Molly's Blog

Labrador Legend!

2010-09-20T11:56:00.002+01:00

Woop woop!! We did it, finished the season by winning up to Grade 3 which was the aim for this season. Molly was fantastic and particularly honest and responsive when I pushed her back across a long jump to a tunnel to avoid a cross behind that would have been challenging for me to execute! Contacts and weaves were excellent, she really is awesome and in a graded 1-3 agility she beat the winning grade 3 time too! We have a lot of work to do proofing our cross behinds and pushing to the bottom of contacts over the winter. Can't wait for new challenges next season!

Bad blogger!

2010-09-17T14:34:00.002+01:00

Quick update before the season ends for us! Molly won into Grade 2 in spectacular fashion at Thames (yes, I know that was quite a while ago!). She won both agility runs that weekend, beating the grade 2 times in the graded class on the Sunday! So I felt confident it was not just a fluke! Since then she has continued to improve. I cannot describe how much I love this wonderful little Labrador, despite the frustrations of often poor handling and sometimes naughty Labrador antics which can make our runs so inconsistent, I really feel that she has improved in leaps and bounds this season. She qualified for the Starters Final at the KC International Festival, our 1st ever final! She took off like a rocket and hit the dog walk at such speed she lost her footing. Honest little dog that she is, she held on with 3 paws for as long as she could but lost her balance halfway across. Thankfully she wasn't hurt and in typical Moose style she started wagging her tail as soon as all 4 paws hit terra firma! At DINAS she won a very handley jumping course of Andrew Dicker's. I really had to use my brain which everyone knows can be challenging!! I do not believe we could have worked it any better, cross-behind after cross-behind she achieved beautifully. I was very proud of us both!

Mr. Fin remains a challenge but is showing great improvement, occasionally doing what is asked of him! He ran a few times at DINAS sometimes achieving one or two obstacles, other times visiting the photographer, judge, the fencing! I am confident (with great encouragement from Leah and Sian) that we will get it together but he is along way off right now. I must remember how far he has come in the last year and what a horrible start in life my little Irish boy had!

Fingers crossed for Stour this weekend. xxx

Snowy Meerkat!

2009-12-20T20:47:00.001Z

Finlay's yoga class!

2009-12-20T20:40:00.002Z

I have been trying some balance exercises with Fin to improve his leg awareness!

He isn't quite confident enough to sit on the ball, but that is our ultimate aim!

There's a moose, loose...

2009-10-08T22:45:00.008+01:00

All action shots, thanks to Grace. xx

Beautiful as my labrador is normally, she definitely loses some of her looks in agility! xx

Fin likes to be beside the seaside....

2009-10-08T22:24:00.003+01:00

Fin and Molly came with us to Charmouth for a week. The Irish terror has clearly not seen the sea before and was slightly alarmed but by the end of the week he was happy paddling. No swimming out to sea like the labrador-seal though!

A restful week, but 4 days home and it feels as though we never went away! Always have to work twice as hard before going on holiday and when I get back so feels like no holiday at all!

8 Paws in the Park.

2009-09-13T00:30:00.002+01:00

In between working I took my two to Paws in the Park today, for two reasons (a) more Fin socialisation (b) unnecessary dog bed shopping. Both aims achieved! Fin improves every day, OK he did flip out a couple of times but with a good telling off followed by a clear positive instruction he would go straight back to his lovely little self. He clearly found the whole thing exhausting as he slept for the rest of the day. Molly & Fin both sat and watched the agility without any barking, twisting or Labrador lunging! Very good indeed.
Back to training this week. Trying really hard to get my act together with Molly as I see how much potential she has, just need to coordinate ourselves! Little Fin had his first session and I was very pleased with his response, lots of homework though! xx

Wait??????

2009-09-07T19:31:00.002+01:00

KC Festival - no weaves
DINAS - no contacts at all, some weaves
Prestbury Park - no waits, no A-frames, nice weaves (minus 1).

