Expensive road trip

Tristan and I took a road trip today which turned out to be rather expensive. Going over Stevens Pass to Lake Wenatchee we stopped to visit with several State Patrol officers. Two tickets = $407. Ouch!

Let me plead my case. I was stopped by two WSP units at the same time. Both gave me a speeding ticket - for the exact same incident - noted at the exact same time. I'm a bit perplexed and would be irritated if it weren't so ridiculous. I fully expected a ticket but was amazed when I was handed two tickets. I asked (very respectfully) how I could get two tickets for the same offense and one of the officers said it was two incidents. I pointed out that the two incidents both occurred at 11:57 AM according to the tickets and he didn't seem to have an answer. I think he was surprised to see the tickets had the exact same time and he just said the information to contest them was on the ticket. I will.

This(these) is(are) my first ticket(s) in *ahem* many years and it was almost worth it. I was speeding because I was in a rare passing lane and was determined to get past a line of cars. I have a personal pet peeve about slow moving traffic that refuses to use pull outs as required on two lane roads but then suddenly speeds up when a passing lane appears. I endured this situation for 40 miles and finally had an opportunity to pass so I took it. It was greatly satisfying although it had a high price tag.

With the double teaming I received today, I now half believe the WSP targets this section of highway because they know it's the first lengthy passing lane available and cars will be impelled to do exactly as I did. Or is that giving them too much credit? Grrrr! I did get another smidge of satisfaction as one of the patrolmen was very nervous about Tristan. Tristan keep trying to poke his head across me and out of the driver's side window. He wasn't remotely aggressive, just his usual interested self. The patrolman commented about getting bit and made a point of standing away from the window toward the front of the car. Too bad WSP don't wear jute :).

Update: Nov 2, 2006. I had my day in court. The judge dismissed the larger of the two tickets and deferred the other ticket with $100 court cost. It will be dismissed if I don't receive another speeding ticket in the next year. So for now my good driving record is intact and I'm highly motivated not to speed.

The procedure is that one has three options. 1) Contest the charge (I didn't do it) 2) Mediation but ticket goes on record (I did it but hope for a reduction in the fine because of the circumstances) and 3) Deferral (can't have any other tickets).

I had to do 1) with a "I did it - but I only did it once". The WSP officers were still being naughty. They wrote it up to make it sound as if I had been stopped twice. The judge read their statements but then was surprised to learn that I had only been stopped once. She immediately said she would dismiss the higher ticket so that made me eligible for deferring the other.

Sal, superhelper!

Today was Sal's day to be a helper. Although wildly enthusiastic to do so, this was his first opportunity and he did great. Tristan was his first dog and I wondered if he would be surprised that it was his buddy Sal in helper guise. Not to worry, Tristan was only interested in the jute sleeve. It's such a game to him. I was really impressed at how well Sal handled him.

Tristan's fun day

Tristan had a really fun day. My nieces are in town so we spent the day visiting. They are staying with my sister who lives on a lovely lake and we had a fun day together. Tristan got lots of attention, lots of walks and lots of swimming. He's particularly smitten with one niece and they're so cute together. He fell in love with her two years ago when he was just 12 weeks old. It's fun to see how they've both grown.

Tristan is crazy about water. I let him off leash and he went tearing out onto the dock, skidded to a stop at the end and then did a four footed hop off into the water. He had a grand time doing his dog paddle. Tristan thought it was his job to herd anyone who was way out in the water back to shore. If he spotted anyone further out in the lake, he'd swim out to them and circle round. I had to call him back several times when other groups happened by because he was on his way to bring them in.

Back to reality

Back to training and back to reality. We continue to work on Tristan's obedience during protection. Tonight the work focused on Tristan being in the correct position. He tends to heel and sit next to me at an angle with his rear end out instead of straight as he should. Tonight the trainer had his wife, also an excellent trainer, loop a leash around Tristan's rear. When Tristan's rear swung out, she pulled it into position. We also did an exercise of Tristan sitting next to me and then I turned slightly into him. Each time she pulled Tristan into position. The purpose is for Tristan to learn he has to reposition himself and sit correctly next to me even as I turn in a tight circle.

Tristan coped with this and then threw a major tantrum. He definitely did not like being restrained with leashes at both ends. He pulled and bucked and flung himself around trying to get loose. It was a very impressive display. I was amazed that the trainer remained calm and forceful even as Tristan looked and sounded like he was ready to do serious damage unless it stopped right then.

After the drama we went back to the exercise and Tristan was fine. I didn't get an opportunity to discuss the episode with the trainer but plan to on Sunday. I want to be sure it was a normal defensive reaction on Tristan's part and not likely to make him aggressive when he is restrained in different circumstances, for example, when he's at the vet, etc.

1st Place Adult Class Male, 2006 Regional Conformation Show

We really truly won! Tristan won 1st Place Adult Class Male in the 2006 Regional Conformation Show. He also was awarded the rating of SG which means Very Good. It's the highest rating a dog can get without a working title. I can't even begin to describe how surprised and pleased I am. As the group was being judged, I went from thinking "Please don't let him be last" to having it dawn on me that he was in first position as the judge arranged the dogs in order of placement. I'm still grinning!

I am again totally indebted to Nicole. She handled Tristan and obviously did an incredible job. Nicole also handled a dog in the preceding group so she had to have been quite tired although it wasn't evident. There's a lot of running required and the judging of each group takes about 45 minutes. I think it's now St. Nicole, Superwoman!

I'm lucky to have found such a great Schutzhund club. The members are so incredibly supportive and helpful. I really couldn't do Schutzhund work without them. They do so much to help and always put me at ease about it. The trainer is amazing and I truly believe he is our very own GSD Whisperer. He has this incredible ability to read each dog and know exactly what the dog needs whether it's a new technique or more praise or the proper correction.

