Video of freestyle

Here's the link to the video of our competition performances and scores...

VIDEO:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GLa4IKkwE2A

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Freestyle title!

We competed this weekend in the "Paws A Rockin" Freestyle event in Marion OH.  The photo above is blurry, but that's the best my little camera could do since flash photography isn't allowed and my flash wouldn't have carried far enough anyway.  A sincere thank-you to those who took photos for me, I know it's not your fault the photos are blurry!  Good news is that a private pro photographer was there taking photos of another dog and she was willing to also take some photos for me- for free! A huge thank-you to Amber Scott of All In One Studios in Franklin OH.  Her website is http://www.allinonestudios.smugmug.com/  I will soon be getting a disk with some much better quality photos on it and I gave her permission to put the photos on her website too. I'll post some here later when the disk arrives.

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We had a Belgian flag design and did our routine to the first 2 min. of "The Belgian Song"  The whole song can be heard on YouTube here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTrNh3BlBLk I'm working on the videos of our routine.  I may or may not need to wait till I'm back home to upload them.

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Dazzle did REALLY well and performed off-leash, in the new place, with great focus on me.  Focus and performance were actually better on Sunday, but the scores don't reflect that for some reason.

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On Saturday, we got an 8.7 for Technical Merit (out of a possible 10) and an 8.7 for Artistic Impression (out of a possible 10).  Great scores for a Beginner routine!

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On Sunday, we only got a 7.9 for TM, even though I thought it felt much more precise and smooth, but the AI score was higher than yesterday- 8.9

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I am thrilled with how well he did in a new place, off-leash and with an audience clapping during the routine for parts they liked, etc.  It earned him a new title of: W-FD/MF (which stands for: WCFO- Freestyle Dog/Musical Freestyle) WCFO stands for World Canine Freestyle Organization. On Saturday, we got a "judge's choice" award (a wrist watch) and a tug toy (though that was a separate award and I didn't write down what it was for, so now I can't recall).  On Sunday, we got a "highest scoring beginner A" prize (a book of tricks) as well as a nice trophy.

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Anita was nice enough to let me stay with her on Saturday night (Thank-you Anita!) and her dog Ceaser really enjoyed having Dazzle for a sleep over :-)  They played all evening in both the house and the yard- running and wrestling and having a blast.  I was worried that Dazzle might be tired and cranky for his Sunday routine, but I let him sleep in the van all morning till I was just about to take him in the ring.  Seems to have worked well!

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I'm looking forward to future freestyle competitions!  It's a great group of fun and friendly people.  It's also a more laid-back pace than most of the shows I have attended.  With about 24 compeditors each day and only 1 judge (who had to take a bit of time to do his written eval of each performance) there was plenty of time between routines and to get the next dog ready without feeling rushed.

Parade

This evening we participated in a large parade as a member of the training club's group. I don't know how many people/dogs we ended up with, but I know there were over 17 dogs, which is what I counted at one point while waiting.  The above photo was taken while we waited about an hour for the parade to get to our group's start.  As you can see, I didn't walk.  I'm SO glad I brought the bike because from the car, to the meet-up spot, then the whole parade and getting back to the car was quite the trip.  Dazzle was confused about why he was hooked to the bike but we just waited and waited, but he enjoyed schmoozing with the other dogs and people there.

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When we actually got to move, it was slow going, but I did very little peddling. Actually my hand is sore from having to keep the brake applied!  He was glad when we got to the end and was able to move out in a nice trot to get back to the van before it got completely dark :-) The participation and turn out for this parade is amazing!  I had heard of it, but didn't realize it was so big!  The parade started at 6pm and our group (in Division 8) didn't start till after 7:30! And the crowds you see below were typical along the whole route- several people deep.

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Dazzle is getting fixed

Well, the saying goes... "if it ain't broke, don't fix it!" But since his attitude seems to be starting to break down, he's going to the vet early next month to get an attitude adjustment. I had planned to wait till he was around 18 months old, but based on his X-rays he had done for his hips, his growth plates were almost closed at that time and he will be 14 months old when it's done.  So I don't think it will be a problem. He hasn't gained any height since he reached 24" tall when he was about 8 months old.  
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He and Coyote have gotten into a few fights in the past 5 or so months, and with Coyote half blind and smaller, he's getting the worst of it.  Although the two have really serious fights, neither has gotten badly injured (scratches, hair pulled out, minor punctures) so I'm thankful they both have good bite inhibition and tough skin!  But since both Mike and I HAVE gotten some serious bites trying to break them up, it's definitely time.
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The fights are rare, but when they occur both dogs are pretty serious about not backing down or letting go.  I am noticing more posturing within the last month.  Dazzle seems to be the one starting most of the fights, but Coyote's not completely innocent.  I'm hoping that when Dazzle is no longer affected by "testoterone poisoning", we'll have peace restored.
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We are keeping a close eye on both of them in high arousal situations like when Mike or I comes home.  When they are not over-excited, they are fine around each other.  This afternoon when the neighbor was mowing his lawn, I kept Dazzle in the office with me while Coyote went out to "defend the yard" from the eeevil tractor.
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I am doing my best to reward correct interactions and redirect any posturing as well as using prevention at times when high arousal is likely, which I think has helped keep the fights rare. But I don't want to risk someone getting a ear bitten off or an eye punctured or some other serious injury.
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I stopped by the vet to pick up some supplements Coyote gets and put Dazzle on the scale. He now weighs 59 lbs!  I have found that mixing in pureed liver with his food has done the trick to get him to eat. He was 55 lbs 1 month ago, so he's gaining a bit of weight and looks good - more like a filled out adult than a skinny puppy and his hip bones aren't prominent anymore. This is a good weight for him, so I might cut back just slightly on his rations to maintain it.
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Storm issues

