Re: Cannot contain myself..... Sounds like a pretty normal young Lab to me.... Keep us posted, can't wait to follow your progress!
Re: Cannot contain myself..... Just remember you are going to learn how to do it, you are training not testing, the fun is in the learning ;D
Re: Cannot contain myself..... He sounds like he behaved just as you would expect in a new place with a doggy buffet laid out for everyone ;D You're going to have a great time, remember to have fun xxx
Re: Cannot contain myself..... Obi would have been exactly the same with all the food and treats Great!! I'm sure no-one else would have taught that yet.
Re: Cannot contain myself..... Ok so we went for our first class on Saturday...it is now Tuesday,I haven't had a spare moment with a houseful of UK visitors to let you know how we got on.The Forum time I have had has barely kept pace with Health and Intros...I'm so behind on all your news I'm sorry hope everyone is ok? First lesson was quite slow to be honest but I went with zero expectations ( mainly of myself,not Dexter!) There is only us and another couple with their French bull dog Lou Lou who coincidentally was on our first puppy obedience course.The Trainer wanted to check our clicker abilities without the dogs and asked to put the dogs in the daycare section for a little while,this freaked me a bit as I know of a dog that had been attacked in this particular daycare so I felt like I was being a bit of a nuisance when I said that I didn't want dexter to go in.... :-[.in the end the Trainer took me in to the small dogs daycare where there was only half a dozen dogs,including Lou Lou,Dexter didn't like it,all his hackles were up and he ran behind me which I was surprised at.they emptied the room and let the dogs come in one by one and got a staff member to shadow Dexter ....I felt a right pain in the neck :-[ anyway he relaxed and started to play and looked a bit silly in with all the little dogs but I left him in while we did the necessaries...not a good start! After about 20 mins of discussing the 4 week course that we will be doing,Introduction to Agility the dogs came back in and we went into the room where Dexter had previously helped himself to the pick n mix selection.....I though it would be different this time ......no all the food was still out and dexter grabbed a rawhide bone again :-[ :-[ :-[ and wouldn't give it up until I tricked him with another chew......of course it took him about 10 minutes to settle down after that,still not going well.....( I'll ask them to do a recon next week before we enter if we have to use that space again ) Anyway then we practiced some basic obedience with our clickers ...Dexter now started to behave a bit more like the dog I know...his sits,stays,lie downs and comes were very good......Lou Lou found it hard not to respond to my clicker...she was too excited by it but it was good practice for Dexter and I feel like we redeemed ourselves somewhat ..... Then we got shown how to train the target cue ie getting the dog to touch our hand with his nose ...Dex got this quick ( I think it's quite easy though) and I've been practicing with him a couple of times every day and I think he's got it. That was our homework and to practice sit/stay with distractions ( blummin heck there's been plenty of them around in my house this week) but I just think that's going to be a work in progress....there's different distractions at the training centre so I'm doing what i can with people,food throwing balls etc and expecting him to stay but I can't hope to replicate the conditions that we will be in each Saturday ??? Not to worry,I'm keeping an open mind.....it's renewed my enthusiasm in the clicker ....it had taken a back seat for a while,they really are amazing tools to train with.if nothing else it's mental activity for Dexter just attending and gives me ideas to practice things with him at home ( ever conscious that the heat is looming ) Summary : We need to work on LEAVE IT! We enjoyed it,but think it will be a LONNNNNNNG time before we are running through poles with any style or accuracy x
Re: Cannot contain myself..... sounds like you had fun glad that you managed to show of dexters good side in the end, and show what a star golden boy he is. I don't blame him for taking a rawhide chew, it is like taking a child into a sweet shop with the sweets all over tables open and ready to eat, they are gonna take something even if you tell them not to, and its a Labrador its always after food ;D hope next lesson is better and you can get some agility done, and show how much hard work you have put in with his stays with distractions
Re: Cannot contain myself..... Good for you Angela, I hope this will be helpful for you in several ways - firstly I think it is great to train with your dog, as it creates a stronger and closer bond between you. Also it helps keep the dog mentally and physically fit. And thirdly, for you, it may give you more training opportunities for those hot, hot days of summer.
Re: Cannot contain myself..... So glad you had a good time Angela, before you know it you will be speeding round the Agility course, Dexter too of course ;D. Your club is very thorough, when I went they got Charlie running the circuit on day 1 Enjoy your next lesson, can't wait to hear all about it. xx
Re: Cannot contain myself..... So glad Saturday went ok. I would be the same about putting Harley with other dogs if she wasn't happy, but it was good that they allowed Dexter the time to meet each one individually look forward to next weeks instalment
Re: Cannot contain myself..... I had been wondering how you got on It must be tiring having so many visitors, do you have to cook for them or can you go out! I thought of you today, Drift had a major tail bleed all over the dining room, kitchen and utility room, blood everywhere.
Re: Cannot contain myself..... Thanks for the update Angela, was hoping you had fun! Stacia - oh no, so sorry to hear that.
Re: Cannot contain myself..... Sounds really good, Angela! Great to hear that they are starting with control and attention type things (so important later when your dog is in the heat of an exciting agility run). Don't worry if he was a bit wobbly at first - you will both be more confident next time. Not good about the tail bleed, Stacia!
Re: Cannot contain myself..... Thanks for the update, Angela, I was wondering how it went! I'm sure Dexter will start to get used to the routine and will be an old hand in no time!!
Re: Cannot contain myself..... Thanks everyone I'll let you know how we do next week....oh Stacia,I had a bit of a tummy turnover reading your post...really hope it's just a random event and heals quickly and easily. Dexters was a particularly bad case so not every sufferer of Happy Tail Syndrome will end the same way,thankfully x It's lovely to have visitors especially parents which we are very lucky to still have in good health ,but it is knackering to be honest!ive got it pretty efficient now though after all the years of doing it....I've got 2 freezers and I have a big bake and cookathon before they arrive so I'm stocked up with dinners,that's a good head start then throw in a couple of bbqs,the odd takeaway and a few meals out the catering is pretty much take care of.we aren't as booked up as last year, when we had 14 weeks of visitors!thats over 3 months of folks in your house ...we will try not to let that happen again but it's really hard when people ask if they can come ;D
Re: Cannot contain myself..... You sound very organised ;D I couldn't cope with 14 weeks of visitors, you must have been exhausted, its all the talking and taking them out! Drift's tail bleed was the worst one he has ever had, keeping my fingers crossed, daughter came and he was so excited so wagged his tail even more. Drift is 8 years old today ;D
Re: Cannot contain myself..... Happy birthday, Drift 14 weeks of visitors would have me weeping quietly in a corner.
Re: Cannot contain myself..... Drift says thank you Oberon ;D I gave him mackerel in tomato sauce with his breakfast as a birthday treat, he looked at me as if to say "good god woman, are you trying to poison me"!
Re: Cannot contain myself..... 14 weeks of visitors??? I would need therapy..... And happy birthday Drift from a fellow Greenbriar fan.