Our 1st clear round in a while (Prestbury Park) was the most hideous run we have ever done. I thought we'd been eliminated right at the start so I held her dog walk and achieved a few nose touches, and stopped her on the weaves to ensure she got them. Because we broke the course up she twirled after most jumps so i was shocked we went clear. They were placing to 20 and we were 21st in a 1-2 combined class, with almost the worst run ever! We concluded the weekend with officially the worst run ever - a real u-tube moment. I had to jump over her twice when she cut me up with no warning. She broke her wait - AGAIN and she lost it entirely on the weaves, deteriorated into Labrador madness by the 3rd attempt so we jumped our way out as quickly as possible. Her speed is awesome but oh so much work to do!

New Toys!

2009-09-07T19:28:00.000+01:00

2009-09-07T19:15:00.002+01:00

Spot the difference...

2009-08-01T01:16:00.003+01:00

A lesson for beer drinking boys!

I arrived home from work to find an inebriated Jonathan, fast asleep (following a very beery evening), curled up on the sofa with Fin. However, Fin was not asleep, he was busy committing a Fin crime. Can you spot the difference?

Luckily for Fin, the shoes are leather and with a bit of extra fibre, shouldn't cause him any problems. I have warned Jonathan not to leave his shoes lying around!!!!

Some pretty pics...

2009-07-27T21:45:00.002+01:00

Agility club, flying Labradors and sprinting judges!

2009-07-27T21:15:00.008+01:00

Well then, KC show number 3.

After a shaky start, late leaving work, car too small to fit anything but me and the dogs in, and a temperamental roof box, we set off to Newbury. The tent's first outing was overall a success, I won't go into the details, but needless to say I forgot the exact method of putting it away!

Molly and I didn't gel on Saturday, tiredness on my part and perhaps the wrong frame of mind. Six weaves seem to be our nemesis at the moment. She looks at 12 and goes full pelt, show her 6 and she seems to say, "only 6, why bother?!" Now in reality it is more likely that I see 6 weaves and think "ahhh she hates 6 weaves" and she senses the panic and comes out. Will be working on this in the coming weeks.

Sunday was a much better day, although we had a pole in the jumping she flew and the agility would have been great but she missed her dog walk. Still a plan has already been developed to mitigate against that next time. Although Sunday didn't provide us with a clear (which at her speed would have stood a good chance of being placed), it has given us some areas to work on. The highlight of the weekend, was the judge in one of the classes, who 200 grade 1 dogs in, must have been pretty fed up. His expression from the start line read, "how dull, yet more pet agility and a Labrador to boot"! As I let Molly go, he was casually sauntering towards the dog walk, as she took off, he looked alarmed for a wee moment and then sprinted to get to the end of the walk! I was chuckling and very proud of my girl. I like it when she turns heads. When we really get it together she will be immense. Lots of compliments on her looks and ability! Jason very kindly videoed Sunday's runs, so I'll add them when the Gardners return from their week away.

And little Fin, the hooligan, had lots of trips round the rings, met many previously alien breeds of dog (particularly fascinated by a standard Poodle!) and did some intensive Leah training! He is coming along in leaps and bounds. Still highly strung (Collie after all) and wary of peculiar things - this weekend's fear was a stuffed purple Labrador toy, but he's a clever boy!

I have a good feeling about KC Festival and DINAS, and can't wait. The search has begun for a bigger car, the clock is ticking.....

Thames - 2nd ever KC Show - 4th place woo hoo!!

2009-06-18T15:03:00.003+01:00

Yay Molly! 4th place in G1 Agility, out of 230 dogs! So thrilled with my clever girlie. So we are now eligible to enter the starters cup at KC Festival! Keen to get into Grade 2 so must keep up the momentum!
Thames was great fun, wine, sunshine & shopping - couldn't be more up my street! Thx to Leah & Jason for putting me up again! Definitely going tent shopping after pay day, promise!xx

Boot Camp 6th - 8th June 2009.

2009-06-18T14:55:00.002+01:00

Boot Camp was awesome, thanks to Leah & Nancy and please do another one! Unfortunately I started the weekend exhausted, having worked very late the night before (definitely try to avoid that next year!) Molly was ace, worked well, despite one or two moments of Labrador brain tiredness (there were many more blond brain tired moments!)
Mr. Fin was exhausting but loves to learn. Good behaviour so quick to learn, but correcting preexisting bad habits - A nightmare!!!! Fin camped well, despite a thunder storm he seemed quite happy. Good practice for Thames wk-end!

