Have a Sami Christmas!

Hope you and yours have a merry little Christmas!

The View from 4 Inch

Preferred running order at AKC Nationals

And hopefully Mr. T will be this happy...

Received word from Steve Herwig, Secretary of the 2010 AKC National Agility Championship about how the Preferred jump height will be handled at the 2010 AKC National Agility Championship in Tulsa, OK.

Per Mr. Herwig:

For rounds 1, 2 and 3, the preferred and regular dogs will run at the same time as their jump height is exhibiting in each ring.

For Challengers, first all of the preferred dogs will run, (4 inches thru 20 inches), then we’ll reset the bars and run the regular dogs in the same ring immediately following (i.e. 8 inches thru 26 inches).

Same with Finals – ie. first all the preferred jump heights will run (starting with 4 inches), then we’ll reset the bars back to 8” and run the regular dogs.

I will be sending out an email blast to all who have qualified today – I’ll be sure to include this information within that blast.

From View From 4 Inch: Congratulations and best wishes to all 2010 NAC qualifiers!

A Matter of Energy

I can't count the number of times when someone has said to me, "my next dog is going to be a little dog." I think when they've seen how tight some courses can be, and how difficult this can be for some large dogs, they think the answer, automatically, must be to get a smaller dog.

We'll leave the training part of this issue aside for now, but the fact is that running a small dog, particularly a toy dog, is not especially "easier". Otherwise, you would see a much greater percentage of small dogs, vs. large dogs qualifying. In general, I don't think you do.

Particularly, once you get down to 4" jump height the Q rate falls pretty dramatically. On top of that, many 4" competitors cannot even run in Standard due especially to the height of the A frame, and also to the particular difficulty of getting a dog to ride the drop of the teeter.

It takes an especially brave little dog to do that, and an even braver one, combined with a judicious touch in training, to get them to ride it consistently through the course of a long career.

There is another issue though that complicates the ability to trial and Q with a tiny toy dog at an agility trial. And that is energy.

A toy dog has a tiny liver that can only process a limited amount of energy at any one time. At the extremes, toy dogs, and especially toy breed puppies, can actually deplete available energy when playing hard, or when they haven't been fed frequently enough.

They can go into hypoglycemia, and if not given a nutrition paste quickly, they can die.

Not many toy dogs actually die of hypoglycemia on the agility field, but they do often run out of energy.

This can happen for many reasons:

-- Too long of a warm up.

-- Not enough care in managing how energy is supplied on trial day

-- Skipping meals in order to "motivate" the dog

-- Dog will not eat at trials due to stress

-- Insufficient rest

I have actually had Taylor "bonk out" on me a couple of times when his class has been delayed after his normal lunch time and I've haven't kept track of time.

Both of these times, he was hyper, anxious and visibly confused on course, terms that do not usually describe his performance.

Because of this, I've made a commitment to keeping his meals on schedule at trials, no matter what else is happening, or how soon after his meal it appears he will need to go into the ring.

If going into the ring appears imminent, I will give him a smaller snack, but not skip it.

Keep in mind when I talk about "meals" here, I am speaking of toy dog portions, measured roughly in teaspoons.

Which reminds me of another related point: Many toy breed dogs should be fed three times a day. My breeder even made this a contingency to taking Taylor, due to his very small size. Once again this is due to the risk of hypoglycemia if meals are taken too far apart.

Besides the health issues of energy management in toy breeds, there is an impact on how successfully and energetically a dog can run, depending on how well its energy needs are met.

Oftentimes, we hear of toy breed dogs who run well in the morning, only to be pokey and lethargic in their later classes.

Or, they seem to "run out of gas" on the course or maybe even have trouble getting started.

In the dogs we run against in 4" jump height, we see these problems a lot.

To complicate the issue, many handlers interpret this lethargy as a motivational issue rather than one with metabolism at the core.

That is why, in managing my own dogs, I do the following:

- Make sure small amounts of high energy foods are fed, particularly in the hours leading up to the run. Observation on what works for the particular dog is key. Make sure you feed something that is easily digestible, and able to be given in very small portions.

- Consider using energy drinks. I've found these are particularly helpful in restoring energy for successive runs, especially on hot days. These can be given quite close to going in the ring and can often revive a little dog that seems tired or "out of it".

- Make sure fresh water is always available and that the dog stays hydrated.

- Get your dog used to resting in trial conditions and do your best to provide a quiet, comfortable place for the dog to rest. We've found that a crate that is well covered with the dog's own comfy bed inside works best.

