Brain Fart!

Okay so I have had a huge training brain fart. I have to admit, here lately, most of my time has been spent on Miller and his PT. I figured that Deuce needed some time to grow up anyway and didn't need the intense training sessions. I guess I was wrong! He is going through yet another stubborn phase it seems where i give a command and he just looks at me like "Yeah right!". The other day, Victoria Stillwell was on animal planet and she was having a puppy doing puppy push-ups and I tried to get Deuce to do puppy push ups too and he couldn't do them. He specifically had problems going from down back up to sit. I have worked really, really hard on getting him to do any command by shaping the command and then knowing the command without any physical cue other than my voice. I sometimes have to do some luring but i try to work off of shaping as much as possible. I found that if I lured him up from the down with either a here command (touch my hand with your nose) or pulled my hand up in an upwards sweeping motion, he would come up, but if I simply said sit, he would either just lay there and do nothing or start offering tricks. At first I tried everything to get him to come up but nothing was working so had to get my clicker and take him to a quiet place where it was just him and I and basically patiently wait him out. He eventually started offering a sit from the down but it takes quite a while to get there. I am still getting lots of back talk and offering of other behaviors before the sit. I am hoping to really work this all this week to try and get this issue resolved. This could be a huge problem as I have trained an automatic down on the table and if it is a sit in AKC and he refuses to come up, we could have occur some faults or even a DQ.

Another issue we have run into involves harley and not Deuce but harley doesn't have his own blog so I am going to talk about it here. Harley has become a huge counter surfer and it is becoming a big problem. I walked back in the house the other day as I had forgotten something and he had a stack of cookies that tony had bought at a bake sale in his mouth. Luckily these were just peanut butter cookies, no chocolate, but still, he should no better. I have toyed with the idea of crating Harley forever and it may come to fruition now for sure. I can't have him counter surfing all the time as I sometimes forget and leave stuff out and don't want him to ingest something he shouldn't. The problem is, I need yet another wire crate. I think our house is full of them for sure but what doggy house isn't ? I am looking to downsize Deuce's crate anyway as I don't think he needs his litter box anymore so Harley may be moving in to Deuce's crate and Deuce may be getting a new downstairs crate. I really want to keep his upstairs kennel where it is because we have a routine involving it and I don't want to change it. I get up and feed when tony's alarm goes off at 5:20 and then we all go back to bed. I have found that deuce likes to go into his crate at that point and chew on a chewie so I use it for that purpose. I don't think he would like to be downstairs while the rest of us are upstairs and he doesn't always settle back down after he is fed. I like getting a couple more hours of sleep in so don't want to change our routine. Crates go on sale at Tractor supply next weekend so may have to invest in yet another crate and of course another kong and a case of peanut butter LOL!

Snow day or should I say Snow DAYS

Here in KS we had our first big snow storm of the year. I was so excited because this was to be deuce's first experience with snow. The first time I let him out in it, he was jumping up trying to catch the flakes in his mouth! It was so cute and I tried to video but it was too dark to get a good image. I had decided to take the next day off since they were saying it was suppose to get super bad. I am the biggest winter driving wimp you will ever meet and I blame it on my southern roots. For years I drove a 2 wheel drive truck that was horrible in snow and I have always had neighbors or friends that worked at KSU that would come pick me up and drive for me. Now, all of my friends/co-workers have moved so I have to drive myself. Well, I say drive myself but what i mean is freak out about driving and then either just stay home or attempt it and have a huge panic attack and say I am never driving in bad weather again. BUT, I digress, this is a blog about Deuce not my neurotic driving habits LOL!

Anyway, as the night progressed, the forecast looked worse and worse, so bad that Tony who never takes a day off, called his apprentice and told him to not attempt to come in the next day. By the end of the storm, we ended up with almost 8 inches of snow and 40 mph wind that blew huge drifts. I know this morning when I went to get in my van, the snow had drifted and was as high as my knees!

