Showing posts with label Drafting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Drafting. Show all posts

Saturday, December 7, 2013

Katie the Newf: Protector and Transporter

In the two years that Natalie has lived at The Happy Haus I have watched her relationships with the Newfs evolve.  Louie took to Natalie immediately and they quickly developed a very sweet bond.  Katie, on the other hand, was quite wary of Natalie and therefore needed to be watched at all times when the two girls were in the same room.  After about a year I began to feel more comfortable with their interaction as Natalie matured and learned more about manners around doggies.  About 18 months after Natalie came home I no longer had any concerns about the two girls being together.  However, I always felt like Katie simply felt neutral about Natalie…that she didn't care if Natalie was part of our family or not.

A few days ago I was walking Katie while pushing Natalie in her stroller.  We were almost home when suddenly a familiar Boston Terrier started running towards us.  Katie had an encounter with this dog back in 2007 when she was about 10 months old.   As she did previously, Katie acted nonchalant when the dog approached.  She didn't bark, move a muscle or seem to be on alert at all.  The dog's owner quickly followed.  Natalie asked if she could pet the dog.  I asked if the dog likes people - especially children.  We were assured that it did and the owner picked it up so that Natalie could reach its head to pet it.  The Boston Terrier acted very friendly, so I was surprised when Katie dropped her indifferent attitude and at lightening speed threw herself between Natalie and the other dog and pinned the dog to the ground.  At the time I didn't realize that Katie was protecting "her" Natalie.  I was just concerned about the fate of the little dog, but other than having a back covered with Newf drool it was completely unharmed.  Katie's intention was not to harm or she easily could have done so.  Her intention was to remove a possible threat to her girl.

Whenever Natalie expresses fear about the evil sea witch from "The Little Mermaid" or the mean man from "Beauty & the Beast" coming to get her I always explain that lots of people work to keep her safe.  I tell her that her teachers will keep her safe at school and when she is at home Katie, Louie and I will keep her safe.  I always believed this to be true of the Newfs after reading so many stories about Newfoundland dogs putting themselves between their humans and danger.  Seeing Katie's protective nature in action warmed my heart.


Unlike her brother Louie, who is not a fan of draft work, Katie also enjoys pulling Natalie around in her cart.

Monday, April 9, 2012

A Dream Come True

During the years we were waiting for Natalie I spent a lot of time training Katie and Louie.  One of the things I trained them to do is to pull kids around in their little red wagon.  Last weekend we finally we got to take our own daughter for a ride.  It was so much fun.  I think Katie had the best time of all; her tail was wagging almost the whole time.
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Let's get this show on the road!
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Louie gets a turn at pulling the wagon.
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It's so wonderful to see a dream we visualized for so long become reality.

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Sleigh Ride Southern Style

Since we rarely get snow in Arkansas we had to improvise with a Newfie wagon ride for our friends Evelina, Riley, Raeghan and Rachael. Katie and I had a great time with the kids and with their Mom, Charlotte who filmed the video I used in this little movie.

Evelina and Katie
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Riley, Raeghan, Rachael and Katie
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Charity with Katie the Newfie Reindeer
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Sunday, October 4, 2009

Newfie Pumpkin Pull

Katie and Louie practiced their pumpkin pulling skills Friday evening. This was Louie's third time to pull the wagon. He's starting to get much more comfortable with drafting. As you can see by her wagging tail, Katie is very happy that Autumn is here so she can do draft work again.

Saturday, August 29, 2009

Louie's First Draft Lesson

Since I turned 19 months old recently and since the weather was decent today, I was finally able to talk Mama into giving me my first draft lesson. I have to admit I didn't really know what a "draft" was... I thought it was like a little breeze or something. But, I remembered that Katie always gets really excited whenever she gets to go drafting, so I wanted to try it out.

First Mama put this harness on me which was pretty much the same as my car seatbelt, so I didn't mind it a bit. Then she told me to "Stand" and "Stay"...piece of cake for a pro like me. Then she started hooking me up to this wagon thing. I didn't care because I was focused on my Stand Stay. Then she told me "Forward" and offered me a salmon treat - Yum! I started walking forward and it felt weird because something was dragging behind me. It made me walk kind of funny for the first minute or so, but I stayed calm because that's just the way I am... call me Mr. Stability. Mama said she was so proud of me and she complimented me the whole time on what a good job I was doing.


