Busy Us...

Gimme and I have been soooo busy lately.

She is enrolled in a wonderful ten week set of modular classes, 3-4 nights a week. Honestly she knows most of the behaviors that are taught in those classes, but isn't yet able to do them in stimulating and/or distracting environments. It is helping her a lot to learn to exercise self-control in exciting conditions. The instructor is well aware of our goals, so is pushing us beyond the goals of the class. Gimme is making such great headway that I'm sure I glow with pride when I leave class each night.

I must say I think our instructor is an amazing and gifted trainer. I'm thrilled to have Ursula teaching again in our area. She is, far and away, better than anyone else teaching pet training and behavior training locally (including myself [and if you know me, you know how seldom I say something like THAT!]). What a great resource to refer people to. If you are in this area and want to know more, please do contact me.

Additionally, we continue to train toward our goal of entering novice Rally classes at the Puget Sound Dalmatian Club specialty in late August. I thought that would be a great way to debut her performance career. As much as I can, I am teaching the behaviors with a view toward our final goals in competitive obedience. There is a rally/obedience match nearby the last Saturday of July. I plan to enter that to help us get ready for the big day.

We are also working on some of the other obedience skills that Gimme will need that don't show up in rally. As good as Gimme is at stays, I was totally unprepared for her to have difficulty with the stand stay. Had no idea she'd be such a fidget widget... <G> We are also working on the dumbbell retrieve, distance hand signals, and scent discrimination.

Additionally we continue to play at tracking. I havent' been consistent in this, so we aren't as far along as we could be. Gimme is doing well with aged tracks. I discovered that non-vegetative surfaces completely threw her - so we are introducing them as well. Gimme has a keen nose and a lot of desire - so its only a matter of time.

Meanwhile I am working on her agility behaviors at home and after the classes I teach and she's quite the little natural at most things - show her once, help her twice... then she totally has it. I'm not in a hurry for agility, since her growth plates won't close until around 16 months (about Christmas) or later. Until then I don't want to do anything repetitive or joint-stressing (trust me, the monkey does plenty of that on her own). After the growth plates close, we will get more serious about agility. In agility we are working a lot of flatwork, some very low jump sequences and baby contact equipment.

I have also registered us for a two day freestyle seminar in November with Julie Flanery. I've done a seminar with her many years ago, so I'm looking forward to that. Gimme is so dang cute she's sure to steal the show.

Then we continue to get in three 60-90 minute walks each week.  We do a lot of training during those walks.  Gimme thinks I need more training than the average hooman, so she never misses an opportunity to reward me for doing something right.

Needless to say she keeps me verrrrry busy.

As if I wasn't busy enough with her... my friend Linda and I have been working away making a quilt for several months... We made it for Nicole, as a wellness quilt, to honor her survival of breast cancer. In the picture is Linda on the right, Nicole's daughter Grace (who joined us for a few quilting sessions) on the left... and me peeping over the top.