Cookie Monster

I don't want to jinx it, but it would seem that my little doggie bakery may be getting off the ground. I've had a few orders placed for Christmas and I'm hoping that they will enjoy my products so much that they will tell their friends. Well, at least, hopefully the humans notice that their dogs like the treats and tell their human friends. The dog's enjoyment is of the utmost importance, but at the end of the day, it's the humans who deal with the money. ;)

This past Saturday, I participated in another vender show. To be honest, it was worse than the first one. I don't think it's a very good location. The turn out was awful. Mom helped me bake like a fiend Friday afternoon and evening after I had my tooth pulled and then she attended the show with me Saturday. A few people bought treats, some took cards and even one took a product list. However, I haven't heard from any of those people yet. I've gotten more business via word of mouth than anything else. I think there is value in going to the vender shows. I just think I need to find a different one in the future.

With all of that left over baking, my dogs will have treats until next Christmas. My policy is that I bake treats fresh upon ordering. So, all of the product I made is now for my beasties. I don't think they mind so much. It's gotten to the point where they know that I'm baking dog treats and we have to lock them out of the kitchen. If I use the kitchen table as a work surface, I have to pull all of the chairs away from the table or turn them backwards because Miss Hermione Sophia climbs on to the table and helps herself. Roscoe needs a bib because giant strings of drool fall out of his mouth the entire time I'm baking. Otis and Nala give me their best puppy dog eyes, but since I can't see those, they don't work on me. that's probably a good thing.

Aside from baking, I've been attempting to set up my Facebook page. Mr. K was amazing and set up the basic page for me while I was away in Alberta. Now, I just have to tweak bits and generate more audience. *Hint, hint, nudge, nudge*. We're even running a Christmas photo contest, with the winning pup hauling off a goody bag designed just for him or her. *hint hint, nudge nudge...again*. I'm not very technologically inclined, so figuring out things like how to post my products list has alluded me until today. I felt a pretty large amount of satisfaction when I finally hit "save changes" and my updated product list showed up on the page. Go me.

Just in case you want to check it out-no pressure of course-the website is:

http://facebook.com/furdemoniumtreats

Blogger doesn't let me post links with a screen reader anymore. So, sorry if it doesn't actually show up as a link.

I've certainly got a long way to go, but baby steps, right? Thankfully Mr. K took it upon himself to post photos of our Official Taste Testers (AKA, Hermione, Otis, Roscoe and Nala). I think there may even be a photo of Rufio up there too.

I certainly wouldn't be able to do this without the help of some great people. Mom's helped me at vender shows twice and Lindsay and Tenie helped with some of the prep for the first one. Mr. K's helped with prep too and he fixes all of my technology woes. And where would I be without my Official Taste Testers? Although, I think I'm doing the little fuzz butts more of a favor than they are for me. ;)