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I guess it's offical- Dazzle is afraid of thunder.  It's 3 in the morning and I'm wide awake because he's definitely wide awake and trying to get inside my skin.  He started off running between me (in the office) and the sliding glass door near the kitchen barking ferociously every time he heard a thunder rumble.  Then he proceeded to crawl in my lap or try to get under the desk while shaking, panting, drooling, shedding, the works. Oh joy.
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I saw hints of this during the last storm so I have tried hard to gradually and carefully pair loud noises with his favorite things.  Not easy when he doesn't care for food treats which makes it hard to do rapidly repeated rewards.  But I have played and tossed/tugged his favorite tennis ball and even had the bite sleeve out.  At the festival Saturday, he spooked at the whip crack, but then recovered.  He didn't like the distant cannons, but he wasn't anywhere near this freaked out (thankfully!) I don't understand why tonight it's so bad.
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Between the storm cells when it quieted down he was willing to play with the ball and he chewed on a bone for awhile.  But as soon as it's loud again, he's back to trying to get into my skin.
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At least we're near the end of the storm season.  Hopefully by next spring he will have matured out of this.  Probably wishful thinking.  I may get and try some Melatonin for the next storm. Or maybe we'll have to move to TX.  I hear they are having a drought.
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Sleepless but sleepy

Ren Fest

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It was a great day to be outside enjoying history, well history with a large side helping of humor :-) 

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Dazzle and I visited the Renaissance Festival today.  He did great with the odd costumes, and the unusual sights, sounds and smells.  We were a bit too close to the front for a whip routine and he starled and barked at the whip crack, but recovered well.  He wasn't too keen on the cannon fire of the Pirate ship either (though we weren't anywhere near it). But other than those two things, he did quite well! 

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We strolled from one show to the next, so mostly I was sitting and he was relaxing in the shade chewing on sticks or snacking on grass. :-)  I did bring a bully stick for him to chew on (apparently certain sticks were better) and a ball for him to play with during the down times.  He was pulling a bit at the start because he kept wanting to go faster, but relented and walked nicely when he realized it was a "slow pace" day and not a "dog event" for him :-)  We saw a few other service dogs and spoke with several people who have, had or train service dogs as well as several people inquiring about his breed.

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Here's a few photos from the day:

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It was a VERY busy day there! But it only felt crowded in a few spots, like the "road" in this photo.  The rest of the event was more spread out and didn't feel so crowded.

We even saw the Queen! This was a parade of merchants and performers followed by the Queen on horseback.

Dazzle wasn't phased by the parade from our spot in the shade where he was chewing on a ball. Jugglers, drums, dancers, horses, odd costumes, yelling, singing...
- no big deal! :-)

I sat in the "chapel" to rest in the shade and this performer sat down and was talking to me about Dazzle and when she strummed her guitar he was all ears!  I wish I had gotten a photo of his head turned sideways, but this was the best I got.  Dazzle really liked the sound and had his tail wagging and eyes riveted on her as she played for the first couple minutes. After that, he laid down and chewed on a stick :-)

Muuuuudddd Shhhooowwww! 

The Mud Show is THE BEST!  We went to two of their shows and I emensely enjoyed both.  It seems they didn't practice their routine in the past 10 months because one guy kept forgetting his lines (and said "I guess we should have rehersed!")  But they did a great job of ad-libbing and kept the audience in stitches.  During the second show, they found a sign on stage that said "sauerkraut balls" and they found that to be funny, so they worked it into the show and it was hillarious! They said it worked so well, they might keep it in the routine!

I had Dazzle pose with 2 of them after their show. What he really wanted was to check out their mud pit! Yes, the guys are covered in mud! The one guy (that had wiped his face) is still holding their donation bucket.

I saw this guy in front of a shop that sold all kinds of fairy stuff and it just made me laugh so I had to take a photo. It is the legs and wings of a fairly sticking out of the frog's mouth :-)

Over all a great day and great socialization for Dazzle. We're both tired now and he's sleeping soundly near me. I'm going to go lie down to rest my legs and back.