Repeating Patterns

Dog Blog Post #300: Post #300? Wow! That deserves a band, or a cake, or something...

... but, alas, no. It's dog class night, I'm tired, my hands smell like hot dog despite having washed them 1000 times, and trying to dream up something fancy is beyond me at the moment.

"So how was dog class," you ask?

Why, it was pretty good, actually. If you recall that last class I freaked Henry out by backing him away from the "friendly strangers" when he broke his sit. That led to him thinking I thought the strangers weren't so friendly, and thus he began to stand behind me and peer around my leg, as though expecting them to sprout horns and start devouring the canines in the class.

Oops. My bad.

This week, all I wanted was for him to keep four-on-the-floor, and for the most part, he did. He also seemed to have forgotten that these were scary people last week, and greeted all with a happy wag, and (mostly) four-on-the-floor.

By the end, he was actually sitting and soaking up the lovin', so perhaps we both got what we wanted. :)

We also worked on recalls (I love peanut butter in little pouches), sits-n-downs, stays (doing mighty fine, there), heeling (sigh), and trying to walk to another dog without running to the end of the leash to go visit.

Did I mention he was doing mighty fine in stays?
... and recalls?

Well, maybe we should just leave it at that.

Today's Daily Shoot assignment:

Make a photograph that features repeating patterns.

Well, I thought I had a good idea. I broke out "the set" and a piece of fabric I picked up a few weeks ago that I was holding in reserve until "just the right moment".

Alas, it seems I got the Missing Skill of the Day, as when I pulled it out of the fabric basket, and draped it over the backboard, I didn't notice all the wrinkles.

Ok... I did noticed them just a bit, but I figured if anything looked too bad I could just stamp it out in my fake photoshop.

Wrong

It seems that trying to use the stamp tool for a repeating but yet random pattern in many colors is well above my skill level.

Sigh

Yes, I took some pictures of Henry, too. No, the didn't come out any better (or worse) but as Henry has been in the last few daily shoots, and had several paragraphs devoted to class time, I thought Zachary deserved the lime-light tonight.

And for the (non-dog) Scavenge Challenge we have "Tacky knick-knacks - check your mother's house!" For better or worse, I didn't need to fly down to mom's for this not-so-little guy (standing over a foot tall!)...

... but if you want to know his history, you'll have to click on the image. This is a dog blog, after all!

© 2011 BZ Training - All Rights Reserved

Family Dog 3

Dog Blog Post #233: Why is it I can never think of good titles until after I've published the post? Take that picture at the top of yesterday's post - the one with Henry and the broom. I was going about my day, thinking about the usual things, when the perfect title suddenly popped into my head...

"You are feeling sweepy...."

(OK - maybe not perfect, but a heck of a lot better than the nothing title (literally - it was blank!) that I put below it yesterday.)

But I digress...

Today was Family Dog Class #3 for Henry. You may recall that Mother Nature put the kibosh on last weeks class, and so, after two whole weeks to turn into an adolescent pest, we reconvened to find that Henry was...

... fine. He was quite comfortable in class, enjoyed his rawhide chew when Wendy was talking, enjoyed his treats when we were working, did some very nice recalls (I had peanut butter), and didn't mind any of the wiggly, jiggly, weird textured items Wendy arranged for them to walk over. I worked quite a bit on his pop-up downs, and he made definite progress.

The only hitch was the A-Frame, which he suddenly decided was a Very Scary thing, indeed. As I don't plan on doing agility, this is not a problem, but I will try to work with him a bit on going up/down things this week to see if I can't gently change his mind. He enjoyed the A-Frame the last time he did it, a few months ago, so I'm not quite sure what changed. Hormones, fear period, POM (phase of the moon),...

The most obvious difference is that he watched Wendy set it up this time. Perhaps he now doubts its structural integrity. (Hey, it could happen... or maybe not.)

Today's Daily Shoot assignment:

Change your point of view. Make a photograph from an unusual point of view today.

