No Worries Jake

2009-01-08T19:53:00.000-08:00

I would like to introduce you to a dear friend of mine. Not only is she a talented artist who specializes in cats and dogs but she is a fellow Carolina ACD R&R founding member. I met Janet Broome when I was desperately searching for some training information so that I could handle my new rambunctious puppy Jake. Janet came to MY rescue since she has a blue female named Pepper who is much like my Jake. Not long after meeting, Janet asked permission to paint some of my photographs of my Oriental Shorthairs Oberon and Willow. I was completely flattered that she liked my photographs enough to want to paint them. I love unpacking her portraits of my cats painted on porcelain for her art booth at dog shows – each time I notice something new and special about them.

Not long after starting our own Australian Cattle Dog Rescue, Janet began painting the faces of our foster dogs. She began with Curry, our first red male foster. Curry’s eyes draw you to look over your own shoulder to see what he’s watching. His eyes look alive and moist.

Since Janet still had red paints on her palette, she next tackled painting Piper, a red female we rescued from a shelter in Georgia. Piper’s smiling face reaches out to grab you from her portrait, a reflection of her happiness in her Forever Home. I’m tempted to reach out to pet her whenever I see it.

With so many fosters as subject matter, Janet decided to go back to the beginning and paint one of our first male fosters, Jack. Jack’s easy-going nature is appearing out of the canvas as Janet paints not only the dog but the personality. Jack is a work in progress but I wanted to share his painting halfway completed anyway.

Janet took a break from painting the foster dogs to paint a commission for friends of ours. Indy’s portrait is so realistic that my first impression was that I was viewing the photo Janet uses for her reference.

Janet is not only an artist of the heart but she is self-taught. I am in awe of her portraits and look forward to each and every one. I’d love to buy them all myself and have my walls be covered floor to ceiling in cattle dogs. If you’ve ever wanted to capture that something special about your pet, Janet can do it. From just a few photos, this talented lady can produce a timeless gift that you’ll treasure always. You’ll also be helping our rescue because Janet will be donating a percentage of the commission to Carolina ACD R&R. Feel free to contact me at catdragon21@yahoo.com or Janet at jlrbroome@aol.com for her current pricing list.

You can view more of her art on her website: www.fineartstudioonline.com/JanetRBroome

2008-12-22T06:59:00.000-08:00

Recipe for making one ticked off cattle dog:

One muddy, rain-soaked yard
One bright red poinsettia
One fairly clean agility jump
Bait bag full of tasty turkey treats
Piles of slick dead leaves
One set of doggy reindeer antlers

Set up plant and jump in back yard trying desperately not to fall down or allow your dog to nose dive in the piles of leaves or roll in the tempting mud. Entice your dog to sit in front of said plant and jump. Use your WAIT command. Treat. Pull out antlers and slip on dog's head. Quickly take picture.

Treat and take second picture. Ignore husband as he pulls up in the driveway and mutters, "That poor dog!" Treat.

Decide your dog looks way too unhappy and take the antlers off. Treat. Treat again just because you owe him big time.

Keep taking pictures and doling out treats until your dog waves at you to stop.

Treat and then practice some agility on the jumps so you didn't drag them out for just pictures. It's makes your dog happier and dumps you in the mud and leaves on your butt which makes your hubby laugh hysterically and your dog feel like justice has been served.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

2008-09-27T15:13:00.000-07:00

Jake’s agility run was a disaster of Olympian proportions. I don’t even know where to begin. We began the day early by getting there at 7:30 AM to get Jake measured and confirm that he is indeed that short of a cattle dog. We headed home since we don’t live that far away and I spent some time playing ball and practicing his contacts on his practice board at home. I did laundry, answered rescue e-mails, and knitted more on a baby blanket – anything to try NOT to be nervous. My hubby Joe and I headed back to the agility trial at 2 PM so I could watch some of the other folks run and in case the trial was running ahead of schedule. The trial was running ahead of schedule so I set up Jake’s crate, mapped out a game plan for the Novice A Fast course with my teacher Mary, and practiced on the warm-up jump. Jake was fairly calm with none of his usual goose-honking I’m-cuckoo-for-agility singing. I should have known he was just saving up for his public exhibition.
I walked the course with my teacher at my side and felt fairly confident that I could handle the route we chose (you can choose your own route in FAST to accumulate the most points).

I grabbed Jake and we stood in line to run. We were fifth, jumping in the 12” height. I took Jake out to his starting spot, placed him in a beautiful sit/stay, and walked out to past the second jump. Jake began looking over his shoulder at anyone but me. When I caught his eye I yelled “Jump” racing for the third and fourth jumps as fast as my little legs would carry me. Jake nailed those first two jumps, blew on by me and began zooming and zooming and zooming. I can normally get him into the tunnels and finally did get him in the yellow tunnel which is followed by the dogwalk. Jake chose to run beside me instead of taking the dogwalk. Halfway down the length of the dogwalk and at the portion that is as high as my shoulders, Jake thought, “Oh, bleep, Mom told me to get on the dogwalk” and he leaped straight up in the air. All I can say is thank goodness he didn’t make it because I wouldn’t have wanted to see that injury. About this time, the judge blows two whistles (code for Get your dog and get the heck off the course). I would have loved to have grabbed Jake but he was again zooming around the course AND out the gate to go buzz some other innocent canine bystanders. Nothing is better than hearing “Will someone grab that dog?” over the intercom and it’s YOUR dog behaving like you’ve never put a lick of training on him. I’m not really sure if I’m the one who caught him but I wasn’t breathing real well at that point so there wasn’t enough oxygen in my brain to recall that part of it with any certainty. My classmates and my teachers all came out to hug me and try to get some blood back in my face. I'd like to thank them immensely for not running and hiding and for being seen in public with me. Jake got some water and some crate time until my teacher was done running her dogs. She called me over to see Jake’s score of an 8. Wow. An 8. The only dogs that got lower than Jake were the dogs that didn’t show up.

My teacher Mary asked me to work with Jake on the practice jumps again so we could work together instead of it being the Jake Circus Hour. Our goal was to work some randomness into practicing the jump by my treating him with the hotdog pieces at random points in running and jumping. Random is right. Randomly, Jake takes off at a dead run straight for some Shelties playing frisbee. The owner of the two very well-trained Shelties called her dogs to her. Jake took a wide loop run around them and headed back to me. I had to hand Captain Insano over to my husband at this point because I knew the next intercom announcement was going to be “Will someone grab that lady and make HER leave the area?” After delivering some tugs to folks who had ordered them, I got in my car with my wet, muddy lunatic boy (did I mention he ran through the sprinkler and stopped, dropped and rolled?) and headed home. There are no pictures and no video of this historic occasion because everyone was too busy trying to catch Jake and he was too fast anyways. The only proof I have of the day is the armband and some red clay pawprints on my jeans. I’m not angry at Jake but I so was NOT expecting that thrilling of show for the audience since he’s been doing so well in class and rarely zooms anymore. I’ve gotta go give him a bath and get that red clay out before he rubs it all over the couch….

2008-05-06T19:03:00.000-07:00

Lending a Paw to TVCDR

On Sunday, two friends and I headed to Tennessee Valley Cattle Dog Rescue (www.tvcattledogrescue.org) to lend a hand with their foster dogs. I got there first and spent a good thirty minutes getting licked by Shadow before someone came looking for me.

I love Shadow's delicate head and sweet disposition:

First up on the agenda for the day was vaccinating and dosing with Frontline and Ivermectin. We began with Katie, the girl that Michael pulled on Saturday from the Ringgold shelter. Despite her nasty-looking spay incision, she was a cuddler from the moment we got her out of her crate. All she wanted to do was climb in Kristina's lap (and try to sneak in licking her incision since the e-collar was off temporarily).

Katie:

Some of the dogs needed their claws trimmed as well and we all know how much ACDs love to have their claws trimmed! Here's Taz and his team of wranglers trimming his front paws:

Many of the dogs needed pictures for their Petfinder listings so I got busy trying to get their ears up and make them ignore the camera:

Gaucho:

Jack (adopted while we were there!):

Skip (surprised us all by begging):

Roscoe (shy and dirty from playing with Star):

Scrappy (starting to lose some weight):

After a yummy steak lunch thanks to our friend with the portable grill, all hands were on deck to put up some new kennel runs in the barn (I have kennel envy -- those were such lovely kennels). Meanwhile, potential adopters that had already had their home visit came to pick out a dog with their toddler girl. Jack grabbed their hearts and Jack went home a happy boy! We ended the evening by walking all of dogs and loving on them all.

Oh, where's Jake, you ask? He was at Crowder's Mountain (near Gastonia) hiking with his daddy! He's still very glad to have his mommy back home!

R

2008-04-29T11:06:00.001-07:00

2008-04-26T11:15:00.000-07:00

Jake's New Friend

I wasn't planning on giving Jake one of my ACDRA stuffed cattle dogs but he spotted it and he HAD to have it. He jumped clear off the floor and got it from my shoulder where I stuck it for safe keeping. Luckily, I ordered four so I guess Jake can have one.

Introducing Jake's new buddy:

Let's go for a walk:

Don't worry, buddy, I'll make sure no one hurts you:

Let's rest in the pretty, non-poisonous weeds for a bit:

This is a great fundraiser for ACDRA (Australian Cattle Dog Rescue Association). I've been wanting these stuffed ACDs but didn't want to pay some toy store $13 for one. Paying $9.99 AND it benefits ACDRA is awesome! You can visit their website at www.acdra.org and order some for yourself!

2008-04-16T12:42:00.000-07:00

Knitting: A New Source of Humiliation for Jake

Taking our winter break from agility was too much empty time so my friend Elizabeth and I took knitting classes for fun. Fun. Hmmm, once we stop crying and pulling our hair out, I'm sure we can label it as fun. Until then, our Type A personalities are trying to figure out this whole knitting thing and not giving up easily! We've got scarves downpat and are branching out into wraps and baby blankets. I've even bought yarn to attempt my first sweater! I needed a model for my red scarf and Jake's the only animal in our house that would hold still for modeling.

2008-04-10T09:43:00.000-07:00

April Showers Bring Jake Flowers

I was hoping I could get this spot of the yard before the landlord mowed and it seems that I beat him to it. I have no idea what that stuff is but it looked exotic and deep enough to hide a Jake in. Jake is always willing to indulge Mom in a photo session if it involves mini marshmellows.

2008-04-06T10:56:00.000-07:00

Animal Fair

On Saturday Carolina R&R hosted a booth at the Glenforest School's annual Animal Fair here in West Columbia, SC. The school holds the fair each year to allow rescues to raise funds and to help educate the public about animals. One of our goals as a rescue is to help with public education so we signed up and hoped for no rain. The event was to be held outside but with the rain, we all headed indoors to the rather dark auditorium. Since I was first on the scene, I procured two spaces by the front door and unloaded our fundraiser stuff in the pouring rain. I got done in enough time for it to stop raining and for Janet to arrive with her girl Pepper and the tables, display racks, and tent frame. Sara arrived with some festive hats and ACD breed info sheets. I then headed to go get another rescue member who lives here in Columbia, Karen, and her two ACDs, Diesel and Curry.

We got the booth set up in about a half hour and began to try to dry off. That's hard to do when all the dogs are wet and shaking off on you! Jake especially got soaked several times from walking back and forth to the car and taking potty breaks. My shoes were soaking wet from navigating the puddles in the parking lot. Regardless, we were proud of our booth!

Table set up with photos of our rescue at work, ACD breed handouts, and one corner of tugs on display:

Table set up with Buddy Biscuits and second corner of tugs on display:

Prizes for our dog trivia contest and hot dog eating contest (someone bought the remaining stuffed animals so gave away Buddy Biscuits as contest prizes, too!):

We got to see Hank, one of our fosters that got adopted here locally. He's growing like a weed and is only six months old! His new family adores him and we're so happy to see that.

Our gang of ACDs were among the best behaved dogs there and made all of us really proud. Jake preferred to sit on my chair and watch everyone go by. He sat there eyeballing the crowd until he caught someone's eye. He'd then pop up on the table with his front paws and lean forward to dole out kisses and be petted. We thought all the dogs were gonna explode from the amount of treats they were fed and the fierce competition of the hot dog eating contest (won by a little Dachschund actually). And, no, I have no pictures of the dogs. The lighting was terrible in that room and my camera wouldn't even focus on Jake's spots in that bad light.

The auditorium was crowded with dogs and people but the turnout was not the 500 people that came last year. So next year we'll hope for no rain and make more tugs!

2008-03-18T14:21:00.001-07:00

Kissing More Cow Babies

Jake and I just got back from visiting my family in the mountains of NC and spending time with Jake's favorite babies, the little cows in the pasture next to my parents' house. Jake sneaks in tons of kissing on those furry, grody noses and this time I got licked by the baby cows, too!

The extra bonus for me was my brother, his wife and their two kids. Jake LOVES babies in all shapes and sizes and my nephews(age 3 and age 1 1/2) are no exception. Jake followed them around doling out kisses and clearing up under the table after dinner. Jake especially liked to lick the youngest until he'd cover up his face with his hands, thereby letting go of the death grip he had on his fleece blanket. Jake would triumphantly race down the hallway trailing blue fleece blanket making the baby scream and chase him -- game on! Jake would do something/anything and my oldest nephew would say, "Oh, wow, that's amazing!" and we couldn't help but laugh. My brother spent hours tugging with Jake calling it a workout. We went for walks in the cove and unfortunately for Jake he cut the pad on his back left foot and will have to miss his first agility class of the year.

2008-03-12T20:06:00.000-07:00

March Herding Fun Day

My dear friend Laurey wrote: The Carolina ACD Club held a Herding Fun Day at one of our member's homes in NC. It was great fun to see cattle dogs get out there and do what they were bred to do. The raw instinct I saw was amazing!

The best part was that Carolina R&R was 98% in attendance - all 7 members and 5 foster dogs. Only our Mississippi foster mom Jenni and foster boy Luke were absent. Even our Forever Home dog Shelbi was there with her brother McGee.

Ellen took the time to put 4 of our dogs in with the sheep to see what they could do and, boy, did they impress! We were all very surprised by Piper and Trux, who both looked like they'd been doing it all their lives. Foster Mom Janet was the proud momma, and some of us even had tears in our eyes to see our boy Trux really shine. He's one heck of a dog - the total package. To see Piper in with those sheep was something else. Look out sheepies, here we come!

Trux, R&R's resident Wild Child and Mr. Personality, surprised us all with his natural instinct right out of the gate. I think we were all prepared for him to go wild in there, but he was patient and calm and moved the sheep just as he should have. More than a couple of us had a tear in our eyes watching him work.

DUTCH aka Bucket Boy and Wild Child, Jr. who didn't sit down or stand still at any time during the entire visit to the farm, was more a chaser than a herder, but did finally start to focus on the task at hand. For a young boy with NO training or manners, I think he did pretty good! (Note: We've only had Dutch one week!)

Cassie did quite good with the sheepies. She's young and a little wild as well but she made us proud none-the-less!

And where are my own observations, you ask? I wasn't there to see Trux, Dutch, and Cassie have their turn so I need to "borrow" some words for those three. And now for my side of the story:

I had attempted to hang onto Dutch originally but that boy is a powerhouse and my chiropractor is out of town for a week. So I handed him back over to Janet and opted for the more gentle, sedate Piper. AND THEN (drumroll, please) Piper saw sheep. That was the end of gentle, sedate Piper. Don't get me wrong -- she'd stop between staring at the sheep and pleading to go see the sheep to give copious amounts of kisses and shamelessly ask for belly rubs. I wanted to scoop her up in my arms just like Lolly had Trux -- she is just so dang sweet. Here's our lovebug on the sheep:

Jake had his go at the sheep and did a marvelous job. Hubby Joe went out with Jake while Piper attempted to dislocate my shoulder to get through the fence at those sheep. Jake's report card from his teacher said his drive is excellent but he definitely needs some training to hone those skills. I sure wish we lived closer to Ellen's and we'd be there every weekend working on that. And where are the pics of Jake herding? I don't have a single one. Shame on Mommy, right? I didn't miss one minute of watching him, though there are no pics and no video. When your face is behind the camera, you miss a lot of stuff that happens so I just wanted to watch this time.

2008-02-04T07:01:00.001-08:00

Milly

R&R got Milly mid-January from a kill shelter in NC. Milly's mixed puppies had all been adopted and all that was left was skinny, tired Milly. Milly is about 4-years-old and needed a lot of TLC. This picture of Milly was taken January 19th:

And these pictures of Milly were taken yesterday, February 3rd! Wow! Milly is now bright-eyed, alert and filling out nicely. Milly was caught having the zoomies in the driveway yesterday and, in my book, that tells me a cattle dog feels comfortable.

Note posted 2/24/08: Milly was adopted!

