Training Weaves and Stuff

Soooo we are taking the Silvia Trkman online Foundation class again. I'm not going to post the lessons, because they are (so far) exactly the same as last time. The previous lessons are in the side bar under ST Lessons.
Tibby and I have been training almost every day. The cooler weather or whatever it is has Tibby wound up. As in, I remember sleeping through the night....it was nice. Why is it that when I have a day off and want to sleep in Tibby wants to get up at 2am, 4am, 6am, 8am and PLAY!!! But when I have to go to work early....Tibby won't even get up to go pee. I had to carry her outside this morning. She was all - I'm a sack of rocks, can't stand up.
We have been working on a bunch of things. Weaves, back side of jumps (now Tibby thinks ALL jumps must be taken from the backside), RC.   I tried 2 methods with the weaves - Weave o Matics and the channel.  I guess I like the channel better, but the WOM helped Tibby to understand the idea of weaving better. 

My RC board is stupid. Too thin, bounces too much. Stupid board.

I think Tibby's weaving is great, so just watch that video.

We also just got a Manners Minder. Now what do I do with it? I did some weave pole training with it, but Tibby was faster with the ball.

Dog Park Fun With Lucy

Tibby had a play date yesterday with Lucy.  You might remember Lucy from here and here.

I picked Lucy up from her house and we headed to the dog park.  As we left Lucy's owner called out, "Oh  by the way, Lucy sometimes gets car sick!"  I had Lucy sit in the front seat and she was fine.

Let's recap Lucy's history:  Besides Tibby, she has never played with any other dogs.  She is about 4 years old.  She has never been off leash.  If she goes outside she is on a tie out or has a gentle leader on.  Let me say that again - She has NEVER been off leash.  As in EVER. 

As we walked up to the dog park gates, I was thinking about that and having second thoughts about this experiment.

Did I mention that her owners were at first afraid to let Tibby play with her, because she is 'mean'.  Yeah, so maybe I should have thought about those things before we got to the dog park.
But then again, I like to have adventures.

~

We went into the dog park and there was a HUGE lab plus something playing fetch with its owner.  The lab had an e-collar on, so that made me a little nervous.  Turns out he was super-duper friendly!  Yeah, a lab.  He kept bringing his ball to me and then his owner would have to walk all the way back to get the ball.  It was, as it always is to me, interesting to see how Tibby interacts with a new dog.  She was very good.  She wanted to play with him, but when I called her off, she came to me.  I was better than another dog!  Yeah!  Lucy did her own thing.  She was fine.  It was sweet to see her realize that she was off leash and could do what ever she wanted.

Tibby would have liked her to play a little more, but Tibby was respectful and didn't annoy her (too much!).  They did get in some good zoomies!

I loved seeing Tibby come to me away from 1) a new person 2) a new dog 3) her friend Lucy.  If it was a choice between going to any of those OR following me.  She chose me!  Apparently she does love me.

So Lucy can now - play with another dog, ride in the car and go to the dog park.  In other words, she is a normal dog and not 'mean' at all.

I put the zoomie pictures into a slide show.

The Winners Are.....

Congratulations to Joanne Cotter - she won the $25 gift code to Amazon! 
And
Congratulations to Boondocks and the Love Shack Pack - you have won the hands free leash!

I will try to contact you, but if you can please send your mailing address to tibbysfriends at hotmail dot com.

Thanks to everyone that entered!

There will be another giveaway this week to enter - something pretty!

Manners Monster!

The Manners Minder arrived yesterday. Tibby thinks it is great. Just like the food ball, but bigger. Catty isn't so sure.....

Digging For Winners

Don't forget!  Today is the last day to Vote For Tibby and enter to win a $25 gift code to Amazon.

AND

The last day to enter the Leash Giveaway.

