Playing catch up!
Well it would be impossible to catch up this blog as i have lagged behind to much! My free flow of words just seems to get stopped up, whats that called writers block???
A quick recap finds everyone well. The sar girls are amazing, really working their butts off!! Emeline is doing great, her indication is solid and fast. I will never have to question whether or not she finds a subject. Her multiple refinds provides long hard bark and bounces at me loud enough to wake a deaf person! She actually makes the ground tremble!!!! Her searching was natural, just pure genetics but her brain was assembled differently then her sisters, something her mother threw in to the mix. She is a thinker and will not allow me to pass by the scent cone. I’m amazed at the progress she has made and am thrilled that i gave her the chance to nail everything perfectly like i knew she could do before moving her on. Bravo Emeline Bravo!
Eme-lion the beast!
Raina will be a year old in less then a month! It’s crazy to imagine that she has already been with us for that long. Such a quick learning pup she amazes me every day with her balance, work ethic, and drive to be a prominent friend to her owner. I have held back on her testing because of her age, not lack of ability. She could have certified months ago with flawless searching and indication, and has yet to reach that “hiccup” period in her youth. While everyday i wait for it, every time we train she re confirms to me that she really is just that good. There are good things to come in the future with miss Rainy and i will keep you posted!
Rainy taking a quick break from her search area.
Abby has been doing great and is proving to be a solid worker. Her skill level is above and beyond what i had dreamed and she is fitting into the pack well now that she has learned all the dog play rules. The remainder of this month will be a huge test for Abby and i know she can do it. I’m so proud of her and what she has already achieved!
My amazing "knock you to your butt" indication dog!
Mom’s home!!!
Everyday i come home, you would swear i’d have been gone for years 
Makes you feel a little better about yourself doesn’t it??? Below is a short video shot of the pack, you’ll see most of them weave in and out of the kitchen happy to have me back home safe and sound. Take note of Otto the 9 week old GSD pup, hes new to the pack only with us a few days when this was shot. His body language in the beginning playing with the other dogs is great, he learned how to position his ears and what to do with his body to solicit play without coming on to aggressive or scary. This boy is amazing and my pack is incredible at giving dogs what they need.
No rest for the weary
Well the last month has been CRAZY. I cannot get all the seperate blog posts up that i would like to for the events that have occured over the last few weeks but i will try to update in one semi short post!
Some quick good news, we have a new car and i *think* the dogs will like it.
The new Canine Copilot mobile
Looking but not finding
Well the hunt has begun for a new car. My “doggie” car a wonderful 4 door saturn is finally reaching the end of its life and the canine copilot pack needs a new vehicle to get around! I’m most interested in a wagon, something with good gas mileage and still plenty of room for my copilots in the back and front. We do a lot of traveling for clients so it has to be comfy, and reliable as well. Dog friendly being of course my primary concern!!! Choices do not come easy when you are trying to take into consideration the welfare of 12 others!!!!!
Val girl
The show that goes on
I’m a little behind in my blog posts but trying to catch up!!
Last sunday Eagle Valley search dogs had to attend the dog show in Whitney Point NY. I was presented with the AKC CAR award money for the grant i wrote earlier this year. This 2000 dollars will go to supporting our fall Combined Federation search seminar in the end of september. Abby and her real sister Raven both did short demo’s of the recall refind indication sequence and abby was available for people to meet and greet.
social butterfly
Our table attracted a lot of attention and hopefully we were able to scout out some new volunteers to come hide and train with us!!! If you are ever interested and in the Broome County or Delaware County area email me EliteInstinctCanine@gmail.com We are always looking for volunteers to go get lost!!!
<3
The working girls
Last weekend was a rough one, but we still did what we could and the girls had fun. Saturday we trained with Amigo Sar dogs up in New Berlin. We ran everyone on some HR hides as well as live hides. The HR was great, we hid it in a 130 pounds replica guy from the firehouse!!
Our "subject"
Abby decided not only was it an easy find but also an easy indication to mom!
BAM!!!!!
It was hot out and everyone went for a swim after their problem to cool down. Raina had a blast jumping into the fast moving water to grab her ball. She’s getting pretty good at catching it, though mom doesn’t let her do it often she is still to young to beat up her bones like that!
I bounce like Tigger!!!!!!
play time after a job well done
Raina and Abby both sustained some muscle and pad injuries and were put on light duty. This last week they rested up and appear good to go! Down time is always the worst with these girls, they are just not meant to be couch potatoes!!
It’s a holiday weekend?
Well of course we humans know its a holiday weekend but honestly the dogs have no idea. Despite numerous k9 injuries all weekend long (the human actually stayed semi healthy!) we still made the best of what we had. Friday was a quite morning and mom got to celebrate her birthday with a long pack hike. It was peaceful and relaxing. The dogs too enjoyed it even though mom always makes them behave during these things!!!
Obedience and focus is necessary in the Canine Copilot pack
The weekend was filled with an enjoyed balance of outside sun and fresh air and nice quite evenings by the fire in the backyard. As usual the afternoons were doggie nap time
And then back to the wilderness we returned!!!!