2008-02-04T06:59:00.000-08:00

January Photo Contest

Jake's photo won second place in the AuCaDo January Photo Contest, where the theme was 8!

2008-01-23T17:49:00.000-08:00

Cassidy

I picked up our newest foster Cassidy around 2 today, well, make that 3 after all the paperwork. The great news is that Cass is heartworm NEGATIVE! The first thing out of my mouth when I met Cass was "Hello, Stinky!" My gag reflex was kicking in fast as the smell of the sweetest, stinkiest dog. The second thing was "Oh, my, look at that blue eye!"

Cass is very curious and into everything. She pulls on the leash to look at things but isn't an over-the-top puller. She rode easily in the car and made no complaints. She's energetic but settles nicely for some cuddling and belly rubs. I took her straight to the tub and washed her with an oatmeal shampoo. She whimpered the whole bath but didn't try to escape. She has a short, fine coat with one tail spot and one spot around her right ear. Cass has about five inches of a tail. She weighs about 25 lbs and should weigh much more with her body shape. She doesn't know SIT at all so she is in for some obedience training at her foster home. I think we've pulled another very sweet but spunky girl.

2008-01-23T17:43:00.000-08:00

My heart was broken last Thursday when I had to put our youngest rescues to sleep. I was sick over the thought of putting the little girl Kiah down because of a possible neurological defect but when I had to put all four of her brothers down as well today I wasn't sure my own two legs would carry back to the car. All of the puppies had distemper. They kept kissing my face while I carried them in to be put down. I was already in love with them from the moment we saved them. Having spent 24 hours with them only cemented their place in my heart. It was a long five-hour drive home with an empty cage and five little collars. I knew one day I'd have to face putting down a sick foster but never imagined it would be these five six-week-old babies.

Eli:

Seamus:

Kiah:

Kane (right)& Deacon(left):

2008-01-06T11:13:00.000-08:00

The Continuing Adventures of No Worries Jake

Jake lives in an unassuming house in a small Southern town. What his neighbors don't know is that Jake is a reknowned treasure hunter. Jake keeps this hush-hush so that people only seen the peeling paint, the poor landscaping, and the dowdy work van and would never think that within were stored vast canine treasures.

On a bright Sunday morning, our adventurer Jake headed out the door in search of the ultimate hoard, The Treasure of 8. Jake told his three feline fellow housemates not to worry because he would be coming back. They blinked their eyes and fervently hoped that something dastardly would happen to Jake, although they said nothing aloud. Jake knew he might have to search the whole wide backyard to complete his quest.

Without hesitation Jake climbed the slippery slopes of Mount Kayak and Mount Canoe where he found The Bust of Squeaky Squirrel. But it wasn't the Treasure of 8...

A rumor of treasure had Jake flying to the continent of Greenhouse next to search among the Gardening Supplies, tall towers of tools, trees, and clay pots. Hidden amongst the Leaning Towers of Clay, Jake found his next gems -- two jars of Healthy Dog Snacks. Someone had beat him to this treasure, though, and the jars only contained enough snacks for Jake to fill his belly and move on.

A slinky, white cat named Salem slipped Jake a note when he was wandering the back alleys of the capital of Greenhouse in search of clues. Salem was known for sharp claws, potent urine, and an uncanny ability to turn on the charm. Jake wasn't sure if he could believe Salem but couldn't miss the opportunity to look for The Treasure of 8. Salem insisted he accompany Jake to the Swinging Bridge, a treacherous construction hanging over the Raging Creek. Suspicious of each other but unwilling to let the other go alone, Jake and Salem pushed their way through mounds of leaf litter. A harrowing crossing across the rickety bridge did indeed lead to a treasure, The Three Squeaky Balls that belonged to the Heir of Kong. Salem left Jake in a huff, failing to see the value of the golden balls. Still, the balls were not the Treasure of 8...

A mysterious letter arrived at Jake's hotel using Jake's code name "See Spots Run". There was no signature and no return address. Jake worried he was being led into a trap but had no choice but to brave the forests to find out if the clues in the letter would lead him to his final destination. Rotting logs, thick bushes, and fat grey ticks didn't deter our brave hero! Amongst the Rotting Tree Stumps, Jake uncovered the tombs of the Four Brothers Moo. An intricately carved statue of the four furry brothers marked their resting place. And yet the Treasure of 8 was still calling...

Onto the plains of SideYard, Jake ventured forth with a young trail guide cat named Peppy. Jake had known Peppy since Peppy was a tiny ball of fur and trusted Peppy completely. Peppy would often wander off to investigate a bug or eat a frog but Peppy always came back to continue their journey. Together Peppy and Jake dug beneath the holly tree on their treasure map and unearthed a silver and wood box. Could this be the treasure Jake has been seeking? Could our hero's adventures be over? Alas, the chest held the Five Bones of the Chew Dynasty, the last kings of SideYard.

Leaving young Peppy safely at home, Jake headed for High Table Plateau. Arduous climbing left Jake exhausted and disheartened on his long journey to the top of this monstrosity of plastic. A gorgeous temple of the Six ACD Rescue Desk Calendars greeted the morning sun as Jake climbed the last few feet of the steep plateau. Jake took time to admire the gorgeous pictographs on the sides of this holy place but knew he needed to hit the road again.

Jake wasn't sure where to look next. A quick phone call to his mom gave Jake another idea. Jake's mom wondered aloud if anyone had searched the dangerous route through Jarrett's Jungle yet. Jake wasn't afraid to get wet and muddy so he enthusiastically plowed through the thick undergrowth and hearty vines, even ignoring the snakes and squirrels he saw along the way in his haste to reach the treasure. A single shaft of light reached down through the darkness to reveal The Basket of the 7 Socks, a treasure that Jake had stopped looking for years ago. Jake had heard this treasure was locked deep within Dresser Drawer by the Laundry Police. Thrilled with his discovery, Jake felt invigorated and knew he was on the right path to finding The Treasure of 8.

But where to look? Tired from his journey, Jake decided to rest at Wooden Bench, a little-known getaway for intellectuals, tired birds, and roving canines.

When we left out hero last, Jake was recuperating from his journey through Jarrett's Jungle atop Wooden Bench. While sitting on his porch enjoying the sunlight, Jake suddenly got a whiff of great treasure! He knew that smell anywhere, the smell of fleece! Could it be? Could Jake have finally found the Treasure of 8, the world's greatest collection of Tugs?

What a day for celebration! Jake had indeed discovered the brightly colored Treasure of 8, the special treasure of Carolina ACD Rescue, high up in the Trees of Magnolia. The barren winter setting couldn't dim their radiance. Jake had eyes only for his find.

For just a moment Jake basked in the glory of being the greatest canine treasure hunter in the whole backyard. And maybe our hero's head swelled a little with pride...but who can blame him when he sniffed out such a wonderful prize?

2008-01-02T19:11:00.000-08:00

"Where is Jake?" you ask, well, Jake and his fellow agility junkies are on a break from classes while a new pool gets installed in the agility yard! Jake has been going on hikes in the mountains and here at home to keep in shape. Jake helped me go on a home visit for Kaylee which turned out to be the perfect home for our sweet girl. So Jake's social schedule is certainly not empty while we wait for our return to the dogwalk, A-frame, and tunnels!

2007-12-16T16:24:00.000-08:00

Our Agility Christmas Party

Saturday was our agility Christmas party. We all watched the weather forecasts all week and they always pointed to rain on Saturday. Stubbornly we hoped that the rain wouldn't come. The party began extremely overcast but no rain. The food was high up on the decorated dog walk -- a green tablecloth and a gargoyle with reindeer antlers made the obstacle into a great, dog-proof table. The dog walk was covered in yummy foods and the revelers were busy chowing down. An agility course was set up with an agility game. Jake and I opted to go first and my Jake surprised me by ignoring the crowd and doing even the really hard parts of the course. And then...the sky fell! An EZ-up was quickly erected, the food was moved to safety and ALL of us huddled together to keep dry and keep eating!

In the brief moment that the rain let up a little brave souls ventured forth with their dogs onto the agility course (even some of the spouses) and the dogs were given a chance to burn off some energy. And then the rain came back full forse so we all went back to eating! It's hard to resist when there's so much good food! We might have been wet and cold but our tummies were full!

2007-12-12T20:42:00.000-08:00

Jake's Dichroic Glass Pendant

These some in red or blue and you can choose a silver or gold bail (the little thing that the necklace goes through). You can request a different color background.

Another great necklace of mine by Dominique Corner:

A very talented jewelry artist and ACD owner, Dominique Corner, is coming from Indiana to help me celebrate my 32nd birthday in a very special way. Dominique is helping me throw a jewelry party to raise money for Carolina ACD Rescue & Rebound, a cause near and dear to my heart. You can make your own necklaces, earrings and bracelets from the awesome assortment of beads Dom will bring or you can choose from pre-made items Dom will have already made.

One of the best things Dom is offering is dichroic glass pendants with a blue or red ACD head. Each piece is unique and handmade by Dom. I have a very special one she made me for Jake with his blue head on a black background. Dom is about to make another batch of ACD heads and wanted to know who might be interested in having one. They are $20 each and you can choose red or blue. You can choose either a silver or gold bail (the little loop of metal that allows you to slide your pendant onto a necklace). Dom needs to have a number beforehand so she knows how many to make. If you are interested in one of these, please e-mail me at our rescue e-mail carolinasrescue@yahoo.com and let me know.

Even if you can’t come to the jewelry fundraiser, you can purchase one of the ACD pendants or another piece of pre-made jewelry from Dom and have it mailed to you or simply donate money to the rescue. Dom will be donating a generous portion of the proceeds to Carolina ACD Rescue & Rebound. We’ll have hors d’oeuvres and a birthday cake. We haven’t decided on a place yet but it will be held in the afternoon on Saturday, February 9, 2008. Official invites will be coming out soon! Please contact me with any questions you may have.

Dom holds a Master of Fine Arts degree, and certificates in jewelry, metal smithing, and layout and design. She has also taken courses in glass fusion, lampworking, and wire wrapping, and has shown and placed in several galleries and juried art. Dichroic glass is a spin-off of the space industry. It is produced in a heated vacuum by coating glass with multiple metal oxide layers to create the desired color and effect. “Dichroic” means two colors. The unique, iridescent-like beauty of dichroic glass is due to the fact that it appears to be different colors when viewed from different angles or under different lighting conditions. In Dom’s studio, Spiritwalker Design, dichroic glass is carefully hand cut, combined, and then fused in a kiln. Each piece is a unique, one of a kind creation.

2007-11-29T11:32:00.000-08:00

All Grown Up Jake

I promised Jake no costumes, no party hats, no silly pictures because he was a big grown-up boy now and nothing but serious would do for his 2nd birthday pictures. Luckily we have one tree that still has pretty leaves in the backyard and Jake didn't jump into the creek right behind him (that's a sure sign of maturity) -- no matter how old Jake gets he can still be bribed with marshmellows!

2007-11-29T07:21:00.000-08:00

Happy 2nd Birthday to my boy Jake today! We got Jake in Feb 2006 and he was just 10 lbs of fur and kisses. I fell in love with him the moment I saw him and, although I had no intention of getting a dog any time soon, I had to take Jake home.

Little did I know how fast he could move at 10 weeks old and that I would have to learn a whole new way to use my camera.

Little did I know he was going to be an agility dog.

Little did I know I would find myself doing very silly things on the floor with my dog.

Little did I know we would go everywhere together.

Little did I know that Jake would keep me laughing every day (this is what we call his "Can someone come get me" picture?)

Little did I know that Jake would become the love of my life (second to my hubby) and that my life would have a huge gaping whole in it without my sweet boy.

Jake's Aunt Elizabeth made him a cross-stitch ACD ornament and his Aunt Roberta (ladies from our agility class) made him pumpkin and applesauce doggie biscuits. We're gonna take Jake to PetSmart and let him pick out a new Cow (every ACD needs FIVE stuffed Cows to herd). No matter how many times we let him pick out his own toy he always picks out The Cow.

2007-10-31T08:01:00.000-07:00

Carolina Halloween Dogs

Jake and our foster girl Kaylee attended their first Halloween party, cattle-dog style, when our Carolina ACD Club got together this Saturday for a Rally-themed Fun Day. We had a best trick contest, a costume contest, and a Rally class. Jake STUNK at Rally, preferring the all-out party of Agility. Kaylee did fairly well considering we've only had her for four weeks. Here's a few of the faces we saw in the costume contest:

Dinosaur -- Won Best Costume Award

Cookie Monster

Clown -- our R&R foster girl Kaylee

The Smiling Spider -- our R&R foster boy Jack

AND Jake wouldn't hold still in his costume for a picture (he wanted to go play with Cookie Monster)so here's pics we took at home in his various costumes:

2007-10-28T11:16:00.000-07:00

Cover of 2008 Forever Home Wall Calendar -- our boy Jake!

Carolina ACD R&R is proud to present our 2008 Forever Home Wall Calendar. Thirteen great pages feature photographs of the dogs we have rescued -- some of have found their way into our own families, some have gone to great homes in other states, and some are still looking for their special forever homes. This wall calendar is available in our Cafepress.com store for $22.99 and all of the proceeds benefit the ACDs of R&R by covering pull fees and vet expenses. For anyone attending the Regional Specialty in Concord, NC, in November we will have some of these calendars on hand for sale.

The link to the Carolina ACD Rescue & Rebound Cafepress.com store:

http://www.cafepress.com/cacdrr

Even if you don't want a calendar you should stop by our store and see each of the great ACD faces! Several of them still need homes and you just might fall in love with one of them.

2007-10-26T10:47:00.001-07:00

It's raining here in South Carolina and like most of the US, we need the rain badly. So I'm trying to do productive things indoors. Besides making tugs and posting rescue things, I take breaks to play with Kaylee and Jake and do some training.

Kaylee is still learning to play tug but coming along:

Kaylee has been here four weeks so far and is learning to do just about all of Jake's tricks. We haven't taught her how to meow yet but give me time! Kaylee's down was one of the hardest things I had to teach her. Every time her front end would go down her back end would come up. She just learned down yesterday. Jake is her security blanket really so she stays very close to him.

2007-10-25T13:41:00.000-07:00

Who Are You and What Did You Do With My Dog?

Jake and I went to agility class on Tuesday night as usual. Jake thought the tunnel and jump to the teeter totter was a blast and I swear I even saw him almost try to take the jump and teeter in one big jump. The teeter has definitely ceased to intimidate him. I got Jake offleash to work on our first set of jumps and tunnels. Then some other dog took over my dog's body and he stated VERY LOUDLY that he was not going to do agility tonight, he just wanted to shriek and play posture at me. The alien dog got a time out in the crate while everyone else took their turn. The alien dog got a second turn which was even shorter than the first turn -- back into the time-out crate. Our turn at the 12-obstacle set (we had to skip a few b/c it was raining) didn't go any better than the jumps. Halfway through the run, Jake took off into the bushes for a potty pitstop. His mind was just not there. Thank goodness Jake wasn't alone in his absent-mindedness -- his English Cocker Spaniel buddy Cosmo had a similar night. I'd like to blame it on a full moon or something but I'm not sure what made Jake lose his focus so badly. Oh, well, we'll try again next class!

2007-10-19T17:19:00.000-07:00

Ingredients for a Kill the Ball Party:

1 Doggy Who Just Likes to Chase the Ball

1 Doggy Who Just Likes to Chase the First Dog

1 Indestructible Red Ball

Music for Dancing (Who Let the Dogs Out is a favorite, gets 'em barking every time)

Party Games (Keep Away is a good one especially for First Timers)

A Camera to Catch That Exact Moment When Exhaustion Hits All The Partygoers

Result:
Two Very Happy Partiers!

Private Note: The Photographer needs someone to hold onto the back of their belt and yank them out of danger when two dogs and a big red ball come flying at them!

2007-10-19T17:08:00.000-07:00

A Proud Agility Moment

I know I haven't really mentioned much about Jake lately in agility class but this last Tuesday night was worth mentioning. Jake has steadily been growing in maturity and his ability to concentrate in class. Jake will start to zoom, get two feet away and either stop or come right back to me. This Tuesday we began with the teeter totter on which Jake has NO FEAR emblazoned on his forehead while he races across this obstacle. It's amazing to see and hard to stop him from doing over and over.

The really stunning part came when we did the 16-obstacle set. I was commenting to a classmate on how well her dog does in general in the class. She said that Jake wasn't shabby either -- "He's just a free thinker", she said. I've lost my anxiety over Jake not doing everything perfectly so when we began the obstacle set I was calm and concentrating on what my hands and feet were doing. Jake did all of the obstacles, including the pinwheel jumps I got in reverse, and he added another table just for kicks at the end. There was nothing calm about me at that point! My little boy is growing up! There may be hope for us on the agility field yet.

