This Is What I Do In My Spare Time

Guess who?!?!

It's computer-game Maxwell!

The demo for the pets expansion of The Sims is out, and I have already spent far too much time playing with it.

The pre-made Aussie looked terrible. It had a tiny head, rough collie-like mane, and too much tail (or not nearly enough, for the tailed dogs). So, I made my own from scratch! Each individual patch and color is a separate layer. I also customized every feature, such as muzzle shape, ear angle, and waist tuck. The avatar still isn't a perfect representation of him, but it's darned close.

Now I have to wait for the full game to be released, so my sims can play with Maxwell!

Teaser 2

You’re planning a long road trip with your dog, going halfway across the country to visit some friends. You decide that you’d like to find a local trial to run in while you’re there, and will plan your travel dates accordingly. Your dog is very noise sensitive, but does well in small indoor venues.

You’ve never tried to compete outside your home region before, and your trainers and friends have never been to your destination city. After some searches on the websites of the various sanctioning bodies, you find three promising trials, all indoors. How do you know which one to enter? What if one of them is right next to train tracks? What if one of them echoes a lot, or is in a huge sports complex? How do you decide which one is right for your dog?

DogTrials.net

Different Is Good

Sadie had a really good class tonight. She hit all her contacts and stayed (mostly) focused. There were a few bars down, but not too many. One was apparently a bit of an oh crap, dogwalk moment and she adjusted in-flight for her dogwalk approach. Another was a handler check-in on the end sequence of jumps. I thought she was out of that habit, but oh well.

I am finding that the new instructor very nicely compliments Mr. Trainer. I get very different advice from them, but on completely different aspects of the sport. For example, Mr. Trainer has me thinking about optimizing her path through a course to get faster times. My Tuesday instructor talked to me at length tonight about her physical capabilities. In particular, her lack of core strength. She offered a few suggestions to help with it, and encouraged me to have Sadie evaluated by a specialist that visits the club regularly.

Of the suggestions, one was to get balance dome for her to stand on. It forces the dog to use their core muscles to balance on the tippy surface.

The other one I loved... You get a boogie board, put it in the bathtub with a few inches of water, and get the dog to balance on it. That's right, hang 20, doggy!

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There has been some interest after that teaser post. Never fear, more teasers are coming! I'll probably post them once a week for the next two months or so. Guesses and thoughts are welcome in the comments!

Neglected, But Not Forgotten

I realize that it's been nearly a week since my last post... Oops! I'll just give you a few doggy highlights:

Sadie's new Tuesday night class is going well. We had a substitute instructor last week, who I had actually had once before with less than stellar results. However, I think that the combination of Sadie being much more skilled and less reactive, plus my greatly increased dog training confidence, lead to a good class. The instructor gave me a lot of good handling / course-planning information to absorb, though I think some of it is still too advanced for Sadie.

Thursday night at the shelter was a teaching night. I had about 6 new volunteers, all of whom were very interested in the dogs. One guy annoyed me greatly by texting during the class (even the lecture portion), but ended up being the best of the group when out with a dog. We even got to practice problem-solving! Our chosen dog managed to squeeze past one of the trainees, but just wriggled in a happy flurry of joy right back to me. Then he escaped again, this time by slipping his collar! I found him a better-fitting collar before we went outside.

We went to the Adirondacks for the weekend. It was nice and cool, though a bit rainy on Saturday. Maxwell practiced off-leash recalls. Boy, baby food is a great reinforcer when outdoors! Both dogs did a fair bit of running and romping through puddles. And when they got hot, both dogs ended up swimming! That's right, Maxwell went in the lake, beyond where he could stand, all on his own. No life jacket!

Sadie has a bunch more trials coming up. I also need to find some matches and/or run-throughs for Maxwell. A friend just had an extremely successful first trial with her young dog, and I have to admit to a little jealousy. I am very happy for her, but wish that I thought Maxwell was ready. I've considered it, but he's just too drivey and distracible: a bad combination for a loose dog in a new place! I just keep reminding myself that the things that make him such a challenge NOW are the same things that will make him an incredible agility dog LATER.

