All the Things

Wow, life has gotten busy and summer is almost over!  Here are the last month's happenings!

We sold our house, moved out of my parent's basement where we had stayed for just over 3 months, and moved into our new house.  It was kinda a disaster but things are finally coming together now.  Lots and lots of cleaning.  New floors in the basement.  Appliances that work.  Fenced yard and a potty yard.

The Boykin finally got adopted a few weeks ago!  And yes I did manage to teach him a hold, and a stand, in case you were wondering about his progress :)  I even started working on moving from a stand and hold to a sit and hold for fun!  And more importantly, his new family just adores him.

And now my current foster is a cute litter terrier, Speck, who hopes to be a hearing alert dog!  Aside from some minor terrierness fun, he is an incredibly easy dog to live with.  A welcome change from Splash's high level of training and management needed!

Oh and I got a chinchilla for my birthday!  Meet Kix!

Training wise, still not doing much with my own dogs :(  

Zumi has been able to do more TEAM work though this last month and I'm happy to say she earned her TEAM 3 title and I'm waiting to hear back on her TEAM3H title!  Level 3 is really fun!

I've done a few agility trials with her the last few weeks in attempts to finish up the last 3 jumpers Q's she needs to pre-qualify for UKI's championship, the US Open.  Unfortunately, we seem to be cursed with beautiful runs and then a dropped bar, or I miscue a jump and get a backside instead, or don't get the backside, or...  So still 3 jumpers legs needed and just 1 trial left.  Between the masters heat series and the normal championship level runs we will actually have 6 chances over the 3 days for a needed 50% Q rate.  Which is still 100% higher than our current Q rate in jumpers.

On the other hand, Vito earned his UKI championship title for the "select" division last month!  The IWACs!

The Corgi has struggled a bit these last few weeks.  We're pretty sure he either slipped another disc or has swelling, or something going on with his lower back.  On the positive side, he already started improving in a week before he had his vet appointment.  And he's certainly feeling better being on carprofen!  He's on a bit of rest right now and then we will reevaluate things next week!

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Expanding the Yard

With 4 dogs now I decided to expand the dog's rock potty area.  Really it was sized better for 2 dogs.   I'm also hoping that the bigger size will encourage more of it's use without direct supervision!  Due to not having full cooperation with everyone in the house supervising the dogs when the rock area was first installed, the dogs aren't consistent.  We have a 2nd rock area in the main yard and both tollers are fabulous about running over to it whenever they have to go, uncued, since pretty much the only times they are in the main yard is when I'm supervising.  The cogi will use it just to appease me.
So everyone supervised the construction of their new area today!

I also completely raked up the rest of the section and seeded it to start fresh!

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Spring Planting!

My husband said to me today that some people do spring gardening.  We plant our yard with agility equipment.

Yesterday there was snow on the ground covering the entire yard for a few hours.  Today there is green again and we planted our equipment. Spring in Minnesota...

Tollers just hopped on the dogwalk uninvited and hung out for a bit while we were busy.

This spring's plans for the tollers include

1. Working on Vito keeping up the jump bars when really excited.  Not typically a problem in trials when he's a bit slower but in class it's becoming a rather big problem!  Especially since I've done more jumping at 22 in class recently instead of 20!

2. Zumi's aframe, dogwalk, and weaves. All 3 need a lot more understanding of exits.

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Yard Expanded!

We have officially been at our house for over a year now and this spring I wanted to expand the dog's fenced in play area.  While the dogs are boundary trained very well and able to hang out with me in our non-fenced portion while we are actively training or playing, I still wanted a larger safe space to just chill in and not have to watch as closely.  

Initially we made the fenced portion about 70ft x 30ft(?), just big enough so they can run a little bit and do some obedience training in.  We still have our agility field on the other side of the garage that was for training or just a bigger space to let the dogs have fun in.  And I had plans that the area behind the fenced yard would be my obedience field.  

The unused obedience field behind the smaller fenced off section.