Let me just say that Deuce has had a great time playing in the snow! He LOVES it! If i let him, he will stay out in it for hours. He is just like a little kid, I have to make him come in and warm up for a little while. He continually rings the bell to go out and I have had to teach him how to close the door as he has learned to open it and will leave it open and let all the cold air in. Now, if we just had a mud room and a doggy door! This is the third day with snow and he just plays and plays in it! I tried to go to work today but the roads have been bladed down to the ice underneath and I just can't deal with slipping and sliding. Thank goodness I have a boss that is so understanding of my fear of winter driving. Let's hope that this winter isn't a bad one! I have no vacation days left and am working off of sick days!




Deuce has also developed a very bad habit that I am so responsible for. We recycle everything we can as our county has a huge recycle trailer about two blocks away. We have containers outside for each type of recycling but also have a couple of open wooden crates in the house that recycling material sits in until I fill it up and take the recycling outside. We started by letting him play with plastic bottles which he thought was really awesome! Now however, he has started digging things out of the box to play with or shred. His favorite right now is cardboard. I usually let them out in the morning when I shower but because of the bad weather, have left him in, in the morning. This morning he shredded two boxes, a jiffy corn bred mix box and a soap box. I guess I should be glad that at least he chooses to shred that stuff instead of important stuff, although he has taken alot of interest in Tony's PS3 which would not be a good thing to chew on for sure!

Deuce is growing so much!

Okay, I have been super bad about updating my blog! Partially it is my husband's fault for buying me a nintendo Wii of which I have gotten very addicted to Guitar hero. The other fault lies in Miller as I have been doing his PT in the morning instead of blogging. So there, it isn't my fault LOL! As you can see by the picture, Deuce is getting fairly big! I weighed him last week and he was 34 lbs already! We aren't doing alot of one on one training anymore, just letting him grow up and working when the opportunity arises.

Agility wise we are starting to work on more obstacles. He is now doing the chute, a-frame full height, teeter full height, very low puppy jumps (4 inches), table with a shaped down, channel weaves, and of course all of his foundation work. I have only had him on the dog walk a few times. The height of it scares me and he still isn't very sure about his body and I could see him falling off. We do some back chaining on it but that is it. We are still working toes on the bottom of contacts and on everything else that is a surface change or a height change but not linking the two behaviors together. Right now distraction training is the best for sure. We are going to start puppy class here soon and I imagine it will be more about just working through distractions rather than obstacle performance. We all have equipment at home so all of our puppies know equipment and know tons of foundation but need to start getting their brains to working while there is distraction present. The other night, Lori and I had set up a tunnelers class for the beginner's graduation night and after they left, we worked the puppies. While one pup worked, the other one had to do behaviors or pay attention to us and it was great training! I am really looking forward to our class! It is always a good idea to have someone else watch you and make sure you are doing everything right.

Overall, Deuce is turning out to be such a great puppy! He has been so easy to train whether it be crate training or potty training. He has great work ethic and has an on and off switch that i LOVE! He has an independent streak and a mommie streak at the same time which seems to be pretty balanced. He loves his daddy but still pees on him occasionally. He LOVES to ride in the car and if I want him to rest, I will load him up and take him for a ride and he goes right to sleep. Deuce will work for food, toy or just praise which I love. Harley is so food motivated that if the food isn't in the picture, you can forget it for sure. He has the most beautiful heel as long as there is a cookie in my hand! Anyway, he has been a treat to have and to train and I can't wait to see what he does in the agility ring. We love him so much and look forward to seeing what he can do in the future for sure!

deuce and the agility equipment

Okay so I have been super bad about not posting so I thought I would sit down and write something. Last night was the first time Deuce got to do the a-frame and the chute. We had it out for the beginner class so I decided to let him do those obstacles for fun. The a-frame was super low so I just had him running back and forth over it. He showed no fear with either obstacles and I am so proud of him. The tire jump was also set on the ground so we did some through with that as well. I really want to buy a nice tire jump and was wishing that they had one at USDAA nationals that I could have bought and drug back but they didn't. Maybe this year at AKC nationals I can buy a piece of equipment since we will be so close. Anyway, mom helped me with the chute by doing restrained recalls and after a few times through with the fabric open, we started dropping it on his back as he came through and then just letting him push through. He took it all in stride and had no problems what so ever. He really is a fearless little puppy for sure.

