Monday:
Chloe and I had agility class which went well but we still need to work the 270s a little better. I think Chloe isn't understanding from a distance - in this case, push to a lead out of one jump, she isn't collecting or isn't reading my lack of motion for her to slow down. She does this perfectly as long there is only one jump so I guess I am going to have add another jump so she can learn to control herself. At the end of class, Denise mentioned to me to watch one of the advance classes on Tuesday. And she let me borrow one of her X-pens to help with Scout's anxiety issues - we're going bigger in space and see if that calms him down.
When we get home from an errand or class, he will not stop with the whining, crying, howling and barking even after 20 minutes. At one time, he went on for nearly an hour when we were home. I usually wait until the dog settles down - typically 20 minutes or so - to let him out of the crate. I have tried positive methods and now went to negative methods (spray water) which seems to work for him for a short stint. if he can get over this, the gentle leader and vitamin B12 is coming and last resort anti-anxiety medication.
Tuesday:
I went to the 9:30 morning advance class at Countryside to see what it entailed and they had teams there that were already showing. The class consisted of 3 Jacks although 2 showed up, 1 Papillion, and a Min-Pin. I recall that the afternoon class consisted of aussies, BCs and a jack. Anyhow, they were working on European style course and it looked pretty advanced. As class started, Denise asked me if I brought Chloe which I did not and there was a miscommunication on my part as she wanted me to bring her in to get more experiences working on harder courses. Lesson learned, I am bringing her and more in likely we'll have two classes per week.
After we got back from our customer appreciation dinner from the dealership where we bought the FJ, we had a setback with Scout. We had been home for about an hour and he ran upstairs. I knew he was due for a #2 and I had negative thought as he didn't come downstairs. So I walked to the foot of the stairs and he came running down. The telltale sign when he does something bad is his tail and he goes under a table which he did. I go upstairs and I can smell the fresh aroma. Ugh! I find it but just remnants of it and an ugly thought went through my mind, he was eating it! Sick!
Is this Scout being Scout? I don't think so as for as long as we had it and during his training whether it be potty, obedience, or agility he has this pattern about him. He goes awesome for 2-3 weeks (yeah, he was using the bell or sits in front of the door if he has to go) and then the set back is he either goes on the floor or completely what he forgets what we were working on! I don't know what exactly happened to him when he was young but something is not right about him. During this setback, he has trust issues and does not want to be held at all.
When we first got him, he had no hair on his chest like it was not growing at all or he was wearing it off because he does drag himself on the floor. But now the hair is growing back! I clearly remember Denise pointed out that he had no hair on his chest when I first showed Scout to her. Another thing, his nose, when we first got him, his nose was dry and gray at the end. now his nose is black and moist. Something is certainly going on with him healthwise and I wonder if it is the raw food? For sure, he is health is going for the better. But you know he was one sensitive gut and I jump on him when he starts eating stuff in the yard because that explosive diaherra outbreak is still fresh in my mind!
Wednesday:
Chloe had an appointment with the Vet because she started breaking out all on her chest and her armpits. Since Spring the dogs have been feasting on weeds. She definitely has an allergic reaction to something. So the vet prescribed the canine version of penicillin and told me to use the remaining Animax I have on her sores. I didn't like the carefree attitude of the Vet even though we have seen several times last year. I really felt like I was being blown-off. So I am going to be looking for another Vet.
Oh yeah, in the morning, I did catch Scout doing one of his odd behaviors and I just uploaded at Vimeo. Here's the link:
http://vimeo.com/1016271
Tomorrow is suppose to be sunny and slightly cool and I am going to be training the dogs since we have another run through on Saturday. Hopefully, Laurie will be able to record us with errors and all. It will be at Oakmont Pa that starts in the evening. I am pretty much assuming that we will get home late around 1am.