Our class then set about working in a smaller area on 9 and 11 obstacle sets, mostly jumps. Some of the moves were pretty advanced but everyone's dogs did a stellar job even when we the handlers got turned around. Jake's last go at the jumps was going extremely well without me having to toss his bait bag even once. We began racing for the last jump. I zoomed past it. No Jake. I looked back over my shoulder just in time to see Jake leap for my rear end, mouth open. That little bugger was trying to heel me! Actually I think he was going for the steak pieces I had in his bait bag, which I keep on the back of my pants. Still, Jake was rowdy and full of himself, shrieking and eluding my grasp. Yup, we were done for the night. It's truly amazing how fast Jake can humble me -- proud one moment, totally embarrassed the next. =) I can't wait for next week though!

2007-10-13T20:58:00.000-07:00

Rescue Fundraiser -- ACD Greeting Cards

Ever been standing in Hallmark, American Greetings or PetSmart and wished you could find a greeting card with even one cattle dog on the front? Let’s face it – it’s hard to find much sporting our beloved breed. Now you can buy a greeting card with NINE cattle dogs on the front! Our newest fundraiser for Carolina ACD Rescue & Rebound is here!

Our ACD stars are (from L to R)Top Row: Posey, Nyle, Tilly ; Middle Row: Logan & Maggie Mae, Pepper; Bottom Row: Luna, Jake, and Max. Inside, the top of the card reads “Australian Cattle Dogs of the Carolinas/Love, Loyalty, Devotion”.

The cards will be professionally printed and available individually ($2.50 each) or in packs of ten ($20). All proceeds benefit Carolina ACD R&R. We are taking preorders NOW and will be ordering some to sell at the upcoming Regional Specialty in Concord, NC, in November. Please contact us at carolinasrescue@yahoo.com for information on how to place an order. Our preorder deadline is by Sunday, October 28th, so we can have them in time for the Regional Specialty. Anyone who wants to pick up their preorder at the Regional Specialty may do so and save on postage costs. These unique cards are a must-have for the ACD lover in you! What better way to feed that ACD need than to support cattle dog rescue AND bring a smile to your face?!?

2007-10-10T19:21:00.000-07:00

Jake's Tug Pic Ties for 3rd Place!

One of Jake's Tug Pics we call "Mommy, can I please have tug?" tied for third place on AuCaDo's September Photo Contest. Jake's pics was in some stiff competition and I didn't think we'd even place. Stop by www.aucado.us and join us in the forum for great conversation and MORE pics of cattle dogs galore! Oh, and order your AuCaDo ACD Rescue Cookbook if you haven't done so! (link to the right)

2007-10-09T10:35:00.000-07:00

Rescue Camp R&R Style

As Carolina ACD Rescue & Rebound is rather new to the world of running our own rescue, we have talked a lot with other rescuers and foster homes to try to do the best job we can to help this breed we love so much. Not only are we finding information for ourselves but have found ways that we can help other rescues. Three of the members of our R&R committee volunteered to spend the weekend helping Michael Stumpff at Tennessee Valley Cattle Dog Rescue.

My hubby and I drove up to Chattanooga on Friday. Kaylee went hysterical being put in the car and we had to put Jake in the kennel with her to keep her calm. As long as Jake was touching her, Kaylee was fine. Soon they were curled up together like cats taking a nap and the rest of the trip was uneventful. My dad has a fenced backyard so Kaylee got her first chance to play with Jake and my dad's Border Collie Ian. Ian and Jake were chasing a ball and Kaylee was chasing Jake. I saw Jake gleefully dive into something and start rolling just in time to catch Kaylee from joining him. I was so glad because Jake was rolling in sewage and Kaylee couldn't have a bath yet. Jake definitely had to have a bath.

Kaylee and Jake:

The sheep running from Michael's dog Grit:

Saturday morning Joe and I got Michael's just in time for Joe to help Michael building a temporary sheep paddock. Michael attempted to move the sheep down to the shaded area but his blue boy Grit just wasn't able to move those sheep. We left the gate open and the sheep eventually all wandered in there with their canine companion Norman, the Great Pyrenees. Kristina and her ACD girl Lily and her German Shepherd/Rottweiler showed up next and helped product-test a Jake tug before purchasing. We got to witness some potential adopters pick up Red Molly, a red girl that hadn't been there long, with their other ACD Mick. Molly was positive she wanted to be Jake's girlfriend.

Group Wrestle:

Sara and Laurey weren't far behind Kristina and we began letting the dogs out "in shifts", as Michael puts it. Generally he lets about 8 dogs at a time out to walk the field and play. The dogs come out in a thundering herd. We had a nice lunch to which we all contributed something yummy before heading back out to begin the process of putting Frontline on the necks of all the dogs and convincing those same dogs to eat their Triscuit with heartworm medicine inserted inside. Sara got to name one of the last dogs we did, a blue boy that had been kept on a chain in some man's yard and never had a name. Buckwheat, as Sara dubbed him, was as wild as a horse and a few of us learned a new harnessing trick with a rope lead to help control an out-of-control dog. Another round of letting all the dogs out to run ended in supper for everyone in their kennels or crates.

At this point we were all covered in dirt and dog poop and had to race back to our hotel room for lightning-quick showers to meet Michael and Kathy at the local Chili's for dinner. Michael usually only has an hour and a half of "negligible" time each day to do something outside the dogs. I'm not sure why I got a shower really because Joe managed to fling barbeque sauce on my white shirt at dinner and Kaylee peed such a copious amount of urine that it overflowed her kennel tray and doused my car seats (despite having peed at Michael's outside an hour before). Joe took Jake and Kaylee back with him to my dad's because they both needed baths from Kaylee's accident and I had nothing left to clean up accidents. Kristina and I roomed together and had to make ourselves stop talking about agility classes so we could go to sleep.

Jake herding:

Sunday morning we all piled out of the hotel and headed back to Michael's at 7:30 AM to get in some more doggy chores before heading home. After letting the dogs out for their morning romp on the wet grass, we lent our best helping hand (not sure how really helpful we were) to Michael moving the last stubborn sheep from the big paddock to the little paddock Joe helped build on Saturday. Michael coached us through where to put ourselves and we're pretty sure we all at least earned our HIC and want to start putting it after our names. =) The next task was getting the now maturing lambs away from their parents. It was quite a sight to behold, watching Michael wrestle and carry those lambs to the larger paddock. Kathy's ACD girl Carrie was a big help with the last lamb lightly heeling whenever the lamb would stop. The lambs were not dog-broken or halter-broken. Sara and Laurey hit the road and Joe finally showed up with Jake and Kaylee. Kathy removed Kaylee's stitches and confirmed for me that the lump in Kaylee's ear is just scar-tissue from her ear being ripped. Jake finally got his chance to herd some sheep. I only have one picture b/c Kaylee lost her mind being separated from Jake. I had to take her far enough back so that she wasn't bothering the sheep with her high-pitched whining. Kristin's girl Sydney got a chance to herd the sheep as well while I began working on grooming the Border Collie foster Cutter. Cutter gave me a scar last time with his claws so Kathy helped me hold him. Next I got to groom the Great Pyrenees Norman and get all the burrs out of his bushy tail. Kathy made us breakfast and we began taking pics of the dogs that Michael needed for his Petfinder listings. Joe and I headed back to my dad's house and a much-needed shower before visiting a little with my dad and family. We headed home around 6 and got home at midnight.

And so Rescue Camp went. This is my second time helping Michael. The overwhelming nature of what Michael deals with on a daily basis is a true eye-opener. Michael has a system that works for him though. Not everyone can take on such a monumental task and have happy, healthy dogs but TVCDR does. I appreciate only having one foster dog at the moment. I love being surrounded my cattle dogs on every side but at the end of the day it's nice to snuggle with just Jake.

I have so many pictures that it's hard to choose the best ones but here's a few of the dogs that need forever homes.

T-star getting a belly rub (available for adoption from TVCDR):

Buckwheat (availabe for adoption from TVCDR):

Koree wet from the creek (available for adoption from TVCDR):

Cal (left) playing with his buddies (available for adoption from TVCDR):

2007-10-04T12:43:00.000-07:00

Halloween Humiliation
I'm Batman! ( I never thought I would say that Jake's ears weren't big enough...)

Captain Jake Sparrow

I'm sorry to say I had to return both the costumes b/c Batman was TOO big and Captain Jack Sparrow was too small. It was fun for me while it lasted though!

2007-10-02T12:32:00.000-07:00

Our First Tug Baby

Saturday, September 29:
Today Joe, Jake and I picked up Kaylee (formally known as Phoenix) from the vet's office in Providence, NC today where she had been spayed. We were surprised to find out that Kaylee had been 38 days pregnant.

When we first met Kaylee she was very frightened (wouldn't you be after all that?) and the vet tech said she was refusing to walk on a leash. Kaylee, however, walked outside on the leash although rather timidly. She was shaking like a leaf. We spent a few minutes petting her in her wire kennel in the back of my car before hitting the road. We stopped at an Arby's a half hour down the road and found a nice picnic area with shade. We spent an hour loving on Kaylee and letting her and Jake get acquainted. We got the first of many kisses to come and her tail began wagging. When we finally got lunch, Kaylee jumped on the table and stole Joe' roast beef sandwich. We obviously need to work on some manners. =)

We stopped again in Charlotte for two hours to let the dogs stretch their legs and visit with an old friend. Kaylee kept running back and forth between me and Joe kissing our chins and leaning against us for some loving. She even included our friend in her kissing rounds after a few minutes of him being there. She is very velcro and walks next to you easily although she isn't used to a leash. Kaylee likes to look at you over her shoulder with a very trusting look on her face. We got back on the road and reached Columbia about 6:30. We got a few pictures before the sun went down. It was hard to get any b/c if she sees you she comes running to give you a kiss.

We've begun working on OFF, SIT, and teaching her the new name. She responds very well to "Kaylee, come" (better than Jake). Kaylee is a trashcan diver and we're working on nipping that in the bud, too. Kaylee met all three of our cats upon entering the house since they were waiting at the door for us. She was scared of our male cat Obie but touched noses briefly with our female cats with nothing more than passing curiosity. Even when Joe got her to sniff Willow she turned right back to Joe for more kisses. We might not have any chins left after all this kissing but we'll survive somehow. =) Kaylee is very curious and continues to investigate our living room and dining room (we babygated the area) stopping on every round to get petted by both me and Joe. Her tail has begun wagging, she's carrying it high, and her ears are up. Kaylee and Jake are getting along well, although Jake seems very confused about why he can't play with her yet. Kaylee has shown no food agression even when Jake poked his nose in her food bowl - - she just went to his food bowl instead.

Kaylee currently weighs 30 lbs according to the vet records. She's a tad on the thin side but I'm sure being pregnant and being spayed has something to do with that. I can feel her spine a little too well. Kaylee does have some tan on the backs of her front feet so she's not completely blue and white. Kaylee has a gorgeous tail with a body spot at the base. Kaylee has a single mask and a nice Bentley with a spot in middle. Another spot graces the other side of her head. She is dainty with a small mouth, small feet, and long legs. She's almost Jake's size if not a little taller. I am to keep her an inactive as possible for the next 10 days because of the extremely stressful circumstances of her spaying.

Day Three:
I keep finding new patches of red on her -- in between all her toes, the circle of fur below her tail, and sprinkled throughout her fur making it look like she rolled in clay. She has a small rice-size hard lump on one of her ears below the skin. It doesn't seem to bother her. Her ears do come up on the top of her head when she is listening really hard to something but she does seem to keep them spread out a little in general. Her teeth are in really good shape with only small patches of tartar build-up on them. She doesn't mind you touching any part of her body. She's well-muscled but thin. She's not so sure what brushing is all about. She's leaving her stitches alone for the most part and is easily distracted just by calling her name. She moves around like a hummingbird, darting here and there. There is nothing slow about her. I've never seen a dog even wiggle as fast as she does when she's happy to see you (which is every single time). She's a little confused on where to potty so we're working on potty training. We're working really hard on OFF and SIT and she's responding quickly to SIT. The OFF needs a little work since she's so desperate to be touching you at all times. If she can't be touching me or Joe, she's plastered to Jake. I'm sure Jake's totally confused about how he spontaneously grew a Siamese twin overnight. If Jake is sitting, she has to be sitting. If Jake is laying down, she has to be laying down. If Jake is eating, she has to be eating. If Jake is getting a kiss, she has to get a kiss. I have yet to hear her bark but have heard her whine and howl when I step outside the house without her. She's quiet when we put her in her kennel although she definitely doesn't want to go. She has got to be the messiest eater I have ever seen. She shoves her head into the bowl pushing all the food out onto the floor. She smacks loudly with food coming out of her mouth in every direction. Jake just stands near her trying to catch the flying crumbs -- it's a new game in the kitchen. Kaylee is not a food hound and eats in small amounts. She has continued to ignore the cats. So far she's not interested in toys, only human contact. So lots of loving it is!

2007-09-25T11:26:00.000-07:00

Jack available for adoption:
Jack is a new rescue that came to Carolina ACD Rescue & Rebound from a kill shelter in Sparta, NC. Jack is approximately three years old, has had all his shots, recently neutered and heartworm negative. Jack has a bobbed tail. He is housebroken, and, since coming to Carolina Rescue & Rebound, is learning basic obedience commands.

Jack has shown incredibly nice manners, he gets along well with the other dogs at his foster home and in other public outings. He enjoys hikes and truck rides—and even loves his obedience lessons! He sits on command, heels, waits to put on his training collar and lead and has shown good herding instincts; he is soft with livestock and moves them calmly in his herding tests.

Jack is still learning basic obedience, but he is eager to please and is very quick to learn. He's an affectionate dog and needs a family with an active lifestyle or one with a lot of time to spend with him. He also needs a family that will continue his obedience training since he is in the early stages of training but he will make a devoted lifelong companion to his future perfect family. Rest assured Jack will return the love and devotion of his future family many times over!

If you are interested in adopting Jack into your family, please e-mail Carolina ACD R&R at carolinasrescue@yahoo.com. We require an application and a home visit.

2007-09-19T10:01:00.000-07:00

Back in the Saddle Again

We've missed a couple of agility classes this round but we were happy to be back in agility class last night. The temperature has dropped and the breeze had all the dogs feeling frisky. Jake is improving with each class on his ability to pay more attention to me and less to the other dogs and people. This class he made more the jumps instead of running around them to catch up with me. We're able to use Jake's bait bag with much success to lead him through another obstacle when he's unsure. Jake is showing me some maturity. He still zooms but he normally just gets a few feet before returning in front of me to ask "What's next?" seated at my feet. NOW if the humans could just get it together, the dogs might get it right, too. Memorizing a course seems fine and dandy when someone else is holding your dog, you're walking the course looking at the numbered cones, and practicing your body language. You get out of the course, the course just goes out of your head, you're trying to just keep the dog moving and, voila!, creative course running by Melissa is born. I didn't even know how to apologize for the course I made up. Luckily, I was not alone and we're joking about making points cards to flash up for how creatively we mess up the course. Oh, well, next week will be here soon and hopefully my brain will be in gear and coordinate something with the rest of my body to make it look slightly more graceful and planned out.

2007-09-09T16:57:00.000-07:00

Jake Tugs For Sale

I may be a little prejudiced on the matter but my Mommy makes the best fleece tugs ever. She makes them thick and meaty and braided very tightly. Mommy is generous with her fleece and is always making tugs for me and my ACD friends. But this week, Mommy outdid herself and made a whole crate of fleeces:

Mommy says I can't have any of these special fleeces, though! How mean is that? Mommy has made them as a fundraiser for the new Australian Cattle Dog rescue, Carolina ACD R&R (short for Rescue & Rebound). She said that not all cattle dogs are as fortunate as I am to have a loving home and fleece tugs in every corner. The money from these tugs will go to pulling cattle dogs from bad situations, training them while they are treated to lots of TLC, and helping them find forever homes where they will have a Mommy or Daddy of their own.

No matter how sad I look, Mommy knows I'm not really sad because I am spoiled rotten!

Stay tuned for how you can order your own Jake tugs and support Cattle Dog Rescue!

2007-09-07T16:09:00.001-07:00

Whenever our cats howl for dinner, Jake always takes up howling with them. So we've made a game of "meowing". I threw in a few of his tricks at the end just for the heck of it.

2007-09-03T11:23:00.000-07:00

A Note from Jake

My mommy hasn't posted a whole lot lately because she has been sad. Mommy's grandmother passed away last Sunday from something called "congestive heart failure". I have no idea what that means but I do know I will miss Mommy's grandmother. She used to sneak me spicy pimento cheese. She always had snacks hidden under the table cloth on her side table. She always let me jump in her lap and kiss her ears. She always laughed when I wiggled and wiggled. Now when we go to visit the cows in NC, that nice lady won't be there.

