Of Course You Know, This Means War!

That’s it, they’re toast. Those stinking moles have now killed two of my rose bushes by eating the roots completely off. Clearly, Duncan is falling down on the job. We had a discussion about it Tuesday, and he swears he’ll do better. Unfortunately, the moles probably know his nap schedule (which is most of the day – and night). As back-up for Duncan and his mad mole-killing skillz, I went out today and bought a large container of mole repellant. I plan on dumping quite a lot of it in the area they’ve been tunneling, particularly around my roses. I initially wanted something that would kill the little buggers, but I decided that wasn’t worth the risk to the dogs, so I’ll settle for running them far, far away. You know, I didn’t really mind them that much when they were just eating the grass. It was a bit difficult to mow the grass where they’d been tunneling, but that didn’t bother me. Eating my rose bushes, though...that’s just taking things too far.

In other news...

Reyna’s latest allergic reaction (a spot of nastiness near her right shoulder blade) is finally healing up. The antibiotics the vet gave her made her sick and she quit eating last Friday, so I took her off the meds. By Sunday evening, she was feeling better and eating again. Her appetite seems to be back to normal now.

I spent last Saturday at a friend’s house, working on Reyna’s scrapbook. I got 30 pages done and filled her first book (they hold 40 sheets; 1 sheet = 2 pages). That sounds pretty impressive, until you realize her first book covers May 2004 through August 2005. And there’s still lots of pictures left to get caught up to 2008. But we shall persevere. Mary and I are planning to meet once a month, alternating houses, to work on our scrapbooks. If we can stick to that, I might actually get caught up in a year or so. Maybe.

The next 10 days should be highly entertaining (and exhausting). I’m babysitting two 8-week-old puppies for a foster group. One foster mom is going on vacation, and you can’t board puppies under 16 weeks. I’m picking up both Hart and Lucky after work. Hart’s foster mom was actually fostering her and her sister, up until last week, but she decided that two puppies were just too much. So Lucky ended up in a new foster home, but it turns out that the older dogs there really hate the puppy and are acting out. Since I’d already agreed to babysit both (before Lucky was moved), I agreed to keep Lucky for the next week while they find her a new foster home. I talked to the coordinator last night, and she said she has two possible homes lined up, but neither can take Lucky until early June. I know it’ll be crazy at the house, but its only for a limited time.

Do you know how hard it is to find treats that A) Reyna likes and B) she isn’t allergic to? Its not impossible, but it ain’t easy. And its generally not cheap, either. I found one about a year ago – salmon and sweet potato – that she absolutely loves. And Duncan loves it, too, but then again, I’m not sure I’ve ever found anything that Duncan doesn’t like... The really crappy part is that I found out today that they’re discontinuing the treat. That entire line of treats, actually (salmon, duck, tuna, and chicken, all with sweet potato). This sucks. This was the last reasonably priced option. Now if I want treats that Reyna can eat, I have to go to specialty stores. Or I have to find a butcher and cook my own. Good thing I got that little chest freezer last month, huh? By the way, Krysti, if you read this, please tell Dad I’d *really* appreciate some venison when the season rolls around. Or even before...

Abandon Hope, All Ye Who Enter Here

Yesterday, I discovered the answer to that age-old question: What’s destroying my yard – moles or voles? Turns out, its moles. And how did I determine this, you ask? Its all thanks to Duncan and his mole-killing abilities. Yep, that’s right. He killed a mole.