Clicking

I'm really happy with how Tibby's training is going right now.  Any one who has read this blog will know it hasn't always been that way.  I feel like we are actually communicating now and Tibby has a lot more drive.  She still has (and always will have) her own ideas about everything, but she is willing to listen to my ideas too, if I explain them to her.  Maybe it is that I have learned how to communicate with her.  She needs everything explained to her.  She isn't going to do it, because I tell her to.  She is a thinker.  If I give her time to think things through, she usually decides that my way is the best.  I have the treats and toys, after all!  We did some distance obstacle discrimination today and she was perfect.   

Speaking of drive, I have noticed in the last week a BIG uptick in energy from Tibby.  She used to sleep most of the day and grudgingly do a little play/work if she had to.  Now she is active (playing/digging holes/sniffing the grass/chasing the cat/chewing bully sticks/hiding bones in the yard/working) almost ALL the time.  I only worked one day this week, so I was with her for 3 days all day long and I could see a big difference in her activity.  In the past, when I have been at home, she would sleep almost the entire day.  It makes me wonder if she was fighting off an infection or something.  Maybe it's the weather changing?  She is acting like she did back in the Spring - run, run, run all day.  I thought she had calmed down, because she is older, but maybe it was something else.  Perhaps related to her heart murmur?  They didn't hear the murmur at her appointment in April, but they heard it at her appointment in August.  She has another appointment in November, maybe it will be gone? 

Busy, busy, busy

Tibby is keeping busy.

She can entertain herself for hours.

Whatever makes her happy!

Wordless Wednesday

Hands Free Leash Review + Giveaway

Tibby and I tried out a neat leash today.  It's a hands-free leash from lilydc.

Lily started making these leashes, because she jogs and hikes with her dog Dotty.

She also makes some beautiful tumbled glass pendants - check them out here!

~

Tibby and I tried out the leash 2 different ways - first we took a long walk.  I wrapped the leash around my waist, snapped the buckle and we were off!  Easy! 

It was a very windy day and I was able to walk along with my hands in my pockets.  Tibby trotted along and I had warm hands - win win! Another benefit of this lilydc hands-free leash, I didn't have to worry about the leash slipping out of my hands, when Tibby got excited about someone walking toward us.  She was attached to me, so she wasn't going any where!  This was especially nice when Tibby decided to chase some leaves as we were crossing the highway.  She tried to dash off, but she didn't get too far!

Next, we used the leash for a training session.  This lilydc hands-free leash really simplified training.  It was easy to have my clicker in one hand and the treats in the other hand.  I didn't have to worry about the leash at all!  It was also easy to adjust the leash from a walking/hiking length to a shorter training length.

See!  It's great for training!

Here is a video to show you how easy it is to train with a hand-free leash.  It would be perfect for training loose leash walking. 

This lilydc hands-free leash is made out of a nylon strap measuring 8 feet 8 inches long. It has a swivel bolt snap hook and a durable plastic buckle.

Guess what?!? You can win this leash!

To win this leash you must leave a comment with 2 things:

1 - Go to lilydc's store.
 Look for the breed of dog she has modeling her leash. That's Lilly's cute dog Dotty!

2 - Then leave a comment on this post with your answer and your e-mail address.
I will have Tibby pick a winner on Monday!

