March 2011Monthly Archives

Successful Flyball!

Well we had a lot of fun! The flyball tournament went really well. Our handlers really need to work on tighter passes, or else we have to slow down our seed times, but that’s okay. The dogs had a great time most of all and that is what is most important.

Jet did awesome and I’m happy to say he had a really nice box turn. His rear end did hang once in a while but all and all he did great. The first day he got a bit over excited and crossed lanes to chase the other dog a couple of times, but he got the hang of it and the second day he was solid in his lane.

Here’s some video of the races. The first one is short, the second day is a bit longer.

Day One:

The second day has a few closeups of his box and I’m really pleased with how he’s doing. I did some slow motion of his box too.

Day Two:

I’m dead tired, as usual. And I need some blackhead removal since my skin has broken out from the hotel water. But all in all I’m doing okay, vertigo and all. LOL. I still am having some vertigo which sucks but I think it’s getting a bit better. I’m going to check out a doctor next week and see if he can help me out too.

So now it’s back to work. I’d rather be at home resting during the week, playing with the dogs during the weekends. Hopefully I can do that when I retire in a couple of years!

Cynthia

March 29, 2011

Chase, Flyball, Jet

4 comments

Chase, Flyball, Jet

Web Cam 2011

Webcam

Well I finally got the Web Cam going again. It’s been down for a couple of years, now. I think I haven’t put it up because we really haven’t had a good spot for it. And I don’t want it on myself when I’m working from home, or just dinking around at home, lying on the couch in my PJs or anything.

So I finally set it up, watching the basement couch, when I’m at work and the husband is at school. So it’s only on Tue, Wed, and Thu from about 7am to 5pm. But it’s fun, and I’ve already got some fun pictures from it that I’m saving.

It takes a picture once every 30 seconds and FTPs the picture to my server. To watch it, visit Collie Tails, one of my other domains. (the popup window doesn’t refresh yet, I’ll fix that soon.) If you want to see archives, I put them up here, too: Cam Archives.

It’s fun to have the cam, maybe I’ll get some urban clothes I can wear when the cam is running when I’m home, which is almost never. But anyway, the Collie Cam is back!

Racing Ourselves

Well, tomorrow I leave for the flyball tournament. I’ve been having vertico for the last week, and accompanying nausea, and I’m not really feeling much better, so I hope I don’t just hate the whole weekend. I usually can push my discomfort to the back of my mind and body well enough to function, and possibly even enjoy myself, so I hope I can do that this weekend too. (Doc says I probably have a virus in my ear, whatever.)… Continue reading »

Cynthia

March 24, 2011

Chase, Flyball, Jet

3 comments

Chase, Flyball, Jet

Flyball Box Turn in Practice

And so for my ongoing quest to get Jet to have a good Flyball Box Turn, with some unconventional training, here are some more videos.

I took these last weekend at practice. I still like the idea of the bar on the box, or close to the box, for him to get up and get all four feet on the box. However, his rear end behavior still isn’t solid enough without some kind of help for him.

But he’s in a tournament next weekend, so I’ll practice with him as much as possible this week, and then next week, well, we trust in our training.

Some Box Work:

Jet Racing:

So, now it’s just up to love, luck, and training.

Flyball, Flyball Box Training, Jet

I Want Spring Flowers

It’s time for spring flowers! I took Levi and Tatum for a walk a few days ago, and brought the camera, and took this picture of spring flowers. I am so ready for spring. And it’s just been cold and blustery here lately. I want to get out and train the dogs where it’s warm, and wear shorts and sunblock! And find a Proflowers.com promotion code so that the hubby can buy me flowers for spring. I want it to… Continue reading »

Jet is a UKC Champion

Well it’s official, Jet is a UKC Champion! I got his certificate in the mail just yesterday. I’m glad it came, as I was all nervous that whether he’d actually gotten it or not. But he’s met all the requirements, he has three wins in competition and 100 points, and so here we go, it’s official. I’m glad the United Kennel Club is fast at sending out certificates. I really love getting certificates in the mail, having that fact and… Continue reading »

Innovative Flyball Box Turn Training

On my continuing quest to get Jet a better box turn, I had a new idea. Well, maybe it’s not really that new, since people use props and hovering sticks all the time. But I haven’t seen anyone put a bar directly on the box before. So this is my next attempt to get Jet to catch the ball, and use his rear on the box as well.

I like how this is working so far. I see success with him pushing off with his rear when he’s getting the ball. I think I’m going to stick with this method for a while and see what we get. I did take him to training, and I’ll get that video up too. I’m not convinced this method is holding over to the training place, but maybe if I work it every day, it’ll get stronger.

Flyball, Flyball Box Training, Jet

Unconventional Flyball Box Training

Well my experiment continues. I’m having fun trying different things with Jet’s flyball box. My concern is to get his rear up on the box, and pushing off the box, while the ball is in play. He has a great flyball box turn when there is no ball. But once the ball is in play, he forgets he has a rear and doesn’t use it to push off the box.

The below is a continuation of my idea… this time with a ramp. We did this training on March 11, 2011.

My husband helped me build this ramp and so far, so good. Here’s more training from the following day, March 12, 2011.

The videos are rather self explanatory I think, I’ve put text on them with my thoughts about what I’m doing.

I’ve modified the method a bit and I’ll post that up next. I wish I had some outdoor lighting fixtures so that I could train outdoors. But then, the weather needs to warm up too!

Flyball, Flyball Box Training, Jet