Scenthurdle

The Retriever, originally uploaded by mandypug.

Funny thing about Pugs is their owners tend to be reluctant to try out different dog sports with them. Not all are like this but looking at stats it's the trend. Not sure why as these are smart and capable little dogs!

With Izzie my goal is to get her doing as many things as she possibly can as long as she likes it. So far so good, we've got our agility which we both love and therapy work... That's two more thing than the average house hippo... erm house Pug! We've also been dabbling for a while in training Rally and Competition Obedience, but nothing serious really yet (that will change on Friday though as Izzie and I have a Rally class starting.)

Our next challenge is a sport called Scenthurdle. This is a relay sport with four dogs on a team. Each dog has to retrieve a dumbbell with its handlers scent on it out of four options which are placed on a square platform at the end of four hurdles. Each dogs have to run up the lane over all the hurdles, scent out the correct dumbbell, then return over the hurdles without dropping the dumbbell. The hurdles are set by the smallest dog on the team, the height dog. This is where Izzie comes in handy at all of 12-13 inches tall, she's small and would make a good height dog.

It only took Izzie about a week to learn how to retrieve her dumbbell and bring it right to my hand. Not bad for a dog who did not like to put anything but food (or my fingers) in her mouth. The next step is teaching her how to scent out the correct dumbbell. It's a little more tricky, but she's catching on quickly and is choosing the right one about 80% right now. After that it's all about putting everything together over the hurdles and increasing speed.

I'm excited to see how we progress in this cool sport. I tried to do some searching to see if there are (or were ever) other Pugs doing this but so far i can't find any evidence of any. How cool would it be to have the first scenthurdling Pug?!

Monkeying Around

Haters Gonna Hate, originally uploaded by mandypug.

Oh look at you lucky readers, three days of blogging in a row this week!

So it's getting chilly out. So much that I'm even feeling it and i don't usually mind cold until it's REALLY cold, maybe I'm just getting old though. Anyways Izzie's not got a terribly thick coat so she needs a little extra somethin' somethin' to keep her little buns warm in our Canadian weather.

This is where the sweater comes in. The monkey sweater to be specific.

Isn't it cute? Izzie loves it, she wags her little puggy tail and prances around. She could do without the hood but that part is all about my amusement. So freakin' cute.

For size reference Izzie is wearing a Small. It's a bit tight but the Medium would likely be super big on her. Darn that weird puggy shaped chest!

You can find this sweater and lots of other cute ones from Chilly Dog Sweaters. Everything is handmade from 100% real wool with no unnecessary packaging either. Check them out if you have a dog that needs a sweater!

New Adventure?

Just for kicks, originally uploaded by mandypug.

I'm not a terribly driven person in general, though i do go off on tangents of extreme motivation but eventually they pass for the most part. Only a few have ever stuck, but most end up failing after my friends are all stuffed to the gills with banana chocolate chip muffins and are sick of the most recent obsession.

So what is this all about, am i obsessing again and have sudden motivation to try something new?

Yes. Yes I do, and that something is Rally Obedience.

After finally being able to catch Izzie in a stand stay and take the pictures i need for her CKC Performance Event Number, i got a rush of motivation to try and train her for Rally. She's certainly smart enough and very talented and it'll be a good challenge for me (plus it'll give me something besides Grey's Anatomy and sleeping to do on those frigid winter days stuck indoors).

So here goes! Lets hope this catches on like Agility did and we stick with it, i really think Izzie could do well!

Calgary Agility Association Trial

The Haul, originally uploaded by mandypug.

Izzie and i went to the Calgary Agility Association trial this weekend (it was our 5th trial already, time flies) and she did awesome! We came home with a Q in Starters Gamblers, our second one which got Izzie her Starters Games dog of Canada title! For those that don't play AAC agility, that means Izzie has gotten two qualifying scores under two different judges in each game (Snooker, Jumpers, Gamblers) in the starters level. Izzie also Q'd in Starters Standard, our first Q in that ever which is super exciting!

