Wednesday, August 1, 2007

It is not the critic who counts

It is not the critic who counts;
not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles,
or where the doer of deeds could have done them better.
The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena,
whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood;
who strives valiantly; who errs, and comes short again and again,
because there is no effort without error and shortcoming;
but who does actually strive to do the deeds;
who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions;
who spends himself in a worthy cause;
who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement,
and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly,
so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls
who know neither victory nor defeat.

~Theodore Roosevelt

Planting Flowers….

…..or… how to have a ton of fun with your dogs!

With a gift certificate for my birthday and Mother's Day from Candace and her family,  I bought some perennials for the yard. 

After deciding to clean out what used to be a sand box the fun began.  Brita was a 7 month old puppy who was being raised up by Teddy who taught her how to be a mudder and proud of it..  Olivia, Kobie and Ari were the 3 dogs who loved to play, especially Ari and Kobie who were often chasing after critters in the woods

Post script on June 1, 2011.  ......This adventure with the flowers had a lasting affect on the dogs.  When Ari talked to Marilyn, he showed her a picture of a fire in a firepit which was a puzzle to Marilyn until I showed her the picture here.  ......When Kobie spoke to Marilyn after she crossed, she told Marilyn to tell me to be sure to plant flowers.

 

 

 

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Thursday, May 24, 2007

Brita’s First Michael Ellis Seminar

 

Brita was about six months old when she participated in her first Michael Ellis seminar and, of course, had a blast.

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Reprinted from Donna Matey’s website, Banner Dogs, on January 10, 2009

Banner Dogs has enjoyed hosting seminars with Michael Ellis since January, 2005. With Michael's School for Dog Trainers grand opening in October, 2009, in Fairfield, California, this may be one of the last times to train with Michael in the Midwest.

If you have participated in our previous seminars, you know what a talented dog trainer, teacher and coach Michael is. For those who have not yet taken the opportunity to work with him, and would like more information about Michael and his training methods, check out his bio and some introductory video clips.

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Tuesday, May 1, 2007

Kobie - Pancreatic Insufficiency

(written in May of 2011)

Kobie was diagnosed with Pancreatic Insufficiency in 2007.  She had lost weight and was uncontrollably hungry all the time.  For the rest of her life any food I prepared for her was supposed to have pancreatic enzymes soaked in to it. I specifically state food that “I” prepared because she was

(1) quite the hunter and
(2) quite the food thief.

 In the yard she would always be chasing after critters and once she and Ari shared a rabbit (I left the picture).  Also one year she discovered the PEAR tree!  I think that year she was addicted to sugar!

Of course, there were no enzymes on the outdoor food and in addition there were no enzymes on some food she had in the house such as eggs she stole by the dozen, numerous “to go” boxes (brought home for me), and then there was the entire pot of a dozen brats that was cooking on the stove and the spaghetti I had prepared for the rare dinner guest!  You get the picture.

It is speculated that she may not have gotten enough nutrients from her food because of EPI resulting in Osteoporosis.  This would have weakened her bones to the point that the humerus bone split when she slammed into the wall.

We’ll never know for sure but one thing is certain and that is that she struggled with EPI always being hungry and sometimes having trouble eating the food with the enzymes. It’s not a disease that any innocent dog should have and it’s sad when one does. 

Click here for info about Pancreatic Insufficiency
Click here for info about  EPI in Dogs

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One of Kobie’s favorite spots was by the bird cage. 
I used to say that Joshua was a food source for Kobie because he would feed her!



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Wednesday, February 21, 2007

You Almost Died You Know!

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..............after he almost died from an Addisonian Crisis how are you feeling?
*******pretty good…muscle ache between shoulder blade – maybe stress – maybe not stress


do you feel well enough to work?

*******Yes…doesn’t like the surprises like people coming from behind – this is disturbing to him.  Maybe too much pressure.  He likes what he can see.  He knows what to expect because it’s the regular guys…. when it’s a strange helper it bugs him.  He likes working in defense.


do you know how close you came to not being here?

******yes he does – at one point he really zoned and was balancing – he was very aware and so on the edge that he had no strong opinion. He is glad to be back and is excited about the working again. He’s sorry he stressed me out and when asked what he likes he answered being outside and being with girls.


