I hope this Blog proves to be both fun and educational for anyone interested in Showing and/or Breeding Dogs. Spend some time with us and you will really understand the time and effort and emotions that goes into this hobby. Join me here for the good times and bad times, the joys and sorrows, the wins and losses. Welcome to life at Vista Dei!

I took all the glue out of Devon's ears this morning, will give them a couple days rest to see what they are actually doing now.  Looks like they are up on top of his head really nice, with maybe one tipped a little more than the other.  He has managed to pull hair out several times when he pulled the ears loose, so I am hoping some grows back really fast so I can have more to work with when I fix them in place again.  He is getting legging and "teenage" looking already, the cute fluff ball look is going away.. waaaaaa...  I will get pictures soon, but didn't have time to this morning.

Posted by: Vistadei at 12:44 | link | comments (2)

Did you miss me??  I took a much needed break from life, spent my days off reading and visiting with friends, out to dinner with people I haven't seen nearly often enough, time to play with the dogs, no training, just play.  Had a nice agility class on Wed.  Got my cupons "R" thanks so much!!  And Linda, thanks for the pictures of Shelby, I will have to share when I get a moment to put them on line.  I am back to work now, but kinda re-evaluating life.  Too much hurry, hussle and bussle.  Have to figure a way to not always be pushing and running.  I have 2 weekends of shows coming up in September, and drum roll please.. it appears we will be having a litter of puppies the end of Sept. (so much for relaxing!) 

Posted by: Vistadei at 13:27 | link | comments (4)

I have been working so much these last couple weeks, and been so upset about my aunt's stroke and trying to get down to visit with her after work and it has been such a struggle for time as I hurry home from work and let all the dogs out, get Darby and Daisy ready to go to the rehab for the visit, drive a half hour down and only have about 45 mins to visit before driving back home, always hurry hurry.

I just want to let everyone know how important you all are to me, it has been so nice these past few days, Larry who owns the puppy Luke stopped by the house with produce from the garden, (great corn, sorry I was still in my pj's!) Dave and Dennise who have Drifter invited me to a cook out, Tim brought Regis and Kiwi by for a nice relaxing morning of play with Devon, Rose has sent me funny pictures of Cricket and "her" parrot, Sue and the girls have sent pictures of Sampson and Aslan, Shawn who has Genni emails, got a great update from Kelley about Stella, Linda sends me funnies in the email and updated me on Shelby... all you guys really brighten my day, keep my spirits up.  I so much enjoy and appriciate you all!!

THANK YOU!

Posted by: Vistadei at 14:07 | link | comments (1)

It's the end of an Era.. Vista Dei has come to the end of our first Decade living with and loving shelties!  It is hard to believe that it has been 10 years since the first sheltie came into our lives, and nothing has been the same since!  I am a little sad to say I am making a huge change.. I have always loved our website, and have spent countless hours playing and tweeking it, adding pictures etc. But it was looking old and dated, and 2006 has seen so much growth and developement with our dogs, I thought it was time for a whole new look to our web page.. please stop by and check it out..

http://www.VistaDeiShelties.com

Posted by: Vistadei at 13:10 | link | comments (6)

Hey Cricket!! thanks for reminding me yesterday was your birthday.. as well as your sisters, Shelby, Diana and Dew-oh.  Things have been so busy I up and forgot.. saw your post and gave them some nummies for supper, will have to take them out for a belated icecream soon!

Thanks Christie for letting me know that Regis DID get MACH points from those runs, 64 points!! yippeee.. and tho I always congratulate Tim and Regis, Christie does so much behind the scene work, and keeps me up to date with the times and placements, video tapes and well.. right now I am sure is the cheif of housebreaking for Kiwi too!

My aunt is making improvements, she likes to visit with Daisy the best of the dogs I have taken down to the rehab center.  Last night Darby and Daisy went, and we all went for a walk around the grounds, Daisy sat on Aunt Anna's lap in the wheel chair and enjoyed riding that way, and her grumble talking and face-washing kisses made Anna giggle and laugh, so it was a good visit.  Hope the weather stays good as that rehab center doesn't allow the therapy dogs in the rooms, only in the front lobby (with ohhh so nice Queen Ann type furniture in a deep rich burgandy), or outside.  Guess I will have to bring along sheets to cover the furniture with when we have to stay inside, as I don't want those little fine white fuzzes to upset anyone!

