Heart of Gold

"Inspirational Quotes For Sport and Life"

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 04 May 2010 15:14:00 +0000

This great little video was created by our friend & long time instructor, Susan Garrett. I hope you will enjoy it as much as we do!

The video kicked-off the launch of Susan's fund-raising effort (details below!) for the 2010 Canadian IFCS Team, of which she is member. The IFCS World Agility Championship takes place on May 14-16, 2010, in Cleverdon, U.K. (Click on the link to visit the 2010 WAC website.)

We join in wishing Team Canada the best of luck at the competition!

If you are interested in the agility training e-book and/or helping support Team Canada, click the link to visit Susan's blog at: http://susangarrettdogagility.com/2010/05/the-big-kick-off.html for full details!

I'm proud to give special recognition to my husband as one of the contributing photographers for this video. He contributed the picture of the soaring eagle and the cover shot of the e-book, with Susan and her (then) puppy, Feature.

Happy Training! It's About Love!

More Summer Greetings from One!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 14:57:00 +0000

Below, my personal favorite...beautiful photography, beautiful moment with Bungee's brother One. (pronounced in Finnish: "o-nay")

Such expression! I just want to reach out & hug him!

Another gorgeous photo of gorgeous One!

Our sincere thanks to Helena Tiainen for sharing these great photos with us!

Happy Training....It's About LOVE!

Summer Greetings from One!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 18:19:00 +0000

One!

Some new photos just in! Here's the 1st half of some awesome photos we received from One's 'mom', taken on a recent vacation to their cottage at Lake Saimaa, Finland's biggest lake. Here's Bungee's brother, One, making some waves & having a swim! What a beautiful spot for a cottage & a swim!

Or just looking on very handsomely!

WoW! Great form!!!

Ahhhh....water....

Splashdown!

Many thanks to Helena Tiainen for sending us these lovely photos!!!

...stay tuned for the next installment soon!

Happy Training...It's About LOVE!

Fun in Finnish trial!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 19:10:00 +0000

Here is a video of Bungee's half-sister Fun running clean in 2 Finnish Agility Trial runs. Fun is a very young girl too. Here, Pirjo & Fun are doing a beautiful job handling these very challenging courses, the Finnish way. We send them big congratulations on their success!

Our sincere thanks to Pirjo Yli-Juuti for sharing this video of her & Fun with us!

Happy Training...It's About Love!

Bungee - Master Jumpers FEO

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 17:03:00 +0000

Here's Bungee running in her 2nd AAC trial. The class is Master Jumpers. She was entered as "FEO" (for exhibition only), as she has not qualified through all the necessary levels to run in Masters, the highest level, for points yet.

This past month of March, I have kept Bungee & Guinness very busy in training and classes, and at long last, starting to work on our own field at home! Hoorah!!! The snow left a bit early this year! The ground is not really ready for us to run on yet, so we are still a bit careful about where we work and how much equipment is left out.

Meanwhile we're due for some rain now, which perhaps will thaw the ground, and cause us to stay off a bit this week as we don't want to damage the turf. But, after being away with the dogs trialing, performing & working the last 5 days, including working 38 of the last 48 hours, and coming down with a chest cold as of yesterday, I have not been out on the field yet this a.m. to see where it's at. But I still see no snow and that's a beautiful thing for a trainer, even if the grass is still brown! Today is rest & relaxation for all of us, and maybe tomorrow too!

Happy Training...It's About Love!

Obedience by sister Mia

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 14:08:00 +0000

Bungee's sister Mia and Mona Kjernholm competing in Level II Obedience at Malmo 2009. Mia won her class with 187p. While "mom", Mona, says they still have a lot of fine details to work on, it is clear that this little 19 month old girl is already doing an impressive and excellent job, and all positive training too! What a gorgeous attitude this little girl has!

WoW! Beautiful work!

Thanks to Mona Kjernholm for putting these videos up on YouTube and sharing them with all of us, and also for showing us another example of positive & "Happy Training" at it's finest!!!

I have added Mona's new YouTube site to our list of favorite YouTube links (lower right). Click on the link above or at the side to check out some great training and sister Mia too!

Happy Training...It's About Love!

Welcome March

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 19:16:00 +0000

OK, so I'm like the happiest person in the world that Feb. is over. It definitely wasn't "our month". First I did something to myself to destroy my back for 11 -12 days, but then Bungee badly tore a toenail on her front foot, which kept her from training, which was followed by her coming down with some really bad intestinal problems. 3 trips to the vet in 2 weeks - ugh, poor Bungee, not to mention the bank account!

We finished Feb. off with all of us feeling back to normal, and Bungee in great need of a bath. So a trip to our friend Cynthia's Grooming Salon this weekend was a nice treat. Bungee got the full spa treatment, coming out beautiful, fluffy and sweet smelling. Guinness did some training in a different environment while Bungee endured the bath :-)) (not her favorite) and then Guinness strutted around like he owned the joint in between doing his tricks at a distance, as Bungee got dried. When it was done Bungee was still eager friends with her adopted Auntie Cynthia, so it was all good.

Poor Guinness just had a partially boring Feb. with me laid up, but stayed well. I hand-stripped him last Friday. He always looks so beautiful freshly-stripped in his "underwear". I love the feel of his velvety undercoat when his wire coat is off, it's really thick too. Not that he doesn't look great with his gorgeous double coat in tact too!

Guinness had an audition for a TV commercial last week, and fingers crossed, the early word is they want him. That said, knowing they are subject to changing their minds a lot. Keep you posted. During the audition he had 48 different things they asked him to do and it went great, he did all but one, which shocked me as it was "rolling over", which was one of the 1st tricks he ever learned. Since then we're working on a few things that were weak spots and they're all responding to the skills tune-up nicely, especially "roll over", sheesh... Wouldn't you like to know what they're thinking some time. I am going to get him checked at the chiropractor just to make sure all is well. Though it's probably a case of not having done it in a long, long time.

