Dog Vegas Days 3 & 4 And Overall

The weekend just gone, we competed again at the same Dog Vegas Agility show as last weekend. And wow, did we come away with a haul! I am so proud of my amazing man! He's been brilliant and I've learnt so much from this show. We've really shown our improvements. I'm so pleased!

Day 3, on the Saturday just gone, we won Grade 5 Jumping, going clear and being 9 seconds IN THE TIME! Speedy man! This counts towards winning out into Grade 6! Only two more wins! We also came 3rd in the Dog Vegas Finals Qualifier, even though we got an unfortunate 5F on the A-Frame contact; he was speeding down the home run! Thus meaning we've qualified for the Dog Vegas Finals 2016! We also got a clear 2nd, and another 3rd. What a day!

Day 4, yesterday (Sunday); again, what a day! We won Grade 5 Money Agility, winning us £11! Plus a special sponsored rosette, which is gorgeous! We came 2nd in the Combined 4-5 Jumping, as well. He was on form once again, running beautifully! We also got another 2nd and a 3rd.

Here are our results from the ENTIRE show, last weekend included...

What a show! Dog Vegas has been brilliant as always. We've had an amazing time, with some amazing successes. I've learnt so much and we've really shown our improvements. Onwards and upwards! And now, we simply can't wait for the final 2016! I'm so proud, and we've had such fun. Now we can relax and unwind from such a busy time!

We're joining our hosts Snoopy's Dogblog, Alfie's Blog and My Brown Newfies in the Monday Mischief Blog Hop. We send many thanks their way, and you can join in below.

No More Troubles

We're joining our hosts Dachshund Nola and Sugar The Golden Retriever in the Black And White Sunday Blog Hop. We send many thanks their way, and you can join in below.

SS - Living Room Hellos

When you're sat there watching TV, and two little faces appear as if to say: 'hello! We're here!'.

We at Earl's World! are delighted to be cohosting the Sepia Saturday Blog Hop alongside Ruckus The Eskie. We send many thanks to our fellow host, and you can join in below.

Teaching Weaves On The Right

With agility weave poles, you generally start teaching your dog with your dog on your left, and you handling on the right of your dog. Once this has been mastered, however, you have to then teach your dog to weave with your dog on the right hand side of you. For your dog, this can be quite a challenge. Imagine you'd never driven a French/American car in France/America, when you were used to driving in the UK (or vice versa). Now imagine having to drive said car in said place for the first time; it would really throw you! The same goes for our dogs and the weaves. Teaching weaves on the opposite side to normal is like starting from scratch. It may be a little easier because your dog already knows the weaving action, however, send your dog into the weaves on your right hand side and I guarantee it'll be like he's never done them before in his life!

But of course, at competition, you really do have to be prepared to handle your dog on both sides. You could (and do!) easily find yourself in the wrong place, so it's important you know how to handle on both sides. Not only for emergency situations, but for ease of getting round the course and into the correct places to guide your dog over the next piece of equipment.

Here is a video of Ethel doing a set of 12 weaves on the right hand side of me. She picked it up quite quickly once I put her back on the lead. Once she was confident weaving loosely on the lead on this side, I let her off the lead, and this is our final result. I'm really pleased with her brilliant progress!

Something you really need to be prepared for in competition is the unexpected! Yes, you are able to walk the course beforehand, but your dog may be faster or tighter than you expected him to be, thus meaning you're stuck on the side you didn't plan to take. Or, of course, he could be slower or wider, meaning you have enough time to manoeuvre into a better position. Keep your options open, and you're bound to find it so much easier on the course.

We're joining our hosts SlimDoggy, To Do With Love and My GBGV Life in the FitDog Friday Blog Hop. We send many thanks their way, and you can join in below.

5 Tips To Snap Your Dog Nicely On Camera

Dog photography is booming these days, with many professionals choosing our gorgeous pals as their main focus (excuse the pun). But how do these skilled people capture dogs on camera in such amazing light? And how can you snap your own dog nicely on camera? As a budding amateur dog photographer, here are my best tips...

1. Keep your dog happy whilst photo shooting with him/her. Just relax and he will be, too. For example, use food or a favourite toy to get your dog's attention. Your dog should like it if you get down to his level and interact whilst shooting. Photos taken at your dog's level also look brilliant! Only photos of dogs looking happy and characterful make good, eye-catching snaps. An unhappy, uncomfortable looking dog never makes a lovely, uplifting photo.

