NvShadowBCs-Noggin' Doggin'

Lily and Tic      A weird thing happened this past weekend.  First of all I had a rare and coveted afternoon off.  Truly off.  It was pouring rain, thundering and lightening like the Gods were having a merry old bowling game in our desert skies.  I could do NO work, unless I cleaned out my closets and drawers.  So I relaxed and read a book.  The really weird thing is that I had a chance to watch the dogs also relax.  Big old yeller lab was deep in sawing-log-land on his overstuffed chair, no surprise there.  My two tri-colored youngsters from Potato-Land had hunkered down next to each other alternating play with sleep, quite content and happy.  Apparently Lily and Tic have become best friends behind my back.  They must have compared notes.  Black and White - check.  From place that starts with C (Cali and Canada)- check.  Insane/Intense/Strong eyed - check.  Really actually soft when it comes ri...

Training in the dog daze of summer      I have read everyone's most recent posts and blogs, and it seems like we all are a little bit teetering.  Are we ever going to get somewhere with all this work?  Are we sliding backwards like a heavy snow avalanche in the Sierras?  Am I doing more damage than good when I  train without my binkie....I mean guru/trainer??  Is it my dogs fault or am I failing my dog(s) exponentially?  Maybe it's my sheep?  The cost of hay is insane!!!!  The price of sheep is in the basement!!!!  There is no water/rain!!!!  Thus there is no graze!!!!  Maybe sheepdogging isn't meant to be done in the high mountain desert.      I, myself, love the heat of the summer.  However, I have found myself a little grouchy.  I think that is because so many many many people get grumpy in the heat!  The reality is, that anyway you cut it...

Onward      So we have chilled for about a month.  Working with little to no pressure.  Short.  In.  Trying to (re)install fundamentals.  Sometimes working with no commands.  I think everyone is more relaxed.  Yes, even the vibration we call Tic.  Ben, as you can see,  has more confidence.  Hopefully I have filled in the erosions I may have inadvertently created.  Val is Val.  Val will have no puppies this year, even though she has passed all of her physical tests.      We have a trial slated for late in August.  So this weekend we are going back to the different segments of the trial course.  Training.  Focus on consistency. Distance.  Timing.      I am going to work on consistent whistles.  ...And always lying down, prior to flanking.  For some reason that goes away in my mind when things head south.   Fields are limited this tim...