Girls
Sometimes words aren’t necessary…….i’m pretty sure the pictures say it all!
Search for a new Logo
Well my artistic need is coming through…………a new logo is in the works!!! Thanks to some amazing pictures taken by my friend Amy (who is a professional photographer if you like her work let me know!!!) i am toying around with a few pictures as potentials for my logo. Let me know what you think is the best or what other ideas you have!!!
Busy time!
The last week or so has been crazy, and the blog posts just haven’t seemed to roll off the fingers in my free time. This weekend was great and i’m happy to have a few free minutes to update everyone before we go swimming and training all evening!
Saturday started out with a good team training, we were able to run all the dogs even in the hot sun and get a little swimming done in the pond. The girls did great despite the hot weather and 4 hour meeting in the morning that left them sleeping with plenty of pent up energy to spend! Working with the boys was great and they did an amazing job saturday and all weekend long!
We spent the night at ritas so we could get right back to work sunday morning. Once the boat, motor, batteries, lunch, and kids were loaded up we went off to the lake to get in some water training!
Raina playing
All 3 girls loved the boat, and the water!! Emeline is not a strong swimmer but after mom, the boys, and her ball got in neck deep my girl jumped in over and over again swimming like a champ!!!!! A few more times and she’ll be a pro like her sister.
We mostly worked HR from the boat and the shore, both were completely new to Raina and she impressed me. I think we got some on video and hopefully this week i can get it loaded!
Eme heading down to the boat
It was a good weekend filled with dogs, sun, and friends. Gotta love this life!
Every little thing she does is magik
Have you ever had a dog that you think, really, can read your mind and is inside your head? Raina amazes me everyday with how in tune she is to me and to her work. She is like a machine in the field and when watching her you would think she was a horror to live with. I am much happy to report we have learned to teach each our dogs how to “turn off” and raina of course has mastered this skill as well. She is calm and quite in the house (except for when its time to eat!! But we all have 1 flaw right?????) and is ready to go at a moments notice. I never expected such a perfect pup, from the moment i birthed her and she was yellow girl aka mustang sally i think i knew she would be coming home with me. I can safely say she will be my once in a lifetime perfect search dog, as i dont think any puppy could learn the whole game by 4 months old! Raina will be certified at a year old, in October, and will be saving lives like an old timer!
Raina in motion
I do not whisper, I translate
I was at a consult this past week when someone made a reference to me as “the dog whisperer” While i appreciate any comment towards a well known popular dog person (albeit whether i agree with his methods or not) i am not, in anyway, a dog whisperer. The term is just plain, well, dumb. What does it mean??? How would you ever “whisper” to a dog? Why would a dog care if you even did whisper? Dogs do NOT communicate like humans do, we cannot whisper, yell, cry, scream, yodel, bark, meow, purr, whistle, burp, or even groan for godsakes as dogs do not communicate through vocalization like humans do. To really truly understand dogs one must first observe said dog. I say this because EVERY dog is different, it doesn’t matter the breed, sex, age, or size of the dog they are all genetically different and environmentally influenced to have varying personalities. Once the dog has been observed you can start to draw SOME conclusions about the dog, and what methods of communication will work, and even why he is offering certain behaviors or unpleasant habits. Then once this has been accomplished you can begin to build your relationship with said dog, in hopes of opening the barriers in communication that exist between dog and human.
I do not whisper, I translate.
Translation
Offering some basic classes in good canine communication this summer please check out our website for details!!
www.EliteInstinctCanine.com
Vacation weekend
This past weekend Kara from Amigo SAR dogs and I attended a Bill Dotson workshop up in Skaneateles New York. It was a pretty dreary wet weekend but we made the most of it. The weekend was a lot of classroom work and it was a wealth of knowledge. Bill is a great guy and one of the guys who started it all with search and rescue in the 1970′s. He absolutely loved the way Raina worked and i was one proud handler.
Feedback time
Every morning and evening we took everyone on long walks around Skaneateles which was great socialization and desensitization for them. I brought Raina to work the seminar and Abby to keep an eye on her recovery so she was able to tag along on all the walks too. Kara brought Felix the GSD Life Long Tails got a few months ago who we wanted to place in a working home. All three did fantastic downtown even during the busy night hours.
Everyone did great in the hotel room and were on their best behavior at the seminar, no barking or complaining even with being in there crates a lot during classtime. I have to say we have the best behaved dogs!
No fear of heights mom
I usually only attend a seminar every year but i always take a lot away from it and this time was no exception! I hope before the summer is up to visit Bill and his training facility in Virginia!
Girls on the Pier
Both girls in front of the lake
Training, the soul of it all
I always tell my clients EVERY minute of everyday is a training opportunity. Dogs do not put training life “on paws” and only pay attention and learn when you want them to, everything you do, everything you say, and EVERYTHING you reinforce every minute is you training your dog. Make sure that you are always doing what you want reinforced in life or will find some very bad habits creeping up and you have no one to blame but yourself!
For more information on how to have a better life with your canine copilot please contact us today!
EliteInstinctCanine@gmail.com visit our website www.EliteInstinctCanine.com
