Tuesday, November 16, 2010

MX Leg #1!

Peyton and had a local 3 day trial this past weekend, and it was a good time! On Friday, we got our first MX leg in Standard with first place an 34 MACH points! It was a really nice run and more than made up for the fact that I missed our JWW walkthrough earlier. Oops! Other than me running into Peyton (ouch!) while he was still in the chute, it wasn't too bad, but I really shouldn't attempt any more jumpers' runs without walking them first. Unfortunately, I didn't have a videographer, so no videos.

On Saturday we started with Standard and I did manage to get there on time, although the trial was running sooooo slow I could have slept in. We had another really nice run, but just missed qualifying (and another first place!) because of a refusal at the table. He didn't hold his contacts as well as he did on Friday, but otherwise, he was a very good spotty. I was super pleased with how well he handled the opening...I was pretty sure that a-frame was going to call his name. :)


We had some nice moments on Sunday, but no Q's. Overall, I think I'm making some good progress with my "operation attitude adjustment". I had fun; he had fun. It was a great trial weekend!

And since everyone has been asking - Derby puppy is doing wonderfully! He seems to love everyone he meets and has a growing fan club. He came with me to the trial on Friday for a little while (he stayed crated in the car) and then my parents came to pick him up for an overnight stay. I missed him, but I knew he would have much more fun at "grandma's house". And from what I heard, he had a grand time! I was a little worried my mom and dad wouldn't bring him back...I think it's safe to say Derby has them wrapped around his little paws. :)

He came home on Saturday night with a hefty dose of confidence and had his first real play session with Indy. Indy is very good when it comes to teaching puppies that she will play when she wants to and only when she wants to...if she isn't in the "mood", then she will (firmly, but gently) let them know. Derby seems to understand and has (so far) been very respectful.

I'm still taking it very slow with Peyton, but he's really adjusting well (much better than I ever expected) to having a puppy in the house. I think he was even a little excited to have Derby puppy back home.

On Sunday morning, Derby came along with us to the trial since I knew it wouldn't be too long of a day. He did great and every time I checked on him he was either napping or just hanging out in his crate. He also got a lot of "visitors" and greeted them all with wags and kisses. Good puppy!

An agility friends asked me (on day 2) how training was going and if Derby already knew all of the basic "commands". After I laughed (probably a little too hard), I explained that at this point my primary goal is that I have a happy, confident puppy that is comfortable at home and on the road, so to speak. I have no doubt that he will learn everything that he needs to know in time, but for now I'm more concerned that he meets lots of people, appropriate dogs, and has very positive experiences in puppy-safe environments.

Thankfully (for my hearing), he seemed to learn one important home lesson right away: no matter how cute you are, no amount of screaming is going to get you out of your crate as long as I know that you don't have to potty...oh, and the crate door will not open if you're jumping on it. :) I think he had that pretty much figured out after the first day and has since been really good about being quiet while in his crate and not charging the door. He's also learning how to settle before he gets his dinner - that one's a little more challenging because this pup *loves* to eat! He reminds me of Pongo in that sense...he starts squealing and bouncing all over the place when he smells food. And in case your curious, he's now eating The Honest Kitchen and hasn't shown (knock on wood) any signs of an upset tummy since we brought him home.

In addition to learning some self-control (and an off-switch!) we're doing lots of playing, chasing, and (informal) off-leash healing. I also introduced the clicker today - I'm by no means a clicker "purist" and more likely fall into the "lurers anonymous" group, but I do like using it for some things. We'll have to see if Derby has more patience than Peyton (and me) with shaping games.

How's that for a puppy update!? We did have a very big, exciting day with our Golden friends yesterday, but we'll save that post for another day.



ps - for more puppy pictures, check out my facebook fan page!

5 comments:

Sarah Duke said...

Congrats on you MX leg and win! Derby sounds like he's doing well, wish we could have seen him!

jan said...

Super udate!! And great run for Peyton; he looked very good in the video!

Kim said...

Thanks guys! :)

Lisa said...

Way to go, Kim and Peyton! Wow, 34 MACH points in one run. That's awesome!! Peyton will have a MACH in no time at that rate. Glad to hear you had such a great weekend. Sounds like Derby is making himself right at home. If you're going to take the plunge and train a bit with a clicker, you might want to try a Clik Stik. They're great for teaching heel position, among other things. We still use ours!! The girls are always excited to see it come out of the training bag.

Kim said...

Thanks Lisa! I do have a click stick...will have to get it out and dust it off. :)