Bungee literally turned a corner March 1, waking up ready and raring to go, and looking beautiful & happy too. I felt the same way too!

The end of Feb. brought us melting snow followed by drastic low temperatures and then a lot of ice everywhere. YUCK. Thank goodness for lots of tricks & body awareness exercises and a basement in which to work!

The snow is down to just a few inches now and I was able to find some crunchy but not slippery spots in the yard today, so we actually got a little weaving in. Bungee was thrilled and wonderful as ever! :-))

Both dogs are entered in a trial later this month, so after just about a full month off, we'll see if we can't tune up their agility skills too! Back to class tonight.

Happy Training, It's About Love!

A Better Day

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 18:57:00 +0000

Thought I better get some snow pictures up before it's all gone! (dream on lady... :-)

Guinness after a romp in a warm day's snow.

Guinness & Bungee, so why are we stopping for this?

My Progress
Happy to report I've made good progress today. Was able to sit up & walk as soon as I woke up, still a bit slow but big progress. Actually got dressed in real clothes, (not lounge clothes), and walk around the house without any extreme pain or problems. Got brave enough to try some training from the floor. Guinness & Bungee being so thankful for that! I was able to get down to the floor voluntarily and up with a bit of help from nearby chairs & tables. Fed the dogs on my own, they don't take their bowls when they're full but for this very reason, they bring them when they're empty! Next I actually got so brave I took them outside, donning my snow boots with "Wintertrax" attached (springy things that fit the bottom of your shoe and that grip in ice), as I could see some ice in the lowest spots where water pooled up, and slowly but surely, did a decent poop clean up, necessary after a BIG melt like this past weekend - still +8 today :-) Forecast the same for the most of the week ~ WoW!

Poor Bored Doggies & A Good Chew
Right now Bungee is discovering a "Himalayan Dog Chew", for the 1st time. Click on the link to check them out (pictures & story). So far she seems to handle the occasional dairy products very well. These chews are sold as being from an ancient recipe used in Nepal to provide locals with a long-lasting snack they can gnaw on and keep pieces in their mouths while they labor. The information reports a Peace Corp worker in Nepal adopted an abandoned, teething puppy. With no "pet supplies" available locally, the adopter had to improvise for this puppy, and tried one of these traditional chews. It worked out so well he went on to found this company that makes them.

So it's like a 5 - 6 inch long hard stick, that I thought smelled more like beef than cheese but really it's quite a different smell than either and not at all objectionable. Apparently the dog will have to gnaw on it a long time to soften it enough to chew small bits off the edge. Eager to find snacks like this that could provide Bungee with some good calories & a bit of preoccupation at long day's trials, I decided to try one of these at home and see how she does.

I'd love to hear comments about what some of you give your dogs at trials (if anything) in this regard.

In the 1st 15 minutes Bungee has tried to push it under her bedding on 3 different sides of her crate, but either curiosity or aroma has convinced her to hold it in her mouth while she lays down in every different position she can think of. I'm hearing some chewing noises... I'll let you know how she does with it.

Guinness, on the other hand, is in his crate with the tried & true "Tartar Busters" we get at most any local pet supply. Both of the dogs love these, but I only had one and Guinness cannot handle dairy products at all. They produce congestion and diarrhea quickly with him.

What the dogs have most often is simple marrow bones that we get free or very low price at some of our local butchers shops or any grocery. We also have a huge supply of guaranteed all-natural, organic, (guaranteed chemical & poison-free), rawhide. One big order is plain, rolled, and the other is every manner of shape & size meats made in rawhide or dried, from the states. We brought the natural rawhide back with us from Florida last year. We've been hoarding it for the the dogs and handing it out in small doses on those rare occasions when we're out of bones.

Training
A disappointing subject the last few days with me laid up! I did a little shaping with each dog today, putting a new spin on an old trick. Bungee also discovered she can put her rings on her ring toss game 2 at a time - pretty cute. She's going for distance on that game now. She's very cute the way she pounces around excitedly while she does it. Going to give contacts from the slanted travel plank a try at supper-time, but just off the living room floor.

Classes & Entries are on hold for the moment. Dangit anyway.

Goals for the week
Now I'm trying to let all the meds wear off to evaluate just where I stand. That's not to say I won't take them again this week if it's still really bad, but I need to know we're at and hopefully convince my Dr. I'm ready for a prolo treatment sooner than later. I so want to get it going and get back to my regular life!

Right now the Dr. is considering letting me have a treatment as soon as Saturday, which is also the only day my husband can take me and since I will definitely need a driver, have to live with that. The Dr. 1st started out talking about a date week's away. ACK! I want to be fixed now! On the other hand... How romantic...a prolotherapy treatment for Valentine's Day :-)) Show me the love :-)

Well I'll leave you with that (not so) love-ly thought :-))

Happy Training...It's About Love!

What a difference a day makes

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 08 Feb 2009 19:32:00 +0000

My week started out on a high note with the great fun Bungee & I had just had on our first little test at an agility trial.

Of course Tuesday brought the sad events of saying goodbye to such a great dog as Miss Gabby, and knowing the pain a very dear friend and her family were suffering with such a huge loss.

Little did I expect to have things go from bad to worse, but alas & woe, they did just that when I managed to sprain my back (sacroiliac) Thursday morning. Torn ligaments are not fun.

While I was occupied with excruciating pain & trying to do basic things like getting off the floor or get to the bathroom, I was also missing 4 highly anticipated agility classes in the first 48 hours of being "down". Thursday I missed my private daytime class with Sarah, Friday night we missed our Box Class workshop, Saturday I missed my private with Susan to work on Bungee's contacts, and Saturday afternoon I missed the group handling workshop Susan had put together for us.

It should be no surprise that as I was laying on the floor in sheer agony Thursday morning, the word that came to my mind started with "F". As I've known a lot of back trouble, I could tell by how it felt, this was a big one.

