The Ellie Diaries

Saffron Duvalier

2010-11-30T12:41:00.000Z

Another week, another doogy guest. Let me introduce Saffy, or as I quickly named her, Saffron Duvalier.

Saffy is a six-month old cocker spaniel with a gorgeous personality to match her looks. She stayed with me three nights over this past weekend, and I loved every second of it!

She got on very well with Ellie who seemed to take very well to her too. Talking of Ellie, we're having quite a lot of snowfall here in the UK at present and, like most dogs, Ellie loves the snow! I shall try to grab some photos before it vanishes again.

I've had a baby...

2010-11-16T20:17:00.000Z

Firstly, I have to mention my lack of updates again. Alas, the will is strong, but the time is lacking of late. My hope is that now the winter months are with us, I will have more time for tricks, photos, and stories of Ellie and our boarding guests.

However, let me tell you about my guest this weekend, Baby. She's a twelve-week old Chiweenie (Chihuahua and Dachshund cross). Naturally, I had to grab my camera.

Everything was right about this boarding. The owners were just some of the nicest, most down to earth, and friendly people I've ever met, and clearly genuine dog-lovers. I haven't met people as nice as these since I first met Max and Becky. The dogs, of course, always make boarding a reward, but when you gel with the owners too, that just makes it all the more pleasant for everyone.

Their dog, Baby, well, gorgeous isn't the word. I just adored every second of boarding her, even when she decided to cling to the bottom of my trouser leg as I walked around. Utterly, utterly gorgeous, and she looked even more so being carried around the field in my jacket.

Ellie, well, she's doing just fine. She continues to get better and better with the parade of dogs that come through our home. She's still a naturally jealous creature of course, but that's to be expected as she is used to having me to herself for much of the time. There are no new tricks to report but I can feel the urge to teach new ones biting at my backside.

Eddie the Babe Magnet

2010-08-22T11:18:00.002+01:00

Some dogs steal your socks, while others steal your heart. Eddie (or Edward Woodward as I call him), does both!

You know how you see some dogs and just instantly fall in love with them? Eddie is one such dog. The pictures don't do him justice but he is a lovely honey coloured puppy, has crimped-looking hair on his head, ears to die for, and seriously, the most cute paws you will ever see on a dog. And to top it off, he spends as much time as possible pottering around on his back legs as though he thinks he is human.

I've just had the pleasure of boarding Eddie for a sixteen night stay. It's funny, when I walk my own dog, Ellie, nobody even seems to notice me with my plain mostly black dog walking dutifully beside me. But when they see Eddie enthusiastically thrusting forward, oh yes, then they want to know me!

Now, I know I know, the picture to the left looks a little, how can I say, rude? But that's Eddie - happy to parade himself around for all to see. In fact, he seems quite proud of his equipment! And come on, it's a funny picture!

In other news, not that I dare to imagine your lives are affected by whether I post to this blog or not, but I do feel a little guilty for not posting as frequently of late. All I can say in my defence is that the summer months are always my most busy and so the blog sometimes has to take a back seat. Please be assured that it will never be deserted.

Oh yes, my own dog, Ellie... She's doing fine and has been enjoying the summer walks, though I've also been trekking around the Peak District without her. Much to her dismay, I'm sure.

P.S. I see from the dog blogs that I follow, I'm not the only one who hasn't posted much lately. That's dogs for you - all the best shows and events are in the Summer.

This Boots was made for swimming...

2010-05-20T09:20:00.029+01:00

May is proving to be an incredibly busy and hectic month here at Barkingham Palace. Aside from dogs coming through for boarding, my photography is also starting to take quite a hold, with three potential weddings in the pipeline. Add to that, the end of year accounting, and I feel as though my calendar is starting to bend under the weight. If I were less of a maths dummy and didn't have the attention span of a house-fly, I could perhaps do the accounts myself, but that is why the good lord put accountants on this earth - they like sifting through numbers, invoices, and receipts, I hate it! Me, I like dogs. Talking of which...

I recently boarded another Border Collie. I say in another in the context of in addition to my own, Ellie. Boots stayed with me eleven nights, while her owner went on holiday. I've known of Boots for quite some time as her and her owner, Barry, take part in the same canine display events that we take part in, or I go along to photograph. But I'd never really interacted with Boots as such. In fact, the only thing that I did really now about her was that she had an excellent recall.

As it turns out, Boots is probably the most Border Collie Border Collie that I have met. You can just see the working parent stock running through her. She gets obsessed with moving things like the hoover, mops, etc. She'll occasionally even try to launch herself after a car if they drive past her on the walks. She is very timid but oh so loving too. In terms of her temperament, you just can't fault her. Around the house, you just don't know you've got her. Take her out and she's a powerhouse of energy, with a particular penchant for water!

I love water-dogs. Just love them! It's taken me the best part of three years to get Ellie confident in the water, (more on that later.) but Boots, at just twenty-two months of age, just propels herself into it like a speedboat. Lucky for us, we have a medium-sized pond in our local playing field.

Boots and Ellie seemed to get along fine and built a mutual understanding that if either of them were to 'Collie Nip' the other, then it would be responded to in kind. (Most Border Collie owners will know exactly what I'm talking about here!) As both Boots and Ellie come from farm dogs, then they both have have strong natural BC instincts.

Now, more on the swimming. My best-friend Sue and I have been taking Ellie and her Rottie, Teal'c, to various locations over the past few weeks. As part of that, Ellie has been exposed to more and more water. She's never been a fan of water at all. There was a brief period about a year or so ago where she got brave enough to wade in to her belly, but never to swim. However, through the exposure we've been giving her lately, I am amazed and very proud to see that she will now swim as readily as any other dog. In fact, I believe that she would happily swim across a river now. I did take a great video of her new found skill but it's on my phone and the Nokia software I use to get it off doesn't seem to like Windows Vista. Still, there will be plenty more opportunities.

There will also be more photos soon as I have just purchased a new 'snappy camera'. It's great having all my professional camera equipment, but when we walk, we often take our rucksacks for food and there just isn't the room for my hulking great camera to come too. So I've just bought a handy pocket-sized camera that seems fit for purpose.

And finally... My dad doesn't care for dogs, and my mum really doesn't care for them either, and my brother was actually scared of them for many years. So where does my undying love of, and interest in, dogs come from? I now have the answer. I was recently given a large collection of old family photos, with a great many of my Granddad, now deceased. In almost all photos there is a dog, and, quite interestingly to me, never once is one of his dogs on leash, even in the more recent photos. The latter tells me that he either loved training his dogs or he just had a natural affinity with them. I do remember him through growing up, and I know he always owned large dogs as opposed to little ones. And I remember that he used to let them share his cups of tea from his saucer. My granddad did raise me for some time in my childhood and so it's likely that is where the love of dogs imprint came from. So there you go... I really hope to get some of the old photos scanned and posted soon too.

The Swiss Army Knife of Dogs...

2010-05-04T11:28:00.003+01:00

It's that time of year again; the boarding dogs are coming through thick and fast. Currently, as you can see in the picture to the left, it's the return of my most frequent boarding guest, Monty the pug. Only this time, Monty is not alone - he now has a new playmate, Cooper the Boston Terrier.

Though they both have entirely different personalities, they get on incredibly well. Monty is like an older gentleman; he likes his sleep and creature comforts. He's confident and sedate. It's really not unusual for him to be the last to wake up in the mornings. Cooper is entirely different; Cooper is a nervous play-machine. He's incredibly timid at times, but he loves nothing more than running around and jumping up at Ellie. Much to Ellie's dismay I should add.

I have them both until Saturday 8th. However, on Thursday 6th, I also have a Border Collie coming to join me. Am I mad? Just ever so slightly - I find it helps when looking after dogs. :)

In other news, I have to tell you why I am so exceptionally proud of Ellie this morning. I took all three dogs around the local farm fields for their morning walk. Half way around my walk I began to get a little warm. I decided to stop and remove my jumper. I placed the leads and my sunglasses on the ground, removed my jumper and tied it around my waist, before picking up my bits and competing my walk.

As I approached my home, I noticed something was missing; I had left my sunglasses on the ground where I took my jumper off. As it was so far away, I decided to drop Monty and Cooper off at the house, and then do the walk again with Ellie.

As I stepped onto the farm fields with Ellie, I thought I would just try something. Sometimes, around the house, I will hide a tennis ball and tell Ellie to "Find". She then methodically searches high and low for the ball, and generally always finds it. Would she do it for my glasses, I wondered? I said "Find" and watched as she ran through the beaten tracks. She dutifully returned with something in her mouth. "Good girl", I cried. "Good Girl!". I was presented with a stick! Not quite what I had in mind. I decided to make one more attempt. "Go find", I asked. Sure enough, she ran off again. She returned two minutes later. I could see the sun reflecting off something in her mouth. Hoozah! My sunglasses! And that, dear reader, is why I am so damn proud of my dog. She's like the Swiss Army Knife of dogs. :)

Going.... Going.... Gone....

2010-05-01T17:57:00.009+01:00

Sue and I took Ellie and Teal'c to Beeston today. We walked along the River Trent, enjoying the Bank Holiday sunshine.

More important, Ellie finally learnt to swim; yes swim as in properly swimming! She's always been a bit wussy over water, preferring just to get her feet wet and letting Teal'd do the grunt work of wading into the deeper water to fetch the ball.

However, today Teal'c went on strike and so Ellie had a choice to make - swim herself or lose her precious tennis ball to the current of the river Trent. The lure of the tennis ball won. Sue and I threw the ball into progressively deeper water until Ellie was swimming around like a pro, even diving in at one point!

Then came the return home. Teal'c may not have been the best ball-retrieving device today, but she still made for a great pillow for a weary Border Collie...

Sometimes it just works...

2010-04-25T12:16:00.011+01:00

As part of the home-boarding, I regularly meet people as they come to the house and drop their dogs off. I even walk with and meet with some clients outside of any boarding arrangement. But sometimes, as was the case last May with Max and Becky, I get to meet people who really do stand out for just being so damned nice, down to earth, and full of good humour. This weekend I boarded a GSD named Taz (who I naturally renamed to Tazmaria Olmalero), and a Collie Cross (I think it's crossed with a Staffie) named Wilf (who I naturally renamed to Wilfred Bramble), owned by Graham and Lisa.

From the very first moment I met Lisa and Graham, I just knew I liked them. They were open, funny (believe me, I can't even own a toilet brush any more), and sociable. Their dogs were an absolute credit to them, and their GSD, Taz, has reminded me just how much I miss owning GSDs.

You see, before Ellie, I'd always owned GSDs, but grew disheartened as a result of the sheer number of them that have developed fear-aggression through the lack of nerve caused by the reckless over-breeding in the UK in recent years. Taz, while still only a few months old, seems set to be representative of the breed as I once knew them to be - courageous, loyal, steady in nerve, and with gorgeously rich and deep colours.

Having Taz for the weekend certainly reminded me just how much I miss the traits of the GSD - the laying in doorways to watch both the exits and the entrances, the leg hugging, and the constant look of alertness.

Ellie took to both of them without any issue. Wilf is quite a timid wee thing, though he also has a devilish side in him that likes to wind Taz up from time to time, while Tax is a typical young dog - always experimenting and finding out where the limits are. She did put herself right in Ellie's face at one point, but a quick growl and snap from Ellie quickly made Taz realise that's probably not the right way to behave.
Once they sorted boundaries and space out, they were all just fine and dandy.

I really do love watching how dogs communicate their feelings. They are so much better at it than we humans. They don't hold grudges, are always consistent, and are absolute masters of subtlety. Touch wood, despite all the dogs that have come through, we've never once had a fight yet. I believe this is because as each dog has come through, I've learnt more about their sometimes very subtle signals and how to interpret them. But I digress.

On Wednesday, Teal'c the Rottweiler arrives for a couple of nights! Teal'c is my surrogate Rottweiler. I see her just about every week as her owner, Sue, and I take dog walks together. I guess she's the dog that I never really allowed myself to have. :)

This afternoon's challenge, to teach Ellie to put herself onto the weighing scales. That should be an easy one to do. I don't see why I should be the only one who has to be reminded how much weight I am putting on as I get older!

Kizzie Whizz Bang

2010-04-19T10:54:00.060+01:00

"I can't believe you've read her blog and still want to board her", "I think you're mad". There were just some of the lines that the owner said to me as she delivered her much-loved Labradoodle, Kizzie, to me for a weekend of home-boarding.

Kizzie is a five-month old Labradoodle, and, like all Labradoodles I've ever met and boarded, she is a live-wire. On her first night I decided to sleep downstairs with her as she is so young. I left the door of her crate open and figured that because I knew she was there, I would only sleep lightly anyway. I woke up to a really quite unique sound that, I hope, needs little more explanation than the next line gives; poor Kizzie had raging diarrhea. I got up and cleaned and disinfected the floors. This happened several times throughout the night. By early Saturday morning, after seeing the world through extremely tired eyes, even I was starting to thinking that maybe I was mad.

However, then the day moved on and I have to tell you, I really fell in love with Kizzie. She had been with me long enough by then to work out that standing by the back door would see her get let out, which helped with her runny tummy timing issues. But more importantly, I had learned that she's a really very inquisitive dog that would be just perfect for heelwork to music, trick training, or for assistance tasks. She has a natural curiosity and eagerness. When I washed my hands at the sink, she jumped in the bath, placed her paws on the sink edge, and began to lap the water. When I polished, she wanted to take the cloth, when I took my shoes off, she wanted to take them. With both the latter things, I encouraged her by briefly letting her hold each item before taking it from her. (The owners had stated that I was free to teach her new things.)

You see, to me, a behaviour is only a bad behaviour if you can't find a use for it. If a dog will take your shoe then you have half of a "Fetch my shoes" routine. If a dog will steal your duster, then you have half of a "Do the Dusting" routine. You see my point? It's all about how you channel these behaviours. But I digress. My point is that I see Kizzie as one of those special dogs that has all of the enthusiasm and the intelligence to really be quite a remarkable dog.

I've boarded many dogs where I've fallen for their charms, and loved having them around. However, Kizzie is the first dog that I've thought, "you know what, I'd have that dog". Such is my belief in her capacity for excellence.

As it happened, I ended up sleeping downstairs with her each and every night of her stay as she just wasn't able to go all night without the diarrhea. The difference though was that she was now wise enough to wake me and let me know she needed to go. Another sign that she's a really smart dog. This morning, I woke up to the sight of Kizzie laying by my side, on her back, with all four paws in the air. Her nose was tucked into my ear, snoring away without a care in the world.

You can read more about Kizzie in her regularly updated blog.

Ellie Sings the Blues...

2010-04-12T18:24:00.000+01:00

Here it is, by popular demand... Ellie Sings the Blues!

Things can only get butter...

2010-04-11T10:44:00.005+01:00

Last weekend, I had the pleasure of home-boarding a new guest - Charlie. You know, I don't know what it is, but the dogs I am receiving for boarding lately just seem to be getting better and better. Charlie is an eight year old with the spirit of a three year old. He would happily run and play when I took him out, but he also just loved to lay on my chest as I laid on the sofa to watch television. He got on very well with Ellie and with all the other dogs we met on our walks too. Seriously, how can I not love what I do? I wouldn't swap it for the world. It's dogs like Charlie (and several others I should add) that remind me why I love the company of dogs as much as I do.

In other news... Who knew - Ellie can sing! I discovered this by accident the other morning. I was laid in bed and Ellie was laid on me as she tends to do each morning. I began to call her name in a somewhat high-pitched tone "Ellie Bellyyyyyyyyy", and before I knew it she was singing at me! I tried again and, sure enough, she repeated it. I've now done it several times in different contexts and she is quite happy to sing along to my high-pitched screeching! So there you go, another unknown talent tapped into!

In one of my previous posts I mentioned how Ellie is changing insofar as she's getting more courageous, more willing to take risks, and more ready to try her luck from time to time. The other night Jan was preparing a bacon sandwich for herself. She buttered her bread and then returned to the living room while the bacon cooked. After a few minutes there was a slurping sound coming from the kitchen. Jan went to investigate. The buttered bread had become - how can I say this - unbuttered. Ellie had put her front paws on the worktop and carefully licked every trace of butter, leaving the bread in perfect condition and unmoved. Well, perfect except for the shallow valley that was etched into the bread where her tongue had run along it. I love dogs with spirit! :)

I took Ellie to the grounds of Belton House the other day with my good friend Sue, and her Rottie, Teal'c. Despite it only being about fifteen minutes away from me (if that) I've never actually walked Ellie around it. There are plenty of deer in the park, and so I was curious to see how Ellie would be around them. While she never really got that close to them, she seemed completely oblivious to their existence. Me however, I couldn't resist getting as close as possible to them in order to snap a photo. This week, weather permitting, we're taking Teal'c and Ellie to the beach at Anderby Creek! Ellie and I haven't been there for ages and I can't wait.

New Design...

2010-04-02T23:37:00.003+01:00

Yes, it's that time of year again when Ellie's blog has to represent the change in the weather. With that in mind, Ellie has knocked up a little spring design. We hope you like it!

In other news, it looks like Ellie will be taking part in this year's canine display event at Belton again. More to come soon...

A Sunday Stroll for the Ladies...

2010-03-21T14:47:00.005Z

Ellie and best-friend, Teal'c, decided to take a Sunday stroll earlier today. I decided to go along too, you know, just to see if there were any photo opportunities...

Spring is in the Air...

2010-03-16T20:30:00.017Z

There are always two sure signs (three if you count the rather blatant calendar stating the fact) that spring is approaching here at Barkingham Palace. The first is the speed at which dog-walkers walk their dogs. During winter, it can be a mad dash to get back into the warmth of our homes and dip our toes in a cup of warm soup. We do all do that, right? However, come spring, we move more like old tortoises, each happy to just enjoy the sunshine and fresh warm air.

The second sign is that my home-boarding calendar starts to rapidly fill up as people begin to plan their annual holidays. As I write this entry, I have a Black Labrador named Barney, who previously joined us a year ago in March 2009. I absolutely love receiving repeat bookings, as it tells me that I'm getting things right and that the owners are happy with the boarding I am providing for their dogs. Of course, repeat bookings are made all the more pleasant when the dog is as well-behaved and has such a well-rounded temperament as Barney does. I don't think I know of a single dog who is more accommodating to other dogs than he is. He just seems to embrace each of them equally. He will play with them when invited, but is also happy to do his own thing when not invited. In terms of off-leash walking, you can't really ask for better.

Barney leaves us on Thursday evening, which gives me one day before another regular client (in fact, the most regular client of them all) arrives for a weekend stay. Yes, it's time for Monty the pug again. However, this time it's Monty and his new 'brother', Cooper - a Boston Terrier pup! Yes, there's now double the trouble! :) Of course, I've already met him and he's just adorable! I think we're reaching the point where we should perhaps be building a 'Monty wing' in recognition of his custom!

So there are things on the boarding front. But what about Ellie? Well....

Since the spaying, I have noticed a gradual and pleasant change in her physique. She has certainly filled out and is no longer the skinny border collie that she once was. She has quite the voracious appetite now. But more importantly than the physical change, is the change in her personality. I've been noticing a change in her for some time now. It started as quit a gradual change, but it seems to be accelerating a little at the moment. Others have certainly noticed it too.

I can think of no better way to describe the change than to say she seems to have found her 'collie gene'. A walk doesn't seem to be a walk these days unless she can herd up whichever dog we happen to be walking with. She will bark at them to try and get them to run. If they run, then she does what Border Collies do - herds them up. If they don't, she gives up of course, but for her to even attempt it is quite a significant change.

She's also much more alert for more of the time. Don't get me wrong, she can still be that oh-so-timid Border Collie that we all know and love, but there are just many more periods when she isn't. She is more willing to try new things, a little more affectionate, and a little more vocal at times. Most people who see her these days are commenting on the changes they see in her, so it can't just be me noticing them.

She's also getting much more confident and relaxed around other dogs. It has been a remarkable sight for Sue and I to witness Ellie, Barney, and Teal'c all fall into a deep sleep in close proximity to each other, not once but twice this week. My guess is that the home-boarding is helping her significantly in this area. I don't imagine it's easy for any dog to have a near constant flow of different dogs enter their home month after month.

I welcome all of these changes in her. Boy, do I welcome them! I am doing all that I can to try and foster the increased energy and enthusiasm, and even ignoring the bad bits such as when she jumps up at me on the walk to try and get me to throw the ball for her. I know what you are thinking, that I am creating a future problem. However, we'll have to agree to disagree. I think it would be too easy to push Ellie back into her reserved state again. It's a case of needing to take the rough with the smooth for now, while I encourage her to grow her confidence and energy levels. There will come a time to start weeding out the pushy behaviours, but it isn't just yet.

And now for the shameless promotion bit: The Don't Blame the Dog forums are growing but we always need more dog-lovers to join up and participate. So if you or anyone you know are interested in talking about dogs, particularly about positive training, then we'd love to see you there!

Operation Rolo Concludes

2010-02-28T20:09:00.007Z

It's not very often that we get a dog staying at Barkingham Palace that requires military-style planning.

A short while ago, I received an email from a potential boarding client wanting to know if I would consider boarding her Chocolate Labrador, Rolo. I don't think his owner will mind me saying that she didn't sell the prospect very well. To her credit, she was brutally honest about Rolo's past antics, in particular, his passion for destruction. After reading her initial emails I decided that the very least I could do was offer to meet him at my home and go for a walk with he and Ellie to see how they got along. Besides, I was so intrigued by then that I just had to meet him!

On Rolo's initial visit, Jane, his owner, stood for almost the entire length of our meeting, obviously deeply-concerned that Rolo was going to break something. Me, I just kept my eye on my XBOX that was standing precariously by the much more valuable flat-screen television. Rolo was, it is fair to say, like a tornado. Like all young Chocolate Labs, he has an extremely high level of energy, and like all young dogs (he was only seven months of age at this point), he was blissfully unaware of his rear-end, let alone the trail of destruction that it can leave behind.

He ran in and out of the room and bounced on and off the sofas as though moving was about to go out of fashion. Ellie did as she always does. She watched for a while, then began to try to herd him up, and then nipped him to stop him bouncing around her. Rolo took it all in his stride.

