"The young Flash"(five months old)
Pounce January 2017 (two years old)
Jan 20 four more days of warm weather and we are close to February.....thinking of spring
note: Pounce did an off lead session of heeling using a fresh mallard as a
major distraction......no e-collar or heeling stick.......she was "highly"
excited and the "leave it" command was used as we walked right by
the mallard...often. Her heeling became more precise and relaxed with
a noticeable improvement in responsiveness. Then from a remote
position she was allowed to make a retrieve ("rinsed" and repeated
three more times). (late evening, in the heated indoor training area)
note: with many cold days left before spring....six more foam "camo" bumpers
arrived today. The way Pounce slams into bumpers...the DT soft rubber
ones are just too hard. There is no sense in knocking out any teeth.
Jan 21 trained in the afternoon - warm at the Winnebago Co DTA arrived and a pro (Cory Z.) was nearly finished. Pounce was invited to run the setup. Triple with mallards and with two blinds. Going to the line and the triple went well. The long blind again revealed my vision "issues". If initially I locate it and there is no difference in terrain to the left and right, I loose it immediately after looking at Pounce. I was pretty much clueless on where it was and now am convinced that I am going to have learn how to use binoculars of some sort. The short blind was easy.
note: Pounce went to the line "very responsively", "fired" to each mark and
retrieved each one cleanly (fast).
"revisiting the first two+ years
The following photos (in a slideshow) exhibit about two years of regular, high energy, "speed click" captures with a training camera. This was a fun project to tackle on a bitter, cold day in January.
Jan 14 early morning - Pounce practiced her OB skills (another indoor session)....afternoon
trained at the "New Place". Pounce ran nine singles in a Hillmann "Pin Point Marking Drill". After a brief rest, she ran three cold blinds. (32°F....wind chill 15°F....no snow cover)
note: Pounce worked on her OB class "skill set" morning and evening.
note: "retrieved" Daisy from vet in the afternoon. Eyelid looks normal now (even
with the stitches showing). There is no swelling and she is not "fussing"
with it. This has to be a relief.
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"Daisy" (eleven+ years old)
Jan 22 did not train - another warm day (for January).....got stuck in the mud and needed towing, somewhere in the mud (early or later) the left rear tire got punctured and went flat, ABS light on in the van and brake pedal seemed "mushy"...no driving today.....into the mechanics tomorrow
note: did extended, upbeat OB session early morning, repeated late evening and
the remote "down" (out of sight for five minutes) is solid
Jan 23 morning report...front left wheel ABS sensor "issue"....$$$$...."yikes", brakes OK
note: repeated OB sessions
Jan 24 eye doctor appointment.....only did the two OB sessions
Jan 25 very slight mist all day.........AKC Advanced OB class at 9:30 am.........then on to the
Winnebago Co. DTA...1st session = Hillmann's "Pin Point" marking drill using primer pistol, "camo" bumper and "Stand Alone/Send Backs.....brief rest before doing the "Three Pile Lining/Handling Drill" (see Jan. 17th journal entry)......took another break and then finished with three easy "Stand Alone/Walk back" doubles
note: the "Three Pile Lining/Handling Drill" has been run in several different
areas and she is "doing it" well. It is time to extend the distance while
gradually decreasing the two angles. This will move to a tighter lines
standard.
Jan 26 snow on the ground, no energy.........cloudy, in the low 30's with 14 mph winds WNW
note: Pounce is shedding & began hacking as if hair was caught in her throat,
verify at vet in the morning when Daisy goes to have stitches removed
Jan 27 Went early to the vet's. Daisy's stitches were removed from her eyelid tumor surgery and needed a diagnosis of Pounce's continuous coughing/hacking spells (lasted all last night). She has a slightly elevated temperature and X-rays revealed an upper respiratory congestion (some type of a canine flu ). She will be out of action for at least 10-15 days. Thinking this may be the result of attending the AKC OB class in a building where dogs from "all over" attend. (pure conjecture.......but?)
note: taking doxycycline and the cough suppressant of Acetaminop-codeine
has greatly reduced her persistent bouts of coughing
Jan 28 Pounce will be on "recovery time" (unplanned break in the action - about two
weeks) based loosely on the following "flu" analysis/data.