Oh, cool! I like these sorts of things. I had it all planned out. It was going to look something like the picture at the top of the post. Ok... it was going to be the picture at the top of this post. But then a certainly cute little boston terrier beat me to that point of view.

Rats.

Well, yes, I could have used it anyway. No law against that. And I did upload it as an alternate. But perhaps I could come up with something a bit... different... something more like... this:

From the comments I've received so far, it appears I might have succeeded. (I particularly enjoyed the "grossly delightful" comment!)

This was very much a "brute force" sort of shoot. I knew what I wanted, I had what I felt was a good setup, and I basically just kept taking pictures and resetting and taking pictures and resetting until I figured I had enough.

What's enough? Turns out enough was approximately 125 shots, of which exactly two (2) were clear enough to warrant consideration. There was no finesse, no art, and for once I wished I had a manual focus so I could set the distance and just snap the pictures instead of waiting for the auto-focus (macro mode) each time.

For the curious, the second clear shot is below:

Had you been able to make out the texture of the tongue better, I might have chosen it. I liked the black background, and the fact the method used to get the "pose" is practically invisible. But without texture, it just look like a slice of Canadian bacon to me (perhaps inspired by the Hawaiian pizza I had the night before.)

Family Dog 2

Dog Blog Post #218: Today was Family Dog class #2. Once again, a very good dog showed up with me, and evil teenage dog was nowhere to be found. While it's hard to be upset about that, I can't help but wonder when he will appear.

I mean, you know he has to.

At some point.

And so I go to class each week, burst with pride that he's being a good boy, and dread how I will feel when his evil twin shows up.

It's like knowing the bill for Christmas is lost in mail, but that it must show up sometime.

Anyway, little sit-n-stare was lovely. He really likes his rawhide chew, and happily masticated it at every opportunity (ie: when Wendy was talking). He sat, and laid down. He laid down, and sat. And even did it when I asked. He recalled from Wendy's chicken (I had peanut butter - I guess you could say the price was right!) and ignored the chatty lab next to us.

I gave him lots of treats, lots of pets, and more than few well deserved kisses.

I, once again, froze my body parts off. Henry, once again, was oblivious to the cold, damp weather.

(Did I mention I was bursting with pride?)

Today's Daily Shoot:

Make a photograph that features a very distinct curved line or surface today.

Whew. Curves. Much easier to do with a golden than stripes!

I went back to the nose again, as I found yesterday's pictures intriguing. However, today I tried a full on nose and in the end decided it was a bit... much.

A chance shot, made toward the end (lending credence to my theory that only the first and last pictures are worth anything) turned out to be my favorite. Something about its curves are almost... sensual.

Once again, I took pictures of both dogs, and once again, these were both Henry.

I'm showing no favorites, honest!

Family Dog 1

Dog Blog Post #210: The bad news is that the weather was cold but clear, despite my best efforts at a rain dance, so Family Dog class #1 was a go.

The good news is that Henry was practically perfect. The sort of dog that anybody would love to have in class.

So good, in fact, that it pretty much has to be all downhill from here (and not in the good sense of the term) as it would be hard to make him any better.

He gave me flawless attention - no, really, flawless!

He probably only looked away from me a handful of times, and saying his name snapped him right back into sit-and-stare...

... and speaking of sitting - it seems the cramming we did yesterday and today paid off, as he suddenly became little Mr. Sit, sitting pretty much any time I asked (unless he was laying down. He still isn't very good at going from a down to a sit.)

... and speaking of laying down - he did that, too! Sits and downs, and downs and sits. He was on a roll!

I even did some "show dog stands", and he froze and stared off into space as though contemplating world peace.

He was gorgeous.

(I was also frozen, but in the thermal sense, and contemplating how long it was going to take to get feeling back into my body parts.)

Henry barely noticed the other dogs and hardly sniffed the ground. Really, it was almost creepy. You just know the wheels are going to come off here at some point. He'll be six months old next week. Six month old (intact) male dogs just aren't this good. At six months old I could have been on the moon for the amount of attention I got from Beau. Even Zachary had his moments (and sometimes entire days!)

