Relearning the dock!

I spent MONTHS teaching Jake to NOT go down the ramp but rather jump off the dock so he could do dock diving. Now, so he can continue swimming and not over-stress his back/rear end, (he only has one hip due to an accident when he was a wee one and removal of the head of the hip at 4 months old) I'm reversing course to make it easier. Also, to make it easier is the reason why he has a life jacket on again. Today, he is showing off and teaching Micah (James Affeldt) who is barking in the background that it's really fun to retrieve in the water even though jumping 16'.6" (person best jump) is not a part of it! He just turned 8 and he still thinks he can do it all so unfortunately I have to be the voice of reason for him!!

Agility! Who’d a thought it?

A little hard to see but there are hoops, weave poles, jumps, a tunnel and some barrels and cones. this is my yard. In July, Jake and I were introduced to NADAC agility and I realized that I could learn to direct Jake around the course and not run!  Sounded good to me!  We started taking lessons with Jeff at K9 Corp Agility.  He was a great student and excelled in lessons but then we did a few trials until he realized he was pretty much on his own and could get away with stuff such as greeting the helpers and doing the course in the order HE chooses!  SO, we focused on training and having fun!  Not that he didn’t have FUN at the trials because he sure did! 

Here we are at training.  And check out the videos by clicking here. 

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More UKC Nosework!

Oct 9th Jake participated in more UKC Nosework and received his ELITE CONTAINERS title with a 1st Place and High in Class award. He also achieved his MASTER EXTERIOR title in the pouring rain with wind again placing 1st and finishing his MASTER overall title. Not bad for a morning's sniffing!!

He now is two EXTERIOR legs short of his overall ELITE title but that will have to wait until spring when there are again UKC trials within my 90 minute travel radius! :)

I couldn't be prouder of this fun, goofy, driven guy who is sharing my life and opening up my eyes to all that can be accomplished with dedication and consistent training! Next up - looking forward to AKC Scent Work next year and are diligently practicing BURIED HIDES whenever we can!

Certificates arrived recently! 2017 final levels for Jake in UKC Nosework! So proud of this guy! Thank you to the Central WI Dog Sport Club and the Working Dogs of North Central WI club for hosting trials. Without these clubs and their dedicated members, these achievements would not have been possible!

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UKC Handler Discrimination

Jake passed legs 2 and 3 for the UKC Handler Discrimination Novice title in Sheboygan WI today. In this Nosework class the dog must alert on the handler's scent (that would be me). There was a glove I scented in the box that he alerted on. He stopped at the box about 12 seconds into the search but because he has lied to me in the past I had to be sure before I called Alert at 19 seconds which actually put us in 4th place! Some fast dogs at this event!! :)
(Click photo for video)


https://photos.smugmug.com/Nosework-Photos-and-Videos/Nosework/i-dwcDw6s/0/80a489aa/640/2017.8.20%20T2%2019%20sec.1-640.mp4


http://www.lstonephotography.com/Nosework-Photos-and-Videos/Nosework/i-dwcDw6s/A

Dock Dogs and a First Place in Finals!

August 4, 2017

Jake jumping with Dock Dogs at the Winnebago County fair this week. Looking forward to bringing him back for Speed Retrieve on Sunday! He has such fun!! Thanks Laura for taking the video!!

http://www.lstonephotography.com/Dock-Dogs/Videos-from-Dock-Jumping/i-cGKvZ5p/A

August 6,2017

O.M.G. To follow up the video I posted of Jake jumping with DockDogs on Wednesday. We went back to the Fair yesterday to jump in a Big Air wave and Jake jumped 11'11". He has jumped shorter jumps each year from a personal best of 16'6" (he is going to be 8 after all!). I was fine with that but the announcer said that's his lucky number. Well, today we went back to do Speed Retrieve (jumping in and swimming fast to the end to get a bumper) which he loves to do. As I was thinking of leaving, I was asked if Jake was going to stay for the finals because HE QUALIFIED IN THE UNDER 12 FOOT CATEGORY with his 11'11" jump! So, of course we stayed and then he jumped 13'6" to take FIRST PLACE! And the icing on the cake is that when you take first, DockDogs puts $100 in your account to be used for future jumps!! Finally, he is paying his way! I couldn't be prouder of this crazy dog!!

