Sit stay in front of the lake
annnnnnnnnd ACTION
I was sleeping
Foto Friday
Category Archives: The Canine Co-pilot Pack
All the other dogs in the Canine Copilot Pack
Dog days of spring
I have been slacking on blogging, but i have to say i do have a dozen dogs to take care of and their exercise, obedience, and varying jobs all come first! Today was a great lazy afternoon where i got some work done, made some new videos check them out www.youtube.com/eliteinstinctcanine and spent some much needed time catching up on computer stuff.
We also took a break and went outside for a 10 minute photo session. Now i have to admit i have THE BEST pack of dogs in the world, and anyone who has met them will agree with me! The following is pictures of some of our pack enjoying the fenced in back yard escape that we have bbq’s and camp fires in. Here you will see an example of a stable group of dogs from 6 months to 12 years old and 6 pounds to 80 pounds sharing a backyard, and a life together. It can happen, i have yet to meet anyone else with such a well defined pack as mine but i would love to!!!
Boburka
Emeline
Raina
Part of the pack
Better then a bird
Training the dogs is great, its a mental and physical release, whether its my own kids, or a training class or private session. The focus, the dedication and the overall joy of having that connection allow me to leave this world and enter another, one with just me and the canine. I can really step back and view him or her they way they should be, as a dog.
Anyone who knows me knows that i am a talker, and i am not afraid to say anything! This allows me to talk through what the dog is thinking, and why it is behaving how it is, and really explain what i see to clients. This clear communication is part of our foundation at Elite Instinct Canine.
annnnnnd...........ACTION
The girls love a good training, whether its just basic obedience or their favorite search and rescue missions! The other kids really love just polishing up on some obedience and getting a few trips out to the dog park.
L-O-V-E
Either way its spring and soon will be summer the dogs are happy and i gotta go out and find a pool!!!
ahhhhhhhhh
Mornings
Before work we start the day with a nice sunrise hike with abby. Its quite the birds are chirping and the fog is dissapayting. What a wonderful way to start a spring day.
Work time
Fugly and Val relaxing at work.
Middle of nowhere
I feel like i’m in a warpzone, the time has just been flying by like crazy. Its almost april and i feel like the year should have just started. I can’t slow it down but i can make the most of it. I remember a few years ago i couldn’t wait to turn another year older, to be “an adult” Well i’ve defiantly achieved adult status and i’d not mind to drop back a few years. I have so many things i need to achieve in the next few years that i better light up a fire and work double time!!
The dogs are all aging in their different ways and i stop and think about what each of them have achieved and what they still may want in life. Last week Snoopy managed to get some dog treats off the kitchen table……i now get a thorough inspection upon entry of the house and anything that gets placed on the table may, may ,may hold some yummies. Damn that natural reinforcement factor. Ahhh well we can’t all have perfect dogs, we can only try to be perfect partners.
Eme's best bud
Update on the dogs
Well so far everyone is hanging in there pretty good. Its been a long winter and while the dogs enjoy playing in the snow i know they are ready for spring just like us. Valentine is doing good, her leg is still in rough shape and I will never go back to colonial in Ithaca NY for an orthopedic surgery again. I have always seen Dr. Ross do great work but Val would have been better off if left to heal without a $4000 surgery. We are slowly trying to continue her recovery even with her turned out leg that just refuses to build muscle. While opening her up again to fix any possible meniscus tears he may have caused during surgery may be in order i do not think we will put her back under for it. She developed some extreme anxiety over her months spent in a kennel rehabbing including severe skin breakouts and anxiety inside kennels. She is now living in a crate free environment and is doing much better after some calming exercises and rehabilitation work to the mind.
Olive is doing good but is slowing down in her old age. Her hips and knees are getting worse which after the xrays we took last year i’m not surprised. She has hip dysplasia and DJD so we are going to make her comfortable and happy. She enjoys laying around on her orthopedic bed chewing on kongs and peanut butter filled bones and that is what she shall get!
Snoopy is his grumpy old self but doing well. He has his moments of puppy like play but it lasts only a minute or two and then hes curled up on the couch again sleeping. He’s almost 12 and besides some arthritis we are doing well medically.
Everyone else is doing great. Kendal is my current demo dog going to all my training sessions, working with some dog aggressive dogs and passing her calm stoic mentality to all who she meets.
I cannot complain, it has been another great start to the year and all the dogs are doing wonderful. Going to bed every night and waking up every morning to a slobbery batch of kisses and anticipated tail wags for the adventures we will enter that day is a blessing!
Love is the question
Many people ask me everyday why i love dogs. I’ve thought about the answer to this question a lot and have yet to really come up with the “right” answer. I love dogs because they are selfishless, i love dogs because they have compasson, I love dogs because they are always there, i love dogs because their fur is soft, i love dogs because they are intelligent, i love dogs because they are a challenge, i love dogs because they are brilliant, i love dogs because we have a bond, i love dogs because they can see into my soul, i love dogs because they are, in part, an extension of me. I love dogs because they in turn love me.
I spent many years struggling with life, and i faced many challenges. I hadn’t found that purpose yet, i didn’t have that intense passion or need to wake up everyday and provide for myself. I needed to learn how to live it, and if i really wanted to continue living it. I believe, i believe that with dogs in my life i can live it to the fullest. I do not know fear or uncertainty anymore as I always have a canine by my side now.
As i sit here and write this i look around my living room and see my dogs, Valentine and snoopy curled up with each other on the couch with fugly perched on top of val, kendal by their side and titan on the pillow next to them. Raina spread out on the carpet in front of the TV and Boburka on his bed in the corner. Anna and scout curled up with each other on the big dog pillow, Eme in her black leather chair and olive on the other side of the house curled up at the foot of our bed waiting for me to come in and go to sleep. They are all curled up sleeping right now, ready to retire for the night. That is of course until i stand up and make a motion indicating it is time to do something, and then i have twenty-two eyes staring at me with conviction, waiting for their next orders. I didn’t ask them for this dedication, they offered it and i have graciously accepted. Love isn’t the question anymore, love is the answer.
Not spring thats for sure
Woke up at 6am this morning (got to sleep in whooo hoooo) to a whoping 2 feet of snow. I couldn’t even open the back door, had to slip out and shovel off the back porch so the door could open and dogs could get out. Most didn’t want to go it was over their head but the shepherds couldn’t wait and took off clearing paths for the smaller dogs. Poor Fugly got lost in the snow banks!
With a state of emergeny in Broome County plans of in town training was demolished. Instead we played in the backyard, went on a short but tiring hike and did some small scent problems. The girls were still happy.
All in all not a bad hang around the house snow day. Man and we could see green grass yesterday…………..
Family time
Waking up to half a foot of snow at 5:45am i was torn to whether it was going to be a good day or a bad day. My focus this morning was getting some work done around the house, updating some logs, trying to stay off my sore knee and then taking to the backyard for some pictures of the pups. What may be our last big snow fall was enjoyed thoroughly by my canine companions.
snow!
crazy
We really do love winter, the snow is great, the lack of mud is even better, and its a different experience to get out there and train your dog in the winter. The chihuahua’s could do without the cold weather and the snow up past their little heads but the big dogs are pretty good at giving them worn down paths all around the back yard. We spend just as much time outside in the winter as we do in the summer and the change of seasons is always a relief. Thank you 2011 for a fun winter experience, here is to a nice dry mild temperature summer!!!!!
Strike a pose
Elite Instinct K9 Training 