Brags Page, Website Management

As aforementioned, I am the webmaster for the LCCOC website.  In 2009 I installed a Guest Book set up as a Brags page, where club members could post their dog's achievements. I wanted visitors to see how active our club members are and how successful in putting titles on their dogs. Further, it would be a more permanent and visible record than merely reciting a brag at the monthly meeting, and then POOF, it's gone and forgotten.  Most club members have no idea what other members are achieving all year long.

I spent many hours setting up the page, then invited members to use it, for themselves AND to help promote our club.  A few did, entering summaries for each weekend trial they attended, but this quickly became cumbersome.  Too many entries to read, and too hard to follow any one dog.  No good.  So I asked members, a few weeks back, to post a one-brag-summary of each dog's achievement for 2010.  I posted my own Maxie Brag as an example.

Alas, I only got one response.  So much for team spirit.  The sentiment seems to be "who has the time".  True, many of our club members are at trials most weekends and working during the week, yet I fear the page's emptiness makes it look like our members don't have anything to brag about. That won't do.

I reviewed a bunch of other dog club websites, and in each case where they have a Brags feature, the page is nearly empty.  Apparently the "post it yourself" plan is not the way to go.  So I'm trying to figure out new ways to get the job done.
Each year our members are asked to turn in their dog's new titles for the year so the club can present them with an award, either a plaque or a crate tag, at the Winter Party.  I wrote elsewhere in this blog about receiving my first plaque and how proud I was.  I'm not sure all of our members respond to that program, either, but a considerable number do, so I'm investigating posting that list to the website.  I'll make a presentation to the Board of Directors and see if that flies.

Some of our members wonder why I knock myself out doing stuff like this: videoing our team members' performances at trials, matches, and events; maintaining web albums, etc., while they are discouraging me with comments like "you'll tire of it soon".  Likewise, they can't believe I "waste my time" trying to maintain a Brags page.  My take on it is that it beats doing cross-word puzzles, watching game or murder shows on TV, shopping for clothes, having my nails done, hanging out in bars or cafes, or chit-chatting.  I'm not a small-talker, but I like people.  I like being active.  I need projects.  I enjoy studying the learning process.  Plus, "supporting positive effort wherever I find it" is one of my life-long mantras, and beats sitting around noticing all the things-gone-wrong in this world. I'd be drowning myself in the bottle if I had nothing positive to focus on, no one besides myself to pay attention to.  I seek out positive achievers, then do what makes me happy, which is promoting those achievements, even if it makes me sad that few appreciate it. 

Why we lavish so much attention on our dogs, with most of the humans around us bravely enduring but slowly dying of emotional starvation for lack of personal attention and positive reinforcement, I have no idea. As for me, I love to spoil unspoiled people (especially now that I have the time), believing that I may still be assisting humanity in some small way to move

Upwards and onward, 

Sunday Practice with Cheryl W. & Joy

I picked up Joy and Puddin' and we headed out to the field for 1:30 to hook up with Cheryl W and Grace.  It was in the 50's, overcast and looking like rain, but the weather held until we left around 4.

I got Joy settled in a chair, then we let Puddin' & Lucky run around for awhile.  I tested whether Puddin' would fetch, but he doesn't.  He doesn't tug either.  I introduced him to a wingless jump, a winged jump, the tire, and the down contact of the low dog walk.  Man, I forgot how far my dogs have come in their training!  His head snaps at rear cross flatwork were slow, but he's beginning to understand the concept of keeping his eyes on me.
I ran Maxie and Lucky several times, and both did very well. 

• Lucky's bounced thru the weaves if I had her toy, and walked thru if I didn't.  She walked over the dog walk, but ran if I had her toy.  Cheryl pointed out I was a lot more animated if I was brandishing her toy, which could partially account for her increased enthusiasm.  She almost lost her footing once when one rear foot didn't make full contact with the board as she was running, and I think that shook her up a wee bit. She doesn't usually make spacial mistakes.  Her 2on-2off down contacts were mostly reliable.  She needs to tighten her pulls around jump stantions, which is only a matter of expectation because the girl can turn on a dime at full speed when she plays. We practiced several rear crosses behind the A-frame, and she improved from last time when she stopped forward motion at the top whenever I reared. 
• Maxie ran both courses flawlessly, even when I changed up the sequences.  His serpentines and threadles are strong but there were a few mistakes, his diagonal jumps with full extension are improving.  I want to avoid knocked bars this year, and am practicing lots of steep diagonal jumps at varying speeds, and earier queing of each jump,  to improve his performance.  We would have Q'd several more times last year but for one knocked bar, and they were all due to his uncertainty of which jump to take.