I’m thinking about getting a girl puppy to train so when you can’t trial anymore we can still go and you can get fun bites…. What would you think about that? And a girl so you could hang out together.

******* A new puppy should be a girl and he could teach her to work very well. (I said bad things too like chasing the bus) and he said he can’t help it if she learns those things and that’s not bad anyway.

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Wednesday, February 14, 2007

Addison's Disease (Ari) - 2007

Ari started having trouble getting up in the morning January of 2007. The first diagnosis was Lumbar Stenosis, then mid January he was diagnosed with Anaplasmosis, a tick related disease. Then a few weeks later he was not eating well and one morning I woke up and he was in a coma.

After I rushed him to the vet where he was given a 50/50 chance, I learned more than I ever wanted to about an Addisonian Crisis. He slowly came out of it and several days later came home for the weekend. The next week, no eating again and blood tests revealed that his liver numbers were 10x normal. More IVs. 
Read more about Addison’s here:   Addison's Disease

He now has to get a monthly Percorten shot and low doses of Prednisone to keep him going. Since then he stiffened up – Anaplasmosis again so once more being treated for that. In addition, he is borderline Pancreatic Insufficient and gets enzymes on his food and has some developed Spondylosis.

Ari aged overnight but his fun loving attitude never waivered. He still (September 2008) chases the school bus and keeps the yard free from critters. His Percortin shots have extended to 45 days apart and he seems to do well on 2.5 mg. of Prednisone daily.

During his Crisis he may have actually crossed over but returned because as I was driving him to Great Lakes Vet, THREE large deer crossed in front of me before my first turn. I turned the corner and again they crossed in front of me. It seemed a little weird at the time because they were so big and they didn't really hurry and I had to stop. After researching it I found this written:

The DEER represents entrance into the spirit world. Perhaps the symbol of the deer was used to represent the fleeting life review which occurs there shortly after arrival in the spirit world according to recent literature on near-death experiences.

When I talked to Marilyn Tokach, Animal Communicator, she had a very hard time connecting with Ari which was unusual but when she did, he told her it could go either way and was ok with whatever turned out. Because I'm a true dog lover, I told him that it was NOT ok and that he had more to do in THIS world!
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Saturday, August 5, 2006

PSA Trial MN

Ari competing in PSA level 2 in Hastings MN. It was the call-off scenario and Ari went downfield and instead of heading toward the decoy, he went directly to the judge. At the last minute he redirected and my thought is that he got a closer look and said, "oops, wrong guy!".. Obviously, because he bit the decoy we didn't pass that scenario. It should be pointed out that the judge (Jerry Bradshaw) had a Minnesota Viking purple shirt on and we all know that Ari is a Green Bay Packer fan.... hhhmmm....


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Wednesday, August 2, 2006

It's the UPS Truck!


Ari would run the fence line - this time it was the UPS truck.  He did it SO much that he had trails along the fence and then from the end to the house and around the side of the deck.
Olivia had the cone on her head but that doesn't stop her from barking. Kobie just hangs out and watches him like he’s crazy.



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Saturday, June 3, 2006

We WON!

After training for a year, Ari and I went to Baltimore to trial for a PSA1 title. Not only did we succeed but we also took 1st place! Click below for the videos:


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Photo for Blog

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Sunday, June 5, 2005

Baltimore PSA Trial Videos


Obedience (83 of 100)
Ari wouldn't work for me (the mom) so, even though I trained him,
Greg handled him at the last minute and almost titled him that day!
83 of 100 obedience without the long down. When put in a down I know
Ari thought he was supposed to follow Greg so he got up and did.







The Car Jacking Scenario (41.5 of 50)
Ari had to heel to the vehicle, get in and alert.





The Attack on Handler (37 of 50)
This is where we should have asked for a sleeve because
Ari had only been on the suit for 6 months.




The Courage Test (54.5 of 70)
Since Ari was a crossover dog from Schutzhund, we asked for the sleeve
and took the 5 point deduction. In PSA1 this is not allowed today.





Total Obedience 83 of 100
Total Protection 133 of 170
Total Score 216 of 270

Overall percentage 80%

Ari missed the attack on the handler by 1 point and you needed
to pass all three scenarios. In 2005, there were 3 protection
scenarios for PSA1 and now there is an additional one
which is a scenario chosen from 1 of 5 published.





