, but our timing is really off, Biz is not paying attention very well & actually peed in the ring (after peeing right before our run). Not sure if she's still recovering from her puppies but I'll need to keep an eye on her.

Blast also did not run very well - he was really distracted, but it was a new site for him & anything new is always a challenge for him. He barked pretty much all weekend, which was very distracting for me as well as others I'm sure. I actually got lost on course 3 times, haven't done that for a very long time.

The up side to all of this is that ........ wait for it ................. Blast earned his ATCHC!

He needed one more gamble Q, & it wasn't pretty, but we got the job done. Thanks to Shirley Ann Redl for the nice course & to Wendy Devent from Paws on the Run Photography for the great photos - taken right after we Q'd.

Trip to BC

We did a quick trip to BC for a family wedding.... we loaded up the RV with all 6 dogs & away we went! After the wedding we were going to visit friends in Kimberley - they are dog people so it was like a vacation for our pups!









This is Bizzie doing what she does best!




Boo was the official bird hunter - he was hilarious & just had a great time!







Blast ran his little legs off & had great fun playinng with the border collies!

This is Ditto playing in the water fountain - she had so much fun - lots of opportunity to work on her recall & she did great!

New Beginnings

Things have been pretty hectic around here lately. I have been babysitting my 2 yr old grandson quite a bit while his mom had another baby boy! His name is Charlie & he's a big'un - 8 lb 11 oz, which is a lot for a girl who normally wears a size 2!

Quinn, the big brother loves Bizzie so here are some pics of the 2 of them! He says "Bizzie talks"

which is a nice way of saying she's a yapillon!

AAC Regionals

Well, our agility Regionals is now over. There were some great moments & some not so great!
Helping on the organizing committee is quite stressful when you are already running a couple of dogs, but the committee were such great people to work with, it was never a problem.

Blast had an oops on his first run - of course it was jumpers which he likes the best! He peed in the ring, which was my fault since I didn't get to pee him right before his run... my dogs aren't in the same height category, but there were only a few dogs in between, so my time management didn't work out so well... He was clean in the first standard run, but took some time to enjoy the view from the top of the A-frame & also had a few distracted moments. He didn't get very many points in the gamble opening, but he did get the gamble. Day 2 was better with a 5 fault standard, a clean jumpers & he did get the gamble. In the end he did qualify with over 400 points & placed 11th, which was pretty good for him considering our 0 point first run.

Bizzie was coming off maternity leave, so I didn't have any great expectations for her & it's a good thing I didn't! We weren't working as a team at all, she was very distracted, visiting the judge, taking many extra tunnels, etc. She should have got both gambles, but the lure of the tunnel sucked her in! She managed a clean jumpers run at the end of the weekend, but it was still not very pretty! She didn't qualify, I think about 20 pts short, but was 5th place in her division. She's off getting spayed today, so she'll need some time to recover before we start back training.

Boo came along for the weekend, so I put him in steeplechase just for fun. He had a great time & won both the steeplechase preliminary runs. He ran in the final & actually got a 3rd place ribbon! Not bad for a little guy who's had no training for over a year! That was probably the most fun of the weekend for me! He's like a comfortable old slipper compared to running the young'uns!

Ditto was a good puppy all weekend & met lots of new people & dogs. She loves the big dogs & had some fun playtimes!

I think we'll all have a little time off now & I can get my house back in order & await the birth of my 4th grandchild!

Fun Weekend

We had a fun time in Medicine Hat this past weekend - that group always puts on a great trial (no matter what the weather does!) Weather wise we had a little of everything! (no snow thank goodness!)
I knew Blast would have a tough time coping with all the distractions of an outdoor trial & I was right - he was very unfocused, slow, worried, etc... very frustrating after all this time.
He finally managed to keep it together enough to get a snooker Q on Saturday. Sunday he was worse I think - not sure if the thunder bothered him or what - I ended up carrying him off the course in snooker when he kept bailing off the teeter. The last 2 runs were jumpers & he did Q both of them - Wayne ran him for one & I ran the other. Hope he can get his act together before Regionals... not much time left.
This was Bizzie's 2nd trial post puppies & I wasn't sure what to expect. She was running fast, but we didn't have great connection. She did manage a jumpers Q & was running a really nice snooker until I screwed up, but my goal was that she run & have fun, which she did.
Just for fun, I let Boo run a steeplechase & 2 jumpers courses. Wow, I've never seen him run so fast! He was awesome - the first jumpers was one of those runs where you're so in tune with each other it's just magic! The little guy still knows the game!
Ditto had a fun time at the trial - lots of visiting, played with Catch, a sheltie puppy, & was a very good girl. So far she is just a great puppy & easy to manage!
All in all, a good time was had by all! Next weekend, another trial in Olds, but just for one day!