Although big dog people will tell you that dogs rest better in their crates, it's also true that toy dogs were bred to be lap dogs and many are quite comfortable sleeping on laps. Once again, observe and do what works best for your own dog, even if it means breaking with conventions.

- Make good decisions. Toy dogs are not big working dogs, and they often are unable to put in the kind of long days and extended training sessions that might simply take the edge off a big, energetic dog. Know your limitations, and always commit to a less than the limit of what your dog can comfortably do.

When your dog trusts that you will not overwork him, he will be more likely to commit his full energy into an effort when needed. He will be less likely to "hang back" dreading being pushed to hard. And he will be less likely to train himself to conserve energy trying to preserve himself for a long haul.

- Make travel plans to provide for lots of quality rest whenever possible. This can extend to planning when to arrive, what you do in your off hours and what kind of hotel you choose. We tend to stay with our dogs to rest at the hotel after show hours. Also, you might find your dog rests better when you pick a hotel that is not the main show hotel.

Many hotels accept only dogs 20 pounds and under, and oftentimes, these hotels will be less hectic and noisy, with less barking and disruptions from dogs being taken in and out of the hotel at night.

I say this not because toy dogs are necessarily quieter (often quite the contrary), but simply because there will be fewer total dogs than at the primary show hotel.

These suggestions are what I have found works best for me. Working at maintaining energy is a good part of what has helped Taylor perform consistently and dependably over the years. I know energy will continue to remain a priority as long as I trial and train with toy breed dogs.

Doodle of the Day

Samurai front kick

A Love of Lines

Earlier in my life, I loved to ski, and eventually became a ski instructor. I remember in my ski training that we learned to look for the best lines and how to ski a good line as we schussed and carved our way down the slope.

At first, I couldn't quite grasp the concepts of "lines" or how to find them. But once I unraveled the concept, it changed the whole experience. Instead of skiing turn by turn, the descent became a long, flowing and rhythmic dance, at its best, at one with the mountain.

It was a discovery that had a profound effect on me, and which years later, influenced my style and preferences in agility handling.

Since early on in working with Taylor, I sought to break free from handling obstacle to obstacle and to find, as in skiing, the beauty of the line.

As it relates to agility, I feel the concept, in its essence, is to know that a line has no abruptness. It flows from one point to the next without interruption.

The feel of working with a line is like holding a pencil to paper and trying to move the pencil around the page without skipping or unevenness. No start. No end. Just a flowing balance of forward momentum and light, but engaged control.

Many times in agility, we see performances that suffer for lack of a knowledge of lines. How they function. How pressure, or lack of it, affects the shape and integrity of the line further down.

The simple way is to see a sequence. To discover the line that may be found within the sequence is the pure stuff of a swift and effortless run.

To push too hard is to set up for wide turns and over-corrections later. To hold back too much is to bring focus away from the line, resulting in lost momentum.

Handling lines surpasses thinking about placing one cross here and another one there. It goes beyond handling obstacle by obstacle, where the dog becomes lost to late commands and is never really given a workable idea of where to go.

Intrinsic to the line is a kind of zen. It's a move, in actuality, that goes beyond running a course of obstacles to an action that unites thought and purpose.

In skiing, when I first looked down uneven surface of the ski hill, it seemed impossible that a skier could decipher a line within that uneven terrain.

In agility, I thought the same thing early on, losing a nice little terrier to the crevasse of my unenlightenment.

With Taylor, though, I have now hold the good fortune of having found our way around the mountain. Mostly by dint of having a dog with intelligence and amazing perception.

We've now reached a point where our practice (the hulk of the A frame excluded) deals mainly in exploring and reveling in lines. The better we are at finding them, the more blissful and swift the going.

Straight, fast, removing the sense of "obstacle" from the way we think about agility obstacles. Finding the perfect line has become a personal quest of mine, and the wonder of it all is bottomless.

Like words written on paper, the secrets in every course can be found in its lines.

In our study of these lines, we inscribe a signature of who we are on the course. We discover the truth of our training and what we are made of as handlers.

AKC Agility Invitational Epic FAIL

How sad is this: The AKC invites the top five agility competitors from each breed out to its big 125th Birthday Bash at the 2009 AKC Eukanuba National Championship in Long Beach, CA, last week.

Unfortunately, the worst happened.

Rain fell. And fell. Until the makeshift tent city that housed the agility ring and crating area FAILed, producing a situation that became closer to a wartime refugee camp than a celebration of agility's finest.