Lastly, I know I left a cryptic post and a rather info-less link a little while ago. Rest assured, more teasers to come!

Training Tidbits

Maxwell is getting the hang of the chair exercise. After about three clicks for ducking his head under the dining chair, he scooted himself under for a jackpot. I toss treats away from the chair to reset him, and he just dives right back under. Tonight we even worked up to me sitting in the chair! I gave treats intermittently while he relaxed, trying to keep the pauses random. He settled nicely, eventually flopping on his side with his head down. I still feel bad that he doesn't have much space, due to the cross-bar, so I won't ask him to put his whole body under our chairs. Head and shoulders is enough for now.

He is also getting very good at CHIN. With me in the chair, he will stand with his chin plastered to my thigh while I rub and pat him all over. I try to pet him differently than normal, like a child or nervous adult might do under stress. If he lifts his chin or shifts his head, I immediately end physical contact and freeze. Once he places his head down again I resume handling, then treat. Tonight I sat cross-legged on the floor for the first time with this behavior. He lay down facing me, put his front paws across my ankles, and planted his chin either on his paws or my lower leg. I was able to rub, pat, and poke him all over, look in both ears, handle his paws, and even briefly look at his teeth! Obviously I didn't ask him to accept all of these for one reward, but it was still pretty amazing. He only broke CHIN for the mouth handling, and even then he settled back down quickly.

Sadie is learning the wave. Yes, like people do at sporting events. I throw my arms up, and she stretches herself up. It's funny to see, because she very quickly gained enthusiasm for this behavior. She stretches to full length, front paws high in the air, and jumps up. Her front paws end up over my head! If I give the body cue less strongly, she responds in kind; no jump, less stretch. Next step is to teach her not to leap at me.

She is also giving very nice bows now. She stretched before we started training (like a play-bow), so I clicked. She immediately began offering shallow bows. I clicked stronger and stronger ones, until she had her front end flat on he ground and her butt in the air. So cute with such a big goofy dog! I had noticed in a previous session that she nearly always ended up stepping on my toes. I assumed it was because she kind of 'walks' into the bow, stepping her front feet out. However, I had an odd thought tonight, which I tested. I kneeled on a chair, so that I was roughly normal height but effectively had no feet. She couldn't bow! Somehow I had accidentally shaped/captured her bow as a targeting behavior on my feet. She pawed the chair, then stood up on the chair with her front feet... After some confusion on her part, and going back to clicking approximations, she did give a few decent bows with me on the chair. Something to think about, for sure!

The Dog Whisperer

I was researching ways to work through Maxwell's crate guarding the other day, and came across this article. I found it to be a level-headed and fair assessment of the TV show 'The Dog Whisperer.' As a bonus, I completely agree with the author's conclusion: the show gives dog owners bad information that is not based in canine behavior or psychology. And in my opinion, the show could easily lead well-intentioned but poorly informed owners to make matters worse.

For the record, let me say that I have watched many episodes of the show myself. Before I learned about clicker training, I even tried to apply the show's methods to Sadie, hoping to stop her lunging and growling at other dogs while on walks. Far from teaching her to be calm and mind me, it made her even more sure that dogs are bad. Her behavior escalated until she actually pulled me off my feet one day while jogging, in front of a car turning into a driveway, on a dark sidewalk. I had horrible bruises on my hip and arm for weeks, and was afraid to walk Sadie without a prong collar.

Once I switched to positive reinforcement and worked through Control Unleashed, she began to ignore dogs. She even walks on a plain flat-buckle collar. Yes, I still have to keep an eye on her when I see other pups on walks or at trials, but I know that all I have to do is say her name. No matter how intense her interest is in the strange dog, she will whip around to me for a treat.

She is my recovering reactive dog. Like a recovering alcoholic, it will always be easy for her to regress. I will always have to be vigilant, but I no longer have to worry. We are both much happier.

The Good, The Bad, And The "What The Hell Is My Dog Doing?"

I know I haven't posted much recently, and I'm sorry. I have lots to say, but haven't had much time to write! Mostly this post comes from the trial Sadie ran this past weekend, but not entirely.

