Training Update

Eden's training is coming along spectacularly. I'm working on quite a few different things on a rotating basis based on my mood at the time we head down to the basement training room. Here are the latest bits:

Eden with Kastle

Eden's little brother has been in the family for a full two weeks now. This warranted a trip to the park and then the obligatory play photos :-)

Eden is going to be losing the size advantage very soon...

First Track with a Corner

Eden's track today had a corner in it, the first time she's worked a track with a corner. She nailed it :-D There was no hesitation - she checked just once to the off-side of the corner and then shot up the other leg very sure that she had made the right decision. She is a joy to track!

New Truck Platform!

Russ made us up a new platform for the Element. While the crates were being rearranged into their new configuration, Ike and Eden were stuffed into one crate together. Ike normally has a 48" crate for his daily kennel and here they are both in a 36" LOL

The platform is definitely going to make hauling 4 dogs, 2 people and all of the associated gear much easier!! We're REALLY happy with it! :-)

Kastle is only going to fit in the small crate on top of Dottie for a short while longer. He has already surpassed Eden in height so pretty soon she will be in that crate and he will be in the one next to Ike permanently.

Pool Time!

The dogs got their own kiddie pool on the deck to play in. Eden doesn't really like to swim (although she is an excellent swimmer!) but she loves to wade and dig around in water buckets and little pools. She had a lot of fun bobbing for toys and then bringing them out into the yard for us to collect and put back in the pool :-)

Four silly dog butts haha

Four fun pooches.

Eden much prefers to carry the ball on a string by the string versus the ball - silly girl!

She loves to play in the yard.

A Week with Baby Brother

Eden has had a new brother for a week now and she is just thrilled with Kastle. They play very well together and are so similar in size, I almost feel bad that he's going to grow up and leave Eden behind.

 Today they got to play at the park after they got done "working" (tracking). Mostly, they just wanted to trace the path that Ikie track took...

Kastle gave up but you can still see Eden back there:

She did end up running around for awhile though :-)

Trashed Track

Today, Jason laid a gorgeous serpentine track in lovely spongy grass for Eden to work on increased length and a little different shape. Then a guy in a golf cart ran over it - not just over it, but he followed the path of the track with his tires...*sigh* I decided to give it a whirl anyway - and she NAILED it! Go Eden!! :-D

I started her at a right-angle and she did marvelous (missed the start by a tad so I need to change my direction of entry with her a little). There was supposed to be a majority of the steps with food (80%) and only a few without, about 65 paces total in length. But, I don't think she got all of her food, I think a lot of it was ground into the grass/dirt by the golf cart tires...She really did awesome!

Eden's Obedience!

I am so proud of Eden! She is such a happy, bouncy, FUN dog to train!

My favorite part of this video is the send to the target - my girl has energy!

We did a whole series of exercises today but the heeling was especially pretty:

Intermittent Reward Tracking

Eden's tracking is coming along wonderfully! Today's track was about 50 paces long and less food than she is used to, about 90%, with one step every 8-9 paces having no food. She stayed with a deep nose and good focus throughout the whole track and had a very nice, steady pace - which is important for points. I also started her at a right angle to the beginning of the track and she found it and shot off the right direction immediately, no confusion. She is pulling and lunging when I ask her if she's ready to go and leaps to start when I give her the command.

Current Truck Configuration

To fit 4 crates in the Honda Element, we have worked out a configuration that still allows some space for gear and a clear view through the rearview. It is a temporary solution until we get our new platform, built by Russ. We will have to switch relatively soon because Kastle is rapidly outgrowing the small crate he is in!
(click on the photo to see the tags for each of the dogs - can you spot all 4?)

Tracking Progress

Eden's making a lot of progress on her tracks. We've gone from 3 short legs, to 2 medium legs to 1 decently long leg. I'm extremely proud of her!

Agility Class #3

Tonight we started sequences at Eden's agility class. She did really well in the beginning but was getting a little tired and droopy with the heat. I made a trip to the wading pool after every run so she could get a drink and cool her feet off. I also splashed a little water on her belly.

She doesn't really care much for the A-Frame since she doesn't really know how to approach it. She is either too slow and struggles to get up or she is running fast enough and gets so excited that she wants to turn and jump on me. She loves the dog walk, the teeter and the tunnels though :-)

Eden Meets Her Baby Brother

First, here is my gorgeous girl!

She looked so silly while she enjoyed a good roll :-)

Now that she has a really solid recall (I was able to call her off of going to meet a 5 year old girl walking by - her favorite!), she offers it all the time because I always, without fail, reward her for it.

 Dottie was really distracted today so Eden picked up the slack by bringing back the toys that Dottie left behind - something else we've really been working on I've been reinforcing at every opportunity!

Today, the reason we took the dogs to the park was to introduce them to Kastle. I was very particular about wanting Kastle and Eden to meet and get along - I wasn't worried, Eden is a lovely little dog and she proved me exactly right!

 

And of course, Dottie could not escape the Corgi Terror that is Ms. Evil Eden!!! :-D