Ditto & her playmate

Of all the dogs in our house, Cactus
is the least playful.. she's the typical aloof sheltie & it's really beneath her to play, although she's not above stealing a toy & "storing" it in her kennel!
So Ditto seems to be on a mission to get Cactus to play! Cactus is not impressed...
(The pink shirt is just to cover a little rash she had on her belly)



Ditto went to her first puppy kindergarten class & did really well. There were puppies there from 9 wks old to 6 mo old. We had some instruction & then playtime. I was really impressed that she could play & tug with all that was going on! She really wanted to get a good game of chase me going, but didn't really have any takers. I think next week the dogs will be a little more relaxed & ready to play.

Size doesn't matter..

Well, I had Ditto in for her shots yesterday... I weighed her & she's 4.5 lbs! She's huge! At 12 wks, Bizzie was only 2.8 lbs, and she's now about 6 lbs. She's still a great puppy - very inquisitive, friendly, loves people (just like her mom). She hasn't met too many other dogs since I was waiting for those second shots. She really can hold her own with our other dogs... we'll see how she does with dogs she doesn't know.
She hasn't mastered coming down the stairs yet, & keeps running up them & then gets very annoyed that she can't get down. She does all the cute puppy things like barking at herself in the mirror! I am so enjoying her!
Blast has just discovered that he can go toy shopping in the puppy pen just by jumping in, & today he enjoyed Ditto's lunch! Have to watch that boy every minute!
Bizzie still plays a lot with Ditto, but jumps on the couch to get away from her when she's had enough... well, it won't be long before Ditto is going to make it up onto the couch...

Still having lots of problems with my hip & leg, hopefully can be feeling better soon - doing lots of physio & chiro.

Learning...

Puppies are like sponges - I can't believe how quickly they learn things - the good & the bad!
Of course I think Ditto is brilliant! She seems to be a thinker & can actually pay attention (for a short time, anyways). She can now sit, come when called, nose touch my hand, potty on command & tug. I really want to make sure she is well socialized, but I'm still careful where I take her until she's had her 2nd set of shots. She really holds her own with the other dogs & loves the game of chase! Her & Bizzie (her mum) play a lot until Biz has had enough of her!
She really gives it her all to try to jump up onto the couch but still can't quite make it - I figure another week or 2 & she'll be there! Then Biz won't be able to escape her sneak attacks!

While I'm spending lots of time with Ditto, I'm trying to get Bizzie back into shape. She wouldn't run at the last seminar I was at (last weekend) so I don't think she's ready yet - not sure if it's a physical or mental thing. It really took her a long time after her last litter to want to play agility. At least I can get her spayed soon - hopefully that will take care of the hormone issues.

I haven't done much training lately since I seem to have some problems with my hip - have been going to physio, so hope it's feeling better soon. Blast has been doing quite well, but we'll see what happens when we start to trial outdoors - he really has a hard time with distractions.

We have 3 trials coming up in the next little while, then it's our regionals, so hope we can keep it together! I even entered Boo in a trial - just in jumpers & a steeplechase run, so he will be very excited!

A Day in the Life of a Puppy

Puppies are so much fun! They play, play, play!

Gee, can I go play with the big kids?



Look- I can sit still for a nano second!

Puppy Love

Well, I did it! Decided to keep one of Bizzie's puppies. Once I made that decision, I had to decide which of the black & white girls to keep.... one of them looks exactly like Bizzie, the other one is a little bigger with more white blaze on her face. As it turned out, she chose me - I called her Ditto, and she is not the Bizzie look alike! She is the most people focused of the pups & so far has been awesome! She sleeps all night in her kennel, she travels well in the car, she plays tug. She already knows to potty on her "grass" which is a piece of artificial grass on the deck. Of course that may be the only grass we see this year - it's snowing like crazy right now - AGAIN!

I just love this little puppy - just hope I do all the right training things with her! She runs around with the other dogs & really holds her own - not intimidated by the bigger dogs - she dives under the coffee table & tries to play with them - even Boo, who is really not impressed! She torments her mom, grabbing her ears & hanging on them!