Here I am patiently waiting for Mama to unhook the cart.
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When can we go again Mom?
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Sunday, May 17, 2009

Training Levels Competition

Recently, I starting using a 100% positive dog training method with Katie and Louie commonly called "The Levels". A group of people who also follow this training method started a worldwide competion. Katie and I entered as members of Team Rogue as a newbie team completing mostly level 1 behaviors. All of the rogue members added a twist to their entry by showing how the levels are used in different applications. On our team we have a guide dog, service dog, agility dog, circus dog and Katie the draft dog. Here is our entry:



We had a lot of fun participating and are so thrilled that our good friend introduced us to the levels. Katie and Louie are becoming smarter than ever and are having a blast in the process. I highly, highly recommend checking out the Mind to Mind Training Levels.

Katie getting ready to pull her cart
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Sunday, May 3, 2009

Draft Class IX: Unusual Cargo

Katie pulled her doggie friend Summer in her cart today at the dog club. We tried to take it really slow to give Summer a chance to get used to this new mode of transportation. Both girls stayed very relaxed and did a great job.

Saturday, May 2, 2009

Draft Class VIII: Off Leash

Another big step forward in our draft lessons yesterday: Katie was off lead the whole time and she did great. She is pretty good about staying with me. We also worked on integrating a few exercises such as come, sit, down and touch.

Sunday, April 26, 2009

Draft Class VII: First Passenger

Katie had a very important draft lesson today. Our cousin Adison was Katie's very first wagon passenger. Both girls seemed to have a wonderful time judging by the huge grin on Adison's face and Katie's constantly wagging tail.

Saturday, April 11, 2009

Draft Class VI: Freight Pull

Gary and Louie accompanied me and Katie during a carting lesson yesterday. Gary had the role of camera man, Louie and I were the supporting actors and Miss Katie was the star of the show.

The lesson for the day was adding cargo to the wagon. Until now Katie has been pulling the empty wagon which weighs about 50 pounds. We added a 30 pound bag of Orijen (which is the delicious fishy food that Katie and Louie eat) to bring the total weight up to 80 pounds. She didn't even seem to notice the extra weight except when we went up a hill. My plan is to use this weight in all of Katie's future lessons. When Natalie comes home she will weigh way less than 30 pounds, so she should be a breeze for Katie to pull around the neighborhood.

We will practice at least twice a week until it gets too hot and then restart our training in the fall. I am hoping to have Katie ready to take the Draft test next spring.

Monday, March 30, 2009

Draft Class V: Steep Hill

Katie, Cowboy and Flash were joined by Bucca the Newf for this drafting lesson. This was Bucca's first time to pull a cart. He was very relaxed and did terrific...definitely a natural.

Our focus for the lesson was a one mile pull and going up and down a steep hill. All of the dogs did a great job.



Cowboy :-)
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Bucca and Cowboy
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Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Draft Class IV: Weaving and Narrows

This time the focus was turns, weaving and going through the Narrows. Bonnie put together this video of Cowboy, Katie and Flash.

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Draft Class III: Turns

Cowboy, Katie and Flash strutting their stuff again last Sunday

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Video by Bonnie Bennett

Thursday, February 26, 2009

Draft Class II: Straight Lines

Katie's second draft lesson took place in the alley behind our house. We wanted to practice mostly straight lines to increase her comfort level with her cart. You can see that as the lesson progresses she gets more and more relaxed. I think she is really starting to enjoy pulling her little red wagon.

Sunday, February 22, 2009

Draft Class I: Introducing the Cart

I had already been thinking about getting Katie started in drafting when Pat, our Rally teacher at the dog club, mentioned that she was wanting to work on carting with her Schipperkes. Katie and Louie's breeders, Bonnie and Bill, were also interested in working with one of their dogs so we all got together last Sunday. Pat was a fantastic teacher and gave Katie and me a great introduction to drafting.

Katie is in the foreground followed by Flash the Schipperke and Cowboy the Newf.
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It was Cowboy's first time to pull a cart, but you never would have guessed it. He was so laid back and nonchalant about the whole business. He didn't seem to think it was much of a challenge.
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See how relaxed he is while Bill and Pat are hooking him up to the cart...he's a natural for sure.
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Flash practiced pulling with a tire. He is amazingly strong for such a little guy.
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Katie says "Mom, I'm ready for MY turn now."
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Here is a video of Katie pulling her wagon. A wagon is more challenging to maneuver than a cart because it's much harder to turn. Katie got a little spooked near the end of the video. She turned around, saw the wagon behind her and didn't know why on earth it just kept moving towards her. We got her straightened out, calmed down, and pulling again so that we could end the lesson on a very positive note.

This is another video that Bonnie took of all three dogs:


Katie resting up after her lesson.
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By the time our daughter Natalie gets home, hopefully by the middle of next year, Katie will be able to pull her around the neighborhood in her wagon.

It's so much fun to see these Newfs doing the work they are meant to do. This spring we plan to start Katie and Louie in some water work. We want our Newfies to be well rounded, LOL.