What I did on my summer vacation

It's hard to believe that the summer is over . . . and even harder to think about what that means for me and my little family. With the return of the cold nights comes the  return of a very good friend - Sniper's dad. Pretty soon my boy is going to leave me.

These past few months have been filled with classes and hikes and training opportunities and I've enjoyed every minute of it. I've especially enjoyed the companionship that comes from having a dog that can actually do what I want to do. Not that I love him more than my own kids, but it's different. He has given me the freedom to pursue some of my passions in a way that I haven't been able to do before. He is always a willing participant in anything that I've want to do and has opened my eyes to some things that I didn't even know about it before this. He has expanded my training skills and has taught me a lot about relationships and what it means to be in a one with a stable working companion. I have learned more in these past few months living with him that I have in the years that I've been training.

Here are some of the highlights:

You can have fun while you work, and you can work while you have fun.

Relationships are 100/100 and if I slack off, so will my dog

You don't have to yell at your dog to get your point across, sometimes a quiet voice is all that it takes.

Teaching your dog what you want him to do is far easier than teaching him not to do everything else.

Manners are important, but not everyone is worth a fight. Sometimes it's best to let certain things go.

It's ok to correct your dog as long as it doesn't affect your relationship

Positive based training doesn't mean cookies and toys - it's about the positive attitude that you and your dog have while doing the training.

A tired dog is much easier to live with

Even crazy, working-bred teenage boy Mals still need a cuddle from mom

Dogs need time off to let loose and blow off steam.

Dogs really do have a sense of humor.

What Wouldn't You Do For A Dog With A Face Like This?

 

This is a picture of sniper hanging in the new office. He loves the new office configuration because he can lay at my feet without getting yelled out for pulling out the computer wires. Poor boy just wants to be close to me. . .

I did something today for this dog that I thought I would never do. I grabbed a wasp with my bare fingers. It was 6:30 in the morning, and I hadn't had any coffee yet, so that might've had something to do with my poor judgement. . .but when your dog is jumping around frantically trying to bite himself, you do everything you can to make it better. And in this case, he was being stung repeatedly by a wasp - probably trying to protect it's hive from his giant nose! 

Our normal hiking trail is undergoing Trail Restoration; which means that many of the trees are getting cut back and the trail itself is being widened and the damage from the mountain bikes is getting fixed. Up till today, it seemed like a great idea. We've had more room to play on the trails because I can see farther ahead and the ground is flat, so there is no worry about sprained ankles. Sniper's favorite thing about all this work is the tractors at that trail head that he gets to pee on! But all this work has also damaged some of the homes of the creatures that live there. We haven't seen a squirrel, a rabbit, or a deer since it started. I'm sure they'll come back once it quiets down, but for now, they are no where to be seen. I can also assume that when they cut back the trees that some of the insects also had their homes destroyed. In this case, there was a wasps' nest broken on the side (didn't see it until after he was stung). I'm sure sniper just wanted to check it out, but that was a bad decision on his part. And wasps are the worst of the stinging creatures because they can sting repeatedly without loosing their stingers. I really had no choice but to grab it and squish it. . .luckily my brain is a bit foggy in the mornings otherwise I might've thought twice about grabbing it.

Because I'm such a weirdo about my dogs, I always have a pet first aid kit handy and I had plenty of benadryl on hand to give him. He seems to be going fine, and is resting comfortably. He has a few small lumps on his side and his leg, but they aren't getting any bigger and his face isn't swelling and his breathing is good. I'll keep an eye on him for awhile and might give him more benadryl later - if only to keep him calm so I can finally relax! 

Fun Match with Giant Brownish-Red Dog

If the title doesn't make sense to you, it's because you've never lived with a red-headed dog. And if you, like me, have said you will NEVER own a red-head but end up living with one anyway, you will understand the title completely! For the rest of you out there. . . I hope you never have the "joy" of living with a red-head!