Guess I got into trouble trying to help with the snow blowing and operating the snow blower with my husband putting in such long hours at work. I've felt some little "tinges" of weakness over the last few weeks and ignored them, sort of not believing this could happen to me again after all the great ligament repairs I've had in the last couple of years and how well it all seemed to have worked. I knew I needed to get in for another Prolotherapy treatment too, but I have put it off. It's not exactly the most fun thing to do, but it does work amazingly well.

Well, now I'm looking forward to a day very soon when I'm improved enough to get to a treatment which is in downtown Toronto - about an hour & a half away.

Just goes to say - nothing ever stays the same for long. It's Sunday afternoon and this is the 1st I've really been able to sit up with my computer on my lap for any length of time and write. Probably mainly due to eating Tylenol III every 4 hours & this new analgesic pain creme called "Voltaren" that you rub on makes pain go away. The pharmacist even told my husband it's new on the Canadian market and originates in Finland. Something else to be thankful to the Finnish about!

If missing all our training & watching 2 very bored and worried doggies isn't enough, the weather turned up to be an astonishing 10 degrees yesterday! We lost 2 feet of snow, and there was a giant ice festival in Barrie on Lake Simcoe that a bunch of my friends were at doing cool things with the dogs. Today it's still above zero and has been sunny & gorgeous.
It's nice to look out on : -) Maybe we'll have an early spring.

Our thoughts & prayers continue to be with Sarah & Brent and the Mairs family over the loss of their beautiful Gabby. It's a terrible time to endure and our heart goes out to them. We miss her so much too. I don't think you ever stop missing loved ones, you just get used to living with it I suppose. Back aches are way better anyday, though I'm happy to be able to walk to the bathroom again instead of having to crawl! I'll be even happier to be running my dog again - at least a few weeks on that one however.

Happy Training, It's About Love!

Tamsu's Special Angel "Gabby"

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 19:45:00 +0000

"Gabby" proudly enjoying the "after-glow" with her 2008 National's Championship 1st Place Victory Cup on P.E.I.

Hi,

Just a note to let you all know that Sarah's beautiful Gabby passed on this morning. Our agility world has said goodbye to a truly great one this time. We were all so much the richer for time she spent with us and the way she loved us all. So many tears today - not just in losing a friend, but also in tribute to the remarkable dog Gabby was and will always be. She inspired me in this sport from the first moment I saw her run. She was truly a little Golden ray of sunshine I will remember with great affection, admiration and love, always. I'm sure Sarah will be in touch in due time. Please feel free to pass the news along to Sarah's friends that I have missed, particularly in the flyball community as I have very few addresses there. Clara, Cathy, Sue, Lucie, Susan, Lynda - could you please pass along the news about Gabby to the team alumni past/present, and judges group, etc.

Our most heartfelt condolences to Sarah, Brent, Jeanette, John, & Cynthia.
May God Bless and Keep Gabby in His perfect care.

Remembering Gabby:

As ever...Happy Training! Enjoy & celebrate your dogs every day of the process and every run as fun. It all goes by much too fast. We should not wait to the end to realize that it really Is About Love!

Yours very truly,
Gail

What is Qualifying?

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 02:39:00 +0000

Among all the congratulations & great messages Bungee & I have received since I posted the video & results from her 1st trial, was the question: "What is qualifying?"

This question is in regards to Bungee's trial results Sunday where she earned "2nd place with a qualifying score" in her 1st Starter Jumpers round.

Note: Qualifying in No. America is often referred to as a "Q"

What qualifying means is that a competitor must earn a set number of qualifying scores (Q's) in any particular class in order to earn a title in that class and move up to the next level, and eventually earn their agility championship.

But, one need NOT win in order to earn a Q, a title, or move up in class. To earn a Q one only needs to "run clean" with no faults, within the standard course time.

Here in Canada and also in the U.S., our agility systems are described as "Q-based systems" vs. U.K./EU's "win systems". The Q-based system is also sometime referred to as a "title system" or "titling system".

Bungee earned 2nd place because she was the 2nd fastest dog in her height division in the Starter Jumpers class. In Bungee's case she was the 2nd fastest dog out of all the dogs in all the height divisions (the whole class :-))).

However so long as she did not "E" or "DQ" (eliminated or disqualified) she could have had 7,000 faults and still earned 2nd place as placements are made according to time!

So, when one looks at the rest of the world, and compares Canada and the U.S., where you can earn a 1st place and not have the best run or win, it's clearly a crazy thing!

Here, one can place and not qualify, or qualify and not place, or in Bungee's case - do both, place and qualify! But only the Q's count toward titles - not the wins and not the placements!

OK...the bit about 7,000 faults, is a big exaggeration, but a dog could have a lot of faults and as long as they didn't E or DQ they'd still be marked in placement order according to their time.

Many competitors train to be very competitive and always play to win with both fastest time and clean rounds. This is the way I like to play agility.

Others just want to be clean and run within the allowed time, (often quite generous time at that) basically playing it safe, so they can get their dogs the titles they are after and the ribbons that go with it. It's actually a big divide within the organization in some discussions that come up, but the titles & ribbons crowd probably outnumbers the "play to win" crowd by a lot. I have friends across the board and am just happy to see so many people out enjoying their dogs in the sport. My own opinion is there is plenty of room for all of us.

One of the biggest differences between a Q based system versus a win system is the way many of the handlers choose to play the game. Handlers can choose to hold back & play it safe and never really run a fast dog and still earn agility championships, or they can play to win and really push themselves to keep bettering their best. In my mind there is a 3rd area of teams who run "non-typical" agility breeds such as Bulldogs, Basset Hounds, or dogs not typically built or bred for agility or speed or who cover ground much differently. Our organization allows room for them to play too. It is no easy to task training some of these dogs to be skilled and competitive enough to earn titles. I really see these folks in a bit of a class by themselves with lots to be proud about. I'm glad our organization makes room for them too as some of them are our best friends. All in all, you see plenty of handlers who manage to earn championships in spite of their skills or speed, while others earn every Q they get because of their skills and speed. As the sport evolves here in Canada so does the competition.