But I'm enjoying it while it lasts, storing it up in memory (and on this blog) to read over and reminisce about when I become less interesting than dirt.

Finally, The Daily Shoot was:

How low can you go? Make a photograph today from a low point of view.

... and despite a few tries at something creative, my first instinct at a shot, shown below, was my favorite. It's neither fancy nor novel, but it's my favorite none-the-less.

Puppy Class #6

Dog Blog Post #165: Tonight was the last puppy class.

There's always something a bit sad about the last puppy class. Well, not the class itself. The class was happy, upbeat, and Henry got to go through a tunnel!

It's after the class is over that I always feel a bit sad. It's one of those milestones in a puppy's life that remind me just how fleeting puppyhood really is, and of quickly he is growing up.

Then next class starts after the holidays and by then his hormones will have kicked in. He will be larger, lankier, and, let's face it, not nearly as cute.

(Yes, he'll always be cute to me, but you know what I mean. Those wide innocent eyes will no longer be focused only on me, those scents he barely noticed in this class will be ambrosia, and I will become just that comforting annoyance who keeps him from flirting with the dog a few seats over.)


Tonight we practiced sits and downs (no, his downs aren't really any better) loose leash walking (he walks like a cat, twisting and winding around my legs until I stop, then runs in front of me and... yup... Sit-n-Stares) showed off our new trick (spin!) and of course tried out that tunnel.

(I can't watch a dog go through a tunnel without thinking of Beau. Beau loved the tunnel. It was his favorite piece of agility equipment, and I have no doubt he would have run through it a hundred times if I had let him. I'm not sure the tunnel loved him, however, as he went through it like a freight train. One didn't recall Beau from a tunnel, one captured him when he popped out the other end!)


Finally, we had puppy play time. This might well be his final puppy play time, as the next class doesn't have play time.  That really was a sad thing for Beau, but as Henry prefers his Uncle Zachary (just as Zachary preferred his Uncle Beau) I don't think it'll be missed that much.

It was fun watching all the puppies run and chase and spin and bow then run some more...

Since tonight was the last class, we also got a graduation certificate. This is Henry's first certificate, and it will take pride of place in his binder. With luck, there will be many more certificates to go in that binder, and maybe even a ribbon or two (or three, for a title!)

But all that is far into the future. Tonight I just have a tired, happy puppy, curled up asleep, dreaming tired happy puppy dreams.

Puppy Class #4

Dog Blog Post #153: Focused.

If I could sum up this class in one word, that would be it. My little man was seriously Focused.

And yes, it was on me!

(As I am all too well aware that this will come crashing to a halt in a few short weeks when his hormones kick in, please excuse me while I take a moment to enjoy it... (insert Moment Of Bliss here)... sigh)

OK, where was I?

Oh yes, Focused. Henry showed almost complete mastery of Focus in puppy class tonight. He was Focused as puppies showed up. He was Focused as Wendy was talking. He was Focused when the friendly dog next to us decided she wanted to play. He was even Focused when we were were working on focus!

(Don't laugh, I've actually had that happen before.)

I have no idea of he still finds Wendy's assistant unnerving, as he was so busy doing Sit-n-Stare that he barely noticed her.

I finally tossed a treat bag a few feet away to try to break Focus, so I could then reward the reacquisition of Focus... and it worked... for a moment or two... but then he decided we were playing Zen and picked up where he had left off.

Focused.

(I supposed if you've never had a dog incapable of focusing then this post will make no sense at all. Be thankful!)

We did work on other things, like Sits and Downs (his Down is still terrible), and Come (he was brilliant!) and Stay (he's fine so long as I don't turn my back on him. I think that breaks Sit-n-Stare and he tries to come around to find my eyes again.)