I was originally worried that if the dogs had access to a larger space all the time than they (ie Vito!) would be less enthused about getting to train in it.  I knew that going through a gate would help Mr. Motivationally Challenged be more excited!  But my concerns were unfounded.  While Vito did become super excited about going through the gate to train, he was still very excited to do just obedience training in the smaller fenced area for meal training time.  And thus due to the way the fence and property was laid out, the grass behind the fence became pretty much unused all last summer.

Gate to fun-ness.

So now we more than doubled the fenced area!  You can easily see the dead grass that marks where the old fence line was.  Still using cheap utility fencing, but installation is fairly easy and way, way cheaper than chain link!

I still have dreams of getting some obedience ring gates so I can better practice ring entrances and go outs, but for now the dogs are loving it.  It is also highly beneficial for visiting dogs to be able to play or train in a secured area.

  

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Learning to Relax

Vito has no idea how to relax outdoors.  Inside, unless on a bad day, he's calm and cuddly.  Outdoors apparently means we're supposed to be doing something.

Before moving here this past winter the dogs never really had a backyard to just chill in.  The first duplex puppy Vito lived in was the closest he had to it.  It had a small yard and a patio that we sometimes hung out in but due to the dog living upstairs they were never unattended and we moved before he was 2yrs.  The next place we weren't really set up to relax outside and our last place we fenced a section the size of a shoe box and an aggressive doggy neighbor.

I absolutely love just sitting in the yard.  And Vito's learning.  After several months he may finally be starting to get it.  Of course he still has to at least try lots of whining and obsessively standing at the gate to the big yard first.

And well, this next picture was taken at dinner time with the bowls in my hand.  But that's not unusual!

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Fetch- Now with Rules

I recently started implementing some new rules for the dogs playing fetch.  Miss Gracie loves to plow into dogs when she plays.  At work I refer to her as a Ram as she loves to lower her head and butt into dogs when she has a toy in her mouth.  The other Labradors don't seem to mind and usually she ends up flopping over on her back shortly after and encourages her fellow labs to try and take the ball from her mouth.   She's odd.

But Vito is a lot more fun for her.  He is intense and only has eyes for the toy so Gracie likes to step things up a notch.  Vito runs for toy, Gracie runs for him.  Collision of course is the result.  Honestly neither dog minds as Vito only cares about the B-A-L-L.  But ouch.
Hmm, yes I do have a picture of a tiny slam on a return.  From April, despite it's snowy appearance.

So new rules.  Gracie gets her ball and Vito gets his.  No chasing in the same direction.  The corgi can do what he wants as he usually just barks and runs after a dog for 10-15ft.  He certainly doesn't want a ball of his own.  If Lance gets yelled at it's usually for doing some nipping as a dog returns with the ball.  Naughty corgi.  

I started with Vito always getting his ball thrown first and having Gracie wait.  I use the dog's name as a release cue as I get ready to throw.  She actually learned that rule very quick as Gracie naturally does this when out with the group at work.  She figured out that she has a much greater chance of getting the ball if she waits for the pack to go after a few balls thrown in one direction and then the thrower turns and tosses her own private ball in another direction.  Smart.  She just wasn't doing that at home since Vito was a lot more fun to harass!  

The challenge is to get Vito to come straight back to me versus veering off and having to go to ball #2 on his return.  Because Ball!  I still have to say his name to remind him, but he's doing it now!  

I recently started occasionally throwing Gracie's ball first.  Very hard for Vito and I need to hold his collar on the throw, but I can let go now as long as I show him ball #2 in my hand after the toss.  
Vito never wants to quit.

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Eaten Alive

I was woefully unpreprared for how summer has transformed our little house in the wannabe country.  The bugs are absolutely insane.  Every time I open a door the house or car I make sure that all 3 dogs are lined up behind me so that we can sprint in or out as fast as possible to cut down on the intruders.  Even when I try and leave to go to work I'm inviting at least 10 mosquitoes to hitchhike.  This week I even needed to get bug spray for my mailbox.  My mailbox!  Ants took over for reasons I can't even imagine.