National champions & Regional champions are quite a different situation, they are winning with the best runs all the way to the podium at each event and those are very prestigious wins, as they should be.

But regular titles are earned by Q's. In a Q-based or titling system, all you get out of having the fastest time is your own personal satisfaction, the fun of competing at the top of the game in your own backyard, and of course, leaving the door open to be competitive in agility at the national level or in other places too. While running "clean" (not making mistakes) is what gets you your Q's & titles. Quite a big difference to a win system.

Our regular, local, A.A.C. trials average cost to enter is about $17.00-$17.50 a run. C.K.C. is more expensive at $25.00 a run. Regionals & Nationals are a lump sum figure about $125.00+ per dog. Regular trials are almost always 2 days and some time 3 days. With all the standard, games & steeplechase & challenge courses in any given day (maybe 8 - 12 classes a day or more if there are 2 rings going), it's easy to rack up hugely expensive entries for just one dog, much less if you run 2 or 3.

That may have something to do with people wanting to play it safe and get those Q's!
Add to that, we don't have clubs in this area anymore, so training is never free either. You pay per training session or set of classes and the prices are pretty dear. Not as bad as Japan but still, it all adds up way too fast!

Hope this helps explain what qualifying is and a little bit about how we play here in Canada.

Special thoughts & prayers go out to our own dear little National Champion friend, Gabby!
God Bless Sarah & Gabby tonight.

Happy Training....It's About Love!

Bungee's 1st Trial

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 05:42:00 +0000

There were a few ways to handle the start, I was the only one in the entire class to chose a Lead-out Pivot, (LOP), partially because it's starters, but even the few who might consider trying LOP's on some courses opted against due to the perceived "risk" with the chute at the start. I had no such feelings.

On the contrary - we've waited a long time for this day, so why start our career compromising on all the good training we do? That said however, good thing we video, I did not realize how much I was leaning, and even stepped out to the side - yikes! Note taken... I didn't need to talk to Bungee as much as I did as she stayed on her line nicely. Her focus was GREAT right from the start. When we first arrived I wasn't so sure what would happen, as she was focused - but on only one thing - what was happening on course! However when it was her turn to run, she was ready to go and just as focused on me.

The DH thinks she's slow off the start and takes her speed after the 1st obstacle. He may have something there. We have done an awful lot of control work to have a good start line. So, there's definitely some work to do there to get blasting off, as we can't have that! The judge thought I was "holding back" a bit...I do tend to manage her FC's a bit. Of course we lost time at the crooked line out of the chute, and the head checking with my poorly timed rear cross to the finish line. But, I told you we needed more work on Rear Crosses. But didn't she recover on that LOP beautifully? I was thrilled with Bungee and I had so much fun too!

I was really happy that the course was as tight as it was, taking up only half the field. Most of the Starter Jumpers courses I've been on or seen were 15 - 18 obstacles spread out to the whole field. Those big wide gaps make them very hard to get a fast dog around if it's not really strong on driving a line, unfortunately when they are they are often weak on turning. Bungee turns very well and is improving on driving a line all the time. All will come in it's own time. But this was about the nicest paced starter jumpers course I've seen. We're both very proud of young Princesse Bungee.

We also want to thank our friends who stuck around to the last run of the weekend to see her 1st run, and our friends who made a special trip over just to cheer us on! We are so blessed with good friends in the dogs and a marvelous agility community to play in. Thank you all so much! It meant a lot to us to have you there! I couldn't imagine a nicer way to come back to the game myself! Many thanks.

Happy Training...It's About Love!

Bungee Gets to Play!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 16:09:00 +0000

At last, Bungee gets to have some fun in agility trials. She was qualified to enter at 18 months, which was Jan. 13th, but her 1st run is TODAY!!!!!!!!! HOOORAH!!!!!

We both can't wait, especially me! I went to the trial (Rat Pack) yesterday and had the honor of running our friend, Cutter, in Advanced Jumpers. I have to tell you I can not remember when I've had so much fun! It was just a gas! Cutter ran beautifully for me, and I was quickly informed I ran beautiful for him. Cutter's time was 6.3 yps so I may have slowed him down a bit when I was a little bit in his way on a FC after a 270, and it cost the poor guy a bar, but the rest of the run went brilliantly. I had so much fun, I can't even describe it. I had forgotten what's it like to be out there. I drove home (through the same blizzard I drove down to the trial in - ugh!), went to bed and woke up with a huge grin.

We're eager to get going today! Bungee's entered in a single Starter Jumpers run, which is the last run of the day today. We're not ready for standard courses yet (contacts). I'd love to put her in a steeplechase but it always has a frame, and we're not quite there yet. No matter the outcome I know we're going to have a blast, but I'll let you know how it goes.

Other than that everything is going along about the same. Winter is raging on, trips to clean up after the dogs & empty the pooper scooper are now wading through snow to my thighs. Snowshoes are a regular way to get around the property & neighborhood now. But thanks to Sarah we have been training 4 and 5 days a week and been able to really work on handling. Susan is also back from Florida, sort of - guess she's in the states somewhere for the weekend. But, she has some awesome work planned for next weekend that Bungee and I are going to join in on, and maybe Sarah too if Gabby's condition allows and there is still room. Much as I'd like to be enjoying the Florida tropics, I'm really happy we're staying home to get all this great work in for Bungee.

Susan Garrett has been blogging away with posts I've really been enjoying. Click on the link at her name to check it out. But I find myself reading more than writing. I've added Facebook to our internet stops. I found Tomi but he looked so business-like I felt it was one of those "must-do" work things which he probably despises having to have (just like my DH) and best to leave him alone until he shows up in a track suit with a dog on leash! Meanwhile we'd love to have Mia & Helena & Mona join us over there!!!! (hint hint!!!) I think what was once largely a dating forum is now dog city!!! You've got to join us there!!! WE'VE GOT HIGH SPEED AGAIN AS OF THIS WEEK!!!!!!!! HOOORAHH!!! (wow 2 hoorah's in 1 week). I upgraded to the new iLife suite (iPhoto, iMovie & Garage Band) over a week ago, I'm still doing the tutorials but mainly to understand the new features. The transition will otherwise be seamless (and gotta' love a Mac - painless too!) Ok I'm getting antzy & excited about getting to the trial, can't sit here any longer! Best get ready & go. :-))) Wish us luck! I'll keep you posted.