Sniper had his first fun match today and he was A-mazing! Not only was this a new environment with new people and new dogs, but this is also a very new sport to him. He has only been doing this for about two months! I entered him in two jumpers runs because his contacts aren't solid enough for a standard run and his teeter is practically non-existent at this point. He is weaving, but we are still training and I don't want to push him on 12 poles. My main goal for today was to have fun and to tire him out! I think that we succeeded on both accounts.

Here are two videos of sniper's jumper's runs. I only worked a few jumps in sequence choosing to reward frequently. Looking back, I probably could have pushed him a bit more, but I'd rather over reward and have fun then under reward and get mistakes later on. He knocked a few bars and it's pretty clear that most of those are my fault as I stopped short or called him mid-jump. There was one jump that he didn't end up taking that I didn't notice until I actually saw the video and while I think I set him up properly for it, I think that we don't have enough lateral distance for him to have taken the jump. This dog watches my body movements like a hawk and I'm still learning to adjust for that.






Abby ran in a jumper's run too, but unfortunately it want's caught on video. I'm hoping that we got some photos; but I'll blog about that soon enough.

First Hike of the Year

While much of the country is bogged down in snow, it's sun and blue skies here in CA. We've had unseasonably warm weather so far this year, and you won't hear me complaining one bit! Despite the fact that Abby is still wearing her coat, most of the days here are in the 60's. The wind picks up from time to time and Abby is a small, skinny, very short haired dog, so the coat is still a necessity. The days are getting just long enough that if I hurry home, and hurry up the hill, we can get a very quick walk/jog in. Abby prefers it if I jog, and gives me dirty looks -like the one pictured above - if I stop and try to walk. This was the first of many hikes this year. I'm thinking that I need to start bringing my camera with me so that I can get some decent photos of her this year.

Family Photo

We just got back from a great vacation. We slept and walked, and slept and walked. It was the perfect vacation for a bunch of old geezers like us. As the kids are getting older, I'm trying to get a good family photo. It's much more difficult that one would think, but when you add a bunch of half-trained, treat-crazed, little dogs, and a kinda crappy camera, you get some very interesting shots.

Here are some of the out-takes:

yummy dead things on beach


welcome to the twilight zone

seriously?

Since that wasn't working, I thought that I'd do individual shots instead:

I hate that flash!!!!

alien dog!!!!

wait, that's not mole. . .


Well, this is the best I was able to manage this weekend:



It's not a great photo, but they are all looking at me and, if you really knew these guys, you can see each of their personalities in this photo.

Wordless Wednesday: Cemetery Walk

Independant vs Bonded

A while back I wrote a post about Abby's training plan. It was well thought out and included lots of hikes and basic training. Things were going well for awhile and I wrote an update and added more phases to the training plan. Things aren't going so well anymore. . . and we are having to make adjustments to our training plan.

In some ways, Abby is doing great. She is more comfortable on our hikes and is willing to do a lot of obedience with me. She is doing well in class and I think that she will be ready to trial in Rally in another month. However, Abby is going backward with her separation issues. She has tried to escape from my office and has started screaming again when I leave her for "extended" periods (read: more than 2 hours). This is not a road that I want to go down again.

A part of me worries that I contributed to this recent increase in anxiety behavior. I routinely put her in stressful situations and ask her to look to me for support and guidance. We do this kind of training for many reasons, but the main reason is to help Abby keep her panic under control. And, in this case, the training is working. We often come across strange things on our outings and Abby has learned to stay near me and not to panic or try to flee. Today, for example, we literally ran into a horse. Both Abby and I were startled, but Abby did not panic and we were able to continue on our hike with no worries. However, my worry with this training is that Abby cannot handle stress when I am not there. I have worked so extensively on our bond to be able to do the kinds of things that we are doing, that I think I have really set her back on the independence work we have done.

So now our training plan is changing again. We are still going on hikes, and I am still planning on doing training with her on them, but I am going to ask her to do more distance work - more specifically, I am going to ask her to do more stays and am hopefully going to be able to get some distance stays with distraction. We have altered the way we work in class too. Abby is no longer allowed to sit in my lap during class. She is also required to stay tethered to the wall when I walk the course. She really hates that part, but I'm trying to teach her in a way that eases her anxiety about it rather than increases her anxiety about being away from me. I'm hoping that this works and that I will have a good report the next time I update her training plan.

