It has become tradition on Mother's Day to have a dog trial at the Spencer's that is interrupted at lunch time for a lovely pot lock picnic. Everyone brings out their favorite salads and sides, to go with the BBQ tri-tip and Mother's Day cake. The long tables are set up in the barn breezeway and all the action stops so that everyone gets their fill and catches up with one another at the mid-day break.
The dog trial was really fun, as usual this year, if only Mother Nature had held off a little bit on the heat. Regardless we all had a good time even if it was hot out. The Open ran first, which is not always the case, but it was this year. We ran on lovely mixed wool sheep -- some dark faced, some white faced -- that were so appropriate for Open. They were a wonderful challenge without being overly discouraging to dog or handler. You had to work to keep them together and you had to work to pen them.
Coal ran in the Open after just coming off his layoff from the sprained ankle. I wasn't sure how he would do but I was really pleased to find out, at the post, that we were pretty much in synch. He was out of shape physically and it showed, but other than that we had a great time on the course. It was a nice run, an especially nice fetch (which I messed up, not him) and a lovely drive (when I left him alone -- duh!). The pen, we had to work hard for. The single was sort of half-baked, teetering on the edge of the ring, but I knew I was running out of dog (he was getting hot) so I took what I could get at that point. I wasn't going to push Coal any harder after doing such a good job. Our run was placed 5th out of about 17 dogs so I was very happy with that!
The pronovice dogs had the white hair sheep in sets of three. There were some really pretty runs as PN is very competitive in our area. Ryme ran late, about 4 Pm after waiting all day in the car in the heat. It was not his day. I could tell when I sent him on his outrun that he was uncomfortable with the situation. He was slow and tentative on the outrun; I stopped and whistled him out twice. I knew right away that he was not going to run well. After a good stop at the top, the fetch got a bit precarious; he would not open his flanks turning the post or starting the driveaway, so I retired. It was not happening, the sheep and dog were hot, and it had turned into a long day. No need to prolong it. I continue to try to understand him and work with him. We will try again another day.
Thank yous to the Spencers and all of their crew so that we all could enjoy another nice day of dog trialling on really good sheep and in enjoyable company. That's my last USBCHA trial until fall since I won't be traveling this summer to any trials out of the area. It's a bit sad for me, since Coal is running well, but there are a few RESDA trials to attend and of course lots of training to work on and sheep to take care of.
The Boyz at Carmel, our favorite place
Sunday, May 19, 2013
Sunday, May 5, 2013
The Other Side of the Clipboard
 |
| Dunnigan Hills trial, pro-novice and nursery course field; thanks for this photo to Gloria Atwater
|
I was so surprised when I was asked to judge at this trial in the first place. After I got over the shock, I said yes! Of course, any way to help. The last two trials, Ryme and I have done the hard, dirty work in the sheep pens for the Pro-Novice/Nursery day. I considered this year's assignment to be a promotion! (at least I hope so). I have judged AHBA and RESDA in the past so it wasn't my first time at the judging job in general.
Bill B. told me to read over three things: the USBCHA guidelines, the USBCHA rules, and the Colin Gordon book, One Man's Opinion. I had all three of them at home already (what does that say bout me? ) and studied up on them mainly during my lunch breaks at work.
It was kind of nice because they asked me to come over and judge part of the first nursery on Sunday afternoon after the last Open. And then I came back and judged the rest of the nursery and all of the pro-novice (there were a lot of dogs) on Monday. So I had time on Sunday evening, before Monday's longer day, to think over the handful of runs I had watched on Sunday.
Overall it was a fun experience. The sheep were working beautifully and most of the dogs did, too. There are some PN handlers in our area who are really stepping up and they will soon be very dangerous! I told them so. It is wonderful to see...
Everyone was very supportive. If they had negative comments, they didn't share them with me. I had a wonderful clerk and the course director and score runner were fabulous. Such a great team! It's so neat to see everyone kick in to make a trial happen. As Bill told me, this experience will make you a better handler. Let's hope so! He has been my teacher for a number of years so it was really nice to be asked; I figure if anyone knows what I know about sheepdogs, it is he. My main goal was consistency and fairness. I wanted the sheep and dogs to be respected. In most cases, they were. In a few cases, the dogs were not respected. I have to say that I deducted a few points for that; it was a very small minority though. The vast majority of the dogs and handler teams showed good work for the level they are in.
