Puppy Adventures #1- Roma Learns Some Lessons

We have had quite the adventures with Roma and it hasn't been 1 week yet :) For 1 thing, she has already started testing Tilda to see how far she can push Tilda. With some correction it has gotten better. But it was to the point that she was actually going after Tilda. And those puppy teeth don't help, Roma got me in 2 places; the thumb and the foot. Both places aren't in good spots. It was at the top of the thumb that she got me and on the foot, it's right where my sandal strap rubs. The first time Roma tested Tilda was when they were eating their supper on Friday. Then later that night we had them outside and Roma went at Tilda over her ball. There were about 2 rounds of this and the 2nd round Tilda got Roma on her back. Saturday, Tilda was eating a carrot and Roma went at her again (that's when my thumb got cut). Later we had a friend came over to meet Roma. She said hi to both Tilda and Roma and then sat on the floor with Roma. When Tilda came back over Roma growled at Tilda. Eating time Saturday night did not go well at all, Tilda pretty much didn't even want to eat. After that I ended up emailing the breeder that night asking for help. She had said if Roma growls at Tilda over her food, just tap her on the head. Well, we were going to need more than that, it was to the point that I didn't think that would really work. Before hearing from the breeder there was another incident over Tilda's ball and Tilda just walked away. We could tell Tilda wasn't going to step in and put Roma in her place. That night I heard back from the breeder. Her tips have worked wonderfully. . .So far :) Saturday night I had the chance to correct. After bring both Tilda and Roma inside after their last potty break for the night, I was going to give Tilda a treat (as usual) and a little attention, then I was going to do the same to Roma.Well, Roma came over by Tilda and me. I pushed her away because I just wanted to give Tilda a treat and attention by herself, Roma needs to learn to wait her turn. Anyhow, Roma started to growl at Tilda. I corrected that and she seemed to get the point. After correcting I went over to Tilda, gave her some treats, and attention. Roma just stayed back. I then went over to Roma. Eating time has been going better too. What it really all comes down to is letting Roma know her place and that we will not put up with that kind of behavior.

We were at the pet store and both Tilda and Roma had their noses by the treats. There was no aggression between them. Roma met some new people, Tilda was along too and there wasn't any aggression either. 

Now, for the 2nd thing, Friday night Roma met some of the neighbors along with 2 neighbor dogs; a Black Lab and German Shepherd. Both dogs are nice and they weren't trying to do anything to Roma. But Roma growled at them. I don't know if it was out of fear as she seemed a bit fearful. We will have to see how she meets other dogs.

3. Both Friday and Saturday morning Roma was getting sick (throwing up). We are pretty sure it was the probiotic that was making her sick. The breed gives probiotics to the puppies when they leave since it is a change for them. Tilda was on these too for 7 days. When we cut it out, Roma stopped getting sick. And these were supposed to help the tummy. . .It just shows you not to count out something that is supposed to be helpful when trying to figure out what is making your dog sick. 

4. Roma was quite every night, even the first night. But for some reason she decided not to be quite Sunday night. It really wasn't too bad, it could have been a lot worse. Monday night we also had noise, I'm not sure if she just wanted to get out or if she really did have to go potty. . .Read below to find out more about that :)

5. On Monday Roma had diarrhea. So she got pumpkin on her food. I'm not really sure what it is from. It could be from anything, maybe too much canned food, or because we have started mixing Roma's puppy food with Tilda's food, or maybe from the bone she has been chewing on, or maybe new treats, or maybe just from being in a new place with new things, or maybe it just happened. Monday night she had diarrhea in her crate. . .oh well, she couldn't help it. She was making noise, but how was I to know that she really had to go out or if she just wanted to come out? 

She is a confident little puppy. Because I have been working with Tilda on running contacts I have the teeter board on the ground. Roma has already been walking on it. 

And then of course, there is potty training :) There is nothing you can do about this. I think this is something that just takes time. We have started training her to use the bell to let us know when she has to go out, as Tilda does. 

Roma's walking has gotten better, she is getting used to the collar and leash. 

She is doing pretty good with her 'sits'. She already seems to know that if we don't give her the treat right away to sit. 

Monday morning Tilda and Roma were running around outside playing. Tilda had the zoom zooms and was really running around. It was fun to actually see them running around together!