I passed out my new Finger Clickers and everyone seemed to like them. I had no trouble with mine and used it throughout the training period. Very convenient. Lucky and Puddin' both respond well to the clicker. Grace seemed to catch on to it within minutes, too.

Cheryl ran Grace a few times, whose weaves are still weak, so we tried playing the "weave relay" game.  I used Maxie to demo how it works.  Cheryl at one end with treats.  Me at the other end, intending to send him to Cheryl for a treat, then call him back to me for a treat.  He blew us both away, never waiting to be sent or called but just racing thru the weaves to grab a treat from her, then turn around and race to the other end for another treat from me, then back to her, then back to me, about 8 times without stopping.  He ran very fast, and never missed a weave.

Cheryl allowed me to practice hand touches with Grace, then weave entries, then some flat work to improve her awareness of hand signals.  She is very food motivated, which makes the training easier. It was interesting to work with a totally different breed and temperament from the few dogs I am familiar with.  I needed this experience.  It drove home the point that there will be all kinds of dogs in my classes, and none of them alike.  Grace, for example, snarled if I patted her, while I tend to be a dog patting fool.  I have to learn to keep my hands off of other people's dogs until I know what they like.

Yesterday I ordered a TUGSY toy from nosetouch.com that you stuff with food and it squishes out between the mesh as D tugs, because Susan Garrett says all dogs can be trained to tug, and tugging is an invaluable teaching aide.  It builds a strong bond between dog and handler.  I got it for Maxie, who doesn't tug much (but probably doesn't need it), and will try it on Puddin as well.  Tugging is something Joy can do with Puddin' while sitting in her chair.

Back at Joy's, I discovered she has 3 jumps, a tire and 12 weave poles under her carport.  That's great.  When I visit her, I can work with Puddin on these.  We'll see how long it takes for him to catch on, and I'll keep track. 

Sheryl M, my training partner, just got back from the Kiln trial.  She 2Q'd with Charlie on Saturday, but nothing on Sunday.  She surmises she screwed up the standard run by forgetting to run past the last jump.  Charlie slowed down, failed to extend, and knocked the tripple. She figures she had played with Charlie too much before the Jumpers run because Charlie wouldn't budge and had to be removed from the ring. He was tuckered out!  But as she said, it's "live and learn", and

Onward and upwards, in baby steps!

 

Lessons Learned:

With Lucky, try to be as animated without a toy as with one.

Don't assume every dog responds well to the same things.

Lucky needs speed on the dogwalk.

Being A Good Student

I follow Susan Garrett's blog (reachable at the link in my sidebar). She has started an email newsletter series called "Being A Good Student", and has asked for comments on her blog entry What Holds You Back.

So I posted the following today:

I taught Montessori children for 27 years, and many adults in pottery, watercolor and computer classes. I've taught myself many difficult things, like how to build websites, knit, throw on a potters wheel, etc. The one thing I notice that makes a human or canine student easy to teach is if they are "biddable". Willing to trust. Willing to do what you say. Not afraid of "getting it wrong". Not even expecting to get it right at first.

I point out to all my students that "If you knew how to do this already, you wouldn't be here, so don't expect a flawless performance from yourself. I don't expect that of you." It takes lots and lots of practice to even begin to get a "feel" for things (My visualization is the ballet student "at the bar" for hours on end). Do we practice the footwork of our handling maneuvers for hours on end??????

I had a great philosophy teacher who told me "Go to class to ingest. Go home and digest what you ingested." In other words, don't expect every piece you hear in class to fit into your preconceived notions, or to fit all together into a comprehensive system the instant each idea is comunicated. It's like a jig saw puzzle. The pieces come together slowly. Give the teacher a chance to unfold their vision, connect the dots. Be confident that you can explore something new and different for a few hours or days, and still return to your solid base later.

I suspect poor students don't have a solid or wide enough base to venture forth from, so they are horribly afraid to leave it. Prejudice is born of fear. They are uncomfortable with being confused. They raise their hand all the time, interrupt a lot, chatter, pout, cause mayhem, become dissatisfied with the teaching, or quit, because during class they are trying to file each and every piece of new data they hear into their established filing system, and if it doesn't fit immediately, it starts cluttering up their desktop. While attempting to clear up this mess during class, they miss the next bit, and the next, and the next.

