Windy Spot Cabin had a temporary guest from September 15 to September 17, 2022… Rocky, an owner surrender. Rocky was given up by his family because they could not provide him with the proper amount of exercise to keep him happy. He is also a very large boy and was too strong for the owner.
Rocky is a small pony… lol… very tall and almost 70 lbs at just 10 months old!
Traditional foster weigh-in:
During his stay with us he enjoyed swimming in the lake and jumping off the dock!
Such an emotional weekend with so SO much to be thankful for. Although many tears were shed as we spent the weekend at the same facility that we competed at when we lost our Sweet Reet, we shared just as many if not more laughs and celebrations with our dock dogs family. This community is truly amazing. We thoroughly enjoyed our time with everyone. Congratulations and great job to all competitors who participated throughout this weekend… and a HUGE thank you to Christine at Canine Superheroes as well as dockdogs staff Linda, Sean, and Joe for a safe, fun, and well-run event …we very much appreciate all of your hard work!
Limoncello
Cello looked pretty as usual as she paddled through the air and jumped exceptionally well despite limited dock time (doctor’s orders due to her decline in heart health and some arthritis).
Big Air:
14’7″
15’4″
Hooch
Hooch has steadily been jumping in the 21-22 feet range for quite some time now, but busted out a 23’8” jump this weekend, and earned several 1st place medals for his Big Air jumps.
Big Air:
23’8″ 2nd Place Master Division
22’11” 1st PlaceMaster Division
22’3″ 1st PlaceMaster Division
22’2″ 2nd Place Master Division
22’7″ 1st PlaceMaster Division
Speet Retrieve:
7.795 seconds
6.997 seconds
Lager
Lager did well in Big Air and took first place in Speed Retrieve Round 1 (Turbo Division). He also thoroughly enjoyed competing in Dueling Dogs.
Big Air:
18’1″
18’10”
18’5″
Speed Retrieve:
7.054 seconds 1st Place Turbo Division
Lager competing in Dueling Dogs (Lager is on the right)
Whiskey
Wish the Fish took 59.999 seconds out of the allotted 60 seconds…but jumped 4 out of the 6 times she was on the dock, and of course entertained the crowd with her dock antics (multiple times she decided zoomies on the dock was much more fun than jumping in the pool)!
Big Air:
7’6″
6’7″ 1st Place Novice Division
6’9″ 2nd Place Novice Division
7’5″ 1st Place Novice Division
Porter
PoPo was thrilled to play with a puppy and 2 adorable children two days in a row and did a great job of glomming attention and pets from everyone he could. He even took a nap with Justin from team Malinois Mania DockDiving! As a token of his gratitude, he left each visitor with enough Po hair on clothing to make their own take-home mini Porter souvenir.
Jägermeister
Jäger did well in competition, and took first place in Speed Retrieve Round 2 (Turbo Division). He quickly made himself well-known with the crowd as he decided that he enjoyed staying IN the pool was way more fun than getting out.
Big Air:
18’9″ 3rd Place Senior Division
20’7″
19’5″ 2nd Place Senior Division
Speed Retrieve:
7.823 seconds
7.002 1st Place Turbo Division
Extreme Vertical:
4’6″
Iron Dog:
2739.21 points 5th Place Warrior Division
Martini
Tini did WONDERFULLY- she was confident in her crate under our team canopy, welcomed visitors sitting outside of her crate, and also accepted treats from new people. Special thanks to the kind, amazing (and very patient) people who sat on the ground next to her crate and helped our Tini Beanie tremendously.
Liver Killer Bling
Remembering Reet
The number of people Margarita touched in her short time with us continues to amaze us. Rita’s passing was a devastating loss and the tributes to her as well as the support we continue to receive is beyond appreciated and will never be forgotten. Thank you to all of you at Canine Superheroes this weekend.
Team Malinois Mania had a special collar made for their pup, Scout to wear in honor of Sweet Reet!
All competitors at the event tossed a lei in the competition pool in honor of Margarita as the song “Candle in the Wind” by Elton John played over the event speakers.
We had taken ourselves “off the market” for fostering, but this guy found himself in a bit of a predicament and needed a spur-of-the-moment place to go, so……Meet Jäger!
