Niven
Foxglen's Event Horizon NA NF
Foxglen's Event Horizon NA NF
Niven
SR34048408
January 20, 2006
Damien's Scar
x
Sady X
Breeder: Mark Mann
Owner: Joyce Smuda
Niven's Pedigree and Win Photos
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Awards
NA - Novice Agility ( AKC )
NF - Novice Agility FAST ( AKC )
Agility:
AKC Novice Jumpers:
3rd Place Qualify
2nd Place Qualify
AKC Open Standard:
2nd Place Qualify
USDAA Starters Standard:
2nd Place Qualify
2nd Place Qualify
USDAA Starters Pairs/Relay:
1st Place Qualify
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After having a Show and Performance Dog like Crumpet, I really thought I would never have another with the same enthusiasm for any sport. I was
greatly mistaken, especially since taking in Niven. She was my "spur of the moment" dog that was not really, as I had been thinking about a Labrador
for some time. I thought it would be different to have a larger dog to handle in Agility while I learned how to train a Hunting/Retrieving Dog.
I have no idea of why I was scanning the Want Ads for a pup, but one in particular caught my eye and I had to see this litter. To my total pleasure I loved
the remaining pups ( there were five out of ten when I got there ), temperament and attitude. After evaluating numerous show litters, even the surprise
litters can exhibit quality when the genetics match. I was excited to be able to take a pup and from there the whole thing started.
For formal training, I really did not start anything with structure until she was about six months old and chose Obedience. From there our practice sessions were
limited to her
growing body and mind, the team progressing at her pace while Mike and I began to look for a new house and other aspects of life settled into new routines.
As of now, I could not be more pleased with the way we are progressing, even if other dogs her age are already titled and running higher honors.
Included on this page are the different aspects of what we have been training for. As there is with the dogs I run, there are no expectations, only to have
fun and to work together. With this attitude, I have found I can handle without putting stress on myself and we as a team do better then anyone can expect.
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Conformation
Although Niven was not bred as part of a "Breed Champion" program, she carries the
distinct outline of the "Field Champion" lineage that
makes up her pedigree. By a stroke of luck I found Mr. Mann and the litter he had
and I could not be more grateful to him.
There are numerous Champions within Niven's pedigree, but not one of them is a Breed Champion, litters
mainly planned for working ability compared to breed standard judging. This does not mean that Niven is
not a show quality dog, it means she is different enough that it would be harder to place 'in the ribbons'
at a Breed Show. Unfortunately, this stirs huge controversy that I wish to avoid here, but both
Conformation and Field Champions are normally very different from each other.
Looking at Niven from a Breed Dog perspective there are numerous aspects Breed Breeders would avoid. As an overall
Bitch, Niven would not be considered for their breeding stock, as she is too tall, too light framed and over
rear-angulated.
Looking at the seven and a half week old picture, had Niven remained close to this photograph, she probably would be
a healthy "medium" between the two show worlds. Instead, the older she grew the more "lanky" she became, built more for
running longer distances over harsh terrain.
From a Breed Breeder perspective:
Looking at the Labrador Retriever standard, the main fault that I can determine is Niven's "Rear Angulation",
which
is extreme and "should be faulted". It also creates a separate problem in appearance of being "weak", which is also further from the truth as Niven is
total rear power, mainly from flawless movement and well built muscle.
When stacked for show, Niven is "steep in croup" ( the area near the tail on
her back ), which seems to go with dogs with rear drive and well put together
side movement. Unfortunately, the steepness creates an illusion with the Tail.
Having a low tail-set while being steep in croup causes the length of tail to
come well below the Hock ( lower back leg ).
When looking at the typical Labrador Head, if only Niven had more "angles" that would slop her head from eyes to
muzzle, her head would be
more appealing from the side. Her expression is priceless and I would not change that for anything.
The over all height and length of body I would like to see lower and shorter, but she remains balanced at what God has given her.
Personally, I have always said a Retriever needed to be in a boat and to not take up space and
with this she would.
From a Field Breeder Perspective:
All of the above still applies! In order to have a dog perform its function, the dog needs to be able to clear land distance,
move flawless for conservation of energy, scent, track, and go all day. The Conformation of the Dog is extremely important to
anyone requiring any dog to work its profession and Breed Standards have been set to be the guideline.
Niven is too tall, but square and even, coming, going and side movement. Her height allows for her to pass over scrub brush that
would do more damage to bellies or cause distraction to the younger dog. While sitting or sleeping, she is known to "tuck up" or "ball"
into the most compact positions, taking up less space in two feet then my Corgis do.
The overall lightweight frame means Niven can haul out long distances and jump
over Uprights without being hindered by her own weight. It may not be a benefit
to her while swimming, but this does not appear to hinder when she is in the water.