As I was making my usual morning rounds of the yard, I saw something odd in one of the dirt piles formerly known as mole/vole tunnels. I’ve been encouraging Duncan to dig up the tunnels, and he’s taken on that task with a vengeance. He’s very smart about it, though – he doesn’t dig old tunnels, only the new ones with a fresh odor. And he hasn’t decided that my approval of this digging means he can dig randomly in the yard; he’s very particular about where he digs. So, I spotted this gray lump in one of the new dig sites, and after I realized it wasn’t a piece of mulch or bark, I got my poop shovel and scooped it up. It was definitely a mole, about 6 inches long. There were no visible wounds, so Duncan didn’t bite it. My guess is that he was digging at the tunnel and either accidentally crushed/smothered it, or he managed to get it to the surface and as it tried to scurry away he stepped on it or pawed it, breaking its spine. Either way, it was very dead. I called him over and showed it to him, and told my killer beast what an excellent dog he was. He gave me an “aw, shucks” look, and then started sniffing at the tunnels again. Reyna came over to check out the commotion, but since no one was throwing her ball, she wasn’t very interested. For a brief moment, I contemplated staking the carcass on the outside of the fence as a warning, but I figured that wouldn’t work, since the moles aren’t likely to come above ground to see it. So, I tossed it over the fence into the woods. With any luck, Duncan will kill more of them, or someone in Moletown will realize that Bubba Mole went missing in our yard, and word will spread to all the other moles that its not safe in there and that they should just move on. Like back to my neighbor’s yard. He’s apparently had them in his yard for five years, and he doesn’t seem to care.

Good dog, Duncan.

Thank You

I’d like to offer a public (or as public as this blog is, anyway) “thank you” to coworker John. He came over on the 26th and spent several hours installing a ceiling fan in my kitchen, which included building a brace, balancing on a very tall ladder while Reyna bumped it trying to get her dinner, rewiring a switch to make my life a bit simpler, and missing dinner with his wife. I seriously love my kitchen fan. I don’t think I’ve turned it off twice since it was installed, and it circulates so much air, its ridiculous. Thank you, John.

Now, about that attic fan...

Its Always Something

Reyna had her annual check-up on Saturday. Everything was going well – the tech read her chart and realized the vet has to draw her blood, so they didn’t have to muzzle her, and the vet remembered to not shine the ear/eye light on the floor for Reyna to see and go nuts over – until the vet started checking her legs. Now, everyone knows she has trouble with her hips, but she hasn’t shown any indication of other problems. Not that that really means anything…after all, this is the girl who almost chopped off her tail and never made a sound. When the vet manipulated Reyna’s right shoulder, though, she indicated that she did not find that pleasant. She found it so unpleasant, in fact, that she nipped him. A bit more than her standard warning nip, but significantly less than a bite. Certainly enough to make him stop messing with her shoulder. So, he checked her hips (we got the response we expected), and he checked her left elbow and shoulder. Nothing. No response at all, other than leaning in for a bit more scratching. So the vet went back to her right leg. No response when he messed with her elbow, but she went nuts when he tried moving her shoulder. Based on what he could feel, the vet thinks Reyna’s developed osteoarthritis in that shoulder. He said its fairly common for dogs with bad hips to get that, as they tend to put more weight on the front legs. But, he also said that, while watching her move around, he didn’t see any indication that she was bearing more weight on the front than she should. He’s confident that its not anything like cancer, so we decided to not bother with x-rays, and just keep treating her the same as we do now. I have pain pills for her hips, so if she does limp on the front, I’ll just give her some meds. The vet said that, as long as she doesn’t exhibit significant clinical symptoms (regular limping, or the leg collapsing under her), there’s really not much else to do.

Edumacation. He Has It.

Duncan graduated from his pre-agility class last night. We should have had a couple more weeks of class, but there were only two of us taking it, and the other girl dropped the class two weeks ago. Since Duncan was essentially getting private lessons, he was able to get more time on more equipment, so the cut the number of lessons. Which is fine – this way I can quit worrying that we’re going to miss a class because work is sending me off somewhere. When we took it the first time, about a year and a half ago, his certificate said he attended the class (we didn’t pass). But last night, he received a certificate that said he successfully completed the class. One of the instructors even tried to get me to sign him up for the next level of agility. I don’t see that happening – agility doesn’t set his tail wagging like sheep herding does. I was very proud of him, though. Everything he had trouble with last time – the A-frame, dog walk, and teeter-totter – he sailed through this time.


