FLYBALL
FLYBALL
Link to Our Flyball Team: Burns Burnin' Rubber
Em Gets her FMX in 1 season > August 22, 2007
What a phenomenal tournament in Carp! Em raced for the tug for the whole tourney and she didn't bite me one (I wasn't wearing gloves) and she let go every time I asked her. It was amazing! She also got her FMX on Sunday; gaining over 10,000 points in just 10 tournaments. I'm so proud of her! We have one more tournament in September and then a long break to give her shoulders a rest. I can't ask more of this girl!
Lots of Racing > July 26, 2007
Em has been putting on the miles in the lanes. She has accumulated almost 8000 points since January and has been racing flawlessly all year. We still have a few more tournaments this year and I am hoping that she gets just over 2000 points to receive her FMX this season. I am really proud of her regardless of whether we reach this goal or now. She is still working on the tug but I think it's something that I need to work on gradually and over the winter when we have time to do steady work on it. Our new team, Paws on Fire, will help us reach that goal.
Em Kinda Races for the Tug > May 29, 2007
Em had a good practice last week. She came out twice to work and returned the ball almost 50% of the time. She seems to understand the concept that she has to "down" if she doesn't return the ball. Once she cools off a little, she tries again and usually gets it. Our goal is to have Emmy on a tug for Grandvalley (our next tourney in 3 weeks). We have 2 more practices to get her to understand. Otherwise, she'll race for the ball like before!
Lots of Updates > May 5, 2007
It's been way too long since I've written... Em did extremely well at our U-fli tournament; earning the most points of all dogs that week-end (1330 pts) and earning her Top Flight, TF-I, TF-II and TF-III and 1st place in pairs with Trouble (8.100 seconds). Trouble and Emily currently hold the #7 fastest pairs time in u-fli this year. She also raced consistently all week-end and managed to bleed all over me and a few other people when she cut her tongue then barked her brains out at the starting line :-) She also ran some 3.7s in there somewhere! She is now working towards her Flyball Master (FM).
Last practice, she started to understand the concept of the ball for the tug; returning the ball a few times and actually racing away from the tug (a huge amazing feat all to itself). We'll work on this consistently until she gets it.
Team Practice > March 31, 2007
A great practice tonight with lots of racing (Focus passing into Em is going well) and her turn is looking great with the gate. I hope we'll have patterned it enough that it holds that well in Brampton (in 2 weeks) and at our own U-Fli tourney in 3 weeks. Lots of racing to come!
Team Practice > March 10, 2007
We did some passing exercises tonight as well as boxwork. Her passing into other dogs is improving. She looks at them a lot which scares me a lot but she always does that at the start too. She should be able to pass into a dog this summer without any issues. The gate tucked into the side of the box that Em turns on has made her turn extra tight. I think we'll be able to do it enough times before we run in Brampton in 3 weeks that we'll have pattered it. I've purchased multiple pairs of gloves since I think we'll be using the ball for a while!
Team Practice > March 3, 2007
Em might run for the ball forever! I tried a back-chaining exercise today where she gets the ball from the box then gets the tug, then she has to go over 1 jump to get the tug, then 2 jumps... Well we made it to 1 jump successfully, then tried 2. It failed miserably. We went back to 1 and she couldn't do that anymore! She also completely missed the tug once and got half my hand... It's more pleasant when she runs for the ball :-)
On a fun note, Em found a pairs partner for U-Fli... FOCUS! The brown dogs are going to rip it up on April 21st in Carp!
Brampton Unleashed Tourney > February 24, 2007
Em and I had a great time at our 3rd tournament! She ran nicely although I think her stomach was bugging her from the electrolytes we tried. I don't think I saw a 3.7 all day. Mostly 3.8s which I can't complain about. Her turns were ok and she is fine with dogs passing into her. Our starts were more consistent than SharkFEBst by a lot. We pushed it quite a bit to see where the false start was and it's right around 56' to 56'3" depending on how tired she is. We came 1st in Regular Division 1. Nice day :)
SharkFEBst 2007 was Awesome > February 12, 2007
Em double ran all week-end and she did great! Her turns were not as good as last week-end but she ran consistently fast (3.8's) for 20+ races! We had a lot of fun in start for both the Regular A team and the Multi B team. Em says "if only my mommy could do better starts!"