Coming from a long line of Field Champions helps Niven in her ability to "not give up", as most of these dogs I am sure were and are driven to work.
What I especially like is that within social settings she is easy going and patient, not the monster painted by the horror stories. On when needed,
off when elsewhere is a true sticking point with me as during the week I am home.
From a Performance point of view, Niven is very well put together, especially in
fluent movement from all sides. She does cover ground efficiently,
turns on a dime and is square. Having a longer ear with a head-set that could use a
little more "oomph" is trivial in what is accomplished.
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7.5 Weeks
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2 years
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Agility
When I started looking at litters of pups, it was to see what was available for a new Agility Partner. I wanted a larger dog to compete within
the larger classes ( 20 or 24 inches ) and wanted a dog with less coat to groom. ( Try having Corgis and you will understand! ) I finally settled
on a Labrador and let the argument of "Golden" go. I was extremely fortunate to find Niven almost immediately, her littermates' conformation equaling
her own, as well as playfulness one would expect from the breed. There was an air of seriousness with each pup that I liked and knew this litter, although
unplanned, would be something different. I picked Nivie out and from there the rest comes to now.
I wanted to wait for Niven to grow up, knowing that common behaviors learned from daily life would do more to set a formal training program. Having her
be a large dog, I also waited until she was two years old before beginning training to let growing bones do their jobs without heightened bone impact and mental
'drilled in the head' structured training. I believe this was the correct thing to do as Niven has offered an
incredible insight window into the foundation
of the training theory.
When she was about ten months old, I started informal Agility training, using whatever had survived years of outdoor storage and kept Jump bars at eight inches. I was delighted to see her
pick up different ideas and disappointed with others that did not develop the way I wanted them too. Since I had not created any training program, whatever
was offered, I went with. I may be out in the yard three times in one week and then not again for two months. Some how she seemed to "not be ready" and I had
the time to afford. This could not have worked any better!
In January 2008, we started attending a formal Agility class that seemed to fit what I was looking for. Each week we progressed with leaps and bounds, sometimes
too slowly while other times pushing the limit. For Niven it seemed the correct time, her learning to focus on each obstacle as it was learned and then to begin
piecing together the whole performance. As each step was progressed and "novice" mastered, she came into her own with control and attention.
When learning new behaviors she is often cited as a "Bull in the China Shop", as she tends to slam everything around or down. Once she figures out what not
to do or what is not desired, she really makes an attempt to slow herself down and master the movement.
Progress in training for the Agility Ring snuck up on me. When we had our two
runs at our first Match in August of 2008, I was greatly surprised with how well
she ran and given the circumstances, how focused she remained.
What I did start to noticed with Agility training is now Niven manages to survey her entire surrounding and adjust accordingly. Yet, there is no indication
she has acknowledged something else is happening or even existed. I have seen her maintain composure, yet she knows where an object is or that something
else is going on. This I suspect is a thrown back to the Retriever Instinct, having to remember where fallen birds are and keeping the objective of the task
in front.
I realize Labradors are harder to handle in Agility due to some natural aspects of
preferring to run straight lines, but from what I have seen develop over
the past few months, I am really excited about all of the Sports I am getting back into. Niven is just as willing as Crumpet ever was, only different. I could
not ask for anything more.
Having been to three Agility Trials since October, Niven has picked up two legs each for AKC Novice Standard and Jumpers and one leg for AKC FAST. It seems we cannot
find a trial where the third class is either limited or offered, so I look forward to our up-coming shows where we are entered. Although Niven is registered with
USDAA and NADAC, our weekends have been busy and I never seem to be able to enter.
Niven on the other hand, just lives in the philosophy of "Whaaa hoo, a truck ride with meaning".
Agility Photographer: Rich Knecht
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Retrieving
As I have said multiple times in multiple places, when it comes to teaching a Retriever how to retrieve, I have no clue as to what I am doing. I have an
overall outline from watching OLN's Saturday Presentation of the Field Trials and Field Test Rules & regulations, as well as guidance from magazines and books,
but what I really need is
someone to yell at me for not doing something I should be. Finding a Hunt Club is definitely part of any "Junior Hunter" Title and I
envy those who have
the secret word that "gets you through the door". I have had horrible luck at locating a place, but I do not lose faith and continue on with what I can when
the ideas strike.
I became interested in training Retrievers while training Crumpet through CDX work. I figured that Retrieving People would have better understanding of teaching
a short herding dog the ropes and found myself with numerous books on the shelf and a few issues of Gun Dog on the table. If Ducks are anything like Sheep, this
was going to be fun ( only more so....you can fish when finished training for the afternoon ).
