Perfectly Good Day - Ruined

I had a great morning. We woke up early and headed over to the dog park where I had a great run with a nice collie and a chow mix. Then I met my friend Amiga to do some tracking. I found many articles with roast beast in them and Barbara was pleased with how well I followed the track on the turns. I returned home for a nap while Barbara went to work. I thought that when she got back we could go for a nice walk. But NO! She said "Niamh you smell like a dog. You must have a bath." Of course I smell like a dog, I am a dog for goodness sakes. What am I supposed to smell like - a squirrel??



We went to Max's Dog Wash where I had to get in the tub and get wet down, soaped up and rinsed off. It was horrible. Even though I got treats through out, I was miserable as you can see from my photos.




Then I had to get on the grooming table and get blown dry which I think is cruelty to animals and worse than the bath itself if that is possible.



I think people are obsessed with baths. They have entire rooms in their houses to devoted to the practice which seems a waste of space to me. They should skip the baths and showers and just stay nice and smelly.

Rally Practice

It was another busy week. I had Drill Team on Monday night, Wednesday I helped Barbara with her new Basic Family Dog class and Thursday I visited Furry Paws and Feathers Pet Supplies to get more treats. Friday morning I went tracking with my friends Amiga, Ayla and Trotter so I thought that I would have a lazy weekend and get to sleep in.

Instead Barbara and I went out to the Animal Protection Society training center and met Ayla and her person Sandi. We practiced Rally obedience which is a fun way to do obedience. Rally is a course with stations of obedience skills like heeling around cones, fronts and finishes, different kinds of turns. You get points off your score if you don't do the station correctly. I am learning the skills so I can do all the stations. Barbara and Sandi set out a course and Ayla and I took turns practicing. Of course we got lots of praise and treats for doing the skills.


Barbara and I going through the figure eight cones.



Ayla doing a right finish around Sandi.

It is a lot of fun to do Rally and dogs should encourage their people to try this sport. Don't worry, you do not have to learn to read the signs - only your people do.

There are Rally competitions with different levels of courses and dogs can win prizes and ribbons. Barbara and Selkie used to do lots of Rally together and they earned the Rally Novice (RN) and Rally Advanced (RA) titles. Here is a picture of them getting their RA at the Gordon Setter National Specialty in June 2006.




My mom Misty recently got her Rally Novice title and has a leg towards her RA. I'd like to get good at Rally so that I can win prizes and ribbons and have lots of initials after my name.

Tracking for Roast Beast

I got up early this morning to go tracking near the lake. It was cool and breezy which always makes me feel skippy. My boyfriend Trotter was there too with his person Chris. Barbara had a very special reward for me - delicious roast beast - which I had never had before. Each article on the track had pieces of roast beast under it. What a wonderful smell.

I was very excited at the beginning of my track and took some time to settle down. It was windy which blows all the scent around. Once I focused I did very well (and found 2 articles with roast beast) until I got to the first turn. I knew where it was and indicated the turn but Barbara had mistaken where she had laid the turn and didn't let me go there. I tried to tell her again but she didn't pay attention so then I got a bit confused. She really MUST learn to trust me since I am the one with the good nose!! Even Chris knew that I had indicated the turn. Barbara must not be able to smell much at all, poor thing.

Finally we got going the right way, I crossed a dirt road, found more articles and made a very good right turn. Then it was straight on to the final article which was a special toy filled with roast beast and cheese. Yeah!

Here is a picture of me with the toy. It is made out of fire hose material and is very strong.


You can see that the bottom opens up to a secret compartment for the roast beast.


I gobbled up the roast beast and cheese so fast that Barbara couldn't get a picture of it. HA!!

Tellington Touch

Tellington Touch is a technique used on animals to help us relax and connect us with our bodies. It is like a massage but very gentle. Barbara thought it would benefit me since I don't like being groomed or having my nails clipped. I can tolerate it but it isn't much fun. Gordon Setters have a lot of hair so we need to be brushed often.

Royal's person, Jenn, has done TTouch on me and it felt really nice. She organized a TTouch training workshop at the APS and it was taught by THE Linda Tellington-Jones who developed the method. Barbara brought me to the workshop so that one of the student practitioners could TTouch me and help me.

Joan really likes dogs a lot. She was very gentle with me, doing very soft touches over my skin. I got a little worried when she started working on my hind legs. I really don't like having my back feet touched. But Joan respected me and got me used to the touches very gradually. The TTouch felt wonderful and I got quiet relaxed. Joan showed Barbara how to do the touches so she could do them on me at home.

Then Joan did something that I thought was really weird. She wrapped me up in an Ace bandage. It is supposed to help reduce anxiety and help me connect. I was not sure about it at all and kind of froze up. Joan gently coaxed me to walk around and then the wrap felt fine but I still think it looks extremely strange.




Later I got to meet Linda Tellington-Jones. She did lovely touches on my face and tail to help relax me. I would have let her do the touches to me all afternoon. Here is a picture of me with Linda and then one of Linda, me and Joan.




I hope that Barbara remembers how to do all the different TTouches so I can have a session everyday. Who knows, I may even get to like being groomed.

Volunteer Award

My special person, Barbara, went to a reception tonight and she got a nice certificate from the County Commissioners for being a NC Key Volunteer for Orange County. She volunteers at the animal shelter doing evaluations of the dogs there and helping them find good homes. It is very sad that dogs have to be in the shelter. By evaluating them she can tell what kind of training they need and help make a good match so they get their own special person to take care of them.



Here is a picture of Barbara with some of the people who work at the shelter. She's the one in the blue shirt. I'm very proud of her and gave her lots of kisses when she came home with her certificate. Unfortunately dogs were not allowed at the reception otherwise I would have gone and eaten lots of the snacks.