Jan 29 big improvement in the amount of coughingwith eleven more days of doxycycline
Jan 30-31....Feb 9 recovery days
Jan 18 at 9:30 am Pounce attended the second session of her AKC Advanced OB class....time well spent!
Jan 19 trained in the afternoon at the Y-Property (40 minute drive up into Wisconsin).....temps in the forties with fog on the way up.....not a problem for training.....and with frost still in the ground.....no mud. Trained in the southeast corner. Pounce ran two sets of three cold blinds and finished with two "stand alone/walk back" doubles ("camo", canvass bumpers and primer pistol)......she did very well.....trainer forgot where he had planted one blind.....duh!
note: Throwing two marks, then walking back to the line was meant to challenge
Pounce's memory. These were too easy for her......which is a good thing.
note: It's been a week since the small tumor was removed from Daisy's eyelid
and she had a few easy bumpers thrown for her (exercise).
note: late evening (after the Bulls game) Pounce worked on her OB class skills
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Pounce - Dec '16 "Goose Hunt"
"Pounce Action" - click on icon for larger photo
Jan 16 early morning "iced in" and had to work at getting out of the driveway for a doctor's appointment followed by van maintenance (FF Auto - oil change and fixed tire pressure issue)
note: Pounce went "shopping" at Lowe's (in the early evening)......about 45
minutes just "interacting" & working on OB.......time well spent
note: still raining and not all the ice has melted
Jan 17 dreary morning, but most of the ice is gone.....warmer for the next several days. Pounce ran a maintenance/precision handling drill at the Roscoe Retention Pond DTA (land area)
note: 36°F, foggy with a fine mist.....setup the drill on a slightly sloped terrain with
the three piles ("camo" foam bumpers) at 125 yards and about 12 yards apart,
note: fast and responsive practice working toward more precision
Jan 13 dropped Daisy off at the vet at 8 am to have a small, eyelid tumor removed.....back to
pick her up a 3 pm. (about a forty-five minute drive...one way)...at noon it is 15°F feels like 4°F
note: bitter cold out........time to "play" with photos
Jan 2 morning checked out RockCut State Park DTA for snow/ice issues...looked "good to go".
Around 2 PM Pounce and Daisy each ran a short, easy "stand alone/send back" set of singles in the Y-Drill format. Pounce did four from a gun station at about sixty yards and Daisy did an easy three at about forty yards. Both have not done much lately. It is time to begin the "push".
Today's focus was exercise.
note: Most all the camera "action shots" (on a very overcast day) were "sketchy" and
required quite a bit of corrective, creative editing (especially Daisy's).
note: not too likely to train in this area again....dead, thick weed stems are like spikes
Jan 15 Pounce ran a set of "Ya-Ha" singles (see "KwickLabs Drills" (link). Ten singles were run in the "Stand Alone/Send Back" mode in short cover area of the Roscoe Retention Pond DTA. The first two singles began at 75 yards and then adding an additional 25 yards for the next. After the 150 yard singles, a return to a 50 yard distance re-emphasized the "wide, flat throws" concept.
note: Pounce "fogged" every single "fast" and was "looking for more" afterwards.
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Jan 1 day off from training
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Jan 6 very cold.......at 10 am it is 1°F with a -15°F wind chill......arrrgghhh! Pounce worked through the basic skills that she will need in the AKC OB class beginning Wednesday the 11th.
The session was done in a heated training area and a small jump was added to "review" what is actually a very basic, easy "no-no" drill. The sequence is toss bumper (over), dog remains on sit, dog is released on command to jump over, fetch and return via the jump.
note: This is not a big deal for Pounce. Therefore, the session was "spiced up a bit"
using bumper in mouth casting (and without) and a few remote drops mixed in
with the "leave it" command.....just another fun, exciting "Hillmann game"
Jan 7 single digit high for today - Pounce "worked" inside again with added distractions provided by my wife, visiting son and our granddaughter.