Since it was only us in the class last night, they let us do three small courses, and the instructors took pictures and video. During one of the runs (and I use that word very loosely, as he certainly didn’t run at any point in time), he actually fell off the A-frame, but he got right back on it and didn’t show any signs of stress. They put up a two jumps for him, too, but what you don’t see in the video is that he keeps knocking the bars off. They didn’t want to make the jumps too high, but they were so low, he could barely exert himself to pick his feet up. He’d just walk over them, and forget to get his back feet up a bit higher. But that’s okay. And for some reason, the goofball decided that he would only go through the chute if I was on his right side. If I was on his left, he wouldn’t do it. One thing we all laughed at was that he’s clearly realized that he gets a cookie for touching the pad on the end of the dog walk. Two weeks ago, he wouldn’t touch unless I pointed to it first, so last night, I went ahead and pointed as he got close to the end. He would touch, I’d give him a cookie, and then he’s supposed to get off the dog walk. But last night, he decided to try multiple touches, and see if he could get multiple cookies. The big stinker.

Herding Sheep Is Fun!

We had our third sheep herding session last Saturday. Two of the girls from the GSD club went to try their dogs, so we were able to take pictures and video.

Duncan and Reyna both have a blast when they’re working the sheep. Duncan’s tail almost never stops wagging. The trainer thinks he could be ready to start competing by December. Of course, she didn’t say when she thought *I* would be ready. She thinks Duncan has a lot of innate talent for this and would do really well. One thing that she specifically complimented is his rating, which is keeping pace with the handler. Basically, he understands that if the handler slows down, he slows down, and if the handler speeds up, he speeds up to keep the flock moving at the right pace.


Reyna, on the other paw, lives life at a run, and that carries over into her herding. Sheep herding for Reyna will just be a stress reliever. Watching her, its clear that her hips won’t let her move like she needs to in order to control the flock. She can’t easily spin on her right hip, so she runs a big circle instead, and tends to lose a sheep or two each time. Not that she minds chasing after them to bring them back… For now, she can turn on her left hip, but who knows how long that will last? So, she gets to herd the sheep just for fun, and Duncan gets to learn how to do it correctly.


The clips were great for me, because its really hard to see what your dog is doing when he’s behind you. And my balance in the sheep pen isn’t so great that I’m willing to walk backwards very often. This clip is Duncan’s first run of the day. It’s a bit long, and there is at least one spot where the trainer is giving me some instructions on working with Duncan, but its pretty neat to watch him working the sheep.

This clip is Reyna’s first run. Its considerably shorter, because the girl working the video camera had a bit of trouble with it at first.

Happy Birthday!

Mirabelle is 11 years old today. Happy birthday, baby girl!

Poor, Poor Parm

Thursday morning, Parm jumped off the bed. This normally wouldn’t make the news, but this time he apparently landed wrong and hurt his leg. He was limping just a bit, and when I checked his leg, I couldn’t find anything obviously wrong. Friday evening was the next time I saw him (he’s a hider, so I don’t see him every day) and he was limping pretty badly. Saturday morning, he was still limping, so I called the vet and made an appointment for Monday afternoon. Monday, his limp was on and off, so we went on to the vet. The exam showed that his right front elbow is swollen and painful to manipulate. The vet said that he was probably hyper-extended when he landed, and that’s what caused the injury. Keeping him quiet is the best option at this point, which isn’t hard to do. The difficulty is keeping him from jumping off of high surfaces (like the bed). Every time he does that, his limp gets worse. When he sleeps on lower surfaces, his limp gets better. So, we’ll just wait and see. If its still a problem in a couple of weeks, we’ll go back for a follow-up. On the upside, Lardbutt managed to lose some weight – he is now a petite 18.5 pounds...

