Jorja does some A-frame practice!

Wrong Link

Hi all,
Sorry about the link for OhLa's training diary, thanks Yvonne for letting me know! The (correct) link is www.diaryofagsp.blogspot.com

Great news, I just got a new HD mini camcorder! It is charging as we speak!

Hey Everybody!

I have embarked on a new project. When a friend of mine asked me if I'd be interested in training a German Shorthaired Pointer that was a little nuts I thought.....heck ya! Right up my alley! I've always admired the GSP but have never spent any real time with them, so this was an opportunity to get a chance to do that and see if I like them without actually owning one. Plus it is a dog that comes house trained, crate trained, etc. What a treat! So last week she arrived and we have embarked on our agility adventure together. She is smart as a whip, a lot sassy, and a great deal of fun. I've started a new blog for her, a training diary for myself and for her mom. The address is diaryofagsp@blogspot.com Of course all the other brats are getting trained as well, we are working on our skills for the upcoming regionals. The snow is melted, the agility equipment is in the yard. Spring is here, and so is spring training!

A very special dog looking for a very special home

This is Sadie,

She is a 3 to 4 year old female sable Sheltie. Sadie is looking for a very particular home. She has had a troubled life and has been traumatized by her experiences. Sadie originally came from a puppy mill, one of the local mass breeders up here. She was sold as an older pup, past her socialization period. She went to a farm home already traumatized. There she ran away constantly, afraid of the people. Those people then locked her in a chicken coop with no windows to stop her from running away. She was in there a good long time before she was sold again to some very nice people. They had her for a year, the female owner working with her and trying to help her overcome her fears. One day, her husband scared Sadie beyond reason and Sadie fought back. She bit him, hard enough to draw blood. Sadie was dropped off to me the very next day (thank you to the SPCA folks for sending them my way, dropping her off at the SPCA would have meant euthanasia as biting people is not tolerated). She stayed with me a short while, scared and hiding under the table, but never biting despite being leashed, handled, groomed, walked. She was adopted out to very nice folks. Young, dog experience, sheltie experience, no children and no other dogs. A good choice for an unsocialized dog that needed to overcome fears I thought. Unfortunately it was not the right choice for Sadie, and again she bit the gentleman of the house out of pure fight or flight response when being leashed. After six months of working with her she was returned to me in December.

So here we are in March and Sadie is ready to try again. This time we are going to be very specific about the home she needs. I've learned a lot about little miss Sadie over the last year and she is looking for her forever home.

Sadie's wish list:

• Middle aged single woman adopter


• house with a secure back yard


• one or two well adjusted other dogs


• an owner who is willing to accept her for who she is, and not push her beyond her breaking point. Someone who is understanding, has the patience of a saint, and is willing to just let Sadie be who she is.

Sadie is relatively happy here at my house, she plays with the other dogs, and barks at the door like all good shelties should. She still hides under the kitchen table for the most part and hides herself in a corner when I need to put a leash on her to interact with her. She does not come to me for petting, but when caught will sit on your lap and tolerate petting. She does like to beg for steak! She is a good little dog, and now needs someone with one or two other dogs to help her get to the next level (with 8 pushy drivey dogs here she is too intimidated to get too close into the group).

Cai gets his ATChC

Success at last! Cai received his Agility Trial Champion of Canada title this weekend on a nice masters standard course designed by our friend Rob. I saved the course and if I can figure out how to make the printer scan it and send it I'll attach it to the post for you all. In the meantime, Cai is celebrating by napping on the kitchen floor and other such important duties. Cai is just shy of his seventh birthday, and for those of you who know Cai, getting the Atchc title is a thing of beauty with such a high drive, pushy and nutty little fellow. ;)

A picture to mark the event.......

My new goal is to get poor Toque out of starters! Preferably before Jorja, although they are neck and neck with the starters standard Q's the two of them. Jorja may be inexperienced but she is just a wee bit easier to run!

Winter fun with dogs, redneck style!

I got the opportunity to go out sledding with my family the other day. Remembering as a kid how I hated dragging the sled back up the hill I thought, hey! I have dogs, I have a sledding harness, I'm an adult, I can get one of the dogs to pull the sled up for me! Well that worked great, but even better on a day when the hill has been freshly covered with snow and is a little "slow" for good sledding? Get the dog to pull you DOWN the hill!!

Exhibit A: My niece Rhyanna is the first victim to test out this new theory. I will be paying for massage therapy for the next twenty years for her whiplash injuries I think!

Exhibit B: Liam my nephew hangs on for dear life after seeing the ride his sister got!

Exhibit C: Okay, so Cai can pull the little ones pretty easily, but what about my big brother Dave???

It was a great day and we had a lot of fun! I'm sad to report that Cai was not in the least bit tired the little brat, he was still chucking toys in my lap a couple hours later! I think I had better get a little more serious about my quest for a dog sled, that was really a lot of fun!

Andie the Christmas foster

Meet Andie! She is about 6 -10 months old, and a mystery mix! I think she is some kind of "doodle" but with shedding fur. She is about 40 pounds and around 18-19 inches at the shoulder. She is a very happy, active and boisterous puppy. She would make a great agility dog! She likes toys but hasn't learned to play tug or retreive them yet, she gets along great with all the dogs here, and is now crate trained and house trained. She is very much a naughty puppy, she likes to CHEW! Shoes are her favorite! :)

She is a sweetheart, and is looking for a new home. She'll be heading back to the shelter on Jan 4th..unless you want to adopt her that is??!