The Good

Sadie, Maxwell, and I went to a trial in Sewaren, NJ on Sunday. The location was a very nice park, where there were three rings. The dogs had a great time sniffing about and rough-housing in an adjacent section of field.

Since she earned her NJP title, I had moved Sadie's Jumpers run up to Open Preferred. This was the first time Sadie had ever run an Open level course, and I think she ran wonderfully. She followed my cues, including several tight rear crosses, and (mostly) stayed with me. She didn't Q because she missed the weaves entirely. Can you say distracted? I'm pleased with the run anyway.

Maxwell did very nicely when I walked him around, giving attention when asked and generally not rushing other dogs. He wanted very badly to play with some of them, but wasn't obnoxious about it. He really seems to have calmed down in trial environments, at least as an observer.

The Bad

Maxwell has become a terrible crate-guarder. A friend said she walked by my setup with one of her dogs, and Maxwell went berserk. Not just barking, mind you, but snarling and lunging through the crate door. Poor Sadie apparently flattened herself into the farthest corner to get some distance.

This is something I've been seeing escalate, and been thinking about how best to address the issue. Now, though, it has become a serious problem. I want to be able to leave my dogs for short periods without worrying that he'll claw through the soft crate, or even just frighten another dog.

Mrs. Trainer mentioned calming caps. I'm going to discuss it with Mr. Trainer, then perhaps buy one to try. I'd like to avoid buying Maxwell his own crate to leave covered, but will do so if I must!

A brand new behavior problem has cropped up as well: vehicle chasing. Just in the past week or so I've noticed Maxwell lunge at large vans (like a florist or plumber might use) and buses. The first time or two were so isolated, and so unusual, that I assumed he had seen a squirrel that I missed. Walking the dogs tonight, though, he very clearly went after a moving van. Then another. Then a bus. Then a van.... NOT GOOD. I have no idea where this came from, but it must be stopped now. I'll probably turn large vehicles into a cue to look at me for treats, like I did with dogs to address Sadie's dog-reactivity.

What The Hell Is My Dog Doing?

Sadie had a lot of fun at the trial on Sunday, but wasn't in top form. In fact, her runs in Standard and Time 2 Beat made her look like a green dog that shouldn't be trialing yet! She visited the ring crew, sniffed grass, and ran large circles. In Standard, she took several of the (on-course) obstacles completely by accident. They just happened to be in the way of her sniff-and-run!

I actually think these two runs were worse than her very first trial. However, there was a huge difference between the two trials. In her first, Sadie was distracted, stressed, and unsure. In this trial, she was distracted, happy, and full of goofiness. Totally different mindsets that just happen to look much alike.

Had the trial been indoors, I am positive she would have nailed all three courses. As it was, I'm just happy that she stayed happy.

Teaser

I have a project in the works, but I don't know when it will be ready to go live. Maybe in a month, maybe a year... In the meantime, click here for a little hint!

Puppy Mill Awareness Day 2011

Today, September 17, is Puppy Mill Awareness Day.

While I had known for a long time about the evils of puppy mills and pet store puppy operations, my little Aussie made it a much more immediate cause. He was rescued from a West Virginia "breeder," along with his brother and sister, before they could be drowned. The rescue group was given mere days to arrange a pickup.

Maxwell is an amazing dog; loving, playful, and intelligent. I can't imagine anyone considering him or any other dog expendable.

So take some time today to hug your dog, thank your breeder for their good ethics, and appreciate the rescue organizations in your area.

Preparations Have Begun

To prepare Maxwell for the Clicker Expo, I've decided to teach him to settle under a chair. We'll work up to half-hour long (or more) periods relaxed under a chair in a quiet spot, then try to find more interesting environments to work in.

I started tonight by shaping him to crawl under one of our dining chairs. They aren't perfect, because the cross-bar is too low for him to be comfortable, but it's a good start.

He offered a very undesirable behavior during the shaping, which is unfortunately self-reinforcing: chewing the chair. I had to interrupt with a noise (Ah!) then encourage a new attempt. On the flip-side, he also tried so very hard to offer his CHIN behavior on the seat of the chair, just moving his eyes to watch me for a clue. Wrong side of the seat, little man!