Sending out special wishes & prayers to the very, very special, Gabby, please join me in keeping her in your thoughts & prayers too.

Happy Training, hugs to Aino & Elvis and all their babies!!!!
and always remember.... It's About Love!

Surviving Canadian Winter

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 16:13:00 +0000

With A Little Help From Our Friends!

Gabby - showing the youngsters how it's done!

I don't know why this picture looks so over-exposed. Straight from iPhoto it looks perfect, uploaded to the blog it's completely changed - weird.

We got these pictures 3 weeks ago when Sarah & I took the dogs for a walk behind Tamsu one day and the DH (dear husband) could come along with his camera. Sarah's dad was already out back with his training buddies doing some field training with their dogs, with the usual stack of dead birds at the line and other birds laying out in the field for the dogs to find & retrieve. We were heading east, where we'd let the dogs have a good run in the open fields as we make our way across into the bush (Canadian woods) for trails not nearly as nice as Finland!

Gabby, unable to resist the bird-doggin' fun off to the north of us, veered off on a fast line disappearing out into the field, only to come running back, clearly happy as a dog can be, holding this big duck, and looking stunning in her purple coat too (!! :-) ...much to the chagrin of the "field people" I'm sure - who had been muttering just loud enough so we could hear them about ALL our dogs in coats, Hah! Clearly this grand Golden lady was showing their youngsters how it's done right!

Vince had come along to take pictures for us, but did so only as far as his long lens would allow him to follow us... :-)) But he managed to get this one of Gabby - what a perfect shot! You can double click on it to enlarge.

Below, Bungee, Guinness & I heading for the trails, with Bungee pretty interested in the "bird work" (field training) going on off to the side. I can guarantee her she doesn't want any part of what they're doing over there.

Below: Sarah, Gabby (purple coat) and her gang

Off in the distance, Gabby's gorgeous son, Cutter, doing what all good bird dogs will do, finds a spot a bird was laying (during earlier training that day) and rolls in it with exuberance!

Here's the whole gang, heading for the trails. See ya' in a few hours.

Surviving Winter - A Mental Reflection
Thank goodness for good friends, warm fires & home theatre! It's turning out to feel like a long season already. It's been 3 years since we have stayed home with no solid plans to get away and enjoy southern latitudes. We both want to but so far things just haven't been right. Clearly, I'm out of practice at this winter bit. Lately I've had a small case of the "winter doldrums", just a combination of things I suppose not the least of which was the news about Gabby, (diagnosed with lymphoma 2 weeks ago), the lack of outdoor warmth, sunshine, or the fact that some of my most favorite training camps & fun trials were going on down in the Florida sunshine without us. Though in my heart I really shouldn't feel that way as I know there are bigger and more important reasons we were meant to stay home. On that note we are both very happy that we are here for those reasons. Still, the last week especially, I've been pretty blue about this grey, blah, winter condition.

Then we had a near-blizzard and death-defying experience to drive 90 km. home in from our running clinic last night, complete with raging winds, walls of snow & white-outs. My goodness we were glad to see our house! Waking up (alive!) to this morning's peaceful landscape, even with a new layer of snow, suddenly seems pretty good!

Meanwhile, as we make our way through this winter, (at times one long day at a time) I'm LOVING the training we're doing, and Bungee's progress! Her contacts are coming along brilliantly and I'm just loving what we're producing now. Thank goodness for families, great coaches, great dogs & good friends!

Today we send out a very special prayer ~ God Bless Gabby!
We love her dearly and send her kisses & kisses & kisses & more meatballs!

Happy Training...It's About Love!

Mid-January Update

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 02:42:00 +0000

Bungee's agility training is going really well. This week we're getting hit with a cold front called an "Alberta Clipper" that's driving temps down in to the -30's all week. Since most of our training takes place in unheated barns, all classes are canceled for the week until this extreme cold passes, I was relieved to hear that! I wasn't going to go in this cold anyway!

We've gotten a lot of training in lately, another reason I didn't mind missing a couple of days. In addition to our regular weekly group & private Tamsu agility classes, we've also enjoyed a series of "running clinics" and "box" workshops with Sarah Mairs on the weekends too. We haven't been keeping up with our obedience training lately, mainly due to agility conflicts, but we'll get back to it as soon as we can.

The "running clinics" are the most interesting to me, also possibly my least favorite, though I'm always glad we went. The "running clinic" courses are set up to emphasize acceleration for driving lines successfully and deceleration to turn accurately (or at all!), and they are also set up at master level and always quite challenging. They really force me to push myself to run better. They highlight my weaknesses in presenting good deceleration to Bungee for turning cues, and they highlight Bungee's inexperience in learning to take & drive lines, but we're both getting better all the time. I can see great teamwork developing between us and we really have a lot of fun. Bungee just loves the work so much, it makes it extra fun. The time of those classes just flies by much too fast.

Weave Poles
Bungee's weaving skills were so strong (perfect) with low level or normal class distractions, that at this point I am pushing Bungee pretty hard to make correct weaving as difficult as possible. Despite her extremely high toy drive, I have worked through toy distractions in & around the poles to the point that I can not create failure through toys. However I'm sure Susan could :-P (my default training question), which tells me I must think harder and perhaps employ a helper to assist with some moving toy distractions I cannot provide alone.

So since we hit a wall with toys, I moved on to the next big distraction I can work on alone: motion. We're doing really well in turning the distraction of motion and rough starts into smooth moves. It was a little surprising to see the effects of handling maneuvers on Bungee's weave pole skills. But it's awfully good information and just what I wanted to see! Much happier to find it out in training than on the trial field. We had a dynamite session on Sunday. We really gained a lot of ground.