There and Back

Things didn't go quite as planned with regards to blogging while I was away. It took me a couple of days to get my laptop to hook up to the internet-definitely user mistake-and then by the time I figured it out, I was too tired most days to write anything. So, I'll try to give you a brief version of the events in Alberta. Although, if you know me, I'm usually not very brief.
We had a few funny incidents just getting from my hometown to Toronto, where we took a four and a half hour flight to Calgary. First, my coach who, up until now, has never had any exposure to blind people, accidentally misplaced Nala and I. It happened when we were called up for pre-boarding on the second flight. He stepped aside to pull out his ID and Nala took it as her signal to take me on to the plane. One minute I was standing beside Coach T and the next time he looked, I was gone. Nala and I had trotted halfway down the hallway before I realised I was missing him. Once re-united, we settled into our seats and the flight was going pretty good. The flight attendants were fawning over Nala of course and she would look up at them with adoring eyes. About half way through the flight, coach T got up to use the facilities. I honestly wasn't holding on to Nala's leash because I was used to traveling with Jetta or Glacier, who would just settle in for the flight. However, when Coach T returned, some flight attendants happened by and Nala took it into her head that she should go for a walk. Suddenly, a Golden Retriever/Labrador cross was trotting happily up the Business class aisle. Coach T had to go retrieve her. Needless to say, Coach T had some pretty fun experiences in the first six hours of being shipped off with a blind person on his own.
Once we arrived in Calgary, there was a bit of a mix up with bad weather and who was going with whom to the hotel which was still an hour and a half drive away. We eventually sorted it out and piled into a van. I immediately fell asleep since I had been up since three and probably only had had about three hours of sleep. Upon arriving at the hotel, I have to admit, I was a wee bit upset.
The lobby was freezing. And I don't mean "kind of chilly." I mean, "keep your coat on and maybe grab a hat and mittens" cold. A lot of the other countries were arriving that day and the hotel's automatic door was stuck open. So, it was cold. When I got up into my room, I was happy, or at least, initially I was. However, after being in there for half an hour and the heat not working and there not being any hot water coming out of the shower, I was getting a wee bit upset again. All was solved though when one of the guys from the front desk came up with a bag of dog food I had ordered to the hotel for Nala. He fixed the heat and the next day, the hot water seemed to be working. So, all was well in my world.
The food wasn't bad. It was buffet style and I have to give credit to the staff for providing edible food since they were cooking for so many athletes and coaches. The training camp was interesting. We were supposed to spend two hours in the mornings and afternoons out on the snow, but since it was minus 36 C one morning and minus 43 C the next day, our snow sessions were cut short. My first snow session seemed like a bit of waste of time; especially when we went back inside the ski lodge and we were supposed to watch the video taken of us skiing and analyse it. However, after lunch I was with a different coach and I think we got a lot accomplished. Saturday morning was a really great session. We went out with a coach who has experience guiding blind people and she taught us really good ways to communicate. Other coaches and athletes gave us some input as well and I really feel that their advice and suggestions helped us finish our race safely on Tuesday. Coach T had been skiing beside me the whole time, but we moved him in front of me so that I could follow his voice. We were also shown a way for me to go down hills that reduced a lot of my anxiety surrounding hurtling down a snowy surface on skinny  implements designed to be slippery. The technique she showed us also gave me the ability to corner while going down hill. It basically consists of me crouching and if there is a corner coming up, I drop the back of my hand on the side that the turn is on. It kind of means that my ski mitts get a bit mussed up, but I guess I'll just have to find a mitten sponsor.
Saturday afternoon I didn't ski because I had to be classified. For a lot of athletes it's quite a process, but thankfully for me, it's cut and dry. My eyes are prosthetic and so there are no questions of how much I can or can't see. I think the drive to the clinic took longer than the actual appointment.
Sunday I went out for a ski and was a part of a coach's workshop that was being held to train coaches on how to work with Para Nordic skiers. I also found that session helpful. We worked with a coach who is low vision himself and another coach who was one of the trainees. The low vision coach had a lot of helpful things to say as well. We were out for an hour and a half that day and so called it a day after lunch since it was still really cold out. When it is that cold out, not only do you risk freezing bits off, but you can also damage your lung tissue.
Monday was an early day. We went to the ski lodge even though I didn't have to race that day in order to participate in the opening ceremonies. I had bulked at the idea at first, but then decided that I would just suck it up and go. It was only about ten minutes long since it was freezing out and they really needed people to carry flags. I was randomly assigned Finland's flag which was highly amusing to me because half of my family comes from Finland. Coach T and I decided it was a good sign. We skied that morning and it was a bit of a disaster. I kept falling and after about an hour, I was getting grumpy. We went back to the lodge and ate our bag lunches that the hotel provided. We went out back for another ski, to try and follow what would be our race course the next day, but they never set the course up early like they were supposed to. So, instead of guessing where to go and both of us getting frustrated, we headed back. There would be time in the morning to ski the course in warm-up.