My advice to all students: be comfortable with being confused. Enjoy the clutter. Or, establish a mental "For Later Processing" file, and stuff every confusing thing into it. You will find when you go back later and review all the confusing items, half of them aren't confusing any more and can be filed into one of your existing mental files. Plus, you will be able to create new files with new labels, expanding your filing system and your knowledge in rapid fashion, and getting your money's worth out of each class.

I have had so much success with this method myself after so many years struggling to learn and teach difficult things, I have come to trust the process intuitively, and along with reciting my daily mantra: "Patience, Persistence, and Prayer" (the 3 P's), everyone and everything has become my teacher.

I would have liked to refine this hodge podge of thoughts and add more, but the comment was already too long and I was in a hurry. But I've been ruminating about it ever since, and so I add more here.

I wasn't always a good student.  In grade school, I was the one who got ignored when I raised my hand, and called on whenever I didn't know the answer.  I wilted and grew tongue-tied and afraid to participate.  I made decent grades by doing my homework, passing tests, and because my father would have been furious with D's.  I never made an F.  To my father, teachers were liken to Gods and I better not EVER complain about any of them.  Any problem, it was my fault for being a spoiled, ungrateful child.  But I grew to HATE some teachers, whom it seemed were always trying to demoralize their students.  All the way up thru college, I encountered several teachers who started class with "Most of you will not succeed in learning this".  With that approach, that threat, many students didn't even try.  I set out to prove them wrong.

I became a teacher to "protect" children from the demoralizing experiences I had endured.  I love to learn, love to participate, love to stretch myself, and I want that for my students.

As an adult, taking continuing education classes but still mistrustful of teachers, I was always the "clever" one in the back, pacing up and down, evaluating the teacher's every phrase, raising my hand for clarification, justification, or with "points of interest". I don't know exactly when I quit. I recognized that I had changed when, in some class or other, there was a very annoying man in the back of the room, pacing, interrupting the teacher every few sentences with questions. He was a mistrustful student. I saw myself in him, and sunk into shame.

Another instance, I signed up for a class with a renowned instructor.  In the class was another student who was also an instructor of a similar method.  This student spent the entire class trying to teach her own method with "You can also do it like this." or "I do it like this".  I finally told her if she wanted to teach her method, she should put up a flyer or take out an ad, and maybe I might sign up for her class, but at this time I was paying to learn the current instructor's method, so would she please shut up.  She was, of course, highly offended, saying she was "offering her gifts for free." She wasn't there to learn.

Trying to teach pottery and water colors to adults, I discovered many adults are horribly afraid to make mistakes, always apologizing for not doing it right.  With all their negative self-talk, they are harder to work with than most children.  They probably had some fatherly advice along the way, like I did, that "if you can't write like Shakespeare, don't write.  If you can't paint like Michaelangelo, don't waste the paint. The world isn't interested in your junk."  I never accepted that ridiculous limitation, and finally found words to justify my early attempts at art when a fellow Montessori teacher, an art major, told me that the value of doing art is for "personal relevance".

PERSONAL RELEVANCE.  That was the missing key I needed to blossom.  I didn't have to write or paint for others, or to sell product, or make a living at it.  I could do it for personal relevance -- for the pure joy of exploring my capabilities and new media.   Learning is about me BECOMING what I can be, not becoming a world champion, the President, the wife of the president, or any other famous person. I don't have to justify my existance.

FREE AT LAST, FREE AT LAST, THANK GOD ALMIGHTY, I WAS FREE AT LAST.

And I've been enjoying every moment of that freedom from that day on, and yearning to help others throw off the yoke of the tyranny of "perfection as a goal" as well.

Lydia, by Mary Cassatt
(certainly not her first attempt to paint)

Does that mean that I approve of sloppy work, poor performances, ugly messes?  Not at all.  But I am reminded of Mary Cassatt (one of my favorite painters), who, sadly, never kept a single painting she did for the first 10 years she painted.  Compare this with parents nowadays who keep every single crayon stroke their preschoolers ever make, and every little phrase they utter as though it were a completed masterpiece.  There needs to be some balance in between.  Of course one should strive for excellence, but we should all understand that a thousand less-than-excellent executions must flow forth from the inexperienced hand to gain experience, and each execution probably holds some "personal relevance" to the student as they see themselves improve.

To see a progression of Mary Cassett's earlier paintings would be a valuable thing.  Does that mean mediocrity is a creditable art form?  Should it be in museums?  Well, to that I might say NO.  But should it be kept in a portfolio to demonstrate the learning process?  At least a representative sample?  ABSOLUTELY.  I would love to see some of Mary Cassatt's early attempts at painting.  I actually have a copy of the first LP the Beatles cut, and have used it to demonstrate the learning process.  They sounded HORRIBLE!  I mean, it's almost unbearably horrible.  They worked in low down skanky bars for several years, perfecting their craft, before ever even recording that one.