My New Friend Riley

I was taking a nice nap this afternoon when Barbara came home and told me that I was going to meet a new friend. I like having lots of friends so I was glad to get up and go. We drove to Karen and Jim's house. I'd been there before and they were very nice to me, giving me lots of pets and treats. Well now they have a new puppy. His name is Riley and he is a 5 month old Golden doodle. He looks quite big for his age but I really think it is all the hair.




When I first got to Karen and Jim's I was more interested in running around their yard than playing with the puppy. He, however, was very interested in me. The yard is fenced and there is a big deck with lots of levels to jump off of. I could jump off the highest level but Riley had to use the stairs. I led him on a big chase all around the yard. He would run up to me and bite on my ears! When I wanted to get away from him I just ran really fast and he couldn't catch up. We had a good time. I love to be chased.




Riley is a playful guy and he chewed on my legs and actually tried to walk underneath me. I think he has quite a crush on me (and why wouldn't he since I am so pretty) because he tried to hump me several times. I would flip him off when he bothered me but he really is very sweet. A girl can never have too many beaus but I think that Riley may be a bit too young for me.

Furry Paws and Feathers

I took a good nap after all my tracking exhertions. Then Barbara told me it was time to go to class but we had to make a stop first. We went to a new little pet supply store called "Furry Paws and Feathers". Well I have furry paws but absolutely no feathers so I was afraid that I wouldn't be allowed in at first. It is a store filled with all sorts of treats and toys for animals (fortunately they don't sell animals there). The whole place smelled lovely and I definitely want to visit there again.

Here is a picture of Andrea, the owner, giving me some tasty salmon treats.





Here I am checking out the greenies.




There is a section of cat food and treats and I had to inspect those very carefully.





Barbara bought some very nice toys for her Family Dog 2 class but she didn't buy any for me. This is cruelty to animals!!!

Private Tracking Lesson

We took a long drive early this morning. We passed the road to K9 Kindercare so I knew I wasn't going to stay there but I did not know where Barbara and I were going. We met up with Gretchen who is a trainer and who taught the tracking workshop we went to. She has big silver dogs called Weimeraners and I thought I was going to get to play with them.

Instead Barbara and I had a private tracking lesson with Gretchen so I can become a better tracker (and Barbara can learn to be a better handler). I was able to show Gretchen that I really understand what I am supposed to be doing out there when I track and Barbara learned some ways to work with the tracking line to give me more information about what we are doing. I also have to learn a better article indication. I am much more interested in the track than the glove or the sock so we have to work on that. But because it will involve more treats I think that it will be fun.

I still want to get a chance to play with those Weimeraners though.

A Very Boring Day

Some days are just dull. Barbara left early this morning for a meeting of the Carolina Trainers' Forum and I had to sit home all day by myself. Boooooring. Now it is important for her to meet with other dog trainers and discuss training issues but why does it have to take so long? People have to talk about everything in such long and boring detail. If dogs were in charge of that meeting it would be a lot shorter for sure. Our communication is so clear. If I want you to play, I bow. If I am not sure about you I turn my head away. If I you do something I don't like I air snap. Very simple and direct.

Since I had to stay home Barbara left me with all sorts of toys filled with goodies. I am very good at getting the treats out. I also spent time ripping apart some of my stuffed toys. I made a New Year's resolution to destroy more toys and realized that I haven't been keeping it up as well as I should. Fortunately I only rip up toys and never shoes.

Drill Team Night

Another fun Monday! We went out to the APS Dog Park for a run before Barbara had to teach her Family Dog 2 class. Here are some pictures of me in the park. You can see how fast I run.

Then we went to class. It is boring for me when Barbara teaches. I have to wait in a crate unless she needs me for a demonstration. I get really jealous when I have to watch her work with other dogs and give them treats that should go to me! Tonight I whined a lot while Barbara and Dana were teaching so she made me go sit in the car by myself.


I was really glad when Drill Team started so I could come back in the building. Here is a picture of my friend Ayla. We were very happy to see each other and she gave me some nice kisses.


I have a new boyfriend in the Drill Team. His name is Hadji. We are in line next to each other in one of the new routines we are learning and we spent a lot of time tonight sniffing each other and flirting. I think he is very distinguished looking. Since we have to do work in Drill Team we didn't really get a chance to play the way I wanted to. But there is always next week.

Dog Parks

I love going to Dog Parks but sometimes it is more fun than others. A lot depends on which dogs are at the park and just how responsible their people are.

Barbara and I went this morning and I met several nice dogs and had a good time chasing and playing. There was a very sweet young Brittany who liked to play the same kind of games that I play. We had a good time with each other. One Australian Shepherd dog thought he could hump me but I soon set him straight and it didn't bother me at all.

What I don't like are the dogs who crowd the gate when other dogs are trying to come in the park. I get a little nervous when 3 or 4 big dogs stand at the gate, stare at me and then get in my face as I try to enter. It is not good dog body language at all and very rude. Barbara never lets me hang out near the gate. Where are those dogs' people?? Probably chatting on their cell phones or standing around talking to their friends and ignoring their dogs.

They are supposed to be paying attention to how their dogs are socializing, not socializing themselves. Sometimes they think that it is OK for the dogs to "work it out themselves" and I have seen some sensitive dogs get pushed around quite badly by bullies. Their people need to wise up and pay attention.

Amiga's First Track

I got up early this morning and Barbara drove me to the dog park so I could run off some energy. There were several nice dogs there who played very well and we had a good time. We left sooner than I would have liked but then we drove up to Ayrmount for some tracking which is always great.