International readers are welcome to enter!  We love ALL our readers!!

~~~
For this giveaway I will allow entries from Tibby's facebook page.
However, in the future:
Tis' the season for giveaways and to simplify things as the year ends I will only count entries from the blog post page.


Disclosure: I did not receive any financial compensation for this post. All opinions are my own and uninfluenced by anyone else. I received a free product to facilitate my review, but that did not affect my opinion.

 

Sitting On An Arm

"What do you mean, off the couch?"

"I'm not on the couch."

"See, now I'm on the couch."

Wow! The Wonder Walker Works!

Tibby tried something amazing this weekend. It all started with a package addressed to her.

Look it's addressed to Tibby! This is the first package Tibby has ever received! She was very excited!

"Can I get a little help here, please?"

What was inside?

It was a Wonder Walker Body Halter made by the nice people at Dolan's Dog Doodads.

This is an amazing product. Seriously. I thought it would be like other harnesses we have used in the past. Um, NO! This is a high quality, very well made harness. It has some really nice features that I will show you in a second, but the most exciting part about the Wonder Walker….it REALLY works!! After following the very simple instructions, I had it properly fitted for Tibby and we were off on a walk. It was the best walk we have taken in….um, EVER. She wasn't pulling me and I wasn't pulling her. It was like she finally realized that there was something (ME!) on the other end of the leash. She walked along like a well trained dog.

The Wonder Walker Body Halter should be called the freedom walker, because that's what it has given us. The freedom to take walks anywhere. I won't have to weigh the possibility of Tibby tripping people when she pulls in crowds. No longer will people stop us in the park and ask if I have thought about taking my dog to obedience classes (that was really embarrassing). No longer will I resort to walking Tibby on the flexi lead, because my shoulders can't take her pulling me backwards and forwards and around and around. My Mom might walk with us again, because the Wonder Walker stopped Tibby's habit of crossing in front of people – Yay!

The 1st picture is from the side. See that triangle? What a great idea, right?! The straps can lay flat and they don't get all bunched up, like with other harnesses. Also, when I was adjusting it for Tibby, having those triangles made it super easy to understand the directions. When the directions said to move the buckle to the triangle – I actually knew what they were taking about!

The 2^nd picture is from the front. Notice anything? Yeah, it's not pinching Tibby's legs together or riding down so low she can't walk. What an idea! Something that is comfortable for the dog to wear! A great idea.

The Wonder Walker Body Halter comes in 16 different colors - from hot pink to light green. We chose brown, because I wanted it to match Tibby's fur.

There are 7 sizes – from Tiny (under 10 lbs) to Extra Large (over 85 lbs). They will also make a Wonder Walker Body Halter to your specifications for only a $1 or $2 more than the regular price. And the regular price is a bargain at only $25.99.

The back ring can be attached to a Car Strap. Another great idea that simplifies things – I hate taking off Tibby's leash to put on her car harness.

Just for comparison: On the left in both pictures is the Wonder Walker Body Halter. On the right is an Easy Walk Harness. Both are size small and they are supposed to fit Tibby, but the EZ Walk doesn't let her walk! Very frustrating for both of us! Unlike the Wonder Walker, the EZ Walk pulls her legs together and Tibby ends up stopping and refusing to walk or walking like she is in pain. Sure, the EZ stops her from pulling, but it also makes me sad L.

The Wonder Walker has much better hardware and the design is MUCH better. The Wonder Walker fits and lays flat. Did I mention the hardware? If the Wonder Walker didn't work (which is DOES 100%) I would still be impressed with the way that the Wonder Walker is made. Very nice quality.

On the Wonder Walker there is only one buckle and the straps are easy to adjust. I can't count how many times I've put the EZ Walk on Tibby backwards – so many times that I stopped using it. Frustrating!

 

Want to see how the Wonder Walker works? Check out this video of Tibby before and after with the Wonder Walker. Also, my cute 88 year old Grandma walked Tibby in the Wonder Walker! Before the Wonder Walker I was afraid to walk Tibby around my Grandma, let alone have Grandma actually take the leash, because I never knew if/when Tibby would pull or cut in front of my Grandma and knock her down. Now we can take walks together!