So, yes, I'll keep the videos of Maxie and my 1st year of trialing.  Lots of sketchy performances, barely Q's, and my body not knowing how to run, or move.  We were novices all along, scraping by.  Now working towards our Masters, we are still novices.  But we got out there and did it, didn't give up, and now I know better what to practice.  In my dreams I see myself fit, fleet, and graceful, and me and Maxie connected, focused, and confident.  I know now what it is supposed to look like.  I have a more practiced eye, appreciate more nuances, and that's quite new. I have something to shoot for and if it takes me years of practice to achieve it, what a great way to spend each day.

Now, on to pick up Joy and Puddin', and take Maxie and Lucky to the field for a practice session this overcast Sunday afternoon.  We're meeting Cheryl W. and her Grace there, too.

Upwards and onward!

Addendum:  on 2/5/11, I received another of Susan Garrett's "Being A Good Student" emails.

Good student concept #6;

Be open-minded and brave enough to step outside of your comfort zone.

It seconded some of my points, and ended with these wonderful quotes:

Without continual growth and progress, such words as improvement, achievement and success have no meaning.
~ Benjamin Franklin

One can choose to go back towards safety or forward towards growth. Growth must be chosen again and again; fear must be overcome again and again.
~Abraham Maslow


Move out of your comfort zone. You can only grow if you are willing to feel awkward and uncomfortable while trying something new.
~Brian Tracy


If you always do what you've always done you will aways get what you always got.
~Anonymous

Finger Clicker

Not satisfied with the clicker hanging around my neck, getting tangled up in my clothes or in Lucky's toy, or as a wrist band, still always flailing around to get to it, I had John take one apart so I could see where to put the holes and insert an elastic band so I can wear it on my finger. The prototype looks like this, and it works great! I can still use my hand to do other things like reach in my pocket for treats, and still CLICK whenever you want to! Before I make up a bunch of them, though, or cut off the necklace loop, I'm going to use this one for awhile, make sure the elastic band doesn't cut off my circulation, etc.

Clicker, taken apart, poked,
and elastic sewn into a point for threading.

These are the clickers you get at PetSmart for $1.50 at the check out counter, which make a loud, crisp click. At this price I can make up half a dozen and lend them to my students.  I poked the holes thru the plastic with an old ice pick heated up at the tip, and sewed the flat elastic into a round point at the end so I could thread it through the round holes.

Units don't have to be disassembled to poke the holes, I just took one apart to see how much clearance is needed not to interfere with the metal plate.  They are simple little gadgets, ingenious!  I always wonder who designs these things and gets them manufactured in the first place.  In my next life I want to learn all about the manufacturing process.  They don't teach this in school.

Of course, no sooner than I invent something, I find out it's already been invented.  My friend Cheryl W. sent me this link to a similar product, but the reviews indicate they aren't that good (muffled click, too bulky, etc), so I think I'll stick with my makeshift version.  http://www.dogwise.com/ItemDetails.cfm?ID=K9X263

Okay, enough playing around.  I've got to get ready for dinner at my son Nathan's house tonight.  He's making us a roast in his new pressure cooker.  John is already over there working on an electrical problem.  All my agility friends are in Kiln, MS at a trial this weekend, which I'm missing because next Thursday John and I are leaving for Florida for a week and I don't want to be too exhausted to pack for our trip.  After that trip, it's going to be agility, agility, agility all year. That's the plan anyway.

Upwards and onward!

Agility Committee

Being an instructor apparently puts you on the Agility Committee, which I didn't automatically know!  Being on the Agility Committee automatically makes me feel more responsible for our field and equipment, not to mention our students, which has got me to thinking about the safety of our fence, and the ease of care of our field.

Yesterday I brought my neighbor Thom, the Fences Built guy, out to see our fence, which was damaged in Hurricane Gustav and has yet to be repaired.  We checked every square inch along the bottom for possible holes, found a huge one where the ditch drains the field and the soil keeps eroding, a 50' length of fence that is only 3 feet high, and several places where the fence is not attached to the poles any more or being pushed over by new growth trees.  Thom will give us an estimate on fixing all that, including using used materials he may have salvaged from other jobs.

While Thom and I examined the fence, John was on a laddar loping off the bushes and small trees that grow along the back side of the fence, creating some openings so we could throw our twigs and branches over the fence without them getting all tangled up.  With all the trees on the property, there is always tidying up to do and since we have no "yard maintenance", we have to do it ourselves.  I am hoping everyone in the club helps with this, but you know, it usually falls to a few devoted souls.