That's how it's going with weaves, they just keep getting better and better and they were already great. I just keep challenging the skill, work through any weaknesses, and ultimately strengthening the skills. I guess that's what we do with every aspect of agility if I stop to think about it.

Contacts
Currently focusing on 2o2oNT skills for dog walk & teeter, still not sure what to do with the frame. I think I like Jenny's method for Ogin! wink/wink :-)) Back to nose touches, I backed up a bit at camp to get a stronger nose touch. Now contacts are coming much faster than before and are greatly improved and I like them again :-)

Crosses & Turns
We're still a little weak on rear crosses, and serps if they're quite far apart, but in all honesty she has not worked RC's nearly as much as front crosses, and ditto on the serps. Her 270 & 180 skills are nice.

Overall
Of course everything can be improved on, but I'm very proud of her and the work we've done so far. At 18 months she's running at par or better with almost all of the dogs in her classes & focus clinics, most being around 4 years old. The difference is she is not on the contacts yet, but I'm not worried. She'll be great on equipment once we get her contact picture together the way we want it, and we're working dillegently on that one now.

Stay warm everybody!

Happy Training...It's About Love!

Bungee's New Coat!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 10 Jan 2009 20:57:00 +0000

Surprise! Surprise!

Here's Bungee, enjoying her new coat!

Bungee in high style!

Santa came around to see Bungee twice this year, once at Christmas and another time this week! (Even though technically it's a new year :'). This time he brought her the most beautiful coat from Finland, custom-made just for her. Made of high-tech sport fabrics for winter weather, designed in Canadian colors, complete with her name embroidered, and decorated with her national flags of Finland & Canada too! Glow in the dark safety stripes as trim and a perfect fit!

As soon as I came in from the mailbox with the parcel, Bungee came up & tried to take the package right out of my hand. Wanting to see what she would do, I let her have it and watched her carry it all around the house a time or two before I helped her open it up! Pretty sure she knew it was for her right away! She could not keep her cold little nose out of it as we opened it either! We weren't prepared to find such a beautiful gift! It's the most beautiful gift one of our dogs has ever received!

Many thanks to Auntie Helena, Uncle Ville & brother One for the fabulous coat! Bungee will be decked out in great winter style from now on!

Happy Training....It's About Love!

Shaping the Ring Toss Game

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 07:55:00 +0000

Here's Bungee, keeping us busy round the clock!

The 1st stage of shaping was teaching Bungee (and Guinness) to pick up the rings. The 2nd stage of shaping was teaching them to place a ring on just the peg. The 3rd stage of shaping (in the video) was teaching them to place the rings, on the game, on the floor. Stage 4 is picking up and stacking all the rings in a steady motion, no matter where the game/rings are. (Which is where we are currently). Stage 5, if we decide to go that far, will be increasing the difficulty of playing the game to strengthen skills. However at that point we might also just prefer a new game! :-)) It is after all, just for fun!

My apologies for the little formatting glitch that is cutting off the right edge of the film.

Click here to go to our YouTube channel and see these and our other videos in their full wide-screen format, (we've added a couple new ones this week!) I also filmed weaves today & handling at the barn tonight, so lots more on the near horizon.

Until the next time, Happy Training...It's About Love!

2009 Contacts & Weaves & Trials

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 19:52:00 +0000

Welcome 2009!
I hope everyone survived their New Year's Eve celebrations without feeling too badly today! I'm starting off 2009 very excited about the prospect of seeing Bungee in trial in a couple of months.

Contacts & Weaves Camp
As you may recall, one of my Christmas presents was attendance for Bungee and I at a Say Yes workshop called: "Contacts & Weaves". The timing on this camp was perfect for us. I was really looking forward to going, and it didn't disappoint. It turned out to be just what we needed. I love it when training opportunities exceed my expectations. I have to admit I loved this camp!

First, each of our skills were evaluated in a number of areas that are necessary for good contacts & weaves. Bungee was on top of the curve with everything, with contacts themselves being our weakest skill, in my opinion. From that point a plan was set in place for each of us to get where we wanted to go with our skills. The rest of the weekend was spent working our buns off with one really fun session after another, reviewing what we just did and working again, with lots of instructor help, mixing up contacts, weaves and the complimentary skills associated with perfecting each. As camps go, this one goes on the list as one my favorites.

Contacts
I was relieved to have Susan's nod of "good" for her initial evaluation of Bungee's contacts. We were not as far off as I thought, always nice to hear. However, though technically "correct", I found then average, lacking drive and boring - definitely not the way any of us would like them to stay, especially me! This is also why I have not had Bungee working full pieces of equipment yet.

The camp information was terrific. What we learned has already improved her contacts a lot and filled in gaps for me too. I'm confident it will be a short road from here to the equipment.

The 1st "Aaaaha" Moment
The target cue should create ACCELERATION (not brakes) to the target! This was a real epiphany for me. I've always used the word "target", for my dog's contact "end-zone" cue, so I'll use that as the example here, but it doesn't matter what cue you use. But the end result should be the same, you give the cue and the dog pushes harder. I've always pictured the opposite, the target cue as brakes on the dog's speed over the contact.

But here it is, when I say the word "target" it should cue the dog to accelerate to the contact!

Upon hearing the cue to "target", the dog should ACCELERATE into the contact!

How did I get such backwards thinking all this time? I suppose I just pictured it that way from the start. Lucky for Bungee she will now be the recipient of my new and improved understanding, which will really help. First giant gap in my knowledge of how to get from what I had to what I wanted closed by camp info! Awesome!

In truth, I had actually backed off training contacts recently. I was not happy with the results I had and not sure how to get the ones I wanted. Meanwhile when I did work them, it seemed I was forever working through various learning curves of my own regarding the many herding & stalking type things that a clever little Border Collie can present to you in training contacts! It's not often one of my dogs will lead the parade in how we use our training time but leave it to Bungee, she was doing just that. To say the least, our contact training time did not seem very efficient!