We played Pass The Puppy - where we got to spend a moment with everyone else's puppy. Alas, I have no idea how Henry behaved for others, which is probably a sign that nothing horrible was going on,

Puppy play time was short, but fun. Just two groups, and Henry was in the braver of the two. He seemed fine, neither a bully nor a coward, not starving for play but not avoiding it either.

Hmmm... I guess that's just about it.

Did I mention that he was Focused?

(I love Sit-n-Stare!)

Puppy Class #3

Dog Blog Post #149: Puppy class is half over, and with each passing week you can see the puppies blossom and grow (literally!)

Today we touched on Sits and Down again – and Henry is still much better at the former than the latter. The biggest issue with down is that my hands smell like yummy hot dogs and he’s spending more time sniffing than downing. When I get some distance from him, he actually performs much better!

I threw some "Stands" in there as well, and he gave me rock-solid stand-n-stares pretty much every time I asked.

We played “Go to Mat” – something Henry knows how to do with his mat, but got a chance to generalize a bit with a different mat. It was fun to see the gears turning in his little head as he put two and two together, and got all four paws on Wendy’s mat. After just a few minutes I was having a hard time getting him off the mat.

Next, it was time to work on Come. We started easy, keeping the puppies on leash and wandering around with them until they got distracted with something so we had a chance to call them. Great plan, except that little Sit-n-Stare didn’t seem to want to let me out of his sight. I ended up having to use other puppies as distractions, but even when all the way at the end of his (admittedly short) leash, he would whip around and return when I call.

Yeah, Henry!

And then for something completely different, Wendy brought out some things for puppies to walk on, over, up and down. There was an agility table, a wobbly plank, a large metal crate pan, a funky PVC contraption that looked kind of like a little ladder on its side… with feet, a large squishy exercise ball that mostly flat, and an A-frame.

Whew!

He was a bit worried going down the A-frame… the first time… but had barely touched ground when he desperately wanted to “do it again!” Alas, not meant to be. Perhaps next week. He didn’t care for the squishy ball at all at first, but with carefully application of cookies he decided maybe it wasn’t so bad after all. In the end, it was definitely his least favorite activity. The least intimidating was the crate pan, by far. He has plastic at home, but the fact this is metal didn't phase him at all.

Somewhere in there Puppy Playtime occurred. This time he was turned out with the shy puppies, and while he was definitely the life of the party, I don’t think he was too lively (the shelties grandma might beg to differ!)

So - I guess I'd have to give him... what... 4.8 stars out of five? Had he nailed his downs he would have gotten a 5. Hopefully next week. The teenage months are just around the corner and it will probably be many months before he's this good again!

Puppy Class #2

Dog Blog Post #147: Yes, I'm late posting this, but I just haven't had much "quality time" with the computer. Henry is awake a whole lot more yet not trustworthy enough to alone for more than a few minutes. While he does ask to go out, you still have a pretty narrow span of time before he gives up (or his bladder gives out) and he tinkles in front of the slider.

So - class. Henry's actually been doing pretty well in class, which means it's time for the wheels to fall off.

So far we've worked on Sits and Downs - the former being trivial, and the latter, while not a thing of beauty, wasn't too bad once he "warmed up".

Once again I was sitting in chair with Henry (now 13 weeks old) on leash. Once again, puppies on either side, and once again, yo-yo dog started to range to the end of the short leash, turning immediately when he reached the end expecting click and cookie.

Since Wendy puts out a nice mat in front of each chair so dogs don't have to sit on prickly tan-bark, I thought I'd try to teach Henry the Stay-On-Mat game. If "played" correctly, he would then never even hit the end of his 4' leash.

This meant that when he turned around I didn't click until his paws were back on the mat. I wish I had thought of it earlier in the class time, as just when I think he was getting the idea, the class was over.

Still, I think we're on to something here, and barring Brain Fade, I'm going to give it a try again next week. I'm also going to add clicking if he stops (or at least hesitates) near the end of the mat.

He was much more comfortable during puppy play time, zooming here and there either chasing or being chased. He didn't seem to take offense to anything, didn't seem to offend anyone, and even checked in occasionally.

