by Lindsay Stordahl on March 6th, 2009
13 Comments »
My mutt Ace has become much more vocal and excited during agility practice within the last six months. He barks wildly nonstop, as you can see in the video below. Watch it on mute if you don’t want to be totally annoyed. I haven’t addressed Ace’s “talking back” issue until now because I don’t know how to handle the problem. In the meantime, his “attitude” has gotten wor ...
by Lindsay Stordahl on December 7th, 2008
10 Comments »
My mutt Ace drives me crazy if he hasn’t had enough physical and mental exercise. He needs to run around and play, but he also needs work to do. Mental challenges help him get rid of pent-up energy, fight boredom and leave him tired! Different breeds need different jobs, so here are some ideas to put that lazy bum currently sleeping on your couch to work: 1. Carry a backpack. One of the easiest ways to tire my ...
by Lindsay Stordahl on November 27th, 2008
7 Comments »
…………………………………………………………………….. I really am thankful for this beautiful mutt. I mean, he does look and act like a dufus most of the time, but he does have a wise, calming side to him too. Although I would’ve been happy with any dog, I am glad I chose him. Ace ...
by Lindsay Stordahl on September 21st, 2008
3 Comments »
…………………………………………………………………….. Since I’ve been doing most of my work with Ace (not pictured) outside, I decided to try working with him indoors. We basically did some of the same exercises we’ve tried before, I just want him to know he is expected to fo ...
by Lindsay Stordahl on September 7th, 2008
7 Comments »
…………………………………………………………………….. I started Ace in agility last year at this time, so I’ve had agility on my mind lately. This is another attempt of mine to get at least one more person involved in dog agility. Apryl DeLancey writes the blog, Women Like Sports, ...
by Lindsay Stordahl on August 31st, 2008
7 Comments »
Ace and I practiced some weaving last week. He still needs me to guide him through the poles somewhat, but he has gotten a lot faster and more accurate (still a klutz, but getting better). We hadn’t done any agility in two months, so I got his poles out to see how he’d do. I think he is excited to start again. My goal is to get Ace to weave without me signaling. If you’ve never tried agility with y ...
by Lindsay Stordahl on May 15th, 2008
5 Comments »
Teeter terror: The hardest agility obstacle My mutt and I have been going to agility classes for about eight months. The first couple weeks, Ace had no issues with the teeter totter. He ran across it with no fear. He ran across it so fast that my instructor encouraged me to get him to slow down. This is when we came across a problem: Ever since he walked across the teeter slowly one time, he has been afraid of the t ...
by Lindsay Stordahl on April 9th, 2008
7 Comments »
Ace is the first dog I have trained to do agility. He is still learning, but he and I enjoy practicing every week. I recommend you sign your dog up for an agility class. Even if you have no intention of competing, it is still a lot of fun. In dog agility, the dogs run through an obstacle course as fast as they can without missing any of the contact points. (Photo by Dave James, www.bbc.co.uk) It is worth a try, here ...
by Lindsay Stordahl on March 23rd, 2008
1 Comment
Ace’s walking is going really well. We are on day ...
by Lindsay Stordahl on March 13th, 2008
5 Comments »
When I adopted Ace last year, I debated whether or not to take him to formal obedience classes. I am always trying to save money, so one question I asked myself was “Why pay for training when I know how to train him myself?” My boyfriend, Josh, said, “Does he even need it?” This made me want to prove I could train Ace myself even more. But we were not looking at the situation the best way. Any ...