I am really pleased to come away from camp being able to make short work of Bungee's contacts now, they're already so much better.

Weaves
Bungee's weaves were already just rocking before we went to this camp. I've always been proud of the awesome weave skills I've been able to teach my dogs, using Susan's 2 X 2 weave method. The method has always served us well. But now Susan has expanded the training insights to allow greater proofing and create even stronger skills. So how great is it when you go through a camp and get 2 really big "Aaahaa" moments? The 2nd came in the weaves department, and it is going to help us create even stronger skills.

As for Bungee's weave skills now, she is running 12 poles brilliantly, but we backed up to 4 poles a while back to really push the envelope for entries and find every point of failure we can to train through. Once we work through this stage we will move up to 6 & 12 again and focus on handling.

Unfortunately we're in the middle of winter and coming up on our coldest season. At this point in time our only weave training limitations are brought on by deep snow, super cold temperatures and conditions that require us to wait for barn-time to get some work in on them.

Guinness

Ketch

Bungee

Can you believe a new year is here already?
I'm really getting excited about the prospects of being ready for agility competition in 2009. I believe Bungee could handle a Jumpers or Jumpers with Weaves course now. But I intend to finish working through the new 2 X 2 program we revisited first. We'll also have to see where we're going to be for late-January, February and March trials before we go entering any. Warm beaches, green agility fields and big fish are starting to call our names once again, but at this point, no solid plans yet. With any luck our dollar will start gaining it's strength back as the first week of the New Year gets going.

Click here to see if you can spot Bungee's many appearances in the video clips Susan posted to her blog from camp!

Until the next time, Happy Training! ....It's About Love

It's a Family Tradition!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 18:46:00 +0000

Happy New Year Everybody!!!

Lately I have really been enjoying Jenny's latest videos. It's clear where our Kvarkin "Champagne kids" get one-half of their large talent!! So we just can not let 2008 get away before we get a chance to brag about brother, Ogin, and compliment the fantastic work he and "mom" Jenny Damm are already doing in agility training & competition! So, what better way to brag about them, than bring you directly to Jenny's latest YouTube video of Ogin & Elvis right here! And now...drum roll for Ogin, Elvis & Jenny, prepare to be impressed!

Congatulations Jenny & Ogin on your awesome debut! Congratulations also to "papa" Elvis on his continued success! In a word: Wow! You guys are looking awesome! We are tickled to see these videos and looking forward to many more! Meanwhile, I'll be filing this video under "inspiration" and Jenny's latest weaves video as well! (We've been keeping a little busy in that department too, but another time-this one's for Ogin!)

Between Mia & Ogin, it seems Sweden is off to an early start with a monopoly on the competition market for Kvarkin kids!!! Ho Ho Ho! Good thing we love them! Go Sweden!!!!! :-)))

I have some lovely photos & nice video clips of Jenny & Elvis relaxing in the park and showing a few of Elvis's many tricks, on a break during FCI AWC 2008. I'll be putting them up very soon!!

You can learn more about Kvarkin Kennels and our dogs, or Jenny Damm, Elvis & Lotus Education by visiting the "Family Links" to the side, the link to Jenny's YouTube site is also listed to the side under YouTube channels.

Signing off today to again wish you a Happy New Year! We raise a toast of champagne to all for a wonderful & prosperous 2009!

Luv & hugs from Bungee & family...XOXOXOXXXOOO!
Happy Training, It's About LOVE!

Guinness Learns Ring Toss too!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 01:00:00 +0000

Our Border Terrier, Guinness, learns the Ring Toss Game too!

Busy with different tricks, Guinness is not quite as far along as his "sister" Bungee on this one, but he's off to a nice start just the same and has a number of others coming along too. It might help speed his ring toss skills along a little quicker if my CLICK WASN'T LATE (like it is in this video! :-) But, Guinness has been falling behind on his share of video time in this household and mistakes are valuable information too. Next time we have a shaping session I'm definitely going to prop up a mirror on the floor nearby, to see what he's doing a little more accurately. This time around I will have to lead by example in giving you a good demonstration of reason to video your work.

Happy Training, It's About Love!

Kvarkin's Cristal "Mia"

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 23:34:00 +0000

Below, Bungee's sister "Mia", in Sweden.

Mia poses for the photo above, after enjoying early success in the obedience ring. She's already moved out of Class I of Swedish Obedience Competition and is now training to be ready for Class II in the spring! Wow! Best of all, reports are that Miss Mia is a very, HAPPY worker in the ring!! That comes as no surprise but is still fabulous to hear :-) Nice work ladies!!!

Big Congratulations to Mia & Mona on all their obedience success!

Our special thanks to Mona Kjernholm for the news update & lovely photo of Mia!

Happy Training, It's About Love!

Bungee's Ring Toss Game

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 26 Dec 2008 12:33:00 +0000

For Sophie and her classmates in Cambridge, England

Here is Bungee playing her Ring Toss Game!

I also have a 6 minute video showing some of the shaping sessions we did on this. Maybe someday I'll get the uplink speed to post that one. But for now Bungee can play this game any which we way choose. There are 5 rings. I can hand her each ring, toss each ring to any side of the floor, or lay all the rings on the floor in a row for her to pick up on her own. When she will pick them all up straight-away and stack them without a pause or need for re-direction I'll update the video for you. Until then, here's how we occasionally spend some "TV time" on the winter evenings at home.

OK Maisa & Pirjo I hope this keeps those beautiful bowl retrievers at bay until we get that one up for you - but it's coming!!! :-))

Click here for our: YouTube page , now updated (by special request~thank you Sophie!) with a few new training videos of Bungee: http://www.youtube.com/user/bl0art
Enjoy!

Happy Training! It's About Love!!

Holiday's over - back to work!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 26 Dec 2008 10:39:00 +0000

CONTACTS & WEAVES!