He's still cautious of Wendy's assistant. There appears to be no reason for it, and I can't seem to reproduce it anywhere else, with anyone else.

Weirdness.

As it's about time for Wendy to start working on Come (uh-oh) so should be a lot more to talk about after this week's class (thinking about those afore mentioned wheels?)

I'm also hoping Wendy starts doing Visit Other People's Puppies to see if Worried Puppy appears again - although he was more than happy to greet the Observer (no, I have no idea what she was Observing) as I was leaving, so...

Again, I can't attribute it to anything other than weirdness at this point, and hope it's a singular incident!

Puppy Class #1

Dog Blog Post #143: The irony of having a blog is that when you actually have something to write about, you rarely have time to write it.

Thus, despite having a bundle of joy at home generating Precious Moments by the bucket-full, these pages have remained sadly quiet.

Yeah, I know, whine, whine, whine...

Henry went to his first Puppy Class last night. There were puppies of all shapes and sizes there, eight in all, varying in age from 10 weeks to 5 months. Henry was probably one of the younger pups there at 12 weeks old.

I suppose I should be honest here and admit that I don't actually think I am going to learn much about training a puppy in this class. Yes, Wendy might surprise me with a tidbit here or there, but on the whole, as this is my third puppy, I think I've at least got the basics down.

So why am I going? Because, while I stated long ago that classes are to train owners, not dogs, that doesn't apply to puppies. There are many lessons for Henry to learn in Puppy Class, some of which aren't even specifically being taught.

Take last night.

Last night Henry learned (or at least experienced) that just because he can see another puppy, doesn't mean he gets to play with it. This is a hard lesson for a friendly Golden Retriever, and it will probably take many, many, many classes before he actually accepts that to be true.

Of course, Beau never did.

Henry learned that Sit-n-Stare is just as rewarding in Puppy Class as it is at home or at the indoor sports place.

Henry discovered that hot dogs are amazingly tasty things.

Henry affirmed that he doesn't like rain drops hitting him on the head, that bark is fun to chew on, and that puppies are fun to play with.

I also learned a lot about Henry. I learned that he will sit calmly on my lap so I can put my jacket over him and avoid the worst of the rain drops. I learned that he will return when he hits the end of the leash while trying to visit other puppies. I learned that he has lovely focus, even when distracted, and very good name recognition.

While there, we practiced Sits (he's an old pro at that - I could just hear him thinking "Oh, that's puppy stuff, mom. I'm a big boy now!") and I threw in some downs to keep him thinking. We worked on name calling (the good kind... "Henry!"), I witnessed demo dogs superior shaping and moon-walking skills, and Henry got to sample Instructor treats.

Puppy play time was a hit, of course. He seemed particularly focused on the larger dogs, including the above mentioned demo dog (9 year old Golden Retriever) and the 5 month old golden puppy.

Once again, I found him not nearly as interested in playing as I would have thought - perhaps, with Uncle Zachary at home, his play needs are being sufficiently met. That was true for Zachary as well.

Beau never got enough playing with others, but he was an only dog at that point.

Henry did seem rather worried when Wendy's assistant put her hands behind her back. We were all rather perplexed by this, as there seemed to be no logical reason for it. He's met tons and tons of people and this is the first time I've seen such a reaction, but as I don't want it to blossom into anything else, I'm going to request everyone he meets for the next few days to, at some point, put their hands behind their backs so he realizes there is nothing untoward about it.

It was getting pretty dark at that point, and the assistant was dressed all in black, so perhaps he was just seeing things a bit "funny".

Thus ended Puppy Class #1. I think it deserves 4.5 stars on the success meter, as he lost a point for the behind-the-back thing.

The one thing I didn't remember to do was show Wendy the really cool peanut-butter packs that hubby found for backpacking. They are nearly as good as the old Skippy Squeeze tubes were!

Ah well, I guess that will have to wait until next week.