To cheer Mommy up, I let her dress me up in some pretty humiliating costumes and take pictures. Since it brought a smile to Mommy's face and marshmellows to my tummy, I sat as still as I could.

2007-09-02T20:41:00.001-07:00

Kissing Cow T-shirts are here!

Jake has a new t-shirt out! All proceeds go to Tennessee Valley Cattle Dog Rescue. Visit his Cafepress.com store at:

www.cafepress.com/noworriesjake

On the front side is Jake's infamous picture of Jake kissing a baby cow. Above the photo is says, "The Australian Cattle Dog" and below the photo reads, "Characteristics: As the name implies the dog's prime function, and one in which he has no peer, is the control and movement of cattle in wide open and confined areas. Always alert, extremely intelligent, watchful, courageous and trustworthy with an implicit devotion to duty making it an ideal dog."

On the back of some of the t-shirts (whenever available as a option) it says, "Save a cattle dog. Kiss a cow. Support Australian Cattle Dog Rescue."

Please visit Jake's store and support cattle dog rescue!

Melissa

2007-08-09T21:10:00.000-07:00

Yummy Recipes!
AuCaDo, our Australian Cattle Dog forum, has released it's first annual cookbook to raise funds for cattle dogs in need. For more info, click on the link I've provided on the right hand side or visit their website:

http://www.cookbook.aucado.us/

It's worth checking out because Jake is on the front cover kissing his favorite baby cow!

2007-08-06T11:20:00.001-07:00

When Jake wants you to throw his squeaky toy, he presses it hard against any body part he can reach on you -- foot, leg, stomach, arm, head -- and continues to squeak and squeak and squeak. The more you ignore him, the harder he presses and the more he squeaks. This weekend we were visiting my mother and stayed in her guest bedroom (hence the twin beds with white comforters and white sheets). Hubby was trying to work on his laptop and Jake wanted him to play with the squeaky toy...

2007-07-26T14:32:00.000-07:00

How to Make Your Own Fleece Tugs (Just for CK!)

2007-07-25T08:30:00.000-07:00

A Blur Extravaganza

Yeah, we finally had agility after being rained out for two weeks in a row. We doused ourselves from head to toe in mosquito repellent and hit our teacher's backyard. All of the dogs looked like dancing bears, walking on their back legs in their excitement to get to the teeter totter. I just knew I was in for a ZOOMIE night.

After practicing the teeter, we began doing a series of obstacles. Hubby dearest laid down in the dirt and got some pics of Jake sailing through the tire jump before entering a tunnel. It was starting to get dark so the pics aren't the clearest.

Jake did really well on all of the sets, completing them, stopping for his treat and then ZOOOOOOOOOOOOMING all over the backyard. Jake was not alone, though, and all the other dogs thought zooming was a perfect way to celebrate being back in class. One of our teachers has been on vacation for a while so she hasn't seen the change in Jake's focus. She said she was very proud of Jake! Jake hit his contacts well and with speed since we've had plenty of time to work on that the last two weeks on his traveling contact board.

Not only is Jake doing better but I've calmed down over the zoomies. I still hate it when he does it but thoroughly enjoy when someone else's dog does it!

2007-07-17T17:35:00.000-07:00

Boo Hoo!

So we were all chanting "No rain, no rain, no rain" but since we're on speed dial for thunderstorms with major lightning every Tuesday between 6 and 7, our chanting had little results. At 6 on the nose, the rain clouds rolled in and the light show began. Sigh. Is it too much to ask for Mother Nature to use the other 167 hours of the week for the sudden thunderstorms?

2007-07-15T13:46:00.000-07:00

Introducing No Worries Jake, CGC!

Jake did it! He got his CGC (Canine Good Citizen -- see www.akc.org for further info on this test) on Saturday! We drove to Fort Mill, SC and joined several other members of our Carolina ACD Club and some guest dogs for the testing . The funds raised are going to Tennessee Valley Cattle Dog Rescue. By the time we had arrived I had gotten over my jitters and just figured that I was helping with fundraising. The judge did comment, "Jake always brings the party with him, doesn't he?" Lady, you have no idea!

So without further ado here's No Worries Jake, CGC, taking his test:

Jake, please stop sniffing the ground and pay attention to me! Please for Mommy! Your new nose isn't always a good thing!

Jake's best gal pal Pepper got her CGC, too!

Cinch didn't get his CGC but he wasn't far from doing it! He and his Mommy will be ready for the next time and we know he'll pass it then!

Jake playing ball with the Fun Police Queen aka Luna:

Jake getting in some A-frame practice:

And, introducing Bliss, 4-month-old foster puppy extraordinaire, aka sweetest little girl on the planet (who will soon be leaving for her forever home):

Bliss VERY, VERY tired from playing with all the big ACDs:

We all had a blast letting the dogs play in the field afterwards with squeaky balls, agility equipment and each other. I love every minute of Jake getting to play with his ACD buddies. When the dogs were worn slap out, we humans headed for a wonderful lunch and some shade and fans.

Oh, wait! I forgot to tell you the best part! When we got back to our friend's house where we had stayed the night, our friend wanted some help putting up his fence. Jake was loose in the yard and rolling around in the thick grass. One of the girls helping "supervise" the fence raising started laughing and said, "I love to watch Jake roll in the grass". I turn to look and Jake is WALLOWING IN WHITE LATEX PAINT. He proceeds to zoom around the yard covered in white paint, stopping occasionally to roll white paint on the bright green grass and to decorate me with white splatter as he shakes. Oh, the life of the party! Luckily, it was water-based paint and a nice hose was already hooked up outside.

2007-07-11T11:28:00.000-07:00

A picture of the big fat raindrops from my upstairs office window

Agility Class Cancelled Due to Rain AGAIN!

So we had a beautifully hot, humid day until I got in the car with Jake to drive to agility. All of a sudden a big wind swept in and brought with it lightning and thunder. I still hadn't received a call saying class was cancelled so I thought maybe it was just a West Columbia thing. As I drove across town, the black clouds followed me. As I pulled onto the street where our agility instructor lives, a very bright bolt of lightning hit very close by, making the sleeping Jake jump sky high. Our instructor was pulling out as we pulled up. Sooo, we turned around and came home to a beautifully hot, humid evening in West Columbia. Go figure. Jake is so confused after that ride. I took him outside for a little squeaky ball time but it's still really hot outside. I didn't let him play long b/c I don't think he feels well. Heat never helps. Why does it always have to rain on Tuesday nights?

2007-07-05T19:33:00.000-07:00

Sponsoring an Animal in Need

My heart always goes out to animals in need. I'm not rich and I don't have the space to foster another animals in the little zoo I run at my house. But I feel like I can't sit idlely by and do nothing. After reading the book Best Friends: The True Story of the World's Most Beloved Animal Sanctuary by Samantha Glen and visiting their website -- www.bestfriends.org -- I decided to sponsor one of their dogs. We're suckers for spots in this house so we chose Allegro:

His description read:
"Can you love me even if I'm shy?"
Allegro seems like he was born a timid guy. He came from Los Angeles, where the local shelter couldn't find him a home. And sometimes he seems like he's resigned himself to being overlooked while the more outgoing dogs get picked. But he's a sensitive, well-behaved boy! He's fully housetrained, he's affectionate, and just about never barks. He loves being taken on walks (and is always super-well-behaved on them) and is so appreciative if you give him a belly rub. He's curious about the world around him and wishes he had a friend. He's six years old and 50 pounds.
Do you think you could be friends with a shy guy?

Today we got great news about Allegro from Best Friends:
"Wonderful news! Allegro the dog has been adopted. A lady in Arizona fell for him, and decided he was a match for her family. He's just joined them, and is settling in well. He has a new dog girlfriend, and cats to play with, and is learning the joys of a forever home. We're so happy for him! As Allegro's sponsor, you know he was a bit shy, which meant he didn't always show his best side to visitors. With time and gentle handling, he came a long ways here at Best Friends. However, he still needed to find someone who would understand his quiet nature, and be able to offer lots of love and patience. And it finally happened! Your support meant he was able to have great care and stay here for as long as he needed. Allegro thanks you for being such a great friend."

They allowed me to transfer my sponsorship to a new animal since I had only recently started sponsoring. We went back searching through their list and just had to choose Jake:

His description reads:
Jake is afraid you might find his photo "ordinary". He knows he's not the most 'different-looking' dog you've ever seen. But please -- read on! Jake is the easiest dog in the world to take care of. He doesn't have a mean bone in his body, and won't give you any trouble with other dogs, with cats, or with anyone. In fact, he's delighted to be around lots of other dogs. He's also housetrained, and in perfect health. However...Jake is rather shy. He's so shy that some trial adoptions haven't worked out because the people reported he just wouldn't interact with them enough. But he does make progress -- it's just slow, and he needs patience. The more he gets moved from one place to another, the harder it is for him to learn how to get close to somebody. But he's always gentle and soft with everybody, and never causes any trouble. Jake just needs somebody who can give him the time and teach him how to be close. He promises he's worth the effort. He's just never had a real chance to learn what 'home' means. You could change his life by giving him a chance!

It seems we have a soft spot for the shy guys. We'll hope that this Jake will find a new home that fits him well soon. Until then we know he's safe at Best Friends!

2007-07-05T09:26:00.000-07:00

Class at Last!

For once class didn't get rained out! Jake got his usual squeaky ball time in the backyard and we happily headed to class. With only Gracie and Cosmo and Jake, we got a chance to do lots of obstacle sets. First on the menu was the teeter totter -- Jake raced across (with less padding under the other end) with no fear to get that chicken on the other end. (Insert drum roll please!) Our longest obstacle set yet was our next event -- jump/tunnel/A-frame/jump/jump/dogwalk. Gracie and Cosmo performed with flying colors. We broke it in half for Jake especially since the tunnel always seems to send him over the edge. Not this time! Jake made his momma proud! As we left the dogwalk the second time, our teacher said, "It's almost like he's a different dog!" Reversing the obstacle set (losing the dogwalk and adding the chute at the end) was another matter but I was still floating on cloud 9 from the first set.

And then there was the obstacle set with lots of jumps and lots of tunnels. Do you see where this is going? I'm sure everyone in class wishes they had a video camera for what happened next. My husband had shown up to watch the last few minutes of class and Jake was full of himself, shrieking at the top of his lungs as the other dogs went through their paces. It was his turn NOW! So when it was our turn to go, Jake took off over the first jump and into the tunnel. Jake often stops dead center in the tunnel and doesn't come out. So here I am trying to coax Jake out of the tunnel and I hear laughing behind me. My husband shouts, "Looking for your dog?" I turn around to see Jake buzzing Gracie and Cosmo. He was so fast that I never even saw him come out of the tunnel! It's all those spots -- they blur the vision at that speed. We kinda lost Jake's focus at that point. He wanted to chase me around the course and skip all the jumps. He'd take the tunnels and then run with me to the end. We were able to circle back and try a few more times (obviously not in the rule books but not the point at this time). The weave poles were a disaster this week with Jake laying down full-sprawl as he exited the last pole and putting his head down. He was done for the night. While class didn't go perfectly I think both Jake and I learned a few new things we need to work on.

2007-07-04T20:54:00.000-07:00

Jake's 4th of July

Jake's going on a year and a half now so he got to hear fireworks outside the house last year. All he did was bark his head off at them. So this year my hubby and his best friend decide to have a block party and everyone brings fireworks. We drive up to Charlotte to hubby's best friend's house in separate vehicles so I can leave if the fireworks are too much for Jake. Hubby doesn't feel that Jake will be bothered by the fireworks. We stop at yet another fireworks stand for MORE fireworks. A hot dog stand is open and serving cold cokes so I got Jake a hotdog and me a coke while we were waiting. The hot dog was extremely hot so we drove the rest of the way with Jake begging for the hotdog he can now smell on my side of the car. I handed Jake the hotdog when we got out of the car and he carried it around for half an hour. He greeted everyone with this hotdog sticking out of his mouth. It wasn't until I broke it into pieces that he seemed to realize it was something to eat. Before too many people arrived we played some squeaky tennis ball and you can tell from the huge grin on his face how much he enjoys it.

Then we went to rest in the shade and grill some meat. Since hubby and I were both driving, both of us were drinking the nonalcoholic sort of beverages. Joe's favorite drink of choice is root beer. Jake is lucky enough that Joe always saves him the last sip of that coveted root beer.

One must first sniff the vintage of root beer (now that one can smell, everything must be sniffed first):

One must completely plug the mouth of the bottle first:

One must fully extend tongue to catch every drop (the grass doesn't deserve any):

And finally, one must lower the eyelids and ears and enjoy the taste!

One satisfied rootbeeraholic:

Side note: There are no further pictures after this because the fireworks started and I was too busy with the flying, shaking thirty-pound ball of speckled fur in my lap. We left hubby and his fireworks behind and headed for home shortly after. Jake was very happy that his mommy was looking out for him today! Mean ol' scary fireworks!

2007-07-01T12:11:00.001-07:00

Sock Thief Caught Redhanded
I accidentally left my sock drawer open and Jake decided to take every last one of them out and organize them on my armchair in the living room. I thought he was being awfully quiet so went looking for him. I started taking pictures of him rolling, tossing and snuggling in his pile of socks before he noticed me.

When he did notice me standing in the door, he got really still and really guilty looking. He was very thankful that his daddy came to the door to distract me from his dastardly deed.

2007-06-30T17:41:00.000-07:00

A Wonderful-Smelling Month

Today is Day 30 on the Canine GP and Jake is still enjoying being able to smell. For purposes of his daily journal, I took photos at Day One, Day Fifteen and then again today. As you can see Jake was busy smelling! We have continued to be pleased with the results of using the all-natural supplement. Jake is pleased that he can now eat hamburger, steak and tuna and not have an upset tummy or throw up. He loves being bribed with food that smells so wonderful.

Jake even finds his own balls that get lost in the woods and weeds so no more spider webs or snakes for dear old Mom (which I appreciate greatly). Jake puts his nose to the ground and keeps looking until he finds it instead of giving up and coming back to me for another ball.

Something smells really good over there!

Since you won't let me go see what smells so good, I'm just gonna lay down and make it difficult for you to take pictures.

Oh, well, that marshmellow smells really good...how about a close-up of my smoochy spot?

2007-06-29T12:04:00.000-07:00

I think Jake just might have a future career ahead of him for modeling! Jake's very own No Worries Jake T-shirt came in the mail today and I just had to try it on him right away. The pictures aren't all that fantastic b/c it's pouring rain here but you get the idea...

I'm not talking to you, Mommy!

Well, okay, but only because you have marshmellows!

I'ts hard work looking this cute in some dumb T-shirt -- I think I'll lay down until you're done.

Jake's Puggle pal Frankie got a chance to model the Jake T-shirt, too! Frankie's mommy is the wonderful designer who made Jake his very own logo. Aww, how cute is that grinning face!

2007-06-28T10:16:00.000-07:00

Jake Singing

Jake is laying on his favorite perch -- the window seat he stole from our cats -- and I was trying to upload video of him singing. It always gets him singing again to hear himself. If you are at work, you may want to turn your speakers down because Jake is a cattle dog and they only come in one volume -- LOUD! Of course, you'll miss the incredible ups and downs he can do but it wouldn't do for the boss to know you're not working, right?

2007-06-28T09:21:00.000-07:00

Another Rained-out Agility Class

I always take Jake outside to play fifteen minutes of ball before agility class just to take that little bit of energy off the top. Armed with Hyperball Dog Launcher (NFI) and two squeaky tennis balls, I entered the mosquito-infested backyard with Jake who was doing his best impression of a Jack Russell Terrier, bouncing at my side. Jake immediately sits when we are in side the backyard gate because he knows the leash will not come off until he does. Then we practice our WAIT command -- Jake remains seated and I walk off. Theoretically Jake waits until I use my hand signal and "Jake, WITH ME" and he races with me to the normal ball launching site. The wonderful side benefit of Jake being able to smell again is that he can find his own tennis balls when they get lost in the woods or weeds. No more spiderwebs or snakes for Mommy (for which I will be forever indebted to Canine GP)! Jake used to give up searching for the ball even if I could see the ball from where I'm standing across the yard. Now he slaps that black, wet nose to the ground and doggedly (no pun intended) looks for that ball. Once he finds it, he comes bouncing back to me with his head held high, squeaking that tennis ball as often as his jaws can manage. So I launch the ball once, twice, three times and BOOM! Jake slapped his whole body to the ground and I wasn't far from doing the same myself. We raced for the house just in time for the lightening, thunder and pouring rain to hit the yard. The minute I hit the front door my cell phone was ringing to let me know classs was cancelled. Jake was terribly confused as I put away his agility class backpack. I couldn't leave my little man looking so downhearted so I pulled out his traveling contact board and we practiced using the steak pieces I had saved for class. I never would have thought that I could use steak to tempt Jake into showing me just how smart he is without facing the dire consequences of feeding him meat. I am happy to report that the steak test went very well -- no gas, no vomiting, no diarrhea, just one happy dog! And one happy Mom because Jake made sure to nail his "HIT IT" every single time I asked. Now if he'll just do that is class next week and show Miss Mary how hard he's been working to earn that steak and chicken.