It was 37 degrees at Noon, so I took the opportunity to test my 4 layered "freezing weather teaching outfit", and it kept me warm.  In fact, after running Maxie and Lucky a few times, I had to peel off the windbreaker.  Nice!  Maxie was spot on, fast and focused.  Lucky was energetic so long as I was carrying/throwing her toy, but just trying to run the course with her, she became lethargic after the first run.  She followed my signals well, though, including some sophisticated moves, rear steering, and I'm not discouraged despite instructors telling me "Lucky isn't Maxie".  I remember when Maxie used to run half a course, then just sit down and refuse to move.  He had had enough.  I would have to go pick him up.  He still does that occasionally.
Upwards and onward!

Afghan Lessons

Michele, Maxie, Willow on red couch

As aforementioned, I completed a 3 year project, my Bear Claw Afghan, a few days ago and have been curling up on the couch watching TV with it and my Papillons these last few evenings while the temperature is below freezing and everyone is staying indoors.  Monday and Wednesday night agility classes have been cancelled for 2 weeks due to the . . . . . . .

"40 degree rule" - if it hits 40 degrees by 6 p.m. (including wind chill factor), classes are cancelled for the evening.  I'm so bummed out!



Misplaced holes are the easiest
errors to find.


Having not much else to do last night, then, and still amazed with myself for completing such a difficult project (actually rated "intermediate" on the pattern, but very difficult for me), I decided to try and make peace with the mistakes I knew I had made in the knitting.  My afghan isn't perfect.  I almost started feeling bad about that, but then I remembered the rule we apply to our dogs in their agility training --

80% rule" - compare right performances to wrong ones and move on at 80% accuracy.  That's not really a good benchmark to set for knitting, typing, filling prescriptions, or any such skills that require endless repetition with small items, but what the hell, figuring percentages is good mental exercise. So I got out my calculator and the pattern and figured out how many stitches there were in the afghan.  Sounds anal but it was easy and more fun for me than the whole book of circle-a-word puzzles my husband was doing in the other chair.


Turns out, there are 68,064 stitches in my afghan!  Holding it up to the light, I counted no more than 18 errors, but I'm sure I missed a few, so let's make it a generous 50.  Divide 50/68,064 = .000735%.  I don't even know how to read that number.  John says it's about 7 thousandths of one percent.  Is that right? Is it thousandths, or hundredths?



68 thousand + opportunities to get it right!

 Whatever, I made up a new rule:

"7 hundredths of one percent rule" - when you get this degree of accuracy in your knitting, it's okay to feel good about your effort, and time to move on to a more advanced project.  And the truth is, I made a lot fewer mistakes toward the end.  Practice makes perfect.

Can I get better?  Oh, yes.  I held my errors down by tearing out my rows back to any error I found, unless I found it 6 rows down (3 hours work), in which case I left it.  BUT, BUT, BUT, there are knitters who can drill one stitch down for several rows, not undoing any rows, and reweave them all back up the line.  That's what I will learn to do before I commence another knitting project.  With all the YouTube videos out there, I'm sure I can find one that teaches how to do this, same as I learned on YouTube how to knit on flexibile needles in the first place.

Scallops on top, bear claws on underside.

In summary, nobody but the pickiest evaluators will ever notice these mistakes.  My afghan is custom made, soft, functional, warm, beautiful, long enough to cover me head to toe, matches my red couch, and no amount of money could buy it for me.  I had to make it to have it.  No matter which side is up, the pattern is pretty (on one side a bear claw, on the other side a scallop shape).  Both sides are UP, which can't be said of all knitting.
The whole time making it, I was also perfecting various skills -- patience, perseverance, focus, dexterity, pattern memorization, etc.  All of these help me build confidence in myself and apply to every other endeavor, including the goals I have set for me and my dogs in 2011 and beyond.

Upwards and onward!

LCCOC Holiday Gathering

Gifts for the Dirty Santa game piled up all over the place.

Yesterday, January 8, the first date our dog club could find without a trial, seminar, or other dog event scheduled.  Still, some are going to miss the annual gathering for a doggie event of some kind.

The party was held at Mary Nell's house last Saturday, 7 p.m.  Over 30 people attended. The club parties are the only time some of the Agility people ever see some of the Obedience people, and we get to meet some of the spouses, who tend to hang out in the kitchen together. Most everyone brought a dish, the dining table and side boy were laden to overflowing with food and desserts, wine was flowing, and the whole crowd was in a great mood.  The Dirty Santa game was fun, as always. 

