CynthiaAuthor Archives

Music for Agility

Agility Trial

Some people like to listen to music on their headphones when they are walking the agility course. I haven’t done this, but sometimes I think it might be a good idea. I may feel kinda rude walking around with ear phones in and forcing people to ignore me… but then again, if someone else has them in, I never feel like they are rude. I’m just a dork that way.

I haven’t seen anyone yet with a fender american special telecaster guitar at an agility trial, though. But you never know. Actually some people get picky about having music play at trials. Some people don’t really like it. And I guess it’s probably most polite to let people have their own personal music in their ears, then making everyone listen to music they may not like. But either way is fine with me, really.

I have an ASCA agility trial this weekend. Jet is entered both days in everything. Tatum is entered just on Sunday in a couple of runs. And Chase… strangely enough, is entered on Saturday. I’ve been feeling guilty that he hasn’t been doing anything other than obedience lately. So we are going just for fun. He doesn’t understand a Q anyway, he just understands fun.

Cynthia

February 8, 2012

Agility

1 comment

Agility

Maybe Puppy Time

Levi

Well… perhaps. I’ve been quite saddened lately since we lost Lucy last August, and Angel the May before. And Levi is 12, and he’s going downhill, unfortunately. So I kinda feel like I’m running out of collies.

The original plan was to get another Danish-Swedish Farmdog next year, before or after I retire. But I’ve actually been talking to a quite wonderful collie breeder (who will remain nameless for the time being) who is breeding this year. I’m still looking around a bit, though, so nothing is in stone. But I would love to have a drivey collie to do sports with. Agility and obedience mainly. Tracking, Herding, Flyball, if possible.

I hope the Danish-Swedish Farmdog breeders will still consider me in the future, since I do want another. Probably in 2014 now. I do want to get another DSF while Jet is still young. He loves to play with the small dogs we meet.

So perhaps a collie puppy will join our house this year. I am looking forward to it. It may not work out, but you just never know. My wish would be to get a blue-headed white collie. White collies are beautiful, and very healthy. There are unhealthy white collies but they have two merle genes and can be born deaf and blind. A healthy white collie has two copies of the white gene, which are separate from the merle gene. But I may end up with a blue or a tri. It all depends on what is born and who is right for me. I do want another smooth. I just don’t like all the hair!

So we may get back up to six dogs before we go down to five again. Loosing Levi will hurt very, very much.

Jet is almost three. Tatum is almost six. Muffit is about 7 and Chase is 8.5. So really I’d be okay taking another puppy training on. Chase may have another year left, but perhaps not much more than that. Muffit I don’t train, he’s my husband’s hiking dog. Tatum I train only occasionally. Jet is my main training and competing dog. So adding another dog for competition would be just fine.

I’d show a collie in conformation, too. Why not. Done it before, and I do love that Levi has his championship. So I will need to retire… because I have to much I want to do!

Cynthia

January 31, 2012

Daily Posts

3 comments

Collie

Don’t Hate Me Because I Q

Usually the saying is Don’t Hate Be Because I’m Beautiful… but I really don’t know how well that applies to me. Probably not much. It applies to Jet, though, but then again he’s kinda more cute than beautiful. But anyway, I had a blast at agility last weekend. It was 3 days. The first day I crashed and burned. Got lost on the standard course. Didn’t pull Jet around to where I should have so he took a couple of off courses. But he was great. He did miss his weave entry but I just didn’t set it up right. So it was my fault. He also popped his weaves in that first standard run but he was off because he entered wrong. On the JWW course he also popped his weaves so no Q there either. And of course I tend to get nervous since Levi had such nasty weave problems his whole career.

But Saturday we kicked it into gear and kicked but and got Jet’s 4th Double Q. He also Qualified in Time to Beat which was fun. Sunday again we had a blast and got Jet’s Fifth QQ. And isn’t QQ just fun as heck to type! I think so! QQ QQ QQ QQ QQ… Hey I can do that, it’s the first QQs, I’ve ever had IN MY LIFE after 8 years of agility so *happy dances*.

Jet’s first agility trial was February 2011. So to start in Novice then and come out 365 days later with Five Double Qs and 114 Speed Points, I just cannot be happier!

Here’s some of his runs.

I didn’t get them all on video but that’s okay. Getting any at all is just fun. I just adore running him, Q or no Q. He’s not super fast, he took 4th place 3 out of the 4 runs… took 1st place only one run where the super fast dogs didn’t Q. But that’s fine with me. I am not into placements, I’m into QQs!

