Soundtrack on their lives ...

a couple little clips with soundtrack courtesy of the "Presidents" ... Feather Pluckin' and Kitty ... come on ... these songs were written for them :)

Here is a quicky run of Gyp in jumpers, I was really proud of this run - over 6yps and I felt so connected, and went for it.



This a couple clips of runs of K ... I loved his Challenge run even with the off course - great weaves, great enthusiasm. Something I tell my students is if the off course happens, keep going, as if it didn't happen, chances are it was you and the dog was just doing what he thought - in this instance, Kaleb found the straight line and I did nothing to tell him otherwise ... can you spot the error on the video?? The less I make a deal out of the error the better - for me and him - don't stress it, keep running, keep having fun!!!!

And I had to add his wonderful end Gamble ... :) Such a good boy!

where ever you go, go with your heart.

where ever you go, go with your heart., originally uploaded by sarah ....

Via Flickr:
Happy love day.

crazy little thing called love ...

my lil' wood nymph :: 6/52, originally uploaded by sarah ....

It was our first Agility trial of the year this past weekend. I had taken half of December and January off to give the dogs some time to recoup and refresh for the busy trial Season coming up. Just what we needed!! I HEART my dogs, I HEART Agility, I HEART my friends ... life is good.

I've been worried about K - I freak out as he is coming up 10 and I don't want to push him to hard if his body can't do it ... His first run of the weekend he seemed a little stiff in the poles, but otherwise a great run. The rest of the weekend - he was BANG ON ... managed his same times and YPS ... no knocked bars, no popped or uneven looking weave poles. I love this dog. I had so much fun running him this weekend - and all the comments I get on how great is running and looking are sure nice to hear. He got MEGA warm-ups - twice as much as normal, lots of tugging backwards to engage that rear end, massage 2x day, and extra work to his stifles and hamstrings. It seemed to do the trick .... judging by his performance. He brought home Qs in Standard and Gamblers.

And then there is Gyppie ... she was great too! We were honoured to wear Tag's Agility LEash into the ring with us ... the first run was a little hard ... I was thinking of him and we tried are hardest for him this weekend ... Gyppie even channeled a little of his naughtiness I am pretty sure! But thankfully she also channeled his brilliance! She was fast, fun and lovely. She brought home Qs in 2 Standards, Jumpers and Snooker.

Go! Dog! Go! Students ROCKED also!!! Lots of great moments, Q's and some titles to boot!!

I had my first ever "Hangs Head in Shame" moment on course ... Lets just say DO NOT CHANGE YOUR GAMBLE PATH LAST MINUTE without thought. Because what might happen is you do 2 back-to-back end obstacles in a row right off the startline TWEEEEEET!!! OMG it was hilarious ... I literally hung my head, and everyone was laughing - I got razzed about it for the rest of the weekend - it was pretty damn funny!!! I redeemed my self with Kaleb in the Gamble and he was one of the few dogs to get it!!! GOOD BOY!!

More on dog/human relationships this week ... and my observations at the trial ... i've said it before, it can't be faked ... and the true honest relationships between dog and handler are the ones who are most successful on and off the course. more on that later ...

simple pleasures.

Grammy got a new car. She took us for a car ride. It has a sunroof. Life is good!!

This week, Kaleb got a full Health Check, bloodwork the whole deal. Seeing as he is a double digit next month ... it was time for his "Old enough to know better, still to young to care" check up :)

He still wants to be active and runs like the wind when he gets the chance. But his body is finally starting to catch up with him. Its nothing major, but I want him to stay active. He can get a bit stiff and sleeps alot deeper after a big work out or a weekend of Agility. His joints are great for an older dog - he is in great condition - but I notice he does not having as much muscle as he used too - comes with any animal aging, even us humans have to work harder at that as we age - so we will work a bit harder now at keeping tone with extra ball work targeting the certain muscle groups I feel that need it, as well as more massage when he needs it too. He has a bit of possible arthritis in his right stifle, something from an old injury that might be showing up now as there is a bit of scar tissue in the area where I have noticed a bit of stiffness after lots of activity. We might treat with with an extra joint supplement as well we are upping his lipid mussel/glucos. supplement to a therapeutic level, and not a maintenance level.

His bloodwork overall was very good. Titres back with really good vaccine levels and his Thyroid is low - though he doesn't display classic symptoms of that - we will treat it homeopathically first and see what we get.

We feel so lucky to have him healthy, happy and still crazy at this age .... yep ... just one month ...and the boy will be 10 years old!!!

What drives you?

Do you ever just sit back and wonder why the hell we throw ourselves into this bizarre culture of "dog"?