(He came to us with this name, I swear!) This handsome root beer head is a 3 year old German Shorthaired Pointer. He is an owner-surrender because his family could no longer take care of him with his special needs. Unfortunately Jäger suffers from seizures due to Epilepsy. Jäger has a dominant personality and from what we know at this point will most likely need to be adopted into an only-dog household. He is be available through GSP Rescue of New Jersey to approved adopters in NJ and NY. Further medical and behavioral details about Jäger will be shared privately with approved potential adopters.
Located in the Fairmount Neighborhood of Philadelphia, PA, and set in a 19th century firehouse, Jack’s Firehouse is definitely worth a visit! Jack’s Firehouse is located directly across from Eastern State Penitentiary on Fairmount Avenue.
Margarita
Margarita
Even though we sat at the dog-friendly outdoor seating area, Brian and I each took a moment to explore the inside of this unique establishment. Most of the original mahogany interior, wooden plank flooring, and yes, even the brass fire pole are still intact! There is also a racing shell suspended over top the bar.
What great history this place has! The fire company that originally occupied Jack’s was Truck A, now referred to as Ladder Company 1 and located on Parish Street in Philadelphia. Truck A was the first paid Philadelphia Fire Department in 1871.
We enjoyed a glass of wine and ordered the Calamari with Hot Pepper Chips, Carrots, and Hot Lava – and it was absolutely amazing! We enjoyed being able to take in the historic, yet sometimes eerie views of Eastern State Penitentiary.
Located in the Fairmount Neighborhood of Philadelphia, PA on Fairmount Avenue, Urban Saloon has outdoor seating, is dog-friendly (they even bring our a bowl of water for your pup!) and is situated directly across from Eastern State Penitentiary.
Margarita visited here in 2019
Margarita
Margarita
Cello was here on April 27, 2014!
Limoncello
Limoncello
“Not a worry in the world, a PBR on the way – Life is good today. Life is good today.” ~ Zac Brown Band
It was exciting, yet eerie to enjoy a glass of wine at their outdoor seating area while gazing at the historic Eastern State Penitentiary.
This was our first time competing at this event. We were super-excited since we were able to camp on the RaittHomestead Farm Museum for the entire weekend!
Limoncello: Team Coach
In between yelling at the boys and after the competition, Cello had a chance to jump off the dock and swim in the pool. In our eyes, she won 1st Place for prettiest girl on the dock this weekend.
Hooch
Hooooooooooooch had a great weekend! He is brand new to competing in Speed Retrieve and Iron Dog AND to learning the Chase Method during Big Air … and he rocked the dock in all 3 areas, despite the mistakes his Mama made, and with him being a beginner in all three “new” games! We have a lot to work on as a team, but I am so proud of this little guy!!
Big Air:
20’3″
22’0″
Finals:
21’2″ 🥉3rd Place Elite Division Big Air Finals
Extreme Vertical:
6’0″ 🥉3rd Place Top Gun Division
Speed Retrieve:
6.690 seconds 🏅New Personal Best score!
Iron Dog:
2939.05 points 🥈2nd Place Gladiator Division
🥉Out of all the competitors this weekend, Hooch won 3 Place Overall in the Iron Dog competition!
Lager
Lager started off the weekend in a little bit of a slump, and was hesitating a bit on the dock. He pulled it together by the end of the competition though!
Big Air:
17’6″
17’8″ 2nd Place Senior Division
19’10” 1st Place Senior Division
Finals:
20’1″ 🥇1st Place Senior Division Big Air Finals
Speed Retrieve:
7.310 seconds 🥉3rd Place Turbo Division Speed Retrieve
The announcer at this event was a Massachusettes Law Enforcement Officer, and he “coined” Lager! The history of “coining” began in the ancient Roman army, where coins were presented as rewards. The U.S. tradition goes back to the 1960’s. A member of hte 11th SFG over-stamped old coins with a new emblem. The 10th SFG was the fist to mint a custom coin and remained the only Army unit with its own coin until the 1980’s. Originally the coins were given to recognized outstanding achievements. They are now used to build unit morale and cohesion. During the Vietnam Era, the “challenge-response” was added to the tradition. A soldier can be “challenged” to show his or her unit coin. Those that cannot have to “buy a round.”
Margarita: Team Cheerleader
Sweet Reet took a break from cheering on the team and caught up on some beauty rest this weekend in preparation to kick some Lymphoma butt this week!!! 💪🏼.
Whiskey
Despite the brand new toys Mom bought for this competition, Wish the Fish decided she would rather be a Land Shark this weekend, and timed-out in her jumps.
