Samurai: Dots Connected

Lines connected point out 

back-to-front relationship.

First off, if you look at the pictures below, you can see the points on Samurai's front above have been adjusted from the points we indicated on his photo below. The yellow ones are more accurate to what is really there on the wind poofed Samurai photo we've been working on.

My initial thoughts is that he is pretty well angled, back to front, overall. He's a little steeper in the front, though he's well angled enough to provide nice extension. Angles in the back give him the ability to get his hindquarters underneath him to accelerate, jump or turn.

He has a 39 degree slope in his pelvis which is over the 30 degrees that is desirable for a performance dog. 

I was afraid he might be over-angulated in the rear, but that seems to be ok, according to Helen, and the overall balance of the angles is nice.

I'm waiting now to get input and will hopefully continue to post updates on my blog.

Samurai's Angles

Nicely angled, mostly.

Here is our latest homework for our canine performance anatomy class. It shows that Samurai is nicely angled in the rear, with a sloping pelvis that means that he can get his hindquarters up underneath him, helping him to jump and turn quickly. His front is straighter, but not bad for a toy breed dog, with a shorter upper arm. It luckily has some angle to it. We'll be learning more about what this all means, but this how things look right now. 

Sam's Anatomy

Learning about canine performance structure

with our pal, the invisible Sam.

Samurai was a skinny puppy, but his bony little self was never so transparent as this layered photo illustration Mike and I created of him for our class with Helen Grinnell King for Daisy Peel's online classroom.

This is a work in progress and the illustration you see here has already been shifted and corrected, with a couple more tweaks to do for tomorrow.

The class has required quite a bit of hands on and computer-assisted exploration, but it's all been worth it. I've learned how little I really understood about canine anatomy, and particularly, functional anatomy.

Still, it's amazing when you think about it. Underneath all that hair, is a very complicated piece of equipment that makes our little guy move the way he does. Understanding the particulars of how he's put together will hopefully help me fine tune the way I need to handle and manage him, as well as project where potential trouble spots might lie and what I can do to prevent injury.

I've enjoyed this class every step of the way and there is more to come. 

Watercolor Samurai

Samurai's watercolor smile.

Last week, we started taking photos of Samurai for performance structure class in Daisy Peel's online classroom. We got a really cute outtake that Mike turned with the help of a new $4 PhotoShop filter into something that resembles a sweet, little watercolor. Thought I would share it hear in hopes that it will make you smile, too!

Easter Buddy

Samurai hops in to wish 

you a Happy Easter!

Samurai was doing his "karate chops" out on the porch this morning, so I got this picture. Sorta.

Anyway, I hope all the fuzzy Easter Buddies out there have a wonderful day!

Spring is a Season for Learning

Tiny Taylor steals a close up 

in a photo shoot for Samurai's structure class.

With Samurai's hazy future as a competition dog, I decided that since we couldn't really show the way I'd like, at least not now, that I would invest in training myself, instead.

It's really an idea that's paid off really well. I've met a lot of wonderful, smart, creative people and have been exposed to some of the most interesting ideas in dogs and dog training around.

It's been cool.

Actually, it turns out that I've got to the point that I enjoy training and learning so much that I don't really miss trialing much, if at all.

So for spring, I've already jumped in, starting with an International Skills Seminar with Agility Nerd, Steve Schwartz and then onto my first online course, a view into performance dog structure with authority, Helen Grinnell King courtesy of Daisy Peel's online classroom project.

We'll go back to camp in the summer and hopefully more good things in between.

I've happened to think back to all the great people I've been fortunate to train with in the last year and a half, and came up with the following list:

Daisy Peel

Stuart Mah

Anne Braue (2x)

Karen Holick

Jennifer Crank

Sherry Kleuver

Dana Pike

Steve Schwartz

Helen Grinnell King

If I could only absorb all the lessons I've been exposed to thanks to these individuals, I would certainly be handling like a pro by now. That hasn't quite happened, but I've had fun learning what I can, and Samurai has certainly benefited.

Samurai takes a break from posing

to give us his trademark smile.

Plus, it's a lot more fun learning new ways to do things to be stuck in the same old, same old.

I think it's also made Samurai a better and more determined learner as he's signed on to the concept that learning is fun -- and fun is learning. Also, that learning is "what we do". 

It's taught him to come in to interactions with eyes and ears open...just in case he might miss something. It's really a very interesting change to see in him.

So will Sam ever have that career in the ring I would wish for? Seriously, I have no idea. But in the meantime, we're building better teamwork and a clearer channels for communications by becoming partners in learning.

So, how are you changing up the ways you train and learn agility? Why not make your own resolution to find a new learning experience for yourself this spring. There are so many great opportunities out there today, it would be a shame not to jump in and try.

Relaxing on Porch with iPad and Papillon