It's a complicated culture full of religious beliefs, mantras and people with questionable fashion sense. People who look at you because you have a certain breed "you are a retirever person", "oh you are one of those Border Collie people", or because you support a certain "Brand" AKA "System" or you put a cross in a place where you might get struck by lightening if you aren't careful. Like in my real life I consider myself agnostic - I believe in many things, not just one ... I like to think that keeps me open minded in my life, and when training with mine, and other peoples dogs. This "dog" culture full is of people who judge us and we put ourselves in situations where we offer, and we even pay to be judged, It goes further than sport of Agility, or sports, really. It for me, goes back to being a pet owner in general ... it happens in all levels of owning a dog ... like the people who judge you for not taking your dog to Dog Parks "you must have bad dogs, maybe they would be more friendly if you took them there", or those who think I starve my dogs because they are not coffee tables, those people who give you dirty looks when you sit your dogs on the path instead of letting them visit. It is everywhere ... it's life I guess.

For me I throw myself in this culture because, it's all "For the Love of Dog" ...

• My dogs have made me a better person.

• I have made my best friends in life because of dogs.

• I have learned more with my dogs than I ever did in 4 years of College.

• They have taken me more places, and we have seen more things than I would have ever done if I didn't have them

• I love to learn, I love to teach, I love to be taught.

• I love to be loved unconditionally.

• I love seeing the special bond between dog and person, especially when it's true and sincere. It is not something you can fake. Those who are the most successful have this bond. It can't be forced, it can't be faked. Dogs are smarter than humans that way.

... yep, that's me, just another crazy dog person ...

hannibal jane, in the lead

hannibal jane, in the lead, originally uploaded by sarah ....

a random photo from 4 years ago that made me laugh today ... thought you'd enjoy it too :)

oh the good 'ol days when Jane needed to be muzzled on runs, don't let her sweet face fool you, she is all grit :) ok well maybe these days she isn't but she was :) you know the says "it's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog" ... that was written for Jane, and well she's still fighting, but in another way these days :)

and this one, because it's fucking funny... come on!

again muzzled on a river trip with at Blazingstar in 2009 ... Liz enjoys her flat-coats not having chunks out of them ... and well come on, how cute does she look in her pink lifejacket?

" I AM GOING TO FUCKING KILL YOU ALL" xoxox Jane

happy groundhog day

head in a hole., originally uploaded by sarah ....

Gyp - did you find him?

acceptance and sincerity.

Terry Simons was here this weekend from sunny California. Terry and I always have great conversations outside of the seminar - a 2 hour drive each way to pick him up and drop him off really gives me a chance to pick his brain and talk about the weekend ahead and how the weekend went. We talk about our students - yes probably you :) I get some extra insight in to how I and (we - Amanda included) might better our training and teaching. He really enjoys coming to our group - we are small but mighty :)

This weekend for me, was about Acceptance and Sincerity ...

This weekend was not without it's share of tears - the tears and laughter seemed to go hand in hand. Terry honoured Tag by being the first dog to have a donation made in his honour in his new canine Cancer foundation CLEAR. We toasted Tag in a private dinner with a fine bottle of Champagne. We presented Jo with a painting - cried more - and I hope it helped Jo in her healing process. A sincere gesture goes along way, it seems to help with the process of acceptance .. as crappy as the reality is.

The last week, and this weekend has really put into perspective our relationships with our dogs. Their lives are short, some unfairly shorter than others.

Love the dog you have. Accept them for who they are.

They accept us unconditionally.

Always give your dog a sincere effort, they will give you that back. And really, I think that is what creates a great working relationship - perhaps not just with our dogs, but with our human relationships too. I observed this over the weekend - it was nice to step back and observe our students and have them improve and learn under the guidance of Terry - and see the ones who truly put in a sincere effort get something back from their dog.

I've figured out that you can fool a human into thinking you are being sincere, and everything is OK - but I have yet to meet a dog who can't see through that.

Gyp and I had a great weekend - I really wanted Terry to push me this weekend and he did. I learned a ton, tried new things, trusted my dog, had fun, went all out, and she put in all the effort I could ever ask for back. I only worked Kaleb a little - he crashed a jump and didn't seem quite right the rest of the day I worked him. He again, put in a great effort - maybe a little too much ...

I do my best to accept my dogs for who they are - I don't try to change their spirit, and make them conform to me. I don't make them something they are not - I want them to be happy and be the best dog they can. Interesting though, they have certainly changed me - and that is what I am thankful for everyday.

somewhere over the rainbow

Somewhere over the rainbow
Skies are blue,
And the dreams that you dare to dream
Really do come true.

