The blind leading the blind

Tristan did his first blind search today. The helper hides in a blind and the dog is sent out to go around behind the blind to search for any bad guy lurking there. I was amazed that Tristan knew he was supposed to go to the blind (although he wasn't too sure what he was supposed to do once there). He's supposed to bark and hold until the helper makes a threatening move. Tristan didn't bark right away but then finally got some warning woofs out. It's fun to see how the training pieces fit together. It's so cool when he goes on to the next step.

We also did some good tracking. I laid the track which was in deep grass. I tried hard to pick up my feet and make longer strides so each footstep is clear. Tristan did great on his tracking and the trainer complimented me that I did well holding the leash! No joke! You have to hold the leash enough so he doesn’t go too fast so he gets every footstep but then relax it so he’s not pulling on it. It’s actually rather hard to get the right rhythm going.

All in all a nice training day. Tristan was really tuckered out. He slept all the way home with his head on my arm. He has, however, made an amazing recovery and is now being quite insistent that I join him in the backyard for fetch.

Great present

This is the coolest present! My dearest friends gave me this great "Champion Breeds" figurine set yesterday. I especially love the A frame with the GSD jumping as it's classic schutzhund. There's even a tiny wood dumbbell that's hidden from view in the picture. The picture doesn't do it justice as it has amazing detail but if I take it out of the plastic, I'll immediately lose most of the pieces.

We went out to dinner for my fabulous friend Anna's birthday. Lots of superlatives but these are the greatest people in the world. We had a grand time sharing wonderful food, exquisite wine, laughter and each other's company. Great time, great present and I wasn't even the birthday girl.

Terrific twos

It's Tristan's second birthday! Tristan and I had a little celebration on the back deck. He received a very large knuckle bone, some liver biscotti, Raw Advantage frozen turkey and Simon & Huey's Peanut Butter Molasses training treats. Notice a food theme? I tried to take Tristan's picture with a very jaunty hat but while Tristan sat very prettily, he kept flicking his ears to get rid of the hat.

It's amazing to think I've had my wonder dog for almost two years. He's grown from an adorable puppy to a very handsome 90 pound stud muffin.

Protection work

Here's Tristan looking very ferocious doing bite work yesterday. This is part of the protection phase of Schutzhund and Tristan loves it. It's amazing for me to see my big sweet puppy looking so fearsome.

Tennis anyone?

Here's a goofy picture of Tristan with a treasured tennis ball. I don't let him chew on tennis balls regularly because they are hard on teeth; but an exception is made when we're on a tennis court. We usually go daily so he can get a nice workout chasing balls in a larger enclosed space. Tristan is still intact so he doesn't go to off leash parks.

It's All About Tristan

Today I'm setting up Tristan's new blog. Tristan's my German Shepherd Dog and he's absolutely awesome. I am utterly besotted with him so, instead of just boring my friends with Tristan stories, now I can bore the whole world! Actually I do have a bit higher purpose than endless stories although there will certainly be many of those. I think it will be interesting and useful to keep a record of Tristan's Schutzhund training. It's a totally new world for both of us and we have so much to learn. It might be useful to others just thinking about doing Schutzhund or who are also just starting out. I'm sure lots of "me" will slip in too but since "it's all about Tristan" I'll probably keep that to a minimum.

The impetus for actually getting the blog set up came today. Tristan is scary smart. He totally floored me when we started to play a regular game of fetch. He presented me with his deflated basketball. It's hard to toss so I told him to get his blue ball. He's ball crazy and has lots of balls in the back yard. I saw one across the yard but Tristan went running under the deck and came back with a different blue ball. He knows "get your ball" but the only training I've done with colors is to occasionally refer to the ball color. I haven't done that for some time but apparently he knows blue. He's always doing something incredible like this. I'll think it's just a fluke but then he will do it consistently and I know it's for real. Another example happened when I first started using a Chuck-It type thing to toss the ball. Without any prompting Tristan brought the ball back and put it in the cup. It totally cracked me up but then he did it over and over again.

So enough for today. I have a maniac nudging me because he wants to play more fetch! It's late and we're going to be bad kids and play in the house.

Da Wedge

Tristan has several nicknames besides his AKC kennel name. I've joked that he must think his name is "You're so cute!". I must say that to him at least ten times a day. He really does have a sweet face and, BTW, have I mentioned that I'm nuts about him?

His other nickname is Da Wedge. Absolutely anytime I dive into something new or start to do anything different, Da Wedge appears. It is a black squared off nose that appears right in the middle of what I'm doing. I don't mean that he just comes to investigate; his nose must be right in the middle of it. Usually it's my two hands and Tristan's nose. I'm sure Tristan is convinced he must check everything out 1) to verify it does not pose an imminent threat to me, 2) to make sure I'm competent to handle the task and 3) to see if food is involved.