So...AKC, does it always have to be just about the money? Can't you just once remember and respect the more enlightened reasons you were founded and the reason you exist? Can't you genuinely honor the achievements of all of your top dogs, not just the conformation ones?

If not, maybe it's time for a little truth in advertising:

We're more than just champion dogs. (Oops, fact is, we kinda are. We just luvs those conformation $$$!)

We're the dogs champion. (Unless it comes to agility dogs in flooded tents vs. inconveniencing the conformation folks...then, sorry! You're on your own.)

Bottom line:

This situation is deplorable and the AKC should be ashamed. Really, really ashamed. This situation was a travesty and a dishonorable way to treat AKC agility's best of the best.

What many of us have suspected about the place of agility within the AKC has now been proven unfortunately correct. The mask torn off, the damage done.

Will the AKC do the right thing and give the Agility Invitation competitors a sincere apology?

Call me jaded, but I'll believe it when I see it.

Seen enough? Want to give the AKC a piece of your mind?

Write to the AKC to demand that a public apology be given to all of the 2009 AKC Eukanuba Agility Invitational competitors. Send your email to AgilityAdv@akc.org.

A Secret Santa Mission

On the agenda tonight: get a fuzzy tug leash for Samurai. One that is scaled small, so it doesn't seem like his tiny 4-pound frame is dragged down with a line so heavy it could hold a battleship.

It's part of my plan to get a leash that I can (hopefully) drop over his unsuspecting little head while he's tugging on the leash (and before he can make a getaway).

So anyway, here's where I found some nice ones. Scaled for toy dogs. Soft, with enticing rabbit fur woven into matching tugs.

Heard about it from my Toy Fox Terrier performance list and they're made by Kollars by Kathryn.

On order: a black and brown one with Horse Parade ribbon for Samurai.

Classic black and brown...

...accented with Horse Parade ribbon.

I've ordered a pretty pink one for my friend's Papillon, Jayde (hope she's not reading this!).

Pink is pretty girl perfect.

So, the questions are...

1. Will they arrive in time for Christmas?

2. Will my plan for Samurai-catching work?

TBA

How much is too much?

One tough little guy. Too hard to let go.

I once had a wonderful little mixed breed dog. He was strong and brave and got me through one of the most difficult portions of my life. But he eventually grew older, and that stalwart and healthy little dog very suddenly, in the course of a few months, went from being a strong and healthy old dog, to a dog dying of a brain tumor.

Although mentally, I knew this was a dog, emotionally, I felt as if I was losing a child. There is an exceedingly profound way we sometimes connect to certain dogs. Often, we find there is no real way to cope with the emotions we feel when faced with their impending loss.

At the time we went through this, I felt as if this burden of grief was exacerbated by the need of certain members of the vet community to keep our dog alive. He was at the time, 13 years old. Whether healthy, or not, he probably had at most, a year or two left of his lifespan.

But, we were encouraged to drug this dog with steroids and phenobarbital...even to pursue brain surgery and courses of radiation. And during this time, neither the dog nor us slept due to his pain and seizures, which broke out in raging clusters in the middle of the night.

Even in the last hours of his life, we were presented with options -- highly expensive options -- on how we could prolong it. In the end, we spent over $10,000 and really succeeded only in extending the suffering of a wonderful dog.

Yes, we were the ultimate decision makers, but there was also a certain pressure to take additional and costly measures which, ultimately, only extended the life of, but did not heal or help our dog.

Today, I came across an article about a new book, On the Destiny of Species: by Means of Natural Selection, or Elimination of Unfavoured Races in the Struggle for Life, by British veterinarian, Matthew Watkinson.

While I have not read, nor necessarily endorse the book, I was struck by several of the comments described in a review of the book by the blog, Pawnation.

Watkinson is quoted:

"I have forgotten the name of the dog of course, and indeed a lot of other ancillary details, but I do know that its front leg had been amputated to remove an aggressive bone tumor, and I do know that I will never forget its screams. It wasn't even a young dog. It was an old dog with cancer and yet, despite being within touching distance of the end, it was lying in a soulless hospital kennel screaming in agony and recoiling in horror when anybody approached. It was horrible and no matter how hard I tried I couldn't justify its suffering. I must admit, I couldn't justify my own anger properly either.