Tuesday morning was another early day-race day. I wasn't super nervous about racing, but I was certainly concerned with finishing the race. Here we were, just two weeks after meeting one another, and Coach T had to tell me where to go while moving along at fairly good speeds. I wouldn't say I was flying, because I wasn't, but it was definitely faster than walking; especially on the downhills.
The beginning of the race was a bit of a botch which we laughed about later. It took us longer to get our gear on than we thought and we nearly missed our start. The starts aren't nearly as structured as swimming starts and I was highly confused. We made it to the start line where a "wand" goes across the front of your shins. You are wearing a thing around your ankle which kind of acts like a tracker. Once you push through the wand, your time starts and you are "tracked" by your tracker. I knew we were at the start, but my skis weren't in the tracks. I could hear someone counting down, but wasn't sure which direction to go. I had a general idea, but I didn't want to just start crashing about. So, I finally blurted out, "you'll have to help me. I can't see at all." It was something the low vision coach had told me I may have to say. I'm glad he told me because it wouldn't have been something I would have thought to say. Suddenly, someone was sliding me forward, my skis fell into the tracks and I felt the wand swoosh past my shins.
"It's your turn." I heard a man's voice say as he gently shoved me through the start wand. I don't think he's allowed to do that, but I don't really blame him. It's not like he pushed me hard enough to give me a fast start or anything.
Most of the race is a blur. The first hill we came to was something I had been concerned with starting out. For some reason, they didn't lay tracks on it and so I had to "snow plough" down it. Not only that, it twisted and turned. I had learned how to snow plough about a week before. So, there I was trying to keep my snow plough under control, turn and make sure I was still moving: it was a race after all. I heard the girl who had started behind me coming and panicked. She was totally blind too and all I could think was,
"Oh good. Two completely blind girls, shooting down a hill with only their two guides' voices, which would blend together, to guide them." I fell. Flat on my butt. I scrambled to my feet, but stayed where I was. Coach T made a good decision and told me to stay there. I was off to the side and being a stationary obstacle is better than a moving, out of control one. After that little blip, I think I did pretty well though.
We came to the bigger hill with the hard right turn at the bottom. My second hand skis seem to like hills and not for the first time that week, I sped up and ended up in front of Coach T. There was a split second of panic, but then I realised that he could see what was ahead of me from behind me and would be able to alert me if necessary. I just crouched and dropped my right hand when Coach T started calling out "right," as I went around the corner. Admittedly, I swore flying down that hill since it was faster than it had been in practice. Coach T said I owed him push-ups for that. When I got to the bottom and had successfully swerved around the right corner, we both started chuckling out of relief, but then it was back to business; like I said, it was a race after all.
There were a couple of good climbs and it made me realise that not only does my fitness need work, but my arm muscles need a little work too. I fell a second time, but stayed down for maybe half a second. We were coming down another big hill and I attempted to transition from my crouch position to a standing one, but I was moving faster than I thought. My weight shifted a bit too much and I went down on my left side. Of course I had to take that topple right in front of where team Canada was standing cheering for me. That said, it was nice to hear someone say, as I scrambled to my feet,
"Right back up. Nice!"
It gave me that little bit I needed to try to finish the race fast. I say try because speed still scares me and I wasn't going as fast as I think I am capable of going. I think there is definitely more speed in there; I just wasn't ready to go there yet. I did finish last, fifth out of five, but the goal was to finish and I did. I also set my own personal goal of breaking ten minutes and I did, by about 15 seconds, so I was happy with that too.
Wednesday, we said farewell to our hotel which turned out to be a very good hotel and we flew home. The first leg of our trip was uneventful, however, bad weather meant that we flew all of the way home and were sent back to Toronto. They wanted to put us on a flight the next day at noon, but I said no. Thankfully, they put us on a later flight that night and after a tasty meal that was basically half price thanks to a voucher we were given, we got home. Nala took the opportunity to sleep all day Thursday. She was pretty worn out from her six day adventure.
As for me: I had tooth troubles which eventually resulted in one of my back molars being pulled on Friday. So, after all of that exciting skiing stuff, I haven't been able to go out again. Hopefully after tomorrow's follow-up appointment, I should be good to go. I've never had a tooth pulled before and I've been genuinely surprised at how sore I have actually been. I'm really looking forward to getting back on the trails and implementing all of the things we learned as well as improving my fitness and strength. I had one thought before my race on Tuesday and it was:
"I'm either going to finish this thing and say no way in Hell! Or, I'm going to say, let's go again."
I'm definitely saying,
"Let's go again!" :)