I know the conference is a long time away, but settling in close quarters with many other dogs is going to be tough for him. Best to give us both a real chance.

On The Run

I researched training methods for running contacts, and came up with three main systems:

1. The Sylvia Trkman method: start running a flat board and gradually add elevation until running a dogwalk.
2. The Rachel Sanders method: use a PVC "contact box" to reinforce an area on the flat. Add to a gradually steeper A-frame, then fade.
3. Contact hoops: put a hoop at the bottom of the contact. The dog must go under it upon exiting a contact, forcing them to stay on the obstacle and not fly off.

Ok, there is a fourth: the Hail Mary. That's what I have right now, and it's super easy: just run a course and pray your dog hits the contact zone!

I think the Trkman method is too subtle for Sadie. She isn't very good at understanding what her own body is doing, so I'm not sure she would connect reinforcers with her contact in the zone. Instead, I think a combo of the other two will be beneficial.

Sadie isn't terribly fond of hoops, but I think I can modify this to work for her. My idea is to do serious work with the Sanders method, training nearly every day. When we run in class, on actual obstacles, I'll add the hoop a short distance from the end of the contact. She gets her treats after passing through it, helping her maintain a straight exit. We can add turns later. (One thing I've noticed is that her worst fly-offs are when she bails to one side on a turn)

Now I have to buy or build a contact box, and haul it to class every week!

Clicker Expo 2012!

Registration opened today, and I'm all signed up!

I'm not 100% sure if I will be able to bring a dog, since I won't do the drive alone, but decided to sign up for working labs anyway. Just in case. Not terribly expensive if I end up not bringing Maxwell. (Sadie would hate the crowd of dogs)

I'm definitely going with one of my classmates, and will share Maxwell for the labs if he comes. Hopefully more people will join us, so we have more drivers! Otherwise I will have to fly. 15 hours in the car with friends and dog(s), or a few hours in the air but no dog.

Now I just have to not spend any money on myself for the next year. This thing ain't cheap!

Woo, Clicker Expo! Nashville, here I come...

On The Dot

Sadie has gotten the hang of the two-feet approach to her dot. Tonight she still went four-on immediately, but quickly stepped off with her front feet for the click. After that, she would step all paws up and immediately walk forward into a hind-on, front-off position. Lots of clicks and treats! I want to teach her names for the four- and hind-on behaviors, but she can't distinguish them yet.

Maxwell recently learned the AFT cue for putting his hind paws on the dot. Now I'm working on FORE, behavior only. He keeps trying to give me AFT, running into position and staring ahead. When no click comes after several seconds, he walks off, turns around, and tries it facing the other direction. Once I swear he went back and forth a half-dozen times before I had a click-able moment.

He was so quick to offer AFT that I intervened a bit. As he approached the dot, I stepped in front of him, blocking him from stepping off with his front paws. After three or four of those, he started to figure out that I wanted something with his front end. While still offering many AFT behaviors, he began to also show some one- or two-paw pauses on the dot, both of which I will click at this point.

Tonight, my biggest mistake was to start Maxwell's training with an AFT cue. I think that set the tone for the rest of the session, since I reinforced a behavior that was similar to, but not the same as, what I wanted to teach. Next time I'll start fresh.

Now I'm off to research running contacts for Sadie!

Q x 3: More Is Better

Today, the pups and I drove 2.5 hours to Dream Park. It was an awful trip down, as the George Washington bridge was closed for the morning. Hooray for picking a random road and letting the GPS sort it out!

The trial location was very nice. The huge indoor riding arena fit all three agility rings, plus practice jumps. The crating area was sparse (concrete floors in what looked like a large equipment storage room) but well ventilated. Real bathrooms were very much appreciated as well!

Sadie, as you can tell from the title, did a fantastic job.

The agility gods were with us on our FAST run. The send was the A-frame to a jump. She took the A-frame with gusto, and as I cued her to the jump I saw her leap off the descent from the corner of my eye. She must have gotten a toenail in the contact zone, because no fault was called!