Devon is growning and Growing and GROWING!!!  Hope he slows down a little.. or we will be looking for a pet home really quick!

Posted by: Vistadei at 12:31 | link | comments

It was another great agility weekend for the dogs of Vista Dei!!

First a HUGE HUGE HUGE congratulations to Regis and Tim who had another good weekend at the WCOTC agility trials. On Friday Regis received his Excellent JWW title (AXJ) with a 1st place ribbon. His time was 32.9 sec and the course time was 46 sec. He had two more Qs, one on both Saturday and Sunday. Saturday he Q'd on the Standard course with a 1st place ribbon and a time of 48.19 sec with a course time of 69 sec. Sunday he Q'd on the JWW course with a another 1st place ribbon. His time was 30.22 sec, and the course time was 43 sec. These are his first legs toward the MX and MXJ titles (Master Agility) I am not sure if these 2 placements also count towards his MACH speed points or not since they were earned on separate days... where oh where is my rule book???

Darby ran his first times in a CPE Agility trial (Cainine Performance Events) at the Four Seasons K9 Athletic Club, and had a qualifying score and a first place ribbon in Level 2 Standard, and also had a qualifying score and a third place ribbon in Level 2 Jumpers.

Drifter and Dave ran at the same show and earned a qualifying score and a second place ribbon in Level 3 Jumpers.

I got a first place sun burn at said event!   

Posted by: Vistadei at 15:53 | link | comments (1)

I haven't written much this week because on Sunday, my Aunt Anna who is one of my favorite people in the whole world had a pretty severe stroke.  She comes to my house at least once a week to play with the dogs, always has said it was like therapy for her, they made her so happy.  So now, we shift gears and move from performance training to the skills some of them will need to go into rehab and nursing homes as therapy dogs.  Both Darby and Dusty are already therapy tested and actively do therapy work, so they were allowed right away to go to the rehab center.  I need to work with Daisy some to get her ready, as she an my aunt have a special bond (you can see their picture below of Anna holding Daisy back when she was a puppy in 2002)  It is hard for me to get home from work and tend to the dogs and then make the drive to the rehab center with much time to spare, but we can get about a 45 min visit in the evenings, it is leaving the dogs confined more than I like them to be, but there isn't much other option.

It is funny, I had just asked one of our puppy buyers to send me pictures of their boy Luke doing therapy work, because I wanted to add to our web site some of the dogs that tho they do not compete in the show rings, have an even more important job of going and reaching out to people who need company or stimulation. Luke's pictures just arrived  and I haven't had time to do the web pages that I had in mind, but this family situation is driving home just how much need there can be for pets to go into nursing homes and help people who perhaps won't respond too much to other humans, but will be delighted to visit with a pet.

 

Posted by: Vistadei at 14:59 | link | comments

Blah, blah, blah, blah, BLAH.. I see Miz Crystal has been writing paragraph after paragraph about agility stuff, but I know you are all just wanting to see pictures of ME!!!  So here I am.. Devon at 12 weeks old, still looking "promising"!

Here is me up on the steep cliff.. I have learned to run down all by myself!

I have had a fun week.  Last Sunday my sister Kiwi came for a visit and that was LOTS of fun, then my brother Mocha came by for an hour or so, and we chased and chased!  Last night Drifter and his big Collie sister came for a visit.  I got to meet them, but they were too big for me to play with yet, but I never ever knew dogs GOT so big as Spirit, she is a really really big sheltie.. oh.. no she is a collie, but that sorta looks like a big sheltie!  THEN this morning Destiny came for a visit.  I have never met her before, but she is neat, she isn't so big as the other dogs, a little smaller than my momma, but man can she RUN.  I chase her and chase her and she doesn't mind like the other big dogs, Miz Crystal says she is still a puppy even tho she is 1 year old!  Here is her picture after I wore her out and her tounge hung out.

Posted by: Vistadei at 08:58 | link | comments (3)

There have been a couple clues this week that perhaps I am a little TOOOOO obsessed with the dogs!  First was when I noticed myself practicing an agility move known as a "front cross" with an imaginary dog when walking down the long hallway at work.. hummmmmmmm  I was even switching the imaginary treat from one hand to the other as I made my move.  Yes, I was alone (I hope!) and yes I do work full time at a real live job to keep the doggies in kibble!

