WOW! What an AMAZING couple of days doing what we do at Dog Vegas!
On Saturday, Ethel won Grade 3 Jumping! She absolutely smashed the course! I'm over the moon with how far she has come and how much progress she has made for a young dog! Earl came 2nd in Combined 4-5 Agility and came 2nd again in Grade 5 Jumping! He also came 3rd in his other Grade 5 Jumping! I was really pleased with how he ran, bless him!
On Monday, Ethel won her final Grade 3 win needed to win into Grade 4! She managed to get ahead of me after the weaves, but ran ahead and worked away really well, proving that she knew where she was going! This shows incredibly promising progress! She then went on to win her other Grade 3 Jumping class; she felt amazing to run! I'm SO proud of her and her many successes! What an amazing competition! Earl also shone, coming 2nd in Combined 4-5 Agility, coming 2nd in Grade 5 Jumping and coming 3rd in his other Grade 5 Jumping! I'm really proud of him, too!
We had such a successful and fun weekend of Agility at Dog Vegas once again! Our successes have made me almost speechless! What an incredible competition with outstanding results!
We are joining BlogPaws in the Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop. Thank you!
Walking your dog is a paramount aspect to owning one. Before bringing a canine companion into your life, ensure that you will be able to give a good amount of quality time on a daily basis to taking your dog out and about to exercise, play and socialise. Walks also provide brilliant opportunities for some vital mental stimulation, too! Being responsible whilst walking your dog will help keep you, your dog, other dog owners and their dogs safe and happy. Read our five tips to showing good dog walking etiquette and ensure that your walks are always a positive experience!
Earl
1. Be alert and aware of what could possibly go wrong. Don't spend your entire walk worrying, but always keep an eye out for possible hazards. There is nothing fellow dog walkers despises more than an owner who is oblivious to their own dog's behaviour.
2. Know your dog. No one knows your dog like you do! Think - has your dog been known to show aggressive tendencies or behaviours towards other dogs or humans? Does your dog have a reliable enough recall for off lead exercise? Will your dog chase wildlife/cats/other dogs/humans/vehicles if exercising off lead? If so, keep your dog on a lead and/or avoid other dogs/humans. Allowing your dog to do things that could cause danger or bring up issues is unfair to your fellows. Studying your dog's daily behaviour will help to educate you on how he behaves and reacts in different situations.
3. Don't take risks. Having a dismissive attitude is just asking for issues to arise. All dogs need socialising, including older dogs, but if your dog can't be trusted in the company of other dogs, arrange for your dog to meet with a friend's dog that he knows well and behaves well with. Dog owners who act dismissively about their dog's behaviour often cause their fellows to feel at risk and/or unsafe in the environment. Carelessness in dog owners is something that frustrates me amongst others.
4. Look out for uncertain and/or uneasy behaviour in other dogs and nervous behaviour in owners. Often, problems lie with other dogs who are allowed an unsafe amount of freedom. Never let your own dog hassle another dog or person. And if an owner is uncertain or uneasy with his/her own dog, it may be because their dog is unfriendly or has shown negative behaviours previously. Respect this and move away. And remember, you never know how another dog could react to even a friendly or playful gesture from your own if you let your dog go and meet another. By all means allow your dog to meet his/her fellows, but always be cautious. Talking to the owner, or even asking them if it is OK if your dog says hello, before the dogs are allowed to mix is a good idea to prevent issues between the dogs. Hopefully, other owners will know their own dog and how he will behave in different situations.
5. Enjoy yourselves responsibly! Enjoying being out with your beloved dog will help you and your dog keep calm and relaxed. A calm owner means a calm dog, which results in fewer issues!