Here is a just because picture I took of Abby on our hike today. Her lines are a little off because her hind end is uphill from her front end, but I still think that she is one of the prettiest dogs I've ever seen.

Seizure Detector

Sure, she looks all innocent and sweet, but this dog sure causes me a lot of trouble! One thing that we have to deal with is Abby's seizures. I noticed them around the time when she came back from her adventure; and although they can be frightening as a mom to watch, they don't generally bother Abby too much. Well, not until recently. . .

Abby's seizures are "under control" for the most part. I don't medicate her for them, but they are quite infrequent and only occur during really stressful periods. Because I put moderate levels of stress on Abby frequently, she seems to be able to tolerate more and more stress as time goes on. But I think that I pushed her past her breaking point this past weekend. Due to many events that I couldn't control and a few that I could, Abby was out and about for the entire day on Sunday. In the back of my mind I was thinking that she might have a seizure that night; but aside from the vomit that comes with it they aren't a problem for us, so I didn't really give it much thought.

Most of Sunday was spent driving around with few stops in between. Abby is an angel in the car - it's really the only place I don't have to worry about her. She lays down in the back and sleeps (proof in the above photo!) But this past Sunday, on the way to our last stop before going home, Abby tried desperately to get in the front seat with me. And, if you know Abby, you know how dangerous her paw can be, so rather than try to fight her off, I let her sit in my lap. Eventually I got to my last stop, moved Abby into the back seat, and got out. When I got back in the car two minutes later, Abby HAD to get back in my lap. Less than a minute after she was there, she started having a seizure.

Since Abby has never before - or since (yet...) - tried to crawl in my lap while driving it made me wonder if Abby knew that she was going to have a seizure and wanted to be comforted. There are some dogs that can detect human seizures, but I wonder if dogs can detect other dog's seizures???? And if they can detect dog seizures, what's not to say that they can detect their own???

Ok, I don't really think that Abby knew she was going to have a seizure, but she must have felt something strange otherwise she would have stayed sleeping in the back of the car like always. It's kind of weird to think about. . .

The Lone Wolf

Who would have thought that Abby would be a dog that could do things by herself. There was a time when I wasn't sure that I would ever be able to do something with Abby alone. When it became apparent that we could do things alone, I wondered if Abby would ever really enjoy doing things alone.

Abby and I do a lot of things alone now, and I think that we have a pretty good time together. But I always thought that she would rather have one - or both - of the other kids join us. Today I learned that isn't the case.

We went on another hike today with mole. I enjoy the hikes with mole - even if they are slow and we don't get any aerobic benefits from them. Mole sure has a great time. I thought that Abby would have fun sniffing and peeing alongside her brother. Abby had a miserable time the entire walk. Well, miserable is probably too strong a word, but terrible is probably accurate.

The whole walk, Abby spent at the end of her long line trying to pull me up the hill. When I didn't give in, she would run back to me, demand bark/whine and run up the hill again. It was obvious that she wanted to GO. She didn't want to sniff the flowers, she wanted to power up that hill the way we normally do. And she acted even stranger when I told her we had to turn around. She wasn't ready to quit!

I know that Abby doesn't understand that we can't do what we normally do when Mole is with us, but I thought that she would have so much fun playing alongside him that she wouldn't realize we weren't doing our normal thing. But I should have learned by now that Abby doesn't take change well; and it's easiest for her to stick to the normal routine. She has more fun doing what we normally do - regardless of what other fun things are present. Abby is actually ok doing things alone. . . well, alone as long as I'm there with her. . . we won't get into how she feels when she is really alone. . . that may never be ok. . .

Father's Day with My Old Man

I've always called Mole my old man - even before he was old. . . He just has an old soul. And now that he really is old, we can't do the things that we used to do together. It's sad, and I miss his company on those outings. Lately it's been Abby and I going here, there, and everywhere, and I know that he really wishes that he could go with us. Sometimes he does, but mostly he can't.