Puppy Fun

Bizzie's pups are almost 5 wks old now! I can't believe how fast the time went.
One week makes a huge difference.... they are running around & love to go backwards, which is really funny. They play fight & can make quite the noises.
Their ears are coming up now & they can eat from a bowl. They love to play in the water dish.
They are so cute I could sit & watch them all day!
Here are some head shots from this morning...



First is Sable Boy (Sting), then Sable Girl, then B & W Girl











B & W Girl - her ears are up now! She looks most like her momma

Puppy Love

This is the sable boy - I think he'll be very handsome!








This is a black & white girl - looks a lot like her momma!









Bizzie's puppies are just over 3 wks old now. This is the fun time when they start to be little dogs. They can now motor around pretty well & have started to play a bit with each other - kinda starts out by accident, so it's funny to watch. Next week I will move them into a bigger pen in the kitchen so they can get used to more activity & the other dogs running around & playing.
It will be interesting to see how Critter reacts - she had puppies last year & she's quite sure Bizzie needs her help right now. Bizzie doesn't really see it that way!

I'm anxious for Bizzie to get back into shape so that we can start training again. I would like to run her at regionals this June if she is ready, but if it's too much for her, we'll work up to it more slowly. I am taking her to a chiropractor in a couple of wks, so hopefully we'll see how she is. It took a very long time for her to recover mentally & physically from her last litter, so I hope I can have a better plan this time to get her back to having a fun time at agility.

Apart from agility, I've been working on more tricks with Blast. He loves to learn & at some point I'd like to do some freestyle with him. Right now we're working on weaving backwards through my legs. I need some ideas for some more cool tricks, so if you have any ideas, please let me know!

Puppy Update

Well, Bizzie's puppies are now 2 wks old. All doing well!

This is the sable boy. He's really adorable.

This is the sable girl. I haven't quite figured out who the noisy one is, but my money's on her!

Here are the black & white girls! I still have a soft spot for the black & whites!

The other dogs are quite jealous of all the attention that Bizzie & her pups get. Critter is very interested & is always trying to sneak in to see the pups. I'm sure she remembers her pups & is always watching Bizzie closely! The puppies are now starting to use their legs & climb out of their bed to find momma! One of them gets quite snarky when another puppy tries to move her from the milk bar! They are just now starting to get a personality - the next week will bring lots of changes!

Puppy Update

Puppies are now 8 days old, and about 12 oz. Bizzie is being a very good mom. It's so surprising to me how active these little guys are when they don't even have their eyes open yet! They are very vocal (hope that's not a prediction of the future!) They have lots of color, which I like. I haven't come up with any clever names for them yet, but think I may call one of them Dora the Explorer - she's always climbing out of the little donut bed & wandering around the crate screaming for her mommy!

Introducing.....

Here is Bizzie's new litter. She did it again - the x-ray showed 3 pups again and once again she popped out an extra one!

She had 3 girls & 1 boy - 2 dark sables & 2 black & whites. These are bigger pups than her last litter & are really active already. Very difficult to get photos when they won't stay still! Lots of color in their coats & quite interesting markings. One little girl looks like she has a mustache! Bizzie is a great mom & very protective of her little ones. Here's a couple of photos. Will try to get some more later.

Bizzie Bee

Well, Bizzie's puppies are due soon - not soon enough if you ask her!
She's absolutely huge - has gained almost 2 pounds, which is a lot on a 6 pound papillon!
I feel so bad for her, she's so uncomfortable - she just goes outside to pee, then comes back in & flops down on something soft.
Her Xray showed 3 pups, but we'll wait & see - last time she had 4.
Wish her an easy delivery - those puppies look pretty big on the xray!

Trial Results

Well, it was a fun, interesting weekend. Our trial is at a barn where we've been many times before, but the minute we walked in the door, Blast started to sniff the ground like crazy. Not sure if he could smell mice, horse poop or what. This is not a regular behavior for him, so it took me a bit by surprise.
Our first run was jumpers & Blast ran the entire course with his nose on the ground. GRRRR! We were overtime since it takes a little time to sniff every inch of the course & then pop over the jump!
We managed a Steeplechase Q next - the part I was happiest with was we got the weave pole entries both times & they were not nice angles! Then we ran a really nice Standard course which earned us a 1st place & a Q and a Title! That's his Masters Agility Dog of Canada! Yeah Blast - never thought that we would get there...
Next run was gamblers & he was back to sniffing again, so poor results there.
Sunday started with gamblers & it was back to drifting off - my mistake - I should have just run closely with him & not tried to send him to any mini gambles... I swear one of these days I'll learn!
The next standard course had a few tricky parts & we ended up with 10 faults, but again we got the weaves just fine. He bailed off the teeter once, which was odd...
The last run was Snooker, & we really had to work for it, but got another Q! I'm finding those front crosses are really the answer for us - just have to make sure I get into the right position.