Anyway, after watching him for a while and walking with him, I decided that he was okay to board. However, let me tell you, it really was like a military operation. Because he is such a handful, you have to make sure that you watch him for every minute. It's not that he's a bad dog; he is just young and, well, a Chocolate Lab! If it looks like it will fit in his mouth, he'll try it! We very nearly lost a laptop from the dining table as he decided to walk through the cable that was between it and the socket, and the plant pot is a little lighter since he helped to relieve it of some soil, but all in all, we got off lightly!

And now for something completely different...

You may recall I mentioned a project that m'colleague Lucy and I have been working on. Well, it's our new dog-related website. www.dontblamethedog.com It's entirely devoted to positive dog-training. Of course, like all new websites, the easy bit is the designing and the building. The hard part is getting people to visit, participate, and stick around. If you would like to visit, please do, we'd love to see you. If you know of anyone else who is mad about dogs, please let them know too. We're doing our best to grow it all the time, and the more people join up (it's free) then the more motivated we are to keep working at it! It's still not finished as such, but it's complete enough to unveil it.

I hope to see you there.

Saint Valentine Visits Barkingham Palace

2010-02-15T12:37:00.003Z

You know, it comes to something when the dog gets more Valentine's cards than the owner, doesn't it?

Yes, Ellie has received her first Valentine card. The message reads as follows:

"To Ellie. A Valentine wish that's just for you, and lots of love comes with it too."

And whose heart is that Ellie has captured, I hear you ask? Really, you need to ask? It's the one true love of her life, Hoolie, of course. Yes, if there were any doubts about the blossoming love affair between Hoolie and Ellie, this surely casts them aside. Now, whether Hoolie sent it to her because of true love, or because he was riddled with guilt over robbing her of her virginity and then casting her aside, is another matter. But she seems delighted all the same.

And, as if that wasn't enough, they're even going on a date together. Yes, they have arranged a day at the beach together in March. I tell you, I think it's time to start picking out your new hats....

Filthy Romance Strikes at Barkingham Palace

2010-02-02T18:46:00.010Z

As any dog-owner will tell you, walking in the autumn and winter months can be challenging. Aside from the chilly temperature, howling winds and downpours of rain, there is the challenge of keeping your home free of mud-soaked dog paws. Even with the most strategic planning, it always goes awry, as my living-room carpet will reflect.

The living-room carpet here at Barkingham Palace has seen more than its fair share of muddy paw prints over the past few weeks. I can't even begin to tell you how bad it looked after our walk of today. I took Ellie and my latest boarding dog, Hoolie, across the fields with me. That was my first mistake as it had been raining overnight and the mud was incredibly thick under foot. My second mistake was to let Hoolie and Ellie play in the stream along the way. If there is one thing that mud sticks to more than dog hair, it's wet dog hair!

Ellie and Hoolie then decided real fun could be had if Ellie were to play the part of sheepdog - something that she isn't altogether bad at if the sheep happens to be a dog - and Hoolie were to play the part of a sheep. Unsurprisingly, Hoolie is very good at his role too, if the sheep happens to run around like its backside is on fire while plugged into a never-ending mains for energy. So now, just close your eyes and imagine a big black Labrador which, I swear, seems to be the size of a small pony (A Labrapony perhaps?), and a rocket-fast Border Collie running through large open fields of thick thick mud and rain. Got it in your mind's eye yet? Okay, now double the mud you have in your imagination and you'll come somewhere close to how both dogs looked. And they did this for almost an hour, let's not forget.

Being the softie that I am, I allowed them to just get on with it. Between you and me, I love to see dogs playing together in the open air. It's how things are supposed to be in my mind. Anyway, I figured that we would have some walking on pavements to do on our way home, and then I would towel them both off in the hallway when we got home.

As we got home, I made them wait at the door and towelled them both. The towel, quite literally, went from a pale green to a deep dark brown in just seconds. (See exhibit A to the left.) However, I thought I had got all the loose stuff off. I let them into the house. BIG MISTAKE. Only when they hit the living room carpet did I see just how much mud was left on the dogs. It was really bad! I can't wait to get my carpet cleaned but really, there's no point in this weather. It is cleaned every quarter anyway so it'll be due around the end of March, by which time I hope to see some dryer weather.

And you know, even if you manage to wipe the mud off the dog, then there is the customary dog shake. When Ellie shakes, it's not really a big deal. She's a small spindly dog who could barely make a candle flame flicker with the output of her shake. However, Hoolie is another matter. When he shakes, the national TV channels issue severe weather warnings! He can splatter an entire wall in less than two seconds, and move along to complete another in the blink of an eye.

But you know what, for all that, I still wouldn't stop home-boarding in a million years!

In other news, I think Ellie and Hoolie are forming a little romance. Every evening, Hoolie will jump on the sofa with me and lay down my side. Ellie then jumps on top and she goes to sleep with her head resting on Hoolie. I'd love to get it on camera, but it's hard to move without disturbing them. Trust me when I tell you that it looks so cute. Yesterday, however, Hoolie decided that their relationship needed to move forward a little faster. He figured that he'd done the foreplay bit. He'd let her sleep on him and whisper sweet nothings in his ear. It was time to, you know, cement the bond a little more firmly. And so he did. In the blink of an eye, he was trying to have his evil way with her. What was more surprising was the Ellie seemed more than happy to let him. I thought about splitting them up, but watching a dog the size of Hoolie trying to mount a bitch the size of Ellie does provide a certain degree of comedy. Besides, it lasted only a few seconds before he gave up and decided he needed a rest. That's my boy!

P.S. It struck me, after I published this entry, that Hoolie is still trying to make his carnal intentions clear in the first photo! :) Dirty Berty!

Bathtime at Barkingham Palace

2010-01-24T13:50:00.011Z

The UK has been blessed with quite a bit of snow in recent weeks. Ellie, like me, loves snow. Afterall, what's not to like? However, as is the way with snow, as it has melted it has left us with several flooded areas along our walk route. That wouldn't be so bad if it was, say, a nice urban route full of tarmac walkways and trees that blow in the gentle sun-kissed breeze. However, it isn't. Our walk route is desolate farm land, with ditches to navigate across, large dips, and a hill that, I swear gets higher with each year.

Now, as any Border Collie owner will tell you, if there is one thing that a Border Collie loves more than a ball, it's running around in mud! The wetter, the gloopier, and the stickier, the better!

After today's walk, Ellie was just a little too filthy for me to be able to ignore it. She had to go in the bath! It was that, or I follow her around the house with a scrubbing brush and towel all day long.

I've bathed Ellie since she was a pup as I didn't want one of those dogs that panics when they see bath. It's fair to say that she's pretty good in the bath. You have to watch her and comfort her, as, I feel sure, given the opportunity, she would jump out and do a runner, making sure to shake the muddy water along her route as she did so, but overall, she's happy to stand there and let me shower her. But her face. Oh, the face! I swear, you would think that I had stolen her first-born from her and fed it to her! She looks an absolutely misery while being showered. And if that isn't bad enough, I then have to blow dry her. By this time, according to her miserable face, I've started feeding her the entire litter!

However, at the end of it, I have a lovely clean Border Collie, complete with dazzling white 'paint-pot' paws and tail. Until tomorrow...

Just a Couple of New Tricks in the Making...

2010-01-22T22:17:00.002Z

Things are picking up at Barkingham Palace. The illness that has been with me since late November has just about gone, thanks to new medication. For the record, it turns out that I probably had swine flu in Nov/Dec (though I thought it was just a bad cold) which left me with something called GERD (Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease). I don't recommend it! However, I'm very firmly on the mend and that means that training Ellie is picking up again.

Inspired by Silvia Trkman's newest video, I've been knuckling down for the past couple of days and teaching Ellie to tap at the keyboard and wipe the floor. The video at the start of this entry shows progress as of day two. She seems to have really found her mojo again and is being so responsive to training!

We've also been training with my friend, Lucy, and her three dogs, Ash, Indie, and Trent. We've been putting a video together, but weather has prevented us from getting it finalised for this weekend as we had hoped. You may need to wait another week or so now to see that it in all its glory. It's going to be a good 'un!

Enjoy the video, and Silvia's video link is also well worth a watch, as always!

Snow at Barkingham Palace...

2010-01-07T14:16:00.007Z

I hope all readers had a good Christmas. Aside from the routine infections and germs that tend to go around at this time of year, we had a good Christmas period. It was, of course, the first since the passing of Mavis, and so we had Jan's dad over for a few days. The dynamics change after someone passes away and that can take quite some getting used to. I've never known Jan's dad to be at our home without Jan's mum and it's amazing how different that makes things. But onto brighter things....

On the 29th January, my latest boarder came to stay. Maddie, is a Golden Labrador and was scheduled to stay with us until today. However, due to the snow, the owners flight has been cancelled. Ergo, I have Maddie until they can get back to the UK, whenever that might be. Maddie is a lovely dog. She's quite timid, though she's not afraid to stick up for herself when the need arises. Ellie disturbed her as she slept once and so Maddie was quick to tell her. It's been great having her during all the snow and she seems to love running across the snowy fields, playing the part of the sheep, so that Ellie can round her up. She is very much a people dog who just thrives on attention. She is one of those dogs that you just don't know you have. She rests during the day, rarely barks, and is just a pleasure to have around. I think, of all the dogs we have had stay with us, Maddie has become Jan's favourite. What I can happily say without any fear of doubt is that Maddie is a dog who is welcome back at Barkingham Palace any time. I really can't give any higher praise than that about a boarder dog.

Towards the end of January, I have Hoolie coming to stay. I can't wait. I just adore Hoolie. He's a great mix of being well trained, but with just enough cheek and daring to appeal to my sense of adventure. I just love having him stay!

I also learnt that Monty (the Pug), our most frequent guest, now has a playmate - Cooper! I believe he is a Boston Terrier but I've yet to meet him. I'm sure that I will soon enough. :)

As the picture to the left should suggest, we've had quite a bit of snowfall here at Barkingham Palace. Ellie just seems to thrive in snow. She loves it. Though, with all this cold weather, it means I seem to have been ill since the last week of November, all tolled. I have a terrible sore throat and cough to the point where I struggle to breathe. I perhaps should have gone to see a GP before today, but I really don't like troubling them for what I consider to be a cold. However, due to the longevity of this one, I think it best. Aside from that, I'm not overly keen on not being able to breathe! :) So doctor's tomorrow for me. Maybe antibiotics, who knows...

So what about Ellie? Well, she's well and truly over her recent spaying and dew-claw removal. Though, to be honest with you, she was over it the day after it happened. I always suspected she might be one of those dogs who just didn't care and she turned out to be just that. The scar along her belly has all but gone now, with just a thin trace of it remaining. I believe it will be just about invisible in a couple more weeks. I think both Ellie and I are eagerly awaiting the warmer weather and the longer daylight hours now. My clicker finger is really itching and Ellie is much braver now than she was last summer. I want to see just how much braver she is. I also want to take a video of her taking the wheelie-bin out with me. That's her latest trick.

I was also interested to watch Horizon on BBC2 last night, which showed a dog recognising 340 different objects by name. (As well as being able to recognise and retrieve objects just by seeing a photo of each one). It's got me wondering just how many different ones I could teach Ellie to recognise. Hmmm, I wonder.... More to the point, how much would it cost to amass 340+ dog-friendly objects! :)

All is Well at Barkingham Palace

2009-12-10T10:27:00.002Z

It's now been ten days since Ellie went to the vet to be spayed and have her dew claw removed. This morning she had the single stitch removed from where her dew claw once precariously dangled. She has also been given the all-clear by the vet. Ellie can now return to doing all that she was doing before the operations. Go Ellie!

We went for our maiden walk on Tuesday evening with my good friend, Sue, and of course, Ellie's best friend, Teal'c the Rottweiler. As I was unsure how well Ellie's healing was doing we just took a leisurely stroll around the local playing field. I am sure that Ellie failed to get the memo telling her that she has had an operation. All she wanted was for me to throw the ball for her. Of course, I refused, much to her disdain.

I must say, she really has done remarkably well. She hasn't once been seen licking either wound. In fact, she really does seem completely oblivious to the fact that she's been operated upon.

In other news, the home-boarding is continuing to grow and I was delighted to receive an email this morning asking if I was free to board Hoolie again! If you have forgotten already, Hoolie is the black labrador that stole my heart on his first stay with me, and is competing with 'The Doodles' for the place of my favourite boarder dogs.

We will shortly be starting a dog trick challenge with my friend, Lucy, and her far-too-smart dogs, where we will both start teaching our dogs a new trick. I've been planning this particular trick for ages but it's always more fun if you're doing it with someone else, and Lucy is as competitive as I am. We just need to purchase the right props first! Watch this space for videos! Talking of which, dogs, websites, and videos is a damned good hint at my next big project for 2010, and that is all I shall say on that for now.

On a final note, I am amused at how easily my chance 'Barkingham Palace' tag has taken off. When people email me these days, they so often refer to it. I'm even thinking of having a house sign made with it on! :)

The Operations

2009-11-30T14:09:00.002Z

There's a sniff of anxiety in the air here at Barkingham Palace. Today is the day that Ellie has been taken to the vet for her spaying and for the dew claw that has loosely dangled from her leg since she was a puppy.

I'm told that both operations went well and she is, as I write this, currently trying to stand up after the anaesthetic. We can collect her at about 15:00hrs. She has a single stitch on the dew-claw wound, and will need to wear some sort of sock to stop her nibbling at it for a few days.

Although I felt sure that the vet would do a good job, and despite knowing that both operations are, in the grand scheme of things, quite routine operations, I hated leaving Ellie at the vet this morning. Ellie and I are very much a team and we have been since day one. I work from home and she is with me all day. When I go out, she comes with me. When I do things, I involve her too. That's how it's always been and anything else is really quite alien to both her and to me. I felt that I was letting the team down a little this morning. If I could have stayed there with her, I would happily have done so but alas, that's not how it works. But anyway, it's done now, all but the healing. Something tells me that Ellie isn't going to be one of those dogs to want to sit and heal for long. That should be fun!

This morning before the operation, I swear, we watched as she went to fetch the phone. Jan joked that perhaps she was urging us to cancel the operation! No chance of that. There's only so many phantom pregnancies that anyone can handle!

In other news, Monty has been to stay with us again, this time for a week. He left us again on Saturday night. I managed to snap the above photo of the three - Monty, Ellie, and Teal'c the Rottweiler - all together in the living room. Now that is a blend of breeds that you don't get to see together every day!

It will be a quite time here at Barkingham Palace for a few weeks now as we give Ellie time to recover from her operations. However, I do have a couple of new dog-related projects that I am working on which I hope to be able to reveal to you guys shortly. Stay tuned...

The Spaying is Booked

2009-11-17T17:56:00.007Z

There is progress at Barkingham Palace. For me personally, I am delighted to report that the issue with my fingers has gone. I went to bed one Tuesday night with them hurting as they had been for weeks and weeks to an ever increasing degree. I awoke the next morning to find them completely fine. Answers on a postcard to the usual address for that one. Suffice to say that I have cancelled the hospital appointment. It would have been nice to know what caused it, but frankly, I'm just pleased to have full and painless mobility back in my hands.

As a result of this, and with Mavis now having passed away, I've been able to spend time processing the backlog of photos taken from various events.

Here is a slideshow from the Hougham Fun Day in August. Photos are available for purchase from my photo store.

I've also purchased brand new uber powerful computer equipment to make processing much more fluid and less taxing too. It is amazing how much more quickly I can process the photos now.

In other news, Ellie is getting spayed on November 30th. I was a little staggered at the price quoted from our vet: £175+ any additional costs of dressings etc that 'may be required'. Then we had to pay an additional £23 just to have her checked over to make sure she was fit and healthy - that took all of three minutes. After returning home, I checked with friends of ours who recently had their two Border Collie bitches spayed locally. They used a different vet. So I called their vet and am having it done for £118.20. Much better!

So, after the 30th, she will be in recovery at home, banned from exercise for at least a week I'm told. Poor ol' Ellie. All together now....

Spending Time with Hoolie...

2009-11-01T12:22:00.005Z

When you're a dog person as I am, dogs punctuate certain moments of your life in a similar fashion to how particular songs do. Hoolie, the black Labrador that you see in the photo to the left, will, for example, always be the dog who stayed with us throughout Mavis's funeral. He was a real comfort to have around.

Hoolie is the latest dog to have passed through Barkingham Palace as a home-boarder. Having stayed with us for eighteen nights, he's also the dog who has spent the most time with us in one stay. At the risk of reading like a sycophant, I absolutely loved having him stay. Again, similarly to the case of 'the Doodles', some dogs just take you by surprise with their charm. Hoolie is, for me, an almost perfect blend of energy and calm. He can have moments of incredible energy which makes for great walks. He certainly loved running around the fields with Ellie, and even allowed Ellie to practise her herding on him. But then, in the house, he just relaxed and you barely knew you had him. Though I did consider calling the Guinness Book of Records to see if he could take the title of world's fastest eater. I swear that it took longer for me to put the food down to the floor, than it took for him to swallow it!

It didn't take him long to learn what a soft touch I am, as he managed to join me on the sofa after just a few days. That is one area where he most certainly does differ from the Doodles. Having two JRTs on a sofa with you is nothing like having a dog the size of Hoolie on the sofa with you, let me tell you! Don't tell the Doodles, but I've had to put Hoolie in joint first place for the title of my favourite boarding dogs.

Ellie got on really quite well with Hoolie too. There were several times where she just laid her head on his chest and went to sleep. Isn't romance a wonderful thing... And then, to tell you what a charmer Hoolie really is, a day or two after he left, he sent us some flowers to thank us for the stay! Hmm, thinking about it, maybe he sent them to Ellie? Regardless, they were a lovely gift, though we do wonder what other trouble he's been getting into with his online credit-card shopping!

As Hoolie left on the Wednesday, two pugs, Bert and Ernie, joined us on Saturday (Yesterday.) They are now with us until next Saturday. They have come at a good time really. We believe Ellie was entering into a second phantom pregnancy. She was showing all the signs again. However, Bert and Ernie seem to have distracted her, which is a good thing as we want to get her spayed next month.

So far, they are proving to be good dogs. An occasional bout of energy, but they spend most of their time sleeping together. They really are very cute when you see them together....

In other news, Ellie is doing well. As mentioned already, she is on the cusp of another phantom pregnancy, but we're hoping that she will through this one as we so desperately want to get her spayed next month. Aside from that, it can't be nice for her. The discomfort in my fingers has now turned to bouts of pain as opposed to just discomfort, which is not helped, I suspect, by the cooler weather we are experiencing. I shall be very glad to get to the hospital at the end of November. There are already certain tasks that I am finding quite challenging and it is this that I want to remedy more than anything. Luckily, I can still operate my camera, but the time spent at the computer to process the photos, is just too much at the moment, due to my fingers being locked around the mouse for prolonged periods. I am shortly purchasing a brand new professional camera so that the time needed to make post-processing edits is minimised. That should help me incredibly. (Not to mention those who are waiting to see their photos, I suspect.)

My brain seems to have dried up in regards to thinking up new tricks for Ellie to learn. Maybe it's just because we've had quite some time of having Jan's mum's illness to deal with, as well as the problem of my fingers. Jan's mum is now at peace and hopefully things will start moving on my fingers after the hospital visit so that we can get back to normal at Barkingham Palace.

Finally, both Jan and I would like to thank everyone who helped us both during the illness and passing of Jan's mum, Mavis. Whether that help came by way of cards or messages of support, offers of dog-sitting, company, or anything else, it was hugely appreciated. Thank you.

A Tribute to Mavis....

2009-10-17T23:46:00.010+01:00

At around 20:30 tonight, we received the terrible news that Jan's Mum, Mavis, passed-away after her cancer. It is common to read of people passing away after 'losing their battle with cancer' but that wouldn't be the right statement in this case. Battle infers some sort of struggle and she never once struggled. Mavis never really battled with cancer. She lived with her illness courageously, with dignity, and without one word of contempt or self-pity. She took the available treatments, even the experimental ones, but always accepted, from the day she heard the news, that she had to be positive and live on as normal, as though she never had it. In fact, she once told me, when I asked her how she dealt with it, that she didn't have cancer. She just had 'something' and that is what the doctors were treating. What it was, she didn't need to know.

It is fitting that I write this entry in Ellie's blog as Mavis loved Ellie so very much. She never tired of seeing the new tricks she was learning on her many visits, and she constantly told anyone who would listen what a good dog Ellie was and how many different things she could do. When on the phone, she would always ask how Ellie was. Ellie, in turn, rewarded her fondness with her usual enthusiastic licks and wiggles. We will remember, with great fondness, the times that Ellie and Mavis shared together. Indeed, only a week before her death, Ellie enthusiastically jumped onto Mavis's bed to make sure she got her goodbyes in too. We all perhaps like to think that our dogs know things in such circumstances, but what I will say is that seconds after I received the news of Mavis's passing, Ellie jumped onto my knee and just laid there. Maybe she just reacted a change in my mood, who knows. Draw your own conclusions, as I will.

From a personal perspective, I have a great deal to be thankful to Mavis for. Around five years ago, I was seriously ill and, without her selfless support, in so many aspects, I probably wouldn't be alive to write this piece now. She gave so much of her time and helped in so many ways throughout those many many months. And that really was the essence of Mavis - selfless and giving. My own life has been such that I was never really able to experience normal family life. Mavis gave me a decade of real motherly love, caring, and affection, and for that I shall remain so eternally thankful.

Both Mavis and I were avid snooker fans and she would come and stay with me each year to watch the televised events. Something that I always looked forward to. Before she died, she told me, "When you watch that snooker, remember, I'll be there." And you know what, I reckon she just might be. Though I suspect that watching those events might be a little tougher for a while.

Mavis, if you're reading, thank you, and let's hope for a Mark Selby win this year, eh? Love you always.

It must be love, love, love....

2009-09-29T11:43:00.007+01:00

It's a busy time for home-boarding here at Barkingham Palace. I now have the rest of this week free, and then it's dog guests pretty much all the way through October, with half of November potentially booked up too already! Still, that means we must be getting something right.

For the past two weeks and a few days, we've had Caesar and Cleo, a pair of wire-haired Jack Russell Terriers, staying with us. They've stayed with us before, but never for that length of time. It was an absolutely amazing stay.