Porter: Team Manager
Porter had a great day of napping and taking walks around the farm on Saturday.
However, even though his meds have just been increased, the second night on the farm around 10pm he had another series of seizures. Luckily, his emergency injection of Midazolam brought him out of the seizures and he did not have to go to the ER. It had been 20 days since his last episode.
Overall, we had a great trip to Maine and enjoyed this competition!
On Friday night, October 26, 2018, Brian and I were on our way out the door to go to dinner when we got a call about someone in our area who wanted to surrender their German Shorthaired Pointer, and wanted the dog out of the home as soon as possible. GSP Rescue of NJ had a foster family who quickly stepped up to foster, so all we needed to do was pick up the dog and have her as our guest for the weekend until the foster family could pick her up.
We contacted the owner, and postponed our dinner plans.
We met Maxeen in the owners home. Her owner told us that Maxeen is 15 months old, and was purchased as a hunting dog. Maxeen did not have any interest in hunting, and spent a lot of time in her crate. Since her owner was avid hunter, and knew he could not give Maxeen the time she needed, he thought it was best to re-home her. After proper paperwork was filled out, we brought Maxeen back home with us.
We weighed her in on the antique scale, as we do with all of our fosters…
Maxeen was amazing. Super affectionate, crate trained, house trained, and very eager to please!
Maxeen went with her foster family on Sunday. In a few days, that family decided they were interested in adopting her. Before the adoption was official, however, Maxeen and the foster family’s resident dog had a few issues with getting along. It was determined that Maxeen was not a good fit for the foster family to adopt – and in everyone’s best interest, it was determined that the ideal situation was to find Maxeen another foster. Rather than have Maxeen go through another adjustment getting used to another family, we decided to take Maxeen back to our house until she found a forever home.
On November 27th, we picked Maxeen up again to take her in as our longer-term foster.
Maxeen is smart, full of energy, and willing to please!
GSP Rescue of NJ had many approved applicants waiting to add a fur-kid to their family. However, that list was greatly narrowed down knowing that Maxeen was best fit to be an only-dog.
When we spoke to the family we thought was the best match for Maxeen, we knew immediately that they’d love her like we would! They drove 3 hours to come meet her on December 8, 2018 , and as soon as they came through the door, Maxeen greeted them both with lots of kisses.
We all knew immediately that Maxeen’s forever family had been found, and Maxeen’s Christmas wish had come true! Her family took her home with them that day.
Agatha is a three year-old German Shorthaired Pointer who was found as a stray in Northern New Jersey. GSP Rescue of NJ stepped in to help this sweet girl. Agatha was on stray-hold for a week, and then was spayed by the rescue’s vet in North Jersey.
On November 16th, we drove north about an hour to a turnpike rest-stop to meet a fellow rescue volunteer who offered to transport Agatha so we didn’t have to drive as far to pick her up.
Agatha had a stuffed monkey to help her heal from her surgery.
Once we met her in person, we quickly agreed that Agatha looked more like an English Pointer than a German Shorthaired Pointer.
Another fellow GSP Rescue volunteer who had seen our pictures of Agatha on our Facebook, fell in love, and decided to adopt her!
One of my students fell in love with Agatha and drew her picture as a gift to her forever family.
Just a few days later, on the night before Thanksgiving, the rescue volunteer and her husband came to meet Agatha, and took her home!
Hooch was chosen to do a photo shoot for the 2019 Subaru Forester seat cover!
He is currently featured online in the accessory options when building your own Subaru Forester online, as well as in the accessories brochure within the dealerships. Some dealerships also have a window cling that Hooch is featured on!
Did you know that Subaru works with the Southeastern Guide Dogs, a non-profit organization dedicated solely to the task of helping blind men and women achieve independence through the means of a guide dog. Subaru sponsors a number of events that fund the training and development of guide dogs, who will ultimately be paired with people who need them.
During the month of October, through the “Subaru Loves Pets initiative,” Subaru retailers also collect new pet supplies to donate to local animal organizations in the dealership’s communities, and provide shelter supply kits for fur-kids awaiting adoption. They also donate starter kits for new pet-adopting families.
I am not a fan of bridges – especially narrow ones (yikes!).
However, I do my best to put my fear aside so that I don’t miss out on the beautiful scenery of the Thousand Islandsarea on either side of the bridge. The view is gorgeous, and you get to see many of the privately owned islands while crossing the bridge.