The Standard run had a tricky start, with a straight line of 2 jumps to the A-frame... but the third obstacle was another jump to the left. Several dogs got "trapped" by the A-frame. Sadie, I'm pleased to say, took my front-cross beautifully with nary a glance at the wrong course. She stopped nicely on the table, and I led out towards the next jump. She must know the count now, though. As the judge said "go" she launched, though I guess he must have gotten to the O already... Again, no fault!

Jumpers was last, and the most nerve-wracking. Last run for her title! Not only did she get the Q, it was picture-perfect. No close calls, no disconnects... just a fluid run. I have to thank Mr. Trainer here: he has drilled into us in class the a line is a line no matter what angle the jumps are at. In this case, there were three jumps at 45 degree angles to each other, but the dogs' path was still a straight line. It's a wonderful feeling, being confident about how to run a course. Mr. Trainer, thank you for making sure that your students can read a course, not just run one.

And now, because I'm so incredibly proud of my goofy girl:

That's right, I'm the bestest!

Fooooooooood! (Sadie's Revenge)

This is what we came home to after work:

Yes, that would be the "dog-proof" kibble bin with it's side ripped out. Sadie had opened the closet, managed to turn the bin 90 degrees, and tear off half the side. Please note that I had to open the door another foot or more to take this picture, so she managed all this in a very confined space.

Of course she ate far more food than I care to think about. That's why she now looks like this:

Nice figure with defined waist? Gone. Appetite? Still dying for treats.

Surprisingly, it doesn't look like Maxwell joined in on the feast. His tummy still felt flat and slim, and he was ravenous for training (for his dinner).

We have moved the bin into the guest bedroom, which we keep closed (and latched) during the day anyway. Even once we get a new bin, it will stay locked away at all times.

An ‘Ah Ha!’ Moment, For Dog And Handler

After writing last night about my difficulties in training Maxwell to stop with his hind feet on his dot, I worked the dogs for their dinner. Sadie is slowly coming to realize that I’ve stopped clicking for all four paws on the dot, and is offering hind-only more and more frequently.

Sadie is rather funny to watch. Since the four-on behavior has such a strong reinforcement history, she defaults to that. Then she gives me a bewildered look when no click is forthcoming, and will do one of three things; keep staring at me hopefully (sometimes paired with sitting perched on the dot), get off and give up (lie down, usually), or step off with her front paws. That last one gets a click and a bunch of kibble. She seems to be giving up less often, which is excellent, but the click and hind feet have definitely not been connected in her head.

Maxwell offered the same behaviors I’ve seen for the past several days; nose the dot, walk across the dot, paw the dot, etc. I started the session with clicks for either rear paw landing on the dot. Then I tried to select only the slower walks, which meant the paw-dot connection time was slightly longer. He would walk across it every time, but never pause with even one foot on. Frustrating!

After a few good, slow walks, I decided to see if making it harder to win a click would actually make him pause. The first time I didn’t click a slow walk, he looked at me like WTF? Did you NOT see my awesome walk? Then he pushed the dot around the floor with his nose, then bit it and pawed furiously, then walked over it again. I forced myself not to click just for rear-paw contact.

In what seemed like slow-motion, he stepped onto the dot with his right hind paw, then lifted his left rear to move it forward. As it moved past the dot, he hesitated, paw suspended in the air above the dot. CLICK! Instead on the single pieces of kibble he’d gotten for previous clicks, I shoved a fist-full of food under his nose. Even better? As soon as I clicked, that airborne paw came to rest on the dot!

From that point on he began to offer one-paw-on standing behaviors, with both paws only occasionally. He got a few (2 or 3) bits of kibble for one paw, and a big handful for both. I switched to no clicks for one paw after getting several two-paw behaviors, earning me some very concerned looks from Maxwell. At that point, I will still click if he even moves the non-dot paw.

I think we made a huge breakthrough last night, and am sure he will progress quickly from there. Now, I need to ask all of you to help me out.

