WELCOME

Thanks for visiting my blog. It's rather flattering to have someone read your minds meanderings. I hope it's entertaining and sometimes educational.

Monday, September 30, 2013

Yesterday's Fundraiser

  It went beautifully, I had enough good help that I was not stressed or exhausted by the end.   Donna helped me with all the Try it dogs. She was exhausted, but it's stressful working new dogs when you aren't  used to it. She did an outstanding job!  We had a team effort on one Great Dane who had a little evil intent, but most of the dogs were very very good to handle.  We  had a really nice malinois and a Pyr shep who was the star of the day.  The owner of the Pyr shep wasn't even there and they the people who brought it thought it was some kind of terrier..  We worked a bunch of BC's and aussies but no poodles came yesterday. 

The food was totally handled by Ed and Kathy who also cooked for the event. Chili was great and the muffins were outstanding.  Ed kept everybody signed up and paid and waivers signed.  Great job! And then we cleaned up and everything was put away and again I had nothing but a few dishes to do last night.  Yay!!

Bob and Mary kept the arena in line and even set up the F course in the middle of the day for people to try .  I never worried about what was going on back there because they were so good at it.

Thank you all for helping and for donating your time and your money.  I sent Jean and Mumbles $1000 last night on the You Care site.

Friday, September 27, 2013

Today was tiring with no sleep

 I went shopping for groceries for the Fun Day and I did some set up stuff for the fun day. I have approximately 16 Try it dogs so far and 8 arena dogs that have told me they were coming.There are some other people that may come but have not committed yet.

I took a 4 hr nap at 3pm, because the contractors showed up unexpectedly this morning when I was trying to get back to sleep from being up most of the night. Can't turn contractors away when they want to work. They finished sheetrocking the window and the beam in the kitchen.  My cabinets are going to be very low on the counter because of the beam. I hope I dont' hate them. There will basically be at eye level  which actually will be a welcome change from what I have had so long. Cabinets so high I have to use a ladder to get into them.

I've been up since 2 and its 5 now lucky me

So I guess I will be taking a nap this afternoon or even later this morning. That's the beauty of retirement I guess.  And no contractors are scheduled to be here today so that's good too.  They put the window seat window in yesterday and it is breathtaking. love it love it love it.

Not sure why I am up all night but I have been working on the details for the Herding Fun Day this Sundays and maybe my brain is working overtime.

  I am doing a benefit for Mumble and Jean.  It's a huge vet bill and Mumble is related to Dare and Dually and I  just would like to do something for them.

Anyway, I have been working on the menu because we are going to be serving food and drinks. Not sure if anyone will be buying but I can always use the leftovers for the clinic next weekend. Kathy is going to bake some muffins and I have a couple of trays of peach cobbler.

I'm getting some good response on the Fun Day.  I can't wait to see if the Great Dane can herd!


Kitchen news:   Besides the new window, they put the ceiling in this week.  It's plain tongue and groove pine. Looks great.   I got my new faucet from ebay .  I got a good deal on it. Its a very nice Moen and I got it for about 1/2 price. It's missing a little plastic piece, but I am hoping I can get that somewhere.   My copper sink is on it's way from Mexico. LOL.  Had to have one.

I  have 3 cabinet designs and estimates and I am waiting for one more. So far Home Depot wins the war.  But I might go with the local lumber company . They are coming close 2nd.

Saturday, September 21, 2013

Bye bye Ram and working the dogs

   I thought this might be an issue today but Dare separated the ram into the 100 by 100 and I then put him up.  I hooked up the trailer and drove it into the pasture.   I figured the ram would not leave his ladies so I just left the gate open.  I dropped the ramp and he came over to investigate. He sniffed the ramp and walked right in so I just closed it.   NO grain no nothing. Bye bye ram ol boy.  Hopefully you did your job and I will have lambs in January. 

I worked Dually first on cows and we worked on the course(bad me).  He got them thru the panels and then we had a really tough time on the center pen. He kept overflanking.  Dare was better and got them much more easily in the center pen.

Dually did well on the sheep but Dare did better. That whistle really makes him stop if only it would hold up under trial conditions.  I need to work Dually a lot more. 

Wednesday, September 18, 2013

And he knows his job

So yesterday, the damn goats and I do mean damn goats got into the hay where they are not supposed to be.  Actually, it was only one goat , the billy, that was in there and I was mad.  I sent Dare into the pasture and he saw right away that the Billy was not where he was supposed to be and he chased it out fast.  I was surprised because in the past, he often would go after the other sheep instead.  I guess he " gets" it.

Today, Edgie got to gather the sheep and gate sort them and then we took a group of 3 out to the arena to put in the take pen for a student.  The sheep started run away around the center pen and he calmly went out and put them back to me and didn't allow them to go to the draw.  He was very good and calm about it.  Good dog day.

Sunday, September 15, 2013

Dare is the best dog ever!

