Somone is going to be 4 soon!

Sophie is not a fan of this diet. While she loves her green beans, she insists she is being underfed. She therefore has taken to staring at you while you eat. Silly pup. Weigh in is next week. Here is hoping we get some results!

We are signed up for our first agility trial in 3 weeks. CPE Standard Level 1 and Jumpers Level 1. Excited and nervous!

Obedience classes have started again. We moved up a level which is challenging for us. It is no longer a night time class which means I don't have to worry about shadows and unexpected people freaking Sophie out but it also means more noise/distractions. The class ranges in level, us on one end of the spectrum (i.e. never competing) all the way to those who have gained their CD and higher. It is inspiring to see some of these dogs working off leash so in tune with their owners. Hoping we get to that level someday. And enjoying the adventure in the meantime.

I am very proud of her progress. We may not have a title (yet) but 2 years ago, I didn't think we would ever get to the point that I could place her in a down stay (secured to a gazebo) and help a classmate with stand for exam. All while lots of dogs were nearby (not close to her but well within view). She calmly looked around. Barked once her displeasure at being left but other than she was fine. Progress which means the world to me! Granted she still has her moments but I really didn't think we would get to this point when her leash reactivity first started.

Unfortunately we did not complete week 4 of K9 Kamp :-\ And are way behind in the 12 week photo course. Hoping to catch up this weekend.

Ohh and Miss Sophie will be celebrating her 4th birthday soon. Suggestions on good doggy gifts?

K9 Camp Wk 3: Tugging makes the world go round

K9 Camp Wk 3: TUGGING!

Again I had to do a slight twist on the challenge so we could it it into our weekend.

A good game of tug makes Sophie a happy pup. We use tugging as a reward for a clean run in flyball and sometimes in agility. Tugging with a 68lb lab is hard in my opinion. Add that said lab is usually flying full speed at you over 60+ feet to get the tug...eep!

Our normal flyball routine is Sophie goes to the box, as she hits the box I yell her name and then I run while dangling the tug at my side. The tug is to her what my coffee is to me every morning, that extra shot of energy she needs. She comes flying back and I have about two seconds to brace myself as she catches the tug and swings. She then plops all four on the ground and begins tugging with all her might. Which for a big dog is a whole lot. I eventually let go of the tug to grab her harness. When I do she swings the thing from side to side.

We used to use this tug: Notice it has a tennis ball attached to it. Now remember how I said she swung it around....yeah, I ended up with a whole lot of bruises. The tug had to go!!

Tug and image from Crash Test Toys

 So now we use this tug. She still loves it and I am not bruised at the end of the run.

Tug and image from Crash Test Toys!

 I couldn't do the lunging part of the challenge. I swear if I did she would have had me toppling into a face plant. Our tugging session lasts a little less than a minute per heat and we ran 20 heats each day. So we did fall short of the required time but since we were also running a lot (her more than me) I figured it was ok :)

Very old and blurry picture of Sophie tugging (at our first tournament in 2010 right before she was about to enter the ring for the first time to be a warm up dog!)

Looking forward to our next challenge!

K9 Kamp Week 1 and 2 Update

 
 A little behind on updating our K9 Kamp Adventure:


Week 1: The challenge was to walk for 60 minutes.  Sophie and I usually go hiking on the weekends so off we went for our hike. We did the 5 mile hike instead of our normal 3 mile hike in the spirit of keeping up with the K9 Kamp challenge. No pictures (Sophie needs a backpack so she can carry the water and I can carry the camera!)


Week 2 Challenge: Play fetch for 60minutes

We put our own spin on the challenge so it would fit our weekend plans. We did the 4 sessions of 15 minutes a piece over the span of a flyball practice. So it was not fetch exactly (as I was not throwing the ball), though there was retrieving and full out running. From both of us! We both ended practice very tired. :-)

Looking forward to finding out what Week 3 will be.

K9 Camp Challenge and 12 week Photo Course

Lots to do this week in the blogging world. I am going to be completing the 12 week photo course that Kate over at Twenty-Six to Life has suggested. She has been nice enough to set up a linky party so you can see how other bloggers are doing.



I am excited to finally use my Nikon in a setting other than Automatic!

Sophie and I will also be joining the K9 Camp Challenge

This week's challenge is 60mins of walking. I foresee having a lot more issues with the challenges than Sophie though this one should be ok.

One last thing: Sophie went over the teeter yesterday! :happy dance: Multiple times!

We have been working on this for almost a year now with little luck. Thanks to classmate's suggestion I taught her to "bang: on a wobble board. She would slam her two front paws on the board and get a treat. But that wonderful command did not transfer to the teeter. Last week she was offering to bang the teeter but not getting on it.

So this week at our new Wed practice night, I worked on getting her to bang and then getting up on the teeter. She offered that behavior fairly quickly. We worked on that for awhile and then I had her start on one end walk across and I slowly lowered it while stuffing cheese in her mouth and saying Go Bang. Then all of a sudden she started picking up speed and offering the bang on her own as she walked across. I squealed so loudly I made the other person in the facility jump. Sophie was just happy to eat her cheese. She kept offering the walk across and bang. Progress!

She really will do just about anything for cheese. :-)