And People Say German Shepherds Are Vicious

So, I’ve had GSDs for 4 years, I interact with other GSDs on a regular basis, and I’ve never been bit by one (except when I got between Reyna and the foster GSD that attacked her). On Friday, though, I was attacked by a vicious monster. My neighbor invited me into her house to see her cat, and before I could get past the door jamb, one of the dogs she watches for her daughter jumped on my leg and bit me. Mind you, this wasn’t a GSD, or even a chow, rottie, or pit bull. It was a Dachshund. A Dachshund! The little monster tried to bite me three more times, and then growled at me the entire time I was in the house. He actually managed to get through my jeans and break the skin. My neighbor and her daughter both offered a wide variety of reasons why this “incredibly sweet and mild” dog would act “so completely out of character” and attack me. If it had been one of my dogs, my neighbor and her daughter would have gone nuts, but since it was their little bitty baby, I’m supposed to write this off as a freak incident that was actually my fault...

Happy Birthday!

The kittens are three years old this week (Khar'pern yesterday, and Parm and Per'la somewhere around this time). They sure don't look like this anymore...

If I Didn’t Have Animals

I found this online today, and I think it sums everything up pretty well.

If I Didn’t Have Animals
by Jim Willis

If I didn’t have animals . . .
I could walk around the yard barefoot in safety.
My house could be carpeted instead of tiled and laminated.
All flat surfaces, clothing, furniture, and cars would be free of hair.
When the doorbell rings, it wouldn’t sound like a kennel.
When the doorbell rings, I could get to the door without wading through fuzzy bodies who beat me there.
I could sit on the couch and my bed the way I wanted, without taking into consideration how much space several fur bodies would need to get comfortable.
I would not have strange presents under my Christmas tree - dog bones, stuffed animals, toys, treats - nor would I have to explain to people why I wrap them.
I would have money...and no guilt to go on a real vacation.
I would not be on a first-name basis with 6 veterinarians, as I put their yet unborn grand kids through college.
The most used words in my vocabulary would not be: out, sit, down, come, no, stay, and leave him/her/it ALONE.
My house would not be cordoned off into zones with baby gates or barriers.
My house would not look like a day care center, toys everywhere.
My pockets would not contain things like poop bags, treats and an extra leash.
I would no longer have to spell the words B-A-L-L-, F-R-I-S-B-E- E, W-A-L-K, T-R-E-A-T, B-I-K-E OR C-A-R.
I would not have as many leaves INSIDE my house as outside.
I would not look strangely at people who think having ONE dog/cat ties them down too much.
I’d look forward to spring and the rainy season instead of dreading ‘mud’ season.
I would not have to answer the question ‘Why do you have so many animals?’ from people who will never have the joy in their lives of knowing they are loved unconditionally by someone as close to an angel as they will ever get.
How empty my life would be.

So Proud!

Tonight was Duncan’s second night in his pre-agility class. The last time we took the class, we received a certificate that said we attended; this time, we’re aiming for the certificate that says we completed the class. Tonight we worked with the equipment that was our downfall last time – the A-frame, the dog walk, and the teeter-totter. The biggest problem Duncan had with all three of those before is that they’re only 12 inches wide, and Duncan couldn’t figure out how to keep his back end on those 12 inches. This time, though, he did beautifully. He went up and down the A-frame without even thinking about it, and he trotted along the dog walk without any encouragement or help from me or the instructors. A few times, he even stopped on the dog walk and sat down, waiting for me to give him his cookie before he got off. Not that long ago, he wouldn’t have been able to get his butt down in that 12 inch space without falling off. Even the teeter-totter didn’t bother him too badly. He walked across it twice; the first time he was a bit nervous when it suddenly moved on him, but the second time he was more interested in the cookies the instructor had than he was in the movement of the board. The really entertaining part of the class is seeing how excited he is about the tunnel and the table (they finally have a table big enough for him to sit on without most of him hanging off) – he keeps trying to go through the tunnel or get on the table when I’m not having him do something else.

A Stroll Down Memory Lane

So, while I was working on the video clips for the previous blog, I stumbled across a few videos I took of Reyna on my first digital camera, back when she was just a few months old. The quality is pretty bad, although its better on my computer than it is on YouTube or Photobucket. But, you work with what you have. I’d forgotten just how freakishly cute Reyna was at 3 and a half months old. And so skinny! I didn’t know it then, of course, but these clips were definitely an indication of how Reyna would turn out.