This morning (Tuesday) Roma saw Lucy outside. Lucy is one of the feral cats we have around here and Roma was barking at her. Tilda likes to chase the cats, something I don't want her to do :)

A Big Update

Hello, I am back. I should have done this awhile ago. Since my last post, the following has happened.

Buddy and Gracie have been to 5 agility trials. In August: Buddy and Gracie Q'd last weekend in Jumpers. Gracie came in 5th place and got 10 MACH points. In July: Gracie Q'd in Jumpers for 6 MACH points. And at another trial, Gracie Q'd in Standard, took 1st place and got 22 MACH points!

As for Tilda, we have not done a trial since June and I can't say for sure when are next trial will be; maybe September. We are taking an online jumping class. It is really a neat class and I like the way it is going so far. The training is by way of playing games and it is about having fun. I do think Tilda's jumping had gotten worse overtime. If I go back and watch Novice runs, even her striding seems better. One thing that may be true, is that Tilda was just trying too hard. Which would probably mess up her striding. I am really hoping this class helps Tilda, as least a little bit. Here is the other thing, in May and June we did a total of 4 trials which would equal out to be 8 runs. Out of all 8 runs, Tilda at least knocked 1 bar in each run. Which seems like quite a bit, considering we have Q'd before and made it to Excellent. But on the bright side, she was clearing more bars than she was knocking :) I can't say now if the class is helping Tilda's jumping, I'll just have to wait and see.

I also really want Tilda to have solid running contacts. I have messed around a little with just having the teeter board lay on the ground. So maybe by the time our next trial comes up we will at least have a start to running contacts.

Now for the big announcement. We got a puppy!!! Yes, another Australian Terrier, a little red this time. Another girl Aussie, which we have named Roma. Let the puppy fun begin!! 

Brush Those Teeth!

Brushing your dog's teeth is a wonderful thing to do. It really doesn't take all that much time either. I brush Tilda's teeth everyday. Sure, I've missed some days, but I try to do it. I really think the best time to start is in puppy stage. Even though puppies don't really have dirty teeth, it's a great time to get them used to the brushing and it also keeps them from getting dirty teeth. I should have put more of an effort out to do so when Tilda was a young pup. She handles the situation fine, she is so good about it (although, I wouldn't say she really enjoys it). But, her teeth are a little dirty and maybe that could have been helped had I started brushing sooner and did it more often.

I usually will kneel on the floor when I brush Tilda's teeth and simply put her between my legs. This way I just have to lean over a little, open her mouth and start brushing. It does not need to be done this way. I can imagine this may not really work for a big dog. This is just one way to do teeth brushing. 


Don't use your own tooth paste, it isn't good for dogs. I recently got Tilda a new tube of doggie tooth paste, so far I like it. It's made by NylaBone and is made in the USA. It's also natural peanut flavored. The tooth paste I used before I got this was made in China, something I wasn't crazy about.  


It is best to brush everyday if you can. If you have a puppy, go ahead and start. If you have an older dog, go ahead and start. You may have to build your dog up to doing this, you might not be able to simply get in the mouth and brush. There is nothing wrong with taking time to teach this to your dog. Maybe you'll only be able to touch the brush to the teeth and that's all the dog will take. Take it slow and practice everyday getting more advanced in the brushing as your dog relaxes. Just because your dog doesn't like it, doesn't mean you should give up. Any brushing you can do will be better than not doing anything at all.    

Lil' Tilda

Tilda's 6/8/12 Agility Trial Runs

Excellent A STD

Excellent A JWW

6/8/2012 Trial Results - A Nice Trial

On Friday (6/8/12) we were at an agility trial. Tilda, Buddy, and Gracie all ran in this trial.

Tilda:
In Excellent A Standard we NQ'd. We had 1 refusal, 3 faults (2 fly offs and 1 bar), and 1 table fault. We made time: 60.32 out of 67 seconds was our time.

In Excellent A Jumpers with Weaves we just had 1 fault (a knocked bar), so we NQ'd. I'm happy with the way she ran it though. Time was good: 36.97 out of 48 seconds.

Buddy:
In Excellent B Standard he NQ'd. He knocked a bar and I think he had a wrong course.

In Excellent B Jumpers With Weaves he NQ'd. The NQ might have been because of a refusal.

Gracie:
In Excellent B Standard she NQ'd. Gracie had a wrong course, not sure if there were other problems.