The second came during a trip to the grocery store.  My son had given me a list of some food he wanted, and as I headed down the isle I looked.. Hot Pockets.. $2.99 a BOX... give me a break, that is a buck and a half for each pocket.. he will have to wait till they go on sale.. Pizza rolls, $4.99 a BAG.. that is NUTS..  Perogies, ohh ok.. $1.39 for a box, I will get him those...  Heading on down the doggie isle.. $9.99 for a bag of 10 chewies huh.. well that is a buck a dog, and those last for 20 mins, but they really like them.. ok.. stick them in the cart!  Some boxes of treats, $2.50 for a box, ok.. oh look at that little baggie of moist treats, I could cut them up for training, I bet they are getting tired of hot dogs, so it is $2.99 for 2 oz bag, but they will enjoy them.. and speaking of hot dogs, better pick up a couple more pounds of those, at $3.59, don't want the cheap ones cause I hide them in my own cheeks, and just incase I swollow they really should be good meaty hot dogs.  Oh maybe a can of cheeze wizz they would like that, and a chunk of Montery Jack ($2.50) to mix in with the treats for a "jack pot" of goodies...  Suddenly, I realize I have spent $30 on dog treats and $1.39 on my son, so I sheepishly head back to the frozen food isle to get him his pizza rolls and hot pockets, and throw in a box of gyro's too!  So Son and doggies are happy and I am broke, but not as broke as I will be if I get fired for doing front crosses with an imaginary dog at work!

Posted by: Vistadei at 15:34 | link | comments

I got my magazines from Clean Run already! wow that was fast!  I ordered them less than 1 week ago, and now I can sit and enjoy reading them.  I got 4 of the specialty magazines, they are just PACKED with good articles.  I started off reading the contact one, I also got the puppy one, the weave pole and the handling (front/rear cross) issue.   I have been reading a little book "Your Secret Coach" by Christine Smith about mental focus in agility.  I am trying to change from being a serious, driven for the title kind of runner to a it's all about fun, dancing partner with my dog kind of runner.  Honestly that is much harder for me than any exersise..

Posted by: Vistadei at 15:16 | link | comments

aHHHH.. cooled off a bit last night, so we all enjoyed a good night's sleep! The dogs seemed greatful to be back to bed in their normal crates, they seemed agitated being left out to find cool spots, never settling for the night.

Mocha came by for a visit last night, he is so cute!  Got his ears glued, and because he was rather wiggly, he got his nose hairs glued too!  Hope that comes out soon, sorry!  hey I had a nice glob in my hair too..  Devon and Mocha seemed to have a good time running and playing with each other, and Darby enjoyed playing with Mocha's family too.  Stop by anytime guys!

Dave (Drifter's dad) had an additional tip to add about my prior post on teaching Lefts and Turn (right) command, here is what he had to say:

One of the best ways to teach a dog to do what you ask, is to have a dog already doing what it is you want them to do in the first place and then add the command or the signal you intend to use.  In other words, right now Darby does not know his left from his right.  But... {when we were jumping over the jump in class, person behind the jump - dog goes forward, jumps and turns back around the end post to the person}, he was turning nicely around the jump post both left and right.  This is the perfect time to add the words "left" and "turn" and/or use the hand signals.  He will then associate these words or signal to what he is doing at that time. Don't forget to "praise" and offer rewards. Do this using the jump initially, then remove the jump all together. This is the technique that I used on both Spirit and Drifter with great success. I hope this helps.

Thanks Dave!