This clip is Reyna with her woobie. Reyna’s woobie was her very favorite stuffed toy, and I think we went through four of them before I stopped buying her stuffed toys. Her woobie had squeakies in the head and all four feet, and she loved to carry it around, sit on it, and sleep on it. In the clip, I ask her a couple of times to “bring it here” which she totally ignores. Amazingly enough, she has the same response now when I tell her to bring me her soccer ball.

In this one, Belle is explaining to Reyna just how she feels. When Reyna was still pretty little, the cats had the run of the house. Reyna was blocked at the hallway, though, so that the cats would have their own space. Of course, all that has changed a bit, and now the species are separated by the door in the hallway. The cats could go through the whole house using the catwalk, but they really don’t seem inclined to do that. Belle’s feelings towards Reyna haven’t changed any since the day I recorded this.

Here we have Reyna showing off her love of digging, as well as her high intensity level. I never did figure out what she was digging for, but she was determined to got through the kitchen floor. I also have a second, much longer clip of her still digging away in the same corner. She really doesn’t dig anymore (except in water buckets), but I don’t think anyone can say that her intensity level has decreased over time.

And here is Reyna demonstrating a habit that goes on today (and that is very possibly happening right this moment). In this clip, Reyna shows that she never really had the ability to chase her tail without running into something. Unfortunately, she advanced quickly from running into plastic boxes to running into walls. Not that she seems to mind, of course. And just think – at only 14 weeks old, she was already showing signs of the insanity that has followed her ever since...

I have a few other little clips of Reyna at home, and I’m so glad I thought to take them. Even though I have loads of photos of her, these videos definitely show her puppy personality more clearly than any photo ever could.

A Fun Afternoon

The weather has been pretty icky this weekend, but Friday was gorgeous. I got out of class early, so I was able to take advantage of the sunny, 80 degree weather. As soon as I got home, I took the dogs out to the pond behind the house. I'm going to have to try and find a better route other than straight through the woods, because the ticks are definitely out.


Both of the dogs enjoy going to the pond, but Reyna’s the only one who actually swims. Some days, I think Duncan still believes he’ll melt if that horrible, nasty, wet stuff touches him. He has finally gotten to where he’ll actually get in the water up to his chest, but only to drink, and he still gets out pretty quickly. He certainly doesn’t splash around it in and have fun like Reyna does.


This pond isn’t huge, but it’s plenty big for swimming, and the water is pretty clean (ignoring the layer of pollen on top, of course). Reyna doesn’t swim just to swim, but she’ll go after sticks – and occasionally even bring them back. I’ve thought of taking a couple of tennis balls out there, but since she isn’t consistent on returning the items, I figure tennis balls aren’t a good idea. I’d hate for her to leave one out there, and then I have to either swim after it myself or drag the canoe down there.


On this trip, I remembered to take my digital camera and my video camera. Below is a short clip of Reyna swimming. I had a several bits where she actually brought the stick back, but all you can hear during those is the clickity-clickity-click of the digital camera. Holding the video in my left hand and the digital in my right doesn’t produce the best of either. Its hard to zoom with one hand...

On our way back, the dogs decided to play a bit, and I managed to get most of that on tape, too.

The One Place You Can Yell “Bitch” And No One Gets Upset

Various local kennel clubs held their annual dog shows at the fairgrounds this past week (Tuesday thru Sunday). The German Shepherd Dog Club that Duncan and I belong to had their specialty shows Friday and Saturday evenings. Last year, I worked one night as a Steward Trainee; this year, I worked both nights as the only Steward. Basically, that means I got to stand on a cement floor for about 6 hours each night, helping the judge and keeping all of the humans and dogs in line. The majority of the time I had a lot of fun, but I didn’t particularly appreciate being yelled at by the dog show divas (i.e., the male handlers). The worst part of both nights was the calling for the dogs. I did so much yelling, I ended up hoarse Saturday and Sunday. And, oh, how my feet and back ached afterwards. Oh, well, its only once a year. I couldn’t always tell why the judges chose one dog over another, but I did get to see some absolutely gorgeous German shepherds.