When we got there I was very surprised to see my friend Amiga arrive with her person Mary. I know Amiga from the Drill Team and she is a very sweet Golden Retriever. She is an excellent performer and knows a lot of good tricks like weaving between Walter's legs. She had never done tracking and wanted to try it. Sandi, Ayla's person, laid a short track for Amiga and Mary to follow. It had lots of articles with pieces of delicious turkey stuffed in them. Well Amiga took to the tracking immediately. What is not to like about a sock with turkey in it??



Sandi helped Amiga and Mary find all the articles and then they got to run another track. I was watching from the car and I could see that Amiga really enjoyed herself and did very well.



Watching Amiga really got me excited to start my track so I was whining and jumping around while I had to wait in the car. Barbara laid a zig zag track for me and a straight one very close to the woods. She dropped many interesting articles along the track with sausage biscuit in them-an eyeglass case, a cell phone case, gloves and a makeup case at the end just stuffed with sausage biscuit. Heavenly!!. The straight track near the woods was difficult because I wanted to go in there to investigate all the good smells but Barbara helped me not to be too distracted and focus on my work. It was worth it because I got a lot of liver and cheese when I found the article at the end.

Tracking is such a terrific sport!! It is great to go out with all your friends in the morning and find things in the fields. I'm glad that Amiga joined us for the fun. Tracking dogs rule!!!

Dogs with Blogs

I really enjoy having my own blog. I have a busy and fun life and like sharing it with other dogs and their people. A couple of my dog friends have blogs but now I have found out that lots of dogs have blogs too.

Barbara listed my blog on a site called www.dogswithblogs.com.au and it turns out there are hundreds of canines in the blogosphere! I am amazed. The nice thing is that I have gotten comments on my blog from dogs all over the world. This is very exciting. I love meeting and playing with other dogs so maybe someday I will get a chance to meet these dogs. Or maybe not. Barbara says that I would have to fly in a plane to see them and this I will not do. I much prefer riding in the car.

More Pictures from Virginia

I had a great time in VA last weekend and Barbara has posted a few more pictures.

Misty and me out in the field



My littermates Torie and Travis and me watching Karen lay tracks for me to work.





I had a great time playing with my littermates although Travis tried to hump me. Very rude since he is my brother! But I told him off a few times and then we got along fine.

The tracking was great. I even tracked my Aunt Karen which I had never done before. Barbara lays most of my tracks but this time Karen left gloves with cheese and liver treats. When I went up to the start flag I had to think about her smell a bit but then I tracked her strongly. It was terrific fun and both Barbara and Karen praised me and said that I am very smart.

Crazy, Dedicated Trackers

We have had such a bad drought here that I have never tracked in the rain (and I didn't even know it was possible or why you would want to do it). Usually the ground is very dry which is not the best scenting condition or there is a little dew or frost if I am lucky. So it was quite a surprise when Barbara took me out to the tracking field to meet Ayla, Tully and Trotter and their people in the rain.

The rain let up and Barbara, Chris and Sandi layed tracks for us. Just as they were finished the rain started to come down. I didn't mind since I was warm and dry in the car but Barbara was cold and wet. We waited to let the track age and I thought that we would not track but we did.

When I got up to the start flag to smell my article I found that the sock was soaking wet. Of course I could still pick up the scent but I had to think about it for a bit and circle the flag which I don't usually do. Then I was off tracking. I had to stop several times to shake off the water but continued to work my first track until I found my article and got some sausage biscuit (delicious as always)

I had to run another track with two right turns. Barbara managed to lay it through a big clump of deer fur. What a wonderful smell. I inspected the fur carefully and sniffed it thoroughly. Barbara said "Niamh, use your nose." which is what she says when she wants me to get back to work and so I did. I did the first turn very well but got a bit confused on the second one because Barbara bent over to pick up her marker and stopped me from going forward where I knew the track was. I had to circle around a bit to get refocused but of course I did, found my article and got more sausage biscuit.

Poor Ayla and Trotter had to track while the rain was coming down really hard while I got to sit in the car. I must say that we are really dedicated to tracking to do it in all sorts of weather. No pictures however since we all looked terrible with our fur drenched.

My Mom Misty

Of course you all know that I have Barbara as my special person. She brought me home when I was a young puppy to live with her and Selkie. But before I came here I had my first family in Virginia. My Mom's name is Misty and I was her first born puppy. She took great care of me when I was little, cleaning and feeding me and keeping me and my brothers and sisters warm. As we got older she taught us polite canine behavior.

I haven't seen her since I was a year old . Barbara and I took a long car ride on Sunday to see my Aunt Karen, my breeder. I got to play with my sister Torie and my brother Travis in a big fenced yard. Then I got to see my Mom. I was so happy that I just wiggled all over the place and licked Misty's lips just like I did when I was a puppy. Misty was very tolerant of my giddy behavior and eventually we played together. I was glad to have the opportunity to hang out with her. I stayed over her house and played with all her toys (she has a big basket of stuffed toys) but I didn't destroy any of them. She was very sweet with me.

Misty's full name is Ch Tri-Sett Living Legend CD JH CGC. It means that she has a conformation championship (you can see how beautiful she is in the pictures I've posted) has a Companion Dog title in obedience and the Junior Hunter title means she is good at finding birds which is what Gordons were bred to do. The CGC means that my Mom is Canine Good Citizen as well. I understand that she has two legs towards her Rally Novice title so she will have more letters after her name soon.



Some day I hope to have letters after my name but if I behave half as well as my mother I think that Barbara will be very happy.

Freestyle Fun

This afternoon Barbara and I drove out to the APS to canine freestyle practice. Freestyle is where the dog and her person perform a routine that is choreographed to music that suits the dog. It shows the relationship between the two. Dogs have to be really smart and well trained to do this sport (and their person should be creative too) but it looks beautiful when done well.

Selkie had a routine to Cajun music which got her lots of applause when she performed it at demos. I'd like to have a routine of my own but first we have to find just the right music and then I have to learn all the skills.