I had been teaching some tricks and now he can do roll over, shake, wave, high five, speak, and show me your teeth. Show me your teeth really isn't a trick but he had become quite the butt head about handling his mouth. I know he is losing his baby teeth right now and his gums are sore but that does not give him the option to growl or bark at me when I want to look at his teeth. I put this command on a clicker and it just means let me raise your lips and look at your teeth. I think I will also put a stack command on clicker as well if we ever do decide to venture into the show ring. Speaking of which, I need to get him registered for ASCA. I got his AKC registration done immediately but have been lax in getting his ASCA and UKC paperwork in. You can see where my priorities lie! As soon as he is old enough, I will get him USDAA and NADAC registered for sure.

Deuce's National Blog

Okay so it is one hour to go before we get home and I am feeling silly so I am going to dictate Deuce’s blog straight from Deuce instead of me coming up with the words. Okay Deuce, you are on!

Okay mom, thanks! Well, been bored to death so I guess I can tell everyone how my trip went. Three days straight in a crate going up and coming back is a lot! Thank goodness mom has super thick cushions so we ride comfortably! Got to see a lot of very interesting country for sure! Got to pee on a lot of different indian tribe lands including Hopi, Peublo, and Zuni lands. Mom says that indians were in this country before white people and that they got most of their lands taken away from them as the white people moved west. They sure do have lots of casinos, gas stations and gift shops now! I was a really good boy just napping or quietly playing with my toys while we rode but when I got to the hotel rooms at night, I was wound up and ready to play! Every night either mom or gramy would have to play with me and tire me out. I tried to play with my big brother Miller but he is my older brother and he doesn’t play. Some times I would piss him off and he would put my whole head in his mouth. Mom was really worried about Miller because he had an injury so she fussed over him a lot which took her attention away from me! Miller got lots of stretching and massaging that I didn’t get. I can’t wait till I compete so I get as much attention as he does! Anyway, we got to the show site on Tuesday and I got to play in something called an RV. It is like a little house on wheels. Mommie brought my crate for me to sleep in but I ended up sleeping in the bed with her and gramy the whole time. Since Arizona was an hour ahead, I was up at 6 am every morning ready to go, even if mom and gramy weren’t! A growing boy can’t miss a meal can he? The first day we were there, I got to go walk around the outside of the field and check everything out. There were so many other dogs there! I wanted everyone to play with me whether they wanted to or not. We did lots of walking as everything was really far way from where our RV was. Mom told me that as soon as the vendors opened, she was buying me a harness cause I pulled a lot and pulled out of my collar when gramy was walking me and scared her. I did get a nice new comfort flex harness in a nice boy color, blue. I love it because I don’t pull as much and even when I do, it doesn’t strangle me or put stress on my neck.

The first day of competition, mommy wasn’t going to run miller but she decided to just do a couple of obstacles and leave the course. I got to go with mommy and gramy down to the crating area where mommie had a crate for miller and I to hang out in. Oh, the sights! On top of all the doggies there, there was two huge pools mommie called dock dog diving pools that were full of water! Mommie asked how much it was for me to go in the pools but they wanted 20 bucks! Mommmie said that was too much so I just made myself happy by playing in the puddles created by the pools. There was also this fun thing called lure coursing where doggies chased a lure around a course but I didn’t think that was as cool as the water. Mommie says when I get bigger I can try out lure coursing and I can do herding. They had a pen with some goats for instinct testing but those goats were huge and had huge horns and mommie didn’t think that would be a good idea for a young pup like me. There were 6 rings of agility, can you believe it? I can’t wait till I am old enough, I am going to be out there for sure! I even got to meet a little red merle female aussie that played with me and her name was lucy. She is for sure my new girlfriend and I will miss her lots!

