Davie had a busy weekend, which is good because it maybe a slow week. Current temperature with the wind chill is -44. The wind dies down tomorrow and the temperature plummets to lows of -34 for a few days. We may not be doing a lot outside. Maybe time to concentrate on trick training? I must be getting soft in my old age. I remember weeks of -30s and it never really slowed things down.
Friday night we went out to the barn to watch people practice agility and do some distraction training. This was Davie's second time out at the barn. I swear the first time we went out last week he walked on looked at me and said, "So where are the sheep? What's with this funny looking stuff?" We did a lot of tugging and sits, downs, nose touches etc. while other dogs where running the agility equipment. Davie was pretty focused on playing with me. Once he figured out he wasn't going to go dog herding.
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Reaaaaaaaaaaaady? |
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Not sure who has a bigger mouth! |
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Got it! |
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Vicious guy |
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Hey, you with the camera, bug off I'm playing! |
Saturday we spent all day at the Top Dog Agility Trial. Davie watched from his crate, while I helped with the trial. But he did get to visit a lot of people and dogs. He did really well considering the commotion around the place. We did work up in the stands on downs, sits, backup etc. He paid excellent attention considering the dogs running the course. It was a long day for both of us.
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Kimber from Eromit Labradors |
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Isn't she a beauty? |
The Sunday we went to a Rally Obedience Trial. I entered Davie in Novice even though I knew he wasn't ready for a full course. The idea was to expose him to a different environment in the training centre. He is used to going there for classes and seeing the same dogs. This gave him a new perspective of the place. He did the first few stations alright then became to verklempt so we just heeled around the room and went out. He was a happy guy as we left. And this was the whole idea. With Davie it is more about exposure to new situations and giving him confidence than about doing a competition. We have lots of time to do that when he gains more confidence.
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Just checking, did you read it correctly? |
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Just heeling |
So after all this mental stimulation Davie needed stress relief. And if it is too windy and cold to go for a long hike where do you go? But of course you go to visit the huskies, so off we went. I love watching them play together, it is so wonderful to watch the interaction. Davie left a tired and happy guy.
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The pack, notice I am on the inside taking to picture! |
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Hey Shiloh, need some help? |