Several dogs and their people came to the practice. First the people had to have a meeting (don't they always). It was very tedious for me. Human communication just takes too long. Canine communication is much faster, clearer and much more elegant.



Finally we got to practice some exercises that Jeanine set for us to work on our movement. My heeling is getting much better and I really like doing it to music. But now I have to learn to heel on the right side too just when I was getting the hang of the left side! Then we took turns in the ring. The whippets got to show off their routines which they will be performing at a trial in April. Whippets are very skinny dogs with very short fur. They have to wear coats in this cold weather, poor things. But they do really well at freestyle.



Barbara and I tried heeling to several different pieces of music. Not to be conceited but I look really lovely when I am trotting around the ring. Barbara's friends had suggestions about what music would show off my trotting the best. I liked the calypso piece and a Spanish guitar song. Now Barbara will have to come up with a routine and we will have to practice a lot. It is hard work but it sure would be nice to have lots of people clap for me at a demo.

Another Great Morning

I haven't blogged in awhile because Barbara went to the APDT Board meeting and I went to K9 Kindercare. I had a good time with everyone there (except for a rude Jack Russell Terrier) but was glad to come home.

This morning we went out early to track in a field that I have never been to. We drove past one of my favorite tracking fields and I was quite concerned. I started barking to remind Barbara to make a left turn but she just kept on driving. We went to Ayr Mount in Hillsborough and met Ayla and Sandi and Dreamer and Chris.

Barbara wanted to work on straight tracks with me to help me with my fringing. As a Gordon Setter I like to quarter and check out the edges of the scent cone. The straight tracks with interim articles were to help me concentrate. It was great fun. I got to find some new articles - a metal key chain and a leather cell phone case. I got the delicious sausage biscuit as a reward of course. Chris (Dreamer's person) followed along behind us and thought that I did a very good job and improved on each track.

Sandi took the pictures of me following a track. The part that Barbara was most impressed with was when I found deer poop on the track. I sniffed it thoroughly (very fragrant) but then got right back to work and finished my track.

Dreamer and Ayla ran their tracks which are much harder than mine. They run blind tracks which means that their people do not know where the track is because there are no flags along it. They are both certified and will be doing tracking trials soon. I hope that I can get to that level too.

It was a great morning of tracking but I think the afternoon will not be so fun. I heard Barbara say to Sandi and Chris that I was going to Max's for a bath because "she looks like something the cat dragged in". What an insult!! I have only met one cat in my life and he didn't put a paw on me never mind drag me anywhere.

I'm Exhausted

I barely have the energy to dictate this blog entry. It has been a busy week and today was especially busy. What with tracking in the morning and playing with a puppy in the afternoon I only had a few hours in between to nap while Barbara was giving lessons.

I started out the morning doing a particularly difficult track. We met Ayla and Sandi at Jordan Lake. I thought we were going swimming even though it was drizzling. Barbara laid a 225 yard track with two turns. The difficulty was in the rough terrain (Barbara managed to trip and fall in a hole) with lots of tall grass and then a turn into the woods! On top of that it was very windy which blew the scent around. I wanted to do alot of fringing to check out the scent in the holes and ruts. I had to circle a bit on my second turn but then found the track. But it went into the pine woods. I was not sure if I should go into the woods since we had never done that on a track before. I looked back at Barbara and she encouraged me to enter the woods. Sure enough there was plenty of scent in the pine needles which I tracked to my final article - a makeup case stuffed with sausage biscuit. Yeah! I could tell that Barbara and Sandi were quite pleased with how well I worked. Then Ayla worked her track and I understand that she got slices of chicken at her final article.




This afternoon we went to see Pippo and Snowflake. Their person Jane has been fostering a cute lab mix named Summer and she wanted to see Summer's play style with me. I have good body language so Barbara was happy to bring me over to play with Summer.

Summer was a little pushy but I just turned around and stared at her (I learned this from Selkie) and she backed off smartly. We did some chasing in the yard and in the house as well. I wanted a drink of water and made Summer get away from the water bowl. Puppies should be deferential. Selkie took every opportunity to remind me of this important facet of canine social behavior.

Fortunately Jane has found an excellent permanent home for Summer so she should have a great life with her new people. I am glad to know that because many dogs have boring horrible lives tied out on chains or no homes at all.

Anyway I must rest now. I understand that tomorrow I am going to the dog park. I really don't know if I can keep up this pace

Tracking Fun

It was a beautiful morning -just perfect for tracking. Barbara stopped at the Burger King to get biscuits as rewards. She put the bag of biscuits in the trunk of the car. Did she really think that I wouldn't smell them in the trunk?

When we got to the field Trotter and Tully were already there with Chris. So was Trapper, a Brittany. He and his special person Jeanine have done lots for canine freestyle together and Trapper had earned many titles. He has retired from freestyle and at age 11 is learning to track! His picture is posted above. Barbara took several pictures of Trapper and Jeanine but she somehow managed to erase most of them. She really has to pay more attention to what she is doing.

We had a great morning of tracking. I was very excited since I knew that sausage biscuits were involved. Barbara laid a long track for me - 200 yds. with 3 turns - and let it age for 25 minutes. Even thought I had been very busy over the weekend I still had lots of energy to run my track. The first two turns were easy. Sometimes the track crossed some tire ruts in the field. The scent would pool in the ruts and of course I would have to check in both directions. Barbara stopped going forward and once I realized that the trail did not go in the ruts I was able to get back on track. The last turn was a bit tricky since it was near some tire tracks too. Barbara had to back up and help me a bit (that is what she is there for) but I finally got it and headed for my last article. It was a hairband wrapped around the sausage biscuit. Yeah! I could tell that she was very pleased with how well I did my work.