I hope everyone had a happy Christmas! We certainly did! Bungee & Guinness made out like bandits with new noise-making toys of all sorts including a new "flickin' chicken" (even though it's a squirrel this time), Ottosson games, and some great new "woolzee" training toys. The "flicken chicken" is actually a flying squirrel toy that Bungee is just over the moon for. She had a similar one before that was a flying chicken so the name stuck. Just a great toy with a built-in rubber slingshot that sends it flying! Guinness's fave has to be his new "Squeeze Meeeze Dragon" which he has only put down to sleep. Another huge hit was a very funny ball from our friend Cynthia which makes all manner of odd noise and delightfully unoffensive to human ears too! Good job Cynthia!!! The dogs have officially learned to tear wrapping paper and snoop in every box that comes their way. But with the holiday officially behind us it's time to get back to work!

That will be pretty easy for us since my husband got me a seminar at Say Yes for Christmas! It was almost a surprise, but an excited friend, the 1st born Griswald (do the initials SMH ring a bell?) blurted it out unaware that it was a surprise! Ooops! However, it's also nice to have a little advance notice of these things, so it's OK, I was glad to get a little prep time if only in my head. I also need to whip up some Salmon Brownies for Bungee (recipe in the archives) this morning, as they seem to work out the best for Bungee in rewarding contacts. So we're off later today to Susan's latest: "Contacts & Weaves". A classroom lecture tonight, and 2 days of work this coming weekend. Click on the Say Yes link above to learn more.

Bungee's weaves are just brilliant already so this should be really nice for her. Our contacts are not quite at the level weaves are, but on that note, perfect work for us too.

I'll take video and with a little luck the hotel will have some good high speed. I managed to get some new video up by making the clips only about a minute long and getting up at 4:45 a.m. to upload them! (ugh) I may be paying for that at the lecture tonight but I'm sure the info will be so new and stimulating we'll hardly be able to contain ourselves! :-))
Ok this is what being up at this hour does to the brain!!! I'll link up the new videos here as I get the up-link opportunities!

Hugs to our Kvarkin family, the Griswald's in Timmin's and friends near & far!

Happy Training! It's About Love!!

Merry Christmas!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 22:56:00 +0000

From our house to yours,
Wishing you the Happiest of Holidays!

L-R below: Homer Simpson, myself, Guinness & Bungee
(please excuse Homer standing in for my husband, but somebody has to take the picture!)

Bungee and Guinness join me for a little snowshoeing out back.

A stump makes for a great photo op for Guinness, all dressed up and ready for Christmas!

The camera manages to snap a snowball - much better than Bungee was doing this day, but she enjoyed the game just the same!

Best Wishes to all for a Merry Christmas and a Happy, Healthy & Prosperous New Year!

May the glory of God shine around you, and His light always brighten your way, may there be Peace On Earth in the new year, and love in your hearts every day.

It's About LOVE!

Let's Blow This Popsicle Stand!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 20:53:00 +0000

At least that's how I felt this past weekend after 3 days of non-stop flurries, squalls & whiteouts! When it was over we were left with more than a foot of the white stuff to deal with. I was NOT ready for this reality. Bungee is doing too awesome in training and we have so much I want to do on the field to come to a hard stop now. I moped around through our newly necessary winter chores of shoveling & scraping & moving the last of our outdoor things inside for much of the morning.

As we slogged in & out of the basement, putting away the last pieces of equipment for the season, Coach John Wooden's famous words suddenly rang through my head:

"Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do."

Like music to my ears, I had an instant shift of thinking about all the things we can work on. So with that spirit we're now entering the holiday & winter season, brimming with ideas & lists and all sorts of things to work on at home, not the least of which is contacts & weaves, obedience and a great new list of tricks.

1st however on the "homework front" is weaves. So inspired I am by Susan's "Excellence in Weave Pole Training - Phase One" (click on the link to get this workbook, it launches tomorrow, Nov. 26) that I have decided to revamp Bungee's 2 X 2's almost from the beginning. That decision is based on one thing I have heard Susan say many times before about weave training, which is: "by the time the dog gets to 4 straight poles, they should never make a mistake again."

In years past I've wondered about that remark, scratching my head and thinking "yeah right", or "how the heck can someone do that". Still, when training at home, I've always worked toward that mark, but accepting perhaps 98% success, instead of 100%. It was while reading: "Excellence in Weave Pole Training" that the way to fill that 2% gap became clear. I suddenly realized EXACTLY what I skipped or touched on too lightly in Bungee's training and when.

While anyone who has seen Bungee weave, with her speed and clearly beautiful skill, might tell me I'm crazy; and for all the entries she can get, I know deep in my heart that there is one spot that I can send her from where she will miss the entry more often than hit it and I am not happy with that...never have been. However, I didn't discover this "hole" until we were moving up to 12 poles. I also know another entry I can send her to (which is from an arc below pole 12, where she must go all the way to the top end to pole 1 doing a U-turn into the space from 1 - 2 on a left-side approach. In this situation she will hit the entry but not bend enough to hit pole 3. At some point in the early foundation work of 2 poles, I missed providing her with the information she needed to work these 2 challenges out. Bungee is just too marvelously talented and awesome to give her anything less than 100% on her poles!

So we're off already having loads of fun & success with 2 poles again. With a foot of snow on the ground - what else have we got to do? I left 3 pieces of agility equipment outside: the contact training stairs, one set of 2 X 2's and one set of 6 poles. We'll use the poles outside every single day that we can. I plan to revive our circle work as well as all the "driving lines" business now needs some balancing out with our RZ (reinforcement zone). All the rest of the equipment is now inside and we're darned lucky to have such a nice place fixed up to train in as we do in our basement. The teeter or a plank between two tables is the only contact equipment I have room to put up, but I can do quite a lot with the space.

All of our regular agility classes are now re-located to the "Playdome" - an unheated coverall-type (vinyl roof fabric) barn building with dirt floor, that's used just for dog agility. We also have a new barn location to the north of us, (previously a horse barn) that I've not yet seen but will be getting to for training classes later this week. Speaking of which, time to sign off & head for class.

Still in a holding pattern for high speed. Cross your fingers for us!

Happy Training...It's About Love!