On a slightly related note, I pulled off my first tick of the season Sunday afternoon. Sigh.

Worse Than Mama’s Spit

Last night, Duncan became obsessed with licking Reyna’s lower lip. This went beyond his normal kisses – he was fixated. Made me wonder if she had a piece of kibble stuck there. At first, Reyna just sat quietly and let him lick. After a minute, she started staring at me with a mildly annoyed look on her face. I saw her upper lips start to curl, and just as I said Duncan’s name, she went for him. After she finished snapping at him, he started trying to lick her lip again! She tolerated that for an entire second and a half before expressing her displeasure. It turns out that she had a piece of dead skin stuck to her lip, and Duncan was apparently trying to remove that for her.

Various And Sundry

Per’la had another round of Nasty Eye a couple of weeks ago, and now she has a cold. Belle and Loki are fine, but Mikey and Khar both have Nasty Eye Lite. Parm, on the other paw, is dealing with Really Nasty Eye, and doesn’t quite seem to know what to do with all that extra crud. I’m having trouble convincing him that letting me scrape it all out every now and then will make his life more pleasant.

Courtesy of recent truck issues and rising gas prices, I really miss my car.

Two weeks ago, I definitely had moles (or voles – without actually seeing one of them, I have no idea how to tell the difference). I haven’t found any more tunnels under the fence, but I had several raised mounds in the yard where the critters were tunneling. Duncan did not like that, and did a very good job of digging up all the tunnels and access holes he could find. I didn’t see any new ones for the last week, and figured that the critters were either tunneling too deep to disturb the ground, or they’d decided that Duncan’s Yard just wasn’t the place to be. This morning, though, I discovered a tunnel from the fence straight to a small flower bed beside my swing. Duncan wasn’t happy to see that, and spent 20 minutes digging up the tunnel and trying to shove his nose as far in as possible. He also found an access hole near my tree that he dug up. I talked to my neighbor on that side a bit ago, and they had moles for 5 years. I guess they decided it was time to try new hunting grounds. Hopefully, Duncan will discourage there efforts...

I started another export class this week. Once again, I’m in class for six weeks. Thankfully, the assignments for export classes are a lot less intensive than for my MBA. It shouldn’t be too bad, as long as I can remember to participate five days a week.

I’ve been taping the ACC games since Friday for my Aunt Susan. I have to say that, as much as I don’t really care who wins the games, both semi-final games yesterday were real nail-biters. Since I have to watch the games, I’m grateful that they’ve been interesting. I know its unlikely (especially since the score is 69-59 UNC, with 8:30 left in the game), but it would make me smile if Clemson beat UNC today...

Duncan's pre-agility class starts tomorrow. The first session is orientation for the people, then we have six weeks of classes with the dogs. We got the equivalent of an "incomplete" last time, because Duncan couldn't coordinate his back end well enough to handle the ramp and dog walk. Since he's older and a bit more together now, I figured we'd try it again. Paws crossed!

Happy Birthday, Reyna!

Today is Reyna’s 4th birthday. Some days its hard to believe she’s been a part of my life for that long; other days it feels like she’s always been here. Last year was a rough one for both of us, and there were times when I wasn’t sure if she’d make it to the next week, much less all the way to her next birthday. But she did. And she’s doing so well now.


She’s changed in the last year, matured, become more affectionate, and she’s actually settled down quite a bit (although she’s still insane, there’s no question about that). I look at her and I see this wonderful, gorgeous, brilliant animal, and I think of all the drama and annoyance and struggle we’ve been through together, and I know that she’s worth it. I also know there will be more drama, more annoyance, and more struggle. But that’s okay, because she’s worth that, too. And that’s enough of the sappy stuff.


Reyna had a very big day today. First, she got to go on a long truck ride. The she got to chase sheep. And then roll in a mud puddle, play in a water trough, and chase more sheep! And then she got another long truck ride, and a visit to her favorite bakery, where she got treats and lovins. Then it was play time at home, and a quick nap to recharge the batteries. And she’s finishing off her day eating CAKE! Now, really, how much better could a dog’s birthday be???