I think she is also starting to really get the point of the game. She's better able to avoid distractions such as tugs and balls. I'm not saying I'd like to leave anything out for her but I think she's definitely improved!
Em was even selected to be part of the Dream Team by the hosting team. What an honour!
Em received over 1,000 NAFA points this week-end and received her FDCh-S. Pictures are at the top of this page.
First Tournament! > Jan 27, 2007
Em and I just returned from Brampton ON where Em made her debut at a one-day tournament. I couldn't of asked more of her...
* She ran perfectly without any dropped balls
* Her turns were excellent for most runs. I think they were better than what she does at practice with the wing and board!
* She ran consistent 3.8's with one 3.7 and some 3.9's at the end. She ran a total of 8 races.
* She wasn't phased when the ball was placed in the wrong hole! She just smooched her turn to make herself fit. I thought she was running 4.0's because she was tired but nope, when the ball went back to it's proper hole, the 3.8's came back.
* She LOVED the competition in the other lane!
I was so nervous that something would
glitch but I gained some confidence after that first race in the left lane. Then more confidence after the 2nd race in the right lane. And then we started to have some fun! We will work on different dogs passing into her and we will work on making her start more consistent ("we" since that is more my job than hers!)
I left Brampton thinking that Em knows when to step it up a notch and blow me away. She always seems to do things better when the pressure is on. I said I would cry if she ran a sub 4 second race; she did it over and over and over again (don't worry I didn't cry all day long!). It really was a different feeling to run my dog instead of someone else's. In any case, I'm proud and Em has gained her first 3 flyball titles with 565 NAFA points!
Team Practice > Jan 20, 2007
Em has had some great runs in practice. Her turn is looking good and her speed is great. She hasn't dropped the ball more than once in a while. She did bobble it and cross into the other to get it, which scared me. No chasing after the dog, only her ball. Flare passing into her scared her a little today but she seemed to get more and more comfortable as we repeated. This week-end was her last practice before she runs in Brampton next week-end. I can only have confidence in her. She has run well in practice and in House League so it's turn to give her a go!
Kingston House League January > January 7, 2007
We had a great day in Kingston. Em would not return balls all the way for a tug but she ran wonderfully for a ball tug session. Lots of great runs under her belt and we are really starting to concentrate on Brampton.
Team Practice > January 6, 2007
Em ran fairly well tonight. She could not handle the distraction of multiple balls on the ground but she was ok with only 1 or 2. I don't think she'll ever race somewhere where there are 10 balls on each side of the lane! Passing with Tara was fine and her boxwork was good. We're looking forward to house league tomorrow.
Team Practice > December 27, 2006
I'm really proud of Em! After 2 weeks of no practices, she did excellent runs today. We had a few dropped balls once the tug game out but she ran fast, turned well and came back just as fast. I cannot wait to see her race in less than once month!!! She really checks out the competition when she starts and before she hits the first jump, it's quite funny. She hasn't crossed over since that first incident last month. We have one more house league before Brampton and we have 3 or 4 practices so I'm confident she'll be ready. We'll see if she races for a ball or a tug :)
It's nice to see that the one thing I really wanted to do with my dog is happening. Believe it or not it brings tears to my eyes because Em and I have learned so much about each other in the lanes and I feel like it's made us a better team. Reading back on this log, not once did I seriously think of quitting since I could see that it was the perfect outlet for her energy and drive. I can't wait to report on what is coming in 2007!