Off And Adventuring

It's been a  mere two and a half months since we landed back in the Land of Ice and Snow. And let me tell you, there's been no shortage of snow. We had a couple of falls at the end of October and into the beginning of November that melted off, but it snowed about two weeks ago and has stayed. In fact, we got more last night. As I've mentioned in passing, I've taken up the sport of cross country skiing, or Nordic skiing as it is more officially known in the racing world. I love it and having snow on the ground the last two weeks has made it possible for me to really get out there and attack the sport.
So, what does all of this talk of snow and skiing have to do with "adventuring?" and "landing only two months ago?"
Nala and I are off tomorrow, embarking on a very new adventure-well, it's kind of new to me and very new to her.
We are hopping on a plane at 5:55 AM to be in Toronto and continue our journey out to Calgary Alberta, where we drive a bit further into the lovely Rocky Mountains for a Nordic ski training camp/race.
It wasn't that long ago that I sat at a long table, in a local bar/grill discussing my crazy idea of competitive skiing to a few local key people; one of whom is the vice president of our local cross country ski club. I'm not sure if they believed me, but I told them I was prepared to start training and do everything in my power to become a competitive athlete over the next year. I had assumed that this year would be a lot of logistical work, such as finding guides/coaches/procuring sponsorship Etc. I never imagined that I would be actually included in a training camp, never mind racing. However, something slightly miraculous happened in the last month and a generous sponsor gave me a start, helping me purchase race licenses, ski gear and pay for this camp. I was invited to the camp and I'm technically attending as a member of the Cross Country Ontario contingent. I wouldn't go so far to say that I'm "one of their athletes" as I'm far from being competitive at this point, but being asked to go with them has been a huge confidence boost. Then, it was proposed that I participate in at least one race to make my participation official and so after just eight sessions of being on snow, I'm flying out to Alberta; praying that I can just cross the finish line without falling.
I'm kind of nervous, excited and shocked all at the same time. I don't know how I ever got so lucky. The support I've received from my family, friends and especially Mr. K has made this possible. I am astonished at the man who has volunteered to be my coach and has spent the last week and a half teaching me how to ski. Knowing just how amazing people have been to me and how lucky I am to have this opportunity so early on in my potential ski career, makes me want to work that much harder. I just plan on going out there and attacking everything they throw at me with gusto. I kind of feel like this is my second chance after I retired from swimming and I will not throw it away. The temperatures may be hovering around minus 20 C, but I am so looking forward to this challenge and learning as much as I can while enjoying some frigid, fresh mountain air.
See you in Alberta. :)

Doggie Downer

These days don't happen often for me. Most days, I think my dogs are the "bee's knees." They are my comfort, a source of laughs and companionship, but today...oh, today was not a good doggie day.
It's probably all my perception of things-technically I was feeling a bit temperamental-but they were driving me nuts.
The morning started off by Otis waking me up over and over again before five AM. It would appear that he could not find a comfortable position, so he decided that getting out of the covers, back under the covers, acting like he was going to puke on me and settling back on top of my legs was all a great idea. The final time he climbed back out of the blankets I gave up and went down to find myself some breakfast. It was 20 minutes after five and I wasn't appreciative of the hour. I ate a doughnut for breakfast-talk about succumbing to instant gratification-It still made me feel better. I like mornings, but I gave up 5 AM when I retired from swimming. It was a happy day when I realised I didn't have to be up at 4:30 to be on the pool deck a mere 45 minutes later. So, needless to say, I was not a happy camper.
The rest of the morning was fine. Everyone behaved nicely. Breakfast went off without a hitch and relieve time was good. After I fed them though, I decided that I needed to take a nap. I was supposed to ski in the afternoon and I was really feeling exhausted. So, I herded everyone upstairs and the doggie problems started again.
Otis wasn't so sure he wanted to nap. He did eventually settle in, but it was Hermione's turn to test my already thin and tired patience. She started off fine, but just as I fell asleep, she jumped off the bed and began squawking. She had had some water and although she had already been out, I ran her out again. I took Otis too since he seemed a bit shifty. He certainly had to go. Back upstairs, under the covers and Hermione hopped down again. In complete frustration, I let her out of the bedroom and went back to sleep. She started barking downstairs in the living room. Then, she wanted back in. Door open, enter princess we go to sleep.
After nap time, I send everyone out while I sucked my lunch down as fast as possible. I had missed my coach's phone call while trying to nap and I needed to be ready to go out skiing. Before that happened, however, a person from the CNIB (an organisation that provides various helpful and not so helpful services to blind people) stopped by to discuss my business plan with me. The whole time she was in our house, the dogs were ridiculous. They were jumping, whining, play fighting...I don't think I've ever seen them behave so badly. So, I opened the back door and sent them all out to battle outside. After a brief meeting, it was time to get quickly dressed for skiing. The dogs have learned that my ski clothes mean I'm leaving and Hermione was bouncing around like a crazy person squawking at the top of  her lungs. When my coach knocked on the door to announce his arrival, all Hell broke loose-barking, jumping twirling.
On top of the dogs' crazy antics, Rufio got in trouble too. He chewed through one of Mr. K's computer cords which didn't work until Mr. K performed some kind of crazy computer magic on it. Then, Sir Kitten decided that knocking one of my ferry statues on to the ground was a fun game. There are little shattered fairy bits sitting on my dresser now. I'm saving them to see if we can't glue it back together, but it looks pretty splintered.
When I got home from skiing the dogs were a bit better. Maybe it was because I was in a much better mood or perhaps they had made themselves tired acting like idiots when CNIB woman was here. I fed them dinner, put them out and although Hermione barked a bit when she was out there, it wasn't too bad. I know something is up because Nala and Roscoe were chasing each other around the yard like their butts were on fire. Our yard isn't very big and they normally don't run in it. I know they are due for a leash free run for sure which I'll have to make sure happens sooner rather than later. All I can say is that I'm thankful that they are all now  sleeping soundly in a puppy pile on the couch, with me squished in the middle.