Because they stayed with us for longer, we got to see more of their personalities this time. They are just two of the most charismatic dogs I've ever known. Cleo has a habit of always sleeping under her blanket, but she forgets that she is under there when she wakes up. Ergo, you just just see a blanket hovering across the floor. Caesar, now he's a one dog laughathon from start to finish. He loves to be the centre of attention and will do almost anything to make sure that he is. Caeasar and I gravitated towards each other from the very start. He is everything that I love in a dog - he's cheeky, he's energetic, and just so full of spirit! He could also sleep for England. I don't think we have ever laughed as much as we have with these two. I did consider keeping them but I think their owners, Max and Becky, were onto my plan pretty early on. Foiled again!

I was supposed to be enjoying my regular walk with (whisper) my favourite dog (end whisper) Teal'c the Rotweiller, yesterday evening, but Jan's Mum was taken into the hospital the night before. I think I have mentioned before, but if not, Jan's Mum has terminal cancer, with only an expected few months to live. However, she's a tough ol' Northern gal, and keeps on defying the odds. God bless her. All being well, she should be out of hospital again today.

Anyway, I naturally cancelled my walk with Teal'c but am trying to squeeze one in before the end of the week when we take another dog in for over two weeks. I have to get my regular Teal'c fix, you know. And secretly, going by the way that poor ol' Sue (Teal'c's owner) gets dragged to my door when she arrives, I think Teal'c likes to get her Maz fix too. :) What can I say - I'm a dedicated Rottie fan through and through...

Then, in between dog stays, we've been trying to decorate and get some bits done around the house. We have to try and make things dog-proof as much as possible so it's always quite a challenge, but I think we have a decent enough balance.

On the issue of my ailing fingers, blood tests have now ruled out rheumatoid arthritis and gout. (Gout was never really an option but it had to be ruled out before the next stage.) The latest theory is that my immune system has gone a little crazy and is attacking my own joints because it doesn't recognise them as belonging to me. Apparently, it's not as uncommon as it sounded to me at first. I also believe this is essentially what arthritis is anyway. So it's a referral to the rheumatology department at the hospital now for further tests. Suffice to say that my fingers are still immensely painful at times, particularly when they get cold. I'm having to use my laptop for much of the time now as resting my fingers over the mouse for prolonged periods seems to make them much worse too. But I'm confident that we'll get to the bottom of it and get rid of the problem as easily as I seemed to encounter it.

Oh yes, and then there is Ellie. Remember her? A Border Collie? :) She has been doing great. It's fair to say that her training has lessened of late, because of other things going on, but that will get restored in due course.

She's being amazing really, considering the number of different dogs that come into her space. She seems to get much more bent out of shape over bitches then dogs. When the two JRTs come, for example, she obsesses over Cleo but barely notices Caesar. It must be a woman thing. :) That said, she always laid down with Cleo, not Caesar.

Our latest game is that I drop the ball surreptitiously as we are walking. Then, at some random point I will call 'Ellie, find it!' and she has to find the ball. She's really very very good at it! I'm going to start doing it with other objects soon I think. I'm very impressed that she never gives in searching. I've also become better at not giving any clues away as to the location of the ball. I try my hardest to stand like a statue. Not easy on these colder morning I can tell you!

So there you have it - a busy but fine time at Barkingham Palace. Until the next time...

Confined to the Barracks

2009-09-05T12:13:00.006+01:00

It's not been the best of times lately here at Barkingham Palace. Ellie has been confined to barracks because she's in season and the discomfort in my fingers continues to plague me. We have now ruled out rheumatoid arthritis (which is some relief) and I have now had x-rays done on both hands to see if that reveals the cause. The theory at the moment is that it's some sort of reaction to my recent staph infection and that it could go away by itself in, wait for it, a few months! All I know is that it isn't getting any better at the moment. As a result, my photos and my work are suffering more than I would like and I know people are still waiting for photos from me and I have other projects that I have fallen behind on too. All in all, just not a great time right now.

So, while Ellie has been a little miserable at her lack of activity, I've found some relief in my second favourite dog in the world, Teal'c the Rottweiler. Sue, (Teal'c's - that's a tough name to add apostrophes to - owner) has come over to Barkingham Palace a couple of times in the last few days and I've joined her and Teal'c on nice walks on the local farm fields. It's been quite a relief to have an excuse to get out and walk. (Thanks, Sue - really appreciated!) Walking around on your own, particularly as a man, is no fun and, such is the paranoid way of the world these days, it often meets with some rather suspicious looks.

However, going by Ellie's reaction to Teal'c when she has come in the house, I think that Ellie will be over her season by the end of next week. Hoorah! This season has been, by far, the worst ever in terms of her being grumpy and snappy.

There is good news on the horizon - the Doodles (Ceasar and Cleo) are coming for just over two weeks next Friday. You know how some dogs just grow on you really effortlessly? Ceasar (who I have personally renamed Maxamillion, though I am having a hard job convincing his owners of the merits of such a change) is one such dog.

Illness Strikes at Barkingham Palace...

2009-08-20T11:27:00.011+01:00

It's been a busy and challenging time here at Barkingham Palace. Aside from Jan's Mum's deteriorating health, I too have had some recent health issues of my own. I am currently getting over yet another staphylococcus infection that has resulted in many sleepless nights and quite a degree of discomfort. I also had to have a blood-test yesterday to test for rheumatoid arthritis in my hands and fingers. Over the past few weeks, I have developed an increasing degree of discomfort and immobility in my fingers, particularly in my right hand where even holding a full kettle has become quite a challenge at times. And so, I'm currently on antibiotics for the staph infection, and anti-imflammatories for the suspected arthritis. My only real concern is that, if it worsens, how will it ultimately affect my photography and my weight-lifting? Both are pursuits that I enjoy very much. In fact, photography has started to become a part of my living of late. We'll know whether it is arthritis on the 28th of August. This is the date we're also looking to see what, if anything, can be done about the recurring staph infections. As a result of this, I'm now way behind on photo processing and things just aren't as organised and as fluid as I normally like them to be. I'm really not very good at all at not being organised! I am ruled so much by organisation and structure. But it's not really me you are interested in is it? It's Madame...

Before illness struck the household, we'd been to a fun-day held by our training-centre manager. It was a hot and sunny day but a fun day. I guess the clue is in the title for that one really - fun day. Alas, Ellie didn't win a thing all day long. We have complained to the management, of course, and wished them all the best despite their obvious bias and blindness to real Border Collie beauty. :) I have several photos that I need to wade through from the day, but the reasons stated above, they are still in the queue.

Ellie is in season again. She's in the first stage at the moment. That means she is clingy, a little bit more grouchy than usual, but oh-so loving. Assuming there is no phantom pregnancy this time, she is getting spayed after this season, for sure!

As I write this entry she is nudging my leg to try and win an invite to come and lay on my desk. It's her new thing - she waits for me to lay a blanket on my desk and then she just comes and lays on it while I work. It's a hard life isn't it? For the record, I didn't even get to complete that sentence before she'd won me over and was laid on the desk looking smug and self-satisfied.

I'm not sure what new things she has learned since my last entry. I know for certain that I taught her to retrieve my shoes for me. She loves retrieving objects and it never ceases to amaze me how well she can differentiate between the various objects that I ask for. She will also now pass items of clothing from the laundry basket into your hand as you are ironing. She seems especially proud of herself as she does that one!

Guess who we had come to stay with us over the weekend? The Doodles! What? You can't remember them? Shame on you! They are two Jack Russell Terriers, Ceasar and Cleo. They converted me from someone who didn't much care for JRTs to someone who loves them. Well, these two at least. I can't promise to feel the same for all of the breed!

In terms of home-boarding dogs, they are the near perfect guests. They pretty much leave Ellie alone, are fun to have around, but also know when to just chill out and relax, and well, I think I've taken to Ceasar in a big way. From the first day we had them on the previous visit, he and I seemed to naturally gravitate towards each other. I think it's because he's quite pushy in his own way. Cleo is a little more reserved and cautious. Ceasar? He doesn't give a damn. Because I wasn't feeling my best when they came to stay, I kept falling asleep on the sofa in the afternoons. It must have been quite a sight with all four of us taking up the sofa!

Talking of the doodles, they have their own website now. Yes, they even write the entries themselves! (I believe Ceasar does this on his personal iPhone.) Please do drop them a visit and say hi.

Photos and Attacks

2009-07-30T11:04:00.011+01:00

After being invited along to take photos of the dogs and owners, I spent this weekend at the CLA Game Fair at Belvoir Castle where our training group was holding another canine display event. If I've done things correctly, you should be able to see some of the resulting photos in the corner of this post. If not, you can view them (along with others) at my new gallery. You can now purchase my works from there too.

Ellie was unable to attend as, with it being a game fair, there was a lot of gunshots. That is a sound that she just can't cope with.

It really was a great weekend. The weather held out for us, there were plenty of people to watch the events, and just loads of dog-related stands to visit and displays to watch. From my perspective, it was a dog photographer's paradise. My dog photography seems to be more and more in demand and that is obviously something that I am delighted about.

I really love the challenge of photographing dogs. It's not like portraits or weddings where you can, to some extent, take your time, arrange the subject, set up the shots and set the ideal lighting. At dog shows, you have to wrestle against thousands of people walking in front of you, dogs moving from position, changing weather, and a whole raft of other challenges. Getting that one shot of the dog or of the dog and owner sharing time together makes it all worthwhile. I can't imagine another avenue of photography that I would or could enjoy more. That people are impressed enough to want to spend their hard-earned money on my photographs is just the icing on my cake.

On Sunday, Ellie was attacked, quite savagely, by a terrier. We were walking to the park as we do most days. We turned a corner and there was a terrier bowed in the middle of the road, off leash, and with its owners walking behind it. Instantly, the owner looked at me and said "Sorry", as the dog launched itself right into Ellie and began to attack. The only thing I could do is use my feet to try and keep it off her. I just refuse to pick a dog up and cuddle it during a fight as that can only serve to (a) get my hands bitten, and (b) encourage Ellie to be scared. As we all know, that is something she does perfectly well without my assistance.

I continued to use my feet to push the terrier away and break them apart. All the while, the owner was trying to get hold of his dog but kept getting bitten, making me glad that I didn't use my hands to break them apart. All tolled, the attack lasted for about three to four minutes. Aside from receiving a few choice words from me, I also managed to kick the stupid owner. It wasn't on purpose, but I had my foot under his dog ready to launch it off again. The dog moved as the owner knelt down to try and get hold of it once more. Because the dog had moved, my foot landed clean in his face very firmly. I felt quite glad about that after the event. What really angered me was the response I heard the woman owner say as we walked off. "That's because that dog was on a lead." Oh yes, how stupid of me! Your dog is out of control because my dog was on a leash. Excuses, excuses...

Once we got onto the field, Ellie was clearly very different, very distracted, and very nervous, particularly when she saw a white bag blowing across the field. All I could do is try and carry on as usual. This continued for the next few days and it has taken her a few days not to jump into alert mode each time we turn that same corner. Apparently, Ellie was fine at training with other dogs last night and this morning she seemed more like her usual self (though she now stops if she sees other dogs in the distance). I am sure I can get her back to her old self in time. It certainly could have been much much worse. There was no physical damage to Ellie.

In other news, I am currently finishing off a new website that I have designed and developed for a UK dog trainer, and then I will be starting to build a new website primarily for UK dog lovers and dog owners, which I shall be running with a friend. Watch this space for more news on that...

Ellie's training is going well, and I'm currently reading The Dog Rules by Kyra Sundance. Watch this space again for my review when I finish it. Usually, I read a book in just three hours or so. I'm so busy at the moment that I have to keep reading a few pages before I go to sleep at night.

A Great End to a Perfect Week...

2009-06-13T14:43:00.009+01:00

My week has been one of immense pleasure. If you recall from my previous entry, I was home-boarding Teal'c, the Rottweiler, from Sunday through to Friday. Would it be melodramatic or unfair to say that I have felt more 'at home' and at ease this past week, than I have in a long time? There is just something about the Rottweiler breed that makes me feel at home in their company.

In some ways, you perhaps have to know Teal'c to fully appreciate the situation. She is not a well dog all-tolled. She has a heart condition, and has had a torn crucial ligament in her rear leg resulting in her having an almost permanent limp, and I think it fair to say, she has gained a few pounds as a result of these things. Her medication routine is certainly not for the faint-hearted, and I am damn sure the monthly vet bills would be enough to reduce many of us to a catatonic state! Oh, and she 'growls' profusely when you stroke her. (It's just her 'talking' and she does it when she gets excited as far as I could tell.) But you know, someone forgot to tell Teal'c all of this. She has the spirit of an adolescent dog that just will not acknowledge that she should be taking things easy, and I love her dearly for it.

As I walked her one morning, it must have seemed like a demonstration of the evolution of man as we trekked across the farm fields. There was Ellie, who at only two years of age, was rushing out in front, oblivious to the ravages of age and constantly looking back to see what was taking us 'old timers' so long. Then there was me. I keep fit as much as I can, but I have to accept that I'm forty now, and so running is not something I do on such rough terrain, and then behind me, there was Teal'c limping along. I found myself talking to the dogs more than usual. "It's alright for you bumface, running off ahead. You wait until you are her age. Won't be so funny then will it? We won't see those amber eyes glowing quite so brightly then, will we?". Ellie, of course, just looked at me with her famous amber-eyed gaze and ran on ahead. Not a care in the world, that girl.

For Teal'c, I found myself uttering words of reassurance as we walked. "Don't worry, gal, nearly there", I would say as she limped along. Though something tells me that 'woe is me' limp effect might all be a cunningly crafted ruse. A little later, as I walked along a street to return home, two squirrels crossed the road in front of us. Limp? What limp?! It was like trying to hang on to a wild stallion, I tell you!

I also learnt some things about people too. There was a woman who, since having Ellie for two years now almost, I have routinely spoken to on many occasions. She has a small spaniel and we have frequently been on the same playing field together. She has even complimented me on my training and how well I handle dogs, before today. So, I was a little put-out when, upon seeing that I had a Rottweiler with me on the field, she quite literally turned on her heels with her dog and went home, even though both dogs were clearly focused on me and in no way a threat in the least. Good grief, she could probably have outrun Teal'c if she'd stopped to learn a little more about her instead of pandering to preconceptions.

Suddenly, teenagers want to talk to you when you have a 'Rottie', and you hear conversations behind your back about how someone once knew a dog who bit a neighbour, and it wouldn't let go. It looked like that one. These things sadden me deeply. If only they could see what I, and clearly Sue and many others, can see in the breed. It really is a crying shame, particularly with a dog like Teal'c. I believe, such is Teal'c nature, for example, that she is one of the adult dogs on the puppy socialisation walk today.

Now, in other news... The book is here! The book is here! Finally, it is in my hands. I am very very pleased with it. There is only one photo that I am not happy with the quality of and that is the one of me, so I shall change that before people are able to buy it, but that can be done in a minute. So, expect to see those permission forms at training class soon! I'll be passing my copy of the book to Lorraine and Christina so that people can view it at class as soon as possible. Until then, here are some photos...

Eight hours and fifteen minutes to go..

2009-06-07T09:45:00.004+01:00

As I depress the first key on my keyboard to write this entry, it will be eight hours and fifteen minutes before I am in dog heaven. Yes, Teal'c, the Rottweiler, is coming to stay with me for four nights. I make no secret of my love for Teal'c. She's the 'rottie' that I didn't allow myself to have. Whenever I see her, I honestly to try to hold off from stroking her for at least a minute (it seems only polite) but nature just pulls me forward and my plan goes out of the window.

The truth is that Rotties are, by far, my favourite breed and I nearly opted for one before getting Ellie. However, I had to weigh several factors in, and it's really about me, not the breed. You see, I carry more than my fair share of those indelible scars of misspent youth, tattoos. I have what those who have been unfortunate enough to have to see me personally might call quite a serious face, I train with weights, and I have short spiky hair. Now, never mind that I'm really quite well-spoken, am competent in more than one computer language, and, even if I say so myself, much prefer humour to conflict (age prevents me from running away too fast these days) I do have to accept that, at first glance, I look like what some wrongly consider to be the stereotypical Rottie owner. I had to ask myself if I really wanted to perpetuate that myth.

You might reasonably argue that had I have taken on a Rottie then I could have shown that it's not always the case. I agree with you. But let's say that my lovely Rottie did just happen to bite another dog, even if it was to defend itself, or just issue a cautionary nip even. People would look at that situation completely differently to how they would look at my scrawny Border Collie defending itself and fighting in the same situation. They wouldn't just see the contextual fight, they would see the tattoos, the dog, the fight and on the myth goes... It's wrong, but it's a sad fact. So that is why I didn't get a Rottie. Maybe when I'm a little older and look a little more ravaged by time. (Anyone who tells me that is not possible is going to be immediately scrubbed from my Christmas card list!)

But maybe even that won't happen as, of course, we now don't dock the tails do we? Charge up your hate mail generators, but I just happen to think that the Rotties look better with docked tails. I do. I've only seen one with a tail so far and I have to say that I didn't think it looked as good as those with docked tails. For people much younger than me, of course, it will soon make no difference as that is what they will be used to seeing. I have spent the past forty years seeing them only with docked tails. It is that complete package of line and form that I fell in love with. Yes, yes, I appreciate it's only superficial and it doesn't change the breed, but when you fell so deeply in love with something so specific, it's very hard to adapt to it again when it changes, even when that change is so relatively small.

But anyway, now you see why I love Teal'c so much. I get to play Rottie owner without feeling guilty about perpetuating the unreasonable myths. She has so much character and is so so gentle. And can you believe, they pay me too!? So if I'm not around for the next four days, you know why, I've died and gone to heaven!

P.S. It's now seven hours and forty-nine minutes... :)

Two Years

2009-05-29T17:40:00.005+01:00

It's official, Ellie is two years of age today! Yes, that timid wee puppy has grown and we've purchased her a new bandana to mark the occasion! I've wanted one for her for ages, but Jan wasn't so keen. I won, for a change!

So where are we at two years of age?

I have noticed quite a shift in the past three months. It's not a huge shift, but it's a shift regardless. Ellie seems a little more bouncy, a little more willing to test limits, and has more prolonged bouts of energetic enthusiasm. If you didn't know her, you'd still think she has low motivation and low energy (particularly for a Border Collie), but I, as her everyday walker and trainer, can see the differences. If I had to put a figure to it, I would say that she's about 20% more energetic, responsive, and 'buzzy' than she was about three months ago. On a good day, that can be raised to about 33%.

She still gets on with other dogs, though, as we planned and wanted, she doesn't really mix with other dogs as such when walking. The home-boarding has really helped her become more accepting of other dogs, and to this date, we've only had to turn away one dog. That was because Ellie was entering into her phantom pregnancy, thus elevating her hormone levels and making her far less tolerant of the visiting dog. When dogs do visit, she likes those dogs which leave her alone, but is capable of issuing a growl, or even a quick reprimanding nip, if the visiting dog doesn't stop pestering her, or behaves a little too energetically around her. Like many young Border Collies, she can tend to fixate on moving dogs, giving them the 'collie eye' and trying to force their path. I think she thinks they must be sheep!

She now weighs 14.2kg, which, as you might expect, is at the lower-end of the Border Collie weight range for bitches. (12-19kg), and is still on a Burns dry food diet.

With regards to training, she's now getting to the point where higher energy activities are becoming more commonplace, such as repeatedly jumping over my arms in a circle, or 'relaying' where I run and she has to run along at my side and place the ball into my outstretched hand. She seems to particularly like this activity.

She still isn't a food-motivated dog, preferring instead to work for her beloved tennis ball. Ideally she would have been spayed by now, but this time, her phantom pregnancy got in the way of the ideal time to have it done. So, once again, we'll need to wait until after her next season.

Beware the Doodles...

2009-05-25T22:09:00.003+01:00

I hope that I don't upset anyone when I say that I don't naturally gravitate towards Jack Russell Terriers (JRTs). I think we all have our own preferences when it comes to dogs, and that is what makes dogs such a success - there really is a breed for everyone. I just happen not to be a natural 'small dog' person.

Given the above, you can imagine that I wasn't particularly looking forward to home-boarding not one, but two JRTs (Ceasar and Cleo) at the same time. Don't get me wrong, you only have to spend ten minutes in my company to see that I love all dogs and communicate with them far more happily and confidently than I do with humans, but again, we all have our natural choices and JRTs just haven't featured on my radar before.

Well, they've been and gone, and do you know, I loved every minute of having them here. Everything about their visit just went so well. Their owners, Max and Becky, were two of the most down-to-earth, warm, and friendly people that I think we've ever met. (Jan and Max seemed to be in iPhone heaven together, while Becky and I were left to do the adult stuff.)

We realised that their dogs featured centrally in their lives and that they had the same loose regard for canine rules and regulations as we have. The dogs can sleep on the bed, jump on the furniture, etc. What's important is that the dogs feel part of the 'family'. Obedience has its place, of course, but let's not forget, our dogs are first and foremost, bringers of huge joy and happiness. Being allowed on the sofa and bed from time to time seems a small price to pay for that.

For two dogs that live together, they are quite different to one another in personality. Ceasar is the more confident and out-going, while Cleo is the more reserved. She's still confident, but just seems to appreciate and be happy with her own company. Suffice to say that Ceasar staged a silent revolution and stole my heart in just a few hours. It wasn't long before he was falling asleep on my knee at the computer desk, and on the second night, he went to sleep with me on the bed. Resistance was futile, he was such a charmer. Cleo was happy to come and get some attention from time to time, but was happier still for Ceasar to hog the limelight.

All in all, two of the nicest dogs we've had come to stay with us, and certainly two of the nicest owners. We have them again in September, for two weeks, and, who'd believe it, I'm actually looking forward to a JRT! :)

Tomorrow, we have the return of Monty, the black pug. He's our most frequent guest by far. I think he deserves his own parking spot by now. :)

The Busy Season

2009-05-18T16:34:00.009+01:00

As most dog owners will tell you, this time of year is always the busiest, and it's no different in this house. The warmer weather and longer days means that we get to venture out to different places, see some shows, meet up with fellow dog-owners, and train new behaviours. It also means that, in our case, we get more dogs coming to stay as people go away on their annual holidays. Shown in the picture to the left, is our most recent visitor, Sally.

We also met with John, Sandy, and their dog, Barney a few weeks ago. We took our dogs around the local Bourne Woods. Now, usually, I'd publish dozens upon dozens of photos from such places, wouldn't I? So why not this time? Numpty that I am, I forgot to switch on the anti-shake system on my camera. When I got home, I noticed that all of the photos were quite blurred. It still didn't occur to me what had happened, and I just presumed that, as I'd been running quite a bit, that perhaps my breathing was making more movement in the camera than usual.