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Saturday, June 4, 2005

Baltimore PSA Trial Photos

Baltimore PSA Trial June 2005 – PSA 1 Handled by Greg LStone_Ari_decoy_water2Williams

Greg took Ari, never having handled him, out on for the routine.   He has just blown me off for the PDC and this was the PSA 1 which was harder.  They got an 83 I think but lost 5 points because on the down Ari thought that he was to go with Greg so he did.  The next day he got 88.


When they pass obediencepic3 (75 of 100) they get to go on to protection.  If not, they’re done.

In the first protection scenario, the team has to heel to the vehicle and then a wide collar is put on the dog.  They get in the vehicle and a guy comes up, talks, the dog is fired up and then there is the attack with gunshots.  The dog is to fight, the guy freezes, the dog outs and guards.  You get 3 times to out but the handler says it once and waits until the judge says out again.  I lost a point in NY because I said out twice and wouldn’t have needed to.
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In the second scenario when Greg handled Ari, he didn’t ask for the arm presentation.  This was early June and Ari wasn’t used to the inside arm bite and it was that scenario this cost him the title by 1 point.  On the other hand it’s an automatic 5 point deduction if you ask for the arm presentation.   This is the scenario that you never know what will be used for a distraction.  I’ve seen spray bottles in each hand squirting water in the dogs face, gallon jugs of water poured on the dog, a hose, (we’ve takedown_toddworked on all this stuff with Mark Keating) jugs of rocks, an air horn and at the last trial, the decoy charged through 16 cardboard boxes (4 wide/4 high) before the dog saw him.  Only one dog passed that day.

The 3rd scenario is the courage test and a suitcase type item is thrown at the dog to fend them off.  Here he asked for the arm presentation. 

With every scenario and the obedience there is an evaluation.  Overall this day Ari scored 82% which is very good but since he missed the one scenario by a point he didn’t title.

NOW if he will just do it for me!



Greg and Ari
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Saturday, July 5, 2003

Josephine and My Mother

There were buddies from the start.

In 1991, my mother had just moved to Wisconsin and a few months later Josephine came charging into our lives. Over the next 11 years I got an assortment of dogs and each time Mother would say... "What about poor Josephine?" And Josephine would look at her and then at me as if to say "See.. she loves me".....

Eleven years later, after recovering from a hip replacement, Mother who was now 91 years old, started going downhill and the time had come for her to go to a home to live.  Daughter Candace, whom she was especially close to, called me one day and said that she would like her grandmother to come back to Pennsylvania to live out her days in a home where she used to volunteer.  So in September of 2002, she did just that and never saw Josephine again.  I took other dogs on a trip there to see her but Josephine was left behind.

In the spring of 2003 Mother was going downhill and so was Josephine.  On June 28th I took Josephine to the vet because she was horribly thin and now wasn't eating.  The diagnosis... kidneys were shutting down and the vet suggested that I take her home and enjoy her but most likely her time will come very soon.

On the way home from the vet that day I called Mother who mentally was sound even through her body was slowly shutting down and told her about Josephine.  The next day I spoke with her in the morning and she wasn't coherent so I called Candace to find out what was going on.  The doctor was called and the diagnosis... her kidneys were shutting down.

During the next 5 days Mother was in and out of consciousness and often talking with her mother.  Josephine made the rouJosephine's daisies 7-03-03nds and only ate what was not good for her.  It became apparent that she was still losing weight and the appointment was made for the vet to come to the house on July 3rd.  People kept showing up.... Darcy, Janeen, Marissa, Tim, Kate..  Kate's kids had made a box for her and painted the outside and Darcy helped me pick a tree to be planted near her resting place.  She crossed peacefully and was laid to rest in the yard.  Soon after that daisies were delivered from Candace and Sharon.

The next day Candace went to visit her grandmother and told her Josephine was waiting for her.  Not 12 hours later, she also crossed.  
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Did they go together?  Did they plan it?  I always thought so.  When I had a conversation with Marilyn for the first timIMG_1853e I asked if we could contact her and here are the results.