What should the verbal cue be for different paw/dot behaviors? Ideally, I’d like to train and name each of the following:

• Front paws on dot
• Rear paws on dot
• Both left paws on dot
• Both right paws on dot
• All paws on dot
• Each single paw on dot (with different names for each paw)

I'm thinking maybe FORE and AFT for front and back paws, respectively. Then maybe PORT and STARBOARD for left and right pairs of paws on the same side. But that still leaves me several cues short!

I Swear We Went Running Today...

This bed was completely made about 5 minutes before the picture was taken:

Yeah... That was fun

Dark Days And More

This past week was "dark week" at the club - no classes for a week between sessions. So instead of sleeping late on Saturday like a normal person, I rented the room! I got an hour for just me and the pups, then a second hour to share with my training friends. Of course, most other people had plans already. Sadie and Maxwell ended up having a semi-private rental with the Bearded Collies.

It was a lot of fun, I must say.  I set up the JWW course from my last trial. I wanted to correct the handling mistakes that I made during our run, so I set up just the middle section to start with (weaves, double, tunnel, pinwheel). Sadie ran it like she remembered the course, though I did put her up to 24". She was even able to layer one of the room's columns between the weaves and the double, though she didn't like it. My fault for not thinking about it when I set up the room.

Maxwell had few problem with the course as well, which pleased me greatly. At 20", he moved gracefully and with focus. His only real issue was the pinwheel. Maybe I set it up too tightly, or maybe I just haven't worked tight turns enough, but he completely missed the second jump a few times. I brought him back, took just the pinwheel, and he never missed again. Note to self, work on moving into tight turns while in drive.

Once I was happy with both dogs' performance on the section, I started adding obstacles. The end sequence of jumps came first, letting me run their rear-crosses. Neither dog missed even once! They have very different styles, though. Maxwell runs with incredible purpose and fluid motion, which seems planned down to every step. Sadie takes moves like a rear-cross and executes them almost like an afterthought. Oh, right... I'm supposed to turn here.

Lastly, I added the opening jumps. For Sadie, I practiced running from the outside and pushing her to the double, like in the trial, and also with a lead-out pivot. The pivot felt so much more natural, and let me guide her along a faster path. I definitely need to get lead-outs with her in trials. I started right off with the pivot for Maxwell, since he's so fast. I could have hugged him, he was so good about a two jump lead-out.

In fact, Maxwell got so comfortable with the course that he started running it without me. I'd start to set him up, and before I could say WAIT he'd be over the first three jumps and headed for the weaves! It was absolutely incredible. I'm going to use it to my advantage, letting him work at a much greater distance than Sadie can. On the flip-side, I need to make sure it only happens when I ask for it.

Working with the Beardies was fun, too. We ran our own dogs for the first 40 minutes or so, they doing the JWW course, me finding new sequences within it (like running it through the pinwheel, then back into the tunnel to finish in reverse). It gave them a real course to practice on, and me more experience being creative in my training. Plus, it meant handling everything from the opposite side as the original course.

My friends' young male Beardie has a habit of not respecting jumps. He's incredibly fast and athletic, but tends to take off too late and knock bars with his chest.  With some practice, he was getting through the course with only a few bars down, which were always in the pinwheel. He's been getting noticeably better about not mugging his handler, and is responding nicely to her new style of handling (adding obedience cues to settle him).

I offered Maxwell for my friend's mom to run, since her female Beardie is a wonderful dog, but slow. She finished the course with a grin, telling her daughter that she "had to try running him. He's so smooth!" After two rounds, my friend agreed. Yay for Maxwell!

I got to run the young Beardie, which was a blast. He's completely different from either of my two dogs. Much more drive than Sadie, but needs to be handled more firmly than Maxwell. He ran quietly for me, only tried to mug me once (hey, I did have a frisbee after all...), but still took the same bars.

On a whim I got out three more bars for the three most 'reliable' downed jumps. One end of the extra bar went 4" below the jump bar. The other end was on the ground, but pulled about 8" towards the take-off point. Clean on the first run! Adding more perceived depth to the jump moved his take-off point nearly a foot back, letting him clear the bar. I bet his handler could practice like that regularly, and gradually fade the extra bar. And before you think that I'm some kind of jumping savant for thinking this up, I'm nearly positive I saw someone do this with their dog once.