Kingston House League #2 > December 4, 2006
We had a nice day in Kingston today. Em ran extremely well with a few exceptions. She ran quickly and returned every ball in the first race. She received the tug as a reward on the last heat of race 1. It was hidden under a jacket so it was quite unexpected for her. For the second race, I stuck the tug in the back of my pants but she kept getting distracted and ran poorly: dropping the ball every heat. Race 3 with no tug went very well. Race 4 was nice. The tug came out on the 3rd heat and I put it away for the 4th heat. She didn't buy that one for a second! I released her and she ran right for it. Once I said no and said go-go-go she tentatively got going for the ball. Natalie running with her helped a lot. 5th race was fine until she went right for the tug again on heat 4: Silly puppy! We got the tug out of her mouth but there was no time for running. We ended the last race on the 4th heat with a tug so she could finish on a good note. All in all, it was a very good day of racing. Her passing with Sammy was much better and she did well returning the ball.
Team Practice > November 18, 2006
Em did really well in practice today. Her turn is good if she has something to keep her in. Without a wing, it's wide. She raced head to head with Blur and had only one cross-over incident. Hopefully that was the end of that. All in all, I was really proud of her. She really is loving the ball. If I don't move back to the tug soon, I won't be able to get balls out of her mouth. It's bad enough already...
Kingston House League #1 > November 5, 2006
We went to Kingston today to do an afternoon of House League, where teams race against each other in a laid back atmosphere. The lanes are also separated by barriers so the dogs can't investigate the other side. I was racing with Flyball Fanatics (our old team who needed an extra dog so Emmy and I got lucky).
It was a new box for Em that triggers slower so it took her the day to get used to it. Her turns went from crappy to not bad as the day progressed. All in all, she ran really well. She brought the ball back every time and did not lunge for anybody else's tug (my biggest fear). Her starts were excellent. She was focused and ready to go. Passing was harder and we had to wait until the dog had passed us before Em went down the lane.
Considering all the noise and the other team in the nearby lane, I left proud of what Em accomplished and I look forward to working on passing and the ball for the tug to increase her speed.
Still no tug... > November 4, 2006
The team practice tonight went well. I was hoping Emmy would bring back the ball for the tug (like she's been doing at the park) in practice but not yet. She is still doing full runs and does get exited for the ball. We even did recalls with the ball, which worked surprisingly well. She is also fine with being passed although she has not passed anybody yet. We're off to Kinston tomorrow to do house league.
FULL RUNS > October 21, 2006
Em did about 30 full runs today with only 2 or 3 small flaws. I'm so proud of my girl! Only 2 months after she first picked the ball from an unsprung box, she's got it. Hopefully when she does her 1st head to head, it will go as smoothly. I think so since she seems to know exactly what to do to get rewarded.
I only used the tug on the last run and she dropped the ball. Joy noticed that she drops the ball when I turn my back away and run (which I only do with the tug), so I've started running away with the ball and the tug, which really helped on her second set of runs.
The Ball Returns :) > October 14, 2006
We started behind one jump to do boxturns and Em had no problems at all. She cleared the jump, ran with determination to the box, did a nice turn, got her ball, cleared the jump and came right back for a ball-tugging session; which she has come to love! She did a dozen or so and just excelled since she had never done a jump with the box before.
Her jump work was good too. Her side-by-side recalls were excellent. I don't worry about that stuff since I have her favorite thing in the world: TUG!!! Passing with Blur went well too.
All in all, I left beaming :)
Ball Monster is Created!!! > October 7, 2006
After having done no flyball for 3 weeks, I was a little nervous to see what would happen at practice. Em did a few warm-up turns without the ball and decided that she needed a target to run back to so she ran after the other lane's tug... Back in the car she went! Later, her recalls/passing were excellent. She is so focused on that tug. Her box work was way better than I thought. Not only did she not regress but she's improved :) She is getting the ball from a sprung box and bringing it back!!! The only problem is she is loving balls now. She gave up her tug in search of one!!! In any case, she is starting to focus more on the task at hand and I expect that she will progress quickly.
No New Hampshire This Year > September 28, 2006
The team isn't well enough to travel this time so no warm-ups for Em this time around. Hopefully our training efforts will pay off and she'll start full-time racing in the new year. Stay tuned to see when it comes true.