2. Ensure all the technicalities are correct when shooting photos. Ensure your dog is captured in good lighting, with the correct resolutions for the kind of photo you are taking. Some people say that photo shooting at sunrise or sunset gives the best lighting. Also, ensure all the right objects are with your dog in all the right places when photo shooting.

3. Give your photo a purpose. For example, if you're photo shooting with a specific category in mind, such as 'dogs playing', ensure you really capture the fun, playful mood of your dog in the photo. Or if you're photo shooting for 'gorgeous eyes', really capture the gorgeousness of your dog's eyes to really show them off.

4. If you're taking a close-up, this may not apply to you as such, however, always choose a nice background. For example, grass bodes well when taking a causal, playful snap of your dog, and for dramatic, eye-catching snaps, mountains, woods, or similar.

5. Have fun whilst photo shooting with your dog! For example, never push him/her to hold a certain position, or scold your dog if he doesn't quite get the look you want. If your dog isn't at his best on the day, put your camera away and try again another time.  Dogs looking naturally wonderful are best friends with the lens!

Enjoy snapping your dog on camera!

We're joining 2 Brown Dawgs and Heart Like A Dog in the Thursday Barks And Bytes Blog Hop. We send many thanks their way, and you can join in below.

Give Your Dog A Hug On #NationalDogDay

Happy National Dog Day everyone!

We'll be cuddling, walking, playing... all usual pastimes, I guess! Have a lovely #NationalDogDay!

How are you celebrating with your dog?

We're joining our hosts BlogPaws in the Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop. We send many thanks their way, and you can join in below.

Dog Vegas Day 2 Places

Yesterday was our second day at the Dog Vegas Agility Show, and once again, we did really well! We came 2nd in the Combined 4-5 Agility, and the course for this was the same as a 6-7 course! It was a nice, challenging one, too! We also got another two 2nd places and a 3rd on the day!

We had another enjoyable, and thankfully cooler, day at the show, although it was still quite warm at times! I really managed to get Earl 'in the zone' before his runs, resulting in some really nice, quick runs. We've had some lovely, encouraging comments from onlookers and people helping run the rings, which is always nice. And we're ready for more fun next weekend at the show!

The Headless Chicken

This poor fella didn't last long...

And the culprit found red-pawed?

"Whad' I do?"

Non other than our mischievous pup Ethel!

Has your mischievous doggy ever done something like this?

We're joining our hosts Snoopy's Dogblog, Alfie's Blog and My Brown Newfies in the Monday Mischief Blog Hop. We send many thanks their way, and you can join in below.

Dog Vegas Day 1 Win

We had a lovely first day at the Dog Vegas Agility show yesterday, even though it was roasting hot all day! We won the Grade 5 Agility, however, unfortunately incurring 2 measly seconds of time faults! Annoying, but still a good and worthy win! It was such a long and intricate course; many others incurred even more time faults, and we were the fastest out of them all! On top of this, our first run, a clear round, had to be rerun because the timber broke halfway round, meaning we had to run 5 runs instead of 4!

We also got two 4th places and a 6th place as well as this 1st place. We're really proud! Earl is such a good boy, always making me proud. Now roll on Monday, our next day at the show!

SS - Liquorice Nose

Am I the only one who thinks Earl nose looks like a piece of liquorice in this photo?

We at Earl's World! are delighted to be cohosting the Sepia Saturday Blog Hop alongside Ruckus The Eskie. We send many thanks to our fellow host, and you can join in below.

5 Tips To Rediscover Your Dog's Urge To Play

All dogs love spending time interacting with their owner, whether that be through active play, simple walks, training and/or cuddles. But some dogs have a stronger urge to play than others. Play is beneficial for both dog and owner; it gives the pair a chance to build a stronger bond, helps keep both of them fit, healthy and active, and generally have fun and enjoy life. But what do you do if your dog shows no interest in playing?

1. Spend time bonding with your dog in ways he currently enjoys more. For example, cuddle him, talk to him, take him for relaxed walks, and more. Make spending time doing anything and everything with you a pleasure for your dog.

2.  Buy your dog a special toy. Help your dog to love this toy and come to the realisation that it's fun. Soon, once you've helped your dog build up his love for interacting with this toy, he will hopefully choose to play with it more.