This is my Mom walking Tibby. What did my Mom (the woman who refuses to walk with Tibby) think? She said, "That's amazing, it works. I might go on walks with you now, if Tibby isn't going to pull all over and try to trip me." J

Check out the Wonder Walker if:

1 – You want a harness that makes walking your dog fun again!

2 – You want a high quality harness.

3 – You want a harness with easy to understand instructions.

4 – You want a harness that is easy to adjust, put on and take off.

The Wonder Walker Body Halter is made by Dolan's Dog Doodads – check them out here Wonder Walker

J

Disclosure: I did not receive any financial compensation for this post. All opinions are my own and uninfluenced by anyone else. I received a free product to facilitate my review, but that did not affect my opinion.

 

 

 

 

Rollin' On A Roll

How much fun can you have with a cardboard roll?

A TON!!

It's a rollin' good time.

"Where'd it go?"

"I love you roll, you're the best toy ever."

Fall Foto Friday

"Time for a nice walk."

"Ah!  Don't be so silly Mom! You're messin' up the picture!"

"That's better.  Now let's get walking!"

Tell Me Thursday

 Yes it is Thursday again.  Time is going way too quickly!
Crooks and Crazies ask:
1. What is your favorite Little Debbie snack? If you hate Little Debbie then I bow down to your greatness. (I suppose you can include some other favorite snack. Maybe it'll inspire me to get over LD for today.)

I think I tried my first LD snack when I was 20?  Or something like that.  I didn't like it.  It was an oatmeal/frosting thing that a friend gave me.  Until then I didn't know that they existed.  Yes, I led a sheltered life of homemade cookies and cakes. :^)  I'm not a big snack eater.  My Mom goes through these phases where she wants to make the best cake, pie, cookies, whatever and she will make like 10 different versions of one recipe.  Then I have to try all of them and tell her which one is the best.  It's a hard life ;)  Lately it has been apple pie.  I used to like apple pie.  20 or so pies later.....not so much.  Pity me!

2. What do you use for laundry detergent?
Tide and Surf.  I like the way they smell. 

3. Tighty Whities or Boxers? (this, obviously, is open for interpretation)
Hmmm, not sure what this question is about.  I'm not a big fan of the Westie or the Boxer dog breed.  Just kidding!  I think Westies are cute. 

4. Dogs: On the bed? In the house? On the furniture? Never? What are your rules?
Tibby would like to ask, "What's a rule?"  House rules are open to interpretation.  I have pictures of Tibby on my dining room table!  Tibby can go where ever she wants.  I had the silly rule of no dog's on the bed when Tibby was a puppy.  When she was about 6 or so months old she showed me how wonderful sleeping through the night with a quiet puppy could be - as long as the puppy got to sleep on the bed.  Sleep deprivation.....Tibby could work for the CIA - she gets results.

5. Favorite dog-related website (aside from my blog, obviously har har har)? Favorite NON-dog related website? Can be blogs, or whatever.  I spend time on the Mighty Mites Forum.  It's for small dogs ONLY.  Although Tibby is just a tiny bit over the height requirement, but they said we could stay anyway.  Honestly she is .53 inches over the 16 inch height limit.  Or she was the last time I tried to measure her.  I also spend too much time in the LoLaBu Land classroom 'cause that's where/how we are taking agility classes.  I watch too many videos of dogs Border Collies with tons of drive and then I feel sad about Tibby, which is stupid, because Tibby is awesome.  The End.
Non-dog related?  Um, well I guess shopping.  I like Mod Cloth.  I wear a lot of dresses and they have unusual ones there.

Garden Clean Up and A Story

I forgot to post these pictures of our garden clean up.  We did it several weeks ago.  Look at the big pile we have!

The Huntress

Now for the story.  A few days ago, while I was at work, my Mom came over to let Tibby and Catty outside.  While Tibby was sniffing around my Mom went back inside.  She watched from inside the sliding glass door as Catty climbed the plum tree.  Catty climbed up 12 feet into the thin, whippy branches, out onto a tiny branch where a bird was sitting watching her.  She reached over, grabbed the bird, put it into her mouth and climbed back down the tree.  She brought the bird around to the other side of the pond where Tibby was waiting.  Then Catty 'played' with the bird while Tibby jumped around and sniffed everything excitedly.  Tibby was like the posse of a bully who eggs the bully on, but never does any of the bullying.  After a minute or two, Catty let the bird go and it flew away.

I don't think that bird will sit in the plum tree anymore!

"You just don't understand sophisticated entertainment."