But look, agility!

I was a little worried that playing agility at home might not be as special for Vito and that we would have to work on some motivation issues.  Totally not the case.  If anything Vito is even louder and more excited about the opportunity to go play on the little equipment that I have.  Going through the gate is highly valuable for him.  And apparently for Gracie.  I think she's experimenting with some Toller Screams while Vito gets his turn.

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Yard Work

Love our new house!  It's so great being able to just sit outside in the yard with the dogs, being able to play whenever we want, and even be able to practice tiny bits of agility with my few jumps and new set of weave poles!

Our project to fence in the area is almost complete as well!  Since we have a corner house and our yard is all on the side of the house it was difficult coming up with a plan that would be cheap and yet still allow the dogs to actually hang out with us.  I really wanted the fenced in area to include our porch and patio area but it needed to look not too weird since it's very visible to people passing by.  Solution was the cheapest deck panels we could find.  Still not cheap once all the post parts were purchased :(

  Then strung them out along the walkway to the garage.

The rest of our fenced section is made up mainly of 14 gauge glavanized wire and then a few old  kennel panels that were free from work.  Doesn't look the greatest but it will work for it's intended job.  And the much greater distance was only 1/3rd the cost of the deck panels!  Rough size is 70x35

The Toller is a bit sad over his loss of freedom.

Also on the agenda was a gravel potty area.  The yard is way too big to go looking for poop!  Vito's training is going the easiest and Lance is reluctantly going.  Gracie is not happy.  Very used to going on rocks at work and at the obedience club, but at home is apparently different.  Major girl drama and refusing to even walk out the door if not on leash.  We've had a few 16hr holdings between pottying until she can get to work and relieve hereself...on the rocks.

Biggest downside to purchasing an unoccupied house is all the yard work that needs to be done.   Leaves and sticks are everywhere!  The amount of gopher holes are also crazy!  Took me forever to try and spread the huge dirt mounds.  The only good thing is that after a few days it looks as though only a small handful of new mounds have popped up.  Much less gophers than all the old holes made it look like!
Ticks on the other hand are a different story.  Due to the prairie area in back the dogs are bringing in lots of ticks.  So far they seem to be winning too as I've only found 2 dead ones and many well fed and happy ones. Frontline is defeated.  I'm hoping that at minimum our new fence will help to cut down on them as it limits how often the dogs are wandering to the taller grasses.  Just ordered the new pill to see if that is any more effective.

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Happy Golden Birthday to the Corgi

The corgi turned 7 years old today!  I can't believe how old that suddenly feels to me and yet it's only 7.  Such an easy boy.

16 months old

The snow is finally melting at our house these last few days so the dogs and I have gotten to explore the empty fields directly behind our house.  Technically not our land, but so close!  We even discovered a little pond that has thawed out now.  Can't wait to see if the water sticks around in the summer!

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Winter

So sick of this winter.  At least I finally have a yard to let the dogs blow off some steam.

Every time it snows we have to go out and try to find the paths we had made.  Now we're to the point where a wrong guess can leave my foot sinking a good 3-4ft downwards!  Even a good guess after the fresh snow this past week meant lots of sinking.

It's a good thing the Labradors love to go snow swimming!

The corgi not so much.

Oops. One of the few times Adam actually came with us. I don't think he's planning on it again!

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The New Place!

We did it!  Signed the papers on Friday and got most of our stuffed move over this weekend.

I'm actually shocked at how well Vito seems to be adjusting.  Not sure if it's the new drug or just the fact that all his things are here with him too.  Pretty barky at any noise from the snow falling to the cat getting into trouble.  But that's to be expected.

Yard!!!  We made it just barely past the garage/barn before the dogs started freezing.

See, Lance is already heading back to stand by the door.  Vito's enjoying the zoomies.

Our first Christmas tree!!!

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