The project contines...the AF commences

Yipee - Marc's practical skills have been used well today and he has completed the rubberisation of the DW :-) so will be able to start using it in a few days. Whilst this was going on I thought best try and introduce the concept of the running a-f. And bugger me - despite Rivi not having been on one since prestbury park and the fact it was on its lowest height she still 'froze' the blasted agility gremlin of a 'stutter' was still there. I tried to 'play' around with it but I felt I was in danger of losing all the progress made with the DW - yikes - not good at all

So no free a-f for me...how can I eliminate/terminate/suppress this a-f gremlin??!! I dug out our 'baby' af plank that Rivi always liked, and she went over it, but not mirroring the new behaviour learnt on the DW. So I needed her to think of running and still make definite contact with the contact zone too. So I came up with the following way to do it.



The key is for me is:

• it resulted in success in terms of achieving my initial goal for training a running AF i.e movement
• it provides me with a foundation to build on
• and as said before the ultimate for me is always that my Rivi is a happyoli
• that I enjoy and get a really sense of satisfaction in being constructive and creative in training - or just having sheer luck that it worked :-)

Its early days I know and who knows if it right or not but at the moment it working for us - we have had 3 great sessions and even if I move the 'send around' cone Rivi absolutely achieves the behaviour :-)

Inspiration and rubberisation

Had the grand plan to rubberise the dog walk whislt the dogs and us have our christmas break - only for Marc to find the wood had rottened. So not only does it need rubberising, we have had to replace the bit the dogs run on (planks) which of course requires priming,  painting, drying and then it can be rubberised. We are using Contact A Coat but not putting slats on. Having watched a huge number of contact videos (running and 2o2o) I am unsure about slats and the impact on dogs paws. Do they need to be more minimal like a ripple rather than a ridge? So that will be another learning curve for 2012 as I learn about rubber contacts.

With short day light hours and winter weather - training is a bit on hold. I am hopeful in about 2 weeks I should be able to dash outside when I get home and do some and get the project back on track. 

Since undertaking this retraining project with Rivi I think it has really enhanced our relationship,  working together to overcome our agility 'gremlin'. 

But to keep me going some brilliant motivation from Silva Trkman - just look at this video. Totally brill :-)

The shortest day...The longest night...

Its a pivotal day the shortest day and the longest night -  I am always thankful to celebrate the return of longer daylight days. 

The Winter Solstice a celebration of light returning and the earth awakening.  A time of togetherness and glimmerings of hope for the new year, and toasts to those we have loved and lost. Of remembrance, thanks and celebration.

A festival of lights - twinkling brights, welcoming the light with candles and also lit for remembrance of those loved and lost. An Evergreen solstice thanks to the garden which happens to have holly. (but I do need to introduce mistletoe )

A celebration of all good things had and to come - to be enjoyed and treasured.  A friend knowing my appreciation of the Winter Solstice sent me this poem called The Shortest Day by Susan Cooper

'So the shortest day came, and the year died,
And everywhere down the centuries of the snow-white world
Came people singing, dancing,

To drive the dark away.

They lighted candles in the winter trees;

They hung their homes with evergreen;

They burned beseeching fires all night long

To keep the year alive,

And when the new year’s sunshine blazed awake

They shouted, reveling.

Through all the frosty ages you can hear them

Echoing behind us – Listen!!

All the long echoes sing the same delight,
This shortest day,
As promise wakens in the sleeping land:
They carol, fest, give thanks,
And dearly love their friends,
And hope for peace.
And so do we, here, now,
This year and every year.
Welcome Yule!!'

UKAgility Finals - Dec 2011 :-)

Back in May at the UKAgility Show 2011 - Zev and Me qualified for the Tug-e-Euff Performance Challenge Final to be held on the 3rd December. On the 2nd December 2011, on the friday evening I was nervous and cranky - not of me and Zev, but I had no idea what it would be like - it was a new event and on paper seemed a really good idea.  Could all the costs such as petrol/hotel etc be justified?

The Grand Entrance
 UKAgility Finals Weekend 2011

I need not of worried - it is the best agility event in the UK that I have been too. It was professionally run - the team of helpers - combined with Greg and Laura's experience. It is the first time for me in Agility I have seen the emphasis on the agility and the competitiors and their dogs. For the presentations at the end all the competitors were included which I thought was a really nice touch.

I had just a fabulous day - Zev worked his little sheltie paws off for me as always - how lucky am I to have such an incredible sheltie. He won the jumping round. Here is the video...



Which meant we went into pole position in the final round. But I cocked it up, the angle on to the dog walk - I should have helped Zev with it more - assuming he would take it - and he did not - and the gutting part of it is his times even with so much time wasted was still so good - how exciting. The results can be found on the UKAgility web site - so we ended up 5th overall. Huge congratulations to Ziga and Liz (Zev's brother) who won the event overall.

However, it was no matter - yes as a human being sure I would have luv to have won - but I will have to do it next year instead - the big step for me here is that I have been hit by the 'finals' bug - I wanna be in more with Zev.

The day was full on nice bonuses catching up with friends, meeting a potential sire of my next border collie puppy, making new acquaintances, met Zev's half brother Gimzo who just like Zev is too handsome and cute for words. I was so wishing that I have another but I am just gonna have to wait...but but the temptation.....

Then Bernadette as thoughtful as ever gave me and Zev our own sheltie charm...

Like I say it was just one of those fabulous days full of nice bonuses. With special thanks to:

• All the helpers that did such a great job
• Laura and Greg Derrett for having the vision and drive to deliver a great standalone final event - specifically for agility
• Marc for putting up with me being cranky on Friday evening
• And my Zev - always the showman :-)

Rivi and Raised Plank - the Project Continues

As we reach the end of November I reviewed our project's progress. Originally I planned with Rivi to progress with her RCs as quickly as possible so that we could get back to competing in the new year and coz I was concerned about the plank raised on a table. However, the winter daylight hours have totally screwed my project time line up. Two good things have come of this [1] it has made me get use to the plank on the table [2] the fact that it has taken  until now in a training session for Rivi not to offer 2o2o position which has been embedded deeply.




It will be more realistic to think about heading back into the agility ring in the spring. It is a long time to be out of doing the most favorite part of agility. Jumping classes are good and give a buzz, but to me Agility is Agility when the contacts are in the course. It is what it is all about.

With teaching Rivi RCs I have learnt so frickin' much, even just stuff like the foot(paw)fall, the speed , using the reward mark to get the desired footfall (3 paws plus) and the impact if I change the location of where we do it. Then, progress this week is Rivi is really starting to shift, by that I mean starting to actually run and she is not offering 2o2o.

It is blooming gratifying. And if I can get her to like RC as much as the poles and jumping I will know my babyoli is a happyoli :-) and that is the ultimate for me.

The next step is to progress to the dog walk....

p.s Also in the video it is Zev and Nuts having a real good time watching Rivi doing her RC training