More Visitors?

As I mentioned before, Duncan is taking his hole patrol duties very seriously. So seriously, in fact, that he found two more entrances into the yard. They were covered with leaves, and I wouldn’t have seen them if he hadn’t shown them to me (and before someone pops up with the idea that he dug them himself, these holes go into tunnels, and the exits for both tunnels are about 8 inches outside the fence). The holes are almost perfectly round, with no loose dirt inside the fence. Every time we go outside, Duncan does a sniff test on each hole. I can tell that whatever odor he smells is stronger occasionally, because he’ll really fixate on a hole for several minutes. I still don’t know why the animals would bother with these tunnels and holes, since the holes are the size of the spaces in the fence and the exit holes are even smaller. I’d think it’d be easier to just pop through the fence...

Run, Sheep, Run

Saturday, the pups and I went to Pittsboro to see a trainer about instinct tests for herding for both dogs and carting for Duncan. I’d have to say that the day was a definite success; both educational and highly entertaining.

The trainer has a flock of sheep, but for testing purposes, she only uses three. She also has goats, geese, chickens, a cow, three dogs and a couple of cats. She said that, during testing, she looks for more than just interest from the dog. Too much interest in the sheep is just as bad (and potentially worse) than no interest. She also watches how the three sheep respond to the dog, as well as what the goats in the next pen do. Apparently, the goats get very agitated if the dog being tested has too much prey drive.

We worked Reyna first, then Duncan. Then we did a bit of carting with Duncan, and then worked Reyna with the sheep again, and then Duncan again. Oh, and the stick she’s carrying isn’t to whack the dogs, its to block them from going in certain directions and to keep them from getting between her and the sheep. If I understood correctly, the dog is always supposed to be on the outside, with the sheep between the dog and the handler. Or something like that. She said if I decided to do more of this, she’d have me work with her dog while I was figuring out what I was supposed to do, so that I wouldn’t frustrate my dogs. Makes sense to me.

Reyna had a bit of trouble grasping the idea at first. I think she was just too surprised by the idea that she was not only allowed to chase the sheep, but she was actually being encouraged. The sheep stayed pretty relaxed (according to the trainer) and the goats weren’t at all interested in Reyna. Although, she was very interested in them… After a few minutes, Reyna seemed to have at least a general idea of what was going on, and she seemed to be enjoying it. One thing the trainer noticed with Reyna is that she doesn’t like to change direction too much. She figured it probably hurts Reyna’s hips, because the dog is supposed to stop and rock backwards to change direction. The second time through, though, Reyna figured out she could do a quick hop to the side and change directions, without ever rocking backwards.




Duncan was very interesting to watch. The sheep did not like him at first, and one of the goats was upset when Duncan was in the pen. The trainer said that it was most likely because the sheep and goat could tell that Duncan had less self-control than Reyna did. Of course, that might have had something to do with the fact that Duncan was lunging and whining for the first few minutes. The sheep and goats seemed fine for Duncan’s second run, though, probably because he’d finally calmed down a good bit. Isn’t that strange – I’d never thought I’d ever say that Duncan was more wound up than Reyna about something, or that it would take him longer to calm down… Anyway, Duncan took to chasing, er, herding the sheep pretty quickly, and seemed to think it was a wonderful game. He kept grabbing at them, and I had to explain to the trainer that Duncan has always been pretty mouthy. She said that it was pretty obvious he wasn’t trying to hurt them, and it didn’t seem to upset the sheep, so I guess its no big deal. She said the next time we go, she might have him try herding the geese. I don’t know that that’s a good idea, but they’re her geese…




The carting session went as smoothly as I figured it would. She has a very light-weight PVC cart that she uses with beginners, and Duncan was totally oblivious to the fact that he was dragging something. The next time we go, we’re going to measure Duncan and then add some length to the cart, because the only probably he really had was that he’s just too long for that particular cart. She had the shafts as far back as she could, and Duncan was still bumping the cart with his back feet half the time.