When we got back to the cars I found out that Trotter and Tully got egg and cheese biscuits for their tracks. It smelled quite delicious. Barbara says that eggs are gross and she will not get me an egg biscuit but I would certainly like to taste one someday.

Resolutions Revisited

I think I may want to revise my resolutions. I want to roll in more dead, smelly animals (it is like wearing perfume) but one of my wishes for 2008 is to have no baths. Barbara has warned me if I roll in any dead, smelly animals I will have to have a bath immediately. This is a horrible thought and very cruel. I am going to have to strike the dead, smelly animals off my list and just work on the treats and toys.

Happy New Year 2008

Happy New Year to all my dog friends and their people. Wishing you a 2008 filled with lots of adventures, tracking, rally, freestyle and no baths!!!

People like to make resolutions at the start in the new year and I thought that I should too. However people are not usually good at keeping them so I thought I would come up with some resolutions that I know that I can accomplish with a little work.

In 2008 I resolve to:

Roll in more dead, smelly animals.
Destroy more stuffed toys.
Eat more treats.

I really don't see what is so hard about this New Year's resolution thing. I'll be happy to be successful with all these resolutions.

I went to the dog park in Carrboro this afternoon and Barbara tooks some pictures of me which she has posted above. There were lots of dogs and I had a good time running with some of them. One dog kept trying to hump me and I had to tell him off. It was all in good fun though and a good start for the new year.

Back Again

I stayed at K9 Kindercare for a week while Barbara went to NY so I haven't been able to blog. I had a good time there with my Boxer friend Dutch. I was sad when his person came to pick him up because none of the other dogs wanted to play "bump and run" which Dutch and I enjoy. But Barbara finally came to get me yesterday and I am very happy to be home.

Barbara's mother sent a Christmas present for me which was a stuffed penguin. I like it a lot and it squeaks very well. I will probably tear his legs off when I get a chance. Barbara got to meet my new cousin Coby and two other Golden Retrievers. I am very jealous. I missed out on a lot of fun. Next year I will insist that I go to NY for Christmas.

Barbara got a new camera for Christmas and says that she will put more pictures of me on my blog. Well she will if I sit still long enough to have my picture taken!!

More Tracking-No Beagles

I went tracking again the other day in the same field where the beagle stole my sausage biscuit and some of the articles. When Barbara and I got there Trotter and Dreamer were already there with Chris. She had brought cheeseburgers from Burger King for tracking rewards. I was very worried that the beagle would be there to steal the cheesburgers but the coast was clear. Barbara and Chris laid the tracks, let them age and then I got to work.

I do so love to track. I made the first two turns easily and found the hairbands with the pieces of cheeseburger under them. There was a can near the track but I ignored it. The last turn was near a woodpile and some sawdust and the scent went all around. I had to circle around many times. Barbara helped me and I made the turn and pulled hard to the last article- a sunhat stuffed with cheesburger!!! Yeah!!! Trotter and Dreamer ran their tracks and got cheesburgers too. A very successful afternoon.

That evening Barbara wrapped Chrismas presents. I love presents and really enjoy tearing up wrapping paper. I inspected all the presents very carefully looking for a dog toy or treats. Barbara seemed quite annoyed when I drooled on some of the presents. I can not understand why-it is only saliva. Alas, I did not find any present for me. I think that Barbara needs to do some more shopping.

Sausage Biscuit Tracking

What a great morning! Barbara and I went out to meet Chris and Dreamer to do some tracking which I love. On the way to the field Barbara stopped at a Burger King and bought some sausage biscuits. But she did not give any to me and I was a bit miffed because they smelled wonderful and even though I had eaten breakfast I could have found room for something as delicious as sausage.

When we got to the field Barbara gave me a tiny piece of biscuit. I thought that she was being stingy. Little did I know that she was going to lay the track with pieces of the sausage biscuit at each interim article and stuff the final article full of sausage! I had to stay in the car while she laid the track and I was whining and carrying on while she was gone. She finally came back and we had to wait while the track aged. Meanwhile Chris was laying a long track for Dreamer. I was very anxious to start my track and was very happy when Barbara finally put me in my special tracking harness. I had a drink of water - it is always easier to track when my mouth is wet- and we set off for the start flag.

There was a bit of biscuit on a sock at the start flag and Barbara said there would be more biscuit to follow. This track had a lot of turns and she wanted the reward to be extra special. I couldn't wait to start tracking and took off in a straight line, nose down into the track. Well we were tricked. While we were waiting for the track to age a beagle came into the field and ate the biscuit pieces and ran away with some of the articles!!! Barbara was bit confused but Chris was walking behind us and helped us restart. I made my turns but that beagle had stolen a glove and a sock and ate the biscuit out of a sun hat. The nerve! Fortunately Barbara has some more biscuit in her bait bag and rewarded me as we went along. I was doing a good job on the track even though it was messed up.

We got to the final leg and I found the slipper which was stuffed with the remainder of the sausage. I am so glad that the beagle didn't find that. Barbara gave me lots of praise for doing such a good job in a difficult situation (and some more treats too). I like the idea of tracking for sausage biscuits but I will be keeping away from kleptomaniac beagles!

Woe is me

My life is just awful. I am in heat and it means that I missed one of the most exciting events of the year- the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Holiday Parade was yesterday and I didn't get to be in it. It was supposed to be my first time in the parade and I was especially excited because my person Barbara was named the Grand Marshall and the Drill Team was going to march in the very front of the parade. Barbara got to ride in a 1955 Thunderbird convertible. I don't know what a convertible is but I love riding in cars and this would have been fun to do although Barbara was afraid I would jump out. So I missed all the fun with my Drill Team friends. I don't like being in heat and I have to wear nasty bloomers so I don't make a mess.

The day got even worse. Barbara made lots of delicious food and then took it away to my friend Lucy's house for a party! I didn't get any of it and staying home by myself with a rawhide chew was NOT my idea of fun.

