Water Trial Weekend

Returned home exhausted last night from a weekend at the PNWPWDC water trial, but pretty pleased with how things turned out for most of our canine "family". In alphabetical order for fairness sake (VBG):

• Bella (Kilo's daughter/Chili's sister) and Mandy got their Courier (CWD) title on Saturday (and I got to steward for them!)
• Cooper (Kilo and Stoker's son/Ecko's brother) and Julie earned their Apprentice (AWD) title on Sunday after a super effort on Saturday that fell just short of qualifying
• Ecko (Kilo and Stoker's daughter and our "great white hope") and I earned her Junior Water Dog (JWD) certificate on Saturday and AWD on Sunday
• Pansy (Kilo grand-kid and daughter of Mandy's girl Bella) and Mandy earned their JWD with great enthusiasm
  
• Rebel (Kilo grand-kid and son of Mandy's girl Bella) and Jessie earned his AWD title on Sunday after coming REALLY close on Saturday

We're super proud of family members Martha and Sailor (Kilo grand-kid and daughter of Mandy's girl Bella) and Val and JoJo (Kilo grand-kid/Chili daughter) who both had super and enthusiastic performances but had just enough go awry to miss out on that elusive "Q".

Some random "post-trial" thoughts:

• Those in our training group that were fortunate enough to "Q" were NOT those that did the best in training during the summer. There is a definite element of luck involved sometimes!
• The Deep Lake trial site was a stressful one for Ecko and perhaps for other dogs as well. It has a curved shoreline and is surrounded by trees - much less open than any place we have trained. Having strangers floating in boats and standing quietly on the shoreline seemed to unnerve her when she had practiced with people she knew all summer. I've only worked this site at the upper levels before with more seasoned dogs so didn't anticipate this.
• Sharing a common interest can make an opinionated bunch of people from different walks of life come together and work like crazy toward a common goal quite successfully.

Trial photos will be posted on the photographer's website at http://www.petscapesphoto.com/petscapesorderinfo/ when they are available. Can't wait to see them!

Cooper is a Champ!

Julie called me last night to say she had received an envelope in the mail and was surprised to find it was Cooper's UKC Championship. We knew he had enough "competition wins" but thought he needed points still. What a nice surprise! Julie and her family have done a super job with Cooper. Super duper Cooper! Now on to that next water title and AKC championship....

In honor of Cooper's accomplishment, here are some photos of him from earlier this spring.

Showing off his nice side gait.

Posing for the camera.

Roly Poly Fish Heads

About once a week or so, the dogs get fish for dinner. I buy 40 lbs of Tilapia at a time and keep them in the freezer in the garage. Each fish is bagged individually, which makes it easy to grab a couple bags in the evening and thaw them in the sink for the dog's breakfast. The fish are gutted but otherwise whole (fins, head....). Two decent sized fish make a meal for the four dogs, with each fish getting cut into appropriate portions for the dogs. Cutting the fish up early in the morning is not a task for the shrinking violet....

One evening a week or so ago, Chili got on the bed in the middle of the night (she rarely gets off once she settles in for the night, so that in and of itself was unusual...). She stood next to me doing a little nervous tail wag and licking her lips. I wondered sleepily whether or not she had an upset tummy, but since she settled down and went right to sleep when I encouraged her to, I didn't think much more about it. Until the next morning......

A certain some-dog had mosied into the kitchen in the middle of the night and managed to snag a fish out of the sink. Chili is a bit height-challenged, so I think the fish must have been leaning up against the front of the sink and the plastic bags they were in must have been JUST within her grasp. I was immediately sure of who the culprit was given the telltale signs during the night. The little sneak had taken her midnight snack up into the back yard and eaten every last morsel, leaving only some shredded plastic bag pieces as evidence.

Needless to say, naughty Chili did not get breakfast!

Whenever I feed the dogs fish, it makes me think of the song by Barnes and Barnes:
Fish heads, fish heads
Roly-poly fish heads
Fish heads, fish heads
Eat them up, yum!

find the birdy

We've been enjoying some little birds that have nests in some of the shrubbery in the back yard. Jan caught some on them with the camera a few days ago. The baby birds are really noisy at feeding time!

Can you find the bird?

There, we made it easier for you.

This little bird is flashy with it's bright red head.