The next day, the same thing happened, only that time I hadn't been doing any running. I was actually starting to question whether I was starting to get shaky hands in my old age! It was then that I noticed I hadn't turned on the anti-shake system. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Sorry John and Sandi, and of course, to Barney who did his best to show us all that he is over his fear of water.

Regardless, it was great to catch up with them. We've home-boarded Barney before. To this day, he's still the only dog that has managed to get Ellie to cave in and play with him! That's quite an achievement I can tell you!

In other news, we had to home-board Ellie over the weekend, as we went away to Jan's Mum and Dad's 50th wedding anniversary. It is the first time that she has been away from me overnight. In fact, the longest she has ever been away from me is about five hours I think. All in all, she did very well I'm told. A bit 'stressy', watching at the door but overall she coped well. When we were reunited, the first thing she did was thrust a tennis ball into my hand. I get the feeling I am little more than her personal ball-launcher. :)

This coming weekend we have two dogs being home-boarded. This will be the first time that Ellie has had to cope with two dogs. They are both JRTs, comically nicknamed 'the Doodles'. They seemed to get along on the initial visit and so it should be fine. In fact, May is pretty much fully booked with dogs! And let's not forget, it's Ellie's second birthday this month too! Wow, that has come around quickly!

In training terms, I'm currently working on the Silvia Trkman Heel method with Ellie. We're at the very first stage. She is now going around and getting clicked when she touches my leg. Though I don't yet see that she has put the two together. It seems to me that she hasn't quite registered it's the touching of my leg that is bringing the reward, not the moving around. She's also much better at going one way than the other. But we'll get there. This was always going to be a hard one to teach as Ellie gets very nervous and timid in a heel position. We've no idea why, but think it's my height. It will probably, therefore, do her good to be receiving frequent treats to be touching my leg.

The Silvia Trkman Heel

2009-05-03T08:06:00.005+01:00

Regular readers will know that I worship at the church of Silvia Trkman. I love her natural and relaxed training methods, her seemingly effortless approach to training, and how she conducts herself in terms of just getting on with training her dogs. She is confident enough not to have to join the pointless arguments over which training methods works best and which television dog trainer is best and why Ceasar Milan shouldn't be on TV (Yawn). Check any dog-training forum for endless examples of these things. I can also say, having emailed her before today, she is also extremely generous with her time and her sharing of knowledge when asked.

Such is the dedication to my genuflecting idolatry, I'm almost able to spot a Silvia Trkman influnced dog within a minute, particularly when the dog is performing heelwork. However, I've never known how she teaches her heel. Until now...

Barbie demonstrates the Silvia Trkman method with her new puppy, Tani.

And in case you are wondering why Barbie is demonstrating the method, she is taught by Silvia. Makes sense now doesn't it? :)

ICC Dogs - The Book

2009-05-01T09:38:00.012+01:00

A wee surprise for those who attended the Belton International Horse Trials. Owing to the overwhelming (and very flattering) response to the photos that I took over the event (including offers to purchase individual prints which I am unable to provide on this occasion) I've decided to have a book printed.

Regardless of whether people who attended are interested in purchasing the book or not, I am having one printed for myself anyway as I just happen to like the photography.

The book will contain upto 80 pages and will feature the best photos that I took from the weekend. It will measure approximately 7"x7" and be hardback with a printed photo-sleeve.

Of course, there is an issue of permission to work through first. I need to obtain permission from those who will feature in it, particularly from those whose faces will feature within the pages. I will be working with Christina to find the best way to achieve this. My idea at the moment is that I will issue some release forms for people to sign at their next training class. Individuals would then need to sign them in order to grant permission for their image to be used in my book, and for them to state their understanding that they are not entitled to finanacial compensation for doing so.

Rest assured that if I do not get your permission then no photo(s) featuring your face will appear within the pages.

Naturally, I'm eager to find out the level of initial interest and so have included some images below which show exactly how the book will look. Feel free to comment or ask any questions you might have here, or email me at young.maz@googlemail.com

Enjoy!

Front Sleeve (Inc Spine and Inner Leaf)

Rear Sleeve (Inc Spine and Inner Leaf)

Sample Internal Pages

Still Growing...

2009-04-30T13:18:00.010+01:00

Members of the ICC Canine Display Team will be pleased to read that the number of photos in the ICC Dogs & Events set is still growing!

I'm now adding the more generic photos that were taken during the events. Forgive me if they are not as endearing as the more personal 'portrait style' photos, but that's just the nature of things and I'm afraid that I am much more of the 'arty-farty' type when it comes to photography.

Again, there are still loads more to wade through so bear with me. As before, if there are any you would like me to email to you in full size, please do just ask via email: young.maz@googlemail

I'll keep adding a few more each day until I've added all the decent ones, or until I've dropped dead from exhaustion. :)

There are some photos that need the names of dog and/or handler filling in. If you are able to tell me who they are, please do let me know.

Enjoy!

Alas, no Teal'c

2009-04-28T19:32:00.011+01:00

Firstly, I must say a thank you to Lucy for allowing me to use her photo of Teal'c and me that she took at Belton. Please do drop by her blog and see what her super-smart dogs are up to. Between you and me, I am thinking of stealing her dog, Trent, for my own selfish trick needs.

As readers will know from a previous entry, I was going to be home-boarding Teal'c the Rotweiller for a few days from tomorrow. Alas, I received a call today to say that she has suspected kennel-cough. Aside from the risk this could pose to Ellie if we took her in, we also have Jan's Mum staying with us from tonight, who has a compromised immune system, through her cancer treatment. Ergo, there's no viable way that we could home-board her. I'm gutted. I've been looking forward to home-boarding her for months now!

I really hope that she gets well soon. She's in my top three dogs that I just love to death.

Now I need to dedicate some time to Ellie. She's been a little neglected over the past couple of days, due to me processing videos and photos and decorating the spare bedroom. Next time, I'm training Ellie to do the painting!

Belton Videos are Done...

2009-04-28T18:24:00.002+01:00

Phew, the rough uncut videos from Belton are off my camcorder and on YouTube at last. I've looked at that much video and that many photos my head is spinning.

The videos on YouTube are obviously of a much lower quality than what they were recorded in. This is for two reasons: 1. YouTube limits the maximum size and duration of each video, and 2. YouTube compresses each video as it is uploaded in order to save bandwidth costs. It is this that chiefly reduces the image quality.

However, fear not, I am working on a solution. Bear with me. I won't reveal it just yet as it many not even work yet!

In the meantime, I hope everyone gets at least a glimpse of themself in at least one of the videos. I tried to feature as many people and as many dogs as possible!

Back to editing photos for me...

I've added all the videos below so that they are in one handy spot...

Main Display Event

Puppy Socialising

Advanced Canine Obedience

Gail & Kez (Heelwork to Music)

Tricks Display

Christina and Team Encore

Belton Horse Trials - Christina and Team Encore

2009-04-28T18:16:00.002+01:00

Final video showing Christina's routines and the final encore from the full team. Can I take a break now? :)

Enjoy!

Belton Horse Trials - Canine Tricks Display

2009-04-28T17:18:00.002+01:00

Members of the Icthus Canine Display Team perform some simple tricks for the crowds at Belton International Horse Trials, 2009.

Notice how my own dog, Ellie, moves much more slowly than the others? She's built for comfort, not speed. :)

Enjoy...

Belton Horse Trials - Gail and Kez Heelwork to Music Routine

2009-04-28T16:55:00.003+01:00

Gail and Kez, from the Icthus Canine Centre Display Team, perform a heelwork to music routine for the spectators at the Belton International Horse Trials, 2009.

Enjoy!

Belton Horse Trials - Advanced Canine Obedience Routine

2009-04-28T16:23:00.001+01:00

Here is the rough-draft video of the Advanced Canine Obedience held by our training centre, Icthus Canine Centre, at Belton International Horse Trials.

Enjoy...

Belton: Puppy Socialising Video

2009-04-27T14:21:00.001+01:00

Here is the rough-draft video of the Puppy Socialising demonstration held by our training centre, Icthus Canine Centre, at Belton International Horse Trials.

Enjoy...

First of the Belton Videos

2009-04-27T13:27:00.002+01:00

I've managed to edit a rough draft of the main canine display event that we took part in at Belton International Horse Trials. This is the first video. There are three or four others to follow, showing the puppy socialising, heelwork-to-music, etc.

Ellie is in there, though I've tried not to make it all about Ellie!

Enjoy...

The Belton Trials are Over...

2009-04-26T20:13:00.014+01:00

We made it through the Belton Horse Trials without any real problems. A couple of the routines went a little wrong for one or two of the dogs, but not enough to spoil anything for the spectators. Overall, it went really well. I've got thirty minutes of fantastic video footage to get through and edit. Watch out for that in the next couple of days.

I have to say that I've loved every second of the last three days. What was there for me not to love? I was surrounded by a plethora of the most gorgeous dogs (especially Teal'cy, the Rotweiller who I am boarding next week), met some exceptionally nice people who were very patient with while I shoved my camera in their faces, and the weather was hot and sunny. In terms of photographs, it wasn't ideal taking photos in the midday sun, but I can't complain at all.

For the last day, I made a special effort to try to focus on the dog owners and the dogs, as opposed to just the dogs.

I hope that those who I captured will forgive me for my sometimes glaring errors, but I do hope that you are at least somewhat pleased with the final result, and that I've managed to do you and your canine friend(s) some justice.

Of course, I will always wish that I'd done x, y, or z a little better, but that's the artist in me.

I've lost count of the number of photos that I have to wade through and upload to my Flickr pages, but I took over a thousand. (Obviously, only the best few will see the light of day in the end.)

Ellie seemed to enjoy the outings and it also seems to have cured her of her fear of horses. Hey, if anything was going to solve it, I'd have put my money on it being her attending the Belton International Horse Trials.

You can view a slideshow of the dog photos, or view them individually.

Again, bear in mind that I'm still working my way through them all and so the set will grow each day for a while.

I Think I Died...

2009-04-25T17:39:00.025+01:00

Give me a dog for a day and I'm likely to dribble excitedly in its company. Give me a camera and I'm liable to talk complete gibberish for hours at a time. Give me dogs AND a camera and I'm like a puppy that has just discovered that a toilet rolls rip when it sinks its teeth into it...

Yesterday was the first day with Ellie as part of the ICC Canine Display Team at Belton International Horse Trials. She, like all the other dogs that formed part of the team, behaved perfectly well, and performed her part of the routine as expected. Come the day and come the hour, all dogs did remarkably well.

However, I have a confession to make... The event took second place for me after the sheer love of being armed with a camera and enough dogs to keep me snapping pictures all day long. I was so spoilt for choice that I returned home with a staggering 350 images on my camera. After throwing out the obvious poor ones, I'm still left with 180, and that was just from Friday. I then took another 100+ on Saturday, though I took quite a few of the horses and some from Woodland Waters, where we visited on the way home. Lord help me, I still have Sunday to go yet!

It's going to take me quite a few days to filter through the images, though I do have a few already in my Flickr album. I have created a dedicated ICC Dogs and Events set of images so that people can find their respective dogs more easily. You can also view them in a larger format slideshow, which I think is preferable.

Please bear with me. I'm adding images as and when I go through them. I'm adding the individual dog images first, then the photos taken during the routines. Also bear in mind that I don't have the email addresses of individuals from ICC, so if you happen to know someone else, please do point them to the album too, as they may well want to see their photos too.

If anyone is able to help me put names to any of the dogs (and handlers) shown in any of the photos, that would be great. I hate leaving my photos without proper titles. You can contact me at young.maz@googlemail.com if you can name any of the dogs. You just need to provide the current title number (example: DSCF7761) and the names of those shown in the corresponding photo.

It was great to meet so many 'dog people' at the event on Friday and Saturday, and I look forward to seeing them all again for the final day, tomorrow. There are so many talented dogs...

Incidentally, the Rottweiler (Teal'cy) featured in the photo above is the one who is coming to stay with me for a week next week. I shall be like a child in a sweetie-shop! I so love that dog! She's like a big gentle bear and it's just my favourite breed.

And finally, the images shown online are a lower-resolution and much smaller size than I have on my computer. I have to do this in order to reduce upload times and enhance download speeds, etc. If anyone would like an original full-size and hi-resolution copy of any pictures shown in the album, please do let me know and I shall e-mail you an original copy.

What a Week...

2009-04-23T10:44:00.009+01:00

There's been a smell of cheap chicken wings and gristle-filled sausages wafting through the streets of Grantham lately. It must be quite a refreshing change for the local dogs. After months of walking along the pavements with their noses pressed to the cold concrete pavements (presumably to help avoid walking into one of the many 'puppy puddings' that seems to be increasingly prevalent lately) they are now each adopting a more snooty pose, as they stick their noses in the air, as though fitted with the latest canine must-have, the Sausage Positioning System.

This, of course, can only mean one thing - barbeque weather has fallen upon us. I know this because not only are the dogs walking along while constantly looking towards the clouds, but because, as I write this, I am fighting the urge to itch my shoulders, back, arms and legs. Yes, as predictably as a Brit heading straight for a British pub once he lands on a Spanish runway, in my desperate attempts to appear like a Moroccan labourer, I have overdosed on sunbathing.

Because of the sun we're eperiencing at the moment and because I'd rather not stay as red as an embarrassed lobster in a Soho shop window for the next week or two, I've taken to walking Ellie only in the cooler mornings and evenings. Much nicer and much more relaxing. Well, you would think so wouldn't you...

We live quite close to where Virgin release their air-balloons. People apparently pay Virgin good money so that they can see what they see every day but from a different angle. I'm actually thinking of planting a tall tree in my garden and inviting people to do pay me to climb it, but I digress...

The other evening I was walking Ellie. All was right with the world. Ellie was cheerfully chasing the ball through the long grass of the fields, the cooling breeze was massaging my shoulders and arms, and I was my pointing my camera at the spectacle of the overhead balloon that was gently sailing through the air. Mr Disney himself would have struggled to improve the moment. All was right with the world until the balloon wafted directly overhead and filled with gas at the same time. Have you heard the noise it makes? No? Neither had Ellie. She scarpered and I had memories of last year, when she almost ran home after hearing her first crow-scarer.

After finally coming back to me, she then ran up to every person she saw, begging them to shield her from the overhead ogre (which had actually left us some time ago).

The next evening was not quite so pleasant. I have a very firm belief that when I walk Ellie, or any of the home-boarding dogs that I take on, my responsiblity starts and ends with the dog I am walking. I am not there to take charge of other dogs, use my dog as a plaything for their dog, or to share my time with their dog. In the case of home-boarded dogs, I am paid to spend time with them and I take that very seriously. Nobody pays me to not focus on their dog when walking. I may say hello to people on my way around the fields, but that is generally it. I prefer to focus on my dog(s) and keep them out of trouble. So far, it has worked very well for me.

A few nights ago I was walking Ellie along the local fields. They are farm fields and go on for miles. We were happily playing ball when suddenly I felt a German Shepherd Dog around my legs. The owner, a Polish woman who I have encountered before when her GSD kept perstering Ellie, seemed to make no attempt to do anything. I continued to walk as I always do. (Again, I will not alter my plans for another dog and dog owner.) A few minutes later, I turned around, ready to show my disgust at the dog-owner, to find that she had vanished. Just walked off. The GSD pestered us for at least ten minutes along quite a distance. By this time, I had believed that the owner had left her dog and I was beginning to formulate my plan for an exit. How was I going to get both dogs to my house with only one leash for a start? I just knew that I couldn't leave it alone in a field.

After about fifteen minutes I saw a dot on the horizon. The owner had finally made an appearance. I watched as the GSD went running back to her. Was she delighted to be reuinited with her dog? Was she pleased that, despite everything, her dog went back to her in the end? If she was either of these things, she hid it very well. I was forced to watch from the distance as she forced the dog to the ground, beat it twice with her hand, and then whipped it with the leash several times. It stunned me that I could hear the dog yelping from the mammoth distance that was between me and them. To be honest, I wish she had never returned and that I'd taken the dog home with me...

Belton Horse Trials Update...

2009-04-22T12:10:00.004+01:00

Further to my previous entry, regarding Ellie being in the canine display team at Belton Horse Trials, here are the times for the display.

Friday 24 April at 12:30

Sunday 26 April at 12:30

Please note that there is also a display on Saturday, but we will not be taking part in that one.

Ticket details can be found on the official website.

Going by the information that I have received, look for the James Wellbeloved stand and we won't be far away! I'll be the one clicking my camera like a mad-man. Here's hoping that all goes well on the day...

Hope to see you there...

Ellie Helps to Combat the Global Recession...

2009-04-06T11:57:00.003+01:00

During a global recession, everyone, including the dog, needs to do their bit to help save money.

Here, Ellie does her bit by putting aside some coins. You know, for a rainy day...

Book Review: My Llife With George, by Judith Summers

2009-04-05T17:54:00.006+01:00

There is always a fine balance to be struck when writing a good 'dog book'. It's too easy to write exclusively about the dog and fail to allow the reader to appreciate the entire context of the story.

This title avoids that trap by carefully weaving between the author's personal life - in particular the men who she attempts to integrate into the life she shares with her son, Joshua, and her troubled Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, George.

For me, there is no doubt that the author is responsible for many of her dog's personality issues, but no more so than the thousands of similar dog-owners who, rightly or wrongly, treat their dogs in the same anthropormophic manner as she treats George. However, in terms of the physical ailments and accidents that George suffers, that is just bad luck - something which runs throughout the story in many different ways.

The story provides a fascinating glimpse into a life where the dog is king, and where all subjects must ultimately bend to the king's will. It will make you laugh, it may even irritate you at times and perhaps, when dealing with the issues of the loss of a loved one, make you sad, but there is no doubt that, one way or another, it will leave a lasting impression on you, if only to leave you fretting at not having adequate pet-insurance cover. A fascinating read!

Ellie at Belton Horse Trials

2009-04-04T09:40:00.006+01:00

I am pleased to be able to confirm that Ellie will be attending the Belton International Horse Trials this year, as part of a canine display team. We will be there on two dates: 24 and 26 of April.

The synchronised routine was practised for the first time last night and includes around thirty or so dogs and their handlers. The actual routine is only three and a half minutes long. However, there are then agility, heelwork-to-music, and trick displays. I heard a whisper that Ellie will also be taking part in the tricks section, but I haven't had that officially confirmed as yet.

Jan will be doing the handling on the day as, believe it or not, I'm quite the wallflower when it comes to publicity. So I shall be team photographer and videographer. That, I can do! :)

Thankfully, she's coming out of the phantom pregnancy. The only time she was a little unlike her usual self was when expected to weave between all the dogs. I'm sure that will calm down over the new few days, as her hormones return to normal.

So, if you happen to be a reader of this blog (and I know there are several who choose not to comment), happen to live in the UK, and are able to get to the Belton Horse Trials, we'd love to finally meet you!

Book Review: A Home for Rose

2009-04-02T17:07:00.002+01:00

This is the second Jon Katz title that I have read. The first, A Dog Year, left me quite unimpressed. With that in mind, I wasn't expecting to enjoy A Home for Rose.

During the first three chapters, I felt the familiar disappointment, that I had felt in Jon's previous work, creeping up on me once more. I decided to stick with it regardless. I am so glad that I did.

Like digging for gold, there's a some hard grinding to get out of the way before you get to the real valuable material, but once there, the rewards are rich.

I loved the detail he gave throughout the book, particularly when referring to his new farm, Bedlam Farm, a place which I'm sure many of us Border Collie owners dream about in our sleep.

Jon purchases a farm so that he can give his dogs the life he always promised himself that he would give them, and let them herd sheep as they were intended to do. Little did he realise the work involved in maintaining a farm (complete with donkeys, sheep and three dogs) and surviving the harsh country winters.

The story is as much about Jon as it is about his beloved dogs. It's about Jon learning to accept help from new friends and neighbours, learning the real meaning of bonds (both canine and human), it's about him learning the harsh realities of living within a farm environment, and about making tough decisions, as he is forced to do with one of his dogs, Homer.

I really enjoyed the book (past chapter three) and was quite sad to get to the end. Defintely a book to curl up on the sofa and relax with. Just let Jon do the work of painting the pictures for you. Great book!

Have the tissues ready around chapter seven!

An Inspiring Video

2009-04-02T15:17:00.002+01:00

Thanks go to Owner of Storm Glory and Rascally Jack for pointing me to this particular video. It shows a Border Collie going through around fifty different tricks.

I really loved the suitcase one! Enjoy...

We each get the dog that we want...

2009-03-31T21:36:00.006+01:00

They say that we each ultimatley get the dog that we want. Whether that is wholly true or not, I'm not really qualified to say. What I do know is that it's becoming true with Ellie.

Many people want a perfect dog. They get frustrated when the dog irritates them with its quirks and its bizarre behaviours. Me, I love these things. I always wanted a cheeky dog. I wanted a dog that would not be afraid to cajole me into giving attention, one that would dare to push the limits a little in order to see what she can get away with. Sure, I love the obedience and, I must say, I'm very proud of Ellie's obedience, but as she's getting older, she's getting a little more confident and it's this which brings me the most joy.

Recently I taught her to go and grab the telephone when it rings, or when she hears the word "phone". It's a great trick and skill. However, so delighted is Ellie with her new skill that I find myself being presented with a phone at every opportunity. Late evening, I can be laid on the sofa watching television, only to find Ellie sat on her hind legs, like a meercat, holding the phone in her mouth, right in front of me. She seems to appreciate that I can't see through her and so she's sure to win eventually. Her 'prize' is to get the tennis ball that is always in my pocket. I've tried ignoring her, but it's impossible. Impossible because, secretly, I don't really want to ignore her anyway. I think it's funny that she has the cheek to do it in the first place.

The other night, we seemed to have a contest. She grabbed the phone and brought it to me. I returned it as I hadn't asked for it. This continued for what must have been about ten times in succession. I gave in!

So do we really get the dogs that we ask for? I really do hope so!

In other news, I've finally managed to teach Ellie to bark on request. For some people, this is so easy. I've found it incredibly hard to master. Mainly because Ellie is rather a sedate dog and hard to excite. In the end I used a cheeky little method to get her frustrated. I taught her right and left a while back so that I can steer her at distance down different dirt tracks when we're walking, or, as has proved more valuable, to steer her towards the ball when she loses sight of it in the fields.