Bath Pictures

Here are some pictures from a few weeks ago when I had a bath at Max's Dog Wash. You can see how much I am enjoying myself. NOT!! I love to splash and swim in Jordan Lake but I am not happy about sitting in a tub and having water squirted on me and even worse is the blow dryer. I do not understand this human obsession with clean dogs. We are just fine the way we are.

Tracking Workshop

I love to track. This past Sunday I got to do a lot of it at a tracking workshop at the APS. Gretchen and Marge came back to help us. Unfortunately I just went into heat so I couldn't come in the building but I could go out in the fields and track which is what I love to do anyway. Mona, a nice young German Shepherd Dog, was also in heat so we were sequestered at the end of the field so we wouldn't distract the boy dogs at the workshop.

In the morning I got to work on two tracks, one that was straight and one with turns. Gretchen followed behind us and gave Barbara tips about how to work with me (I already know how to smell things-she is the one that needs to learn!!). Sometimes I quarter a bit to find the sent and Barbara stops but when I am right on track we get to go, go, go! I love to lean into my tracking harness and pull. I am learning to target the articles and I get to eat all the delicious treats Barbara stuffs in them.

In the afternoon we went back to the big field on Hwy 54. Barbara laid another track with several turns in it. I was very impatient for my turn to track and did not want to wait while Laura laid a track for Mona. When I get frustrated I bite my leash a bit which Barbara does not like. Anyway I bit through the tracking line and took off to run the track. I found the sock at the start flag and then raced down the track to the 1st article. I realized that I was free and started to run around the field. I made a big circuit and Barbara called me and I came straight to her very fast. She gave me lots of liver. It took me a while to settle down (and even a longer time for Barbara's heart to stop pounding I think) I was very proud of my great recall and then I still got to do the track which was lots of fun. Can't wait to do some more tracking with my friends.

My New Cousin, Coby

Debby and Stan, Barbara's sister and brother-in-law, have been wanting a dog for a long time. But it had to be just the right dog of course. They went to look at a nice little dog at a shelter near their home and thought that they had found a dog that would fit into their family just perfectly. They called Barbara to talk about him and on Sunday they went to the shelter to meet him again and adopt him.

His name is Coby and he is two years old. When I first saw his picture I thought tha Debby and Stan had made a mistake and adopted a sheep but he is a poodle mix. I can't believe that someone would leave such a cute little dog in a shelter but people do strange things. Fortunately he didn't have to stay there too long before Debby and Stan adopted him. Coby will have a great life now that he has them as his special people. They will love, train and care for him. They have already gotten him a new collar and leash, a crate, food bowls and some toys.

On Sunday Barbara and I were at Phydeaux's pet supply shop before Drill Team practice. I picked out a Kong and a Twist and Treat (my two favorite toys) and some lamb fillet treats (very delicious) to send to Coby as a welcome to the family gift. I hope he likes them and I can't wait to meet him.

Baking

I have been so busy lately that I have not had time to blog for 2 weeks! You may wonder how a dog can blog. I sit on Barbara's feet or lean against her leg while she is at the computer and dictate to her. She does the hard work of typing for me. I have been to the dog park several times, for walks at Fearrington, practiced with the drill team, worked as a demo dog at the puppy class, went to the APS Dog Walk and also have worked on my tracking. My calendar is full. The photo shows me and Barbara at drill team practice. Barbara was wearing the T-shirt that has my picture on it so Lucy's person, Allen, took a photo of us together and sent it to us for my blog. Don't I look cute?

This afternoon we baked a pumpkin pie. Well Barbara is made it and I sat by her leg and watched very carefully to make sure she followed the recipe and to be right there in case she knocked the pie off the counter. The smells are sublime. Pumpkin, spices, sugar, pie crust-wonderful. It is in the oven now and I cannot wait for it to be cooked so I can have a taste. Barbara does not usually give me food from the table but it would be cruelty to animals to not let me have some pumpkin pie.

I am incensed! Barbara is not going to let me have any of the pie. She is taking it to Trotter's house! Just because he is my boyfriend does not mean that he can eat my pie. If I hear that he got any of it I will bite him the next time I see him!

Baths-Ugh!!

We wasted a perfectly good fall afternoon. Instead of doing something fun like tracking or training, I had a bath. Barbara took me to Max's Dog Wash. Now I have been there many times before and they are always nice to me. Carrie gives me cookies and everyone makes a fuss over me. But I do not like having a bath. Barbara said that I had to because we are performing with the Drill Team tomorrow and she wanted to make sure that I looked nice for the performance. Well I look just fine even without a bath.

First I had to get on the grooming table while Barbara trimmed the hair on my feet and then used clippers on my neck. Barbara said trimming the hair there would show my elegant long neck. I am sure that people can see how nice my neck is with long hair and who cares anyway? Then I had to get in the tub and get shampooed. Barbara picked a shampoo that smelled like oatmeal. I would like to eat oatmeal but who wants to smell like it? I would much rather smell like dead frogs or deer poop (I can never figure out why she gets hysterical when I want to roll in poop). After all the shampoo was rinsed off I got conditioner which is supposed to make me all soft and shiny. I am already very shiny and my name even means "sheen" so I cannot see the sense of putting stuff on me and then rinsing it off.

I don't mind being dried with towels but I really don't like that blow dryer thing. It must have been invented by someone who hates dogs. It is noisy and scary. Barbara gives me lots of liver bits while she is drying me but I still don't like it. Then I had my nails clipped and I am embarrassed to say that I behaved bery badly. Carrie clipped my nails and of course she didn't hurt me but I flipped around on the table and I even growled at her. I just could not help myself. When I was a puppy someone scared me by trying to dremel my nails and I have never forgotten it. Even though Barbara has spent lots of time desensitizining me to having my feet handled I still worry about it. Fortunately it was over fast and I got a lot more liver. I could not wait to get off the table.

