Saddest Day Ever!

Tonight my bestie Emily, Cookie and I went for a walk down to Popson Park.  We walk from my place in Sunridge down the hill to the off leash park.  Cookie is so funny because he knows as soon as Emily shows up in the evening that we are going to go for a walk. Popson is our favourite place to head to as there is easy access to the Old Man River.  Cookie is an awesome swimmer and I love to tire him out by sending him over and over again into the river to fetch his toy.

This blue toy that we ordered through Paws on the Run is by far Cookies favourite river toy.  I love it because it floats and with the long rope on it I can "wing it" out into the middle of the river.

Tonight Emily and I were taking turns throwing it for him.  It was all fun and games until I threw it out and he didn't see where it went.  Of course the current caught it and away it went.

It was so sad.... we kept going out and looking for his toy.  I would call him back, and he would come to the shore only to return to the middle of the river.  Poor Munsterlander!  His favourite toy is no more  :-(

Cookie Munster's first Q!!!

I decided to start blogging my adventures with Cookie this summer because we have had a very fun summer full of lots of new experiences!!!

When Cookie Munster was six months old we started agility training.  Oh boy, did I quickly learn that Munsterlander's are not the easiest dogs to train!!!  I had trained a sheltie previously with a "just for fun" agility group.  Munster's are NOTHING like shelties.  We had a long road of training ahead of us!

After our first year of training we joined the Go Dog Go K9 Sports team.  Please find the Go Dog Go blog under the list of blogs I follow.  With GDG we had found a great fit.  The trainers are knowledgable, fun, and most importantly patient.  I quickly learned that Cookies shortcomings were often times a result of my lack of handling ability.  With the Go Dog team we have been able to work on the skills that both of us need to succeed at the exciting sport of Agility.

In August we finally felt that we were ready to compete... Yeah!!!!  Two and a half years of training andFINALLY we were entered in our first trial.  Apparently Cookie sensed my nerves because his first run of his first trail ended with him taking a huge poop in the agility ring.  Yup that's right my dog took a huge crap on the course.  I had to do the "walk of shame" with my steaming bag of poop as he was kicked off the field.  Not the best start to Cookie's agility career.

Day two went much better.  Our first run of the day was in the starter gambles class.  My friend Shauna did an awesome job coaching me on how to handle the course.  We stepped out onto the field with a plan!!!  I learned something very exciting during our gambles run... Cookie actually knows what a tunnel is!!  The courses mini gamble involved going from a jump to a tunnel.  I'm not going to lie I was shocked when he did it!  I almost stopped to hug him right then and there.  We continued along the course and at the whistle to start the gamble portion we were actually at a good spot to attempt the gamble.  When he went out and took the first tunnel I was pretty happy.  When he continued on to the jump I was ecstatic.  When he actually took the finally tunnel to complete the gamble I was "over the moon" thrilled.  I couldn't believe it:  The Munster did it!!!  We did it!!!  Two and a half years of training all came to fruition in under a minute (56.89 seconds to be exact).  I hugged the dog, I cried, I took in the moment.  All I could hear while I was leaving the ring was one of our trainers, Sarah, yelling "stop hang-bagging your dog"!  So, we have something to work on... don't drag the dog off the course :-)

Not only did we get our very first "Q" that day we also were the first (and only) dog to Q in our height / level class.  So we got the 1st ribbon too!  The best part about the Q was that it happened at the Go Dog Go Lethbridge trial.  It was awesome to share that moment with the group of people that really made us a team.  The trainers and the other team members of GDG.  Thanks ladies for all your hard work and support!  Cook and I couldn't have done it without you guys.

 

Cookie Picks His Momma

So how did I end up with a Small Munsterlander?  My mom and my step dad were sharing their home with three Munsties.  On September 5, 2008 Jules had a litter of eight Munsterlander puppies.  From the time I met the Munster babies I just knew that I had to have one of my own.  The problem I faced was convincing my husband, Dan that we "had to have one"!!  At that time we were a one dog family with a ten year old no hassle sheltie. Dan had watched my folks raise three wild and crazy Munsterlanders... this was not going to be an easy task!

Being that I love dogs I would go out to play with the pups on a regular basis.  I picked out this cute little runty puppy that I loved to pieces.  I would go out and sit and watch the pups play in their room and then later in the dog run.  I loved to sit in the middle of the pile of pups and watch "my puppy" play with all the other pups.  When I would sit with the babies "The Ugly Mostly White One" would come and sit on my lap.  Didn't matter what I was doing, whether I was just watching the pups, or clipping nails, etc he would constantly be trying to sit on me.  When I would leave "The Ugly White One" would follow me to the door and watch me leave.

Fast forward seven weeks to the time the pups were going to their forever homes....  The only girl was going to my stepdad, Rob's moms house.  They were keeping one (who they later ended up naming Mocca).  Three of the other pups had homes already.  That left "my puppy", "The Ugly White One", and Bolt (he had a lightning bolt marking).  Despite me dragging Dan out on numerous occasions to see the puppies I still hadn't convinced him that we NEEDED a new dog.  Finally I got the phone call I dreaded... my mom called to tell me that "my puppy" had sold.  I was heart broken!!! 

A few days before Halloween my mom was having a little bit of a panic attack because she still had two puppies that needed homes.  I'm not sure what finally convinced Dan that we should have a puppy... I had let up on my new puppy campaign since "my puppy" was sold but finally just after "my puppy" was sold Dan said we could have one.  I was happy but devastated, and honestly kind of mad, if he had said yes a few days earlier I could have picked the pup I wanted.  The only condition of the new dog coming to live with us was that Dan got to pick which one we got.  I lobbied for Bolt because I REALLY didn't want "The Ugly Mostly White One"... his colours sucked plus he was really annoying because he would never leave me alone.  Which pup did Dan pick?  "The Ugly Mostly White One" of course!!  

Finally after eight weeks Cookie Munster got what he wanted... he picked me out and he was coming home!