Doggie Bakery Progress

As the title of this post would suggest, my little doggie business is starting to take form. It's still all beginning stages stuff-I don't even have my website up and running yet-but it's coming along. I really enjoy putting the baskets together or baking the cookies. The creative things are what I look forward to, but the business plan writing is such a drag. However, it's a necessary evil that needs to get done. I know I'm not alone whenI say "I hate paperwork," and I'll have to get used to it.
I have another vender show coming up in December and I'm hoping to establish a few more clients. I have my product list ready. NOw all I need to do is start baking. There has to be a balance though-I can't start too soon or the treats won't be fresh and will go bad too soon since they are preservative free. But, if I leave everything to the last minute, I'll be up all night and probably won't get everything done.
I have a few fun ideas for decorating some of the cookies and Mom and I are even going to build a doggie gingerbread house to raffle off. Well, as long as it turns out.
I also got the great news today that Dublin Dog Co. is letting me be a dealer for them. I'm so excited because they have some of the most amazing products. The "no stink" collars are fabulous and will be the first thing i order in. I really like this company not only because their products are fabulous, but because they are huge supporters of shelters/rescues and service dog programs. It's great to be able to be associated with a company whose core values line up so closely with mine. I've had a hard time picking what to order since everything is great. I'm like a kid in a candy shop. The Rep. I am dealing with has been great though and is sending me a "mock" order to help me narrow things down. So, on top of their great products and amazing social awareness, they also have great customer service. How could you possibly ask for more?
With that I'll leave you-I have more browsing to do. ;)

Sea, Land and Tires: On Skis

Sea, Land and Tires: On Skis: It would appear that Old Man Winter is on my side. At least, this year, I consider him dumping 3 to 4 inches of snow on us as being on my si...