The past few years we had taken a few extra days off for this trip, so we are usually the first ones there! We love how close our camper is to the pool!
This was also the first trip in our new camper!
We upgraded to a bigger camper with double slides so we could have more room !
Limoncello: Team Coach
Limoncello enjoyed lounging in the camper with Margarita. Coaching Hooch and Lager is a “ruff” job – so Cello relieved some stress by getting a massage from our friend, Marti, at Pawz Therapy.
Hooch
Big Air
22’6″
23’3″ 1st Place Elite Division
22’9″
24’1″ 1st Place Elite Division
23’3″ 1st Place Elite Division
22’9″
Big Air Pro Division Finals: 22’6
Extreme Vertical All-in-One Final Format
This probably was the most exciting Extreme Vertical for Hooch and Jenny as a team! Hooch matched his personal best, grabbed the bumper at 6’6″ and in the end earned 3rd Place Top Gun Division – but not before Hooch had to go into a “jump-off” with 2 other dogs who were in a 3-way tie with him!
Lager
Big Air
17’7″
19’1″
20’9″ 2nd Place Master Division
18’6″ 2nd Place Senior Division
19’2″ 1st Place Senior Division
19’8″ 1st Place Senior Division
Extreme Vertical All-in-One Final Format
6’2″
Speed Retrieve All-in-One Final Format
7.037seconds 1st Place Turbo Division
Iron Dog All-in-One Final Format
2920.34 3rd Place Gladiator Division
Margarita: Team Cheerleader
Margarita made sure to get her beauty rest in the camper with Limoncello in between cheering-on her siblings during the competition. She also enjoyed a massage with Marti!
Whiskey (Wish): First Ever DockDogs Competition AND Adoption Day!
Whiskey was still our foster dog, Wish at the time of this trip. However, she had begun jumping into the lake at home, so I figured, why not try her up on the dock?!?!
We had been calling her “Wish the Fish,” so I bought Whiskey very own “fish wubba” for the dock.
I registered her under the name “WISHkey,” as a guest Liver Killer team member, and hoped for the best! Whiskey not only jumped into the pool, but earned herself a DockDogs World Championship invitation!
Big Air
5’10”
4’3″
7’0″ Second Place Novice Division
6’3″ Second Place Novice Division
We had fallen in love with Whiskey long before this trip, but had been fighting the urge to adopt her. We decided while on this trip we would no longer fight that fight, and called Pointer Rescue, Organization to let them know we would like to adopt her. Welcome home, Tennessee Whiskey!
Liver Killer Bling
We had been known for our American Flag team canopy for quite some time now. Unfortunately, at this event, a huge wind gust came along and mangled it! We have been searching for another one ever since.
This was also not a very good “maiden voyage” in our new camper. It had rained very hard the last day of this competition, and the ground became extremely muddy. We sank – A LOT – and had to get towed out.
Luckily there was no damage done to the camper and we made it safely home!
As the start of our 2018 Dock Diving season quickly approaches, we wanted to share the following with our family, friends and followers:
After some recent testing, Limoncello was diagnosed with dilated cardiomyopathy (a heart disease that causes dilation and poor contractility of the heart muscle). It was also discovered that Cello also has two leaky heart valves. After a long and difficult discussion with our veterinarian, it was determined that the best choice for Cello at this time is to retire her from dock diving.
Although we are disappointed that Cello’s dock diving career has come to an end, we are focusing our energy on celebrating her dock diving journey and how it has positively impacted our lives: her many notable accomplishments, the abundance of joy it has brought us, the amazing people we have met, the incredible dogs we have seen, the spectacular places we have visited, and the unforgettable memories we will continue to cherish. …We have SO MUCH to be grateful for because of Cello!
Without Cello on the dock this year, it will be an emotional dock diving season for sure. However, we are so thankful that because of the knowledge, expertise, and advice of Cello’s veterinarian and cardiologist, we were made aware of her condition before the season began. We are also looking at this unfortunate news as a positive opportunity to explore less intense bonding activities with Cello such as Barn Hunt, Nose Work, and Rally. We fondly anticipate learning new things, setting new goals, overcoming new challenges, traveling to new places, meeting more wonderful people, and building additional priceless memories. But above of all – we look forward to the many years of love and companionship we will treasure with Cello.
Even if we don’t understand why at this point, we are firm believers in “change is good” and “all things happen for a reason.” We are hopeful and eager to discover what new adventures will be had as Cello once again broadens our path. However, if Cello decides that in her early retirement she’d rather just relax, we welcome that change-of-pace as well.