I was quite sure the dog's suffering was entirely based on the emotional needs of its owners, and that it couldn't have suffered if it had been euthanized, but the full implications were beyond me. What if the dog had been younger for instance, would that have made the suffering acceptable? And if it had, what does 'younger' actually mean? Is it less than 8 years old? Or 9? Or 8½? And if it had been young enough to make the procedure acceptable, does a dog know whether the pain will stop, even if I do?"

It's an ethical quandary, both for pet owners and the veterinary community. Does the availability of options and the resources to support it justify the treatment? It's a difficult question to answer, especially when one is faced with making decisions on behalf of a beloved friend.

My only wish is that when the time comes for my own dogs, that I will have the strength to make the right decisions. Not just for myself and my own wish never to lose them, but for the sake of the lives that depend on me.

2 QQs Again

Pictured above: A representative shot of Taylor on the fly. This particular one hangs on the wall of our club.

GREATER LAFAYETTE KENNEL CLUB, Dec. 5 & 6 -- Taylor earned two double Qs again this trial. They count as his fourth and fifth double Qs toward his PAX2. One of Taylor's ancestors was nicknamed the "Precision Clockwork Mouse" for his work in obedience years ago, and Taylor showed the same consistent dependability in his runs this weekend.

The runs also counted as the seventh and eighth legs towards Taylor's Master's Jumpers Preferred 4 (MJP4) and his eighth and ninth legs toward his Master's Excellent Preferred 3 (MXP3) titles.

Trouble looks like this

Samurai in the agility dojo.

He's the most adorable little dog. But Samurai is also what we affectionately like to call, a "special needs kid." He's very active and extremely independent. He's high spirited, loving and very, very wild.

As Dylan said, "try and catch the wind." Ask me, I've tried.

It's frustrating.

But an oddly strong little breeze also has a way of picking a person up and carrying them in a direction that can be entirely unexpected. I'm wondering where this one will go. Somewhere good? Or somewhere lost and far beyond the reach of assistance?

With Samurai, it could be either. One step at a time, we'll find out.

Heeling to music

Obedience today...

My friend, Mary, got me started on a habit that I like very much. It's actually sort of addictive. Heeling to music helps me keep a rhythmic pace. The dogs really seem to pick up the beat, and it seems so much more enjoyable than drilling the heel.

With Samurai, I've started having him "pop" up for a treat on the left hand turns. Turn, take one step and pop up for treat. It's really getting him to dig in and power around those turns.

Taylor is working hard on his dumbell, and I'm working hard to try to throw it correctly. We use the smallest size dumbell made and it is very hard to throw it any distance accurately. It's kind of like throwing a toothpick with pieces of wood on the sides. I am improving, or at least I hope so.

One thing I'm trying is throwing the dumbell with the long end leading, getting it a bit of a spin as it is released. This helps it not bounce around so much, and it sort of digs in as it lands.

The other thing about a small dumbell is that it is very hard for the dog to see, especially when it falls up against white ring gating. Taylor's eyesight is not all that sharp, so I give him a hand on that one.

When you're working at the far extremes of a sport, you have to make allowances for what is normal within that particular context.

I See Dog People

Small towns in America often hide interesting surprises. Like this photographer in Tuscola, Ill. They will take a photo of your dog and create a "dog person" portrait. These particular dog people seem to be frozen in a perpetual 1950's suburban world.

http://www.dogtownartworks.com/site/Home.html

Last dog this class

Tired papillon. Soft, soft bed.

And back we go to our hotel. Usually, something bare bones and simple. This time, a pleasant surprise. A real hotel. Nice cushy carpets. Dense, soft bed. It accepts pets, is the kicker, all for a basic pet hotel price. Dog and humans both, revel in our good fortune.

2 Double Qs

Taylor earned his second and third double Qs toward his PAX2 this weekend. He had nice, smooth fast runs and we felt like we were having fun again after the pressure of getting the last couple of QQs for our PAX earlier in the fall.

The runs also counted as the fifth and sixth legs towards Taylor's MJP4 and his sixth and seventh legs toward his MXP3. His total number of double Qs for the AKC trialing year is 15.

The biggest accomplishment of the weekend, though, goes to Samurai, who managed to stay pretty calm (for him) and maintain his composure pretty decently (for him) over the two days of trialing.

For Sami, this was a pretty hard goal and we are very heartened by his improvement. Many times the hardest training jobs are those that don't earn ribbons.

Even Samurai sleeps

My puppy Samurai is a whirling dervish. Always moving, seldom stopping. But sometimes, even the wildest little dogs must succumb to the comforts of a downy pillow. When they do, they are particularly endearing. One of those blessed, rare occurrences of nature, like the sun obscured by the moon.