More UKC Titles

Jake and I were on a 13 hour adventure to a UKC Nosework trial and he did me proud again going 4/4 with 3-1st places, 1-2nd place and 2 High in Trials! He also got titles for Advanced Exteriors, Superior Containers and Advance Nosework. What a guy! Thanks to the judges Sharon Jonas and Joanne Soyke and the hardworking members of the Working Dogs of NC WI club! Halfway through the day he got to hunt rats at the Barn Hunt nearby and located 6 of them in 2 minutes! Looking forward to seeing everyone again tomorrow!

Back on the dock!

Jake was back on the dock this morning! And he was over-the-top excited! Oh, wait, he's always over-the-top excited when he's jumping in the water! He is supposed to stay down and his cue to leave is my arm swinging back. (He thought of that himself!)

http://www.lstonephotography.com/Dock-Dogs/Videos-from-Dock-Jumping/i-hdZcVHP/A

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Jake’s C-WAGS Level 4 Run

Jake's rocket run of 1 min. 26 sec. (5 min. allowed) in Level 4 of C-WAGS Scent Detective games. He had to find 4 odors (birch, clove, cypress, lemongrass) in an area of about 1200 sq. Jake thanks you Renea L Dahms of Pawsitively Unleashed in Stevens Point for bringing these fun NOSEWORK games to Central WI! :)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDmLlBzv7gA&feature=youtu.be 

http://www.lstonephotography.com/Nosework-Photos-and-Videos/Nosework/i-SfBbLM5/A

2016 Accomplishments!!

BARN HUNT
Dog	Owner	Date	Class	Time	Placement	High in Class	Location
Jake	Laurel Stone	2016-05-06	Master	1 min. 57 sec.	1	yes	Sheboygan
Jake	Laurel Stone	2016-05-08	Master	2 min. 31 sec.	3	------	Sheboygan
Jake	Laurel Stone	2016-05-08	Master	1 min. 53 sec.	3	------	Sheboygan
Jake	Laurel Stone	2016-08-14	Master	2 min. 30 sec.	3	------	Sheboygan
Jake	Laurel Stone	2016-09-18	Master	2 min. 20 sec.	2	------	Wausau
SUMMARY for Barn Hunt: Finished RATCHX4 title w/5 legs w/3-3rd places, 1-2nd place and 1-1st place w/a High in Class
DOCK JUMPING
Dog	Owner	Date	Venue	Class	Jump	Placement	Location
Jake	Laurel Stone	2016-06-10	Pier Pups	Open	13'3"	2	Fond du Lac
Jake	Laurel Stone	2016-06-10	Pier Pups	Open	15'	2	Fond du Lac
Jake	Laurel Stone	2016-04-16	Dock Dogs	Speed Retrieve	10.945 sec	3	Oshkosh Suburu
Jake	Laurel Stone	2015-08-04	Dock Dogs	Speed Retrieve	9.673 sec.	5	Oshkosh Co. Fair
Jake	Laurel Stone	2015-08-20	Dock Dogs	Speed Retrieve	11.014 sec.	3	Appleton Scheels
SUMMARY for dock jumping: Finished SPEED RETRIEVE (DockDogs) title w/3 legs w/2-3rd and 1-5th place. Also, with Pier Pups, 2 long jumps (13'3"/15') w/2-2nd places.
NOSEWORK
Dog	Owner	Date	Title	Class	Venue	Placement	Location
Jake	Laurel Stone	2016-09-10	PTN	Pre-Trial Novice (Birch)	UKC	n/a	Stevens Point
Jake	Laurel Stone	2016-09-10	PTA	Pre-Trial Advanced (Anise)	UKC	n/a	Stevens Point
Jake	Laurel Stone	2016-09-10	PTS	Pre-Trial Superior (Clove)	UKC	n/a	Stevens Point
Jake	Laurel Stone	2016-09-10	NC	Novice Container	UKC	1st and 3rd	Stevens Point
Jake	Laurel Stone	2016-09-10	NI	Novice Interior	UKC	1st and 3rd	Stevens Point
Jake	Laurel Stone	2016-09-10	NV	Novice Vehicle	UKC	3rd and 3rd	Stevens Point
Jake	Laurel Stone	2016-09-11	AI	Advance Interior	UKC	1st and 3rd	Stevens Point
Jake	Laurel Stone	2016-09-11	AV	Advanced Vehicle	UKC	3rd and 4th	Stevens Point
Jake	Laurel Stone	2016-10-01	PTA	Pre-Trial Master (Myrrh)	UKC	n/a	Wausau
Jake	Laurel Stone	2016-10-01	PTS	Pre-Trial Elite (Vetiver)	UKC	n/a	Wausau
Jake	Laurel Stone	2016-10-01	AC	Advanced Container	UKC	2nd and 3rd	Wausau
Jake	Laurel Stone	2016-10-02	NE	Novice Exterior	UKC	1st and 1st	Wausau
Jake	Laurel Stone	2016-10-02	NN	NOVICE NOSEWORK	UKC	total of 8 legs	Wausau
Jake	Laurel Stone	2016-10-02	SV	Superior Vehicle	UKC	2nd and 2nd	Wausau
Jake	Laurel Stone	2016-10-02	SI	Superior Interior	UKC	1st and 1st	Wausau
SUMMARY for UKC Nosework: 5 PTs (birch, anise,clove, myrrh and vetiver), 9 Element titles (18 legs, NOVICE Container, Interior, Vehicle, Exterior, ADVANCED Interior, Vehicle, Container, SUPERIOR Vehicle, Interior - 7-1st place, 3-2nd place, 7-3rd place and 1-4th place), NOVICE NOSEWORK title (8 of legs previously mentioned)

