Saturday, December 31, 2005

Thursday Training - Protection

Seeing as most people could make it early, we had a training session at the NEC on Thursday afternoon. Phil Behun and Cherie are down from Chicago to get married this afternoon(31Dec05) and were at training. Many of you will know Phil and his Mali Ripp. I was trying out my new Olympus E-500 (santa was good) so here are some of the shots from Thursday.


Ali with Madison in Fus





Ann & Basco between Blinds 1 & 2



Basco in A Blind 2 Hold & Bark









Ali & Aron between Blinds 1 & 2



Aron rounding Blind 1



Aron Rounding 2 as Jojo runs for it









Aron and Jojo doing the Escape









Back online

Ok So I didnt write much over the holidays... There was some training going on with Ali standing in for me and doing really well taking instruction from the sidelines. The dogs accompanied us to the in-laws for Christmas dinner and behaved well with their dogs, shared in some turkey.

I have never seen a dog that enjoys a pool as much as Aron, If the gate down to the pool is open at the in-laws he is off at full speed, and all you can hear is the faint sound of the splash. The fool dog with literally swim laps, treading water to play with the pump jets, chasing down any wayward leaves that happen to be floating, gernerally having a ball. Yesterday I watched as he quite happily amused himself and swam for a good 20 minutes until I called him out to get back in the car. Madison loves to swim from the boat but only joins him for a lap or two when in the pool.

Monday, December 19, 2005

Play Training & Running a blind

I'm still all slung up so Ali filled in tonight to help burn off some GSD energy.

I set up one blind under the floodlights, and after some explicit instructions...(not that kind of explicit) Aron ran the blind and can barreling back to her for the tug... The momentum of the hit kinda pulled her about 5' backwards but she barely managed to stay upright, a noble effort, considering she only outweights him by about 30lbs.

Madison ran the blind for both the tug and for food. Ali was very impressed with the pup. She was initialy so focused on the food that the blind may as well have been invisible for all she cared, but it all worked out and she became really fast.

Saturday, December 17, 2005

Protection

There was a good turn out at Port Royal School today. Jojo brought Gunner, Kiristi brought Walker, Ann had Basco, William brought Kiara(Czech GSD) and Margaret came with Briggs(Cda GSD). Ali the substitute handler (my wife) handled Madison and Aron really well, even though they are a little smaller than the horses she is used too.

We started Aron running the blinds for the tug and he worked fast, striking hard on his return to Ali. Jojo was in the fourth blind and he went right into a strong hold n bark, good hard fight and we put him up on that.

His second trip out was made up of several drag bites... and I mean he really dragged her ass across the field.. and several escapes.. It was really pretty amazing that he ignored Jojo figeting with the sleeve but was on him in the instant he lifted his foot to run.

Madison started out with some good basic line bites and on her second trip did some excellent obed with Ali for food... her great weakness.

Thursday, December 15, 2005

Obedience ???

Tooks the dogs up to NEC for training tonight. Had my substitute handler (my wife) filling in. It was certainly a fun night.

A quick walk to stretch thier legs and she started with a long recall across the entire main ring... That Shepherd is damn fast... He just about cleaned her out. Then a harness pony showed up to turn laps and the dogs became entirely focused on this pony running laps around then, whining etc etc etc.

Once he left Madison did some good work for food and Aron did some work on a tie out.

Saturday, December 10, 2005

Surgery

Well I went in at 9:30 yesterday out around 3:30.... dont remember much else.

The doctor has a site explaning the whole thing here.

I should find out all the bits and pieces on Monday... Slings suck.

Thursday, December 08, 2005

Last night of training for a while......

I go under the knife tomorrow for arthroscopic surgery to repair a tendon in my right shoulder. Hopefully all goes well and I can be training full force in a couple months. Tracking will continue after a couple weeks and other work will have to depend on recuperative progress... shitty.....

We took advantage of my last night to go to the NEC and train with Ann & Basco under the big lights. Broke out the camera and took some shots, funnily the ones without the flash are much brighter.... wierd.

Basco Airborne


Basco without flash


Aron knohe


Aron Sit-in-Front


Aron Into my Arms


Madison Sit-in-Front


Madison Airborne

Tuesday, December 06, 2005

Progress

Under the lights just as it began to rain....

Aron is coming along nicely as we worked for the tug, the ball and the piece of PVC pipe. He is getting used to playing tug with the hard pipe and not chewing, he is improving slowly with the command out of drive. I think I should switch to German, the slavik commands aren't as hard sounding, the more syllables the slower the reaction hmmmm... I finished with throwing the dumbell(handle wrapped in "vet wrap"), and sending for the retrieve. He sat in heel, waited staring at the dumbell and leap out, grabbed and flew back. I played tug with it and let him carry it back to the house.

