Agility Training begins

So now Rupert is 9 1/2 months old I have started his agility training properly!, On Sunday we went to see Jo and had a really great training session, with him working independantly of me. We used a line of 4 jumps and by the end of session 1 he is now waiting on the line to be released and then taking the jumps overtaking me in the process. He had a really great time, not only because he loves agility but also because he got to see his friend Zippy for a game. On the home front his testosterone has kicked in a bit more now and the poor boy isn't really sure what it's for! he has been scenting over the clean washing which is hung to dry on our clothes airer!! not really naughty as he doesn't understand, but he needs to learn that we can introduce whatever new smells we like into the house and he must accept them, I must do a little more research on this one, but I'll keep you posted what methods we decide to use.

Just for Chris!

Not much to report on the Training front really, the weather has been too awful for outdoor activities so I've just played around with Retrieves!! and I can now say that Rupert really does not like his dumbell!! He will hold it nicely and pick it up by going around it first but it's all in a really cringy manner! so I've stopped using it for the time being and reverted back to his agility toy! I get the feeling he doesn't understand that sometimes you need to pick something up and not play with it, so I will have to work harder to find the right motivator for it before I try again, after all there's no rush.

A little birdie has told me that Grandad Chris has been having withdrawal symptoms from his fave grandson so here are a few pictures just for you XX

Bromsgrove update

So this weekend I took Maisy, Summer and Rupert to Bromsgrove agility competition, I always take Rupert along with me to get him used to the sights and sounds of the competition environment, and he is a good hot water bottle for the girls sleeping in the awning!. And I am pleased to say I didn't see any signs of his teritorial behaviour, however he has now started to cock his leg and doesn't seem to care where!! so again a little more training and a few verbal reminders should sort that issue out. On the training front I have continued with his hoop training however he is so excited by it that as soon as I set it out he starts racing back and forward through it!!! Hhmmm I may have overcooked it a little, so now he is only allowed to do it when it is at the end of the contact plank and will only be rewarded for his efforts if I have queued him to do it - this probably makes a lot of sence to most of you! however Rupert is a smart cookie and has taught himself new behaviours without me even knowing about it until I evaluate his knowledge and see the flaws, which luckily up to now have been quickly ironed out. He still has his Mali infatuation which could become a problem (currently it's sweet) whenever he sees a Mali he getsw excited but if by some miracle it has Jo on the end of the lead he just cannot contain his excitement! a couple of times at the weekend he saw them at a distance and just decided to take himself off to say hello! although there was one moment where we were standing by the ringside watching a class, Rupert was getting very excited watching the dogs as the jumped the line of jumps nearest to us, but then Ronny came into the ring and Rupert just sat quietly transfixed by his idol!! lets hope he was taking all the skill in..

Updates

So Rupert is now fast approaching 8 1/2 months old, where has the time gone? over the past few weeks we have minimised training session in obedience and Agility in exchange for a few lifestyle lessons! as he approaches adulthood he has decided to test his boundaries a little, I first noticed it at dashing dogs where he became very territorial in our temporary garden, getting quite aggressive towards any dog who entered, he has also started at our training field to show the same signs, but only with the entire male dogs, Luckily he soon backs down once I tell him this is not appropriate behavior, so hopefully he will grow out of it in the future, apart from that he is turning into a very happy chap, not phased by anything or anyone he meets. Last night we began training with our new invention Le Hoop, this is basically a square shaped hoop that stands on the ground, I began by shaping him through it until he was eagerly running freely backwards and forwards, I then placed it at the end of one of the dog walk planks while it was on the floor, and again he was happily racing along the plank and through the hoop, so this is the basics of running contacts! (all seems a bit easy at the moment) I had also put a small course of jumps out with the poles only one end up on small height 4 jumps in a line with a star at the top, and whilst I can leave him on the start get to jump 4, release him, negotiate the star and an "In" I am unable to run fast enough to get to the last jump where he turns to see where I've got to, thus the need for a "Go On" command and the confidence from him to use it.
I'm really loving training this dog, with every session there is an obvious progression programme that follows, I really can't wait for our winter training to begin with Jo and I promise to get many more pics.

Updates

Well what an exciting few weeks Rupert has had, Amy and Steve took him off bright and early to the breed show at Builth Wells, where they met up with Sheila and Hills who were also showing. Rupes was first in the ring and although he was "flying" his tail managed to qualify for Crufts 2011, Summer and Ruperts Mum Folly were in the ring next and Folly qualified but Summer just missed out by one place! so mother and son had a great day.
On the training front we have been away camping at shows for much of August so not much to write about, his agility training seems to be comming along nicely and I have just started to put one side of the poles up onto the smallest height which hasn't phased him at all, he can string a sequence of jumps with turns and going on into the tunnel quite nicely and his contacts are still very nice although he isn't really sure he likes the big dog walk so I have decided to keep it at medium height for a few more sessions. I still haven't looked at the see saw and A frame as there is plenty of time for that, but Jo and I were teaching him the "Box" whilst at Dashing dogs which we are going to use on the A frame in the future.
Whilst we were away we took 9 dogs to the beach, luckily we had the whole place to ourselves and managed to have a lovely walk, it was funny to watch the two packs playing so nicely together, Rupert slept very well that night.

bits and bobs

So we spent last weekend at the KCI agility festival, the weather was very WET and muddy (Ruperts Favourite) Rupert really enjoyed trotting around the rings saying hello to his public but was a little put out to find himself in the companion ring with all the other puppies, especially when a strange man didn't even ask before checking him over!! "How Rude" but just like everyone else he obviously couldn't resist his cute face as out of 20 puppies Rupes was pulled in 5th even with a very muddy tummy!! good job Nanny Fols wasn't there to see it ;-))
It's been a bit quiet on the training front again with us just pottering about with what we already know, I need to put more effort into his on the move heelwork as although we do have it he is lagging a little, I'm sure this is just confidence and once he knows how brilliant he is he'll be prancing with the best of them. Once again we are off in the caravan to Dashing dogs a week long agility show next week, we get the Monday off as a rest day so Jo, Amy & I are taking all 10 dogs to the beach, I promise to get some photo's of Rupes with his Mali mates. Have a great weekend everyone see ya soon..

7 Months already

So Rupert is now 7 months old! where has the time gone? he has had a bit of a rest over the past few days as I've been trying to prepare Maisy for the Agility festival and Dashing dogs which is 9 days of agility over a 14 day period, I've still been giving him 5 minutes twice a day, he now has a full understanding of the left command without any visual aids and offers a very speedy walk back over a good distance however he gets quite vocal at the sheer excitement of it all, come to think of it his Uncle Smartie can be quite a vocal dog at times so I must keep a lid on it as much as possible without stemming his enthusiasm. As far as heelwork goes, I'm really pleased with his progress, we now have forward movement and lovely turns, I have lost a little of the leg commitment I have in statics but taking a side step and clicking the re-join is working to tighten it up - I don't want the "Lean on" style heelwork, I suppose all I really want is a dog who can happily understand and maintain the position without being nagged to death! (been there, done that and in fact got the T-shirt!) and so far so VERY good. Tonight it's back to some agility training, I'm going to put his directional commands into practice setting out a box with poles on the floor and perhaps if time try some send aways into the tunnel - maybe a few pictures will follow if I can only find the memory card!