The TAIL shot!

Jake and Brita - 7 years ago today!! Check out that tail! He was 3 months old!

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Jake’s NW journey 0-10 months (and a Narcotics K9)!

With the prospect of being sidelined by 2 knee replacements last winter and having an overachiever dog around I decided to venture into the sport of Nosework.  I bought some videos but needed more to get started on my own.  It was recommended to me that I take some of the Fenzi online classes in nosework and I was hooked.  These courses are 6 weeks long with usually 4-6 lectures each week with homework and they followed a logical progression to learn the sport.  They are offered every 2 months and since the beginning of the year we took the first 3 beginning courses and combined those with 4 advanced courses.  With an average of 100 hides/week, Jake progressed quickly.  In the spring, we joined weekly classes at Ideal Dog Trainer in Neenah and Pawsitively Unleashed! in Stevens Point and attended a 3 day Andrew Ramsey workshop in May in Stevens Point.   During the summer we did some training with Haus von Stolz Police K9 Training in Lomira and introduced him to narcotic detection.  In September, Jake competed in local UKC Nosework trials and successfully completed various elements in the novice, advanced and superior levels with a total of 10 titles (elements plus level titles).  In October, he was certified as a Narcotics K9 and participated in a 2 day search in a correctional institution where he proved just how much stamina he has (3 hours first day and 2 hours the second) and how accurate he is outside on grounds and inside in lockers, training rooms and inmates rooms!  I can't tell you how proud I am of this dog!  He has so much drive and ambition to do anything I ask of him!  What a guy!

Our 1st Nosework trial!