Someday I'll wish upon a star

And wake up where the clouds are far
Behind me.
Where troubles melt like lemon drops
Away above the chimney tops
That's where you'll find me.

Somewhere over the rainbow ...

Yesterday the world lost one of the good ones. I honestly can't stop crying. I'm so sad for Tag's family, I'm sad for his mama, and I'm sad that he was taken at 6.5 years old. I loved him like one of my own, and he passed so fast that it just doesn't seem real. Tag has been sick and slowly getting worse, but suddenly he got really bad, and then, he was gone. We were fortunate to spend part of the day with him, I was going over for supper, but Jo called me to come over early as some of his blood work results came back, and it wasn't good, I called Amanda to let her know and she was there in 10 minutes. We comforted Jo, we comforted Tag and we reminisced about the great times, and talked about his last days. Today we met for a walk and kept the memories going, great friends sure are amazing in times like these, and these situations can make those friendships even stronger, and keep those memories even closer to the heart.

He was a shining star in the Agility world, but most of all a LOVED family member who did everything with his family. He was a part of our close-knit agility family, as well as our extended family in real-life. Tag was our first student in our Puppy Teambuilding classes, he was a star at 4 months old. We used to call him Tag-alunatic ...that was soon relplaced with Tag-alicious. He was a dog who was all heart, and the bond he and Jolayne shared was the kind of bond most people only wish of having - and that bond came through in their Agility Career together, and most importantly everyday life. They accomplished amazing things together in a very short time, he was smart, tough as nails, brilliant dog. Over the past couple years he was our best travelling buddy going to Agility Trials. I loved his cuddles at night and his grumpy groans in the morning - he and Kaleb were hilarious together. Kaleb would try to kiss him ALL THE TIME ... and Tags "Mad teeth" were just not enough to EVER make him stop, EVER.

And then there was Gyp and Tag ... they loved eachother from the moment they set eyes on eachother. I am going to miss Gyp losing her mind at Agility when he running. Oh god, how I am going to miss that. Fuck this is so unfair for his family. Nobody else makes her soooo crazy, Tag brought out the best in her :) She would hear him inside the building warming up and would instantly lose her mind. Gyp gave Tag confidence with people, something Gyp learned from Kaleb. Gyp passed that confidence onto Tag, and Jo could often be seen walking them together. Thanks for the ride buddy, and thanks for being the dog you were, you made me a better trainer, and because of you I have an extended family that I never would have met it if I hadn't met you.

Good-bye my friend. We'll love you always, Ricky-roo.

the mind of a genius ...

Kaleb is special ... I wish he spoke human so I could understand what goes on in there ....

this is how the game begins ... he's been doing this since he was a puppy ... if there is something to hide under ....blanket, bed, leaves, the chute in agility, a sock, in this case a box ... he is there ...



the end ...

_____ in a Box.

Pete builds a new table ... Gyp gets a surprise ..

he did it again! (something good this time)

For the 5th year in a row, Kaleb is the #1 Flat-coated Retriever in Canada in AAC Agility!

He'll be 10 years old in a couple months, so who knows what this year will bring, but knock on wood he'll be healthy and sound as he has always been.

What a journey with this boy ... I lost count at title number 40, but I think it is past 50 now. Oh to reminisce about the good 'ol days when he would steal people's toys from their bags and f-off over a 4' fence and wait to see if I would give in - he was such a bastard, let's not forget about pissing on top the A-frame and while running across the dogwalk ... good-bye testicles. He is such a wonderful working dog, and I'm glad I haven't squashed his spirit in the process, it would have been really easy to do with such a "high-spirited" dog. Kaleb can be a difficult dog, ya he is happy and fun, and everyone sees that side of him, but he is a complicated mix of being sensitive and dominant and really FUCKING pushy. As long as he is convinced it's a game, a super fun game - and he plays them by my rules, and I'm consistent to a T ... he will give you %150 percent, any time, any place. More than any of my others dogs, I've learned patience, lost my patience, practiced patience again ... repeat until exhausted. I've also learned how my emotions effect a training session or even being in the ring. I had MAJOR nerve issues in Obedience with him, and do this day I still can't believe I got through his CDX without the help of prescriptions drugs or booze. I learned "I have to be my best, for him to be his best", and that is something I will carry though for the rest of my dogs, for the rest of life, in every venue I endeavor in.

Good job buddy, you're an ass, but I love you ... keep on runnin'

One of my favourite K agility shots, from 2008 Nationals in Sussex, New Brunswick.