Yesterday we got a few inches of snow. Today is our normal training day and despite a temperature of 26 degrees (“feels like” temp of 18 degrees) off we went to training. Due to some various issues we have not had any training for a month. Mario will be away for the month of January so we felt that even with the cold and snow we wanted to get some training in before he leaves.
We started as usual with tracking. I set a track for Aiden with 4 turns and 3 articles. He had one moment of confusion where a coyote appeared to have crossed my track as we saw fresh paw prints that were not there when I set the track. Aiden checked the coyote track but got right back on my track. Overall he nailed it!
Obedience phase. Since September when Aiden passed the BH Mario has not wanted us to do any formal heeling. Today, due to the slippery conditions, we did the basic IPO1 heeling pattern as we were not doing the jump, A-Frame or voraus. We did do the retrieve on the flat.
Protection phase. Again, because of the conditions, we did not do any blind searches or even set up a blind but used this storage container for the bark and hold. We also practiced the escape bite and just one long bite.
Aiden waiting for me with his best buddy, Mario.
Great to see you both at training again. Aiden is such a super dog, never misses a beat, even after a break from formal IPO training!
Zeta and I were at training last night in frigid temperatures of 19 degrees, so we know how you felt!
We are lucky this year as Gustavo isn’t going to Florida for Christmas as his Father is coming to MI instead. I’m sure he’ll take some time off, but hopefully not a whole month.
Any idea now I can change my blog settings so I get all the new entries/comments automatically to my email, without having to open up the blog page each time to check for updates?
He looks so wonderful, Linda! I haven’t been able to do IPO in many months so I have been living vicariously through your photos and reports.
Sorry I typed Lynda wrong and don’t know how to fix it!
Outstanding work, Lynda!
Aiden is looking like he is enjoying it all even in the cold temps. How ever do you track & train bare handed in this weather? My fingers would be frozen solid in a few minutes. Will you be doing his IPO 1 t Newburg this year?
Lisa…my hands WERE freezing! I just find it so hard to do things when I have gloves on….can’t get the ball quick enough or get to the treats!
We will try for IPO1 as soon as we think Aiden is ready…..don’t know when that will be. As you know, training is much harder in the winter, we won’t be tracking much and Mario is going away for a month so we will see how things go in the spring.
I think Spring. Mario is sans gloves too…both of you are from warmer places, maybe that is why you have no glove dexterity??? 🙂 Look into riding gloves at a tack store.
Tracking….nice deep nose! Great that you have several people following on the tracking so he always expects it. Everything else looks great too, including Aiden. Then again your dogs always look super, you have the gift of superb animal husbandry skills!
Thank you. Jack for the great photos!
Lynda, go to Dick’s and look for gloves for shooting in the Hunting Dept. They are thin enough to use for operating a camera and also have little nubs for holding a lead. Fairly warm (beats bare hands) and not bulky.