I will look very beautiful tomorrow at the APS Dog Walk but the whole grooming thing is vastly overrated. Selkie always liked to be groomed and brushed (she was very vain about her appearance) but it is a waste of time as far as I am concerned. I am going to take a nap now so the day won't be a total loss.

Association of Pet Dog Trainers Conference

As I mentioned in a previous post I stayed in the kennel while Barbara went to a conference. She goes to APDT conference every year to learn more about dogs and dog training. As much as I don't like her to leave me, this is an important thing for her to do. Dog are a very important subject and people can never know enough about us. Barbara said that there were 1158 trainers at the conference. I really don't understand why every trainer does not go. Especially since APDT promotes reward based training which I will tell you is the only kind of training that I want anything to do with. Bring on the treats and toys.

Speaking of treats and toys, Barbara always buys me new toys and goodies at the conference trade show. That is the best part of the whole thing as far as I am concerned. This year the Board president, Don Hanson, gave all the Board members T-shirts with pictures of their dogs on the front. I must say that I look very cute on Barbara's shirt. I think she should put my picture on all of her shirts!!

I'm back

I've been away from the blogosphere for over a week because Barbara went out of town to the Association of Pet Dog Trainers conference to learn about the latest in dog training and I went to K9 Kindercare (www.k9kindercare.com). K9 Kindercare is run by a nice woman named Terrie. She takes care of all the dogs who stay there. We each have our own kennel and we get to play in fenced yards with other friendly dogs. Even though I miss Barbara I really like to stay there.

Terrie puts up a baby pool filled with water and I like to spend a lot of time in it, splashing around and playing. I also play chase games with other dogs. I have a new friend named Dutch who is a young Boxer. He would chase me and then we would bash into each other. That is a lot of fun.

Barbara sent me to the kennel with some new toys and I completely destroyed them!!. I ripped the legs off and then pulled out the stuffing and the squeakers. I shredded what was left into lots of little pieces. I had a great time ripping them up but then Terrie had to throw the toys away.

As much as I like to go the kennel, I was really glad that Barbara came to pick me up. As we turned into our driveway I was whining with excitement. It is good to be home and sleep on my own bed.

Sometimes I'm Good, Sometimes I'm Bad

Today I was bad. Barbara left me alone while she went to work. I really don't like to be left alone. It is boring and makes me tense sometimes. Barbara always leaves me with good toys and a stuffed Kong or Twist and Treat. I watched the squirrels for a while but I got bored after I finished my treats.

Barbara had left her bait bag on the kitchen counter and I could smell the treats. So I pulled it down and ate the cookies. Then I pulled a roll of paper towels off the counter (I like the cardboard tube in the center) and then a glass bowl. It broke. When Barbara got home she saw all the broken glass. "Niamh, what have you done?" she said. Then she had me lie down on my bed so she could check between my toes for bits of glass. I think she was worried that I cut myself.

Barbara never yells at me but I heard her muttering a lot of bad words while she was sweeping up the glass.

Trotter CGC

My boyfriend Trotter is smart as well as handsome. You can see from his picture that he is a gorgeous blonde with beautiful brown eyes. But he is not just a pretty face!! Today he passed the Canine Good Citizen test and now can add the initials CGC after his name. The CGC is a test of basic obedience and practical exercises like sitting politely for petting, walking through a crowd and meeting another dog.

Chris and Trotter took a class and practiced the exercises for many weeks. Trotter passed all 10 parts of the test and he will get a certificate from the AKC. I am so proud of him. Now Barbara and I will have to practice hard so I can pass the test and have initials after my name too. I really have to work on that down stay and my loose leash walking. I don't want Trotter to be embarrassed to go out with me.

My Friend Ayla

Here is a picture of my friend Ayla tracking. Doesn't she look intent on her track? Ayla is an English Shepherd and is a rescue dog. That means for awhile she didn't have a home or anyone to look after her. Someone adopted her but didn't keep her because they said that she didn't know anything. The nerve of some people. So Ayla went to live with Sandi who is now her special person .

I got to know Ayla at the dog park. Sandi wouldl bring Ayla with Ruby and Barbara would bring me with Selkie. We are both very fast and very silly so we would race around the dog park and have a great time. Ruby would bark at us when she thougth that we were behaving badly. But Ayla and I play very well together. Sandi started training Ayla, who is very smart even though her first adopter didn't think so. She learned to track and do Rally and passed her Canine Good Citizen test. She also joined the Drill Team and now we get to see each other every Monday at practice. Barbara and Sandi really have to arrange more play dates for us because there really hasn't been enough running around lately.

English Shepherds (not to be confused with English Setters) are very nice dogs. They were bred to work and to herd. You can find out more about them at www.englishshepherd.org .

A Fun Morning

Even though I got a lot of exercise yesterday running in the dog park and practicing with the Drill Team I woke up feeling very skippy this morning. Fortunately Barbara had a lot planned for us. We went over to my boyfriend Trotter's house so I could run in the yard with him. Trotter is a handsome Golden Retriever and I flirt with him all the time. We chase, then we freeze, do a play bow and chase some more. We also like to play the chew face game where we get lots of slobber all over each other. Sometimes Trotter sniffs me in rude places and I have to air snap at him.

After playtime we went in the van with Chris and Dreamer and Tully to go tracking. I love to track. My friend Ayla came with Sandi and we all had a great morning of sniffing. It wasn't too hot although the ground was dry and the long grass crunchy-not the best scenting conditions. But that didn't stop me.