I began to thrust my arms so quickly that Ellie couldn't understand which way I wanted her to go, left or right. Eventually she got so frustrated that she began to bark. Bingo! I then took it from there and she now, finally, barks on command! Will I regret that? Some tell me that I will, but hey, when have we ever been confined by convention. :)

Book Review: Kate and Gin

2009-03-28T12:40:00.004Z

The latest title to join my collection of dog-related books is 'Kate and Gin'. Many Brits will recognise the names from the UK talent show, Britain's Got Talent, where Kate and her Border Collie, Gin, wowed the audience and the judges with their doggy-dancing skills. Sadly, as good as the dancing skills may have been, the ability to author a worthwhile book is sadly lacking. The problems start right at the front cover and continue to the very last page. Let's start at the front cover:

LearN to DaNCe aND
DO tRiCKS WitH Kate aND GiN
StaRs Of
BRitaiN'S
Got
TaLeNt

Yes, it really is written like that. Clearly, Britain doesn't have a talent for grammar or presentation. I don't much care for the style of the London 2012 Olympics logo either, but I'm assured that it is all the rage. So I'm happy to put my lack of appreciation for this particular style of typography down to my age or lack of good taste.

Don't get me wrong, after spending £9.99 (reduced from £12.99) on this title, I wanted to like it. I wanted to learn something from it, no matter how small. The reality is that I didn't. Aside from the book being poorly designed from cover to cover, it is so lacking in worthy content that even the slightest of breezes would send it wafting away.

A major criticism has to be levied at the colour photography; it's just awful throughout the entire book. Aside from the photographer being seemingly unable to get the subject to relax enough for her to ever look as though she's enjoying the experience, it's just poor quality, particularly when you compare it to titles such as '101 Dog Tricks' by Kyra Sundance, in which the photography really sells the book. The photos in Kate and Gin are dull, grainy, and often lacking in any sparkle or contrast. In many of the photos, the majority of the Border Collie seems to consist of just one big black shape with no muscle or definition. I know from personal experience that it's not easy to photograph black dogs, but from a professional photographer, I'm sure that more effort could be made.

The second criticism is of the page layout and design. Almost each page has a seemingly random and unexplainable mottled design running though it. It was perhaps added to make the content appear more exciting (perhaps to compensate for the lack of excitement shown by Kate in the photos) but it ends up just being supremely distracting and even a little irritating in places.

My final criticism is aimed squarely at the content. It's just too light. The publishers seem to acknowledge this too by having entire double pages of the dog, Gin, anthropomorphically writing her thoughts. I can't begin to tell you how irritated I got, having paid £10 to read the words of a dog so frequently. Perhaps if I was twelve I may have appreciated this a little more. As a forty year old, it was completely wasted abd unappreciated.

If you omit the basic obedience exercises, there are about 15 moves that Kate attempts to teach. Again, the minimum of effort seems to have been put into this area too. For example, in teaching one trick, you are advised: 'Throw one of your dog's favourite toys. He will most likely run to pick it up.' So what if my dog doesn't? What then? Again, this is where the book falls over completely when compared to titles from more confident, experienced, and able authors. There seems to be a lot of assumption from Kate that all dogs are like her own dog, Gin. The reality is that they are not, and this needs to be considered in such how-to books if they are to be worthy of their shelf space.

It may be that this book is aimed at children (though there is no notice of that) and if that is the case then many of my criticisms could be easily ignored. However, for an adult who is looking to teach their dog anywhere near to the level that they might have seen Kate and Gin perform, it is next to useless, and far too expensive for what it provides.

The book feels cheap from cover to cover and I suspect that there was a rush to capitalise on the Britain's Got Talent appearance. Like many of the talents on this show, I felt that this book was far more about turning a profit for the creators than giving the author any degree of respect or professionalism. Extremely disappointing book that I just can't recommend on any level, even to children.

Phantom Pregnancy..

2009-03-26T13:16:00.003Z

Something unusual happened last week. We had to turn away a Boston Terrier for home-boarding as she and Ellie just could not get along. This was odd as Ellie is usually very tolerant of other dogs. It had me scratching my head for a while, but I just put it down to her having just come out of season and thought no more of it.

Shortly after this, she began getting very aggressive towards all other dogs that she met on our walks, even if they were walking on the other side of the road. After speaking to friends and colleagues, we concluded that perhaps it had become a learned behaviour and that I would begin to work with her to help her through it.

Then, without any real reason, she went completely off her food, and I mean completely off it. We waited for the weight loss to show, but instead found ourselves commenting to each other how much more 'stocky' Ellie was looking. Still, as she seemed fine in herself and certainly reactive to play, we decided that she was probably just recovering from her season still.

A few days later, I noticed that her nipples were swollen again, as they usually are when she is in season. She had also began to whine quite a lot, something that Ellie has never done before in almost two years. But still, she seemed fine.

Yesterday, I made the spare bed up. A few hours later, I noticed that the pillow and quilt had been pulled around to form a nest. Also, for the first time in two weeks, I was able to walk her past two dogs without her getting aggressive. Something wasn't quite right...

This morning, the answer finally revealed itself. No, we don't have any puppies, but we have the next best thing - a bitch with a phantom pregnancy. The bell finally chimed for me when I saw her crate this morning. She had, almost literally, removed the blankets from her crate (something that won't have been at all easy due to the way that I fold them in) and then pushed them in again to form another 'nest'. She had also taken her toy in there. In all the time we've known her, she has never taken a toy into her crate, ever. It's more than unusual that she chose the crate over the comfy sofa or spare bed anyway.

So there it is, she thinks she's expecting puppies. Boy is she going to be disappointed when nothing materialises. Lorraine, the manager of our local training group, and I, did some rough reckoning this morning, and we think that in Ellie's mind, she must be getting very close to the point where she would be dropping the pups, if she were really pregnant, hence the nesting. I believe she may then start lactating. We have to be very careful at the moment not to stimulate her nipples through stroking as that can prolong things.

I have now nicknamed her 'nanna moon'. No idea why really, it just seemed funny at the time. All I can say is that phantom pregnancies are one of the most curious things I've come across! As a result, we've had to postpone two meetings for home-boarders so that we can have them meeting Ellie under more normal circumstances and conditions.

Ellie and Barney

2009-03-10T16:14:00.005Z

Barney, a young black Labrador, is the latest dog to join us for a period of home-boarding, while his owners go snow-boarding in Norway. He is with us for eleven nights.

As each dog has come to stay with us, Ellie has got better and better at accepting them. Her favourite dog was Mia, but we learned that she sadly and unexpectedly passed away from a tumour last week; a great shame for all concerned. She really was the nicest dog we have home-boarded to date.

Ellie took to Mia because she was such a sedate dog, and so it's quite a surprise to see how well she is getting along with Barney. I say it's a surprise because she's not the world's biggest fan of bouncy dogs, and Barney, being a young Labrador, is just that. When we first began home-boarding, Ellie had to swiftly claim everything as hers if another dog walked anywhere near it. These days, she's really improved, particularly with Barney, it must be said. As each dog passes through, Ellie seems to become more and more relaxed. She's even given in to Barney's charms and played chase with him each day on the walks. If you know Ellie, you'll know how rare this is. She's not one for such frivolous displays of canine behaviour!

We have quite a few home-boarding dogs coming through, with some bookings up to September. I love when we get repeat bookings from past customers as that tells me we're getting things right. One dog, a small pug called Monty has been with us five times and will soon be getting his own parking space!

I love the home-boarding, really love it. Aside from the fact that I prefer and interact far better with dogs than I do people, I've learned so much about canine behaviour through home-boarding. There are so many things that we misinterpet from our dogs, particularly in terms of that dreaded word 'dominance', and aggression. I am of the opinion these days that canine aggression usually happens as a result of the humans not allowing the natural subtle flow of canine signals to happen. For example, two dogs approach each other with heckles raised and tails in the air. Many people see that as the start of an act of aggression and interrupt it. If they would only have faith in the dog's ability to complete the process, they might see that what they thought was aggression is little more than canine curiosity and greeting. In this respect, I shall never stop learning and never stop enjoying the learning process.

In terms of training, I've saved myself another chore and taught Ellie to go and collect the phone from the hallway when it rings and bring it to me. It took her two days to learn it properly, and now we're at the repeat stage so that it becomes a solidly reliable behaviour. I'm hoping to get a video together soon now that the weather is starting to improve.

On a final and quite unrelated note, I'm experimenting with Twitter. I've started using it to let Barney's owners know how things are going. If you're interested in learning just how dull my daily life is, you can read snippets from it on my Twitter.

Been a While...

2009-02-03T11:51:00.004Z

It's been a while since our last post hasn't it?

Part of that is down to the weather and the lack of quality daylight hours. Another thing is that Ellie has just finished her second season. Well, she's still a little swollen, but she's, thankfully, very near the end now. She becomes really grumpy towards other dogs when she's in season. She just doesn't like being approached at all. Not that I can blame her, I suppose.

She's been learning to crawl along on all four paws, and to walk like a dancing bear on her rear legs. She's also taught herself to bark very loudly when she gets excited! Oh yes, she sure has found her bark, let me tell you. It's not really a problem bark as she only does it when really excited and hey, the time when they are too old to find the energy to bark comes all too quickly anyway. Given her naturally timid nature, it's actually quite nice to hear it sometimes.

She put her barking to good use yesterday. We've had a lot of snow over much of the UK in the past couple of days and it's the first time Ellie has seen it in such volume. She loved it. Only, if I spent more than a couple of seconds making a snowball, she would bark at me to hurry me up a little. She's so demanding!

The daylight hours are starting to get longer now and I can't wait to get busy with the camera and video camera as the weather improves.

We are still providing home-boarding for other peoples dogs and Ellie seems to be coping with it. She's not overly fond of sharing my attentions and I don't suppose it's easy for any dog to share their living space with 'outsiders', but she adjusts to it. We certainly haven't had any incidents of aggression, despite all of the dogs that have passed through our home over the past few months. Me, I love having more dogs around. I'd fill every moment of every day with other dogs if I could. :)

18 Months Today

2008-11-29T10:46:00.010Z

One of the great things about maintaining a blog dedicated to your own dog is that it can be used to record significant milestones in the dog's life so that development, temperament and growth can be viewed retrospectively as the dog progresses. Today sees another of these milestones, as Ellie reaches eighteen months of age, having been born on May 29 2007. So how has our timid and skinny short-coated Border Collie changed in the last six months?

Feeding & Weight

Ellie isn't motivated by food at all. She isn't greedy and food offers little to no incentive for her in training or in play. She appreciates the fact that she may receive a treat at the end of a behaviour, but the prospect of the treat does not drive her to try and succeed.

She is fed once a day on Burns mixed with a 'Nature Diet' wet food, once a day. Two months ago she weighed 12.5 kg which is at the lower end of the expected Border Collie bitch weight range of 12 to 19 kg.

Her body is 'filling out' a little more now as, by natural process of growth, less nutrition is going towards skeletal development. Being short-coated, she will always look abnormally thin when compared to a standard long-coated Border Collie but this is to be expected. I suspect it is because of this fact that most people we meet struggle to believe that she is a real Border Collie. If we had £1 for each time a person doubted her breed, we'd be supremely wealthy.

Temperament

As the litter 'runt', Ellie has a natural tendency towards being overly timid. This personality trait has made, and continues to make, training incredibly challenging at times. You might remember that for the first few months she was scared of my height and so I couldn't stand next to her without her running up the stairs for safety. In this respect, she is, by far, the hardest dog I've ever trained.

Working with Ellie is a paradox in the sense that she learns new tricks and behaviours incredibly quickly (quicker than any other dog I've trained, I should add) but anything she learns can be undone so easily. All it takes is the wrong sound to be made, or the wrong word said in the wrong way at a certain point of the learning process, and weeks of work can be undone in an instant. She requires incredible levels of care and patience to ensure that she isn't spooked.

In terms of behaviours, like many Border Collies, she enjoys learning those behaviours which involve movement and action (such as opening doors), over those which require little movement (such as crossing her paws over).

All of the above said, there is no doubt at all that Ellie has recently become more eager and able to experiment with new activities. We have recently purchased her a large fitness ball and skateboard to help her with balance, and she's taking to both without any fuss or negativity. The skateboard is still a mystery to her, but she seems to be enjoying the fitness ball.

We have recently begun home-boarding other dogs while their owners go away on holidays. This has resulted in many different dogs coming to stay in our home with Ellie. So far, no negative incidents to report, despite having had some quite immature dogs that seem to enjoy bouncing on Ellie (and stealing her bed). With really calm visiting dogs, you barely notice a difference in Ellie as she prefers to be left alone. With the more bouncy and lively dogs, she tries to keep out of their way, but when needed she will issue a correction to the other dog to remind them that she isn't a trampoline. Considering she is only eighteen months of age, she handles these regular 'intrusions' very well indeed.

As has been the case since day one, Ellie is a people dog. If you ever see her running towards a dog and its handler, she will almost always go to the handler, not the dog. She doesn't really care for other dogs, but if there's a chance to get some stroking, she's there in a flash! I am hoping this subsides with age as I dread her jumping up at someone who is going to work in their lovely clean suit, only to find a pair of muddy paw prints decorating their legs. The trouble with this particular behaviour is that nine out of ten people reward it by crouching down and stroking her. Such is life...

Training

As you will know from previous entries, Ellie has already reached the Kennel Club Good Citizen Bronze, Silver and Gold awards through our training classes. Originally, the plan for Ellie was to compete in competitive obedience events. However, given her timid nature, it's unlikely (though not impossible) that she will do well in this particular field. The jury is still out on this issue. It may be that she learns to love it and get enthused over it. Some of the best dogs I have seen taking part in C/O have been about five years of age, so there is still plenty of time for her to blossom. I just want to see that she enjoys it. There is no point if the dog isn't enjoying it.

What she does enjoy is the more energetic and active events such as agility. I also suspect that she would love flyball. Jan takes Ellie to Heelwork-to-Music classes as and when she can and Ellie seems to enjoy this too. Personally I don't like Heelwork-to-Music and so I don't get enthused about that particular pursuit, but each to their own. By three years of age, we will know where her real passion lies and that is plenty young enough to compete. She doesn't have to win anything, but she does have to enjoy what she does. That's mandatory.

I personally couldn't do agility with Ellie. It's too quick for me. It staggers me, the speed at which the handlers are able to think over the twists and turns. I think that knowing one's own natural weaknesses is important, and I'm not one of life's quick thinkers. I can admire the obvious skill and discipline that goes into agility but I don't think that I could successfully compete. I much prefer the less thrusting discipline of competitive obedience. I think agility would be Jan's thing.

Ellie is still attending regular training classes but this is really more for the socialisation and the fun, as opposed to training towards any particular goal. In the meantime, Ellie is my 'trick dog'. I know it's a much-maligned pursuit - teaching your dog tricks - but I love it, Ellie loves it, and I swear I know nothing better to help teach a dog confidence and to help cement a bond between dog and handler. I am disheartened that the pursuit is so maligned in some areas that 'trick training' is often described as 'fun activities' instead. This is because 'trick training' is considered, by some, as too demeaning, trivial, and frivolous. What nonsense! I am on a personal crusade to get people to enjoy, support, and respect the concept of "trick training" for dogs. It needs no disguise or euphemism. It is certainly no more demeaning than dancing with costumes to music.

In terms of what Ellie now does, here are the ones that come to my head. These are in addition to obedience commands such as sit, down, stay, come, and basic tricks such as 'shaking hands', etc.

- "Beg"
She sits up on her two rear legs and bum and assumes a beg position. She will respond to hand-signals or voice command. Though voice-command is only about 80% at present.

- "Socks"
She will grab your sock with her teeth, taking care not to catch your toes, pull it off and present it to you in a sit position, ensuring she is within reach without you having to move. She will do this will either or both socks.

- "Gloves"
She will grab your glove with her teeth, taking care not to catch your fingers, pull it off and present it to you in a sit position, ensuring she is within reach without you having to move. She will do this will either or both gloves.

- "Fridge"
She will grab a strap attached to the fridge door and open it for you.

- "Shut the Door"
She will close any door that you point to. (Used a lot after the "fridge" command.)

- "Remote"
She will retrieve the television remote control and present it to you in a sit position, ensuring that you do not have to stretch forward to reach it.

- "Kiss"
She will lick your lips.

- "Hug"
She will jump into your arms from the ground.

- "Taxi"
When you bend over, she will jump up onto your back, lay down there, and use you like a "taxi" to be walked around.

- "Wash Your Hands"
Stand at the bathroom sink with the front paws hooked over into the bowl.

- "Fetch the Post"
When the post comes through the letterbox she will retrieve each envelope individually and present it you in a sit position, ensuring that you do not have to stretch to reach it.

- "Spin"
She will spin around.

- "In the Wash"
She will place items of clothing into the washing machine. This behaviour is not yet as reliable as it could be.

- "Cross" (Currently Being Trained)
The idea is to get her to cross her front paws over.

- "Limp" (Currently Being Trained)
The idea is to get her to limp with one of her front paws lifted. Because of her lack of confidence and her not liking people stand over her, this is going to be a slow one to teach, but we're at stage two. We'll get there!

Almost all training is done with a clicker and tennis ball. The tennis ball is Ellie's most valuable item.

Problems

Here is where I would write and tell you about all the problems that most Internet forums tell us comes from placing a Border Collie, particularly one that comes from two working parents, in a domestic environment.

The truth is, we genuinely don't have any problems. There's no excessive barking, no separation anxiety, no excessive chewing, no obsessive fixation on shadows, no leaping of garden fences, or any of the many issues that are said to result from keeping the Border Collie in the home. I suspect that it's our trade-off for not having a more courageous dog.

It may sound a little idyllic, maybe even conceited, but in terms of behaviour we have no right whatsoever to complain.

Two New Toys

2008-11-23T10:26:00.007Z

What do you do when you have a smart Border Collie who needs to have her brain taxed, but the weather outside is dismal and you're running out of 'dog toys'?

You buy an exercise ball and a skateboard for the dog to learn, of course. Here is Ellie showing off her new toys. We've only had them two days so we're still in the experimental stages. She will happily lean on the ball, and she's sat on it a few times, and even free-rolled it with her front legs, but she's not quite confident yet. She will get there in her own time.

The skateboard, she jumps on it and pushes it (particularly on the dining room hardwood floor), but I'm not sure she realises that it is her propelling it forward yet. But the good news is that she's scared of neither. Her confidence really is getting boosted at the moment. We'll keep you posted on progress for both items.

Apologies for the poor image quality but they were taken indoors on a really miserable day so the light was very low.

Photos from Ancaster Valley...

2008-11-23T09:15:00.006Z

We took Ellie to a place called Ancaster Valley yesterday. The sole aim of the visit was to do some video work to add to her '18 month video' on November 29, where we'll try to demonstrate what she's accomplished in the last eighteen months.

It's a great place to work a dog as you're lucky if you see more than one other dog there at any one time. It's a massive wild grassed valley and includes a nature reserve. It's only unsuitable for dogs for a few months of the year, when they add sheep to the area in order to help manage the growth of the scrub.

I won't go into detail of what we did while there as that could ruin the surprise of the video on 29 November. All I will say is that Ellie is not really as timid and as wussy as she used to be. Her confidence is rocketing at the moment. She's still a timid dog, and probably always will be, but she just seems a little more prepared to try new things at the moment. You might also be able to see from the photos that she's not quite the skinny dog that she once was either. She's filling out nicely now.

Here are some photos from the day....

Puppy Agility Video from Silvia Trkman

2008-11-17T17:32:00.001Z

I don't personally get excited by canine agility but I know some clever work when I see it. Once again Silvia Trkman is behind it with her new puppy, Bi.

New Video from Silvia Trkman and Bi

2008-11-12T22:53:00.003Z

I see that my training inspiration, Silvia Trkman, has a new video out, showing the work that she has done with her new puppy, Bi. As you're watching, try to remember that Bi is still only 4.5 months of age. Staggering...

Talking of videos, I'm in the process of putting together a new one ready for November 29, when Ellie will be 18 months of age. She's learned quite a few new things since our last video! Watch this space.

Book Review: 101 Dog Tricks by Kyra Sundance

2008-11-08T11:53:00.008Z

Heavily influenced by the likes of Silvia Trkman and her wonderful dogs, and Barby and her talented beagle, Xsara, Ellie and I are addicted to our dog tricks. There isn't a day that goes by where we're not learning or practising one trick or another. For example, last week, I taught her to open the fridge door for me "Fridge" and then close it "Shut the Door" when I'm done using it.

But when the cold and wet weather sets in, the choice of tricks becomes more limited and you have to begin to stretch your imagination a little more. Mine needed a little help, and so I decided on yet another book: 101 Dog Tricks by Kyra Sundance.

Finding books that are dedicated to dog training is a relatively easy affair, but finding books dedicated to the often maligned pursuit of performing dog tricks is a little more tricky. Thankfully Kyra Sundance has done such a magnificent job in creating this book, the relative absence of other titles doesn't seem to matter as much. It's one of the best books that I've ever purchased. In fact, I'll go one step further. In terms of practical 'how-to' books, it is THE best that I have ever purchased.

As the title suggests, the book aims to teach 101 dog tricks. It does this through the use of some truly stunning photography by an award winning photographer and some of the clearest instructional text that I've ever had the pleasure of reading. The pages burst with vibrant colour and step-by-step instructions that are laid out so that even the more junior dog trick enthusiasts could follow them. Each trick is carefully broken down into its essential steps, and is accompanied by a "tip" section as well as a "troubleshooting" section.

The book doesn't pretend to be anything other than a book dedicated to teaching tricks to dogs. There are only four pages at the start which give a concise introduction to reward and motivation and then it's straight into the tricks. Lovely!

The tricks are graded according to their level of difficulty. 'Shake Hands', for example, is graded as easy. A 'leg-weave' is graded as intermediate, 'Turn off the Light' is graded as advanced, and a 'Limp' is graded as expert. There are some tricks that may not suit the smaller dog, such as turning off the light, as height is needed. Thankfully, there are very very few tricks that can't be accomplished by dogs of all heights. There are also some tricks that require props such as a hoop, a skipping rope, a Frisbee, a step-ladder, a basketball hoop and a drum, for example. The vast majority of tricks do not require props but I thought it worth mentioning that some do. Though, for the typical dog-trick enthusiast, props make up half of the fun anyway.