This trial was held in memory of Nicky and Bob Riehl, who both passed away recently. I told everyone at the first handler's meeting that it was an honor to be asked to judge at a trial honoring Nicky. She was always supportive of beginner handlers, and she was supportive to me. She was also a great listener when I lost my Bid dog unexpectedly just about three years ago. It is hard to believe that she is gone, but the memories live on. They had a number of Nicky's border collie books from her library, available at the trial in exchange for donations to hospice. I picked up three older books that I do not have in my library. It is neat to have them and maybe they will be the topic of another blog post.
Meanwhile enjoy your dogs! Congratulations to Ann Raines and Singe who won the PN; Candy Kennedy and Vivien Willis who won the Nurseries. I am proud to be a part of it.
Saturday, May 4, 2013
If You are Feeling Blue...
If you are feeling down, or blue...these should cheer you up!
If you are feeling fine they should make you smile!
Who could resist this face?
Friday, May 3, 2013
RESDA Trial at Slaven Ranch
April 20th we went to a RESDA trial at the Slaven Ranch near Zamora, CA.
The wind was blowing mightily, like it often does at Zamora, but the wind did not stop any of us from having a good time. In fact the wind was so forceful that it drove many of us inside our vehicles to watch the trial instead of sitting out in the sun in our lawn chairs that we had brought along.
The sheep were real, fine wool Targhee type adult ewes from the Slaven ranch. They were not easy to work but not impossible. The dogs had to handle them carefully and appropriately but they were very workable. They were certainly not dog-broke!
The sheep were set out with two stock handlers with their dogs, and if needed another handler with an ATV, from a holding pen that was set up in the center of the very large pasture. It was a challenge for the working dogs to see where they needed to pick up their sheep and pull the sheep off of that setout pen and the stock handlers. It was a puzzle to be worked out for sure but not an unreasonable one, and certainly the situation mimicked what happens in real life, much of the time.
Coal ran in the Open RESDA and placed third. I was very pleased with him as he ran well as I know he can do. After our shaky runs in USBCHA this past spring I was really pleased to see Coal run out well and handle the fine wool ewes just as nice as could be. There were no problems with his run other than that we did not get chute nor pen (most teams didn't). For this trial we fetched the first panel and then drove the second panel. That course arrangement is not done often in RESDA but is sometimes done in the larger fields and pastures. We did not make that second panel but we had an OK line to it and the draw back to setout was very strong so I was pleased just to keep our sheep together to attempt that panel and move on to the chute. I think we stayed too long at the chute (in RESDA you must make two solid attempts at the y-chute and then you can move on, if you have made the two panels). That left us with too little time to pen but hindsight is also always 20-20! Coal was happy; I was happy!
Ryme ran in the RESDA Pro-Novice. The outrun was shortened somewhat and in Pro-Novice you do not have to attempt the chute at all. You can try the chute for practice if you want, but that eats into your (shortened) time allowance, as well. The RESDA Pro-Novice really is a training class, and you can do what you need to do to help your dog if you want to. Points will be deducted for handler movement but you can move about, and make it a good experience for your dog. I felt pretty confident about Ryme this time so I stayed behind the pen which is the "post" for RESDA, this time and handled it as if I were running in the Open. Ryme was good all the way around, and we were awarded with first place. Wow, a blue ribbon for Ryme! It was very cool, after all the time and miles put in with Ryme, and me doubting whether he would ever be able to trial in any venue.
Full results for this trial are available here:
Slaven Trial Results, April 20, 2013
Thank yous to RESDA, the Slaven family who worked hard to put on this trial, Bill Slaven who judged, and Claire and Kathy who did the setout. It is all very much appreciated!
The wind was blowing mightily, like it often does at Zamora, but the wind did not stop any of us from having a good time. In fact the wind was so forceful that it drove many of us inside our vehicles to watch the trial instead of sitting out in the sun in our lawn chairs that we had brought along.
The sheep were real, fine wool Targhee type adult ewes from the Slaven ranch. They were not easy to work but not impossible. The dogs had to handle them carefully and appropriately but they were very workable. They were certainly not dog-broke!
The sheep were set out with two stock handlers with their dogs, and if needed another handler with an ATV, from a holding pen that was set up in the center of the very large pasture. It was a challenge for the working dogs to see where they needed to pick up their sheep and pull the sheep off of that setout pen and the stock handlers. It was a puzzle to be worked out for sure but not an unreasonable one, and certainly the situation mimicked what happens in real life, much of the time.
