BCC House League

This winter, Blaze and I participated in an Agility House League where we normally train for agility. It consisted of 1 day once a month, with you and your dog running 3 fun agility runs. We were on a team with 5 other dog/handlers. The team's collective scores determined the final placements. There were 5 teams in total. We had many new dog/handler teams participating in the house league, and it was great to see so many new handlers out there. I remember what it was like to be a new handler! My team was great, with 4 new handlers. All of our team members showed up for all events, and all of the new handlers did awesome! I was very impressed to see such great handling and attentive dogs. They will make some great dog/handler teams once they start competing. Overall, our team "The Underdogs", came in second place. What a great event. There were great prizes for all the competitors, and we ended the house league with a fantastic pot luck lunch. I hope the summer house league is as much fun!


Blaze and his second place ribbon.

Winter Gets Me Again

THE ENEMY.................. LARGE VOLUMES OF SNOW

THE SUPPOSED ALLY.........................THE YARDMAN SNOWBLOWER


THE VICTIM................................
Who would've imagined that a machine designed to HELP you would cause you so much grief! The snowblower really only has one job........move snow. If you can get the thing started without giving yourself a heart attack from stress, then all you have to do is point it in the direction of the snow, right? Well, things really aren't that easy. I can't believe what a hard time I had trying to clear some (a lot) of snow out of my driveway. That's two hours of my life I'll never get back, and it's a good thing machines aren't sensitive about being called various derogatory names repeatedly...................

"The Monkey"

Eros. Also known as "The little black monkey" . He runs around all crazy, loves to jump on anything and everything, and goes tearing through the house like a monkey in the jungle. He is mischievous, and gets himself into trouble like a monkey. Because we've had so much freakin' snow, the snow banks around here are huge. Well, Eros figured out that he can jump from one big snowbank inside my property, to another big snowbank OUTSIDE the property, and hence end up on the street!!!!! My heart almost stopped when I realized he was out on the street. Yesterday was garbage day, so he had shredded our garbage all over the street, and distributed the contents of our recycling bins all over the street as well. All before I even realized he was on the street. Then he went to visit my neighbour, who brought him back. I'm lucky nothing happened to him! Immediately after this, I shoveled a wide trench next to the snowbank inside my yard, thinking this would fix the problem. NOPE! He just gets on top of the bank, and jumps clear across the trench, to the snowbank on the other side of the fence (road side). Needless to say, he'll need constant supervision while outside until the snow melts significantly. He also managed to grab hold of and chew my tracking line. That's alright, I really wanted a new one anyway, but couldn't justify it, already having one..........................
Sometimes puppies test our patience, even for the most patient people!

WINTER: 11 / ME: 0

Winter Sunrise
Total times our mailbox has been taken out by the snowplow: 2

Total times stuck in a snow bank: 2

Total times having to shovel a 50 foot long trench next to my 4 foot high fence because the snow has drifted up to the top and my dogs could literally walk over the top of the fence: 5

Total times one of my dogs has ended up on the street because the snow banks are so high and he just jumped from one snow bank to another: 2

Total times late for school: MANY

Getting to live in a place where I never have to see another flake of snow: PRICELESS!

Winter Fun

You wouldn't believe how much fun a basket ball could be. My dogs absolutely love these balls.......... They puncture them with their teeth so they can pick them up, and love when you kick them and throw them around for them. Deflated basket balls are definitely one of their most favourite toys. Buy them a basket ball and it's as if they've won the lottery they are so happy!

Below, Blaze chomping on the ball, with Arlo and Cole in the background.Arlo, Mika, Blaze, & Cole, with Tess in the foreground.
Arlo attempting to steal the ball from Blaze...........
And he got it..........
Sara with her paw on the ball....."Don't you touch this ball Cole!"

Dreaming of Spring

Here's a Robins' nest I found at the boarder of my property last spring. One of the babies fell out of the nest, and as you can see from the pictures, there was no room to put the 3rd baby back in the nest.

I made a makeshift nest, and put baby #3 as close to the original nest as possible. If the babies are close by, the parents will still care for them. I love the sound of Robins in the spring time. They have one of the cheeriest songs, it's always pleasant to listen to them.

Below - One of the parent Robins is not amused!

Blaze in Action

This is Blaze at one of our summer trials. I have so few photos of him in action. These ones aren't the best quality, but they do give you an idea how much fun he's having.
Through the tire, Over the A-Frame,


Coming off the Dog Walk,
Down on the Table,
Out of the tunnel heading for the jump,

Over the jump,

Through the chute.