My Traveling Bumble Bee

Nala is my third guide dog. We've been together for about nine months now and she's already moved across an ocean. One of my friends in Scotland once compared her love for her work to that of a "worker bee" and ever since then, I've called her "my little bumble bee." She kind of buzzes about like one too, with all of her energy, and so the nickname suits in that way too. For the most part, I've known what situations my dogs, old and new, can handle.
Jetta, my first girl, took all of the changes in stride and never batted an eyelash when we boarded a plane and ended up in a new place for the second or third time in a month. Nala and Jetta's work ethic are similar in that way-they both loved working and embraced whatever challenge I've set in front of them.
Glacier, my second dog, was never suited to change right from the beginning. We had a rocky start and our working relationship continued to be unstable. Notice how I said "working relationship?" As a non-working dog, he was just perfect and I knew that no matter how much training, re-training or re-anything we did was not going to help him be comfortable with working; especially working in an ever changing environment. He was much better suited to pet life. He traveled as well, not quite to the extent that Jetta did, but he technically moved countries twice. However, we didn't travel in the way that I did with Jetta when I was competing.
This long and slightly rambling introduction is supposed to lay the foundation for my real reason for writing today. Nala's enthusiasm for her work is about to be put to the test.
The last couple of weeks or so, I've been working on one of my latest adventures. I've blogged about it over at my other blog, but since it's sports related, I didn't want to bore everyone here with the details. Basically, I've been looking into starting cross country skiing at a competitive level. I'm not sure if I'm any good at it, but I've been building up my fitness the last month and have managed to nail down a guide or two as well as a potential coach. Since this year is a Olympic/Paralympic year, I figured I'd have a year to get some snow time to see whether or not I should even consider pursuing a competitive career in cross country skiing. But, as we all know,  rarely do things go as planned. Within the course of two weeks, I had been asked to attend a training camp which then moved to me racing as well. So, on December 5th, Nala and I will be hopping a plane out to Alberta to participate in sed training camp and then I'll have my race only a few short days later. There's a lot more to it, but if you want to read about it, you can over at "Sea, Land and Tires."
It's been so long since I traveled as a part of a sports team and with a working dog that I'm a little bit nervous. Excited of course is the majority of my emotional state right now, but traveling with Jetta had become so habitual that I don't really remember how I worked out some of the logistics. Isn't it funny that the skiing part isn't really bothering me even though I haven't skied in over twenty years? I'm not worried about Nala having difficulties adjusting to working in a new place. I'm sure as soon as her paws hit the ground in Alberta, she'll be ready to go. What I'm concerned with are things like:
Where will she go when I'm training? Jetta used to just stay on the pool deck, tied to a bench or lane rope roller. Nala can't just be tied to a tree in the middle of winter in Alberta. I'm sure we'll find a place for her to stay in the ski lodge, but then that leads me to my next concern.
Will she drive someone nuts with her whining? She has a small amount of separation anxiety and whines if I leave her. She did this when the trainer left her with me the first day. Jetta never whined. I can combat her boredom with a Kong stuffed with something...peanut butter? Kong stuffing? Which will be easier to transport?
Apparently there is going to be a service dog there as well. Perhaps they can hang out together? Then again, it's a coach's dog, so maybe the coach will need the dog and keep him/her with them? (I am totally over thinking these things which is what I do when I'm nervous).
Then my brain turns to packing. Not only am I  unsure what to pack for me, but I am torn on bringing certain items for Nala.
Should I bring her boots? She's never worn them before, will she wear them? Maybe we should practice before we get there?
Will she need a winter coat? That depends on how cold it's going to be and how much time she's going to spend outside.
Once we're there, where will the relieving area be? Will I be able to find the garbage bin after she "goes?" Another thing to remember to pack...poop bags!
What about her food? Pack it or would someone be able to just run and buy a small bag so that precious suitcase space/weight isn't taken up with dog food?
What about her bed? She's always slept on a bed/blanket/mat. She settles better if she has a "spot." A good and bad thing that she was trained on. It's good because if I put a mat out and tell her "bed" she goes there and settles there. However, if a blanket/mat/bed isn't available, she's restless. Two things about Jetta made this a non-issue. First, she wasn't as high maintenance. She didn't need a Kong stuffed with yummy goodness to keep her occupied while I wasn't available. She was content to just watch me practice or hang out under the massage therapist's table if I was competing. Second, she slept on the bed with me and so the bed problem was non-existent.
As I said above, I'm definitely over thinking this whole thing. Some of my concerns are legitimate, like food transport, but a lot of the other things can be solved with some creative thinking if an issue arises. I think my nervousness about going to this camp is just manifesting in my guide dog concerns because it's something I know and can control. The whole thing is quite new and I don't know what to expect. I don't even know what clothes I'm supposed to wear during a race or training. How do you transport your skis/poles on the plane? Is it like my tappers for swimming that were put in the "awkward baggage" section? I'm going somewhere I've never been, with someone I hardly know, with athletes I don't know at all and with a new guide dog. I'm participating in a sport that I hardly know anything about and I'm going to race in this sport. My only expectation for that race is to finish it in one piece. Despite all of that, I'm very much looking forward to going and I am so grateful that I've been given this opportunity and even though I'm nit picking about her boots/coats/Kong Etc, I'm grateful that my little Bumble bee gets to come with me.

Follow Your Nose

As an update to my last post, I'd like to say that Hermione and Roscoe's nose work sessions have been going very well. I've been impressed with both of them and have found it challenging working with each dog. It's been easier for me to know when Roscoe is ready to move ahead and how far to push him. Hermione is a little harder to gauge, but if I've moved beyond what she's ready for, I just go back to something that is easy for her and try again. They both love it. They are starting to know when we're getting ready to do nose work training and both get very excited. Roscoe always goes second, since Hermione needs to release her energy first, and I can hear him upstairs, padding about and whining while he waits for his turn. 

After our second session, I began to worry that I was ignoring Nala and since my last working relationship didn't go all that well, I am a bit hyper vigilant about making sure Nala and I get our own time. I started thinking that I had to find a way to work some kind of training or working session in with her as well, but I don't want her learning nose work. The last thing I need is a "nosy" guide dog. So, on my third session, I took her down to the big empty room in our basement first and worked with her on basic obedience. I also took her whistle down and did some recall from sit and down stays. Then, I threw her squeaky pig for her for a while. This kept her from whining too much when I was working with the other two. So, I think I'll keep doing this with her.

