Speed and Distances….
Monday, August 30th, 2010 Posted in training | No Comments »After reading some research on sprint training for dogs, I've decided that I need to persuade Dancer to do some sprints on a regular basis. She has a lovely energy-conserving lope that is her default pace... and I want her ...
Keeping standards high…
Sunday, August 29th, 2010 Posted in training | No Comments »I went to agility class yesterday and watched really carefully. I even took videos and watched those. Two years ago I took a seminar with Susan Perry and she asked "what are your criteria for the dogwalk contact?" My tentative reply ...
Back to training…
Saturday, August 28th, 2010 Posted in training | 1 Comment »Well, yes, I was feeling stale and tired yesterday but I hung around all day and just relaxed. I ate a ridiculous amount of food, most of it fruit. I ate three million cherry tomatoes, because my garden is producing ...
Training Trialing Feeling Stale…
Friday, August 27th, 2010 Posted in training, trials | 1 Comment »Two weekends in a row of trialing felt like too much. I think it's partly the heat. Thankfully it's cooled down. Dancer seems a touch slow, as well. Elly is perky but not quite her usual fresh self... And I'm feeling ...
CAT CPE trial
Monday, August 23rd, 2010 Posted in Photos, agility titles, training, trials | No Comments »I took the girls to the CAT CPE trial in Ridgefield this weekend. It is SO nice to have trials only 25 minutes from home. And no need to set up a tent. It made lugging in the crates seem ...
ZAP NADAC Trial
Monday, August 16th, 2010 Posted in agility titles, training, trials | Comments OffIt was 97 flippin' degrees at the end of the day on Sunday. Why I stayed, I'm not sure. Elly didn't run, and Dancer Qd in only three of 12 runs, but parts of the weekend were excellent. Dancer Qd in ...
Retraining Contacts (a historical perspective)
Friday, August 6th, 2010 Posted in training | Comments OffFirst off, I did a spectacularly bad job initially training contacts with Dancer. I wanted running contacts, with a 24.5" standard poodle, and I had them in practice, so I didn't worry about it. Of course, they immediately vanished in ...
Fundamental principles of training…
Friday, August 6th, 2010 Posted in training | 1 Comment »One of the most fundamental principles of training a dog is that, if you pair something the dog really likes with something they're not so sure about (chicken liver treats with nail clipping, for example), the dog will learn to ...
Proof that clicking for handling and calm grooming behavior is working…
Wednesday, August 4th, 2010 Posted in training | 1 Comment »I took Elly to see the vet today. She needed to get a quick blood test to make sure that the Rimadyl isn't affecting her liver function. The vet called a few minutes ago, and the results were good. She ...
Another way to train high energy…
Tuesday, August 3rd, 2010 Posted in training | Comments OffBefore breakfast. When Dancer is truly hungry, she will work for food. So this morning, before the girls' breakfast, I took Dancer out and worked a speed-and-distance oval of four jumps. Got great energy. Then I groomed Elly. Yesterday I did ...