I drew #2, and immediately chose the little red doggie mat that wasn't wrapped, which fits perfectly in Maxie's crate.  Nobody tried to steal it from me, so it was clearly meant to be mine and of all the gifts, the only one I really wanted!  I found out later that Sheryl wanted it for Charlie's crate too but didn't want to deprive me of it.  Aw! Ain't friends great.

Some of the gifts, unfortunately, seemed like White Elephant items, (recycled toys from out of the agility trial toy bin, a couple of bags full of odds and ends).  A few people immediately began asking other people to take their gift so they could choose again, or ended up giving it to Kathy for the raffle.

Awards were presented, and Maxie and I got our first Plaque from the club showing his Agility Excellent, and Agility Excellent Jumpers titles earned in 2010, and his first crate tag.  I was so happy that his Excellent titles were included, as he earned these in November, while the cut-off date for ordering the awards was October 31st.  Fortunately, since the party was delayed, the ordering date was also delayed, so our plaque actually will display Maxie's current titles for the next full year while we work on getting or Masters titles.

I simply can't fathom why old timers at the club keep reminding me that plaques and ribbons don't mean much, they've earned so many they just toss them in a drawer, don't even bother picking them up, etc.  It's like telling a child that their elementary school A's are meaningless compared to college (but if you get a C or a D your parents are mighty disappointed).  Everybody has got to start somewhere, and should be proud of achievements all along the way.  I am very proud of mine.

John and I took a bunch of candid photos, so tomorrow I'm uploading those to the club's Picasa Web Albums, which I set up a few years back and still maintain.  A few other members (Calvin, Cheryl W.) also have the password, but so far nobody but me has used it.  Once uploaded, I'll post notice on the club forum so everyone can see the pictures.  FYI, Picasa is a Google product, and storage is free up to 20 Gigabytes of photos.  Another freebie!

It's overcast, about 46 degrees out, breezy, and is supposed to rain later today.  I should get out before it rains, work my dogs, work on my long "to do" list, but I just want to stay in my PJ's, cozy up with my poochies, watch TV, knit on my afghan, and NOT think about cleaning the kitchen or taking down what little Christmas decorations I put up.
Yep, it's raining now and the temperature is dropping.  Me and the dogs are staying put.  I trust this day will be productive one way or another, 'cause I start getting depressed when a day goes by without my achieving anything!  However small, however sluggishly attained, the only direction that makes me feel good is


Max on top, Willow below

 Upwards and onward!

P.S. I finished my bear claw afghan tonight! 3 years' work (winter evenings only). So I did accomplish something good today. And as soon as I put it on the couch, Max and Willow took possession.  They think every thing I do is for them.  Where did they get such a crazy idea?

Also, I have 30 days from date of purchase to evaluate if I want to keep our new 40" Panasonic HDTV, so I worked with it awhile and am still not thoroughly satisfied with the picture quality. No matter how I calibrate it, it's either just a wee tiny tad too harsh, too dark, too sharp, etc. Get one thing perfect and something else goes off.) We don't have that problem with the Panasonic 50" in the living room.  Since I'm going to have to live with this TV for several years, I want it to be as pleasing as possible.

One Jump Is All You Need

"One jump is all you need to learn every handling maneuver". 
So says Susan Garrett, and so says Steve Schwarz, the Agility Nerd.

So I figure, every new agility student, whether serious about agility or just looking to have some good exercise and fun with their dog, should buy or build 1 jump for their yard, den, or patio, or to carry in their trunk and assemble it at the park.  To facilitate that, I'm giving the directions for building your own jump.

Materials for a 4' wide jump:
2 10' PVC poles 1" gauge, cut as follows:
Pole #1, cut 2 4' lengths, and 2 1' lengths
Pole #2, cut 2 3' lengths, 2 1' lengths, and 2 2" lengths
Leftovers: 1.8'

4 PVC T's to match 1" gauge
6 end caps
PVC glue
(Optional) Colored masking tape to decorate the bars.

This gives you 1 jump with the bottom bar set at 4" off the ground.

You might also choose to make your jumps only 3.5' wide, in which case you can use 3/4" gauge PVC, but these jumps don't meet the regulation 4' and 5' wide jumps required in competition.  On the other hand, they are light weight, cheaper, a bit easier to fit in your trunk, and just as much fun for your dog. (I have these at home, as pictured above.)

NOTE:  You need either a skill saw, a hack saw, or a table saw to cut the PVC.  Beware, the plastic can shatter unless you cut slowly, and it helps to wrap the line to be cut with masking tape first. Protect your eyes with safety glasses.