What shines through the entire book is the quality. It is plainly evident that a great deal of care and attention (and money I suspect) has been spent in ensuring this book delivers on what it promises. Easy to follow, clear instructions, beautiful to look at, and packed full of new trick ideas for inspiration. Some day all dog instructional books will be as good as this one. Until that day, this is the leader for me, by far. Worth every single penny.

Now I'm a Proper Dog...

2008-10-26T12:09:00.022Z

Regular readers of Ellie's blog will already know that Ellie is, it's fair to say, a bit of a wuss. Her gentile nature would, I suspect, appeal to many cat-lovers. As a puppy, she was never one to chase toys, chew socks, or hide poop in shoes. As a seventeen month old adolescent, she is almost nothing like people expect a Border Collie to be. There are no mad dashes of energy, no excited barking, no jumping onto the kitchen worktops, and no running away in order to herd anything that moves. No, she never runs away. Or does she?

As is often the case on a Saturday, Jan decided to walk Ellie across the local farm fields. It's a lovely walk that regularly attracts the attentions of dog-walkers, photographers, and twitchers (bird watchers) alike.

In the warmer months, the acres of sprawling farmed fields glow with tides of sun-kissed wheat swaying in the summer breeze. Occasionally the view will be punctuated by the sight of a dog tail frantically wafting over ears of wheat, as the dog searches for a ball, or chases vermin, with its nose to the ground, completely oblivious to anything that is going on outside of its own sphere of desperate searching.

In the colder months, the dogs become much easier to spot as they seem to delight in gathering clumps of wet mud from the ploughed soil beneath them. The more rebellious dogs prefer to roll around in the muddy puddles just because they can. I have no doubt that these same dogs return to their handlers only because they can't wait to get home and redecorate the walls and doors by shaking their mud-filled coats in as many rooms as they can before the effect (and therefore the fun) wears off.

Reglardless of the season or the temperature, it's a walk that offers a leash-free blessing for any dog and an opportunity for reflective peace and tranquility for any dog-owner. Any season except for firework season that is. Firework season is universally loathed by almost all dog-owners, and many will go to quite extraordinary lengths to protect their dog from having to endure it. I even know of one dog-owner who confesses to getting into the dog's crate with his dog on Guy Fawkes Night in an effort to comfort the dog. Such is the effect that fireworks have on dog-owners, let alone on the dogs!

Jan and Ellie's usual peaceful and tranquil Saturday walk was interrupted by the sound of a firework in the distance. For some of us humans, fireworks are no big deal. Some of us even brave the cold damp and miserable evenings to gather around a bonfire and strain our necks to view the colourful effects and fill our ears with the wide array of sounds that they produce. However, to Ellie a firework is not just a firework. No, to Ellie, a firework represents the booming march of a murderous squad of Border Collie killers that have a particular penchant for smooth-coated border collies, especially if they happen to be named Ellie. This was no time for hanging around. The life of a Border Collie was at stake!

She instantly turned and began to run home, ignoring all of the desperate pleas and whistles from Jan who was trying to encourage Ellie to return to her. For a dog with such big ears, she can have incredible selective deafness when it suits her. Only she didn't quite make it home. You see if you are Ellie, life is a cocktail that consists exclusively of worst things and best things. Fireworks are the worst thing, in fact the sound of them can kill, thus they need to be avoided at all costs. Whereas being stroked by people who you've never seen before is the absolute best thing. It's like a magic potion that can cure all ills, including the sound of fireworks. And so it was that despite Ellie's best intention to navigate the mean streets of Lincolnshire and run home on her own, she couldn't resist interruping her journey by introducing herself to someone who she had yet to be stroked by. As far as Ellie is concerned, all people are in love with her and want to stroke her. Running up to them with a wagging tail is her way of lessening their pain of not knowing her. The woman kindly held onto Ellie and was about to call our telephone number from Ellie's collar, when Jan finally caught up and claimed her. Fireworks eh. Who needs them! Still, that was it for the day. Wasn't it?

A few weeks ago I decreed that Ellie would no longer be allowed in our bedroom whenever she wanted. She is now only allowed in it at night. To ensure this, her crate is in the spare room, and the door to the spare room is left open all day and night. The idea is that eventually she will spend the night in there too. As a result, I won't have to sleep in the small square patch of bed allocated to me by Ellie while she sleeps fully stretched out at the foot of my side of the bed. Thinking about it, I must look like a piece of ravioli. She's been getting the idea and she's now quite happy to retreat to her crate in the spare room during the day and in the evenings. Perfect.

Yesterday evening, I thought I heard her doing something upstairs but with Ellie being Ellie, I just presumed that she was chewing her claws, or rattling around in her crate. A while later, after she had come downstairs to lay on her bed, I noticed she was chewing something and pointed it out to Jan. Upon investigation, it turned out to be a toothrush head from my much-loved electric toothbrush. I wasn't too concerned as I presumed that it must have been one of the spare heads that I must have left around. Then I remembered that my toothbrush was recharging in the spare room. Even then, I couldn't believe that Ellie would have taken it from my toothbrush. It's just not Ellie to do that, she's too wussy. Jan went to investigate. Her silence confirmed to me that it was the head taken off my toothbrush. Not only that, but she had destroyed the fitting on the toothbrush so that no new heads can be affixed to it.

Jan came down and showed me the wrecked remains of my toothbrush. I looked at it and I looked at Ellie. She seemed really quite pleased with her efforts. 'See, I can be a proper dog too', she seemed to say. I couldn't help but laugh and actually feel a little proud of her for finally having the courage to chew something that didn't belong to her. Aside from that, it wasn't her fault. Firstly, I left it charging on the floor, and secondly...

I've been encouraging her to get nearer and nearer to my brush as I clean my teeth so that she will learn to like it. I figured that I could just use one head for her teeth and another for mine. So, in a way, I've encouraged her to fall in love with the minty freshness of toothpaste. As the saying goes: be careful what you wish for, you may just get it...

Ellie Meets Mia

2008-10-17T12:35:00.010+01:00

As you will know from previous posts, we've been providing home-boarding for dogs. This entails looking after other dogs in our home while their usual owners go away. Sometimes it can be for a week or more, and other times it could be for only a single night. Regardless of the duration, as dog-lovers it's sometimes hard to believe that we get to spend time with more dogs, and get paid for it too! Not only that, but as a hobbyist photographer with a particular penchant for photographing dogs, I get a steady stream of subjects on which to practise upon. What is not to like about home-boarding?

The most recent addition to our list of home-boarding dogs was Mia. She was a seven year old GSD x Border Collie. Mia, for me, was the perfect dog. She was at the age where she is content with life, and is happy to sit and watch the world go by her. Though, Im must add, I've never met a dog that moans and groans so much in all of my life. She's a character through and through, down to the "woo woo woo" sound that she makes when she tries to initiate some play. She was also the perfect dog for Ellie. Not only was Mia a calming influence with her naturally laid-back nature, but she just wasn't interested in being with Ellie. That is how Ellie prefers things.

Ellie now seems to be getting used to having different dogs come and go, and in that respect it's good education for her. It also provides us with opportunities to train her in the company of other dogs, and improve her focus.

The next interested party is apparently a Daschund. If all goes well, that dog should be with us around the end of October for a couple of days. By the way, Ellie will be eighteen months old next month, so you can expect a big blog post then! :)

Kennel Club Good Citizen (Gold)

2008-09-27T15:36:00.008+01:00

Ellie was entered for the Gold Kennel Club Good Citizen exam today. Sadly, it's a disappointing result. Only kidding, she passed with flying colours, and with no repeats needed. A repeat is needed if the dog doesn't perform any exercise as is required by the examiner.

An outline of the exam requirements is:

Exercise 1 - Road Walk
Exercise 2 - Return to Handler’s Side
Exercise 3 - Walk Free Beside Handler
Exercise 4 - Stay Down in one Place
Exercise 5 - Send the Dog to Bed
Exercise 6 - Stop the Dog
Exercise 7 - Relaxed Isolation
Exercise 8 - Food Manners
Exercise 9 - Examination of the Dog
Exercise 10 - Responsibility and Care

You can read full details of the exam requirements here.

Our thanks should go to all at ICC Training, in particular Christina, who has been our instructor week after week, since we first got Ellie. As you will know from previous entries, it took a while before the examinations for the Good Citizen scheme came about, but once things were sorted out, they've been as regular as clockwork, meaning we've been able to make rapid progress. Even more rapid than we'd planned in fact! We're about eighteen months ahead of my very loose schedule.

This result means that Ellie has gone as far as she can go with the Good Citizen scheme, and we have to start thinking about what we're going to do with her now, and what weekly classes, if any, we are going to enter her into. I am now going to return my focus to trick-training with Ellie. She enjoys learning new things, and I really enjoy teaching them. Jan is also looking to enter into heelwork to music with Ellie. That's not my thing at all, but we've reached a point where Jan can at least mention it without me bursting into fits of choking.

I believe it is vital that any dog attends weekly classes of some sort. It's not really about the learning, as much of that takes place at home anyway. You can learn the techniques at the classes, but you still need to go home and practise them day after day. Far more important, for me, is that the dog is learning to respond to requests and focus on the handler, in the presence of other dogs, and in a controlled environment. This is the sort of experience that cannot easily be engineered in a home environment. Any socialisation Ellie has learned has come about almost purely through attending weekly training classes. We don't really encourage her to play with other dogs as that could so easily result in her finding playing with other dogs more exciting than playing with us. Then the problems could really start. If you are able, attend a weekly training class, would be my advice.

Well done Ellie! We're so very proud of her.

Monty Mark II

2008-09-22T10:33:00.010+01:00

You may recall, from a previous post, we had a JRT dog called Monty come to stay with us recently. Well, this weekend saw yet another Monty come to stay with us. Only this Monty was a five month old Pug.

This was the third dog we've had come to stay with us as part of our home-boarding. Being only five months of age, he constantly tried to get Ellie to play with him. We've always taught Ellie that we are the source of fun, and so she's not that interested in playing with other dogs, and she let this be known by ignoring all of his playful barks and bows. That is not to say that he gave up in his quest. He was nothing if not determined! :)

All in all, he was an easy dog to look after, and Ellie didn't seem to mind him. She corrected him only once, and that was with a quick snarl. I think she had grown tired of his badgering and so decided to give him a warning. He got the message, as dogs (particularly pups) generally do, with absolutely no harm done, other than, perhaps, to Monty's young pride.

I think Ellie is getting used to dogs just coming and going through our house now, and I'm sure she was pleased that Monty was the first dog we've had that hasn't stolen her bed from her!

Kennel Club Good Citizen Gold
Sadly, the exam for the gold, which was supposed to take place on Saturday has been postponed until next Saturday. We're disappointed, of course, but hey, it's another week of practise. Talking of which...

Back to Basics
It dawned on me a wee while back that Ellie didn't seem her usual self. She's never the most excitable dog at the best of times, but she seemed to be a little more subdued than usual, and was eating less. When I sat and looked at things objectively, I deduced that I wasn't spending as much time with her as I had been in previous months, either in training or in play.

I've now remedied this, through more regular clicking-training, mainly going back to basics and trying to make improvements in her basic skills. I'm also working at improving her latency, and just making things more fun and interactive. I'd let a lot of bad-habits slip in and so I'm now being far more selective over what I am rewarding. Regardless, she's a much happier dog now and is polishing off her dinners, despite eating far more in treats during the day!

Silvia's New Puppy
I'm not sure how I've missed this until now, but my training heroine, Silvia Trkman, has a new puppy, called Bi. She's documenting what she is doing with him throughout his development. It's fascinating to see how she interacts with her dogs. So natural.

It looks as though Bi has that crazy attitude which I know Silvia looks for in a dog. It's the same attitude that we were hoping for in Ellie, but alas, she is really very reserved, especially for a Border Collie. Still, that doesn't stop her succeeding; she just does it in her own unique way. :)

Chapel St. Leonards

2008-09-15T07:55:00.009+01:00

We took Ellie to Chapel St. Leonards yesterday. For a dog who was scared stiff of water for months of her life, she sure makes up for it now.

It was a good day for her, as it involved quite a mixed-bag of discipline. She had to behave in our friend's caravan there, she had to walk around the town on leash with plenty of other dogs around, and she had to play off-leash on the beach.

Her town walking was excellent. Despite being barked at by Dobermans and GSDs, she carried on regardless, and I really was very proud to walk her past other dogs and people.

However, there was a downside to the day too. Ellie was attacked on the beach by one of our friend's dogs. Luckily, it was muzzled, however, things did get a little nasty, though there was also a surprise too.

Ellie was fetching and returning the ball to me on the beach. The next thing I saw was her getting attacked by our friend's dog. Ellie retreated to between my legs and immediately dropped to a submissive position, which I was pleased about as it made controlling the situation much easier. At this point, we were quite some distance from everyone else. However, despite Ellie submitting, the other dog repeatedly persisted, and then its partner, another terrier (without a muzzle) joined in, though it quickly gave in.

To my amazement, our usually very placid (almost wussy) Ellie, decided that enough was enough and decided to defend herself. So much so that my attention had to switch from keeping the other dogs off her, to keeping her from biting them. While nobody likes to see dogs fight, I was a little relieved to see that she will stick up for herself when the need really arises.

After a few clashes, I managed to get hold of the other dog and secure him until his owner came and leashed him up. I'm pleased to report that no physical harm was done to either dogs, or to me. I'm not a fan of muzzles at all, but I sure am thankful the other dog was wearing one as I know that real damage would have been done had he not have been wearing it. Ellie and I immediately returned to playing and, as is typical with dogs, she seemed to have forgotten the incident two seconds later. She was perfectly fine with other dogs afterwards.

In other news, I've ordered yet another clicker-training book. This one, Clicker Training for Obedience, is one that I've been after for some time, but each time I've gone to order it through Amazon, it's been out of stock. I managed to look again at a time when they had two in stock! That should be arriving on Tuesday. I've been looking forward to it for ages.

Talking of obedience, here are a couple of videos of a dog and handler that I've been following for some time on YouTube. I love how Kaisa, the dog, is so focused on the handler. You can't help but admire that heelwork.

In other news still, Ellie takes her Kennel Club Good Citizen (Gold) exam on Sunday. Now, if she passes that will mean that she has done them all, and we then have to think about what we're going to do with her after that. The initial plan was to have her reach Gold standard by the time she was three years of age, and then her maturity will have settled in and we'll know just what sort of dog we have. As it is, again, if she passes, she will be only sixteen months of age. Either way, we'll continue formal training in something. We're just not sure what that something will be yet. I'd like to think that she could still come to love formal obedience. It bores her at the moment, but I'm hoping that because she's still so young and so she sees it as too dull and unexciting, when compared to learning tricks and running around.

Ellie Has More Company

2008-09-06T08:47:00.011+01:00

Ellie just can't seem to stop having her friends around to stay at the moment.

Monty, or 'Mr Burns' as I came to call him, was a Jack Russell terrier that we home-boarded from 27 August to 04 September. As you'll be able to see in some of these photos, they actually became quite close.

They most certainly enjoyed chasing each other around the freshly cut wheat fields on our daily walks. Monty may have been smaller and slower, but he could match Ellie's stamina any day of the week.

Ellie, of course, knew that she was faster in the games of chase, and so it was fun to watch her deliberately slow down as really she wanted to be caught, or at least keep Monty motivated enough to continue the game. Monty seemed perfectly happy to oblige.

Ellie has now found the joy of splashing in the local stream each day, regardless of weather. Of course, it's not enough that she plays in it. Oh no, I have to as well. I have to jump in with her and scoop the sometimes freezing cold water with my hand and throw it at her, so that she can catch the droplets. I'm now fully accustomed to walking home with my feet squelching in my walking boots. :)

And then, if Ellie played this game, Monty wanted in too. Only he was too small to jump in and out of the stream by himself, so I had to lift him in and out, which meant me getting soaked on the top half too. Lovely! Luckily for me, the weather was warm and sunny for most of the week.

In other news, Ellie goes for her Gold Good Citizen exam on September 20th. The jury is still out on whether she's really at Gold level or not, but she's certainly ready to try. If she doesn't pass, we'll at least know where the weaknesses are. We now have her Bronze certificate signed and delivered and are waiting for the Silver to arrive shortly.

Once she's achieved Gold (I'm optimistic as always you see) then we can return to focusing on training some new tricks! Especially as the weather is now getting worse and the daylight hours becoming fewer, as we step into Autumn.

Ellie has Company...

2008-08-11T18:40:00.008+01:00

Ellie has company for a week. Orla is a Nova-Scotian Duck Tolling Retriever that we are home-boarding for a week, while her owners are on holiday.

She's a great dog to have around. Like Ellie, she is trained to KCGC Silver standard (they both attend the same training school), and thus she really presents no problems either around the house, or out on our walks.

While they may not yet be best of friends, there's no falling out between them. I think they are both happy to just give each other some space and see what develops. :) They are both of a similar age and quite similar in their temperaments and attitudes.

Isn't that vibrant red coat gorgeous though?

And the verdict is......

2008-08-02T17:30:00.005+01:00

If you have read our previous blog entry, you will already know that Ellie was to be tested for her Kennel Club Good Citizen Silver exam today.

Sadly, it's not the best of news. She passed, which means we now have to work even harder, in readiness for the gold. :) Got you going there for a second, didn't I? :)

She sailed through the exam, with no repeats required for any of the required tests. That's what I call a success. Go Ellie!

In theory, if my memory serves me well, we can get her tested for Gold in September. Whether she'll be ready by then or not is another matter though. We shall see...

Ellie Does Farndon

2008-08-02T12:16:00.009+01:00

We tool Ellie to Farndon yesterday. Farndon is a small village on the Fosse Way or A46 Roman road, 2.5 miles (4 km) south-west of Newark-on-Trent, on the banks of the River Trent. The name Farndon means "Fern Hill". It is thought to be the site of the Roman fort Ad Pontem or "the place by the bridges.

What was of interest to us, of course, was that there is a harbour and the river Trent there. And you know what that means, don't you? Yes, more photo opportunities! :)

She's a brilliant dog to take out and about. We never have to give a second thought to her running off, or how she might react to other dogs. She's just a constant and never gives us cause for concern.

We met other dogs and, as usual, she showed little to no interest in them. She was even very good by the swans, which, to the best of my knowledge, she's never really encountered before. They were hissing at her, but she remained in a stay position, off leash, despite their protests towards her, while I took this close-up. What more could we really ask for?

Which leads me to my next big news of the day...

Ellie will be taking her Kennel Club Good Citizen (Silver) exams at 14:00 today. Yes, after only a few weeks of passing her bronze, we're going for Silver. We're optimistic that she'll pass, but dogs are dogs, and as we all know, anything can happen on the day.

I, for one, shall be delighted if she passes as, in my 'schedule', I'd pencilled passing Silver by the time she reaches twenty-four months (two years). She is now fifteen months, so she will be ahead of what I'd aimed for. I will, of course, post the results on the blog once I learn of them.

And finally, some pictures of Madam taken recently....

Enjoy and wish us luck!

At Dog Borstal with Rob Alleyne

2008-07-10T09:50:00.017+01:00

We're lucky to call Rob Alleyne, from the BBC3 series, Dog Borstal, a personal friend. I also happen to be the one who designed and manages his website. As a result of this, we were invited along to see the filming of Dog Borstal for a day. Of course, we were able to take Ellie along too.

The picture to the left is the picture that Rob would probably pay me not to publish. It's fair to say that he's not the world's biggest Border Collie fan and so it took quite some coaxing to get him to be seen with one. But look at his happy face!

For those overseas readers, who probably aren't aware of Dog Borstal, it's a television series where dogs and dog-owners go to get some "tough training". These dogs are often those that have been allowed to run riot for far too long, and their owners are at their wits-end as a result. It's as much about training the owners as it is about training the dogs. Critics of the series argue (sometimes quite loudly and venomously) that the trainers are unfair to the dogs, or use out-dated methods. I don't personally agree with these charges, but each to their own. Rob is often described as the more placid and approachable of the three trainers.

While Rob and I often speak on the phone (actually we just do silly impressions to each other, with "Little Britain" characters being a firm favourite) it's very rare that we get to meet, because of the distance involved. Killing two birds with one stone seemed like a great idea.

It was a two and a half hour drive out for us, and boy is that camp well hidden. Though, with the help of SatNav, we managed to find it, and only needed to call Rob once we got on the site itself. The site is massive. Just so incredibly vast.

As we arrived, they were getting ready to shoot the exam for Rob's dog. We watched as much as we could, but were really nervous about having an enraged Director shouting "Cut, there's two half-wits in shot!".

What was immediately obvious is the immense number of people and the amount of coordination and organisation that goes into making what we see as a really simple sequence. It's incredible.

After watching the filming, we received the full tour of the complex, including the infamous kennels. Talking of which, I must add that the kennel blocks are much larger than they appear on television. I can also say that the dogs want for nothing in terms of their well-being. There are washing machines and dryers for the bedding, fridges, clean food bowls, grooming blocks, and the list goes on. Don't for a second, believe that these dogs are being kept in harsh conditions. It's just not the case.

After a spot of lunch at the expense of the BBC, we continued our tour, including the training room, and the offices of the trainers. Throughout this time, Ellie was in and out of the car. To her credit, despite being in the car for sometimes quite lenghty periods, she never grumbled once. More importantly, she managed to get all the way there without vomiting!

In the afternoon we went to the 'living quarters' of the trainers. We met Lynne Davis (and one of her dogs) briefly, as she was watching the tennis in the communal living area, with Mic Martin's wife. Oh yes, it seems like a really tough way to make a living doesn't it? :)

Shortly after, we got to let Ellie off leash and just walk her around the grounds with Rob. It's a staggering place to walk a dog. It seems almost limitless and you know that your dog is as safe as it's ever going to be. Again, to Ellie's credit, she wasn't in the least bit bothered by the very many rabbits around the place and behaved like the star that she is.

Did we meet Mic, you might be wondering? The answer is 'briefly, sort of'. As we were readying to leave, we were stood at the car with Rob. Mic pulled up in his car, said "Hi", and then went into the living quarters. He seemed either busy, or miserable, or busy being miserable. :)

Overall, it was a great day. It was great to catch up with Rob of course, but it was also great to see just how different things are to what we see on the final edited version.