In Excellent B Jumpers With Weaves Gracie also NQ'd.

NQs all around :) It was a nice day and a nice trial. We also crated indoors, so it wasn't as hot for the dogs.

Tilda Playing with a Baby Bird

This little guy was out in the yard last night. I threw Tilda's ball and she ran past the bird. On the way back she noticed him/her in the yard. Poor little thing was probably really scared. She never picked it up though.

Notice her tail :)

6/1/2012 Trial Results- 2 Titles!

Buddy and Gracie were at an agility trial today; I didn't enter Tilda in this trial.

Buddy:
In Excellent A Jumpers with Weaves Buddy Qualified, took First Place, and got his Excellent Agility Jumper title!! 


In Excellent B Standard Buddy NQ'd

Gracie:
In Excellent A Standard she Qualified, took First Place, and got her Agility Excellent title!!!


In Excellent B Jumpers with Weaves Gracie NQ'd.


Congrats to both Buddy and Gracie on the new titles!

Agility Run Throughs

Last night we did some agility run throughs. It was a very nice night out. It was good to run Tilda on some nice courses for the training and practice. And it was also nice to get Tilda on the contact equipment, mostly the a-frame and dog walk since we only have a teeter. The jumpers course was tight and had a lot of different angles and turns. Didn't seem to be a real runners course, but still good practice. The standard course was pretty good. Although it's harder to run a course for the first time when you haven't really got it 'down' in your head :) There were some problems, but it's kind of hard to know what was Tilda and what was me. It was good to get Tilda on those contacts. And, it really isn't surprising, Tilda tried jumping up on the 24 inch table :) She didn't make it, but she tried. What I did was have her go down near the table. We had one clean run (at least as far as I know) on the jumpers course. She hit a bar, but it didn't actually fall. But throughout the night she did hit some bars and I worked a bit on her jumping.

5/18/2012 STD Run

Alright, I didn't post this video of our STD run from the trial on 5/18/2012. So here you have:

Tilda's 5/26/2012 STD and JWW Runs

Excellent A JWW

Excellent A STD

5/26/2012 Trial Results- 4 Qs out of 6!

Another day at an agility trial!!

This one wasn't so hot, in fact some of the time I was cold. There was a little rain, but not any while we were running.

Tilda:
Tilda had a very beautiful Jumpers with Weaves run in Excellent A. We had 1 fault, which was a knocked jump bar, so we NQ'd. But this run was much better than last week's run! She listened so good! I tried something different, I didn't do a start stay. I wanted to just go out and run; wanted to keep her moving. We made time on this one too, 37.42 out of 49 seconds.

Our Excellent A Standard run was a little rougher. We had 2 refusals and 3 faults (I think 1 knocked bar and 2 fly offs). We did make time on this one too 64.25 out of 73 seconds. We need to work on those contacts :)

Well, those were the two NQs, so you can probably guess who got the four Qs :)

Buddy:
In Excellent A Jumpers with Weaves he Qualified and took 1st Place!!! He was a little slow, so I think he didn't get the full 100 points.

In Excellent A Standard Buddy Qualified took 1st Place and got his Agility Excellent Title!!! 


Gracie:
In Excellent B Jumpers with Weaves she Qualified and got 11 MACH points!! Gracie has a total of 27 MACH points now! I think she came in about 7th place or so.

In Excellent A Standard Gracie Qualified and took 1st Place!!


Congrats to both Buddy and Gracie!!

Is This Tilda Proof? - The Hot Dog Sandwich

Tilda got the hot dog sandwich toy at the last trial we were at; 5/18/12 and 5/19/12 trial. It's always fun when they have toys for the dogs!


What it once looked like:

Looks like a fun toy, doesn't it? Note: It is all in one piece.  


Well, fun is what Tilda had!!!

Do I need to explain???

This toy is not Tilda proof. 

3 out of 4 of Tilda's Agility Runs

Friday Jumpers

Saturday Standard

Saturday Jumpers

5/18/12, 5/19/12, and 4/20/12 Trial Results: New, Old, and a Birthday!

Alright, we were at a trial Friday and Saturday; along with Buddy and Gracie.