  I had some people over for training today  and then Nat brought some young ducks that hadn't really been worked. Dare worked them only a little but they weren't legged up so we could not work them much. He put them in the corner in the duck arena and one escaped thru the fence into the woods.  I thought if we made the other ducks quack he would come back but he appeared to be going the opposite way.  Now mind you there is no easy way to get into that woods from the duck arena so we didn't try(at first).  We crated the other 4 ducks and put them near the fence and that didn't work so  we let them out again to make noise and one more escaped into the woods.Great  just terrific.  I grabbed another escapee by the leg before he could hightail it into the woods with the other duck.

   We waited and they appeared to be going away from us and not toward us so I decided we had nothing to lose and I lifted the bottom of the fence and told Dare to get them.  He went out and started circling for scent and found them and the chase was on. It got so we could not hear him or them. I whistled but got no reponse and if he was able to come he would have.   I was hoping they were not in the road. Betty went down the fenceline toward the road and called out to me.  Dare had one duck and was holding him against the fenceline for us to come and get him.  I crawled down the fenceline on the opposite side of the pasture(not an easy feat)and grabbed the duck and handed it to Betty.  Next I tried to send Dare for the other duck.  He  was not going without me and I was not going into the wood. I jumped him up on a big rock and told him over and he jumped into the Pasture and I went around. 

Back to the duck arena to see if we could hear the other duck in the woods.  I could not hear it , but I sent Dare under the fence again and told him to find it.  He did fairly quickly to my amazement and brought it to the stone wall quacking all the way,  but the stupid thing got caught in the stone wall. We could see it and practically touch it but it was still too far away. So Nat got on a chair and next to the big rock and crawled over and got the duck by the neck and handed it to me and so I got Dare to come under the fence again and he immediately tried to bite it as I as holding it in the air over his head. Well, frankly it deserved a good  bite for running away.

No harm to ducks , no ducks lost and amazing duck dog proved his worth again.  It was pretty amazing.  the woods is thick and he was not in earshot some of the time. 

Saturday, September 14, 2013

AHBA TRIAL

 I judged my very first trial today and it went very well . I learned a few things about my own trialing by watching other people and taking points off for stuff.  I got more comfortable as the day wore on and I know that I will do a few things just a little differently next time.   I had good dogs and mostly q's.  It was an all duck trial and we did HTAD HTD AND JHD.    It was fun.  Long day though.  I left at 6 and got home at 7:30. The dogs went with  me and they didnt' get to do anything so they are a bit wired tonight.  I also brought home a crate of ducks for a student.  Lucky for me, they did not smell at all!

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

Kitchen Progress

New front of house and new window next to door but I had them move it. You will see in another pic

 Old Kitchen
 Old Kitchen
 Old KItchen getting ready for tear down of wall on left. so cabinets were emptied and  contents are behind green sheet.
 Wall Teardown complete and they are working on a a new support beam so the  house does not fall down.
ready for drywall.

Tuesday, September 3, 2013

Whistle Stop

Whistle Go, which one shall I take?  Dare is so tuned into the whistle meaning to lie down that to get him to take a go bye or away is tough.   I think he is getting better, but my mouth is killing me from holding the whistle between my teeth and also giving verbal commands. Because of the stupid gnats, I have a gnat hat on all  the time which makes it impossible to put the whistle in and out of my mouth so I tried to just keep it in my mouth.  Might have to revise that method.

Dually , was kind of a bad boy, so  I had  to get on him a little bit.  We worked on wider flanks and the out in the small pen. 

Edgie worked the goats again and we drove and we did flanks and we did little outruns.  I am still working on getting him to understand he needs to go out and around to bring the goats to me.  He is fine if I am close enough, but if I just tell him to go get them , then he tends to go straight up the middle.  Goats don't react much but sheep would be like popcorn.

Sunday, September 1, 2013

3 DOGS

Dare worked the cows and I separated them into 2 groups and then tried to pen each group.  No friggin way.  Dare worked really hard but he could not do it. We go 1 cow in each group in the pen but that is the best we could do .  I was sorta surprised because the other day they just went in.  I didn't lock them in or anything , but i did allow the dogs to go in and take them out, but they were good about it.  So tonight out of frustration , I finally got some grain and we got one whole group  to go in.  Mind you this is only an 8by 8 pen not a big one.  Dare was really out of breath.  I think my dogs need some conditioning.

Dually worked the goats in the small pen because I worked on the whistle  Once I actually though he got the Away to me  whistle but it must have been a fluke because he didn't do it again..

Edgie worked the goats in the duck arena and we worked on outruns .. His away said is his good side which surprised me because it's his bad side when he is in close and going around in a corner. On his go  bye, he consistently does not get around all of them, but he never leaves them behind.. He does go back and get them.  Then I would flank him around and drive them off of me.  Starting to work on his standing stop too.  His Down was good again today. WHew!

It rained hard for part of the day and that prompted cookie making.  Molasses cookies..  They came out a little flat but still plenty tasty .