I am so excited, after having to wait an entire 5 months it is almost time to train the team again. True that means that school is right around the corner also, we go back on Thursday, but still training the team outweighs just about everything. The month of August has been a rather busy month for me. I am in 4-H and as most of you know I show at the fair, which is at the end of August. As a result I spend most of August doing last minute preparations on projects of all kinds. This year however there was one part of the fair showing that did not take place during fair week. That was the dog show which, as a mater of fact, took place two weeks before the fair. As I do nearly every year I showed at the dog show. This year I took Taruk again as he has been the dog I am training, currently. The first class of the day was Showmanship, one of my favorites. Taruk is not an incredibly showy dog, but he stacks really nicely without a lot of persuasion so he makes a good showmanship dog. I am entered in open showmanship because I have won in my age division in past years. The main two people who show in open showmanship are Heather and I. We trade off who wins nearly every year because our styles and abilities are nearly the same. This year after the judge had us do some rather complicated maneuvers Heather was picked as the winner while I placed second blue. The next class we were in was Novice obedience. I was an absolute wreck before going into the ring. I had never shown Novice before, and given that it is the first group where off leash work is used I had good reason to be nervous. Taruk surprised me, he behaved really well. True he lagged a little while heeling, but to be honest I expected him to take off out of the ring. He even did his recall, though he wouldn’t step over the chalk markers on the floor. In the end we took second place by only three points! What an accomplishment for our first time in Novice! And to tell the truth I am happy we didn’t win, this allows me another year to work him at this level so that he is ready when we move up again. The last class of the day was agility where Taruk surprised me again. We did both standard and Jumps, Tunnels, and Tables. In both classes we placed second, a huge improvement over last year when Taruk was jumping over tunnels and running around jumps. Overall I would say we have had a very successful season of training together, and I am excited for next year. However, it is now time to change gears and get to work in harness. Hopefully the weather will be nice to us and the next update will be about fall training.
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As you all know from my last post I recently went on a very long trip to pick up a new dog, Tornado. Well I figured you would all like to get to know him a little better, so without further udo, welcome Tornado. Tornado is an eight year old Alaskan Husky, though from my interactions with him he acts more like a four year old dog. I acquired him from John Perry a little under a month ago, so I have started to get to know him, but he hasn't really let me see his true colors yet. Overall Tornado is a very friendly dog, I have been slowly introducing him tot he rest of the team, and he seems to enjoy getting to know them all. Currently he is kenneled next to Racer, and they seems to appreciate each-others company. I have had a chance to run Tornado once, but it is summer so I really don't expect to get him in harness much more until sometime this fall. From what I have been told he is a wonderful lead dog, who can be hard headed at times, but that is not always a bad thing. Hard headed means that a dog can think for themselves, and does not always follow directions because they believe they know a better way. On the flip side, it means that they will not let the other leader, or the rest of the team, pull them off course once they have decided it is the correct path. Tornado is out of Jeff King breeding, and have hard headed dogs is common in that line. As far as build goes Tornado is unlike any other dog here. He has more of a hound build, but still has the thick coat of an Alaskan. He is smaller in size, with a long body and long legs. I would say he has a medium build, not thin like a sight hound, or stocky like a Malamute. Like so many sled dogs, he is that perfect combination of everything. Once the weather does finally cool off I will be working him on the bike with only one other dog at a time we can get accustom to each other, then I will start working him in the team. When I do start him in the team I will have him run in the middle of the pack, like all of my other dogs he will have to earn his place as a leader. I will do my best to keep you updated on how he adapts to live here at KCM kennels. Until next time, Katherine With temps in the 50's this morning it was the perfect time to take Tornado out for his first run here. He is incredible, I ran him single, he has wonderful confidence and he has speed. I am so excited for this season. Come on weather cool down, I want to run more! P.S. The post on Tornado and the information about him will be posted in a day or two. |
AuthorA young women attempting to navigate the world. She is guided by her love and passion for dogs. Archives
April 2020
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