Coal ran in the Open RESDA and placed third. I was very pleased with him as he ran well as I know he can do. After our shaky runs in USBCHA this past spring I was really pleased to see Coal run out well and handle the fine wool ewes just as nice as could be. There were no problems with his run other than that we did not get chute nor pen (most teams didn't). For this trial we fetched the first panel and then drove the second panel. That course arrangement is not done often in RESDA but is sometimes done in the larger fields and pastures. We did not make that second panel but we had an OK line to it and the draw back to setout was very strong so I was pleased just to keep our sheep together to attempt that panel and move on to the chute. I think we stayed too long at the chute (in RESDA you must make two solid attempts at the y-chute and then you can move on, if you have made the two panels). That left us with too little time to pen but hindsight is also always 20-20! Coal was happy; I was happy!
Ryme ran in the RESDA Pro-Novice. The outrun was shortened somewhat and in Pro-Novice you do not have to attempt the chute at all. You can try the chute for practice if you want, but that eats into your (shortened) time allowance, as well. The RESDA Pro-Novice really is a training class, and you can do what you need to do to help your dog if you want to. Points will be deducted for handler movement but you can move about, and make it a good experience for your dog. I felt pretty confident about Ryme this time so I stayed behind the pen which is the "post" for RESDA, this time and handled it as if I were running in the Open. Ryme was good all the way around, and we were awarded with first place. Wow, a blue ribbon for Ryme! It was very cool, after all the time and miles put in with Ryme, and me doubting whether he would ever be able to trial in any venue.
 |
| Here is Ryme with his blue ribbon!
|
Slaven Trial Results, April 20, 2013
Thank yous to RESDA, the Slaven family who worked hard to put on this trial, Bill Slaven who judged, and Claire and Kathy who did the setout. It is all very much appreciated!
Wednesday, April 17, 2013
What Does the Dog (Horse) Need?
I really enjoyed reading these blog posts (links below) written by a gal who took her ex-racehorse to a Buck clinic over four days. Her horse has some issues but she worked through them and not always in the manner that she thought it would play out, at first. The advice is to be adaptable and flexible to what the animal needs from us to succeed.
Part I
Part II
These blog posts are well worth the read.
On a similar topic, Ryme and I had a lesson with our trainer this past weekend. We haven't had any lessons since probably oh, October...which is not what I had planned but just the way things played out. Ryme was lame during December, January, and February. And then February and March were a blur what with lambing, work, the two big open trials, and me being sick. So here we are in April with good intentions.
What we did with Ryme was not necessarily what everyone else would do with their dog. But it worked for him and I think he gained confidence from the session. We worked a huge group of sheep - maybe close to 100 - I did not count. Those large numbers really help to keep a dog relaxed which is what Ryme needs. First I worked him close up and showed off our skills with flanking, small gathers, and stops. The stop is critical for Ryme. Most of the time he stops pretty well. But he was showing at the lesson that he might start to slide through it - so I have to be vigilant. We took a break and Ryme got water and a little rest.
Then we were going to do a couple longer outruns. As I watched the (still large) group of sheep get pushed farther and farther away by the trainer's dog, I got a little panicky about the distance. The sheep were settled at what I would definitely call an Open trial distance. I was a little apprehensive but we started off with a come bye outrun, first. That can be Ryme's "hot" side...but I needn't have worried. He handled the whole thing beautifully. Wow!
For the other outrun, I sent Away. Some terrain has to be negotiated on that side and it became an opportunity to stop, redirect; stop, redirect...and work on that. Ryme got around the sheep beautifully with that help even at a long distance. What did the dog need? He needed some communication, some help. It would have been neat to see him do both gathers with me silent...but that wasn't what he needed.
Ryme has needed a lot of extra time to mature. He still will never be a really thinking dog with a great feel for sheep; he just doesn't have it in him. On the fetches and drives, I have to manage him but he allows himself to be managed. What he does have is a strong work ethic and desire to work sheep and desire to work with me. What he needs among other things is a fabric of communication with me. I am just trying to make him into the best dog he can be, whatever that is.
As was said in the blog post about the lady's ex race horse, that horse was a gift for what he could teach his rider. A person can learn so much if they are open to it.
Part I
Part II
These blog posts are well worth the read.
On a similar topic, Ryme and I had a lesson with our trainer this past weekend. We haven't had any lessons since probably oh, October...which is not what I had planned but just the way things played out. Ryme was lame during December, January, and February. And then February and March were a blur what with lambing, work, the two big open trials, and me being sick. So here we are in April with good intentions.
What we did with Ryme was not necessarily what everyone else would do with their dog. But it worked for him and I think he gained confidence from the session. We worked a huge group of sheep - maybe close to 100 - I did not count. Those large numbers really help to keep a dog relaxed which is what Ryme needs. First I worked him close up and showed off our skills with flanking, small gathers, and stops. The stop is critical for Ryme. Most of the time he stops pretty well. But he was showing at the lesson that he might start to slide through it - so I have to be vigilant. We took a break and Ryme got water and a little rest.