2007-06-20T09:49:00.000-07:00

Leaping a Major Hurdle

I felt so encouraged last night at agility class. The teeter totter was up first on the menu and Jake raced across it with no fear. Next we did a jump/jump/A-frame set. Jake actually sat and waited for me to get in position ahead of him before I released him to run the obstacle. We had some problems with him hitting the contact correctly but most of that was my fault, my body language. Jake was so mellow at the end of running this obstacle set that he actually rolled onto his back for our teacher to pet his belly. And then (drum roll, please) the class was hit with our largest obstacle set yet:

Jake was really confused in the tunnels for some reason -- he'd come all the way through, get one foot from the end and turn around and run back out the entrance. After the second try, Jake just had to show the new class assistants what zooming was all about. Jake zoomed around the yard once, twice, and into the woods to take a poop. He tamely came back to me after using the bathroom and we headed back to the first jump. Our first time on this set didn't go as planned but it's the first time we did so many obstacles with Mr. Short-Attention-Span. We had much more success on the jump/high dogwalk this week. Jake again approached another obstacle that he previously feared with much more confidence. We hadn't done the weave poles in a while so, after the initial confusion, Jake did show he remembered how to do this obstacle. Overall, though, I was really pleased with Jake last night, especially since we haven't had class for two weeks. He wasn't his wild and crazy self (he normally does air whirlies) when people stoop to pet him. He laid completely sprawled on the ground, chewing a stick or a piece of grass, when it wasn't his turn. Jake watched my face more intently than he usually does. Occasionally something smelled really good as a stiff wind picked up from an oncoming rain storm. Armed with chicken, though, I was able to easily get his attention back. And to top it all off, all the chicken didn't upset Jake's tummy at all!

2007-06-19T09:18:00.000-07:00

Jake's Nose is Reborn

Nineteen days ago we began Jake on Canine GP. We had a couple of goals in mind when starting this canine supplement. Jake's always had an oversensitive stomach, he doesn't seem to be able to smell even the stinkiest treats, and his ability to focus is random at best. We chose Canine GP after hearing wonderful stories of recovery for horses and dogs in much worse shape than our young Jake. With Jake being an active dog we wanted to have around a long time, Canine GP seemed to be the perfect solution to all of Jake's physical problems. I began keeping a journal to keep track of Jake's progress as well as photos since it's hard to see changes yourself when you see your dog every day. Jake's tummy has improved to the point where he can eat cooked chicken and hamburger without dire results in the bathroom department. Jake has not thrown up his ritual morning bile but once at the beginning of the month. Jake has gone from not being able to smell sharp cheddar cheese right in front of his nose on the white kitchen floor to running into the kitchen with his nose in the air when I start cooking. Taking him out to use the bathroom and going for walks have become much longer processes since he wants to stop and smell everything but I'm just happy he can smell again.

Our first photo session was the previously listed "Jake the Uber Goober" pictures at the first of this month. On the 15th I set about to take Jake's picture again. Jake allowed me to take one head-on photo before he got totally preoccupied with sniffing our backyard. Our backyard is a protected wildlife habitat so it's full of lots of smells, including our landlady's many outdoor cats. I could not distract Jake from sniffing even with mini marshmellows:

Another side issue with Jake that we didn't expect to improve is the "feathering" on Jake's front pads. Feathering can be caused by a mineral deficiency (which we had ruled out at the vet's) or is purely genetic. While the feathering doesn't seem to bother Jake, the feathering is sharper than his claws and makes horrible gauges when it meets human skin. We were amazed to find that although the feathering is still there for the moment that Jake's pads have gotten softer and the feathering is no longer scratchy. Here's an example of the feathering:

Canine GP is also helping with Jake's focus. I have noticed he is calmer when we do our daily training sessions. Jake meets my eyes with a steady gaze and doesn't even notice when the cats saunter by begging for Jake's training treats. I can't wait for agility class tonight (we haven't had the classes the last two weeks due to rain) to see how Jake has improved in that area.

We are looking forward to what continued usage of Canine GP will do for Jake. I have a link to the Canine GP and Equine GP website to the right on this page if you are interested in learning more about these products.

2007-06-12T16:54:00.000-07:00

Rain, Rain, Go Away...

Jake and I were playing ball outside when we got the news -- agility had been cancelled for the second week in a row due to rain. I know we desperately need the rain here in SC but there are six perfectly good other days in the week to rain. And why is it only raining where we hold our agility class? I don't live that far away and our backyard is hot, sunny, and a buffet for hungry mosquitos. I did my best to wear Jake out with his squeaky tennis ball. I think I did a good job -- what do you think?

2007-06-12T10:01:00.000-07:00

The Blur Comic Hits Shelves

No, really, I was just playing with some blurry pics of Jake on Microsoft Picture It late one night. I loosely based the cover on the first cover of The Flash. Enjoy!

2007-06-10T14:58:00.001-07:00

Jake accompanied me on a week long trip to my grandparents in the mountains of Brevard, NC. Jake loves these trips because the cows live at the end of their driveway. The cove is always full of baby cows and they are so curious about Jake. When we first got there, the cows were across the field. Jake looked so sad that the cows were WAY over there.

So we went for a walk in the cove to get Jake closer to his cows. The bull is one handsome fella, pictured here with one of his harem, and amazingly all the babies look like him!

Jake always gets to cool off in a side stream that runs off the water falls. It's ice cold water. My aunt and mother have no idea I'm videoing so they just keep talking, talking -- it's part of their charm! My mother was holding onto Jake's leash and I guess I should have warned her about the zoomies! Watch her hang on for dear life!

Jake's sense of smell has magically appeared due to the Canine GP supplement we have him on. Jake walked around smelling everything. Everything he smelled, he also had to lick. He smelled and licked roses, magazines, greeting cards, cabinets, rocks, ME and of course his baby cow fans. When the babies noticed Jake, they started moving over to the fence. Jake threw his head back and was sniffing the air. He got a look on his face that said something didn't smell so good. I had to agree that those babies were quite pungent that day.

Stinky or not, Jake just had to give them kisses!

2007-06-05T19:23:00.000-07:00

Runner-up in the Beauty Pagent

Jake won Runner-up in the May Fancy Cross-Dress Photo Contest on AuCaDo! It wasn't first place but it was our first try! Jake's daddy came across some of his movie goddess pictures on the camera when he was taking some agility photos for me. He wasn't happy but Jake's forgiven me. He drags the boa around the house killing it!

2007-06-04T11:29:00.001-07:00

Swamp Puppy

A couple of months ago I did a home visit for TVCDR and met a wonderful family that soon joined the ranks of cattle dog owners by adopting a blue boy named Ollie. They invited us to go kayaking with them in the Sparkleberry Swamp. Jake had never been canoeing but he's pretty game for everything as long as he's with his mom. We popped Jake in his lifejacket, only to have him immediately roll in stinky swamp mud and clover. We threw a quite pungent Jake in the canoe...

Our mini fleet consisted of two kayaks and our big canoe. Jake would start whining anytime his "herd" broke up. At one point the four-seater kayak with the three little girls disappeared around a bend. Jake began his howling song. He sounded so sad that the kayak came back to make sure he was okay. He immediately sat down rather satisfied with himself that we had come together again.

Jake did really well in general. He kept trying to "help" me paddle (i.e. I need to put my paddle in the water -- Jake puts his head smackdab in the way to see what I'm doing). At one point we figured out he had to potty but he didn't understand that there was nothing solid to stand on for potty purposes. We were close to a little "island" of floating plants and he took a flying leap out of the canoe. It scared me to death when I saw him panic and get all tangled up in those plants. We kept calling to him and he got more and more entangled. I was so thankful that he had his lifejacket on. Using the three boats, we were able to aim him back to our canoe. He decided he could hold it until we found land. This was my first time canoeing, too, and my arms were so ready to give out after paddling for five hours. Jake had been riding pressed up against my back but just when I didn't think I would paddle any more, Jake stepped up to help be my co-pilot:

Jake was exhausted working all day herding his boats and helping me paddle.

2007-06-01T14:45:00.001-07:00

For all of you who have seen Jake going kamakaze in the Congaree River video from Memorial Day weekend, I thought you might like to see the video of Jake's first time in the water. We were at Folly Beach and Jake was six months old. We were playing with his new water dummy in a tidal pool.

2007-06-01T11:04:00.001-07:00

Jake's First Jolly Ball

We ordered Jake one of the 10-inch Jolly Balls since he loves the soccer ball so much but it wasn't made to stand up to dog teeth and claws.

Attack!

I just can't seem to get my mouth around this thing!

I like this ball, Mom!

2007-06-01T10:47:00.000-07:00

The Bucking Bronco Takes a Break

We left the Bucking Bronco at home this week and instead Jake the Amazing Agility Dog was at my side. Of course, I came armed with a new treat this week -- itty bitty chicken pieces from our dinner the night before. Our first obstacle set for the night was the biggest Jake had ever attempted -- A-frame, tunnel, 2 jumps and then the tire. We planted one of our teachers at the exit of the tunnel with the chicken. Jake scrambled up that A-frame, hit his 2-on-2off pose beautifully at the bottom, and then headed into the tunnel at the slowest trot I have ever seen him use. Mid-tunnel, it must have kicked in that he was in the tunnel and he came zooming out, only to put on extreme brakes when he smelled that chicken. Jake repeated his calm performance twice more, all for the sake of that chicken. The jump and high dogwalk combo was done with a bit of trepidation on Jake's part but by the last repeat the confidence was starting to appear. The teeter totter was a great success with Jake leaping onto the platform himself and not even noticing the slight bang on the other end. The chicken was really working. Jake started to go a little crazy when we began the jump/chute set. He was so proud of himself that he was running to the jump backwards while I'm struggling to hang onto his collar. I was really proud of Jake tonight for not zooming even once. Chicken may be on the menu every Tuesday night if it produces such good behavior.

Our classmates:
Gracie the Golden Retriever taking the jump

Buttons the Boxer showing no fear on the teeter totter

Cosmo the English Cocker Spaniel zipping through the tunnel

2007-05-29T12:01:00.000-07:00

River Song by JakeJake LOVES the river. You never accidentally say "river" in Jake's hearing. You use such euphemisms as "the R word" and "that place that is very wet". He goes absolutely bonkers when we pull out his lifejacket and his water dummy, the Ruffwear Lunker (NFI, by now we should have taken out stock in that company). He bounces around in the car and sings a really high shrieky song the whole way. [Click on the picture once to play video]

We took Jake down to the river. The river and the riverwalk were very crowded with people enjoying kayaking down the whitewater or families taking a nice stroll. Jake's normal fan club of just a handful of people expanded to ten to twenty clapping, impressed bystanders.

The river sounds really loud where I was standing because we're under the bridge and it amplifies the noise. (You should hear Jake bark under there -- he scares himself!) Listen to the people clapping on the riverwalk behind us. Jake always cheats by finding every rock he can on the way to get the dummy and on the way back. Even if you can't see Jake, you can see his big ears! [Click on picture once to start video]

2007-05-24T14:18:00.001-07:00

Jake the Bucking Bronco

Some of you know how I secretly (well, not so secretly) dread Jake dissolving into the zoomies in our agility classes. We've gone several weeks without an incident and I was starting to breathe again. But for some reason, when I packed up all of our training stuff in the car on Tuesday night, I accidentally packed up Jake the Bucking Bronco aka Crazy Dog instead of Jake the Amazing Agility Dog.

Jake is always a little unsure of the teeter totter but managed to shake out a little confidence on the last two runs and didn't even seem to notice the motion of the teeter. Then we headed to one of Jake's favorites, the A-frame. I'm still learning to incorporate the clicker into this obstacle with some pretty wierd results on my part. Jake's daddy was bribed into attending the class and taking photos for me. His one complaint was how fast Jake was moving. The teeter pictures were so blurry that I won't bother posting them here. The A-frame was just slightly better:

My husband was eating cheese and drinking a glass of wine while we forged ahead on the new tall dogwalk. Jake did really well as long as I was confidently running next to him. And where you ask was the Bucking Bronco? Why, in the chute, of course, with Zoomie #1 and #2:

The chute was just the beginning of the obstacle set (we always backstep with Jake through multiple obstacles). Theoretically, Jake was to go over a jump, into the curved tunnel, over a jump and through the chute. For whatever reason, the tunnel just sends him over the top and into Zoomie #3 and #4:

I left the red-eye in because it just so matched his state of mind. One teacher said, "Wow, is he buckwild tonight or what?", followed shortly by a "Are you breathing?" directed at me. Probably not. Jake got put in a time out in a kennel while the other dogs completed their turn on this set. We took Jake back out and used several treat targets along the route to end on a positive note. Jake was good to his mommy on those last two tries:

Strangely enough, Jake was completely pooped and unconscious on the ride home.

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2007-05-15T11:36:00.001-07:00

2007-05-14T18:17:00.000-07:00

"You can't catch me, evil red dog, I'm the BLUR!"

Curry & Jake playing in the creek

CACDC May Fun Day 2007

This Saturday our Carolina ACD Club had its annual May Fun Day (minus a match) on a lovely farm in North Carolina. A friend of ours rode up with us with her red boy Curry and her blue boy Diesel. Amazingly, the two-hour ride up was not as chaotic as you would imagine. Jake has been showing more and more maturity these days so besides the initial bonk-and-greet when the other two ACDs got in the car, the ride was fairly quiet. Every once in a while Curry would stick his head into the front seats and plant a really wet kiss right up my nose. I will always accept extra kisses!

Upon arriving we headed to the river across some hay pastures and past a few cows with Jake's new Belgian Malinois friend Eno. Jake was loping around in lazy circles trying to get his leggy friend to give him chase. Every once in a while Jake would get a little too lazy and Eno would make his squeak. We finally made it to the river and Jake gave us just enough focus for a few tosses of his water dummy. Eno's mommy didn't want to have to deal with 90 pounds of wet dog so Eno got a lesson in self-denial instead. It wasn't long before we were back on our way to the picnic area with Eno and his prize stick and Jake playing some more chase games with Mommy and Daddy. Have I mentioned that Jake has been off lead the whole time? Jake stayed close by and came whenever we called so we gave him that limited responsibility.

Jake, of course, was not worn out by any means at this point. Jake began a great game of chase with Curry, scrambling over logs and diving into the creek at the last minute. Curry, who wasn't so sure about the purpose of getting in the water, left the splashing to Jake. And when Curry got tired, Jake switched to playing soccer with the human children at the event.

And last but not least was the Hot Dog Bobbing Contest! Peachy started the game off with a splash...

but was no match for Dally, who gobbled down an amazing 30 hot dog pieces in one minute!

All of the furry kids had a go at the water dish loaded with hot dog pieces. Some decided the state of their fur was far more important than getting wet. Some gave it a valiant effort. The most surprising contestant was Jake himself! Jake spit out the last hot dog he tried so I wasn't expecting anything but a random lick at the hot dog water. No, sir, my speckled boy dove in and ate 14 pieces. Not too shabby for the first time he's ever eaten a hot dog.

My favorite picture is of dear Posey, of course. Nothing could convince her to stick her head in that nasty water and her face was priceless:

Tanna, the Hot Dog Queen, was made to go last to defend her title that she won at the Holiday Match. Tanna tied Dally for the 30 pieces and a tie-breaker round ensued. Tanna beat Dally by a whole two seconds and the coveted squeaky hedgehog was hers!

We had to dunk Jake into the creek again in hopes of making Jake's Bentley mark even vaguely white again. Instead we took home an orange and blue dog! That red clay will take several washes to get out of his fur. The rain began to fall a little as we headed home and it was hard to stay awake in the car with all those snoozing cattle dogs. Curry still found the energy to give me a few backseat kisses on the way home!