Turn Breakthrough > September 17, 2006
We had a team practice last night at The Training Hall. Em not only brought back the ball (YAY) but she also got the ball from a sprung box! Very exiting news since she's supposed to do warm-ups in New Hampshire in a few weeks and she wasn't bringing back the ball a few weeks ago. She did 2 slots of 10 minute on the box and we got lots of success both times.
The New Vision: NO TUG! > September 4, 2006
I'm trying like hell to get Emmy and I to the next step so we're going to try tugging with the ball. I might lose a finger but maybe my dog will do flyball :) !!! I've tried it with gloves on and it seems to work, Em likes it enough to bring it back. And the tug isn't there to distract her. We'll see soon if it works.
Cookstown Tournament (DogzWorth) > September 2 & 3, 2006
We had a nice easy tournament this week-end. We only ran 1 race (where I got to run Focus in 2nd; though I did get pulled for a few key races at the beginning) and we helped other teams. I didn't get bit once and Focus didn't rip my pants. Although she did give me a very nice bruise! She had to leave me a souvenir.
A New Team With A New Vision > August 27, 2006
I've had the opportunity to run multiple dogs in multiple tournaments in the last month and now my focus return to Emmy so I can get her ready to run warm-ups in New Hampshire at the end of September. Em and I have also switched teams. Our first practice yesterday was difficult for me. She has a nice boxturn but the ball isn't attractive enough compared to the tug so she drops it immediately. My job this week is to get her to bring the ball for the tug.
Team Practice > August 5, 2006
Although we had a difficult 1st half of practice today, we ended on a good note. On Thursday, Em did about 15 perfect turns with ball. Today, 1st half, I sprung the box and she was all over the place and it was frustrating. So we tried to end on a good note. We tried again unsprung after and she did great. So we did end practice after a few great turns. Over the next weeks, we will finish our outdoor practices and move indoors at The Training Hall in Carp. I'm looking forward to it. It will be great for Em since the ground has always been a little wet outside.
Cookstown Tournament > July 29 & 30, 2006
I joined Pam and Burnin' Rubber at Cookstown this week-end to run Focus. It was a good tournament: I felt much more comfortable running Focus, she ran well for me, I got bit less, Focus and I ran a perfect 0.000 start and I got to run Jagger, a Malinois from Pawzie Traction. All in all a good week-end.
Breakthrough Confirmed at Practice > July 22, 2006
Pictures say it best...
Ummm... What about the ball Em???
Oops...
I swear I can do it, let me do it again. Look at my great turn. Oh ya the ball...
YAY :) TUG TIME RIGHT? YES!
Tug Time YES, Bite Mom Time NO!
We're doing more right?
I remember how this goes...
What a great practice for Emmy. After 3 or 4 unsuccessful turns (great turns but no ball was picked up), Em got it and started churning out one great turn after another. She did about 10 fantastic turns with ball return!
Last Class with Pam until Fall > July 19, 2006
What a great class for Emmy! After doing a few days of playing the get-the-ball-then-tug game to get her used to getting the ball for the tug without a box or turn, she started getting it. And when our turn came up to work on the box, Em was confused at first then remembered to get the ball. She grabbed the ball from Pam's hand (I think she's nuts to put her hand near a ball near my Maligator while encouraging her to get it, but hey Pam is nuts), then from the gutter, then from the lip on the ball, then from the whole. She however, was not a fan of the box when it was spring loaded. So we went back to ball on gutter and on the lip. It was hit and miss whether she got the ball (50/50) but she did do very consistent box turns about 30 times in a row. I am so proud of her. We will go to practice tomorrow night and again on Sat. Hopefully we can solidify it.
I also need to work on my tug placement, since she almost took me out a few times! I'll try to get pictures tomorrow.
Emmy Progress Report > July 16, 2006
We've had some good advancement. We've gone back to the tug to work on her turn. She definitely likes it much more than food. Her turn is MUCH more powerful when a tug is involved. She has gone back to spitting out food when she thinks the tug might be there. We've done 3 practices with the tug and so far I've gotten her right behind the first jump.