Finally, Jake ("Famous Jake" as I heard someone call him!) and I entered our first trial. We started Nosework at the beginning of the year and this UKC trial in Stevens Point Wisconsin was the first trial in any venue that was within a 90 min. radius of home. Saturday, Jake passed the first 3 PTs (Pre-Trial tests in birch, anise and clove) and zoomed on to the Elements offered (Containers, Interior and Vehicles - no Exterior) He successfully sourced the odor in all 3 Elements in both Trials that day earning him 3 titles: NC (Novice Containers), NI (Novice Interior) and NV (Novice Vehicle) with 2 First Place ribbons and 4 Third Place ribbons. Sunday we successfully repeated the PTs (because we could, not because we had to) and then proceeded to garner enough legs for 2 more titles, AI (Advanced Interior), AV (Advanced Vehicles), and a leg towards Advanced Containers with a 1st place, three 3rd places and a 4th place finish. All in all a GREAT weekend! Awesome, competent, helpful judges (Sharon Jonas & Joanne Soyke), beautiful weather, friendly competitors and and efficiently run trial will bring me back next year! A special thank you to Renea L Dahms at Pawsitively Unleashed and all the hardworking members of the Central WI Dog Sports Club!

Tracking!

A tracking seminar!  AKC no less!  After YEARS of Schutzhund footprint to footprint tracking I went to a workshop to earn the method that is used in AKC tracking!  Looks promising and I plan to see what happens!!  Lois Ballard is an AKC judge and regularly holds classes at Hartman Creek State Park.

Andrew Ramsey Nosework seminar!

This weekend I attended a Nosework seminar with Andrew Ramsey and it was awesome! There were several dogs just starting Nosework, several dogs on odor, several SAR (cadaver) dogs and then there was Jake who didn’t fit into any of those groups. (He was, by the way, the only dog who ended up working outside on 2 of the 3 days as most of the dogs worked in the “training lab” set up in the seminar room at Pawsitively Unleashed in Stevens Point.)

My goal was to have Jake ignore more distractions so I will describe some of our training.

Jake will ignore his toys on the floor when they are “dead”. Specifically, he will search instead of picking his favorite balls up, etc. however, I knew for a fact that he gets VERY excited when that ball on a rope is moving so this is what we worked on the first day. Andrew would have his favorite ball on a rope and play tug with him after he searched and after I marked his alert. After the first time of doing that, Jake went into his over-the-top I-must-be-doing-bitework mentality and I had to clearly redirect him to search, but search he did and really fast so he could get that reward!! This did not look very pretty for the first few times because Jake wanted to go directly to Andrew. In the afternoon session, he really “got” it and Andrew was able to tease him with the ball while he was alerting to source. If he started to turn his head to look at him, I would say “alert” and he would recommit to the odor and not leave until I said “yes”!

Sunday, the second day, we worked outside knowing that Jake is usually distracted by the smells of other dogs and critters. The first hide was on the wheel of a tractor trailer truck and Jake aced it. The second hide was along the wall of a deserted building. He sourced it and then a mouse ran by the hide into a hole in the wall of the building and that’s all it took for him to be distracted!! We got his attention and he alerted on the hide which was about 6 feet up on the wall. Several other hides went well I think in part because he knew that there was a possibility that he would get to play with that ball on a rope! In the afternoon, there were 3 hides along the front of the building and Jake found the threshold one but blew by the second because a bush was there and the odor from the 3^rd was pulling him forward. He found that and came back to the second. The last for the afternoon were 2 hides on the truck and these were on a wheel and in between the brackets near a wheel which he had no problem finding!

Monday we went outside again and searched hides in a potty area and then along the front and the back of a long building. He ignored the smells for the most part. It appears that perhaps part of that problem is on the way to the start line rather than after I tell him to search because once he gets going he is less distracted. I’ll have to observe that. The building was pretty much like other searches he’s done – sourcing them all. Of course, we did have to discourage him from trying to take apart the water meter where one hide was and teach him to alert without dismounting it! The hides outside were either small metal containers or a tiny piece of blotter paper that could be slid into cracks in doorways in addition to being placed anywhere a Q-tip could be hidden.

My challenge is to know when to call finish when I don’t know how many hides there are!! But how different is that from the master level in barn hunt anyway!?! Jake has an amazing alert so it’s just a matter of getting him close to the source and he’ll find it. Some of the outside hides were not accessible and I didn’t know where they were or how many there were. Another challenge is to learn to read the wind currents and make sure Jake searched everything including the ins and outs of the search area. Great weekend!!