Assembly: Glue the foot parts together. Glue the upright parts together. Glue the end caps on. Don't glue the feet to the uprights (for flat storage), and don't glue the crossbars to the uprights.

Jump Cups are used to hold the cross bars up.  They snap onto the uprights, and you vary their height along the uprights depending on the jump height of your dog (in 4 inch increments from 8", 12", 16", 20", 24").  Since I train 2 dogs and another comes to train at my house, and all are different heights, I have 6 jump cups on each of my jumps, two set at 8" for Maxie, 2 at 12" for Charlie, and 2 at 20" for Lucky.  We move the top bar up and down depending upon who is practicing.  If necessary, I could also slide the jump cups up and down, but that would be a pain in the butt.  When I get time I will make more jump cups for 16" and 22".

You need 2 jump cups to hold up each bar.

You can purchase 1" gauge jump cups (and other gauges) off of Ebay for a reasonable fee.  Go to http://www.ebay.com/.   In their search bar, put dog agility jump cups.  You'll come up with a ton of choices - a much easier option than making your own!

Making your own Jump Cups:  Yes, it can be done if you have a table saw and know how to use it, and you get the right kind of T's that don't have deep inner casting marks.  1 T makes 2 jump cups. Cut the top of the T off a wee bit before the middle mark, leaving a C shape that can clamp on firmly to the upright poles.  Cut the decapitated T in half, perpendicular to the first cut, and voila, 2 jump cups.

What You Can Practice With One Jump:

• Post Turns
• Pull Throughs
• Front Cross (take off and landing sides)
• Rear Cross (take off and landing sides)
• Blind Cross
• Sends
• Calls
• Run Bys
• Around The Clocks
• Distances
• Angles
• Go Jumps, Out Jumps, Come Jumps
• Send to Back Side
• Lateral Lead Outs

These and other handling maneuvers are described on Steve Schwarz's blog. No excuse not to practice in limited space now, or when you can't go outside!

Upwards and onward!

Bad Weather, Tuna Putty, Tug Leash

Last night was rough.  Rumbling thunder, whole sky flickering with lightning, for hours, rain on the roof.  My dogs were extremely restless, FoohFooh pawing and pawing at me, Willow panting so heavily she finally threw up on my bed at 2 a.m. and we had to change the sheets and padding, Maxie hiding under the covers trembling.  Lucky alone was sleeping calmly in her crate.  All of this very untypical, except for Fooh Fooh who has always hated storms.  I didn't get to sleep until 4 a.m.  So today I woke up at 10:30 a.m. feeling tired and disoriented, dogs were starving.

Today is supposed to be my first teaching class.  One student emailed me and said she drives 2 hours to get to class and needs to know before 6 if class is cancelled! I wrote Nedra asking her if she could start letting us know by 4 p.m.  Now it's just piddle around and try to rest up while waiting for an answer. Bummer!  I was all psyched up for class tonight.  Like Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, waiting is a skill that requires peace of mind.

Time to fiddle. Tracey sent me a recipe for a dog treat she calls Tuna Brownies so I made it.  I changed the name to Tuna Putty because it's the color of putty and feels like putty in my hands. You can roll it in a ball, tear off little pieces, it doesn't stick to your fingers and doesn't crumble either. Great for storing unwrapped in your pockets. My dogs all love it, and it's acceptable human food as well (especially if you add the cheese -- which I did not). It's such a pain to have to find the opening to a zip lock bag stuffed inside your pocket, or unzip a treat pouch, every time you need a treat.  Easier to reach for the ball.

I've added the recipe to my Dog Treats and Recipes page. Try it out.  It's easy to make, and inexpensive.

Yesterday on the field working with Max and Lucky, and afterwards at Joy's, working with Puddin' and Lucky indoors, I did some more practice with clicker training. Once you get your D conditioned to respond to the clicker as if it were a treat (salivating pleasure response), you can train on the run and from a distance, click good down contacts and great weave exits from 10 feet away, etc. Boy that sure comes in handy! My clicker is going to be a great training partner. I've started hanging mine around my neck with a long enough cord so the clicker fits in my scrubs pocket when not in use.  One more thing to remember to bring.

Sheryl and I think someone should invent a finger clicker that you wear like a ring on your thumb, or like castinettes on 2 fingers.