We tried to add the ball to the box to see what Em would do. She completely ignored it so she could get her tug. She did do a good turn though. We tried a few times. Then we tried pointing out the ball and encouraging her... nope. So now my job is to get her exited about the ball when the tug is around. I spent 5 minutes throwing the ball. When she got it, she would get the tug. Kinda worked. Considering how hot it was that day (and all week for that matter), she did well.
I've tried with and without the harness, and I'm just not sure which is best. I'll keep working on it to figure it out.
So next practice on Wednesday with Pam, I'm hoping that she will get the ball :)
BF Practice > July 8, 2006
My first reaction is "What a useless practice for Emmy" :( It was sooooo hot that she and I both had no stamina and once she saw balls behind the box, she just could not focus on her turn. She did a couple of good turns but that was it. We were only about 5' back. I just have to tell myself that not every practice can be good.
Em's Progress Report > July 6, 2006
What a fantastic practice. Our first set of box work was terrible. Em was following the food lure and just forgetting everything. It reminded me of when she was following the tug. So for the second set of box work, we put the lures away and moved very close to the box. She did a great jump. So we started moving back and got to 20 feet! Our best distance ever! I'm looking forward to tomorrow's practice to see if we can repeat it.
Em's Progress Report > July 2, 2006
After a few practices of using liver as a reward for good swimmer turns, Em is improving. We have moved back so she is going over one jump and turning fairly consistently. She is not responding as well to verbal commands so I am still relying on a hand commands. Her passing is great since she gets the tug. Her recall is amazing (it gets her a tug!). She even went as far as helping to set herself up on the box for Jenn so she could recall again.
I had mentioned earlier that I had issues with Em biting my gloves when she was going for the tug. A couple of sprays of bitter apple on my gloves did the trick for that! She now grabs much lower on the tug which is easier on my back and my hands. It's making flyball a lot more enjoyable!
Em and I also did a jumping seminar based on the Susan Salo jumping grids which was very informative. I think it will help with flyball, disk and certainly agility (starting in a few weeks).
My First Tournament > June 17 & 18, 2006
I joined Pam on Burns Burnin Rubber this week-end to run Focus on the regular line-up and Cooper on the multi line-up in Grand Valley, Ontario. We drove down on Friday night with Nadine and 9 dogs: Emily, Niki, Focus, Glimpse, Trouble, Blur, Flare, Rio and Cooper. I got lots of practice running Focus on Saturday and managed to bring my start down from 0.5s to 0.05s. Sunday's races started on a great note with a first heat of 16.60s. It also came down to the wire for 1st and 2nd place with a great team. We won 1st place by 0.01s !!! I have lots to show for my efforts: a torn/eaten leash, ripped shorts, huge bruises on my leg from the 2 Maligators, sore muscles, a really swollen thumb (at least it's not broken) and a lot of pride that I survived Focus and ran her well -- not as well as Pam though :)
Em was also a total sweety all week-end. Although she didn't run, she saw me handle other dogs all week-end and took it like a champ. I learned so many skills that I will be able to apply to her handling. I also got to box-load for another team and it looks like I've found my next puppy: a Jagger Malinois Pup.
All in all, what a great time!
Pictures (clockwise from top left)
I'm taking a nap with Emmy licking my face and Niki being a cuddler; The Focus Malinator and I after the winning race; Pam taking a nap in the ex-pen with Blur and Flare; My leg after one practice with Emmy and 2 days of racing Focus.
Food Food Food > June 13, 2006
Emmy sure loves homemade liver! We went back to a food reward for box work; It made a nice difference. Hopefully this will allow me to move back! I would sure like to get over this hurdle so we can start adding the ball to the turn. I know Em will love that!
Back to Flyball > June 11, 2006
Our first practice back was pretty good. Emmy sure does love her tug! Her box work is identical to the day we left. Her swimmers turn is quite nice but she's so obsessed with the tug that I can't back up. As soon as I move a few feet away from the box, she won't turn as her attention is solely on the tug! So we're going back to liver on Tuesday :) We'll see if she goes for it.