Then we were going to do a couple longer outruns. As I watched the (still large) group of sheep get pushed farther and farther away by the trainer's dog, I got a little panicky about the distance. The sheep were settled at what I would definitely call an Open trial distance. I was a little apprehensive but we started off with a come bye outrun, first. That can be Ryme's "hot" side...but I needn't have worried. He handled the whole thing beautifully. Wow!
For the other outrun, I sent Away. Some terrain has to be negotiated on that side and it became an opportunity to stop, redirect; stop, redirect...and work on that. Ryme got around the sheep beautifully with that help even at a long distance. What did the dog need? He needed some communication, some help. It would have been neat to see him do both gathers with me silent...but that wasn't what he needed.
Ryme has needed a lot of extra time to mature. He still will never be a really thinking dog with a great feel for sheep; he just doesn't have it in him. On the fetches and drives, I have to manage him but he allows himself to be managed. What he does have is a strong work ethic and desire to work sheep and desire to work with me. What he needs among other things is a fabric of communication with me. I am just trying to make him into the best dog he can be, whatever that is.
As was said in the blog post about the lady's ex race horse, that horse was a gift for what he could teach his rider. A person can learn so much if they are open to it.
Tuesday, April 16, 2013
Three Kinds of Dogs
Three Kinds of Dogs:
1. Dogs who have great feel for sheep and are very natural but have a hard time taking direction from you.
2. Dogs who have little feel for sheep and can be directed where you like but must be placed here and there by the handler.
3. Dogs who have great feel for sheep and who also do as they are told.
Which do you prefer? What do you think?
1. Dogs who have great feel for sheep and are very natural but have a hard time taking direction from you.
2. Dogs who have little feel for sheep and can be directed where you like but must be placed here and there by the handler.
3. Dogs who have great feel for sheep and who also do as they are told.
Which do you prefer? What do you think?
Sunday, April 14, 2013
Another Nice Workday
This time it was NCWSA's turn to have a workday, at Oak Springs Ranch. Beautiful day/weather, really lovely sheep (about a quarter of them Katahdins and the remainder Dorper-Dorset crosses which is a really nice cross for young dogs)... a happy group of people. Lots of visiting and catching up done in between runs.
I was just a low-key helper, doing the check-in part...and Coal and I helped set out for a couple of runs. Coal would have liked to do more. He is not getting enough work, these days. I am still getting over that bad flu; it is hanging on with a vengeance. Before the work day started, I had a chance to pick up a set of sheep off a spotter, with Ryme. Ryme still has a hot spot on his come-bye flank when he is at a distance from me and if he is a little unsure. But otherwise he was obedient and nice. I keep working with him...
Spot update: he continues to try to fit in and please me. He now jumps into the Dodge so I don't have to pick him up. Yay! When we go in the pickup, he runs up and down the doggie ramp. He is really too big to pick up any more so these are both very welcome news. And he has (most of the time) quit the daily dumping of the water bucket in his kennel. It's the little things, yeah. :-) We have let him have another turn on the sheep and he demonstrated the nicest little turn in and walk on in balance that you have ever seen. Fingers crossed. I will keep letting him have a turn whenever we can arrange it and he will tell us when he is ready for more. He is not yet eight months old (not quite) so not really ready for "training".
Yay, there is another day left today in the weekend. Enjoy!
I was just a low-key helper, doing the check-in part...and Coal and I helped set out for a couple of runs. Coal would have liked to do more. He is not getting enough work, these days. I am still getting over that bad flu; it is hanging on with a vengeance. Before the work day started, I had a chance to pick up a set of sheep off a spotter, with Ryme. Ryme still has a hot spot on his come-bye flank when he is at a distance from me and if he is a little unsure. But otherwise he was obedient and nice. I keep working with him...
Spot update: he continues to try to fit in and please me. He now jumps into the Dodge so I don't have to pick him up. Yay! When we go in the pickup, he runs up and down the doggie ramp. He is really too big to pick up any more so these are both very welcome news. And he has (most of the time) quit the daily dumping of the water bucket in his kennel. It's the little things, yeah. :-) We have let him have another turn on the sheep and he demonstrated the nicest little turn in and walk on in balance that you have ever seen. Fingers crossed. I will keep letting him have a turn whenever we can arrange it and he will tell us when he is ready for more. He is not yet eight months old (not quite) so not really ready for "training".
Yay, there is another day left today in the weekend. Enjoy!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)