Marilyn said is she long in body… not stocky and square… Yes.    She was your first dog or changed your life. She’s rolling on back to rub her body…. She’s saying “tell her I’m on my back”.
(All true. She liked me to scratch her belly and at first I didn’t realize that but not long after a photo came on my screen saver where she was on her back and I was scratching her belly)

**********So……Are you with Grandma?    Yes…. They walked together… one went first, paved the way and waited so they could go together…..
(I explained that they crossed within a few days of each other and that Josephine went first. Marilyn just didn’t think that was the way it happened.  I explained that Mother was in and out of consciousness for about 4 days before Josephine crossed and that she was talking with HER mother. Marilyn immediately said something to the effect that she didn’t go then because SHE was waiting for Josephine)

She WAS personality plus.    …..if she could cause trouble SHE WOULD!   …..she had a mission though…
(Well, we all knew that was true, don’t we?? ...the trouble thing! She was always trying to see what trouble she could get into (fun for her) up until days before she left me when I left her in the front seat of the van to go back in the house to get something and I come back out to see her trotting up the road) She was however an awesome therapy dog and made a difference in peoples lives for probably 10 years.

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Josephine - roof11  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Click here to go to Josephine's Memorial Page.

There is a post script to this story…

July 5th is Candace’s birthday.  She felt it was an honor that her grandma crossed on this day.  The two of them had many of the same interests  - their love of music and passion to paint or draw.  Candace prayed for a sign that everything was OK and the way it should be.

That night for her birthday her family went to visit another family.  During the visit, the host’s son played an unfamiliar piano piece.  Unfamiliar to me that is and most people but not to Candace and her grandmother for it was their favorite song.

This was the sign that she prayed for and she knew it.  She also knew that everything was as it should be.

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Monday, June 30, 2003

What is a Shiloh Shepherd?

Do you remember a specific "German Shepherd" you used to know as a child (or if you are under 40) one that your family or friends told you about? He was the dog with that super, almost human intelligence; that big family protector that was so very gentle with little children, yet would give his life for his master without question. The dog that would walk you to the school bus, and then show up again exactly on time to wait for your return; the hero that everyone talked about; the one that seemed half human. His personality consisted of Lassie, Strongheart, and Rin Tin Tin all rolled into one.
 
Well, that dog is still here today, and he is called a Shiloh Shepherd™.
 
 
 
 
 
 
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Tuesday, February 4, 2003

Do I really need another dog??

I remember the day when Joanna emailed me and asked if I had ever seen a
Shiloh Shepherd. No… I hadn’t. That afternoon I was at Great Lakes Vet and was reading a magazine waiting my turn. Lo and behold.. the centerfold was a Shiloh…not one but many. Oh… bigger long haired German Shepherd look-a-likes.
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Later that day she sent me an email with a picture of Kobie and it was love at first sight. I contacted the owner who was placing her because she was jumping their 3 foot fence and going to a park across the road to play with the kids. Because she is a mostly black (I later came to know what a bi-color is… black with tan feet), she was pretty scary to people. Little did they know, she was a year old pup just looking for some fun. The owner was used to smaller dogs such as shelties and was planning to put up a higher fence for her but unfortunately, the city of St. Charles IL had other ideas of what height he could put up…. and it wasn’t 4 feet!

So several days later, the owner drove Kobie to my house to meet me and the rest of the pack.  One at a time we introduced them and there were no problems.  Kobie is a peace maker and it was evident that day that she was going to fit into the group.  At that time Josephine was with us, as was Ari, Teddy and Olivia.  I had 3 acres with an array of feIMG_4286nces and separate yards so it was no problem having her join the family.   

After visiting for several hours, her owner said: “Well, I think Kobie has a home”.  He was a very concerned owner and had taken her several places before but left with her not feeling good about that situation.  Some people would have kenneled her outside and that was not acceptable for him and another was liked the fact that she was black and that would be better for a guard dog.  Little did they all know what a peace maker Kobie was and that I would call her my guardian ange




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Saturday, January 1, 2000

Facebook–my surgery–continued….

Continued from 6/25/12

So after getting through Brita's medical adventure I thought maybe I should get my hip checked since after falling a few weeks ago it was now REALLY painful. After x-rays at 9am I was taken right to the hospital and admitted and surgery for my BROKEN HIP will be in the morning! No wonder I was having trouble walking! Thanks to some wonderful friends my dogs are all being taken care of and everything is under control! :)

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