Finally, as is often the case when I write about Dog Borstal, people will message me asking if I can get them and their dog on the series, or they ask me when the next series is starting. The answers are, no, I can't get you on to the Dog Borstal series, and while I do sometimes get advance notice of when the next series might be starting, I usually post that here in the blog as soon as I know. So, if I haven't posted the start date, it means that I don't know about it yet. Similarly, when the BBC are looking for new dogs for their next series, I will usually post details here too so that people have plenty of time to submit their dog for consideration by the BBC.

Kennel Club Good Citizen Bronze - Passed

2008-06-12T21:41:00.011+01:00

We bring good news. Following the recent posts, where it was seeming impossible to get our Kennel Club Good Citizen Bronze exam date, we have since received our date, and indeed Ellie passed the exam last night.

She was a model dog throughout and carried out each exercise flawlessly. There were ten exercises - nine of which were all down to Ellie. The tenth one was about me answering some questions about dog ownership and responsibility.

The exercises were as follows.

1. Cleanliness and Identification
I had to ensure that I had poo-bags with me and the examiner came over and inspected Ellie to make sure that she had a collar and Identification tag complying with the law.

2.Collar and Lead
Ellie had to remain still and calm whilst I demonstrated that I could remove her collar without her running off.

3. Walk on Lead
Ellie had to demonstrate that she could walk on lead without pulling or becoming distracted.

4. Control at Door/Gate
Ellie had to demonstrate leaving and entering through a door calmly and on command.

5. Controlled Walk Amongst People And Dogs
Ellie had to demonstrate that she could walk calmly on lead amongst other people and dogs.

6. Stay on Lead for One Minute
Ellie had to stay for one minute whilst I was at least five paces away from her. This exercise is more a test of the dog remaining in the position that she has been left in for the whole minute.

7. Grooming
Ellie had to be groomed by me without making any fuss.

8. Examination of the Dog
Ellie had to demonstrate her ability to allow inspection of her body, mouth, teeth, throat, eyes, ears, stomach, tail and paws.

9. Return to Handler
Ellie had to be let off lead and return to me when I called her.

10. Responsibility and Care
I was asked various questions relating to responsibility and care of dogs.

It's been an exceptional ride with Ellie at all the training classes and the work has paid off. I'm so proud of her! Now we can focus on the silver. I just hope that we don't have to wait another year for the silver exam! :)

One Year

2008-06-04T18:08:00.008+01:00

Wow, we've owned Ellie for nine-months now. I know I keep saying it but the time has really flown by so fast. It doesn't seem that long since I was having to fetch her from up the stairs every five minutes.

So what is she like at twelve months of age? Is she the zany and crazed Border Collie that everyone warned us about at the start? Not at all. The truth is that she's a very sedate dog. In terms of training, she can be a little too sedate at times, and certainly nothing like the majority of Border Collies that you routinely encounter. It would help if she had a little more "zing" in her personality as working with a low motivation dog can be quite challenging at times. Still, dogs rarely come in perfect packages do they?

Being one year in, would we have done anything differently to what he did in this first year? I don't think so. The key thing that we decided on from the start was to discourage her from playing freely with other dogs.

Our thinking, or rather I should say, my thinking, was that for the first eighteen months I wanted Ellie to learn that we and we alone are the source of fun and excitement. I didn't want her to learn that other dogs can be more exciting, run faster, and communicate with her in her own language. We've all seen the view of dog-owners running after their dog when it has seen its best "friend" which it runs around with in the park. No, in this relationship, there is room for only one best friend.

Of course, we wanted her to meet other dogs and that is chiefly why Ellie has attended training week in and week out - to learn to be in the same area as other dogs, but in a controlled environment. Despite some people suggesting that we might be teaching our dog to be anti-social, I think that our gamble has paid off, and I would certainly repeat it in the future.

We now have a dog that can walk past other dogs, almost completely ignoring them. She will continue to play with me in the park, even with other dogs running up to her and around her. I can even call her into my left side when other dogs are thrashing towards her, barking and growling. She will get 'growly' only if other dogs don't behave with good manners, and begin to jump over her. On or off-leash, she's a pleasure to have around other dogs. We have exactly what I had hoped we would have in that sense. That is not to say that she is faultless; she does slip up from time to time, but it's extremely rare indeed and becoming increasingly rare as she continues to practise.

To this day, she hasn't chewed a single item that doesn't belong to her, and I really can't see her ever doing so. It's just not in her nature. Besides, she's never out of vision long enough to get away with it. :)

Her first season was interesting. She became exceptionally clingy with me, sometimes wrapping herself around my neck when on the sofa. Since she's come out of season, however, she's become a little less clingy than she was before she went into it.

Before the season, she would curl up on the sofa with me each evening, and always lay on the bed with us to sleep at night. Since her season, she tends now to lay either on her own bed, or on the spare sofa. When we go to bed, she now climbs under the bed and seems to join us in the very early hours. This change, however, might just be because the temperature has warmed up considerably and she's too hot to be that close to us. I don't really mind either way.

Ideally, by this age, I should liked to have been able to report that Ellie had passed her KCGC Bronze and perhaps even Silver exams. The reality is that we just can't get an exam date from our training class. I personally feel very frustrated that our schedule for her is having to be revised, and her training has been wasted (in so far as it's not been tested in a formal sense), entirely for reasons that seem completely out of my control. Unfortunately, the training class we attend is the only one in the area and so our hands are tied.

I still need to investigate whether we can get her formally tested privately by someone who is qualified and recognised to judge such things. It's the only way I can see of getting things moving in the right direction. I'm just not sure it's actually possible to do that. I can but find out...

The sunnier days appear to be bringing out the chestnut colour in Ellie's fur, particularly around the face. We've changed her feeding now to just once a day. She now gets her 250g of Burns Active in the evening, as opposed to being fed once in the morning and once in the evening. This seems to have remedied her leaving much of her food. My guess is that her belly wasn't large enough to warrant two meals per day, and felt full enough on just the one.

Finally, Ellie seems to be able to walk past people without feeling she has to get a stroke from them. We didn't really do anything to adjust this behaviour. We just left it for age and maturity to sort out for itself. That's not to say that she doesn't still love human interaction - she thrives on it, but it is nice not to have to apologise to everyone that we walk past. :)

We will have our first 'home-boarding' dog come to stay with us on 19 June. We've met him and he's a lovely seven-month old Rottie x GSD, or so it is believed. I think we're looking after him for about ten days or so while the owners go on holiday. He is a complete opposite personality to Ellie so that will be fun. They have met and they were fine together, though Ellie did seem to tire of his over-active jumping about. :)

We'll now be looking to have her spayed around October time. I bet she's so looking forward to that. Training-wise, I want to work on her latency quite a bit in the coming weeks. She will do most behaviours that we have trained her for, but she will do some of them very slowly indeed! I'm looking to test (and video) her Sue Ailsby Level 2 test this week. As you will remember from before, the sticking point was her "stand", but I think we've remedied that now. We'll soon find out.

Happy Birthday, Ellie!

2008-05-29T13:11:00.004+01:00

Ladies and gentlemen, fill your lungs with air, as it's time to help blow out the candles for Ellie's first Birthday.

Yes, Ellie is exactly a year old today. Where did that time go? Naturally, we couldn't let the occasion go unmarked, even though she is still a little under the weather from being in the final stages of her first season. We purchased her a new pink collar to match her diva personality, a new toy, and some treats. And we replaced the frisbee that we lost in the sea a few weeks back.

Now, doesn't she look a bobby-dazzler? :)

Ellie Sketched

2008-05-22T14:52:00.003+01:00

It's Ellie, but not as you know her. I was contacted a short while ago, from someone asking for permission to use one of my photos of Ellie for a sketch. Of course, I agreed, and this is the artist's end result.

Please do view the original copy from the artist's own page.

In Season - Week Two

2008-05-20T08:44:00.003+01:00

We're now in the second week of Ellie's first season. She's become extremely clingy while in season. Before her season, she would have been happy to sit on one end of the sofa while I had the other, she now insists on sitting on me, next to me, or, like a cat - on the cushion behind my back, curling around my neck. If I move, she has to follow, and she's really not that interested in going out. Personally, I can't wait to have her back to normal again.

So, once again, in the absence of any real news, here's a picture of the week to keep you going...

Ellie in Season

2008-05-12T16:47:00.007+01:00

There's very little to tell you about at the moment, as Ellie has started her first 'season'. She's grumpy, and she's lethargic, and so, for obvious reasons we're not working with her much, if at all. I also took her for her last walk today. Today was about as far as I dare push it until her season is over. She's become especially grumpy towards all other dogs she meets on the walk, and I don't want to risk that becoming a habit.

So, instead, I'll give you a picture of the week....

Enjoy...

Dinner for One...

2008-05-08T10:30:00.007+01:00

Now that I have my new camera, I'm like a kiddie in a sweet-shop, much to the annoyance, I'm sure, of Ellie.

I'm sure it's because she's so well practised by now, but she is so malleable and really is extremely patient with me when I am taking photographs of her. Today, I thought I'd continue with my experimenting in black and white, and arrange a dinner-date for Ellie.

In other news, I think Ellie has finally come into season! I could be wrong, but I noticed a couple of red spots on the chair covers when I lifted her from it after the photo session. However, they might have been there before and they might be specks of paint or something else, so I'm not positive yet. It might also explain why she's been off her food a little for the past couple of days.

* Late Edit: It's confirmed - Ellie is now a woman! She's in season at last!

Anderby Creek

2008-05-03T16:00:00.013+01:00

We took Ellie for another first experience today - the beach! We found an area of beach, about an hour and a half drive away, which allows dogs off leash, and is relatively deserted. It's called Anderby Creek.

She was sick in the car on the way there, but that was our fault for feeding her so close to leaving. Because we left so early we wanted to make sure she ate something before we went, to give her some energy for running around. On reflection, that was a very bad idea, and it would have been much better to wait until she returned before feeding her.

However, that didn't stop her from having fun once we got to the beach - she absolutely loved it. She was running, and running, and running...

It also gave us a good opportunity to use the new camera again. However, many of the photos that we took weren't worth keeping, and even those that we did keep needed a lot of digital editing. The light on the beach was just very bland and hazy. I had to do a bit of artistic work on them and convert them to a platinum effect to mask the poor colouring. Still, the important thing was that Ellie enjoyed herself.

There was one victim however - our favourite frisbee. We lost it to the tides.

After we'd finished playing on the beach, we went to a small cafe that is at the beach entrance. Luckily, they allow dogs in the gardens, as long as they are kept on leash. Again, this is a first for Ellie. I'm pleased to report that she was good as gold. She just laid down under our table and was no trouble whatsoever.

When we were on the beach, we were only approached one other dog. As always, Ellie just ignored it, preferring to carry on playing with her ball, and jumping about. And boy can she jump!

Despite getting absolutely soaked through, I really enjoyed myself. It's great seeing Ellie experience new things and taking them in her stride. I know she enjoyed herself!

As always, you can view the full photo set in the gallery.

Eleven Months

2008-04-30T14:15:00.012+01:00

Ellie was eleven months of age yesterday. There is still no sign of her first season, though we're not overly concerned.

In terms of training, things are going well. Her levels of concentration are certainly increasing, meaning that we are able to expect more and more from her in training. For example, I was taking photographs of birds yesterday, and had her laying beside me. She stayed there with a "leave" command, even though I could see that she really wanted to chase them.

We still don't have a date for her Good Citizen Bronze exam, and I'm extremely disappointed about that. It's looking more and more like she is going to be over a year old before she even gets her first test. It's crazy. If she fails then Lord knows how much longer it will take us to get a second exam. I feel that so much time is being wasted. By now, we should be working towards the silver exam.

As the warmer months are now setting upon us, meaning that we're able to be more active with Ellie, we've started adding small portions of beef dripping to her daily food rations. This will hopefully help prevent her losing weight during the sunnier months, and provide a little extra energy for the increased play.

She's now pretty much as we'd like her to be around other dogs -- ignoring them, preferring to focus on us instead. As we take her to more places over the coming months, I expect her to get better and better around other dogs and people. Thankfully, she does seem to be getting better at not jumping up at everyone she sees, trying to get some attention from them.

As you might be able to see from the photo to the left, Ellie is now looking a little less "stringy" and a bit more muscular. I put this down to a combination of age and exercise. Whatever the reason, it's good to see!

There are still no bad behaviours to report. All furniture is in tact, nobody has been bitten, no running off, no nothing. How lucky are we? I suppose if she has a fault, it's that she doesn't much care for sharing our affections. She wants us all to herself. If we stroke another dog outside, she will make it very clear that she's not happy.

In other news, we have a brand new camera and so we're able to take pictures of a much better quality now, and include some fast-action shots. (Our other camera was really a very basic point and click affair with no zoom capability.)

Ellie's car sickness seems to have improved. The true test will be when we take her to Jan's Mum's, as that is a pretty long trip, and she's been sick each and every time we've taken her to date.

The Waterfall

2008-04-26T17:16:00.007+01:00

With the sun shining for a second day, we decided to take Ellie to a small village called Anwick, about 15 miles away from us. There's a gorgeous river with a really powerful waterfall, that we knew she would love. Aside from the waterfall, you can follow the river for miles, and it's a beautifully wooded area.

Unusually too, the water in the river was absolutely crystal clear. We saw a few other people with their dogs, but Ellie is really getting very good at ignoring other dogs. She still, of course, loves meeting people with a wagging tail, hoping they will stroke her.

At the entrance where we joined the river, there is an old lock. This photo shows Ellie posing by the old lock handle that would have been used to open and close the lock gates. I must say that Ellie is getting exceptionally patient with me, happily sitting for ages sometimes, while I move around to get the right shot of her.

A rare shot of Ellie and I. We both decided that we would climb upon an old fallen tree trunk, while Jan snapped away. Usually, I am the one behind the camera, so this is a rare shot.

We've also got a lot of video taken over the past two days, but I need to edit it first.

Here's a shot of Ellie playing the part of a water-baby. She's really getting a passion for water now, which I'm exceptionally pleased about. You can also see in the photo just how clear the water was. It was lovely.

As always, check out the gallery for more images. There are some really good ones from today's trip.

Down by the Trent

2008-04-25T19:02:00.005+01:00

The weather held out long enough for us to take Ellie to a new location today. We took her to a part of the River Trent in Beeston. It's a lovely area, with a park, and plenty of access points to the river. The photo to the left was taken at the end of the park, where there's a small waterfall.

The river was quite fast-flowing today, but that didn't prevent Ellie from exploring it, and even swimming in it. This was her first proper swim. Usually, the waters we have taken her to haven't been deep enough for her to swim in.

We spent quite some time just throwing stones into the river for Ellie to try to retrieve, though we kept getting interrupted by another dog that was there with its owner. Despite its appearance, it was a pleasant enough dog though. Ellie did as she usually does, and just ignored it.

We decided today, after reviewing all of the photos that we took while there, that we need a new camera. We've now ordered a new one and so there should be a marked improvement in photo quality as of next week. The new one has a much better ISO, zoom, and features. I'm really looking forward to getting that!

There are loads more photos from the day in the gallerye.

Ellie the Trophy Dog

2008-04-22T11:26:00.015+01:00

As you will know from past posts, Jan and I have never been under any illusions over Ellie's looks. She's not the most gorgeous looking dog in the world, and is never going to rival those cute and cuddly classic Border Collies that you see all around. Though, she more than makes up for it in her ease of training, and in the sheer lack of problems she gives us.

Given the above, it came as some surprise to us when we learned from Dawn, Ellie's past foster-carer, that she had submitted a photo of Ellie into a local competition, organised by a dog rescue centre to help raise funds, and that Ellie had subsequently won the "Helen of Troy" (Prettiest Bitch) category.

Of course, never being ones to miss an opportunity to grab a photo, we're proud to show Ellie sporting her winners rosette. Doesn't she look proud? :)

In other news, the weather is finally changing around here. Hoorah! It's been a really miserable few weeks lately, with almost constant rain and drizzle, and cold temperatures. It sucks the motivation (and the opportunity) out of life when it's that way for such long periods.

We're hoping that the weather is going to hold out until the weekend as there's a large river that we used to live nearby, that we'd like to take Ellie to. She's really starting to love water now and so we want to make the most of that.

We still don't have a new date for the KC Good Citizen exam yet, and it's starting to irritate me a little that it seems to be taking so long. We'd always planned to get Ellie at least tested (and preferably passed) before she was twelve months of age, which is why we signed up so early, and why we've worked so damned hard to get her prepared. As it is, she's approaching eleven months of age in a few days, and not a sign of the test. It's extremely disappointing, to say the least.

Yes, you could argue that the "twelve months" is an arbitrary number and that it doesn't really matter if we go over that. However, that's not the point. The point is that we make plans for our dog, and we do our bit to adhere to them.

By 12 Months: Pass KCGC Bronze Exam
By 24 Months: Pass KCGC Silver Exam
By 36 Months: Pass KCGC Gold Exam
Around 3.5 years, start looking at competitive events.

The KCGC is extremely important to us as it gives dogs a really quite solid foundation. For me, it's like ensuring that children complete their education. You want to make sure that they always have that solid foundation to fall back on.

We attend training classes week in and week out, regardless of weather or temperature, because we want to achieve our objectives. We work with Ellie daily for the same reason. It just feels, to me, that we're being let down by the training classes failure to get the exam organised. As a result of this, we're having to adjust our plans and expectations based on that and not as it should be, on Ellie's performance or results.

I've already started looking for alternative classes, but it seems that our existing trainers are the only ones in our area. So now I'm wondering if it's possible to even get your dog tested privately. There must be some way that we can get things moving in a positive direction.

New Photos

2008-04-14T10:57:00.003+01:00

I love taking my camera on walks with me. In fact, you might say I'm a bit of a photo addict. I'm always scared of "missing that moment". However, as prolific a photographer as I might be, out of about twenty photos taken, I'm lucky if two are worth keeping once I review them for digital editing later.

This morning was a lucky morning however. Out of about twenty photos taken, I managed to retain nine which I felt were good enough to keep. Here are my favourite two of those taken:

As always, you can view all the latest Ellie photos at her Flickr page.

The Monthly Social walk

2008-04-13T16:21:00.004+01:00

As part of my volunteer role at the training centre I attend a monthly social walk, where people from the classes all get together and walk their dogs.

Today was the first time that Ellie has been on a social walk since she was attending the puppy class last summer. Ellie was marvellous. In the group were about nine other Border Collies a couple of German Shepherd Dogs, and a couple of Spaniels.

Debbie, one of the trainers who runs the walk, has four Border Collies. Ellie seemed to really take to one of them - Rosie. She had a really good run around, but returned to me to have her lead on when other passers-by came close.

At one point, Ellie got a little over excited and Diesel (another of Debbie's dogs) put her in her place quick smart. After a few minutes of looking a bit apprehensive, she soon came around and joined in the frolics again, but with a little less muster than earlier. Lesson learned I guess.

It's good that she is being taught some manners whilst around a group of dogs. It was quite a big group and there were one or two little squabbles with some of the 'pack', but the dogs did a great job of sorting themselves out without the intervention of their handlers. All in all a great afternoon.

KCGC Bronze Training - Week 10

2008-04-10T11:23:00.003+01:00

This week's session was about one of the best we have had. Maz had decided that day to experiment with not taking Ellie on her afternoon walk, to see if it affected her training session in the evening. This was a great decision as Ellie was bright-eyed and raring to go when we arrived at the barn.

We did the customary sit/down stay for warm-ups. We did this for two minutes, some of it where I was out of her sight. She stayed for the duration.

We then took turns at going outside and practising some heelwork on leash and then back inside to practise heelwork off-leash. Ellie did really well with both. She was attentive to me, even when I started jogging outside, she stayed at my side and didn't falter once. Each time I said 'stop', she stopped immediately, sat down, and waited for the next command. She was faultless.

Back inside, we did some send to bed practise and some send away around an object - in this instance it was a chair. Top marks for both of these.

We then started to learn how to get Ellie to stand from a sitting position on command. The idea was to get Ellie to sit in front of me and then step off with one foot as if starting to walk into her. This action causes most dogs to move back into a stand. Ellie seemed to grasp this pretty quickly, although at the beginning, I was clicking and rewarding her before she had steadied herself, thus giving her the notion that I was rewarding her for going backwards. Christina noticed this and corrected me. I think this is one of the things that she is going to perfect really quickly.

An excellent night's work. I couldn't fault Ellie at all!

Update on Toby

2008-04-07T15:56:00.004+01:00

I received an email from Toby's new owners today, with pictures and an update on how he is getting along.

I'm pleased to report that aside from one incident of chasing cows (yes, you read it right, chasing cows), he is settling in really well, with no problems to report.

The email went as follows:

I have attached some pics of Toby, and also a short video of him and Bailey playing with the rope toy.

He is doing well and still behaving apart from one incident which was our fault really! He swam accross a stream and chased some cows which he had previously ignored. Unfortunately the farmer happened to be in the field so he was a very luck boy that Jonny swam accross and caught him.

We have chalked it up to experience and baught a 100ft training lead to practise recall around fun distractions like that. Bailey really seems to be warming to him which is nice, and everyone that has met him loves him too.

I have included some pictures below. They are not great quality but I've cleaned them up as much as I can. I guess they were taken on a mobile phone, or on a camcorder.

Ellie at Ten Months

2008-03-31T11:36:00.018+01:00

Fanfare please; Ellie is now-ten months of age, so she has lived with us for a grand total of seven months. It's really no time at all, and yet it seems as though she's always been with us.

It's been an odd month and we've not been able to do as much with Ellie as we usually would. Ellie had a stomach upset for a week, where she was having to toilet almost every hour, and let me tell you, it was none too pleasant once it arrived! There were a few nights that we were kept awake because he kept needing to go outside to toilet. Because of her illness, she missed her training session, for the first time ever. We felt it best to keep her away from other dogs, given that we had no way of knowing whether her illness was viral or bacterial.

At the start of the month, I had a really stinking cold which knocked me out of play for just over a week. Then we had Jan's Mum come to stay for a week, and so, really, it's not been the best month for us.

As readers will know, from a previous posting, we took on a German Shepherd dog as a companion for Ellie. We're sad to report that it didn't work out. Surprisingly, perhaps, the GSD wasn't the problem in the least. In fact, we have to say that he was absolutely flawless in every way. If he was our only dog, we'd have been exceptionally proud to have him. Sadly, the truth was that Ellie didn't take to him - at all, and as we expressed at the time, she had to remain our first priority. It was always going to be a gamble, but one that we had to take in order to find out the reality.

