It's been a relatively quiet winter for me. Not a lot of shows and no KC competitions since October (I was sick for a December KC show). However, if I haven't been doing a lot of competitions, I have been spending a lot of time training. I am now a member of Susan Garrett's three... Continue Reading →
Running Contacts – the Next Step (8 August 2017)
https://youtu.be/iiilC4pHMF0 Sparrow's running contacts have been an ongoing experiment as I have adapted my training to suit her and to re-teach her what to do with contacts. We are reaching a stage of consistency that is very exciting, but I want to push Sparrow's understandings of her contacts, to discover if she is really grasping... Continue Reading →
Sparrow goes Grade 5 – 1 July 2017
Viva Dog Vegas!! Or something along those lines. Dog Vegas is a Kennel Club showing, offering up to six classes a day and held at various venues. My favourite is in Thetford where there is 10 days of doggy Vegas (though Tuesday and Thursday are rest days). I attended my first Dog Vegas last year... Continue Reading →
Swift gets to play with Helen Anderson
Swift is now 13 weeks old and full vaccinated, so she is pretty ready to rock and roll puppy style! After Sparrow's 1-2-1 session with Helen Anderson this month, we spent 10 minutes playing with Swift. Many people believe that a pup can't start doing agility until they are over a year old, and in... Continue Reading →
Sparrow’s Running Contacts. New Places, New Challenges
Sparrow has come a long way since we started training her running dogwalk using a piece of carpet. She is now running a full dogwalk and we are incorporating distance, speed and other obstacles. She still has a lot to learn and a lot to proof, but already she is faster and more confident, which... Continue Reading →
Waxham Sands May 2017 – Learning Curves
If you read my previous blog about the Beachside Finals you'll know that this week I have been competing at Waxham Sands, a beautiful, yet windswept venue, where you definitely know you are right next door to the North Sea! This was Merlin's first show at Graduate level, while Sparrow was still Novice. I knew... Continue Reading →
Beachside Finals 2017
For the third year running I qualified for the Beachside Finals at Waxham Sands. This year I had Merlin and Sparrow running, both in Novice grade but different heights. Beachside is the show where the journey began for us back in 2013 when Merlin started competing. I always feel at home with the Beachside team.... Continue Reading →
Broads Training: S-lines and Scoops, 2 May 2017
Tuesday night means Broads night, which has got to be just about the best evening of the week. Heck, we even had coconut tarts to munch on between classes! Two smaller courses had been set up to test us, each one having enough sneaky traps and variants to keep us busy. As there was a... Continue Reading →
Merlin goes Grade 5! 29 April 2017
Merlin has had a funny fortnight, what with his tummy troubles, and his confidence has dropped, but we are improving again, he is feeling better and getting back his agility mojo. On Saturday we went to Agility Ability at Euston park, a beautiful venue even if the ground is not ideal for running on. The... Continue Reading →
Birthday Princess Pupcakes
https://youtu.be/xIdbD6qVcMY When Sparrow recently had her birthday I decided to make her some extra special pupcakes to celebrate. I often make pilchard cake for the dogs as training treats, so I adapted the recipe and gave it a few extra ingredients, while also keeping it as healthy as possible. I used soft cheese for the... Continue Reading →