Hooch and Lager will still be on the dock this year. We look forward to seeing our dock diving family this season.
The Dock Diving Diva’s Personal Bests:
•Big Air (on camera): 25’0”
•Extreme Vertical: 5’6”
•Speed Retrieve: 7.371 seconds
•Iron Dog: 2869.62 points *2016 DockDogs #1 Warrior Iron Dog in the World
The Fairhill International Fairgrounds hosted Four Paws, One Cause – an event where where multiple dog rescues came together and brought their adoptable dogs in order to find them loving FURever families. The purpose of this event was to bring together all kinds of different people with one similar passion: a love for dogs!
This event not only hosted the DockDogs competition, it also featured the world champion frisbee dogs featured on America’s Got Talent as well. There was live music, face painting, bounce houses, over one hundred vendors, great food, craft beer tastings, and wine tastings throughout each day!
Limoncello
Big Air:
19′ 9″
19’5″
Extreme Vertical: 5’0″
Speed Retrieve: 9.583 seconds
Iron Dog Score: 2563.55 2nd Place Warrior Division
Hooch
Big Air:
23’11”
Big Air Pro Division Finals: 24′ 0″ 1st Place Pro Division
Lager
Big Air with Brian:
18′ 2″
19’2″ 2nd Place Senior Division
20’5″ 3rd Place Master Division
Extreme Vertical with Jenny:
5’10” 1st Place Cadet Division
Margarita
Our Team Cheerleader enjoyed snoozing under the canopy in the rain, and snacking on goodies throughout the day!
Liver Killer Bling:
Best of all, through our winnings, we were able to raise $100 for the GSP Rescue of NJ!
We were able to camp right in the parking lot at SteelStacks too!
Limoncello:
This was a very “off” event for Cello. She was definitely not herself, and it showed through in her performance. We wound up scratching her from some of her jumps until we could get her seen by a vet to be sure she was OK.
Picture Credit: Pics By Kim
Big Air:
20’9″
19’7″
19’1″
Extreme Vertical:
4’10”
Speed Retrieve:
9.208 seconds
Hooch:
Photo Credit: Becca Conner
Big Air:
23’3″ 1st Place Elite
23’6″ 1st Place Elite
23’2″ 2nd Place Elite
Photo Credit: Pics By Kim
Lager:
Big Air (with Jenny)
19’2″
18’0″
Photo credit: Pics By Kim
Big Air (with Brian)
18’0″ 3rd Place Senior
20’0″
Photo credit: Pics By Kim
Extreme Vertical (with Jenny)
5’8″ 1st Place Cadet
Pic Credit: Becca Conner
Margarita:
Margarita enjoyed her time chewing on treats, playing with toys, getting attention from fellow competitors, and hanging out with an adorable Bernese Mountain Dog puppy!
Liver Killer Bling: Gift bag full of goodies, medals, and ribbons!
If you are in the area and can stop at SteelStacks, it’s worth the trip – the stacks are amazing to see in person, and they host some pretty cool events and great concerts!
National Limerick Day is celebrated annually on May 12, and celebrates the birthday of English artist, illustrator, author and poet Edward Lear, known mostly for his literary nonsense in poetry and limericks.
National Limerick Day also celebrates the limerick poem. Limerick poems were popularized by Edward Lear’s book “Book of Nonsense.”
A limerick is a very short, humorous, nonsense poem. A limerick has five lines. The first two lines rhyme with the fifth line and the third and fourth line rhyme together.
Here is an example:
THERE WAS A YOUNG LADY By Edward Lear
There was a Young Lady whose chin Resembled the point of a pin; So she had it made sharp, and purchased a harp, And played several tunes with her chin.
Here at Cello’s Corner we thought it would be fun to try and create a Limerick about Limoncello. So on May 12, I did my best on writing my first Limerick:
During the weekend of April 22-23, The Liver Killers attended one of our favorite competitions held annually at Frontier Town Campground.
We absolutely love this campground – and the dogs LOVE the waterfront campsite !
Here are the dock diving results from this event:
Limoncello
Big Air:
19’6″
19’9″
19’9″
Extreme Vertical: 4’10”
Speed Retrieve: 8.418 seconds
Iron Dog: 2678.44 points (3rd Place Warrior Division)
Hooch
Big Air:
24’4″
Finals: 23’2″ (First Place)
Extreme Vertical: 6’0″
Lager
Big Air:
19’0″
19’4″
Extreme Vertical: 5’8″ (2nd Place)
Margarita:
Margarita enjoyed competing in a Pie Eating Contest, where she earned herself a 6th Place ribbon!
