Animals Don't Lie

It annoys me when people think I'm stupid. When it comes to animals and honesty, do you really think you can fool me? Animals don't lie. I will very quickly be able to figure out what you have, and have not done with the creature. Animals with little to no handling are blank slates with very little in the way of hang ups. Animals that have been messed up by a human, will also tell that story. Animals that have had positive human experiences, will tell you that.

Today, I happily loaded the dogs and drove out to Ken's place. I planned to work Reba on her flanks and drive and get his feedback. That way if I was making mistakes I could rectify the situation. I also brought Diva and Ryder because I wanted to have their first experience on stock at Ken's, where if necessary I had some help.

Reba went first. That dog is very motivated to learn and her progress was clear. Ken gave me trouble over some things I was doing that was causing her some confusion and we finished on a positive note. For both of us.

Next I grabbed Ryder. I was so proud and really looking forward to showing him off. How quickly the bubble burst. We walked out to where Ken was standing. He grabbed a cane off the fence and in a completely non-aggressive manner went to hand it to me. Ryder freaked. He darn near yanked me off my feet. Ken and I looked at each other. There is only one reason a stock dog will get upset when you have a cane near it, and it's not a good reason. Ken rested the cane across his knee and tried to get Ryder to approach him. Ryder made his best attempt at pulling his head off with his collar. Reaching into my pocket I gathered a handful of treats. Lying the cane on the ground, I led Ryder near it. Squatting down, I tried to feed him treats near the cane. He turned his head away and refused to interact with me. With persistence and bribing I was able to get him to eat a treat near the flat cane. If I made any attempt to pick it up, he flew backwards.

Moving onto the sheep - less a cane - we tried to get him interested. No go. With a lot of work, making the sheep move and exciting voices, we were able to get him to make a couple of circles. Stopping we pulled off. I'm not going to lie. I was pissed. This whole experience was wrong. Ryder, when he left my place was my most keen pup. And animals don't lie. He had one mother trucker of a negative experience to turn him off. And he was turned off. The current plan for him is to let him grow up some more, do lots and lots of positive reinforcement with the cane and treats, and try again. With work, kindness and patience I may be able to turn him around. The problem now being is that he obviously has some baggage. Whether or not that baggage is enough to impede his progress, or if it'll come back to haunt him, I don't know. I don't know if this is something he can move past. I certainly hope so. I think buried under the fear and lack of confidence is a talented dog. To hedge my bets, I'll be doing a lot of agility groundwork and foundation work, just in case he needs to move into a pet home.

Diva was a completely different story. She walked into that pen with baby Border Collie swagger. She owned it. Ken handed me a cane, she didn't bat an eyelash. We headed towards the sheep and she perked right up. She was confident and keen. It took a bit for her to figure out to circle, but once she did we were off and running. Literally. I managed to get a couple of circles in both directions around the sheep before calling her off. When the ram turned and faced her she showed no fear. She would have ate him if I had let her. (I positioned myself to help her and the ram turned around.) What a difference between pups! Ken loved her, especially the confidence. Diva was in her element. She shows the qualities that'll make a top working dog. Very exciting for me.

I won't work either pup now for a bit. I mostly wanted to see what they would do. They're only 7 months old right now and I'd like them to grow up a bit more. Develop some mental as well as physical maturity. Diva, if I wanted to, could go to work. She certainly showed me she's ready to work. A possible nursery prospect anyhow.

It blows me away that people think they can fudge things. I've enough experience with the dogs, and I've worked with enough rescues to know. Dog's will tell you. If you are willing to listen and watch, they will show you what training they've had. Did Ryder's old owner really think I wouldn't notice that the pup (who should still be pretty much a blank slate) lost his marbles every time a person went to pick up a stock stick? I know where I'd like to shove that stock stick right now... The contrast between the two litter mates was vivid. Nature vs Nurture?

Holiday?

My spring break is creeping close. I can't wait! When I sat down with my schedule it sure didn't look like much of a break. Here's how it's coming together...

Friday (March 25): I have to take my truck in for a check up in the morning. On the way to the shop I plan to drop Diva and Ryder off at daycare for some play. In the afternoon I have people coming out to work dogs.

Saturday (March 26): In the morning I'm bringing Tessa, Reba and Diva in to get their nails trimmed. In the afternoon, I'm going to see a professional dance presentation. (Forget the name.)

Sunday: Thinking about a Drayton Valley run... it'll either happen this day or Monday.

Monday: Diva has class #2 for her agility groundwork.

Tuesday: I have an appt. in the morning, so I'll do another day with Ryder and Diva at daycare while I do that.