What a day; both days were HOT! I was volunteering as leash walker Friday and Chute straightener Saturday. I am glad I didn't have to sit in the ring straightening the chute all through excellent! We got to the trial fairly early on Saturday; we weren't there long and it was already getting hot out!

FRIDAY: Tilda sure can be quite the character out there :) 

Tilda: 

In our Excellent A Standard run we had 3 faults, which means we didn't qualify. Tilda wasn't completely focused, but 3 knocked bars was all that NQ'd us. I guess 2 months of boot camp wasn't quite enough :) One thing that boot camp did do though, was give her a beautiful contact on the teeter. The dog walk and a-frame were close to fly offs, but the judge didn't call anything. Our time was 61.98 out of 76 seconds. 

In our Excellent A Jumpers with Weaves run we NQ'd. We had 2 refusals, 1 wrong course, and 1 fault (knocked bar). Time was 53.57 out of 47 seconds. 

Buddy: 

In Excellent A Standard I was leash walking so didn't see the whole run. I did see the video though. And. . . Buddy did Qualify and took Second Place!!!! Congrats to Buddy!

Buddy's jumpers run was a little rough. 

Gracie: 

In Excellent A Standard she NQ'd. I think the only thing that happened was a spin in front of a jump, which would be a refusal. 

In Excellent B Jumpers with Weaves Gracie Qualified!! I'm not sure what place she came in, but I know it wasn't a 1st-4th placement. She also got 7 MACH points. She now has 16 MACH points. Quite a few to go, but hey, you got to start somewhere :) 

SATURDAY 

Tilda: 

We again NQ'd in Standard. We had 1 refusal, 2 wrong courses, and 2 faults (2 knocked bars) Again, a beautiful teeter contact! Although, both days she didn't go 'down' on the table. Not that it's a rule, I just like her to do so. Time was 74.60 out of 76 seconds. 

Alright, Tilda's jumpers run also gave us an NQ. 3 refusals and 1 fault (bar). Time was 75.00 out of 50 seconds; over time again in jumpers. Oh well, what can I say? You win some, you lose some and there's always next time! :)

Buddy:

He had some trouble in the jumpers course, so he NQ'd. 

In Buddy's Standard he did Qualify and get First Place with 94 points!! (The 94 points was because he was slow.)

Gracie: 

She NQ'd in Standard. 

In Jumpers she also NQ'd. 

AND. . . Yesterday (May 19th) was also Gracie's birthday! Happy 3rd Birthday to Gracie!!!

Now, I know this is getting long, but there is something I need to post. I am behind and didn't post results from a trial Buddy and Gracie did back in April. So here ya are, I'm keeping them short:

Buddy: 

In Standard he NQ'd. 

In Jumpers he NQ'd

Gracie: 

In Standard she Qualified and took First Place!!!

In Jumpers Gracie NQ'd. 

So there you have it; the latest results. 

Happy Birthday Buddy!

HAPPY 4th BIRTHDAY BUDDY!!!

{I don't have any recent pictures of Buddy, but I thought I still should do a Happy Birthday post for Buddy}

3/23/12 Trial Results - Gracie Gets MACH Points!

Buddy and Gracie were at an agility trial Friday.

Buddy: In Excellent A Standard he didn't qualify because of one refusal.

In Excellent A Jumpers With Weaves Buddy NQ'd because of one refusal again. So close to a Q :)

Gracie: In Excellent B Jumpers With Weaves she Qualified, came in 6th place, and got 9 MACH points!!! 


In Excellent A Standard Gracie NQ'd because she came out the end of the tunnel that she went in.

As for Tilda, she's in boot camp :) Jumping and contact boot camp that is and has been on break from trials.

Is This Tilda Proof? - Green Doggie

Before Tilda did any harm. . .

Now after some harm was done. . . 

There are actually three holes, the squeaker is gone, one ear is gone, and so is some of the stuffing. 

This toy is not Tilda proof.

Just Some Pictures. . .

Waiting for her ball to be thrown :) 

Is This Tilda Proof? - The Moon

At our last agility trial on 2/4/2012 every dog entered got a toy. So, I got Tilda the moon :)

He's kind of a fun looking fellow.

Buy your own moon here: Zanies-Celestial-Smiles-Dog-Toy or here: Green-Moon-Celestial-Smiles-Toy

Now. . .

. . .Two holes, some stuffing gone, and the squeaker gone.

This toy is not Tilda proof.