Positive reinforcement, sit com version

Here is a cute clip from a sit com that demonstrates the principles of operant conditioning in a humorous way. The funny thing is how many dogs could pick up much more and faster than the human in this video? Also, many of our training-savvy dogs, in this situation would probably start throwing behaviors, providing more opportunities for reinforcment.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JA96Fba-WHk

Re-training the A Frame. Again.

I think this is maybe the third time?

First time was when I went to a seminar and the instructor kept having me repeat a front cross sequence that ended in the A frame. After a few times of this, Taylor decided: No more A frames.

Dumb of me to not see what could happen. To put him up to that. I trusted an expert, when I should have been trusting my dog.

Lesson is, never blindly do what someone tells you to do, if you feel it might not be the right thing for your dog.

After all, that person that sent us to climbing that A frame went home that night and slept soundly.

Me? I went home to a problem that would dog me the rest of my dog's career.

Bottom line: if you have a tiny toy dog, your dog has only so many full height A frames in them. So use them wisely.

Ration yourself to only a slim few per practice session. If you really need to train something, lower the darn thing down.

Yes, it's a pain. No, you can't lower that thing alone. But maybe you can trade off a favor with someone to get it done.

Work at a height that your dog is comfortable with. Work at getting them to power up it confidently, engaging their hind end -- a lot of little dogs will try to actually PULL themselves up with their front paws. This never works since the front of a dog is not as strong as the hindquarters.

So watch for them to engage the hindquarters on the climb and reward it.

Practice all kinds of approaches. Work on distance.

Then, slowly raise the monster up. Only if your dog is successful.

Repeat as often as necessary throughout your little dog's career.

Above all, don't get discouraged. Take it one step at a time. One inch at a time. And hopefully you'll get that monster tamed. At least for awhile.

Coming next session...

Fall session training classes are wrapping up. Plans for Winter session are underway. And once again, I consider my options for my two active dogs like proposed movements on a chessboard.

Place this dog here, and block opportunities for...what?

Place this dog there...gain this, but now need to give up that.

Glad there are so many options, but only wish there were more time and energy to do it all.

Now, as always there will be choices. Some things taken. Others dropped.

Hoping to do the most with the precious time available. Both in terms of sessions and in dogs' lives and careers.

Dog like a bird

A beautiful toy dog is like a bird. Delicate. Graceful. Coat soft like feathers.

Bright eyes. Bird bright mind.

Out on the course, it's like they're flying.

A swoop of cool air around me.

So small we're almost invisible

Or so it would seem in many of the many dog training classes we attend. Dogs no smaller than than medium sized are usually chosen to demo. Most usually, it's a Golden.

So, it's no wonder Toy Breed trainers are so often frustrated and retire early from dog training.

Personally, there are things in obedience that are hard for me to translate for my dogs. Fronts. Close work. It's hard to do without bending yourself into a pretzel. And worse still, presenting an improper picture for the dog (that later needs to be retrained).

Training a toy breed teaches one early to think independently to find solutions that fit within a miniature frame. I find it an interesting challenge though, and I feel the explorations I've done to find the right approaches for my dog are often the best part of the journey.

Trainer's Disease Strikes

Yesterday, I took a break from working and (finally) took the dogs to practice at the club. I found myself "over-practicing" with my 16 mo old Papillon Samurai and immediately felt very bad about it.

I have seen this "trainer's disease" of doing things "one more time," one too many times. The worst part of this syndrome is it's easier to detect in someone else than yourself.

I think it's human goal orientation that pushes us to chase that extra bit of improvement that seems just around the corner, when the very action of pushing sets that goal even further away.

So, I promise to myself and to my little dog that I will put a timer in my training bag. Set a maximum time for each training session, say 5 minutes. I will keep only a limited number of treats on me for this time period, and when they are done, we are done.

Finally, I promise to be more observant of my dog. To heed when he's telling me he's had enough, and try harder not to even make it to that point.

Trainer's disease is curable. And the cure is keeping the dog's needs first above the trainer's.

Welcome to my 4" World!

I have been an admirer of several wonderful agility blogs for awhile now. Sadly, most of them, like the world of agility itself, are from a big dog perspective.

My world is different. Smaller. Sort of the needle point version of your agility. It's different down here. And hopefully this blog will be a forum to share with others a little of what it looks like.

Just inches above the grass blades.

The View From 4 Inch Jump Height.