Hermione has advanced a bit since our first day. She can locate our treasure box under objects and at levels above her head that are about knee level or mid-thigh on me. Anything higher and she can't quite find it yet. She's using her nose more-I hear more sniffing-but I let her see me moving the box around. From where I tie her to the door knob, she can't always see where I am in the room, but she can hear me and I think that helps. She's also started to sit when she finds the box. Sometimes I have to lure her or remind her, but sitting to alert to a scent is the next step. So, when she started offering it on her own for some of the scents, I began having her sit at every spot that she finds. If she's going to offer me the behaviour, I might as well encourage it and make sure she does it consistently. I really need to get a harness for her since she gets so excited now, she runs on her back paws, unless she remembers to sniff the ground. I think she's doing a lot of air scenting. However, I laid kibbles at random intervals which forced her to sniff the ground. From what I've read, dogs need to do both. So, I won't discourage the air scenting, but want to help her use her ground scenting as well.

As for Ranger Roscoe: he's advanced a lot. He was air scenting a lot too so I laid the random kibble trail for him a few times too. It seemed to show him that he could do both because after that I heard a lot more ground sniffing. He needs a harness too because the leash/collar combination seems to be getting in his way. The leash being attached too close up to his face accidentally re-directs him a bit and restricts his movement somewhat. That probably could be helped by using a longer leash, however, I need to be close to him for now in order to be able to "see" what he's doing.

So far, he is able to locate the treasure box under things, behind things, tucked into corners, up on shelves that are about chest level, all while not watching me place the box. As our last trick yesterday, I took the box completely out of the room we've been working in and hid it in a different room; tucked between the washing machine and dryer. I left it sticking out a bit so that he could see it. At first, he ran about the room that we've been working in, despite the door being open. As he got closer to the open door, I said, "find" in a more excited voice. I sort of leaned my body towards the door, but didn't walk myself that way. I don't know if it was the body movement or if his nose picked up the box, but he dashed for the door and began sniffing around frantically. Within a matter of seconds, he had found the box. I wasn't sure if I had pushed him too far at first, but obviously not because he found the box in less than three minutes. It was pretty amazing and exciting to watch him go from searching mode, to a little confused, to sniffing and searching again. The sheer joy that showed through his entire body wagging when he found the box was so nice to see.

I don't really know why I didn't think of doing this with them before. I really didn't have the room, but now I do and I'm so glad we're doing it. I think soon I'll be able to move away from "cookie smell" to actually training Roscoe on specific scents. Hermione may stay on cookies for a while longer and she may not be ready to leave our "sniffing" room as quickly as Roscoe has, but working with her is just as enjoyable.