Wednesday: Busy day. Tessa goes into the vet for her testing. She'll spend most of the day there. I'll drop Ryder and maybe Diva at daycare when I run Tess in. While Tessa's at the vet, I'm off to check out a farm for sale. Then in the afternoon, I pick up Tessa and Ryder gets his ears rechecked.

Thursday: I'm off to Calgary to see my dearest friend who just had a baby. I think I'll take Ryder with me.

Friday: I'm dropping the pups off at daycare. In the evening I'm driving up to Valleyview.

Saturday: I'm in Valleyview doing a stockdog clinic. Home that night.

Sunday: I have NO commitments!!!!!

Monday: Back at work.

All around these activities I'll also be training dogs, riding horses and all the regular chores and things that need to happen. It sure doesn't seem like much of a holiday right now. Perhaps I should have booked that trip south...

Puppy Update

All the babies that have new homes seem to be doing well. I thought I'd share with you a bit that I know about them.

1) Ryder - is with me still. What a sucky baby! The little fart consistently is getting me up in the middle of the night. I've finally (yes, I was a bit slow on the uptake!), discovered he's doing this because he's lonely, not because he needs to go potty. I've been a bad, bad owner by caving (I'm too tired to deal with it right now, and have created a monster!) and allowing Mr. Baby sleep on the bed. Which makes him happy, and I get to sleep straight through to the alarm. This dog L.O.V.E.S to cuddle. He's doing well at Happy Pet Spa (daycare), and is starting to develop positive social skills. He's not dominate at home but can be possessive or protective, especially when on leash. Much, much better off leash. He likes to play and is a fun companion right now. He had been started on stock (cattle) and is very keen to continue his training. I'm waiting on a few things. More news (hopefully) to follow on this.

2) Diva - still with me. She's being a little rotter right now. Definitely in the throes of adolescence! She suddenly can't hear. Or listen. All around bratty. This means she gets kept on the cord. And I need to step up her training, she has forced me to go back to the basics. Her first agility class was on Monday and she was bratty. She even snarked at the dogs! I was not impressed. She's been doing well going to the dog park so I was a bit startled. With spring break starting she'll get a lot of time. Plus on Friday she'll go to Doggy Daycare for some additional socialization. She's very athletic and FAST! Also keen to start on stock. She'll have to wait until winter decides to leave and I can put some consistent time into her. I'm planning on getting her going May/June. She loves to travel and runs to my truck, trying to get in even when its not her time to go.

3) Luke - is doing well with Stacy. They are bonding and he's been making positive progress with his training as an agility dog. He's smart and motivated, and is showing off his funny little personality. I can't wait to see him competing. All the males are turning into pretty big dogs.

4) Zoey - also doing well. She has great social skills, and lots of personality. Lynne and I meet and go to the dog park, as well, they are attending the same agility class as I am. She's a gorgeous dog. The largest female. Lynne is eagerly and nervously waiting until she gets to start working her. Zoey has a lot of energy and desire to work. Currently busy herding cats.

5) Rayne (Chloe) - is having some trouble becoming well adjusted socially. Which surprises me because she was the nicest baby. She's been attending a doggy daycare and is very smart, picking up on her training well. Adorable, and well marked.

6) Ty - is living in Saskatchewan. He's doing well and is turning into a large male. He's progressing well with his basic training (lie down, recall, etc.) and hasn't started on stock yet. He'll be started come spring. (Will it ever get here?) Kelly is very happy with him and says he seems pretty smart. Which makes me happy. It sounds like Ty is part of the family.

7) Grace - deceased.

Truck Got Stuck

They say no good deed goes unpunished. This is perhaps a bit too true. Today, my assistant principal asked for my assistance which I happily provided. He wanted to use my truck and my muscles to help him clean out the gym storage room. Much of the equipment is tattered and old and needs to make it's way into the garbage. Not a small undertaking.

I had thought we'd be moving stuff through the school and driving to the bins. Ooops, nope, we were going to drive our way across the playground to the gym doors where we'd load the box of the truck and deliver the junk into the garbage. Well, we started on our way. I hopped the curb and easily motored a bit over 50 meters. And then we began to struggle. I tried to rock the truck. Until the truck dropped a foot. We were stuck. Seriously stuck. As in my right tire wasn't in contact with the ground and my running boards were on snow, stuck. No amount of shovelling was going to solve the problem.

There my lovely "Baby" was sitting on her skid plates, stuck on the playground of my school. You can imagine the commotion this caused. Thank goodness the school is still under construction and the fantastic Site Manager, Justin, came to the rescue. He fixed the CAT and dug a path out. Next, he hooked up a chain and using the bucket helped lift me enough for the tires to hit solid ground.