Lucky hands the end of her
new leash to Puddin'

 At Joys, my objective was to get Lucky, Puddin' and Maxie acquainted so I can start taking Puddin' with us out to the field now and then, see if he'll fetch, run him, train him a bit, and maybe bring him to my house sometimes.  I walked the 2 big dogs around the block so they would form a pack (Dog Whisperer style), then sat them both in the back seat of my car with me and Maxie in front, engine running.  So far, so good.  I've never handled a 75 lb dog, a huge vibrant hunk of Boxer puppy, and still don't know his behavior like I do my own dogs.  Very gentle, but strong as an ox and could knock me over in a second.

Joy gave Lucky a brand new tug leash (never had one of those before, a short felt braid intertwined with strong rope she had ordered from a vendor, and just Lucky's purple color). We put it on Lucky, and within seconds Lucky handed the other end to Puddin, and Puddin started tugging her all around the house. This went on for 20 minutes. It was so adorable. Such beautiful, intelligent, caring, loving animals. Yes, I think they've bonded!



Puddin leads Lucky around
the house.



New Year's Resolutions

We kicked off 2011 with our 12th Annual New Year's Eve bonfire and labyrinth walk, with old neighborhood friends and family, only this year it was drizzling so we gathered inside for most of the evening and gourged ourselves on entrees and desserts.  Max and Lucky did their tricks. Everyone wrote down their resolutions on one sheet, their Throw Away's on another sheet, and their material requests on a cabbage leaf.  Miraculously, the drizzling rain abated just long enough for everyone to go outside at 11:30, burn their Throw Aways,  perform the Mayan Meditation Dance, jump the fire line and race into the center of the labyrinth to shoot off our roman candles.  It was great fun. Some folks left shortly after that, while Jonathan, age 13, took charge of the fireworks in the sprinkling rain and did a marvelously mature job of safely managing them til they were all gone. I jumped over the fireline with Maxie, John jumped over with Lucky, then I walked Lucky into the labyrinth "to bring her to the inner circle", then I walked Maxie out "to bring him to the outer limits", symbolically in keeping with my agility resolutions below.  Then the last 6 of us (Laura, Portia, Jonathan, Audrey, John and me) gathered on the front porch, put on Queen,  broke out the champagne and raised our glasses to the New Year and many other toasts. Portia, age 8, had us all laughing after her 1 sip of champagne, which brought out a hilarious side of her I had never seen.  We were rolling. Then out came the dancing ribbons and all us girls twirled around the yard in self-expressive dance for half an hour or so, until nearly 4 a.m. It was energetically liberating and so satisfying to be with good and trusted friends, infusing the air with confident positivity.  It was perfect!

My NEW YEARS RESOLUTIONS that pertain to my dogs:

1. Bring Lucky from Novice thru Excellent in one year, repeating what I did with Maxie last year in both Jumpers and Standard.
2. Bring Maxie all the way up to Masters Title in both Jumpers and Standard, in as few trials as possible (6-10).
3. Improve my stamina. Work up to sprinting 100 yards 4 times a day (to simulate doing 4 runs per day at trials).  Make that 6 if I decide to compete in FAST class.
4. Be the BEST agility instructor I can be.
5. Perfect my pre-competition routine.
6. Perfect my course memorization/visualization skills.
7. Perfect my handling skills.
8. Manifest a diesel Coachman Concord motor home that's in great shape, for next to nothing, keep it packed and ready!
9. Help our club move onward and upward, developing at least 3-5 new agility competitors in 2011 for 2012.
10. Learn more about putting on trials.
11. Strengthen my network of agility friends.

On New Year's Day, we slept in then friends came over and we watched our new AVATAR HDDVD, Extended Version, with friends, and ate all the left-overs from everybody's house! 

So now, our cabbage leaves are buried, Jonathan has gone home, parties are over, dishes are washed, most of the gifts given out, and it's time to get crackin'.  I just ran my 100 yards, twice actually, my calves ache and I'm winded.  When I can do that without the ache and panting, I'll know I'm making progress.  I'm giving myself 2 months (til March) to get in shape.

One of the things John and I are doing today is learn how to stream Maxie's YouTube videos on our HD TV.  I also want to see if I can stream videos straight from my Handycam, and how I might improve the quality of my 2011 videos.

Upwards and onward!

Mayan Meditation (repeated with hand and body motions in all 4 directions):

A way opens before me.
All obstacles and impediments are removed.
Only that which is worthy and desirable comes forward with me.

Let it Be!

After each chant, Portia started scooping up wet leaves and throwing them up in the air over our heads like confetti.  It was so festive, I followed suit and so did a few others.  Like Susan Garrett points out in her webinar, the most important quality for success to cultivate is "gratitude" for every blessing received.