3. Start small, and introduce your dog to the new toy, making it fun for him to be around. Get into 'play mode' yourself, and don't be afraid to look silly! Make playing with you and this toy the funnest thing he could ever be doing.

4. While ensuring the game is controlled, allow your dog some freedom in the game. Allow him to express himself, enjoy himself and rediscover what game makes him tick. Soon enough, you should start to see what game is your dog's favourite. Then, you can do more of this with him, thus making him enjoy playtime even more!

5. Go at your dog's pace, and don't push him too hard. If you go at your dog's own pace, you will find you see results quicker. Allow him to make the progress; if you push his progress, he won't enjoy it as much anymore, and it will feel more like a job than playtime.

Mainly, have FUN!

Soon, you and your dog will both be enjoying many happy hours playing as a pair!

We're joining our hosts SlimDoggy, To Dog With Love and My GBGV Life in the FitDog Friday Blog Hop. We send many thanks their way, and you can join in below.

Our Doggy Nail Trimming Secrets

Ah, how I hate black nails on dogs! You can't see the quick, and every time you cut them you're at risk of making them bleed. And when you make them bleed, the dog decides he no longer likes the nail-trimming process, making it as hard and stressful for you to get the job done.

My mum has made Earl's bleed before, meaning he always puts up a fight about having them done (I don't blame him, though). He will struggle, he will wrestle with us... all with the most willpower in the world. When he puts up a fight, it's hard to control. So now, we wrap him up in a towel and hold him tight while we trim his nails. It may be a bit of a weird-sounding solution, but all the same, it works wonders!

But of course, our greatest method for happy nail trimming for Earl is rewarding a good, calm session with some delicious food! He always appreciates being compensated for all his hard work! Even Ethel always gets a treat at the end of the session, and she's better with the whole process; all dogs deserve a reward for all good behaviour! Plus, this helps them look forward to the next session and associate nail trimming with treats! It can easily be a win-win situation!

Om nom nom! Chomping on a reward!

What are your doggy nail trimming secrets?

We're joining our hosts Ruckus The Eskie, Love Is Being Owned By A Husky! and Barking From The Bayou in the Thoughtless Thursday Blog Hop. We send many thanks their way, and you can join in below.

Has The Monster Gone?

We're joining our hosts BlogPaws in the Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop. We send many thanks their way, and you can join in below.

Oggi's Oven Dog Cake Baking Mix

Oggi's Oven specialises in recipes specifically for dogs! With a wide variety of readymade recipes for you to bake at home, Oggi's Oven makes it easier to whip up healthy homemade snacks for your four-legged friend.

We tried out the Dog Cake Baking Mix by Oggi's Oven, and the dogs loved the cupcakes we made! The mix allows you to bake either one large 7" cake, or 12 individual cupcakes. We opted for the 12 cupcakes.

The recipe includes human grade ingredients, and NO artificial colours, flavours or preservatives, meaning it isn't only delicious, but healthy, too!

All you have to do to bake your dog some delicious snacks is:

1. Lightly grease the bun tray.

2. Place the cake mix in a bowl, add 75ml/4 1/2 tablespoons of water and 45ml/2 1/2 tablespoons of vegetable oil.

Mixture in.

Water in.

Vegetable oil in.

3. Mix together with a spoon for about 2 minutes, until the mixture is smooth and creamy.

4. Carefully share the cake mixture between your bun tray (if you're making cupcakes). Remember, the mixture should make 12 cupcakes, so be sure to spread the mix evenly.

5. Bake in the centre of the oven for approximately 12 minutes or until they have risen and are golden brown.

6. Carefully remove from the oven and leave to cool down completely before storing or feeding to your dog.

Your dog will love them!

Earl enjoys them!

And so does Ethel!

P.S. You can store them, too.

Before you go, please vote for Earl and Ethel in the #HappyHolidayHound photo competition run by Precious Pets London on Facebook! All you need to do is LIKE and SHARE the photo.

1 LIKE = 1 VOTE
1 SHARE = 2 VOTES!

So please remember to do both!

CLICK HERE TO GO AND VOTE!

Thanks in advance!

We're joining our hosts Sugar The Golden Retriever and Kol's Notes in the Tasty Tuesday Blog Hop. We send many thanks their way, and you can join in below.