Today, I decided to spend some quality time with my old man. I was trying to figure out what to do because we can't really walk too far. He doesn't really like to sit and do nothing for extended periods of time either. Abby had class later, so we couldn't really do anything too time consuming. I decided that we would go and have breakfast. It sounds kinda silly when I say it like that, but we both had a really great time.

I looked on Yelp for some breakfast places that had outdoor seating and came across the Blackberry Bistro. It was close, had good reviews, was in a neighborhood that I knew, so off we went. I was careful to pick a parking space close, but not too close so that we could get in a tiny walk (two blocks). We had a 10 minute wait, but that was better than I was expecting at 11am on Father's day. I thought our table was fine, but Mole thought he hit the mother-load! There must have been kids sitting at our table before because there were cheerios all over the ground. He had a blast cleaning up. I choose to wait and eat the food that was brought to me on a plate - eggs, potatoes, cheese roll, and. . . bacon!



Guess who ate the bacon:


He was such a good boy the entire time. He is actually the perfect eating companion because he doesn't want to be on my lap, and he is happy eating whatever I hand him. We both had a really good time and I am planning on doing this more often.

And Then There Was One. . .

Ok, there are still FOUR. . .but yesterday I got a chance to see what it was like for people with only one dog.

Abby had a weird week last week in agility class and since we had no Rally class on Sunday and no agility class Thursday I decided that we should take the week off from training and do fun things instead. One day we all went to the cemetery and and took a nice walk (well, Abby and Mole walked, and I carried Pocket). Yesterday I thought it would be fun if we took a nice hike in the hills. Since these are the same hills that Pocket got attacked in, I didn't dare bring her or mole - plus mole shouldn't walk that much anyway. With Abby being larger and less squirrel like, I figured that she would probably be safe from those "rescue" dogs.

Aside from being fun, I thought that a nice hike would be a good conditioning exercise for her. I really should be doing conditioning exercises with Abby all the time, after all, she is supposed to be athletic! But having a multi-dog household makes it difficult to do things with only ONE dog. I feel guilty leaving them behind and I think that they feel bad being left. But I am trying to put those thoughts behind me. I know that I don't love mole any less because I can't take him with me. And I would never forgive myself if I took him and something horrible happened because of it.

So, I was temporarily a one-dog person. And I have to say that I really liked it. It was easy only having to watch out for one dog - even with that one dog being Abby. But since Abby is larger then the other two, and isn't obsessed with peeing on everything, we were able to get in a nice work out. I was surprised that she was able to walk alone without the comfort of her companions. She didn't panic or try to run away. She simply walked with me. There were a few times when we came upon a biker and she was unsure, but she stayed close and followed right behind me. I was really proud of her because she was on a 25' long-line and could have made poor choices. I know I often say how amazed I am at how far Abby has come, but I truly am. I often say that I am proud of how she can do agility and rally, but secretly, I am happier that we can take a nice walk together. We are becoming partners more and more every day.

Abby being a total DOG and sniffing the flowers:

I Have Great Dogs

. . . even if I don't always think so . . .

Things have been super crazy/busy/stressful for the past few weeks at work and I really needed a vacation. I needed to get away somewhere quiet with the dogs and completely decompress. After thinking it over and checking dogfriendly.com I found a nice little inn on a beach in northern, northern CA called Cleone Gardens Inn. It is the perfect get-away and they really are very dog friendly. Not just semi-dog-friendly... the real dog-friendly where they let the dogs up on the bed and the couch and give you bowls and towels and cookies for your dogs. The dog-friendly where they greet your dog before they greet you . . . the kind of place that makes me feel at home because that is how my own home truly is.

The dogs were perfect and had a great time. We spent a lot of time watching bad tv, reading books, and walking the beach. Pocket loves the beach. I think that it is her favorite place to be. All she wants to do is run, run, run. Mole likes the smells. Abby is no longer afraid of the beach.. and I think that is the most I can hope for on her second trip there! While there I tried to get some good photos of the kids, but I couldn't seem to get one where their tails weren't wagging constantly.






Don't expect any photos of Abby's tail wagging...she didn't wag it once on any of our walks while we were AT the beach... but it wasn't tucked up either, so I think that we are making progress...

