blue blue cake...

i baked a cake for rah tonight to celebrate his titles, and brought it to class - blue cake, blue icing, it was awesome! i got some pics, ill have to upload them later.

ive been working with berlin and her db - its frustrating, and i feel like we're backsliding. i have to remember that she's not rah, and stop comparing her. she won't do play retrieves anymore, but i got the clicker out and she will go up to it and give me a good solid mouth grab be it on the floor, my lap or in my hands, sometimes even picking it up briefly.

if i put it in her mouth (she hates that part), she will hold it as long as i tell her to. she looks so cute with it in her mouth.

i want this to be fun for her, and she wont let it be fun. berlin, just take it. this can be SO MUCH FUN!!!

took rah to novice, we all had cake during open and no one trained :), and did utility.

started novice with practicing fronts - the rest of the class used bj boards, i just used some of the guides for him, he didn't do half bad. but towards the end he was getting lazy and he was sitting just a hair crooked, and he would sit on the guides. thats not the purpose, buddy!

then we worked SFE and transitions to off lead heeling - he nailed this - but i need to remember to get him out and have men do more of his sFE's this weekend.

did group heeling and rah actually did REALLY well, im happy - we were both spot on, i had good body control, good footwork, and he was nailing his sits, nice and straight.

went to fig8 and he was nice except that he kept popping out to sit crooked - im going to have to work on that. his other sits are getting so good. i need to anticipate that this is going to be crooked and not let him even get in there anythingless than straight!

stays - rah went down!! eek! first break in 4-5 months i think. he got a correction and then didnt move - he ended up doing a 5 minute sit too. he was very serious about that :)

utility -
started with articles. he worked the pile very nicely - now terry says i need to start really demanding he come in much closer on his fronts and stop reaching for them - start upping what i am asking from him, and not reach out for them at all, period. he got all of his retrieves happily and correctly. i was pleased with that!

did gloves - extended my close fronts (didnt worry about so straight right now) to this as well. ive been doing my signal to go get the glove wrong this entire time, and thats going to be a hard habit to break. i really need to work on that. rah did well, i added in pivots for the first time today. but he sometimes goes for 2 when i send him for 3. need to work on that.

go outs were nice and straight. for the next week my homework is to start weaning him off of his prize on the gate. his DJ has gotten great and he was too smart -figured out that after he does high, the bar comes next and did it on his own. bastard. we spent the rest of the time trying to trick him :)

moving stand ok - signals rah got distracted and missed his. BAD rah!!!

i am so tired...