Nose Work

Since my wee Spaniel is always so busy, I'm always trying to find ways to keep her business more productive. I've toyed with the idea of agility because she is, well, quite agile, but I haven't quite figured out how I would do that without some sighted assistance. I've done basic obedience with her, but she gets bored quickly and quite frankly, so do I. That's not to say I shouldn't work with her on the basics because we all know that she needs some work. However, I needed to find a way to work basic obedience into a fun activity we could do together. Not to mention, it needed to be an activity that would burn off some of her excess energy. My "ahah!" moment came  when my mom was telling me a sad story about a woman whose dog had been hit by a car and run away. The woman was doing everything in her power, including calling in a "sniffer" dog to try and track down her beloved pooch. I don't know the outcome, but it got me thinking: "why not try that with Hermione?" I'm not saying she would ever be good enough to find someone's missing dog, or child for that matter, but she's got the hunting instincts and it would be a way to put her nosiness to good use.
So, after searching ceaselessly for hours on this beautiful thing we call the internet, I found an article that explains how to get started in nose work in a very straight forward, easy to understand manner. It took some digging because a lot of the information is held by a specific organisation that oversees nose work competitions. They give you options of holding workshops or hiring a trainer, but I'm just trying to get started and needed an inexpensive way to do so. I'm not sure I did it properly, but we tried it for the first time today and it was a lot of fun.
The article instructs you to find a desirable object and hide it in a box for your dog to find. There are variations of this step, all involving leaving the box open, letting the dog see the object, only having one box out, always using the same box Etc. So, I thought of the smelliest thing that Hermione loves most and came up with peanut butter. I took four boxes of varying sizes down into our basement and put the peanut butter into one of them. I left the lid open on the box as well as the peanut butter to help Hermione smell the tasty goodness. I hooked her leash over a door knob so she could watch me set everything up. I also placed the treasure box the furthest on the left so that she would not have to wade through the other boxes to find the one I wanted. The article says you can do this activity on and/or off leash, but I chose on leash to ensure I knew exactly where she was so I could praise appropriately.
I had her sit and then gave her release cue. She sprang to her feet, but wasn't exactly sure what I wanted. Rufio was playing with a ball in the same room and she was initially distracted by the toy. The article tells you not to "show" or "lead" your dog; you want them to figure it out on their own. This was a challenge for me as all I wanted to do was point at the box or take her over and tap it for her. But, really that's not training, that's patterning; not useful in this situation. She put it very well when she said,
"you want the dog to think you need them to do the work."
That makes sense. In sniffing trials or in search and rescue, the handler doesn't direct the dog-the dog does all of the work. That said, since the cat was an unexpected distraction, I slowly wandered myself towards the line of boxes and it only took her a split second to realise that the boxes were interesting. She pulled without hesitation to the box housing the coveted prize. I praised her and stuffed one of my home made treats into her mouth. we did this five more times, me having her sit and wait in an opposite corner to the box and then releasing her, before I moved the box. I only mixed it up a bit and she found it without hesitation again. I then took the box over to the mini trampoline that I have in the room and put it up on top; all the while letting her watch me. The article says that letting the dog watch in the beginning is good. You want to make it easy for them to succeed; as with any training activity.
She almost missed the box on the trampoline, but spun quickly and circled back. I haven't quite decided if she's using her nose yet or just her eyes, but I guess time will tell.
We went through the whole cookie I had been breaking off as reward and I gave her a bit of peanut butter at the end. I was really impressed with her problem solving skills. When she went to a box that wasn't the one I wanted, she started searching for the right one. I didn't say "no" or point or anything; just stood quietly until she dashed off to the right spot. She only got a reaction from me if she found what I wanted. Eventually, we'll put a word to this behaviour, but for now, it's all about letting her think for herself and being comfortable and confident to do so.
Tomorrow, we'll continue; probably running through the same sequences as today. It's better to make sure she gets it right and build up her confidence before moving on.
I'm not sure if the activity wore her out or if she has food coma from eating her reward cookie, but she's currently curled up beside me, snoozing away.
Since the "nose work" was such a success with Hermione I decided to try Roscoe. It would be interesting, I thought, to go from a young dog who realistically has no training to a dog who was taught to think for himself from puppyhood.
The difference was definitely there.
I only did the box in the corner with Roscoe twice instead of five times because he nearly dragged me there. He also nearly destroyed the box in his enthusiasm. I moved the box around, hiding it in the middle of other boxes and he found it. I put it up on the trampoline and he found it. I even placed another box beside it on the trampoline, crowding the treasure box, and although he stopped to examine the "dud" box, he moved quickly on to the right one. I then took the peanut butter out of the original box and stuck it into another one and put the lid on to the peanut butter jar. Apparently, you're not supposed to do this in the beginning because you don't want to contaminate all of your boxes with your scent, but it seemed too easy for him. I didn't need to worry: he found that one as well. As his last challenge, I tucked the box away from the others into a kind of makeshift closet. I let him watch me as I had with everything else. This one was the only one that made him stop to think. He started sniffing about then started hopping about when I didn't react to his investigations. Then, quite suddenly, he hurtled, me attached by the leash, to the closet and shoved his head in, his whole body wagging.
It was so amazing watching how each dog worked out problems differently, progressed differently, and yet they both seemed to enjoy it so much. I will repeat our routine tomorrow with Roscoe as well and only change things up when he seems to be ready to move on.
I really enjoyed myself and the dogs seemed to as well. I think it's something we'll stick with. I can't wait to see what I will eventually be able to hide and where.
Who knows, maybe one day, I'll be able to send Roscoe off from the basement up to the top floor to find Mr. K. If we get to that point, I'm putting him in a competition.

My Strange and Wonderful Spaniel Part 899: Re-Postie

I don't know what happened to my last post. It's like it just stopped typing half way through. The weird thing was that my computer kept talking to me. So, I thought that I had written the whole post. The whole point of that post was to paint you a picture of how cute Hermione was when she was asking for her breakfast.
Basically, she squawked at me as I sat down to eat breakfast. It was a squawk I had never heard from her before and so I went to investigate. I found her on the couch, sitting in the most perfect sit stay I have ever seen, with her breakfast bowl resting at her paws. She looked like a little Cavalier King Charles Spaniel statue. It was the cutest thing ever!
However, since my computer decided, or perhaps it's Blogger's fault,  not to record my whole account, I've given you the abbreviated version. Wee Hermione, breakfast bowl, obedience show ring sit stay. Stinking adorable.
Believe me, the first post was much better. ;)