Break Time for Surgery > May 27 and 28, 2006
Em was scheduled for spay surgery on Friday May 26th. On Thursday night, we found a lump below her ribcage, which the vet couldn't identify so it was to be removed too. Now we need to keep her indoor for 7 days and quiet for 14 days... OUCH! So no flyball for at least 2 weeks!
Picture 1 is Em in her no-bite collar. She only wears it when she isn't in sight and she actually doesn't hate it at all. Picture 2 is Emmy being stroked (her favorite)
Team Practice 2 > May 20, 2006
Rain forced us indoors again but we made the best of it. We got lots of practice on her turns and we have a new development: When Em is held back, she will run about 20 feet and turn, as long as I am near the box to keep her on track. This week, we are going to try putting someone else at the box so she does her turn and returns to me. We'll see what happens! Everyone loves the harness as it makes her easier to handle.
Picture 1 is Em reaching for her tug after completing her jumps and picture 2 is her tugging after she completes a turn.
BIG SIT and FBI Flyball Tournament > May 14, 2006
We've had lots of interaction over the past few weeks. We did the BARK walkathon (picture included) and today we did the Big Sit to raise money for the Ottawa Valley Search and Rescue team. Em completed her 2 minute sit but I got a little afraid when she went to shake the rain off herself. She remained seated! *SIGH*
We also watched a portion of the flyball tournament and met other Mals that Em knows from Arek.
One more *HUGE* development: she let go of her tug!!!!! Granted she let go for another tug but this is the first step to her knowing "out" (our equivalent to "give") with the tug.
All in all, a pleasant but very wet day!
First Flyball Practice > May 13, 2006
We had our first team flyball practice on Saturday May 13th and Emmy and I had good results. Her passing was good and her swimmers turn (a turn where she hits the box with all 4 paws so she doesn't injure herself) are continuing to improve. She certainly has more than enough power! The picture above is Emmy getting the tug as a reward for the proper swimmers turn.
Did I mention Em has a hard head when she is at flyball. So our shy puppy who cannot tolerate a loud voice at home could be hit with a 2x4 at flyball and not blink... so sometimes I yell... and I'm always red since tugging and spinning a 48lbs dog is hard!
Month 2 > May 1, 2006
We have moved on from just the gutter jump to the box! Em now performs a swimmer's turn when the gutter is in front of the box. I can stand up to 4 feet away with a goal of moving about 20 feet away! She thinks this is more fun than the gutter alone since she gets to play tug with me as a reward for getting all 4 paws on the jump!
Her passing and jump skills are doing great as well. Anything for a game of tug!
Knowing that this is something we both enjoy a great deal, Mike and I built a training box at home, which Em uses very enthusiastically every day. To protect myself (learned after class 1), I wear 2 layers of gloves! Em and I joined a team: BF Flyball Fanatics http://www.flyballdogs.com/bfflyballfanatics/ We will also continue to take flyball classes with Pam all summer.
Month 1 > April 1, 2006
Emmy and I started flyball at Best Friends Dog Training in Orleans, ON with trainer Pam. Although Emily was signed up for the class, it was me who needed to learn!
The progressions we used:
(1) (turn progression) figure out which way she turns - Em turns clockwise/right
(2) (turn progression) jumping over the gutter tier and back; this was hard since I hadn't yet figured out what food Emmy would work for. We tried all sorts of dog treats and biscuits. We also tried a ball and other toys (which resulted in me getting bit a few times - darn Maligator). In the end, we agreed on homemade liver treats! We did jump and back for multiple weeks since Em didn't always get the concept and I was misleading at times.
(3) (jump progression) get Em riled up about the tug --- Pam holds her on one end and lets her go so she runs towards me --- so easy since Em loves her tugs!
The overwhelming problem was that Emmy had turned into a raving lunatic: lunging for other dog's balls and barking continuously (I hadn't even heard her bark until we went to flyball). Pam assured me that I would have my cute sweet cuddly Emmy when I got home... she was right! Emmy slept the whole way home and was back to her non-flyball self right away.
I thought "I just can't give up this easily!
ffB