Since I had all the time in the world (and a few cookies) I thought that I would try for a family photo. Here are the out takes:


two


plus two


equals three


wait, lets try that again


One more time

One


plus two


equals. . . one dog and two aliens.... (they're back!)



ok, ok. . .we did get ONE good photo


All in all, I had a great weekend. And it was nice having Abby along for a vacation. She hasn't gotten to come before because she really isn't trustworthy... but I had the time to take things slow with her and I really want her to start being able to come on the few vacations we actually get to take. She seemed to enjoy herself at some points, and she wasn't stressed out during the rest of it, so I think that she will be coming from now on. I really do have great dogs, and it is times like these where their wonderful personalities and great behavior, and stability really show. I did have a nice, relaxing time, but more than that, I was proud of my kids... and having the chance to get away with them means more to me than anything

Tilden Park With A Photographer

Luckily for me, there is a photographer in the "family". I'm really lucky that she took time out of her busy cemetery shoots to take some action shots of the kids.

Who knew my old man was so athletic!






Or that my baby girl could "heel"



This was a great shot - especially since my favorite shots of the kids are of them licking their noses (only now I have one of them together!)



If you're so inclined, you can view all the shots here

Even When It Is . . . It Isn't

We needed an easy relaxing walk after that experience yesterday. We decided to do the Oyster Bay walk between the Marina and the Airport. This really was a 2.1 mile easy walk, but the experience was a bit disturbing.

The first thing was that the park is behind the dumps. Yeah, the real DUMPS!



And then we came across all these weird hobbit-box things, but i guess they were another place to pee on.



The other thing we came across was the most disturbing, but maybe I shouldn't talk because I don't have big dogs. For the most part, we were alone on the walk, but about half-way through we came across these two un-neutered Rhodesian Ridgebacks. At first they were polite but having two 70 + pound dogs sniffing your you-know-what would be overwhelming even for a 30 pound dog. I told my well-behaved 9 pound dog to "leave it" - mainly so he didn't tell them off and trigger a fight- and he tried. But they would not leave his manhood alone. At one point I almost reached in and grabbed my dog just to save him as I could see that he was getting very overwhelmed. I tapped one dog on the head thinking he would at least look up, but he didn't. FINALLY, the owner came around the corner with a stick and smacked both dogs. I guess its easier to hit your dog than it is to train him to "leave -it" or "off". After the whole thing I was a wreck but mole seemed fine as he met a few more dogs and reacted just the same as he aways does - no cares in the world. Thank god he is more stable than I am.

More pictures from oyster bay:

The Ridge . . .Le Deux

I'm always looking for new places to take the kids off leash. I found this great site recently that lists all of the bay area hikes. The website is very user friendly and breaks the parks down in all sorts of sub-categories. You can search by difficulty, location, dog-friendly, etc. I,of course, chose dog-friendly and the park we chose for this week was the Pleasanton Ridge.

We got up early this morning and prepared for an easier 2.1 mile loop (according to the hike on bahikes) We were in for quite a surprise. It wasn't the easiest walk I've ever been on as the "hill" keeps going up - I guess we missed the trail head for the loop. We walked straight up for an hour before we ran into someone and asked if this ever loops back down. He looked a little confused and said "no, this just keeps going" Great! So now we have a long walk back down too. Luckily the kids made it and I didn't have to carry anyone.

Here are a few pics from our walk.







And one of the kids after . . .

So Happy. . .

I finally got off work early (ie: on time) and grabbed the chance at taking the kids for their first after work walk of the year. It was amazing for all three of us. Normally when I walk the dogs off leash I still make them follow basic rules, but today, all bets were off. I took them to pocket's tree then yelled "GO!" and they took off running. They were so happy. Mole was jumping over ravines like he was three years old - disc disease? what's that? I could almost hear pocket giggling. It made my week seeing those two that happy.

I took a few pics of the kids with the new "camera" but they didn't come out so great. I guess we were all moving so fast that they all came out blurry. Well, all but one. Its a little fuzzy, but it looks like one of those cool oil paintings.