Posted by: Vistadei at 14:40 | link | comments

This heat has really held up some of the training I had hoped to be doing this week, it is SO hot and miserable, much of our time is spent trying to keep cool.  I have been working on the book Building Blocks for Performance, tho it is written for puppy owners, I think it is 100% effective for adult dogs also.  The first "Block" in the first chapter is of course about choosing a puppy for performance, and adjusting your expectations to meet the characteristics of the breed.  For instance you would expect far different sets of inherited behaviors from a Sheltie than from an English Bull Dog, correct?  But we have shelties, and we already know they are smart, driven and well, just honestly one of the 2 most perfect breeds for the performance rings, really only comparable with Border Collies in their suitablity for perfomance training.  The second Building Block for sucess is Play, and how play brings your dogs focus on you, and makes training a positive experience.  Some of the tips I have been using in our training this week, has been to adjust my tone of voice for various commands, low soothing praise for times I want the dogs to hold a position (like a sit-stay) and wild happy praise for times when they can leap with joy at their success.  I also have been using the idea presented of keeping back some new toys they have never seen before (a cow with dangly legs, a soft circle of swishy stuff that can fly like a frisbee and an octopus with squeakies in each leg)  These toys only come out when we are play/training.  It keeps them fresh and special and the dogs are very interested in playing with them.  I have been doing well with the boys, Decker and Ricki have been learning to jump up on the bed like it was an agility pause table, and then hit a fast sit or fast down along with hand and verbal signals, and to hold it for at least 10 seconds, then release and go.  It has been too hot to set up equipment outside, so the bed has worked well.  I have also been going over the sit-stay on leash, tho I just step out, face them on the stay and then step back into heel position and release.  That has been going very well the last 2 days.  With Devon I have just been playing one-on-one with him, teaching him to come when his name is called, tug games with me, and also watching for things he is doing on his own that deserve praise, for instance tonight he was learning by himself to come down stairs, and when he did I made a big fuss over him, so he kept doing it and doing it, showing me how cleaver he was, and coming running to me for praise and love each time he suceeded.  This is so critical for early training that he feels my attention is reward enough for him to continue a behaviour in an effort to please me.  Darby has been particularly bothered by the heat, so I have not gotten out weave poles which are part of his goals.  Instead I have been working on hand training him to learn to turn right and turn left.  This is a behavior/skill that was taught early in our agility classes but something I didn't work on teaching him, now I wish I had spent more time on this skill.  Dave taught Drifter the turn and left commands very well and I see how much it helps them, and I also see on open level courses how it could really be useful when faced with 2 obsticles sitting in a "fork of the road" so to speak to be able to add the LEFT-TUNNEL command when the dog is working ahead of you, to call him off of the obsticle on the right.  To teach this, you basically start with the dog infront of you, tail toward your knees, nose facing out away from you.  Food in your hand, you move your hand in a clock wise motion and the dog should follow the food and spin in a clock wise motion with your hand so that his nose ends up at your right knee and his butt back behind you, this is the command "turn".  Use the left hand and move it in a counter clockwise motion getting the dog to spin his body in a counter clock wise manner (into a heel position basically) this is the "left" verbal command.  When the dog gets good at spinning left (counter clockwise) and spinning to a turn (clock wise) you can use a toy or a frisbee thrown out a little ways getting them to turn or left to get it and return it.

Now I have to admitt, the training with the girls has suffered these two days of heat, because by the time I get to them it is really hot and we are cranky, so I have not done much.  Hopefully this heat will break.

Posted by: Vistadei at 01:17 | link | comments (1)

DOGGIE BOOT CAMP STARTS TODAY!!

Oh don't worry, it is not as bad as it sounds.. we are going to set some training goals and do the 3 things that EVERY successful trainer does  1)Train 2)Train 3)Train

Now what we are going to do is not strict , nasty , militant, "you better behave" training, no indeed! This will be a program to overall acheive goals of a happy, focused, competitive dog in the ring and in the house.

I have re-vised my goals, feeling that I was setting up for failure by trying to do too much, so I am going to train each dog only 15 mins a day instead of twice a day as I had planned.  With the heat and humidity etc I think more than that, simply won't get done.

Our focus this week is on PLAY.. yes, that is right.. play!! It is one of the most important parts of building confidence in the dog, and in bringing their focus to YOU instead of ignoring you.  I usually train with food only, but that doesn't give me enough options in the ring, or in situation where I want more distance from the dog and still reward.  I want to have a bigger bag of tricks to reward each dog, so today a big part of my training will be playing with each dog as I train.  Catch thier attention, throw a toy, ask for a behavior like "sit" and then more play, etc.  That sounds simple, but not all of our dogs play with toys.. they chew them, but they do not all chase and tug and bring back and play WITH me and toys.  So Off to start with Ricki, then Decker, then Devon.  I have put the others outdoors, and will crate 2 of the 3 of these dogs so they can hear and watch, but have to wait their turn.

Posted by: Vistadei at 07:47 | link | comments (2)