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2007-05-10T16:14:00.001-07:00

2007-05-08T19:33:00.000-07:00

From Cracker Boxes to Real Jumps

Who would have guessed that our chubby little spotted piglet would have turned into a lean agility machine? We should have known when he scaled those Cheese-It(NFI) and cereal boxes we got from Sam's Club(NFI) when he was only ten weeks old. We had already read every cattle dog book we could get our hands on so we had a pretty good idea that we wanted to do something with Jake to keep him exercised because "A Good Cattle Dog is a Tired Cattle Dog". Through many an agility class I have held my breath (literally) and prayed that Jake would find it deep inside himself to help me out a little so we could make a honest go of this dog sport. Tonight he gave it to me. I can't begin to tell you how proud I am of him. He may not have nailed every obstacle with 100% accuracy but he was brave on the banging teeter totter and shaking dog walk, he slithered through the weave poles, and he raced for that tunnel and left it without zooming (we did have one incident of the most incredible zooming INSIDE the tunnel). We instituted throwing the bait bag for Jake to head off any thoughts of zooming and only had him steal it once. He headed straight for the tunnel with that bright red bag and hunkered down with his new treasure. We humans had to think a little smarter for next time so we attached a leash to the bait bag just in case we needed to stomp on to prevent future hoarding. Jake was not alone in this wonderful display of canine enthusiasm tonight. His classmates -- Gracie the Golden Retriever and Buttons the Boxer -- were also doing their parents proud. It's so amazing to see these dogs who wouldn't even go near the obstacles during our first classes now whimpering and pulling to get on those same obstacles. Their body language shows just how much they enjoy being there. I can't help but be proud for Gracie and Buttons, too, knowing what I've gone through with Jake to get to tonight's class. Jake rode home in my lap tonight with his whole body pressed against me as hard as he could. I know he sensed how proud I was. I even stopped and got him some TCBY frozen vanilla yogurt to celebrate. He only got a big spoonful since he had so many treats in class and the rest went in the freezer. I feel like I can breath a little easier. Next week we have a little break while our instructors attend an agility seminar and then it's back to practicing!

2007-05-08T19:23:00.000-07:00

I Need Air, Dad!

Jake presses his nose against the air-conditioning vent as hard as he can when he's hot or we're passing a stinky something. He uses your knee like a person dogrest. His eyes narrow to mere slits and he seems to really enjoy just smelling. Here he is on my husband's knee, inhaling deeply. He likes the air best when we drive by a cow pasture or a pungent chicken factory.

2007-05-07T11:06:00.000-07:00

May Fancy Dress Photo Contest

So the AuCaDo forum is having a cross-dressing fancy dress photo contest. I tell my husband I'm going to enter the contest but have to figure out a costumer for Jake. My husband responds that Jake is a MAN'S dog and I can't do that to him. To which I responded, "Jake is totally my dog and the least time I checked I'm not a man." A quick trip to the Dollar Tree (NFI) got me a few little girl's dress up items. Jake didn't fuss over the boa or the high-heeled shoes but did want those sunglasses off so I had to bribe him off-camera with a big porkskin bone. It worked well and I only asked him to sit still for four pictures. Now let's see if we win!

2007-05-07T10:53:00.000-07:00

Camping with Dad

Jake went on his first camping trip in the mountains of NC. We weren't sure how Jake would react being somewhere strange without his mommy nearby for a whole weekend. I was going to be staying at my mother's, which wasn't far from the campsite. Once their campsite was set up, Jake made friends with an Australian Shepherd named Porter at a neighboring campsite. Apparently Porter likes to play rough like Jake so they had a blast. They were getting so tangled up in the leads that both of their daddies decided to take them off.....so a few minutes later both of their daddies were chasing after their dogs! My husband reported that Jake responded to a DOWN and he caught him easily. Jake was a little uneasy being in the tent when they went to bed and kept circling the whole tent. He eventually laid down in his little sleeping bag.

The rain began around 4 AM and didn't stop all day Saturday. My husband, stepdad and stepbrother took Jake with them on a 6 mile hike. Jake was able to be offlead so he ran ahead and then circled back behind all three of them and back to the front. In other words, Jake's 6-mile hike was actually a 12-mile hike. Because it was still raining, only one quick picture of Jake was taken to mark the special occasion. A brief swim in Looking Glass Falls wrapped up their outdoor adventures for the day. My husband brought Jake back to my mother's house for me to dogsit while they went out for BBQ at a dry restaurant. Jake was exhausted!

Jake went back out to the campsite after dinner and made a new friend, a three-legged black lab named Jake. Our Jake was practically in an exercise-induced coma by the time he crawled into the tent. Our ride home on Sunday was very quiet because Jake was still sleeping!

2007-05-07T10:41:00.000-07:00

The Further Agility Adventures of the Blur

We have so many pictures of Jake with the background totally in focus and Jake's speckled body completely out of focus that we've nicknamed him The Blur. He's just so fast! We truly appreciate when we're able to capture him in focus. Here we are racing by my husband on the A-frame (yup, I'm blurry, too, desperately trying to keep up with Jake).

Recently Jake has been impressing us with a new found calmness and maturity. That doesn't mean he has stopped zooming or shrieking entirely -- it just means that Jake can be stopped in his zooming tracks and shrieking is normally reserved for yodeling sessions with his daddy. This last Tuesday at agility made me proud. The curved tunnel still sends Jake over the edge of excitement BUT after one full zoom around the yard I was able to get Jake back into the tunnel and over the jump. And, of course, putting my own body were it should be always helps clear up confusion for Jake. Being able to return him to working is a HUGE step in the right direction. My husband had to bring me my purse during class and Jake took a flying leap off the A-frame to get to him. Jake kept leaving the A-frame to go see my husband. Practicing with a distraction was a little difficult but not only did he stop racing to see his daddy and came back to me but he laid down at my feet. He got treats for that huge recall. We were introduced to the pinwheel jumps which Jake found to be totally boring and I obviously wasn't getting him jacked up enough. Maybe next time!

2007-05-04T06:51:00.000-07:00

How Fetching!

Jake got his first Fetching Tag (NFI) today! We noticed Jake's name tag had been rubbed totally blank. Obviously going cheap on the tag didn't pay off. So we decided to fork over the dough for a Fetching Tag. Little did we know how hard it was to pick Jake's by-line that would appear on the second side. There were so many to choose from and we knew we'd be stuck with it for a while. And then we saw a picture of a Dalmation wearing a "See Spots Run" tag and we knew that was perfect for our little spotted blur. It came in the mail last week and he's been clanking around the house with it on his collar.

2007-04-18T10:08:00.000-07:00

Jake the Triathlete

What a busy day Jake had on Tuesday! Jake's daddy is training Jake to ride with him while he bikes. It's a slow process so that Jake gets used to the running on asphalt without burning his little pads and my hubby gets used to Jake's body language. From the reports, Jake runs faster than hubby can peddle and might make a good sled dog instead. After a 15-minute bike practice, Jake went back to his favorite summer pastime of retrieving his water dummy from the still-cold Saluda River. Jake came home tired but we weren't done wearing him out yet!

Friends of ours got some mixed puppies (we're guessing German Shepherd/Lab mix) while on their honeymoon and needed to wear their tiny butts out. Jake was the perfect candidate for this job. Brigham and Tully were wobbling around the living room, chasing Jake's tail and trying to lick all the river water off Jake's coat. Jake would dive between the two puppies and roll upside down. They would pounce on him and begin licking the wet fur. Jake would spring up and whirl around and start all over. A brief potty break outside induced a serious case of the zoomies in Jake and the poor puppies were run over in his wake. Brigham was smart enough to hide between my feet. Jake was tired and the puppies were unconscious.

But wait! Jake's not done yet. On to his agility class where everyone noticed how much mellower Jake seemed to be. The teeter totter is still scary for Jake so it took a little coaxing and pampering to get him to cross it. Jake's giving me more focus these days but still loves to cheat on the jumps. We're introducing two jumps with two additional jumps going to the right and left. They are learning to follow us with other obstacles being around. Jake takes the first two jumps and runs straight for the treat. Why go the long way when you can run straight to the cheese? And then it was traveling plank time. Jake's daddy made him a super duper deluxe version with his logo and a carrying handle. It elicited oohs and aahs from the class. Jake is so distracted in class by everything and wasn't giving me his attention so I could show how improved he is at home. We headed for the A-frame to put into practice what we're learning on the plank. Jake almost didn't get the chance to try because of his earlier failures but he did his momma proud and nailed the contact every time. He's always loved the A-frame. A video camera was present for all of class this time and all of our embarrassing handler moments are now live and in color!

2007-04-15T17:15:00.000-07:00

Cow Girls Kiss the Best

While we attended a wedding in Gatlinburg, Jake got to spend a few hours with his Nana in the mountains which meant MORE cows. The cow babies immediately came over to the fence to greet their favorite cattle dog. Let the kissing begin! Strangely enough, all of the adult cows started coming over to the fence. Soon we had the entire herd at the fence. They were pushing and shoving to sniff at Jake. Then the bull came to investigate why his entire harem was in this one spot. The fence started creaking and groaning from the weight of cow bodies so I figured it was time to call it a day. It was easy to bribe Jake away from the cows when we mentioned we were going to play in the river!

2007-04-04T11:33:00.000-07:00

HyperDog Ball Launcher Revelation

Jake has never been interested in chasing tennis balls and definitely had no intentions of every bringing one back. We'd given up any hope of wearing him out just tossing a ball. My husband decided to try one last thing -- the HyperDog Ball Launcher (NFI). Amazingly enough, Jake began taking a sudden interest in chasing that ball down and bringing it down just in time to have a second ball launched. He's even taking the time to search in the ivy in the backyard to find them. I've happily used the ball launcher to wear his little spotted butt out.

Sooo, a hour before agility class last night, I opted to use a half hour of chasing the tennis balls to take a little steam off the top of his normal tornado energy. I brought him in out of the 83-degree outdoors to cool off before we drove to class. We began with the teeter totter and a new addition to the class, a black poodle named Amelia. Jake was pretty distracted by the addition of something resembling a small black sheep. I was fairly certain that Jake was going to be a holy terror all night since one of our former obedience instructors came to watch the class. I knew he was going to do awful things that she could report back to the other obedience teachers. I was wrong. Jake did the tabled teeter with little trepidation, ran a series of four curved jumps with no detours, and accomplished a jump/chute combo without barreling out in front of me. Our last obstacle set of the evening was the dreaded jump/curved tunnel/jump. Because the last jump was in front of the A-frame a target was used to keep the dogs from continuing on. Jake did really well the first three times and then we had a brief zoomie moment. Brief, I say, because it only consisted of three rounds around the yard before he came back to me and one of the teachers. We discussed some brief home strategies for taking the zoom out of his reaction to the tunnel. We ended the class with each of us demonstrating on the contact boards for our classmates. Jake wanted to go visit with the poodles after he completed the exercise two or three times. The exercise had become boring compared to the other dogs. I was so proud of Jake, though, for his behavior that we stopped for a grape slushee for me and a cup of ice for Jake from Sonic (NFI). He happily flopped down in his seat with his cup of ice between his paws. Once again I felt bolstered by signs of Jake's improvements. His focus was a little better, he had more control than just speed, and the zoomie incident was short-lived.

2007-04-04T11:22:00.000-07:00

It Was Raining Cow Kisses

It's been a little difficult to keep up with Jake's blog since we've been out of town a lot this last month. We've had Jake at my in-laws' house for almost two weeks. We missed him terribly. After a trip to San Diego, I headed to my grandparents in the mountains of North Carolina. Jake was in tow and nervous that I was going to leave him somewhere. I made his day when we crossed the bridge and I whispered, "Jake, cows." He popped up in the seat and started whining to get out of the car. We headed straight for the fence once we parked in the driveway. It wasn't but a minute before all of the baby cows headed towards Jake. Jake laid down and waited. Soon there were eight baby cows at the fence. One even had milk dripping off her little face but Jake cleaned that right up for her! He'd lick a cow. The cow would lick him. He went right on down the line. Soon enough his old friend, the big strawberry cow with the white face, made her appearance at the fence to get in her kisses. Jake's head was one big slobbery mess but he was a happy cow dog. A quick trip into the cold mountain stream cleared up the cow spit and rinsed out Jake's mouth.

2007-03-21T14:44:00.000-07:00

Let the Handling Begin!

I have frequently lamented that I wish I had a better concept of what I'm supposed to be doing with my arms, legs, and hands during agility class. I've studied books and videos but, when you're racing willy-nilly after your dog just hoping to keep your feet under you, books and videos go right out of your conscious thought. This Tuesday's agility class began to cover the issue. It wasn't until after class that our teacher let us know that she had snuck some handling training in on us. She said the lot of us are over-thinkers and she didn't want any of us to panic. But, wait, I'm skipping to the end. So back to the beginning...

Jake had been kept in his kennel for most of the day because we were working in a gated community that doesn't allow dogs on the construction premises. I got home in enough time to change, grab Jake's treats and newly painted travel plank, and get to class. He was a tornado on the other end of the leash whenever another human tried to say hello. Fortunately, we did some calming plank exercises first. I took Jake's plank far from the other dogs and Jake repeatedly did 2 on, 2 off for me. When Jake got bored, he simply laid down and sniffed the grass. I was able to comvince him to show the teacher at least once when she made her way to our plank outpost.

The teeter totter was a little scarier this time with a bit of banging but nothing a lot of cheese couldn't overcome. Our second set of obstacles was the tire, jump, and chute. All of the dogs like this set and were jumping around and shrieking impatiently. Jake was last to go. We backtracked the obstacle as usual with much success. I was hard-pressed to keep up with him and not bowl the teachers over. Jake would slam on his own brakes when he reached the target and his rear end would come off the ground. The fourth go-round Jake came leaping out of the chute to land on the target. It was so hysterically funny that all of us were amused. We shouldn't have laughed, in retrospect, because little did we know the fifth time around was the charm -- the zoomies erupted the minute he shot out of the chute. It took us quite a while to get him back under control. I dreaded the series of three jumps coming up after that horrible display. We limited Jake to two and pretty much quite while we were ahead when he got it. Last but always time for another zoomie was the jump, tunnel, jump combo. (Insert sneaky handling lesson here.) We handlers were to learn a back crossover for these obstacles. Let me begin by saying that I never had a chance to practice it. Again, we went last. We went straight for the tunnel and then the jump (altering the route to suit Jake's attention span happens often). Jake skipped the jump as often as he could to run straight for the treat, which he didn't get. Finally, we got him to understand that the jump was an integral part of receiving that treat. We added the first jump back. He took the jump, flew through the tunnel and ran off into the yard. Yup, zoomie time. I was able to coax him back into the tunnel to come to me for a treat. I was trying so hard to remember to breathe at that point. I know being in his kennel for such a long time without our normal daily routine of focus games and a way to shed some energy had a lot to do with it but it was disheartening all the same.

2007-03-14T15:36:00.000-07:00

Zoomie-Free Zone

Taken a few weeks ago, this picture is of Saki, the Sheltie, in Jake's agility class who is demonstrating running the dog walk.

We missed agility class last week because we were out of town and Jake was at my in-laws. It made us very nervous to leave Jake for so long. Jake loves my in-laws and their two dogs, a miniature dachschund named Stymie and a German Shorthair Pointer named Sadie. Still, we had never left Jake for that long loose in someone else's house and yard. Fortunately for all of us, Jake's report card came back with lots of gold stars -- he was well-behaved, "fit right in", and quietly crawled into his kennel every night. Small sidebar discussions later revealed that Jake routinely stole socks and took up residence under the beds with his contraband, shot out the front door of their office but returned when called, and abused his riding privileges in the car when he discovered himself seatbelt-harness free. He wouldn't be a cattle dog if he didn't try!

Jake greeted us with wiggling, wiggling, and more wiggling -- an action only interrupted by sloppy wet kisses. Jake stayed on my feet throughout dinner. I found myself with an audience during my shower because he refused to take his eyes off me and kept his head in the shower but as far away from the evil bathwater as possible. He finally relaxed a little at bedtime when he flopped down on my legs. Every once in a while he would get up to give me a nose bonk and then lay back down.

Then last night, just two days after picking Jake back up, we headed to agility. I had no idea what to expect and kept my hopes of Jake behaving well to myself. Jake proved me wrong! We began class using a traveling plank, a training device designed to help dogs learn the "two-on, two-off" positioning of the feet for safety purposes. Jake was a little confused by the first use of a clicker but quickly learned that the clicker signaled treats. It took me longer than him to coordinate my body and my brain to the new exercises but I wasn't alone. Luckily, this is something we can and will work on at home and anywhere else we can imagine. Our first sequence of obstacles was the tire, one jump and the chute. All of the dogs charged into this sequence with gusto, including Jake. We repeated our gameplan of starting with the last obstacle first and then backing into the next obstacle. Once we had gone through the entire sequence twice, we stopped while we were ahead and I still had Jake's focus. The teeter totter was next on the menu. The teeter is currently positioned just a hair above two tables so that it only moves an inch or two up and down on each end. Jake got to be the guinea pig for the class and no amount of bang or bump seemed to bother him with buffalo jerky and string cheese waiting on the other side. Last but not least was the weave poles. Jake did them so well the first two times that it was hard to be disappointed by all the total cheating he used for the next four turns. To end on a positive note, we opened the weave poles a little more and sent him through the last two sets. It was nice to have a zoomie-free class without all the total-gym experience I normally get from wrestling with Crazy Dog on a Leash.