Barbara laid two tracks for me that were longer than any that I had ever done. One was 100 yards and the other was 130 yards with 3 turns. The straight track was a cinch and I found my article with no problem even though the grass was very high. The next track was harder and I had a little trouble with the first turn as it was close to a change in cover and I kept wanting to go where the grass was shorter. Barbara helped me, I found my turn and didn't have too much trouble with the second turn. I did a great third turn and headed straight to my finish article which was a little slipper filled with lamb treats!! I was quite pleased with my performance.

The other dogs did their tracks very well also. Then it was back home for a nice long nap after all that exertion.

Regression

I have forgotten how to stay. I know that Barbara taught me how to stay when I was a puppy and I could do both a sit stay and a down stay. Somehow I forgot how to do them (maybe we didn't practice them enough) but the whole concept of stay just escapes me. I do not want to sit still.

Barbara is retraining me on the stay. I think it is boring. I would rather practice walking backwards. We have gone back to the beginning and we are doing it in puppy steps. She has me sit in heel position and hold still for 5 seconds and then clicks and treats me. Very boring. Down stay is even harder as I just want to leap up. I really do have to relearn these stay skills if I want to be in the parades with the rest of the Drill Team. Lots of the tricks have stays in them so I will just have to buckle down and practice.

Photos

Barbara has FINALLY gotten around to putting the photos from the Jambalya Jam on my blog. Don't you think I look pretty in my bandanna? Green is a good color for me.




This is a picture of me with my friend Lucy. She is a setter too but not a Gordon. She is an Irish Setter and they are always red. Lucy is an excellent spinner and a lot of fun to be around.

The Green Bandanna

I made my Drill Team debut this afternoon. I was very proud to get to wear the green bandanna that all the other Drill Team dogs wear. It is bright green and has a picture on it of a dancing dog. The bandanna matches the T-shirts that the people on the team wear. I thought that I looked very pretty. I was always a little jealous that Selkie got to wear a bandanna and I did not.

Barbara and I went to the Jambalya Jam at APS with Mary and Walter and my friend Amiga. It was very nice that Amiga let us have a ride in her van. Amiga is a sweet Golden Retriever and she gave me a kiss when we got into the van. When we got to APS a there were balloons, a band and lots of food that smelled delicious. Most of my Drill Team friends were there and we warmed up on the lawn where we were to perform. I was very excited and had a hard time settling down to practice. There were lots of people there who wanted to pet and admire me.

Barbara introduced the Drill Team and all the dogs got to perform a trick. But she forgot to introduce me!! I didn't get to perform my spinning trick which I had practiced. How could she forget me?? I was standing right next to her and she was holding my leash. The Drill Team got to perform their first routine which I am not in because I don't know all the tricks yet. Then we lined up for "I Will Survive" and I got to show my stuff.

This is a fun routine and I thought that I did well. Barbara gave me lots of help and rewarded me with treats throughout the routine. The music is lively and I got to do my tight rights and lefts and my Schutzhund turn. The hard part is the moving down but I even managed that. All the people clapped a lot when we did our pinwheel at the end. Everyone made a great fuss over us. One lady said that I was very elegant!! I was so pleased.

The one big disappointment was the food. We performed right near all the delicious Cajun food. People were filling plates full of jambalya and barbeque. My nose was in over drive as I passed the tables. And no one gave me any of it. I think this is cruelty to animals.

Visiting Friends

Today I am resting. Yesterday was very busy and tomorrow I will be going to my first Drill Team performance so I need to catch up on my beauty sleep.

Yesterday I went to play at Jane's house with her two dogs Snowflake and Pippo. Jane is Barbara's friend and she is a dog trainer too. Snowflake is a nice older dog and Pippo is a cute reddish brown dog. I met him when he was a puppy but haven't seen him in a long time. Pippo was a little excited about meeting me. We ran around his fenced yard. I like to run fast and he would chase me and bark. He didn't seem to know the same games as I do but we did a lot of chasing. Then we went in Jane's house. Pippo let me play with all his stuffed toys which I thought was very nice of him. Jane and Barbara picked up all the rawhides though. I splashed water all over the floor in Jane's kitchen when I had a drink from Pippo's dish.

The most exciting thing was the bird. I am a Gordon Setter and I know about birds. I point them all the time in the yard. But Pippo and Snowflake have a bird living in their house!! And they are not even interested in him. I had no idea that birds could live in a house. We certainly don't have one at home. This bird yellow and gray and was in a big cage with toys! Jane called him Sammy. The birds in our yard do not have names or toys. I was astounded to see Sammy play with his toys and it startled me quite a bit. You learn something new every day.

I am a busy girl

Life has been busy lately. We are doing a lot of fun things. Monday night was my Drill Team night. I went to the dog park first and then had to wait in the crate while Barbara taught her class. That part is boring. Then my friends came for Drill Team practice. I am always happy to see them. It is such a good time although I would really like to have some time to run around with Ayla, Lucy and Amiga. Barbara is just going to have to arrange some play dates for us.

Yesterday I went to visit a Labrador Retriever puppy named Albert. He is cute but very pushy. I had to tell him off several times when he sniffed me in rude places. He even tried to hump me so I had to snap at him. If Selkie were around she would have sorted him out in no time flat because she never tolerated any boy dogs doing rude things to her. I don't quite have the confidence that she had so it took me a bit longer to get my point across. When he finally behaved himself I did allow him to play chew face with me and got nice and slobbery.

Then a surprising thing happened. I had a bath. Dani, Albert's person, has a special dog shower built into her garage and Barbara and Dani put me in it and washed me. I was not expecting it but I am now a very clean dog. Barbara says that I am very soft and shiny. I don't like the bath part too much but I do like the drying part with towels. That feels very good. After my bath I got to go in Albert's house and play with all his stuffed toys. I liked that too.

Tomorrow I am going to play and practice with another dog friend. Life is good.