Here’s one of Tatum’s runs. She did great in her JWW run but this Standard run she kinda pooped out again. She was only entered on Saturday.

Dang now back to work. And it appears theme on my blog broke so I had to rebuild it a little bit but I don’t have time to find a new theme right now, so just doing with this old one for a bit. Maybe to fix my darn blog I need some web conferencing services or something. Dangit I hate it when I log in and it’s just a blank screen. Don’t do that to me!

Cynthia

January 30, 2012

Uncategorized

2 comments

Pictures from the Park

Just some fun pictures from when we went to the dog park last weekend. I love the park after a fresh snow, when the sky is perfectly blue. I love that color of blue. Only Tatum and Jet went. I’m still not taking Levi. I don’t know, his park days may be over… we’ll see. But every day he seems a little bit worse. His poor old body just can’t repair itself anymore. Makes me very, very sad. Why not… Continue reading »

Cynthia

January 24, 2012

Jet, Levi, Tatum

2 comments

Jet, Levi, Park, Tatum

A Levi Update

Well Levi seems to be doing okay. I watch him like a hawk, I’m sure I’m super paranoid. I haven’t taken him to the park in a couple of weeks. The last time he went, it really went slow, and I think it took him a day or two to recover. He wasn’t in a lot of pain, but he was tired. So we’ve been sticking to walks around the block. He’ll go about 3/4 of a mile before he… Continue reading »

Going for Non-Reg Obedience

Well, I’m going to do it. We have a three day AKC obedience trial the end of March. I’m not going to do all three days, since I have to work Friday, and I’m taking off most of that week already for a Denise Fenzi seminar in Colorado Springs. But anyway… my obedience instructor reminded me of the new non-reg obedience classes, especially Graduate Open. And so… I entered Chase on Saturday and Sunday. I’m nervous! It’s all like Utility… Continue reading »

Cynthia

January 17, 2012

Chase, Jet, Obedience

0 comments

Chase, Jet, Obedience

Coats in the Park

The Park

Well, there’s not much going on!

So I haven’t been blogging much lately. In about three weeks Jet and I have an AKC agility trial. That’ll be fun. I hope we remember how to do it! I haven’t done agility much. Just been working, covering shifts for coworkers who have too much leave and have to use it, or lose it. Me, I use mine during the rest of the year and so I don’t have much left. It’s okay, it’s really quiet during the holidays so that’s nice.

Levi, Chase and Jet have been doing more Cyber Rally. Levi got his first Q. Though every day I worry he’s just getting worse and worse, older and older. This park trip was a lot for him. I feel bad that he’s still not back to how he was before that darn party. Maybe he never will be. Breaks my heart.

Chase got his second Cyber Rally Q, and Jet got his third, for a title. It’s been fun, and with the lack of snow and the weather in the 50s here in Utah, we’ve been able to get outside, which is nice.

I’ve been staying indoors a lot, though. Maybe I should look for some Sous Chef Jobs for something to do inside. But instead I sit on the chairs and watch TV or read. I do like to take it easy.

Automatic Tracking Video

Swivl

Well, it’s finally here. This is not an ad post… it’s just something I found. I’ve been looking, forever it seems like, to find a device that will follow me with video while I’m doing agility, or rally, or training, or whatever. Looks like finally someone invented the darn thing! Swivl

I have one of those big Canon Video cameras, though, which this won’t work with. But I also have an Android phone, which it will work with. I wonder if the big clunky cameras are just on their way out, and most everyone will eventually switch to phones or tablets for video. That’s fine with me, though of course it’d be a bummer if I can’t sell my camera eventually. But someday I do want an iPad. I just can’t justify it now. I have my Macbook, and I have my Android phone, and I really can’t afford a tablet. Maybe some day. And I love using iMovie to make my videos on my Mac. And as ya’ll know, I take a zillion dog videos of sports and of training. Usually I put my camera on the tripod. But sometimes I just need the camera to follow me around, especially in a small place like training, or a far place like an agility trial. I quite often don’t have anyone with me to video. Or at agility trials, I get tired of begging people to video. So many people just hate to video! This would solve my problems!

It’s not out until 2012, and it’s $160, but I actually think that’s a pretty good price. I’d use it ALL the darn time! I’d like it to be able to keep me zoomed in, but it doesn’t do that yet. Maybe eventually. And I bet there will be more manufacturers out there making more types like this soon. They are marketing it for bloggers… or vloggers, I guess. But heck, they should market it to the darn dog sports crowd. I bet they’d get a lot of interested parties!

Cynthia

December 28, 2011

Daily Posts, Training

6 comments

Tech