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She walked nicely on the leash to the car from the fun match tonight.  She is very car sick – drools and has been balking about getting in the car.  It’s been too hot to work on getting in the car so it was nice she went in without any training.  I think I’m going to take the long way home tonight and throw lots of food at her on the way.

The indoor place I train at has a list of things that the instructor wants the dog to be able to do before they come to their first agility class.  Dulce has everything but lining up at the start line, and boy howdy, don’t remember even teaching that the Macy, it just happened.  Will probably have the behavior down by Monday night knowing me.  It’s pretty easy.  And yes, Macy lines up on both sides.

These are behaviors like – knowing something about directions – which is hard for me, easy for the dogs – I’m slightly dyslexic when it comes to right and left.  However, I can tell where the dog is moving in relation to my body.  Turning to my left feels natural, turning the other way makes me feel a little uncomfortable.

Knowing how to learn is important.  Sits, downs, and beginning stays.  Tug is also important.

So I’ve done a really good job – I’ve had Dulce since the first weekend of May (or the last weekend of April).

She’s got a reprieve.  Just finished talking to the vet, and she suggested upping her dose to 3 total pills a day instead of two.  Since the pet sitter is coming this week (I’m in an all day workshop), I’m having her give her a third pill when she comes by.  I’m not sure if it makes a difference – and if any one knows, let me know – but I’m thinking that giving one pill three times, is better than 1 1/2 pills two times.  But for this week, with the change past the first pill, I”m going to try the one pill, three times a day.

Maggie wasn’t happy to be in her cage and trying to get out at 7:10 this morning.  Clouds were just coming in.

The problem is that we’re looking like we’re going to have bad weather at least twice a day, if not more.  Each time, she gets upset, screams and tries to get out of her cage.  She’s actually broken air line designed crates before.

Really nice judge, said he did AKC too. 

We did Level I, and Macy didn’t run at all well the first time, but I listened to my instructor who was yelling at another student to keep moving and that helped.

She did okay the second time, got all the jumps, but couldn’t do the dog walk, which was very weird. 

For my aunt Dee, we finished at 11:08, but the games just started.

And I really like the award’s ceremony.

Thanks to the Gold Medal group for putting it on, and I’m up for more CPE, if they can get more going.

I think we’re going to finally put her down.  I’ve wanted to for a LONG time, but my husband wasn’t ready to.

She’s a rescue beagle and she’s nuts.    We’ve given her a good home, she’s been an okay agility dog and gotten better as life has gone on, but she’s got some real problems still.

Her worse is screaming, especially around storms.  It’s June storm season and she’s bad this year.  This morning she screamed in her crate, screamed in the back yard and wouldn’t stop screaming until I let her in the house.  However, I can’t leave her loose in the house because she will tear it up, or at the very least eliminate on the floor.

I stopped working with her last fall.  She is currently around 12 years old and at the time we were going through thunderstorms so left her home.  It was SO nice not to have to deal with her screaming, tearing at crates and generally being a pain, that I decided to stop working with her and concentrate on Macy.

Here’s what I’ve said for years, if you had a dog that was in as much physical pain and anguish as this dog is mentally, wouldn’t you put it down?  My husband ignores it most of the time and doesn’t see how much anguish she is in.  Today he faced it – face first.

We did a bunch of rounds of weaves – she didn’t want to quit.

We did an hour of conformation.

We did an hour of Pre-Agility Level II at Dog City.  In fact, she quit before the class ended by 5 minutes.

Right now, she’s sacked out on the sofa.  I think that’s the first time I’ve ever seen her sacked out since we got her about 6 weeks ago.

Nice.

 

I’m working with Dulce and Macy on Weaves and Stays right now.  Focusing mostly on Dulce.

I haven’t  been able to teach Macy any kind of a stay so I took a private with Dulce – especially since we didn’t get much out of our last Level II class, and I really don’t want to screw up a second dog.

It went really well, and it was really worth the time.  I’ve been working on the skill but not so much I overwhelm her brain.

Weaves are going really well too.  I try to do them once a day.  I’d set everything up a few weeks ago, hadn’t gotten to it, and then went back to it on Monday, and she got it.  However, when I put the poles a bit closer together that bothered her, so we’re staying there for a time.

Since it is cool in the morning, I am doing channel weaves in the morning.  Yes, I know that 2×2 is the fashion right now, but I already have channel weaves.

I tried this a few weeks ago, when I first got Dulce and she still remembers.

I’m letting Macy review and starting out with Dulce.

Dulce has figured out that she gets a cookie if she runs down the poles, and she is already curving a bit.  I was able to put the poles a bit closer together today and they didn’t bother her at all.

I know I am going to have a bit of an interruption next week since I’ll be at a workshop.

Remembering some advice from my instructor — any method is fine as long as you

Yes, the living room has been puppied.  There are dog toys and remains of dog toys everywhere.

Maggie and Macy in a dog bed together.  I do not know why "The Maids" insist on stacking the dog beds, but it results in stacked beagles.

Actually it wasn’t the first class for either of us.  Dulce came knowing how to show in conformation — has taken a first puppy and a second puppy to a kennel mate.

But this WAS the best class I’ve had.  Joyce Miller — has Airedale’s.  I wanted to do this as a class, would have been a HECK of a lot cheaper.

Also thought it was amusing that she was trying to teach me visualization.  The woman who plays chess in her head and also walks agility courses in her head, does not need help with visualization.

Next week I need to remember to wear the skirt and shoes I think I want to wear in the ring.  Want to see how they work.  I’ve gotten lots of compliments on the skirt and I actually own at least two of them.

Right now, we’re focusing on teaching me how to walk, and I think I did very well since it’s the opposite way of walking when heeling.  I also need to work on clicking her stand, and finding out what exactly I’m looking for.  Camera and TV might be good for that.