2007-02-27T18:56:00.000-08:00

Round 3, Class 2

The gorgeous Golden Retriever running the dogwalk is Jake's classmate Gracie. When Gracie gets offtrack, she always manages to make it look like some flowing and graceful interpretive dance move instead of the wild and craziness that Jake portrays when exercising freedom of spirit.

Agility was a grand adventure for Jake tonight. We did only two of the obstacles with a target. The stationary seesaw went well and none of the motion seemed to bother him because he certainly didn't slow down. Then came a series of two jumps. Jake was totally confused by no one waiting for him at the end of the obstacle. Once he figured out he was to run with me to the end, he knocked the treat out of my hand and he was off and zooming. This time around the teachers had me leave the yard. Jake raced around and around and then started slowing down once he noticed I wasn't there. He ran over to the gate to try to see me but I wasn't there (I was in the shadows of the trees.) He ran one more wide loop around the yard and then headed for the teachers with a very confused look on his face. From then on we left his leash on him and I would stomp on the leash when he stopped. After he got his treat, he would try to take off since no one had his collar but got nowhere with me being planted on the leash. It still wasn't the end of the zoomies, though. We backstepped the obstacles like we have been doing so he knew what to expect. One jump, two jumps, three jumps and then add the curved tunnel. Curved tunnel, one jump. Curved tunnel, two jumps. Curved tunnel, three jumps and he's off! I was able to call TUNNEL and get him aimed back through the tunnel but he was going so fast that three of us at the opening couldn't catch him. He at least did all three jumps again before racing off. I called TUNNEL one more time and myself and one of the instructors blocked the tunnel ends. He decided to hang out in the middle and we lifted one end so he would come out and end with a positive note with me and a treat. I was never so glad to see the weave poles and the instructor with the cheese at one end. I'd had enough zoomies for one night.

2007-02-26T16:13:00.000-08:00

Jake and His Soccer Ball

To try to make up for the appalling lack of parental camera responsibility on the Herding Fun Day, we set out to take some action shots of Jake and his soccer ball. He starts shrieking the minute the soccer ball and pump come out of the upstairs closet. There isn't a moment of silence while you inflate the ball. It's a mad race down the stairs to the front door and we head to our semi-fenced backyard. Luckily for us, our landlord threw down some grass seed and the yard has bright green, skinny grass to keep the mud levels down. Jake will chase the ball if you kick it, pounce on the ball if you pass it back and forth, and go totalling airborne to head bonk the ball if you bounce it. I had no idea that my soccer skills would help entertain the dog so many years later. I've left my husband (5'10") in the pictures so you can see how high Jake is jumping to reach that ball. Keep in mind that Jake is only 16 inches at the withers.

2007-02-26T07:04:00.000-08:00

Terrorizing the Woolies

This Saturday we met up with members of our Carolina Cattle Dog Club and had a Herding Fun Day in Siler City, NC. Those poor sheep -- they had no idea what they would be facing throughout afternoon! My husband and I were excited for Jake because he had such a great time when we did this last August and his best gal pal Pepper would be appearing to have her turn at the sheep. A club member had brought her five totally adorable, no-we-can't-take-one-home puppies for a little socializing so we fulfilled our cute quota for the day with a little cuddling.

First and foremost, you will notice an appalling lack of photos to go with this post. My camera bag was at home, a 3 1/2 hour drive away. Fortunately, other ACD parents had their cameras so I'm hoping to bum some pictures off of them to eventually get up here on the site. Bad Mommy. After signing the release form agreeing to pay for any damage to the sheep, my husband headed into the smaller pen with Jake for his first round of the day. Initially Jake was put on a long lead just to make sure he hadn't changed his nice manners around the sheep. Jake immediately started circling the sheep and kept circling and circling and circling and circling and circling. We were able to get him to switch directions just once for a single circle before he went back to circling right. My husband said he had so idea how dizzy he would get out there. Jake got some lovely compliments from our host, who again suggested we get Jake in some herding classes where he could build up confidence and training. After Jake's turn many of the other club members started showing up with their ACDs. Of course, we had to run and go see Pepper so they could perform their greeting ritual of twisting their leashes into one big knot. Pepper had brought one of her blue brothers from home, Zac. All three of our dogs together looked like they came from the same litter -- sleek, muscled, and blue.

The most explosive turn at the sheep came from Tilly. (Note: This picture of Tilly is actually from our previous Herding Day.) Tilly was in the pen living up to her cattle dog heritage. Tilly sent the sheep thundering towards the fence. The sheep didn't stop. One sheep hit the wooden fence with such force that the wood split wide open with a loud crack. It didn't phase the sheep one bit but my husband and I kept staring at the broken fence like a bad car accident.

We took a break for a potluck lunch with yummy pasta salad and mac & cheese, fried chicken, cut fruits and vegetables, sausage balls, and various desserts. A few of us let our dogs out into the fenced backyard to burn off any leftover excess energy. Jake got to meet our host family's foster boy Spin. Sensing another kindred spirit, Jake and Spin proceeded to wrestle, spin, play chew and race around the yard. Jake found himself trying hard to keep all appendages and soft body parts safe from not one but two cattle dogs as Peachy joined the play group. And don't worry, my husband was standing a few feet away keeping a careful eye on the our little man. P.S. Spin still needs a forever home! (His picture courtesy of our host family.)

And then the real parade of cattle dogs began! Little ones, big ones, red dogs, blue dogs, all had a chance to face those white woolly sheep. Pepper and Jake continued to try to squeeze every inch of their bodies through the wire mesh on the pen fence. They didn't understand that every turn wasn't THEIR turn. At one point, the sheep ended up in front of the gate where Jake had made another stand. He reached his little head through the gate and licked a sheep right on its little nose. If the sheep hadn't been trying to suck in oxygen, I think it might have run. Jake got a second chance at the sheep but everyone was tiring at this late hour. The sheep had seen more cattle dogs than they ever cared to see again. I decided to go in with Jake this time. The sound of thundering sheep was a little more intimidated than I thought it would be. I'm sure any photos of me out there showed a woman trying to appear as small as possible in the middle of lots of white animals. The sheep took up residence in one corner and there were no budging the exhausted trio. Jake, always a sympathetic creature, gave the closest sheep another lick on the nose.

After a few obedience tips, we piled in the car and Jake fell into a post-sheep coma in my lap. I didn't have the heart to throw him in his seatbelt harness. Before long, a pile of drool started on my arm underneath his motionless head. He was OUT! We drove two and a half hours to my in-laws to stay the night. Jake was rewarded for his long day rolling in sheep poo and itchy grass by a long bath in their doggy shower. Jake had reserved enough energy to jump on my in-laws' German Shorthair Pointer Sadie a few times but you could tell he didn't mean it. Another wonderful day of playing with other ACDs was a complete and total hit for Jake.

2007-02-21T08:28:00.000-08:00

I Don't Want To Go To The Vet's!

Jake didn't want to go to the vet's today to get his Bordatella vaccine and he certainly didn't want me to put his seatbelt on for the ride over there. Wearing the seatbelt to agility class is one thing but the indignity of having to sport it for a trip for a nasty little shot is just too much. Oh, the drama! The vet staff at the office suitably made a huge fuss over "Superstar Jake". He rewarded them by not using his "I'm being killed" screech when he got the shot. He wasn't happy but did listen to the command to sit and wait on the scale. My little man still only weighs 29 pounds. I think I can safely say that he's done growing since he's maintained that weight for the last six months or so.

Don't pity poor Jake because he got to go to Round 3 of his Agility class last night! Two weeks was too long in his humble canine opinion and he was not alone this class. All of the dogs were feeling pretty creative. Some took detours, some took creative license, and some went exploring. We opted to take Jake through the obstacles backwards to conquer his ADHD -- show Jake one obstacle at a time and then add one so he had the whole set in mind as he raced for that yummy piece of cheese at the end. Just when I thought I was getting the hang of racing to the other end to pounce on Jake to avoid the zoomies, I get instructions to RELAX. In theory, if I am calm, Jake will be calm. Not only was I striving to RELAX (have I mentioned this word does not come easily into my mind), I was also doing my best to give Jake a reward from my hand. Jake was still lured to the target, someone else held his collar and his breathless mommy gave him another treat. After a threat to remove the offending hand, I tried even harder to get the correct hand to do its job (the correct hand is the hand on the same side as your dog). There was a moments confusion for Jake when he headed into a curved tunnel and didn't find a target at the other end so he ran back inside. He found both ends blocked by humans so he ran back and forth inside for a while until he noticed the treat extended in my hand. The most amusing part of Jake's performance for the night was the chute. He would head into the chute, barreling out the other end. Because Jake couldn't see in the chute, he would veer sharply to the right and directly into my path to the other end. Did I mention I was running as fast as I could? I had no idea that I would need to add aerial acrobatics to my end of the bargain. Fortunately, none of my crazy leaps into the air landed me on my rear end or on my face. While Jake was wide open and crazy in between waiting for his turn with the other impatient classmates, he did rather well on all of the obstacles and no yard zooming.

2007-02-19T17:08:00.000-08:00

Sharing the Wealth

All of us should try to find a way to help rescue and I've decided that Jake's logo is just the right route. From now on, all of the profits generated from Jake's logo on Cafepress.com will be donated to the Tennessee Valley Cattle Dog Rescue, located in Georgetown, TN. Not only can you help support a worthy charity but you can sport Jake's logo or the generic versions of it. Use the top link above to reach the No Worries Jake store and help cattle dog rescue.

2007-02-14T13:47:00.000-08:00

Agility Class Rain Cancellation
Here's Jake looking so sad with his Squirrel and Cow, stuffed company to help him get over the disappointment of class postponement. Round 3 of our agility classes was to begin this week but the bottom fell out of the sky. It was raining so hard that even Jake, who normally can dawdle outside in any weather, decided his bladder was not as important as staying inside the house. So we played a new game with the mini marshmellows. We're focusing on games that build a relationship between us and cause Jake to make eye contact with me frequently. Marshmellow Kisses involves me sticking a mini marshmellow between my lips. Jake slowly and delicately reaches out to take the marshmellow. Meanwhile, his array of whiskers tickles the hell out of my lips and face! It's hard not to laugh and drop the marshmellow. Of course, other games involve him staying close by my side so we did lots of Up and Downs, as my husband dubbed them, on the stairs. Jake already takes the stairs at top speed so getting him to take them and stay by my side is the goal of this game. Jake has a hard time regulating his speed to my slow human legs and I need him to pay attention to where I am. Jake's showing he understands the point of the game and hasn't tripped me up since the first time he did it. I'm pretty sure at this point that I don't need a gym membership.

2007-02-11T11:13:00.000-08:00

Thank doG for Kongs!

After several posts describing my wild and crazy man, I had to brag on his behavior this week. I suffer badly from migraines and this week was no exception. Normally I get a migraine, take my medicine, go to sleep for a little while and life goes on as usual. This time my headache stayed for a week. I would get better than swiftly find myself back where I started. Jake would dive into the bed to put his head on my shoulder and snuggle up. He licked the tears off my face when I started to cry. He didn't bark but would use his whisper. When I finally needed a change of scenery, I curled up in the chair in the living room with Jake on my legs. He would sleep for hours, only moving to get closer to me if I moved. I roused myself enough to play a few tricks with him on the end of the couch and introduced Jake to the joys of chasing Kix cereal (NFI) across the living room. I tried to treat Jake for his wonderfully sympathetic behavior with good treats, especially his small Kong stuffed with plain yogurt, capped with a spoonful of peanut butter and thrown in the freezer for a few hours. Jake gets totally lost in licking, licking, licking and gets the funniest look on his face while engrossed in getting every last bit out of the Kong. As much as I appreciated the calm this week, I'm sure it doesn't bode well for agility class on Tuesday!

2007-02-06T18:07:00.000-08:00

Class 6 Good-Boy High

After a week of researching training and listening to the suggestions of other ACD agility parents, Jake and I were able to complete a class that ended with both of us being happy. We basically returned to Jake's obedience lessons to establish a stronger foundation between the two of us. The main goal is getting Jake to focus on me when I ask. It's actually had a slight calming effect that I didn't expect (I stress "slight" because in a dog like Jake even slight is appreciated). The largest surprise for me was when Jake escaped from my dad's house in full zoom and I was able to put him in a down-stay, which allowed me to approach him and put him on his leash. Inside my dad's house in full zoom with a crowd of people watching, I was also able to get Jake into a sit-stay. It was probably the most encouraging thing that could have happened to let me know that I was on the right road.

Tonight's class was such a relief to me! I had e-mailed our teachers earlier in the week to let them know that I was working hard to resolve the zooming issue. We first headed for the jump & curved tunnel, an obstacle set that hasn't ended well in the previous classes. Jake took the jump and the tunnel all four repetitions. The very last time he ran out of the tunnel with his rear end tucked under (i.e. sure sign of the zoomies) as he headed for the target. I practically dove at him at the same time as the teacher with the treat. A set of four jumps was up next on the roster. We decided to allow Jake to do them with two repetitions of 2 jumps, then 3, then all four. Jake sped over them all without pause and even I got a pat on the back for running so fast. I even managed to avoid running the teacher over! Jake ran the entire dogwalk every time but you could tell he still wasn't so sure about the up and down motion of the middle portion. He would speed of the ramp, slow down across the middle, and then speed down the ramp to the treat. Regardless of his uncertainty, he never tried to run around it. The chute was met with the same success as the curved tunnel and we ended class with Jake's personal favorite of the jump and A-frame set. He even threw in a little spin turn on his way to the treat. The spin turn, of course, took his feet off the safety zone so we took one more turn to end on the right note with those back two feet planted firmly on the yellow. I was so pleased with my little man. I gave him extra smoochies and hugs when we got back in the car. I almost cried with relief. I know that there will be days when we don't communicate as well but, for tonight, I will just bask in the good-boy high that Jake and I created tonight.

2007-01-31T11:04:00.000-08:00

Round 2, Class 5

So I had this theory that if I wore Jake out before agility class, he would be less likely to suffer from an attack of the zoomies when off his lead. (Actually, he enjoys the zoomies -- I'm the one suffering). My husband got off early from work and we headed to Harbison State Forest. The forest has a walking trail that we use to exhaust Jake. One of us will run ahead and the other holds Jake, who is shrieking some crazy noise he reserves for "Hey, wait for me! I want to run, too!" Whoever runs ahead yells, "Come, Jake!" and Jake takes off flying. He runs legs stretched completely out, low to ground, and ears laid back for better aerodynamics. He can really run fast! He runs quietly until he reaches the person at the other end and then starts making holy hell. There's always big piles of pine needles from where he tried to apply the brakes to stop. Then Jake gets sent back to the other person which he doesn't do quite as enthusiastically since he didn't see any running on the human's part. We repeat this often along the trail and normally by the end he's so tired he just lays down. We headed home and I kept Jake busy for the next two hours -- no napping for Jake.

My theory was just that -- a theory. Our first set of jumps at class resulted in Jake hurtling himself around the yard and drive-by taunting the other dogs, especially his gal pal German Shepherd who wants to join in the chase so badly. I was mortified. I think my embarrassment is growing each time he zooms. It's so unfair to the other dogs and their owners. I kept Jake in an enforced down-stay until he was his turn at the dogwalk. When we headed for the dogwalk, I suggested we leave Jake on his lead and I would just do my best to sprint quickly. I didn't have to worry because the motion of the dogwalk scared him enough that he didn't have the confidence of the jump sequence he had done so well. Jake would run next to the walk so we'd have to coax him to jump onto the middle and run the rest of the way. We were able to get him to run the full length the last go and rewarded him well. Then there was the A-frame with two jumps preceding it. For good measure and to make sure Jake knew what was expected of him, we did one jump first. No problem so we added the second jump and the only problem was me keeping up with him! I like that problem. The chute and the weave poles went very smoothly and I breathed a deep sigh of relief. One of our new gameplans for the evening worked very well. We decided that telling Jake that it was his turn next always whipped him into a frenzy so they called my name, cattle dog, J-dog, anything, to not say his name directly. Believe it or not, it does work! I had brought his favorite fleece tug along in hopes that it would help in recapturing him during the zoomies so I did take Jake over to a far corner of the yard and played some tug with him to try to help release some of the inner play demons of his. The only thing that totally captured his attention all night was my chocolate chip cookie that a classmate brought to share and, of course, he couldn't have it! When the instructors asked if everyone would be signing up for Round 3, I was delighted to hear that everyone would be returning and that we hadn't been kicked out of the class yet!