Since I could also run the dog in Agility, a Labrador seemed the correct breed to follow through on and now, here I am. Working Niven towards any kind of Hunting title
has not started yet. The best I can do without an Instructor is to read the Hunt Test Rules and Regulations, try to picture what is the desired performance and
come up with varying methods of getting there.
I focused on quick retrieving by lightly holding Niven's collar and throwing the
Bumper as far
as I could. Once it had landed, I would send her out. Once she was hauling out and back in, I required "sit" while the Bumper was thrown, a "deliver to
hand" ( always ), and a "finish back to heel". During the past year or two, Niven has responded with more patience and control to the point
where I could try new ideas while she was left in a Sit/Wait. We have progressed to stacks the Bumpers and Nivie retrieving each one,
one at a time. Some days are better then others, while we both continue to figure out what is expected of the team.
I did managed to get Niven around gunfire, the true test completed at a Civil War Reenactment while the guys were firing off their
Black Powder Rifles and Cannon. I was more then thrilled that Nivie did not notice the Rifle Fire and continued to work despite
12 pound cannons going off a short distance away.
Getting Nivie into the water was more of a challenge and easy compared to if she had been gun shy. At first she would do anything to make sure her
feet stayed dry and attempted a water retrieve the day the lake was frozen solid. I finally got the
opportunity to try a local lake and the results
were surprising to me, considering the struggle it has been. Without hesitating, Niven hauled off into the water and floundered around until she
started to figure out how to stay above the water. Having then found a dog pool, over the Fall and Winter, she perfected her swimming and has proven to be a
powerful swimmer with the amazing Labrador leap.
Now to find a Hunt Club that has Duck Retrieving Instructors.
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Obedience and Rally Obedience
Both Classic Obedience and Rally Obedience are two separate sports, but technically one derives from the other. Classic Obedience has been around since the turn
of the twentieth century and consists of stricture routines ( Heeling, Sit/Stay, Recall, Stand ). Rally-O was accepted by AKC within the last ten years to be a faster
paced variation using a course with Sign Stations that dictate which exercise needs to be performed. Each team needs to complete the course as fast and as accurate
as possible.
Rally-O was just being AKC accepted at the time Crumpet received his injury and I was interested in pursuing at least a Novice title. Since most of the Rally stations
were already part of my training program, derived from using Agility Equipment as training variation, I thought he would have excelled. Unfortunately, this was also
during a time that was tighter for me and I never did enter Crumpet. I figured Niven would have that partial mixture of experience and with Rally verbal commands and
encouragement gestures are allowed, making Rally a type of pre-step to the Obedience Ring.
It just happened that at that time, my attention needed to be placed elsewhere and we never did. Having Niven, especially since I was holding off Agility until
she was older, I put my sites to the Obedience CD and Rally-O RN for some kind of training.
Niven did fairly well during her first seven week long Obedience Class, but I really had placed little training into her out of class. There were performance issues
that took back seat for others and class was over just as we were starting to settle into the routine. We had graduated from the Beginners Classes and told
we were not ready for the Advanced class. Unfortunately, there was no class for us to continue into and I started working out in the yard.
The best I can do for now is to intermingle Obedience/Rally-O into Agility,
practicing some of the Heeling "Road Paths" Rally is all about. While trying to
get a better feel for each station's exercises, Niven and I get to practice
Classic Obedience and the whole thing continues to spiral. What is really cool
about mixing Obedience and Agility is that the dog is never quite sure of what to expect and usually pays attention. A second factor is that the dog has to learn
how to "slam gears" and switch from one mode, fast and accurate to another, slower and pin-point.
If the Handler can create a training session that flows from an Agility Course to a Rally-O Course ( Vice Versa ), some of the USDAA Games
Classes work is already being laid as foundation. In essence three different sports are rolled into one ten minute backyard session and the dog will never
realize what it is doing.
Niven plots along with similar determination that Crumpet showed, only not as refined. Her Recalls are near perfect and Heel Position is being
worked while she figures out not to forge ahead. I just need to remember to be more fair in turning and weaving in and out of the cones because
currently I am cutting too close causing her to knock them over.
What I need to begin to work is the "Stand for Exam" and Long Stays so that bringing Niven out towards the end of this year or beginning of the next is
possible. It will be fun to see how well she can transfer to Rally and Obedience. Unfortunately, it has proven hard to find a Rally-O class. I found one and
we had a ton of fun, but my schedule with another club changed, throwing Rally out the window. When there is a class that has fun people, it makes it easier to train!
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So in a nutshell, the Niver-Kanivers and I have been busy. I never really thought about the amount of time and training we put into our dogs. When
measured
in "ten minutes here, ten minutes there", months fly by with marked improvements. Some times it takes the risk of entering a trial to really appreciate the
work that has been put in and never shows itself.
That is the greatest thing about our dogs and the things
we do with them.
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Last Updated on October 14, 2009