Anyhow, I'm really happy with our progress - as they say - "We've come a long way, Baby!"

Trial weekend

Blast & I are trialing this weekend. We'll see how it goes. We haven't been to the Fez Dome where the trial is held for quite a while so hopefully he'll keep his act together. Our first run is usually wild & wacky & this time it's jumpers, so it could be fun! LOL!

On the home front, Bizzie is definately pregnant. I weighed her yesterday - she's now 4.0 kilos - started out at 3.3, so that's a gain of .7 kilos, or 1 1/2 lbs, which is quite a bit for a 7 lb princess.
Her due date is Feb 27, I can hardly wait!

Bizzie Bee

Winter

Well, it's cold & snowy again! Last week we had some nice weather so I let the dogs out of the dog run to play in the snow-

Blast was making snow angels, but here he is waiting to pounce on Critter!







Boo - posing for the side profile!








This is Critter jumping through the snow!









Here's Cactus checking out airplanes!









And Bizzie, well, she had a look & went back to bed... She was bred at Christmas time, & I'm quite sure she is pregnant since she's very mopey & gaining weight.

Weekend Trial

Last weekend was our first trial of the year. I entered Blast in everything. I was quite pleased with his performance overall.
Gamblers was first & he was very distracted by the dogs warming up right behind him.. still has major distraction issues. He did the first mini gamble (a pinwheel) & then left the ring to find the "fun" dogs. In retrospect, I should have kept him moving away from the startline.
He would have Q'd the Challenge course but came back out of a tunnel close to the end of the course - still have to remember not to leave too early. I had a few brain farts on the weekend - guess I need to work on my walking the course skills! The only other issues we had were a slip off the teeter, & a couple of weave pole entry problems. He actually earned his Masters Snooker title! He also got a Masters Standard Q, so he was a pretty good boy.

I didn't run Bizzie, as she was bred over the Christmas holiday.

I did however, run Cactus & Critter on Sat, since Wayne couldn't come. Wow, Cactus is very evil - I'm sure she tried to kill me! Anyhow, it was an experience trying to run her - on the up side, she did get all her contacts - yup - that's what I said! Critter only ran 2 runs & got her starters gamble, but was worried & slow in the jumpers round.

I let Boo run the jumpers course & he was so excited! He ran well, but we took an off course jump (I never did run that course clean after 3 tries!) Anyhow, it was fun to see him be so happy to be at a trial & visit all his old buddies - just for the cookies of course!

This & That

Well, it is now 2011! Hard to believe, but true!
Last year was a difficult year for me, I had to retire my little Boo at 6 yrs young due to disk problems in his back. Bizzie also had back issues, which thankfully we got sorted out with some chiropractic & massage. I had some minor surgery so was not able to run for a couple of months. Then my mom was in hospital for about 2 months, so I was visiting her daily. Anyhow, all of these things took time away from any kind of training plan. Hopefully we can now get back on track.

Bizzie was just bred over the Christmas holiday, so she will be out of commission for a few months. This should be her last breeding, so hope all goes well.

Blast is always a work in progress! He is running much faster with more confidence now, but now I have to really be in the right place at the right time. When he is paying attention, he is very responsive to the slightest move by me, so it is a challenge to keep him on course. He is such a goofy boy - he gets freaked out by anything new or changed in our home. We just got a new front load washer & dryer & he's absolutely freaked by the washer - it makes new sounds & you can see things move inside the washer! Very scary!

My goal for him this year is to try to find a way to get him to work with more distractions. He is much better at indoor trials since there is less to distract him. My goal for myself is to get into better physical condition so that I can run faster myself!

I have been doing rally classes with Boo, & he's doing quite well. His heeling position isn't great, but because he is so small, it's hard for him to stay right beside me cause he can't see my face. We're working on a straighter sit & he has to learn a "stand", which is something I've never trained before. We may take him to a trial this year just to see how he does.