I walk Earl and Ethel mainly on lead. Due to them having quite profound Terrier instincts, and there being a lot of resident cats living nearby, I feel as though it is the safer option. Unfortunately, due to a negative experience with another dog when Earl was young, I am now uneasy when faced with another dog. Luckily for him, he enjoys the company of his fellow Agility dogs at our club. Ethel, however, loves meeting other dogs and is incredibly polite when interacting with them. I don't downright avoid other dogs with Earl, but I am incredibly alert and tuned in to his behaviour. I often restrict him from having the freedom to explore another dog. Ethel enjoys meeting new dogs, which is good for her socialisation as a young dog. Her friendly and sometimes submissive behaviour around new dogs shows how respectful she is. I only let my dogs off lead in quiet areas with no other dogs walking nearby.
Remain responsible while walking your dog and have a wonderful experience!
Rover.com is an awesome dog walking organisation that caters for the many needs of dogs owners and their beloved canine companions. It is a wonderful, reliable and helpful resource for all dog owners out there!
How do you walk your dog? Do you have any dog walking pet peeves?
A mischievous young Ethel makes her mark with a quick-witted photobomb of an extremely professional canine model! In Ethel's eyes, jumping into a photograph only increases its beauty!
Fortunately for Earl, the photoshoot did result in a successful and more professional capture, as much as Ethel may disagree!
We are joining BlogPaws in the Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop. Thank you!
Wow, wow and wow again! Crufts 2016 was simply amazing! We had an utterly amazing experience at the 125th Anniversary of the world's largest dog show! From canine shopping to spectating some truly outstanding competitions and displays, it made for a leg-aching day of fun!
The NEC in Birmingham even decorated its own sign with paw prints in the spirit of this wonderful event!
The first event we saw in the main arena was the Small Team Agility Final. It was wonderful to see the participating handlers and their dogs supporting their teammates in order to succeed. Our friend was also participating with her team and we enjoyed cheering for her. The atmosphere in the main arena is unbelievably unreal! It is truly thrilling!
And, of course, being able to photograph the official, well known Crufts sign in lights in the main arena is really something special!
We also saw the official Crufts studio where the official Crufts television show was presented on all four days by presenter Clare Balding.
The doggy shopping opportunities were out of this world; the hundreds of canine stalls on offer in the five full halls consisted of some truly exciting canine products. There were enthusiastic doggy people to the left, right and centre!
And, as we left with a wonderful memory, we once again faced reality and realised that all good things must come to an end! However, as we went to jump on the car park coach, our spirits were once again uplifted in early excited anticipation for Crufts 2017! Maybe we'll even be competing! Ethel comes swiftly to mind!
This year marks the 125th anniversary of Crufts! As the world's largest dog show begins today, competitors and visitors alike will be in and out of the NEC in Birmingham for the entire four days. With stalls and hundreds of fabulous opportunities to shop for your own canine friends, not forgetting many impressive and outstanding performances from the Main Arena, Good Citizen Dog Scheme Ring and Young Kennel Club Ring, Crufts is a place for excitement and is simply a dog lover's paradise!
It's an exciting year for Crufts - even more than usual!
In fact, Crufts entries have increased for its 125th anniversary this year, meaning even more people and their beloved, talented dogs will be enjoying the adrenaline rush of competing at this special event. Figures show that almost 22,000 dogs will be preparing for their time to shine from the 10th - 13th of March 2016. What a difference from 1891, when Crufts (then named Cruft's, after its creator, Charles Cruft) first started!
The Kennel Club official figures show that 21,919 taking part in breed judging, Gamekeepers' classes and the Obedience and Agility Championships. The 2016 figure exceeds the 2015 figure by 2% and is the highest number of dogs to compete at Crufts since 2010.
As always, the event flies its international flags with 3396 dogs competing from overseas, beating 2015's figure of 2987 by a whole 14%. And, with dogs from a total of 47 different countries competing at Crufts this year, it really does show just how worldwide Crufts really is!
Now it's time for an exciting little video to show you just how far Crufts has come over the past 125 years!
Have you been keeping up with the Crufts action through its live streams? And if you haven't been able to watch it live, you can catch up on the highlights!
CRUFTS 2016 LIVE STREAM - DAY 1 - THURSDAY
With Crufts 2016 Day 2 coming up tomorrow, you simply cannot afford to miss the action of another jam-packed day of dogs!