Jan 8 warmer with a high of 18°F (wind chill of 6°F) - checked three training areas for snow/ice cover.....Rockton Road, "New Place" and Winn. Co DTAs and all were clear. Trained at the Winn. Co. DTA. Pounce ran six singles from a Y-Drill setup (two angle in 1st, two flat 2nd and two angle back 3rd) using a "camo", foam bumper with primer pistol reports...."stand alone/send backs" with the line being a white bucket and "placeboard" at 75 yards.
note: moved to 40 yards...ran three singles for old Daisy (exercise)
note: dressed warm....but not enough
note: last January trained 21 out of 31 days (behind schedule so far)
Pounce trained indoors late this evening......"extended game session"
Jan 9 Monday high in the low thirties and cloudy...Pounce trained....in the afternoon around 4 PM with steady snow beginning just before we arrived (Winnebago County DTA) setup Hillmann's "Pin Point" marking drill with primer pistol and a dark camo, canvass bumper. Pounce ran nine singles in "Stand Alone/Send Back" mode then was "put up" while a blind was planted. Came right back out and ran it (three handles). Daisy came out and ran four
short singles for exercise.
note: drive home was not easy.....still snowing
note: Pounce did two indoor OB sessions (morning and evening)
Jan 10 in the low forties and rain all day....in the evening, Pounce reviewed all the OB skills required in her class (which begins tomorrow). The weakest skill is being able to stand (still) for examination by a stranger. Using the "whoa" command (more hunting dog related), she tends be a bit "ditzy", moves her feet and "looses it". However, recent assistance via our autistic granddaughter (who has always been around her and is the one that helps feed her everyday) seems to be having a calming effect. Lately, she has moved closer to Pounce and "just be there". Lylah often sits and touches without making any demands. Since she can't talk, the distractions are minimal. This seems to have had a calming effect on Pounce and "Whoa" never looked any better than today.
note: Dremel'd Pounce's nails
note: They became good "buds" when Pounce first arrived (July '14).
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Jan 3 trained Pounce OB session in the indoor training area (easy day)
Jan 4 much colder......with a wind chill of -5°F at 3 pm....day off and spent time looking at old
photos. Pounce's recent "speed photo" reminded me of the "nick name" she was given when "encountering" her first goose......as a young pup (5 months old). She was called "The Flash" which turned out to be an apt and humorous hint about her future.
Jan 11 early morning ran Pounce through the skills required for the Advanced OB class (9:30 am)....arrived at class "building" early to check-in and no one showed until about 9:28 am... session went well...even though Pounce was "juiced"....settled in, got relaxed (kind of)..."sit" to have stranger walk up and pet her is our "weak spot" while the rest of the session revealed that she is more than capable of doing everything else
note: everyone (but us) is using treats.....using "once in a while" a visual Hillmann
bumper (OB language = kind of a lure, actually, more of a high profile reward)
note: Afterwards, drove to the Winnebago Co. DTA (same place as yesterday) and
in a different section of cover ran a "Pin Point" marking drill (see yesterday,
nine different singles, same equipment) at 90 yards and finished with a 125
yard cold blind (actually, not all that cold - upper thirties).....Pounce took a
great initial line & then lined it (very cool end to a "quick" training session)
note: Daisy had her "every other day" off
Jan 12 late morning forecast - mostly cloudy....21°F feels like 11°F....NW wind 10 mph at the
Winnebago CountyDTA at about 1 pm....decided to run Pounce on three different Y-Drills from
the same line with "stand alone/send back" mode.....primer pistol and "camo" foam bumper. Moved to subsequent "gunning" stations as Pounce returned to the line (after the last single in each "Y-Drill" was retrieved). Ran Daisy on a few walking singles while planting three blinds in the same field where the "Y-Drills" were thrown. This was a challenging training session. Did not handle her on any of the marks.....couple of big hunts, but she was persistent, thinking and did not give up....nose comes into play when she needs it....stopped once, looked at me and got no response.....then took off and found that single. Pounce's three blinds (after getting a breather while Daisy's exercised) were excellent (fast, very responsive). (smiley face session)
note: When training, Pounce is highly energized and has never shown any "quit"
(which may be a bit of a contradiction with the fact that she is sensitive).
note: With the "nasty" wind chill....it was good to be finished!