2007-01-23T20:58:00.000-08:00

Jakercise

Jake was so excited about agility tonight that when he saw me pack his bag and set it down in the dining room, he dragged the backpack to the front door and wouldn't budge. He began doing his best excited howling at the door and kept it up for a half hour until I grabbed my keys and his leash.

I just got back from agility and managed to make it through the class without a wet bottom. When we pulled up, the previous class was leaving. One of our obedience teachers was leaving with her Miniature Schnauzer, Capone, and she said, "That class just about killed me." Two other doggy parents leaving with their Corgis said, "Hope you have a better class than we did." On that note, I was a little nervous heading in.

We were adding a jump to the other obstacles, like the A-frame and the tunnel. The Boxer in the class enthusiastically ran over the lady who baits with treats at the end of the A-frame. She looked like she was playing football as she lowered her head and plowed into the poor lady. The dogwalk brought out all kinds of interesting canine interpretations. Tonight was the first night that the dogs ran the whole length of the walk. Some couldn't understand why they didn't need to jump on the table first (like they have done since day one) and would make some wild detours to include the table in the obstacle. Jake went flying along the walk and I ran alongside him and it was our best obstacle all night. I was so proud.

THEN we did the curved tunnel. I'm sure I mentioned how disastrous the tunnel was last week. This week was no different. Jake used this tunnel as an opportunity to drive-by run at all the other dogs (once again violating his favorite NO-CONTACT rule). He did this not once but twice. We had to take the jump totally out of the equation and have someone immediately stand in the opening on both ends, since he can switch direction in the tunnel at full steam. Catching him even with your body totally in the opening was still a challenge and he escaped twice. We actually had to have a brief powwow at the end of class to discuss options for catching Jake's attention when he goes zooming around.

We've been home about ten minutes and Jake is still zooming up and down the stairs while I type this, switching between his new monkey and a sock he's stolen from Joe's laundry bucket. It's like he's possessed by the Fisher Price Demon ("Must PLAY!")and can't stop running. Actually he just fell down on my feet, tongue lolling out and extremely happy with himself. Ah, the life of an agility fanatic!

2007-01-17T10:05:00.000-08:00

Still in Training
Yup, that's us. We're the pair still taking baby steps. Jake's second set of agility classes began last week. I'm still not sure what to do with my arms and legs and head, etc., while Jake always does things at full speed. Last week went well, though. Jake does a fantastic job of leaving his back feet on the safety zones, never losing his balance, and clearing those jumps cleanly. A classmate of ours got a great picture of Jake jumping and I can't wait to get the file from him so I can share with everyone.

Then Jake planted me on my rearend in the wet leaves at agility class tonight. He was determined to be the class clown tonight and did a stellar job of it. He got the zoomies doing a curved jump series and did an amazing job of drive-by zooming every dog in the class (I'm sure I mentioned the no-dog-interaction rule before) and still managing to complete his run through the jumps several times, backwards and forwards, before we were able to get his attention with some cheese. His second round of zoomies hit doing a curved tunnel and he kept using the tunnel as his banking run. You'd think you could just stand at the other end of the tunnel and catch him but NO. And, fortunately for the other dog parents, this looked
like such great fun that some of the dogs repeated exactly what Jake did. The Golden Retriever was the only one to shake things up a little by trying to swallow the target and her treat whole. And then there were the weave poles. Jake spun around me in his excitement, wrapped that leash tight around my legs and twisted around. Our instructor is always telling us not to "bowl" your dog (in other words, throw your dog at the obstacle) but I don't think anyone explained to Jake not to bowl with his Mommy.

2007-01-16T10:16:00.000-08:00

The Christmas Crazies

I'm not even sure where to begin...hmm, how about almost four weeks ago? We packed up our car, filled every nook and cranny with Christmas presents and dog toys, and hit the highways of the South. My family is spread out everywhere and we had made a schedule which allowed us to see them all for the holidays. We headed to Chattanooga first. Rainy, nasty days awaited us but Jake can always find someone to play with in a household of small children, a Border Collie and my dad (aka The Man Who Will Never Grow Up). Jake always enjoys sleeping at the foot of our bed, part of a special treat for going out of town. And, of course, Jake's taken to sneaking up on anyone's sofa, as long as it looks like a comfy spot for a nap.

Jake found himself privileged to be allowed on the couch even more when he proved his usefulness in making my 5-month-old baby sister laugh. She's a tough little cookie to make giggle and Jake had the trick down pat. He would nose bonk her little hands and then when that got old he'd lick her ears. And just when it seemed that she had had enough, Jake would roll over upside down and let her slide her little hands over his belly. She kept her hands flat open on his fur and reveled in the softness (can't blame her since I don't it often myself). Even when she grabbed onto his jowls and tugged, Jake just enjoyed the attention. He looks like he's suffering from lack of attention, doesn't he?

As much as Jake likes to shred my tissue paper and steal tape while I wrap presents, I was sure that Christmas morning was going to be spent prying Santa paper, bows and gift bags from Jake's jaws. I was wrong, actually. Jake and his buddy Ian just watched from the outskirts of the present frenzy. Every once in a while Jake would get up to sniff some interesting present, only to be told, "No, Jake, no" by my three-year-old baby brother. Jake would go flop back on the wooden floors with a theatrical sigh. The only toy that seemed to bother him was a robotic dinosaur that was slowly making its way across the floor. Jake put himself between the toy and the babies and made sure it got nowhere near them.

And what more could a good cattle dog ask for but cows for Christmas? We headed next to Brevard where Jake got to spend two weeks staring intently at his cows. There were new ones to meet and his old favorite to lick. In my attempts at keeping Jake busy on the pouring rain days that hit us, I discovered just how awful smelling bullysticks are (for those of you who don't know what these are, you're better off not knowing) and just what a mess Jake could make with a rawhide wrapped in chicken jerky. I definitely had to pull out the vacuum before my mother saw that mess!

Jake did his usual job of rounding up everyone's socks for them, whether we wanted them rounded up or not. No one took me seriously when I said that Jake was a sock thief. Eight unmatched socks later, my parents started looking for their missing socks wherever Jake looked the guiltiest. Not to be outmanuevered, Jake took to sneaking work gloves just as easily. Jake only got caught because my mother noticed him laying on her WHITE couch.

And, just to make sure the holidays weren't dull, a pretty Golden Retriever found her way to my grandparents house and we took the wet, friendly dog in (she'd discovered the cow pasture stream). We called everywhere we could think of to leave messages about finding the dog. She obviously was loved, didn't have a matte in her flowing fur, and was as sweet as they come. Jake and his new friend played for hours in the basement. They rolled around, did some chest banging, and turned rag towels into new tug toys. About the time Jake was actually worn out, the owner called the house and came to get her girl, Gracie. Jake sure missed Gracie for the next two days before we headed home. Jake kept going to the garage door and pawing at it for me to let him in so he could find Gracie. Gracie's mommy even sent Jake some fabulous doggy biscuits, which made the best crumbs (have I mentioned what a messy eater Jake is?). Jake and I were glad to finally get home. The cats were happy to see their mommy, too, but not so thrilled to see that I still had the dog in tow.

2007-01-16T10:02:00.000-08:00

Jake's Very Own Logo!

A fabulously talented graphic designer friend of mine created a logo just for Jake. We wanted to capture what was essentially Jake and incorporate his name. She used Jake's very own silhouette and included his Bentley and eye patch. One of my favorite parts is the little crest of hair on his chest. I asked my friend to also create a generic version of his logo (in both red and blue) for other ACD owners who might like the logo but didn't want Jake's name plastered across their chest. We're pondering what venue to use to allow everyone to share in Jake's logo. My husband and I already have T-shirts with Jake's logo on them and a handful of greeting cards and postcards to test out the logo. Today's the first chance I've had to wear my new shirt and I can only say that I look like a devoted president of the Jake Fan Club. (Note: In order to protect Jake's logo, I've had to post it at a very small resolution.)

I posted all three of the logos to the Cafepress website but haven't redesigned the logo yet for dark colored shirts. So for right now, grey, white and some various ringer colors are available. Click on the top banner below and it'll take you to the store:

2006-12-20T14:56:00.000-08:00

Cattle Dog Christmas Party

...And you thought Jake in his Santa hat was bad! I am not alone here, folks, in subjecting my ACD to costume time. This dear little face is Posey. I love to take pictures of Posey because she's the only cattle dog I know that can hold still for more than one second while you snap the picture. Thank you, Posey!

We've all been looking forward to this Christmas party and match ever since it was announced. Jake was in high spirits that day. He was rambunctious, crazy, wild, over-the-top, no holds barred, ...you get the idea. He was driving us nuts because he needed someone to help him burn all that energy. Who better to help Jake but more cattle dogs?

And then Jake saw PEPPER! He was dancing and spinning and getting all tangled up in Pepper's lead. You see, we weren't sure Pepper was going to come to the party. Pepper had been naughty throughout the week and her mother threatened to leave her at home. We begged and pleaded on Jake's behalf and were well rewarded by their antics.

Jake and Pepper got to play in a fenced-in cow pasture full of agility things. A big tree provided shade and sticks for throwing. Those of us down by the show ring could see two sets of big black ears bouncing around over the grass.

Soon Pepper and Jake were joined by Peachy for more rounds of stick chasing.

While our dog was being silly and romping and getting generally worn out, other dogs in our group were strutting their stuff in the conformation and obedience ring. Some of the dogs even surprised their parents by winning (right, Pia?). All of the dogs got a chance to compete in a game of Bobbing for Hotdogs. Puppies got two minutes and adults got two to try to eat as many hotdogs as they could. We figured we'd let Jake have a shot at a hotdog although he'd never eat one before. Jake dives for ice cubes in his water bowl so why not a wienie? Because, it turns out, that Jake doesn't like hotdogs. He got one out, put in the ground, sniffed it and proceeded to peck at it with a look that said, "This is gross but I'm working on it for the crowd's sake."

Pepper just stuck her feet in the water and tried to figure out why she was having to go through this event. Apparently Jake is not alone in Hotdog Dislike.

Poor little Lumpy gave it a valiant effort to drink all the water in that big, big bowl but the little pieces of meat at the bottom just didn't seem worth the drowning.

And then there was King Daddy of the Hot Dogs, Kogi! He snarfed one, inhaled another and then figured out he could grab three at time. Kogi got dragged away before his two minutes were up to save hotdogs for the other dogs who hadn't gone yet. Kogi still reigned with 9 hotdogs!

After the only game of Yankee Swap (or White Elephant) that I have ever played where NO ONE took anyone else's gift, we headed home with one tired pooch. Jake was unconscious on the short ride back to my in-law's house. We thought we were in for a nice, quiet evening. We were so wrong! Like a human child who is over-stimulated and needs to go to bed badly, our Jake was totally out of control. He was shrieking and zooming around their new house with its wooden floors and vaulted ceilings. The noise was deafening. After several hours of everyone in the house trying to control Jake, Jake finally crawled off under our guest bed and fell asleep. When I went looking for him, I noticed that Jake had taken the time to steal all of our socks out of our suitcase and make himself a nice sock pillow. That stinker!

2006-12-18T14:00:00.000-08:00

New Uses for a Tug Toy

For those of you who don't already know, Jake loves tug. Any toy he owns, any stick, any sock, and anything else he can get in his mouth becomes a tug toy sooner or later. Many of these items we discourage. Many of Jake's toys were either purchased or made by me just for tugging. Now that the stage has been set...

Approximately ten years ago, I dislocated my right shoulder. My chiropractor has always put it back in place when need be. My chiropractor moved to Oklahoma a few years back but the shoulder hasn't been a problem. Yesterday myhusband and I were working our tails off wiring our accountant's new house for home audio and video needs (you have to take care of your accountant!). Since we were in a hurry I was lifting more than I normally do to make less trips. So today I'm at home putting up dishes. With an armful of dinner plates I feel my shoulder slip out and start really hurting. After struggling through folding a pile of laundry, I was trying to figure out what to do to ease my pain. My husband is working a good half hour away installing a central vac system. Hmm, I look at my sleeping pooch and think, "Jake could tug my arm back in place." I wake him up, give him a good brushing with the Furminator (brushing always gets him riled up), and then hand him his Holee Roller. Jake latched those crocodile jaws on his ball and immediately fell into Tug Mode. I switched the ball to my right hand, lined my arm up for the way I wanted it to be pulled, and used our normal let-the-games-commence command, "Jake, PULL, PULL!" Jake lunged straight back on those powerful little legs of his and I felt my shoulder snap back into place. Ahh, relief! I'm sure both my family doctor and chiropractor would be horrified to hear this story but Jake got a huge pile of doggy treats for his efforts.

2006-12-15T09:56:00.000-08:00

The Tugmeister

Jake LOVES to tug! He has since day one. We had read that it wasn't always a good idea to play tug with dogs that could be aggressive. Well, in Jake's case, that's blah, blah, blah. Our favorite part is to swipe at his front legs while he's tugging. He must have incredible peripheral vision because he always sees it coming. He tucks his legs first one way and then the other. If you swipe at both legs at the same time, he tucks them back and hangs from the tug. Jake makes the most amazing noises while you're tugging -- somewhere between a Tasmanian Devil and a screaming banshee. The minute you tell him DROP IT, he sits back on his haunches with a big grin on his face, tongue lolling out to the side. We've gone through quite a few toys that didn't stand up to the Jake tug test. After some searching on the internet and watching a little flyball competition on Animal Planet, I discovered fleece tugs. How easy is that, I thought. So I set out to make my own. I made him three different kinds and we went to tugging. They made it! Over the last couple of months I've seen the ones they sell in stores in person and decided I needed to make a new and improved version for my little crocodile. All this tugging has only made him stronger and more determined to hang on with all his might. So yesterday he got a Mighty Tug. After Jake put his spit of approval on the Tug, I couldn't help but pat myself on the back. An easy-to-make, inexpensive toy is a great discovery! We passed on his first little tugs to a friend who is just getting a puppy for Christmas.

2006-12-15T09:51:00.000-08:00

Jake, aka BamBam

Jake loves my nephew's big plastic softball set. He pounces on the big white softballs, which pop up and around on our wooden floors and go in all directions with quite a clatter. It's one of the few games that Jake doesn't feel that he needs humans in order to play. He's been playing with the softballs for the last couple of months. This week he discovered the bat! It's a good thing I had already put away all of our breakable things a long time ago. He winds through the chairs at the dining room table, through the open coffee table, and through your legs with that big old bat. He goes running at full steam in big circles around the living room with it in his mouth, smashing and banging as he goes. What great fun!

2006-12-13T09:23:00.000-08:00

Everyone who has met Jake knows that there is not a mean, aggressive bone in his little body. So far in Jake's life he has not met a person he didn't greet with a wagging tail and totally wiggling body. I've seen him growl at noises and bark until he can identify a sound but I've never seen him feel like anyone was a threat. Soooo, yesterday we're driving down Gervais Street (one of the main streets in Columbia) which always has a lot of pedestrian traffic. We drive down this street normally a few times a day since it's not far from our house. We were waiting at a stoplight when a man walked down to the road and stopped, waiting for the pedestrian crossing light to tell him he could cross. Jake had been looking out the window. All of a sudden, Jake is snarling and snapping and lunging at the window. Seatbelt be darned, he was going to get that Bad Man. There were two lanes of cars between us and the sidewalk so the poor old lady next to us probably had a heart attack when she got to see all of Jake's teeth. I wasn't sure what to do at first b/c Jake's never done this. I trust his instincts, though, so I just put my hand on his back and told him, "Okay, Jake, I hear you, " which is what I say when he barks at a knock on our front door. He normally quiets down right away b/c he's done his job and now it's my turn. Unfortunately for me, we hit every red light on the way to take Joe some equipment and this same Bad Man walked several blocks in the same direction. Each light produced the same result. I was so thankful when the man turned. We headed for the next light with more pedestrians and I wondered if we were in for some new protective phase of Jake's. Nope, he wagged his tail and grinned at this new group. Something must have triggered him about that one particular man. It was just a little scary to see Jake become that maniacal dog. My window was totally slobbered after those few blocks but Jake obligingly licked it all off when he got bored so now it's just big streaks. He was completely happy with himself -- big ACD grin and lolling tongue.

2006-12-09T10:59:00.000-08:00

Santa's Little Helper

I promised Jake that if he would be patient enough to pose for these pictures that I wouldn't make him wear another costume for the rest of the year. My husband pointed out that the next year was just around the corner. I told him I only make promises I plan on keeping. =) ACD ears are just so in the way when it comes to wearing a hat. Jake kept shaking his head to free up his ears and the hat would slide around since it was tied under his chin. Jake got lots of marshmellows for his efforts!

2006-11-29T17:05:00.000-08:00

Fog in the Toilet

...because life at our house is never dull with a cattle dog and a husband who thinks he's Peter Pan! I had to do a little video of one of their capers.