Once again I have say that I can't believe I actually got the dog of my dreams. First to get a sweet, lovable, mischievous dog with the great temperament I wanted; then to find out he's very good at Schutzhund AND as a service dog; and finally now to have him be judged with a very good structure; it's amazing to me that I am so lucky. I love Tristan so much and think he's wonderful. He thinks I'm just biased because he's my guy. It's nice to have him receive objective approvals too.

We won! We won! We won!

Ok, more accurately, Tristan and Nicole passed his AD test today! I'm so excited. This is Tristan's first official Schutzhund rating. The AD is a pass/fail endurance test that is a required part of the breed survey. The handler rides on a bike with the dog running along side for 12.5 miles. The AD provides documentation that the dog is physically able to endure a certain amount of physical stress without showing significance fatigue. Nicole (now reverently referred to as Saint Nicole) biked with Tristan and she did an incredible job. They had all of one previous practice session which consisted of a short ride up and down the training field. The dog runs on the right which is really foreign to it after heeling only on the left. Somehow Nicole was able to get Tristan to trot along for all 12.5 miles. It sounds like Tristan would have been quite happy to ride on the handlebars for the last part but he did great with Nicole's super handling. The picture is Nicole and Tristan at their last rest stop. Thank you, Nicole!

There were five other GSDs also doing the test today (all winners too!) The dogs looked so magnificent running along the lovely farm roads. The fields are splendid and I particularly liked this flower farm. A lot of the fields are in corn and are lush and green.

Making tracks

Tristan's tracking was great today. He's really good at it. I laid a longer track today with lots of turns and skipping food drops up to five footsteps. It's so much easier and faster to lay a longer track when I don't have to drop food in every step. The track passed over some other tracks laid earlier but Tristan, although a bit confused twice, sorted it out. He's a star!

Puppies, puppies, puppies

We have lots of new puppies at the club. Three members got new puppies this week and today was show and tell. They are seven and eight weeks old and so sweet and cute. I didn't get my camera going soon enough to get pictures of all of them but I did get one of Della. She's a half sister to Viktor (our social butterfly) and is joining the home of Daggar. (Their pictures are posted in June.) I think Della looks like Yoda. She is really mellow and has the most incredible paws. She's going to be a tank! The other puppies are from the trainer's kennel and they are fabulous too. It was so fun to cuddle the pups and I'm so envious. Two other members have wonderful new puppies too. It's going to be so great playing with them.

What lies beneath

There's something lurking under my back deck. Tristan has been investigating an unknown it recently. I have a large deck out my back door that part way out has one step down to ground level. Tristan can go under the deck by the house but not under the rest of the deck which extends in the yard. He circles around and under the deck, stops, peers under the deck and then repeats over and over.

It's all rather mysterious. Tristan doesn't bark at it like he would if it were a raccoon and he does it only after dusk. Very eerie. I prefer to think it's possibly a nest of squirrels versus other potential rodents.

Tristan has tangled with raccoons so he's no fan of them at all. When he was only several months old, a raccoon charged out of the corner of the backyard at him. Luckily I was there and did my best impression of a mama bear. I roared up and flailed my arms which scared the raccoon off. I told Tristan then, "Just wait. Someday you will be very big and then they'll be sorry."

It wasn't long before the tables were turned. I heard this strange sound going on and went to investigate. Tristan had a raccoon in his mouth and was shaking it like a dust mop. Long story but short ending is that I got them separated but the raccoon departed both this world and my yard. Raccoons can carry a very nasty bacterium, leptospirosis, which is life threatening to dogs so Tristan had to have tests to see if he'd been exposed to it. He was fine but it was an expensive and sad episode.

Here's a masked marauder hanging out on my neighbor's shed while casing my backyard (before they discovered the rules had changed). That's Tristan kennel which he has never used.

I'm not too worried about the creature from the black lagoon hanging out under my deck since it is apparently friendly and I have my protector.

Great weekend

We had a great weekend. It was dogs, dogs, dogs all weekend long and the weather was absolutely perfect. Saturday was a work party to prepare for the club's upcoming confirmation show and Schutzhund trial on July 14 to 16. It was mostly painting the blinds and other equipment plus lots of mowing of the field. Afterwards we had a potluck and then practice for the confirmation show.

Westminster it's not. It was fun seeing all these big, burly dogs running around in a circle playing show dog. Dear Nicole is going to show Tristan. She's also going to handle Tristan so he can take the AD endurance test which is a 12 mile run with the handler on a bike. It's so sweet of her and I'm happy Tristan gets to participate in the trial even though the big boy still isn't ready to do his BH.

Too bad all training days can't all be like today's. As we hit Hwy 2, there was unexpected early morning fog. I absolutely love fog especially when it's not a dangerous driving situation. It was just burning off as I hit the training field and the sun was shining. Across the road in another field a rainbow colored hot air balloon was landing as I pulled up. It was glorious and I was totally giddy. Apparently that's all it takes to make me enjoy getting up early.

Tristan was really good at his tracking. He hasn't been tracking for about three weeks and it was great to see him doing well. I laid a longer track with three turns plus skipping food drops. He got off course once when my track crossed another track I didn't know about but once back on my track he was fine. The trainer said I can start skipping even more food drops plus we can start working on articles (items the dog alerts on when found on the track).

Obedience went well too. Tristan seemed anxious to show me he knew what he was supposed to do when we hit the field. We may have turned a corner. For the last several outings I've let him off leash when I could before or after training to do a bit of romping when there's no other dogs on the field. I think it's really helped for him to understand he gets to do that too. Even the trainer said Tristan was close to his BH (except for that tiny part about heeling off leash too).