What a beautiful Giraffe!

2009-06-18T14:50:00.002+01:00

6th - 8th June!

2009-06-18T14:36:00.003+01:00

The Furries and the A Frame!

2009-05-28T18:57:00.003+01:00

Well, Fin went to obedience last week but I haven't had any time to write about it! I thought socialisation with dogs that might actually complain if he hangs off their face would be good. The plan was to watch the 1st session but as they remembered me from Molly's early days they asked Fin and I to be the unknown person and dog the others have to meet as part of their KC Puppy Foundation. This was a success! As we were out in the hall we continued with the rest of the class. Fin was surprisingly brilliant! Although he didn't exactly walk to heel, he didn't wrench my arm out of its socket and was very controlled! His sit and flat were solid and his wait is really getting there. I expected him to completely lose his mind in a room full of strange dogs and people but he was fantastic!

Unfortunately work kept me from taking him this week, but we'll be back next week!

We were lucky enough to borrow someones field, complete with A frame and Dog walk for 20 minutes over the weekend, so Fin has experienced some equipment. Only on the lead but his response was definitely positive. His play biting of Molly and Me is diminishing but still needs constant corrections. All in all he has settled brilliantly and has the makings of a lovely little boy!

Molly got a quick go on the agility equipment too and did some lovely, smooth snakes and pull thrus, achieved with some excellent shoulder turning from me. Leah would've been proud!

2009-05-28T18:49:00.001+01:00

Very cute boy, but oh so naughty!

Fin Update!

2009-05-13T23:00:00.004+01:00

This Collie x ??? is the most loving (if a little crazy) dog. We have been working on "sit" still, which is now pretty solid and is offered frequently and also recalls on a long lead. His 1st walk across fields seemed to be the most mind blowing experience, he just loved it and even went for a little paddle in the river. There has also been a lot of walking up and down the road to try and address the car herding issue. He now tries to herd only 1 in 4 cars as opposed to every 1, so some progress! There seems to be a bit of an issue with soft furnishings - he thinks they all belong to him, but other than this he is settling in nicely. He knows where his bed is and even removes it from his crate to put it beside molly's bed rather than force his way onto hers! He is going to take a fair bit of work but I have no doubt he's worth it. x

Fin!

2009-05-13T22:48:00.001+01:00

New Addition!

2009-05-09T21:58:00.005+01:00

Introducing Fin!

What a day! Jonathan came with me to MTAR to meet Fin (formerly Joe) and we brought him home to join the other furries. He won't sit still long enough to take a good photo but he has a lovely colliesque face with a very odd shaped body! Jonathan I struggled to agree on any name as he said all my suggestions were too different. He has really taken to him so I let J name him (after rejecting just a few of his suggestions).

He is lovely, he wants to be friends with everybody. A little too friendly with Molly at times but she is doing a good job of telling him off. He has no manners and seems to know very little about the world but he travelled without a sound or an accident and seems very happy and content here. He has been to 3 houses, met about 10 people, a number of cats (including our 2) and some passing children who stopped to make a fuss of him, all meetings were a great success. This evening we learnt about TV, washing machines, toys, which seemed to be unknown to him but he is now playing nicely with some of Molly's rejected toys. He has also learnt "sit" and "get out of my kitchen"! He is currently asleep under the coffee table. First walk tomorrow and if he continues to handle this baptism of fire like a little trooper we may chance by the T Wells show. Molly is a little grumpy about this home invasion but is bearing it with her usual fortitude!

Some photos of clever dogs, chilling & having fun!

2009-05-05T19:54:00.008+01:00

What a lot of lovely doggies! Hex and Molly loved playing together this weekend and Hexy was fascinated by the zoom on my camera (hence the extreme closeup)!!

Sun/Windburn & Rosettes!