Rita also enjoyed Lure Coursing… but perhaps enjoyed the horses around the Lure Coursing field more so than the Lure Coursing itself, as she ignored the lure, and bolted off to the fence-line to see the horses! 🙁
You may remember that when Hooch was a puppy, he won a contest to have his own greeting card. Well, the greeting card is in print, and it will be ready for purchase after December 26, 2016!
Here is the original photo I took of Hooch in September of 2014. Hooch was 4 months old in this photo, and was still afraid to go in the lake. This sad little puppy face was laying on the dock at our house watching his big sis, Limoncello have fun diving and swimming!
Front of greeting card:
Wagging Tail Portraits has their Wet Nose Greetings in over 90 stores so far, including 10 Whole Foods Markets in the Mid-Atlantic area!
Each year, Wagging Tail Portraits donates a portion of their proceeds to animal rescue groups!
Check out their website for many unique gift ideas featuring YOUR pup!
The students at The Calais School have created a “Wall of Stars,” honoring Veterans and current Military members. One of the students made a star very special to our hearts… Lager (War Zone name, Nayt).
A fellow GSP Rescue of NJ volunteer and friend, and GSP Rescue of NJ alumni, Sage the GSP, told one of the school’s students about Lager. Thank you to this student who chose to honor Lager, and created this star so perfectly!
We are grateful to have Lager be a part of the Wall of Stars at The Calais School, and we will forever cherish this!
Each Thursday during June through October, The Old Oar House Irish Pub hosts a “Doggie Date Night, ” where dogs are welcomed to join you as you dine in their outdoor seating area. A portion of the proceeds from your food bill goes to the Cumberland County SPCA. This particular Doggie Date Night was a very special (and rainy!) one… Margarita and her heart-throb and fellow English Pointer, Mr. Spock, helped out the Cumberland County SPCA, and got engaged!
Margarita got Mr. Spock some special engagement gifts!
And Mr. Spock had a good friend make Margarita the most perfect and beautiful engagement necklace!
There were lots of party decorations and favors!
All our 4-legged friends go dressed up for the PAWty!
And lots of people and pups came to the PAWty even though it was raining – I bet you they came for this yummy homemade cake!
We’re Engaged!
Margarita showing off her new necklace:
The happy couple enjoying some of their engagement cake together:
What a fun night with good food, friends and pups! Best of all, we were able to help out the Cumberland County SPCA!
Both Limoncello and Margarita did very well this weekend! Both gals ran 2 Novice runs, and both secured one qualifying Novice score toward their Novice title. The Novice level requires the dogs to find the tube containing the rat, complete a tunnel, and have all-fours up on a hay bale (in no particular order) within two minutes. Cello and Rita will need two more qualifying scores to earn their Novice title.
Margarita
Instinct Run: Qualified! 13.53 seconds (new Personal Best!)
*For those of you wondering why we participated at the Instinct level when Rita is already titled at this level, you are allowed to still do an Instinct run to get your pup warmed up as long as the dog has not titled in Novice.
Novice Run 1:Qualified! 1:44.71 seconds
Novice Run 2:Rita completed the tunnel, and before she could attempt the hay bale climb, Jenny jumped-the-gun and called the wrong
location of the rat.
Rita’s First Qualifying Novice Score Ribbon!
Limoncello
Instinct Run: Brian called the wrong location of the rat.
*For those of you wondering why we participated at the Instinct level when Cello is already titled at this level, you are allowed to still do an Instinct run to get your pup warmed up as long as the dog has not titled in Novice.
Novice Run 1: Qualified! 1:50.82 seconds
Novice Run 2:Cello executed the tunnel and the hay bale climb, but Brian called the wrong location of the rat.
Brian and Cello in Novice Run 2:
Cello’s First Qualifying Novice Score Ribbon!
Overall, we had a fun day, and enjoyed Barn Hunt with our two little gals!
We attended our first official Barn Hunt trial at Tail Waggin’ Events! If you are unsure of what Barn Hunt is, click HERE to read all about it!
