I Miss this Face

Just 12 more days till I get to see how far she has come with DD training. 

And most importantly squeeze her squirmy little body and kiss her on the head.

I have missed her sunshine & happiness.  Thinking about it makes me teary.

TMT 2012 #4

1. How do you search for and then choose a trainer?

We are fortunate to live in an area where many trainers visit frequently.  When I first started in this 'voyage' I made a common mistake and scheduled with every trainer that came through the area.  My brain was overwhelmed with an agglomeration of conflicting training methods.  My obvious lack of knowledge left me unable to differentiate which method would better serve me or my dogs.  The over kill of information left me dazed and confused. 

It all came to a head when I walked out on a clinic, drove home in tears and vowed to buy back yard agility equipment.

Later I attended a clinic with Patrick Shannahan and through him I met Dianne Deal who clicked for me...that was almost three years ago. 

When looking for a new trainer, pick one, work with them for a while - give it a few sessions.  Then ask yourself a few questions: 

• Do you feel comfortable or intimidated? 
• Are you able to learn from them or do they leave you confused? 
• How does your dog work when with them?  Does your dog shut down?
• Do you like the way they treat your dog and livestock?  
• Do you feel listened to?  Are your concerns addressed?  
• Do they help you focus on goals and give you homework?  
• Are you moving forward? 

2. The dog world is small and... uh... talkative. After choosing a trainer how do you handle those people in your life who don't believe in that trainer/trainers methods and criticize them to you?

I will consider the input.  Take what I want and then dismiss the rest.  It is much easier said than done, but everyone has an opinion.  I am comfortable with the direction we are heading in right now, not much is going to sway me from that path other than my own experiences. 


3. Do you believe that a person's personal life should influence your choice of a trainer? (i.e do you believe a person's choice to be a party animal outside of work would affect your choice?)

Every person needs to work in their own comfort zone.  To each their own.  I do not judge or dismiss someone simply because their personal choices are out of alignment with my personal value system. 

Regarding the example of a possible trainer being a party animal:  I know if I drinking heavily I am not able to function well the next day.  If I am paying money at a clinic for someone's advice and then see them out drinking themselves blotto the night before, the next day they are hungover at the clinic, or they are actively drinking while teaching the clinic....I am going to have a wee bit of an issue with that. 

Bottom line, it is your money, you have the right to chose whomever you are comfortable with.  It is a personal decision, but if you do use information about a trainer's personal life in the decision making process consider it may be based on nasty gossip.  Go to the source and ask if you have any questions. 


4. When you have a break through moment with your dog, do you feel that moment makes your connection stronger with that dog and makes the next step in training easier?

I have a break-through moment almost daily, retaining them and building on them is the challenge.  I don't think a particular break-though 'moment' is going to make my connection to my dog any stronger.  It might aid in understanding - but won't change our connection.  


5. Do you stick with just one trainer, or do you go to multiple sources for help? 

I started with too many trainers.  Narrowed it down to one (Dianne Deal) and now that I am more grounded and understand things better I am able to take a lesson with Scott Glen when he is in town.  Instead of feeling confused, I am able to find the common ground and apply what will work best for me and my dog...then build on it.   The great thing is Dianne encourages me to work with him too. 

RangerBall

Last week it was so cold we had dogs stuck to fire hydrants all over town.  

But not Ranger, he was out doing his duty, preventing jolly ball tyranny.

"Jolly Balls are nuttier than squirrel turds if allowed to run free."

"This darn ball is slicker than a harpooned hippo on a banana tree."

"I think I got it."

"Lemme hold it a bit till I get my teeth sunk in."

"Darn thing is slippery as snot on a door knob."

"Well butter my butt and call me a biscuit, I got it!"

"OOmph, tripped..."

"Yep, I am sharper than a cue ball." 

"Ball Mayhem has been averted." 

"I WIN! "

Snow Sucks

I have had my fill of this white crap.  

I certainly hope you do not expect me to work in this sh*it.  

It is not in my contract.  

You ask me to do a damn thing in this COLD there better be plenty of Bacon forthcoming.  

Get the white crap off my ball! 

This is some f'ed up sh*t.  (News Flash: Beth does not like the snow.)

Get off and STAY OFF my ball! 

My ball, no white crap allowed.  

Unless it is Bacon Flavored.  

(Beth has a potty mouth, sorry, she picked it up from Camera Face.)

Cleaning Up

I am unsure if I will be able to lift my arms ever again.  My back hates me too. Picking up large limbs, hefting them over a fence reminds you of muscles you forgot and the vital importance of using proper body mechanics while lifting.  I imagine Monique & her husband are not faring much better.  

See that pile?  

 

Let me clarify, there is a pile in the front.  AND a large pile in the back.  

 

The piles are a big dent in the debris.  Just the big stuff we could easily grab for now.  The rest will take days.  

 

Much of it is still buried under 12-18 inches of ice that had fallen off the trees above - I believe we have just scratched the surface.  The ice is slow to melt and seems to be hiding a lot of large branches.  

Many of these branches are 20-30 feet long.  

It is overwhelming. All of the green on the ground is debris that fell off the trees.  The small sticks can be painful for the sheep to step on - a few of the ewes are foot sore from trudging through the mess.  Eventually it will all need to be raked up and removed. 

The sheep are helping out. 

 

They're doing their best to lighten our load, fill their stomachs & scratch their heads on branches.  

 

Smart sheep.  

Jim has settled down a bit.  He quit shaking and is dry. 

 

His sense of humor survived the storms intact. As you can tell from the next shot.  The stinker is shaking a pine branch at my iPhone as I try to take his picture. 

 

Enjoy the food girls, eat as much as you can stand.  I hear that pine needles are also a natural parasite repellent, eat up!

 

After this pasture is cleaned up, we need to head down to the lower pasture where actual trees have fallen.  But right now it is flooded and still a snowy slushy mess.  

One day at a time. 

Win/Win :  We wanted to bring in a couple loads of wood chips to help with mud control.  Now all we need to do is rent a chipper.  It is a nice way to get something good out of Mother Nature pressing the reset button. 

Disturbing news of the Day:  The property owner fired off a few shots at a sizable coyote on the other side of the fence today.  It was approaching from the side where the neighbor from hell was evicted.  

If these sheep survive at least we will know they are hearty.  New farmers, winter hell, rouge dogs, and now a coyote.  *sigh*