Once I was unhooked I gunned it along the school on the foot packed snow heading for pavement. I was out. I went in at 11:30 and I was out by 2:30. I was starting to think I'd be calling my mom to come pick me up from work. Embarrassing.

My kids sure got a kick out of it anyway. One of them started singing this song. Here's Corb Lund (one of my favorite singers) and his song. Enjoy.

Motivation

Every few months I'm a guest speaker with a local Running Room Learn to Run clinic. The instructor has me come talk about motivation. With the icky weather I'm not exactly feeling motivated but it's good to think about and remember. I thought I'd share my talk with everyone out in Blogger World.

Here it is.

I'm a runner. I've been a runner off and on since I was a teenager. I was one of those people who love to run. The feel of a my hair blowing back. The sweat beading off my face. I loved it. It filled me with feelings of euphoria. I was one of those crazed people eating strange "athlete" meals, talking about how easy everything was. I was comfortably running a 27 minute 5k (3 mile). And getting faster.

That was then.

My friend and I had decided to kick 30 in the face and we were in the beginning stages of training for a marathon. But something was wrong. I was feeling "off". I was in and out of the doctor's offices, getting a variety of diagnosis'. Three months passed before they figured out what the problem was. I was fast tracked into the Cross Cancer Institute.

I was determined to not let this get me down. I was determined to be "normal". And normal for me was being a runner. It was a part of me. So I kept running. The drugs I was on had some fun side effects. Some days I couldn't go outside because of the high degree of reactivity to the sun. When I could I was running down the road with my trusty sidekick, Tessa, by my side. As I ran I would chant inside my head, "Die bad cells, die!" or "Strong powerful legs" or "Relaxed and easy". Anything that made my legs move forward.

As the side effects began taking over my body, allergic reactions caused my lips to swell to Angelina Jolie proportions. My body was filled with fluid, my legs looking like my thighs dropped straight into my ankles. It became difficult to bend my knees. But I refused to quit. I stopped wearing a watch because it was too demoralizing for me. Instead I would run from telephone pole to telephone pole, then walk the next set. Soon, I was walking most of the distance. My body hurt. My mouth was filled with sores making eating difficult. I still don't like rice I ate so much of it. But I insisted on going out and getting in my "run". I was desperate for normal.

I was lucky I had an excellent support network. My friends stood behind me, propping me up when I couldn't stand on my own. I would tell people that I needed to get out, after all Tessa needed her exercise. These are things that worked for me. Running is still difficult. I haven't been able to regain the level of fitness or ease I once had. I may never be able to. My body has changed too much. But I'll never forget that I'm one of the lucky ones.

You need to do what works for you. Schedule it into your book and make it sacred. Have a friend run with you. Use positive self talk. Run with a pet. Running is 90% mental and 10% physical. And everyone can do it.

Any questions?

And that my friends is my talk. While you may not be a runner, think about what motivates you to maintain an active and healthy lifestyle.

Full Circle

Isn't it funny how things tend to work out? I've been contemplating life around the horses. With Roxy (who don't get me wrong - is a nice horse) not working out as a futurity horse, I've been pondering which direction I want to go in with the horses. I know I want to sell Roxy. Nice horse or not, she's not the horse for me. I'll plan to wait until after summer, when I've been able to put more miles on her and have her a bit more finished. I'm looking forward to working cattle and having some fun.

One thing I noticed at the Clint Swales clinic is good training travels across disciplines. One of the exercises he repeatedly had student's using was one I had learned from an old rancher/horse trainer in Consort. It seems funny that this alcoholic's training techniques are proving to come up again, and again. (Grant is/was an outstanding trainer - back in the day.) I might just drive down and do some riding with him this summer. And I plan to take in some more instruction from Clint.

The question on my mind, is once Roxy is re-homed, what do I want to do? I'm confident I want to do something that involves cattle. As much as I enjoy the jumping stuff, I love the cattle work. Do I want to buy a finished cutting horse and go down the road? Do I want to buy another rope horse and return to that world? Pretty sure working cow horse isn't for me. *reining, yawn* Barrels? Ranch rodeo?

I'm not sure. Right now I'm teetering between roping (miss it so much) and cutting (oh so challenging). Which way to go? Time will tell. I suppose you could say the fun is in the journey.

Riding Time

Yesterday I had popped over to a local stable. It's a place I've boarded in the past and is a quiet reining breeding stable. (Home of BL Whiz Kid.) They called me in last night to let me know they've made room for me. Roxy will be moving in on Tuesday, so I can consistently ride her, making taking her places less of a train wreck.

My riding time is about to take a considerable jump and I can't wait!