Saturday:
Margarita had shown great interest in this sport up until the extreme heat wave set in. She does not do well in the heat, and we are unsure if the extreme temperature is the cause, but she seems to have lost interest in Barn Hunt. We had been practicing for a couple of weeks – both at barn facilities, and at home. Rita had been actively finding the rat and enthusiastically signaling the location, and had learned “up!” as the command to jump up on to a hay bale, and “tunnel!” as the command to go through the hay bale tunnel. She was executing all those elements over the past couple of weeks, but appeared uninterested at the trial. We will continue to bring her to practices, as well as sign her up for trials through the Fall and next Spring to see if the cooler weather helps spark her interest again. Despite her nonchalant attitude, and her Mama’s lack of skills in reading when Rita picked up the rat scent, Rita did pretty well, earning her Instinct Title!
Instinct Test: PASS!Time: 49 seconds
Rita’s Instinct qualifying ribbon
Novice Class: Timed out
Rita pretty much shut down in the heat of the day, and wasn’t very cooperative in the barn ring. She did give indication that she found the rat (which I missed completely…something I definitely have to improve upon if we continue to participate in this sport!) and would not complete the hay bale climb or tunnel.
Rita is now Instinct titled in Barn Hunt!
Sunday:
We decided to make Sunday a “Girls’ Day,” and bring Limoncello along to participate in Barn Hunt!
Margarita
Margarita showed NO interest again today!
Novice Class: Disqualified!
Margarita again would not execute the hay bale climb or the tunnel in her Sunday Novice run. She did find the rat (and Jenny was able to identify Rita’s barely-there-signal!), however, Rita then immediately peed in the barn (oops!), which according to Barn Hunt rules is a disqualification.
Limoncello
Cello had never even practiced before today, yet passed her Instinct test in just a few seconds, and did really well in her Novice run!
Instinct Test: PASS!Time: 17 seconds
Limoncello’s Instinct qualifying ribbon
Novice Class: Fail: Brian called incorrect location of rat
Limoncello completing the hay bale climb and tunnel requirements:
Limoncello hunting for the rat:
Overall, it was a very fun day learning more about Barn Hunt, and how to read Rita and Cello’s instinctive hunting behaviors!
This is our 2nd year attending this event, (Click HERE to see last year’s event!) and we plan to be back again next year.
What an awesome event in a beautiful setting!
LIMONCELLO
BIG AIR:
21’3″ 2nd Place Master Division
21’6″ 1st Place Master Division
Big AIR SEMI PRO FINALS: 20’10” 2nd Place Semi Pro Division
EXTREME VERTICAL: 5’6″ 2nd Place Cadet Division
SPEED RETRIEVE: 8.903 seconds
IRON DOG: 2727.38 points 1st Place Warrior Division
HOOCH
BIG AIR:
22’9″
23’0″ 1st Place Elite Division
21’4″
BIG AIR PRO DIVISION FINALS: 23’7″ 2nd Place Pro Division
EXTREME VERTICAL: 6’0″
LAGER
After competing for the weekend, Lager took his first walk on the beach, and swam in salt water for the first time in the Chesapeake Bay!
BIG AIR:
18’0″
18’11” 3rd Place Senior Division
17’11” 3rd Place Senior Division
16’9″ 2nd Place Senior Division
EXTREME VERTICAL: 6’0″
MARGARITA
In between cheering for her brothers and sister, Rita enjoyed her first walk on the beach, and her first swim in salt water (The Chesapeake Bay). She also enjoyed a doggie ice cream treat to help beat the extreme heat!
PV Pets hosted Pet Palooza this year. For this event we did not have to camp, as it was only about an hour away from our home!
Limoncello:
Big Air: 20’10” 2nd Place Master Division
Big Air Semi-Pro Division Finals: 20’9″ 1st Place
Extreme Vertical: 5’0″ 2nd Place Cadet
Photo Credit: Becca Connor
Speed Retrieve: 7.788 seconds
Iron Dog: 2764.16 points 1st Place Iron Dog Warrior
Hooch:
Big Air:
21’9″
22’5″
Big Air Pro Division Finals: 23’2″ 1st Place
Photo Credit: Becca Connor
Lager:
Big Air:
18’6″
17’4″
18’1″ 2nd Place Senior Division
17’10” 1st Place Senior Division
Photo Credit: KJ Photography
Margarita:
Margarita helped us sell these Patriotic bandanas made by our fellow rescue friends, Jen and Grace. All proceeds go to the United States War Dogs Association!
Meet Jäger!