Ellie would lay with him, no problem, and coexist with him in the same room. However, any attention, and she would nip at him, jump on him, and really act quite out of character. It became quickly evident to us that, with the GSD, we had the right dog in the wrong home. To his credit, despite all of her bullying, he never once retaliated. In fact, had he have done so, she might have learned a lesson and stopped, but he was just so placid that he wouldn't.

So what happened, more and more, was that he was having to sit on the sidelines, and couldn't really be a part of the family. Wherever he laid down, Ellie moved him on. If I stroked him, she pushed into the way. If I walked them together, she would nip at him all the way there. It was breaking our heart to see him sidelined all the time, particularly as he was trying so hard to get along with Ellie, and being so patient with her.

It's a huge shame for us as he had the absolute perfect temperament for us, and that is so rare these days.

We have re-homed him with a couple who have a more mature Cocker-Spaniel who, and the two seem to be getting on exceptionally well. I received a really lovely e-mail from the new owners this morning, which contained the line: "It was love at first sight when Jonny got home aswell, it just seems like he was the missing piece in our house", which reassured me that, as much as it hurt us at the time, we made the right decision.

It was incredibly tough leaving him with someone else. We now know how Foster-carers like Dawn (Ellie's original foster-carer) feel when they have to let go of their short-term charges. It's much harder than you think it will be after such a short time of attachment.

Of course, we can't and don't blame Ellie for this. I suppose it's the price we pay for lavishing so much attention on her. But when you consider the alternative of not giving her as much attention as we have, then I have no regrets. I think that as a result of the attention she's received, she has overcome and achieved so much in the seven months that she has been with us.

I think, now, we need to wait until she is a little more mature still. But then, all the while, she'll be getting more and more used to having us to herself. It's a tough balancing act. It might be that we are never able to get a second dog. If that is the case, so be it. We may wait until she's around eighteen months. She will have been spayed by then, and then we could ask Dawn to look out for a suitable companion for us. She knows Ellie better than anyone, and she works with rescue-dogs.

His stay doesn't seem to have affected Ellie, now that he is gone. She still ignores other dogs when we're out in the fields, and at the park. I think that is perhaps how she prefers to be - aloof! I suppose you can't blame the girl for wanting me all to herself! :)

So, with regards to training, not much has happened this month, other than we've been perfecting the cop-cop, which she will now do any time, any place. As we walked back from our afternoon walk yesterday, I was walking her back in a cop-cop along the street. We've also got her through her water phobia. That has been a long-haul, but it means she can now go to far more exciting places with us. If the weather holds, we're going to take her to Beeston next weekend, to visit the River Trent. It's a gorgeous area and I know she will love it.

The weather is now warming up and the clocks have moved forward, and we're out more and more. I've been waiting for these months, for what seems like an age now.

Ellie's first season has still to materialise. Sometimes, we see her licking herself much more frequently and expect it to be "any day now", but we've given up trying to predict it. It'll come when it comes.

She's looking a little thinner than usual right now, due to her recent upset tummy, but now that she's well, she's starting to fill out again. When you're as small as Ellie is, you can't afford to lose too much weight!

Ellie also experienced snow for the first time in March. What did she do with it? She stood on her hind legs, and tried to eat it as it fell. She's so funny at times.

We didn't complete a training challenge this month as, after reading all of the suggestions, none of them really inspired me. I'm hoping they are a little more exciting for April so that we can get right back into the swing of things. If not, we'll just have to make our own up!

Dawn also sent us an e-mail to notify us that she had submitted one of Ellie's photos into a competition. She won "Best looking Bitch", or something like that. She's going to post the rosette to us shortly. Obviously, we'll grab a photo or two as and when it comes. But "best looking bitch"? The mind boggles. I guess it's as they say - beauty really is in the eye of the beholder!

Only two more months and she'll be a year old! We're still waiting for the "nightmare Border Collie" syndrome that we read and heard so much about before getting Ellie. I still say that I'll be completely staggered if Ellie turns into a rogue Border Collie. I just can't see it happening, despite what others say. I think that we were, in some regards, lucky to get one that isn't as high-energy or as buzzing as many do seem to be. On the other hand, training would have been much easier too, had she have had fewer fears and been less timid. It's a tough call. What I do know is that I wouldn't swap her for the world now that we have her.

The Water Baby

2008-03-31T02:58:00.003+01:00

As followers of Ellie will already know, she's a very timid dog, and this means she has many more fears than other dogs might be expected to have. One of those fears has always been water. I've lost count of how many tennis balls that we have lost in the local pond, as they have landed in there, but then Ellie won't retrieve them, because that would mean stepping into the water.

As you will also know, we like to train a monthly challenge. However, none of last month's suggested challenges really grabbed my interest, and so I decided that I would really focus on getting Ellie through her fear of water, so that she would be more able to enjoy more locations as the weather is now turning warmer.

Just about each and every day, through the month of March, sometimes, twice or three times a day, I've been coaxing Ellie further and further into the local pond, in order to retrieve the ball during play. It's been very much a case of having patience while she has built her confidence up a bit at a time, but finally....

Today was the real breakthrough. She has been showing signs of real bravery in our local pond for a couple of days now, but today she really just went for it. I think I can safely say that she's over her phobia. At least at that depth anyway.

You can see the video below. There is also an extra feature at the end of the video, showing Ellie as she experiences her first snow fall.

Enjoy...

KCGC - Bronze Training - Week 8&9

2008-03-23T10:44:00.004Z

After the Bird Scarer incident, we returned to the barn to find that the issue had been sorted out. No more loud bangs, and in the even of such, Christina had been given permission to go into the farmers field and turn off the offending item.

Over the last two weeks we have done lots of great stuff in terms of the Good Citizen Bronze award. Lots of sit/down stays. Ellie dies exceptionally well at this even when I wander out of site into the training centre shop and better still even when there are distractions around.

Last week we did an exercise whereby there were tasks spread around the barn.
1. Go to bed. Top marks for this one.
2. Recall present. Again top marks.
3. A number of toys were placed on the floor and owners had to sit their dog at the toys and then pick each toy up and place them a few feet away all without our dogs moving a muscle. Ellie did this perfectly and was rewarded with one of the toys at the end of the exercise.
4. Take a chosen toy and place it somewhere for the dog to retrieve. I placed Ellie's toy on a table as I knew that she gets the remote control at home from a height. When asked, Ellie fetched the toy every time.

This week, we had a similar theme. Christina had lots of tasks written on bits of paper mixed in with a few 'jokers'. We were all given a piece of paper and had to perform the task that was written. The idea of the jokers was that when we were given one of them we had to go to another dog and owner and ask them to perform a trick. We did two jokers and Ellie was asked to perform a twirl and leg weave. Both perfect.

The other tasks on the paper were:
1. Send away around a chair.
2. Get up on a low step and lie down on it.
3. Agility weaves.
4. Send away to bed.
5. Recall present.
6. Jump through a tyre.

Over the last two weeks, Ellie seems to have performed at a higher standard than usual. She seemed more focused and eager.

The bad news is that the date for the exam has been postponed. We don't currently have another date as yet.

I'm not sure whether she will be attending class next Tuesday as she has a tummy upset at the moment, and, assuming that it may be viral, we don't want to be responsible for spreading it to other dogs. Despite her stomach, she's not unwell, and it hasn't stopped her bouncing around in the snow, and playing as usual.

Two's Company....

2008-03-17T08:15:00.000Z

We're pleased to report that we've acquired our second dog, and that, touch wood, it's going well so far.

Even when we got Ellie, we were thinking about getting a second dog, but we were advised against it then, as it was important for Ellie to be able to focus upon us, and not the other dog.

We needed a second dog to have quite specific qualities. Obviously, first and foremost, it had to get on with Ellie, as there is no way on God's earth that we would sacrifice her happiness or safety. It had to get on with other dogs and with people, as there are many other dogs in our area. It had to be a confident dog that could lead Ellie "by example". It had to in our quite small set of preferred breeds. This all called for a more mature dog, as opposed to a young pup. We felt that Ellie would have perhaps taught a young pup her own quite nervous responses. It didn't have to have perfect manners as we enjoy our training.

After quite some searching, we narrowed it down to another Border Collie and a German Shepherd. After some consultation, we learned that the Border Collie was a prolific fence jumper. As we have dogs either side of us, we felt this was perhaps too much of an issue. That was a shame, as he was an incredibly looking dog, and just full of bounce.

The GSD however, seemed worthy of closer investigation. A great many emails were fired between us and the current owner, and we all felt that it was worth seeing how the two dogs got on. A meeting was set for Monday 17th. We had agreed that if the two dogs didn't take to each other, then the GSD would be going back home with the current owner. If they did, then we would give it a shot. Luckily, neither they nor we, were in a desperate hurry to move things forward. The dog had to come first in both cases.

I had told the owner in advance that I would be performing tests on the GSD to make sure he was as she claimed he was, and she was perfectly fine with that. I felt awful doubting her word (she had assured me that he's really just a big soft giant) but when you go through a private rehoming, as opposed to through a rescue-centre, you have to take the extra time and effort to get to know the dog, as indeed the rescue-centre workers do. It is swings and roundabouts as to whether it's best to go through a rescue-centre, or whether to get a dog before it goes into the rescue-centre. Some dogs can be ruined by a stay in a shelter, whereas, obviously, for some dogs, it can be the making of a great new life. In the GSDs case, the owner had him from a puppy, and so it would have been a shame to subject him to a shelter, where he might have developed traits as a result of that.

After the owner of the GSD had taken a three hour or so trip to get to us, we met in the local playing field. I figured that would be best as if they didn't get on there, there was no way they would get on in the confine of our home. They did get along in the field, and off-leash too. This also gave me good opportunity to test the GSD to evaluate what we were getting. His recall wasn't great, for example, but I managed to rub him all over his body without any adverse reaction. I also got to test his training levels. They're not great, but we neither asked for, nor expected perfection.

Once we had finished in the park, we loaded the dogs into our respective cars and pulled up outside the home. If there was going to be a flashpoint, I expected it to be in our hallway, as it's quite narrow and long, and so the dogs would have little room to escape each other. We sent them through, and they were fine, other than almost knocking our telephone table over in excitement.

Once we settled, if any dog was the problem, it was Ellie. There was a lot of teeth showing when the GSD approached, and she nipped him a couple of times. The GSD just moved out the way and went about his business.

We then asked our neighbours to let their dogs out into their garden, as we wanted to verify that he didn't go dog-crazy if confined behind a boundary. Again, the GSD was fine, The neighbour even held his little dog over the fence. The GSD leant against the fence to investigate, but no more than that. He's an incredibly placid ol' boy. (He's four years of age and so he's seen enough of the world not to have to get worked up at the slightest things he sees.)

So, we all decided that it was worth leaving him with us. We're now really on a "probation period", I suppose. Jan and I have sort of agreed to give it until the end of April to let them settle in to one-another. If anything drastic happens before then, then we will call the previous owner and take it from there.

So far, things are going quite well. Of course, there have been a couple of flash-points, such as the first night of feeding, but I think if there was a score being kept, they've both evened out in terms of disciplining the other. They did both lay on the sofa together yesterday, briefly.

You might wonder why I'm referring to the GSD as, well, "the GSD". It's because, as I wrote above, we're giving it until the end of April to confirm that he's suitable for us to keep. If we do, then we will almost certainly change his name. Given his lack of training he will have learned to ignore that name in terms of training, and so we will rename him, and let him start with a clean slate. This isn't written in stone yet, but it's highly likely.

It hasn't really affected Ellie that much. She obviously walks around him with caution, but then it's only been two days. She still cuddles in with us on the sofa at night, she still has the bed with us, and so, for the most part, nothing much has changed.

Inspiring Dog-Owners and Trainers

2008-03-07T09:39:00.014Z

You know, there is something that I have found to be generally true of the dog-training community. Each and every member of it believes they are the only right one, and all others have got it wrong. In fact, so well known is this case that a joke has developed around it:

"If you have three dog trainers in a room the only thing that two of them can agree on is what the third one is doing wrong."

However, once in a while, there are some who stand out above the others. They are the exceptional dog-trainers and dog owners who share a willingness to help others, are flexible in their approach, and have a natural flair for understanding, and working with, dogs. The fact that these people are so rare, make them all that little bit more special.

So which of these people inspire me? Of course, there are many people who do, for various reasons. However, the people listed below, for me, are the cream of the crop, in terms of how they have inspired or helped me personally.

Silvia Trkman
First and foremost is Silvia Trkman. She is everything that I aspire to be, in terms of working with dogs. Aside from her really quite amazing natural approach to motivating and working with dogs, what I have also admired about her is that she's never allowed herself to be dragged into the usual arguments and politics of dog-training.

She has, as far as I can see, just focused on her dogs instead, and ended up with incredible success as a result. It's also her philosophy that I admire. She states, very clearly, that there isn't a "right way" to work with your dog, and I think this is the part of training and living with dogs that too many people forget. Most people are so busy looking for that magic system that they don't realise the system is staring them right in the face - literally. The dog will show them that magic system, and this is what I think I have learned most from Silvia.

She also keeps it incredibly simple. None of the scientific mumbo-jumbo, and no dedicated following of the latest fads, or latest fashionable trainers.

I also admire that she's never bothered to write a book. The fact is that if she were to write a book, we, the dog-owning and training crowd, would buy it in droves, hoping that some of the magic will eventually rub off onto us and improve our sometimes lacklustre efforts. (For the record, I think the magic behind Silvia is not in her methods, but her actual core beliefs, attitude, and personality. I'm not convinced that those things can be taught to the level that makes Silvia the success she is.)

However, as she states on her site, her "methods" are so simple that a book wouldn't be worthwhile. I find it hard to fully trust any information or trainer when I know that they have a book to sell too. It's so refreshing that Silvia hasn't yet bought into that.

But then, let's not forget her agility accomplishments. Even if you ignore the several agility titles under her belt, (two-times world champion, nine-times national champion, and world team member since 1997) what she can get a dog to perform, in terms of tricks, is just beyond staggering.

I think it will be a very long time indeed before we see another trainer who is as naturally gifted as Silvia seems to be. Sure, we can all learn technical expertise and methods, but that 'natural' approach is so rare, and that is where the magic truly is.

Silvia Trkman Website

Barbie
Now if you don't already know of Barbie, and her beagle, Xsara, you must have been living under a rock for some time. That clever beagle of hers is getting quite a fan-club!

Barbie is another one who, whether she realises it or not, we dog-owners often want to emulate. She has such a passion and enthusiasm for Xsara, and she's never afraid to echo that. Barbie isn't, as far as I know, a trainer. She has, however, learned under Silvia Trkman. That latter fact shows so clearly when you see the tricks that her Beagle performs, how she approaches training, and how she views her Beagle, Xsara.

To me at least, Barbie has never been anything short of helpful, sharing her tips and videos for others to learn from. However, what really touched me the other week, was learning how Xsara came to be, and how it all started for them. You can't help but be touched by the story.

For most of us, getting a dog is an incredibly easy affair. Some might argue that it's too easy. However, for Barbie, it was a long road to travel before she could get her first dog.

I can't help thinking that the waiting she had to endure helped to form the natural and enthusiastic approach she now has towards working with and living with Xsara, and giving Xsara such an enriched and varied life. After all, if you have to wait for something for so long, then you're going to treasure it all the more.

Again, I've never seen Barbie get involved in the politics of dog-ownership and/or training. Many of us will sit thrashing out our beliefs in the many dog-related forums that exist on the web. Barbie and Silvia seem to have figured out the secret here though - that's just wasting good time that could be spent bonding with your dog. It's taken me a while to realise that, but they have both taught me to a large extent, whether they wanted to or not.

Again, the results she achieves with Xsara are nothing short of incredible, and being able to read through her tips and thoughts through her website is invaluable.

Xsara Website

Cindy Jacobs
I first got to know of Cindy through YouTube. I stumbled upon her videos which she kindly shares there. I was immediately blown away by what she was accomplishing with the young GSD puppies that she trains. Cindy, or Cyd, as she is commonly known works only with puppies.

Now, I don't know that much about Cindy, other than to say that, when I first spotted her, I had the cheek to ask for tips in specific areas. I really didn't expect a response to be honest, but I tried my luck anyway.

Within just a few minutes, she had replied to me, and gave me some invaluable advice and tips, which, to this day, has proved to be worth its weight in gold.

Here in the UK, perception of a great many American trainers is really quite poor. This is largely down to Cesar Milan to be honest. The general perception is that many American trainers are harsh, use abusive techniques, and are a decade behind the rest of the world in terms of dog training.

Cyd, and others besides her, show this is really not the case at all. In fact, I was really quite amazed when I saw Cyd work. She talked to the dog so much. I never really expected this. There is no single barking of orders at the dog when Cyd works. She's like a Mother cooing over a baby, and it works. Yet, despite the apparent disorganised cooing, when you really listen to it, you hear that it's actually very structured and consistent. She just has a knack of making it sound all very friendly and loose.

I can't say that Cyd and I have exchanged many words, but when we have, her enthusiasm and sheer delight at doing what she does is so clear. You just get the feeling that she feels herself to be the luckiest person in the world, just to be able to train puppies. Wouldn't we all want to feel that?

Even last night, I needed some advice and so got in touch with her. She wasn't able to answer me specifically as it was beyond her area of expertise. However, she gave me the details of someone who could help, and sure enough, I was able to get my question answered through her contact. I know a great many trainers who would have pretended to know and just answered me with opinion instead of fact. The fact that Cyd didn't even attempt to was really very refreshing indeed.

It's her unselfish attitude and enthusiasm that inspires me, as well as the amazing work she manages to do with such young puppies. That takes dedication.

Cindy and David Harris' Website

Dog in a Box

2008-03-05T13:43:00.003Z

This short video shows Ellie's second session at trying to get her to sit in a box that is two-thirds her length.

The first session took place yesterday evening, and lasted for about ten minutes.

Enjoy...

KCGC Bronze Training - Week Seven

2008-03-05T13:24:00.008Z

We were a little early arriving to training this evening. Christina holds a class before ours so we sat in the car for a while to keep warm. As we waited, I heard the occasional loud bang that sounded like gunshots. Ellie's ears pricked up and she started to look a little nervous. I didn't think much of this as we would soon be inside training. However, once inside, the banging continued and sounded even louder as it reverberated off the tin walls of the barn.

Christina explained that this noise was the fancy bird scaring machine that was being used in the adjacent farm. Christina said that she has had to send a few dogs home from class as they have been spooked by the sound. I commented that Ellie was none too pleased about it either. Late last year, on Bonfire night and New Years Eve, hid under the bed to try and avoid the sound of the fireworks.

We tried to settle into some training, but alas, Ellie was becoming more and more agitated by the noise. At one point, she tried to hide in the agility tunnel!

Christina advised that it would probably be best if I took Ellie back home. I agreed with her as none of us want Ellie to develop a fear of going to the training centre. So, home we went. Ellie couldn't get into the car quick enough.

Quite what is going to happen if the bird-scarer is a permanent new addition, is anyone's guess, as it would mean that we'd be unable to attend training classes with Ellie. It's another price you accept for taking on a timid dog.

It's also valuable training time taken way from the pending Kennel Club Good Citizen exam on March 29.

No fun without punch

2008-03-04T11:20:00.004Z

If there is one thing that we can say abut Ellie, it's that she likes to be a part of the action. No matter how trivial or mundane the action might be, she will want to be a part of it, and will do her best to ensure that you can't really exclude her from it. Yesterday was no exception.

After our afternoon walk, which lasted for an hour and forty minutes, I thought she would be tired out, and so I decided to erect our new television cabinet in the relative peace and quiet.

Sure enough, as I might have expected, I'd barely got my tools laid out on the floor, before Ellie decided that she should help, and that I couldn't possibly do it without her assistance.

Of course, I could have told her to go away, or put her in her crate, but, you see, I like to encourage curiosity in a dog. When you train tricks like we do, you need to nurture that natural instinct to be inquisitive and to try new things out. Besides, it's always fun to see just what they will try and accomplish.

In just a few moments, she was climbing inside my half-erect cabinet. Even after I had put a shelf in, she decided that she could still fit in. Only when I got the doors on, did she decide that even she can't fit in any longer.

Suffice to say that I got the cabinet completed despite Ellie's 'help'. I'm sure she felt that she was really doing me a good turn. :)

Now even more Ellie...

2008-02-28T15:06:00.002Z

Yes, I'm pleased to announce you can get even more of Ellie, by visiting her Flickr photos album.

The images from that album are also now rotated in the right-hand column of this blog.

And.... another video. This is one of my favourites. Most of it was taken this morning, along our morning walk. We stumbled upon a small spring and woodland area yesterday, so I'm using it to get Ellie used to water. I think it's working. Enjoy it. :)

KCGC Bronze Training - Week Six

2008-02-27T13:48:00.012Z

Another evening of training at the barn. Thankfully, the weather was a little milder this week, although that didn't prevent Christina from getting us moving around.

We did the usual sit/down stay for a warm up. We then played musical chairs. Christina placed a number of chairs around the barn and we had to walk around the barn to music whilst Christina was instructing us to change direction. When the music stopped we then had to place our dogs in a sit/stay and go and sit on the nearest chair. This was a really good exercise in terms of getting Ellie to stay put whilst relative strangers were passing very close to her. She did really well, and other than constantly wagging her tail, she didn't move for the duration of the whole exercise.

We then practised some heel-work to music moves and then put the individual moves together. Ellie and I really enjoyed this much to the dismay of Maz who, bless his heart cringes every time I even mention heel-work to music!

The heel-work to music exercises comprised of Ellie walking around my left leg, me putting my legs together and then her walking around both of my legs, another step to the right and repeat. After that it was a few leg weaves and then finish. She did really well apart from feeling the need to do "cop-cop" each time she went between my legs. I'm busy hunting for a good piece of music to do our first dance to...

After this we had a go at a bit of fly-ball. Ellie absolutely loved this, as we suspected she might. It's fast-paced and energetic. She did really well but couldn't resist having a mad dash around the barn - something she usually does when trying agility. Personally, I think she'd be better at fly-ball than agility, but time will tell.

Lastly, we practised walking along a trestle. Christina held onto Ellie's collar and I, with a handful of food treats, led her along the walk. She did fine with this, but she did get a little nervous at the end, on the descent.

We seemed to do quite a lot this evening, and thoroughly enjoyable it was too!