Our NQ runs were still good! Izzie was very close on both Advanced Jumpers and Advanced Gamblers. In jumpers she got a refusal because she went into a tunnel and came back out the entry side which isn't totally weird for her but she hasn't done that in a long long time, but otherwise she was flying and handling well! Gamblers we had a good plan for the opening and executed it well even if she was a tad bit quicker than usual which didn't quite line us up perfectly like i had planned, the main gamble was going well but she pulled off a jump and the buzzer went as i was trying to get her to go back out over it. Oh well it was our first Advanced Gamblers ever, we'll just be practising more distance skills! We also ran a Starters Standard on the first day, it was filled with zoomies and a bit of a standoff when Izzie zoomed on to the table lol.

I have so much fun trialling and this one was no exception. The Go Dog Go group is so amazing, everyone is so supportive of each other and friendly. It was a ton of fun, especially the memorable quotes lol.

Mishmash

Izzie is appaulled., originally uploaded by mandypug.

I haven't been blogging lately because i haven't really had much i felt was worth saying. Well i mean other than trial results but I'd rather this blog not just be me posting result after result. Anyways i figure i should write something before the blogging police get after me about being a crappy blogger, so i stole an idea from Leah over at A Prairie Dobe Companion (go on, go take a look... I'll wait... back? Good, let's continue). So here goes, a bunch of small complete or incomplete thoughts, ideas and news from the past little while that never grew big enough for a blog of their own...

Fall is here. This means winter is right around the corner, in fact it snowed this morning. I like snow though, the problem is that it will soon become socially unacceptable to wear flip flops constantly.

I love trialling. Actually i love competing in general, like frothing at the mouth rabid LOVE any form of competition. It's something that is good and bad. Good because i rarely get nervous (only if it's a "first" or if someone nervous is standing next to me obsessing, nerves are definitely contagious). It's bad though because sometimes i take every little tiny bit of competition far too seriously. If i've ever barked at you at a competition please don't take it personally or just smack me or something.

Izzie needs one more gamble Q for her Starters Games Dog of Canada title, you all have no idea how exciting this is to me.

I need more income. Whether it's a second job or a new job completely or selling plasma or a kidney, i need more money to support the lifestyle i want.

The Puppy Fund is officially started. Stay tuned for a bit of a rummage sale to help out said fund.

My dog is indeed purple. It's not the light, it's not your eyes going funny, and it's most certainly not animal cruelty. Get over yourselves haters, dying my dog is not equal to piercing her nose either.

I've had a cough now for about a month, I'm not a fan of it. It gets better then gets worse then goes away for a couple days then comes back. Any normal person would've taken cough syrup by now but it makes me puke and I'll take a hacking cough over vomiting any day.

The bottom of my foot is itchy, but i can't scratch it because that tickles.

Paco Collars is the best leather collar company in the universe.

My VFFs are super comfortable and i adore them, but if my feet were the actual pink that the shoes are I'd be a little concerned about my health.

Leash running is my favourite job to do at a trial most of the time. This is because usually handlers are very nice and say thank you (or they say sorry if they throw a leash at me and it hits me in the face) and it makes me feel like I'm useful.

Does anyone else find those pictures of the people that made the products on Lush stuff a little creepy? Especially their shower stuff. I have to turn them away from me, the last thing i want is a creepy face picture staring at me in the shower.

Everyone needs to watch Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog. Just because it's awesome.

Okay that's it for this post, I'll leave you all with a pretty sweet music video to watch.

Vote Mongering

Get my good side, food-lady., originally uploaded by mandypug.
 

I don't normally do this, but i really want a chance to win and this voting is for a good cause! 

Izzie is in a contest to win a spot in an advertisement for Fido Mobile up here in Canada among other things that contribute to that (hellooo limo!)

And the good cause part? Every vote made, Fido will donate $1 to Dog Guides Canada. So why not vote?

CLICK HERE TO VOTE!!!

 
Vote every day for Izzie and also share it on your facebooks or twitter to help her win! She's a natural and that mug just belongs in the spotlight!

Youngest

Youngest to Oldest, originally uploaded by mandypug.

She's very clearly MY dog and my favourite out of the bunch.

I can't help it, Izzie is just so amazing and perfect. We were made for each other.