Madison did some good drive work, in motion excercises, and playing. She gets so down when I tie her out to work Aron, then so excited when its her turn again...

Back in the house the pups are being kept in line by Maggie....

Sunday, December 04, 2005

Beat the dark

After spending the day at the horse show I raced to get in some drive work before dark.

I alternately tied them out while working the other. Madison did some good heeling, recalls, sit in motion and sit in front.

Aron worked on commands out of drive, a couple steps of heeling with focus, and calming into sit in front while fighting with the tug. All in all a good evening.

Tracking

It was a nice warm morning at Southside. Ann had Basco out and Kay brought Loki.

Aron's track was longer than usual with fully half the track without food. The spaces were from 8 - 15 paces including the corners. I was really happy with his work. he focused and even ignored a dog being walked nearby that fired up right at him. The last corner in particular was good with 10 paces before and after food free. I finished him with 20 paces with food in every step and I came up alongside to make sure he was precise to the end.

Madison worked her track intensely, I think once she starts I could leave and wait for her at the end. I increased the distance between food up to 20 paces and she figured out to follow the scent of the footsteps not merely smell for the food.

Saturday, December 03, 2005

Protection

We met at Port Royal School at 3:00. Ann brought Basco out, Jojo brought Gunner, Kiristi had the puppy and Charles brought his 7 month old GSD.

I worked Aron on the blinds again. Today I took him out and worked 4 blinds with a tug without the helper(JoJo) on the field. He was coming strong and fast.After the second run through JoJo went into the 4th blind and we started from 1. He rounded 2 and head to 4. I had a brain freeze and didnt get "NO" out of my mouth until he was almost in the blind. He can back to me in the center of the field when I called which surprised the shit out of me because he was in a strong hold and bark. We then started back at 1 and he ran the four perfectly twice. Finished with a drag bite.

Madison did some line work with me doing my best post impression. She was having a hard time getting out of defense and a lot of growling.

Aron's 2nd session we followed the same program and ran the 4 blinds empty and then ran with Jojo in #2. Some good fighting for the sleeve, he ran in a circle and into arms and running and into arms etc etc and carried the sleeve into the crate.

Tracking

A good morning out at Southside. bit of a breeze and Ann was there with Basco, Kay brought Loki.

Aron worked really well, I eft the first steps off the scent pad food free, then ran it downwind, generally working 10 or so steps with food and 5 to 15 steps without. Corners without, last 30 paces with. Although I ran most of the track between 6' and 16' behind him, for the last 30 paces I again worked my way up the line and made absolutely sure that he was step by step to the end.

Madison ran her track well but she was easily distracted today by Kay retruning with Loki. a firm "No.. such" got her back on the track. her track again ran inbetween the playground equipment and she did well. I am strating her with the line under the right front leg and once underway reaching under and switching it to the left. She doesnt react to my hands being there at all but if it is on the right she tracks with her ass off to the left.

Friday, December 02, 2005

Late night

A subcontractors christmas party later and I got home to start training around 9:00. The two sets of worklights (500W halogens) worked really well at lighting up the yard for each side.

Aron settled down and even after a good fight over the tug he settled into a sit in front and let me touch him with my leg (alternating left and right). I managed to get through the entire session without having to out him although he did somehow manage to get the tug I was using to tempt him to let go into his mouth with the other still in there...

Madison worked well and I tried her on a tie out for a few bites. As long as the rope was on the ground I could entice to bite and then once on the bite she would hold hard no matter what, but if the rope got tight while I had in drive... dead stop... Amazing the affect one lunge against the line on a 2" collar a year ago is still having...

Thursday, December 01, 2005

Obedience & Drive under the Lights

Tonight was a good night up at the NEC under the huge floodlights. The crew was setting up all the jumps in the ring for the horse show this weekend so we used the pony racing track around the outside for training. Ann came with Basco, Mark brought Cesaer and Jeanette had Nancy.

I worked both dogs with food for the first session, fus, sits and downs in drive. I had Aron on leash with the prong and corrected for anything out of position or slow, it worked out well, his food drive has been so much higher since we started tracking that he never dropped out of drive and I managed to be fast enough to stop him picking up anything from the ground.

Aron' second session was fus and drive commands with the tug and we set up one blind and worked on his revier, returning to me for the tug for a fast hit, practising for the courage test.

It was good to work the dogs with all the commotion going on around us as the guys moved the jumps, with the tractor, trucks, trailers and even dragged the race track while we worked through it.