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We had out-of-town guests for the long weekend. My boyfriend's mom spent her free time feeding the dogs; peanut butter on toast, dinner leftovers, you name it. For their part, the dogs loved having more people to demand attention from. In fact, the very first morning they burst into the guest bedroom (whoops, forgot to latch the door!) and launched onto my boyfriend's sleeping parents. Good morning!

My boyfriend's brother and sister-in-law were here as well, though staying in a hotel. They enjoyed watching the dogs rough-house, and mused about their own dog's doings. He, a mini-Doxi, was staying with a friend of theirs.

I was especially happy to show off clicker training / positive reinforcement training. They saw Sadie's trick of standing on an overturned wastepaper basket, which she throws herself into without need for a cue. (See? Clicker dogs love training!) Maxwell showed off some shaping, as I'm trying to get him to stand with his hind feet on his dot (a slightly raised, small circular platform). We're up to walking over it with one-foot contact. He's definitely having a hard time connecting his conscious brain to his hind end.

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Last night was the first day of Sadie's new Tuesday class: Novice competition. It was very strange working with a new trainer, surrounded by people I don't know. Sadie regressed a little into reactivity, but was fairly easy to call back to work. Despite my warning the instructor about her past behavior issues, and her subsequent warning to the class, one woman walked her GSD right past the end of the weaves I was working through. Luckily Sadie wanted my cheese more than to investigate the strange dog.

I have to be vigilant in this class, and not just of Sadie's reactivity. The jumps were set for USDAA, so when we ran, I accidentally put Sadie through a 24" tire. Oops! She's never jumped one that high before! She's used to AKC, which puts the tire 4" lower than anything else. (This is because dogs generally jump through the center of the circle, which is much higher than the official height of the jump.)

This instructor will be very good for me as a handler. She pointed out that I was bending over on contacts and crosses, effectively shortening Sadie's stride and pushing her away with my posture. I hadn't even realized I was doing it, and must now make myself work more upright.

The instructor also wants to work on my contacts. I told her that I've trained a 2-on-2-off, but Sadie tends to run them (legally) in competition. It seems like we will be moving to a true running contact, as my homework is to research running contact videos and training methods. This will probably be a good change for Sadie, since she's not exceptionally drive-y anyway.

Now we get to look forward to a new session of Saturday classes as well!

Fooooooooood! (redux)

When I got home from the shelter tonight, I was greeted by the two wiggly dogs. Then I saw the open hall closet door.

Sadie had opened the door and gnawed on the kibble container. Luckily, I'd had the foresight to turn it around. She had only been able to reach the hinged side, rather than the latch again. And thank goodness! We had just filled the bin with an enormous bag of fresh food!

Fooooooooood!

When we got home from work tonight we were greeted by two happy wagging dogs. One of them, however, was a very naughty dog.

The sliding door of the hall closet was open about 18 inches, and there was a bag that looked suspiciously like the kibble bag upright in the middle of the hall. On closer inspection, the "dog-proof, lockable, air-tight" kibble bin had been pried open and it's content surgically removed.

Amazingly, there was still kibble in the bag.

Sadie the now-very-bloated Labrador ate probably 10 cups of Blue Buffalo kibble. I'm frankly shocked there was anything left, given Sadie's see-food diet approach to life: She sees it, she eats it.

Needless to say, she has a very upset tummy. She got 2 tiny scraps of my steak from dinner, but nothing else. (Hey, I can't just make her watch me train Maxwell for 15 minutes and leave her out completely!) She looked pathetic, all bloated but still wanting dinner.

Guess what? My boyfriend can take care of the 4am diarrhea scramble. I've already taken care of it twice tonight, poor dog. It's amazing she didn't make a mess in the apartment before we got home.

And in case you're wondering, it doesn't look like Maxwell ate much, if any, of the "free" kibble. His stomach felt nice and flat, and his energy levels (and bowel movements) were 100% normal. Good puppy!