On all the other days, gramy made me a kong with peanut butter and I got to hang out in my crate in the RV while big brother miller went down to the field and ran. Mommie would leave early every morning to go walk the courses and miller and gramy and I would go for nice long walks and play. Well, gramy would play, not miller. He takes this whole agility thing very seriously so when it is time to show, he doesn’t play at all. Gramy would usually take miller down to the field to meet mommie and I would hang out in the RV. I am so glad because it was air conditioned and all of those other poor doggies had to hang out in the heat of Arizona all day. Whenever mommie was done running, she would bring miller back to the RV to rest and I would get to go down to the field. I got to see so much action and got to do toes and sits and downs amongst all of that distraction. I got lots of pets and treats as no one can resist a cute little wiggly aussie puppy!

All in all, I had a great time and can’t wait till next year. Mommie keeps on saying that we might be in Kentucky and I might get to play in blue grass? Wonder if I will turn blue too? We are almost home and I can’t wait to see big brother Harley! Mommie says next year maybe harley will have to go too so I will have someone to play with and burn off some of my energy, especially at night! I will be so sad to have gramy leave as I really love my gramy. She took such good care of me, playing with me and walking me. She says I can come and visit her in Tennessee anytime!

Here are the latest of deuce's tricks. He is so dang smart, it amazes me! We worked on these tricks maybe two days with the clicker and i have already faded it out. I now need to decide what the next set of tricks is going to be so he doesn't get bored. I know I am a better dog training after training berry, miller, and harley but I think he is extra special smart! I have seen pictures of his dad doing lots of tricks so I know he has it in him for sure.

I have been letting him sleep loose in the bedroom and I hope that isn't a mistake. I had been leaving him in the bed until I was almost asleep and then getting up and putting him in the crate. He still goes to the crate when we go upstairs and sometimes I have to invite him in the bed. I was waking up when he would get out of the bed because getting in and out of the bed was a big deal for him when he was little. Now, he can jump up and down very easily so I don't wake up anymore, which could be bad. I had him in the bed last night and i was so tired that I crashed hard and didn't wake up till the alarm went off and he was asleep in the floor. Hope he isn't going and pottying somewhere. Our carpet doesn't show accidents till a couple of weeks later so unless I see the wet spot or step in it (ewwww) i don't find them.

Harley and Deuce are enjoying the earlier light. Guess I am going to have to switch Miller's 10 minute walks to the morning and take everyone. I was really enjoying our walks together just him and I but I know the other boys won't let me go without them! Deuce is doing better with Miller's stretches. He was coming up and bugging us and wanting attention but he now knows when Miller and I go upstairs that we are going to be stretching and don't need his help. I think it was hurting his feelings a bit because we train upstairs when I am working on new behaviors because there is very little distraction and he was confused as to why I was taking miller up there instead.

Ok time to get ready. I have a very busy day at work since I missed yesterday so am ready to work my butt off!

Deuce and the golden puppy

Had a great day today with Deuce and just had to share. I am helping a family with their 12 week old golden puppy and I took Deuce along to help me show them some stuff and also secretly to let him get to play. After I worked with the family, we brought deuce out and he and liberty had a great time running around their yard. She loved his rough and tumble play and even though she is younger, played really hard with him and kept him on his toes. I look forward to going more and helping this family and letting Deuce get to play with his new girlfriend some more. Plus, it was a great training opportunity for me as I got to work recall off of them playing and also working some of his core behaviors while she was running around trying to entice him to play. She is a very lovely, very smart little puppy and I can't wait to help them with her more!

I also took Deuce to work with me in the lab and got to play with him there too. He got to ride in an elevator and loved it! I feel like he is becoming a bit of a worrier and that is good and bad. He worries about where I am at all times and also worries when I leave the room and it is just he and Tony. He also seems to worry about some of the foundation training that we are doing so I try and make is as fun as possible or just play on days I think he is acting worried more. I think he is really confused as to why I am spending so much time with miller. I have to either lock him out of the room where I am stretching miller or put him outside since he thinks he should be getting the cookies instead of miller. That is another thing, he really prefers to be outside most of the time off playing by himself. He doesn't care what the weather is, he is truly an outside dog. He also prefers to be under my chair at the computer but even when we are in the other room, this is where he wants to be and where we always find him. I like his independence and hope that will help when we start doing more true agility training.

Now I need to trim toe nails and clean ears so signing off for now!