2009-05-05T19:14:00.009+01:00

Wow, 1st camping show for Molly Dog and I! I have succeeded in burning my face in Berkshire, something only a blonde could do. Molly was very sleepy on our return yesterday. This is her with her best rosettes. Two 10th place (over 100 dogs each class) in steeplechases and a 3rd in UKA Gamblers. The Labrador & the blonde's brain are both a little fried but we had a fantastic time and are looking forward to the next show that we can escape work for!
It turns out Vyne was not at all scary for us. I had failed to realise that the courses we run at training are so far beyond a KC Grade 1 that even I remembered the courses and although we didn't go clear in either, the knocked pole in jumping and the missed weaves (we repeated them until we got them right) were actually because she ran so fast and cornered so well and I didn't reign her in enough! The ABC Olympia was hysterical, I was so pleased that she offered a touch on the dog walk I completely forgot the rest of the course and giggled through a very shoddy 2nd half! All in all we had lots of fun and gained more invaluable experience. Thanks to Leah who let us crash in the caravan and apologies again that Molly cost you a night's sleep on Wednesday! xx

Nerves!

2009-04-28T22:50:00.005+01:00

I know it is daft to be nervous about shows when you're grade 1 and have nothing to lose, but I can't help it. Molly is more beanful and mischevious than ever and has stopped listening again, we are seriously unprepared following a week away with no training. I am continuously disappointed by my poor (and what often seems like lazy) handling, but I do try.

For inspiration and tips I've been watching some of Nat's videos with Kai, she has a nice handling style! Must remember Malcolm's advise .... you are doing this for FUN!! Still Nat's gorgeous pics of Ham put a smile on my face, he looks fab!

Leah, bring on the wine!

2009-04-28T22:21:00.000+01:00

The Lakes!

2009-04-28T22:12:00.004+01:00

Well, we all had a fantastic time in the Lake District! Molly (despite plentiful pilchards) has dropped the few pounds I'd managed to get on her! Even bigger dinners I think.

This little dog has the most incredible stamina, and wasn't phased by fell walking!

Not quite sure how UKA and Vyne came round so quickly. They seemed so far away when we signed up! Ooopps.

C-Side 07/03/09

2009-03-08T08:52:00.009Z

Molly's first trip to C-Side yesterday (I know one of the videos says C-Side but that was in fact WAG). She went clear in the starters jumping, we even managed to get a good time, but missed out on a place by a fraction of a second, but I'm sure we weren't the only ones!

She did everything I asked of her and I am very proud!

The other starters agility and both opens there were mistakes (mine, obviously) but she looked for her weaves - even coming straight out of a tunnel at top molly speed! She got the entry and didn't pop out until the second to last one and then corrected herself without any prompting from me! It was a really good effort! They took a few goes on the Open Agility but on the others they came together nicely. She is so nearly there!

She was a superstar yesterday, calm in the queues, listened to everything I asked and tried so hard to get it right. I could not have asked for her to work any harder, she was fab!

Contacts were there, not perfect, but no leaping off the A Frame, which has been a problem outside of her normal training environments.

Congratulations also to Bella the boxer for her clear rounds!

Thank you to Leah, Wendy and Nancy for all their guidance (especially weave-wise!)

Nancy - you'll be pleased to know I did not say "No" or "wrong" or "lazy" (<--- have stopped this, promise!) when she came out of the weaves on the open, we just walked back and went through again until she got them!

Congratulations to my hard working, honest little labrador! xx

A weavey weekend...

2009-02-22T22:05:00.008Z

Well... we trained with Nancy on Saturday, usually a very successful experience. Unfortunately Molly and I were more than a little bit out of sync with each other. My lovely little Labrador doesn't really think for herself when it comes to Agility, so when I stop communicating with her she doesn't have a scooby doo what to do and we both get very frustrated. After an excellent start with a tricky (for us) tunnel entry and some lovely jumping we continued our week of weave obsession and instead of completing a perfect set of right hand weaves as I expected we fluffed them. I was so surprised as I finally thought she understood them. Several Hudson pep talks later Molly was back on form without any hissing, hand moving or other tricks. We also need to work on our cross behind, disastrous!!

WAG Feb 2009

2009-02-22T21:44:00.002Z

Video poached from Leah! Thank you!

WAG Jan 2009 - First Show....

2009-02-22T21:37:00.004Z