Abby, Frank and Max
We give thanks for…….
A warm bed
A comfy couch to place our heads
The ability to do a job that we were bred to do
A wonderful breakfast and dinner every night
A truck that is designed specifically for us
A roof over our heads and a floor beneath our feet
The love, attention, and devotion of a mom and dad who love us very much!
Love the Canine Copilot Pack
Maxwell
Anastasia
Abigail
Emeline
Raina
Frank
Sören
Jordis
❤ In loving memory of Scout and Titan
I am not by nature a relaxed type of person. In fact i’ve been named “fiesty” by many and i guess have accepted it as a compliment. Sometimes though i have a week or so that sets me back, where i stop being super-women and just return to normal pace. The past week has been pretty crazy with the addition of the new pups, but the dogs have all adjusted to their new brother and sister and the family has blended perfectly.
I have a laundry list of things i want to write about, i want to film, i want to show but i can only do so much so quick! With that being said look for a few new posts on the pups and how life is going.
With over a dozen dogs milling about some sleeping, some chewing on bones and others scoping out what to do next you can see what a stable, calm pack can look like. These dogs range from my 6 pound chihuahua to my 65 pound high drive working shepherds all living happily in the same pack. My work as a dog behaviorist and dog trainer has allowed me to manage an ever changing pack of dogs. It is not as simple as throwing a bunch of dogs into a backyard, you must be able to communicate effectively with your dogs and have a solid foundation set in your training methods. This is not something made for TV, this is real life, this is MY life.
Working long hours the last few months has taken a toll on not only my blogging but my picture time with the pups. This morning with coffee in hand i strolled onto the back deck enjoying the sun and warm breeze and had a wee little photo op with the pups. The co-pilot’s are doing great and adjusting to the new routine in the family.
Olive looking old as usual.
Olive went for a nice walk over the weekend with mom and dad. Most of the time we kept her on leash so her legs didn’t give out as much, but man she still jumped like crazy when the chipmunks chirped!! You could see it in her eyes, she wondered why her body wouldn’t let her mind carry on like she had in her younger years.
Tractor, english bulldog, plenty of woods to play......what more does a guy need??
After over a year and a few setbacks Valentine’s legs are finally getting close to where they used to be. She still walks bowed out, and i will never do a ACL/CCL surgery again on a dog like her, but she is leading a happy life. She is still her crazy reactive emotional self but her father loves her for who she is! She got a fun tractor ride and helped us unload all the agility equipment from the trailer back onto the agility field.
Anna the most regal dog of them all!!!!
Anna’s been keeping up with her job well, as resident ear cleaner that is 🙂 She likes to keep everyone in order and try to maintain a certain level of cleanliness with everyone!!
Well it would be impossible to catch up this blog as i have lagged behind to much! My free flow of words just seems to get stopped up, whats that called writers block???
A quick recap finds everyone well. The sar girls are amazing, really working their butts off!! Emeline is doing great, her indication is solid and fast. I will never have to question whether or not she finds a subject. Her multiple refinds provides long hard bark and bounces at me loud enough to wake a deaf person! She actually makes the ground tremble!!!! Her searching was natural, just pure genetics but her brain was assembled differently then her sisters, something her mother threw in to the mix. She is a thinker and will not allow me to pass by the scent cone. I’m amazed at the progress she has made and am thrilled that i gave her the chance to nail everything perfectly like i knew she could do before moving her on. Bravo Emeline Bravo!
Eme-lion the beast!
Raina will be a year old in less then a month! It’s crazy to imagine that she has already been with us for that long. Such a quick learning pup she amazes me every day with her balance, work ethic, and drive to be a prominent friend to her owner. I have held back on her testing because of her age, not lack of ability. She could have certified months ago with flawless searching and indication, and has yet to reach that “hiccup” period in her youth. While everyday i wait for it, every time we train she re confirms to me that she really is just that good. There are good things to come in the future with miss Rainy and i will keep you posted!
Rainy taking a quick break from her search area.
Abby has been doing great and is proving to be a solid worker. Her skill level is above and beyond what i had dreamed and she is fitting into the pack well now that she has learned all the dog play rules. The remainder of this month will be a huge test for Abby and i know she can do it. I’m so proud of her and what she has already achieved!
My amazing "knock you to your butt" indication dog!
Everyday i come home, you would swear i’d have been gone for years 🙂 Makes you feel a little better about yourself doesn’t it??? Below is a short video shot of the pack, you’ll see most of them weave in and out of the kitchen happy to have me back home safe and sound. Take note of Otto the 9 week old GSD pup, hes new to the pack only with us a few days when this was shot. His body language in the beginning playing with the other dogs is great, he learned how to position his ears and what to do with his body to solicit play without coming on to aggressive or scary. This boy is amazing and my pack is incredible at giving dogs what they need.
The pack structure at its greatest! You will see my 10 month old German Shepherd Raina submitting to her 6 year old 7 pound Chihuahua brother. Raina is a crazy high drive working german bred girl with an amazing bite on her. When it counts, she is gentle as a baby. Size doesn’t matter, dogs are dogs and my pack is a very valid demonstration of that!
Well the last month has been CRAZY. I cannot get all the seperate blog posts up that i would like to for the events that have occured over the last few weeks but i will try to update in one semi short post!
Some quick good news, we have a new car and i *think* the dogs will like it.
The new Canine Copilot mobile
Well the hunt has begun for a new car. My “doggie” car a wonderful 4 door saturn is finally reaching the end of its life and the canine copilot pack needs a new vehicle to get around! I’m most interested in a wagon, something with good gas mileage and still plenty of room for my copilots in the back and front. We do a lot of traveling for clients so it has to be comfy, and reliable as well. Dog friendly being of course my primary concern!!! Choices do not come easy when you are trying to take into consideration the welfare of 12 others!!!!!
Val girl
I’m a little behind in my blog posts but trying to catch up!!
Last sunday Eagle Valley search dogs had to attend the dog show in Whitney Point NY. I was presented with the AKC CAR award money for the grant i wrote earlier this year. This 2000 dollars will go to supporting our fall Combined Federation search seminar in the end of september. Abby and her real sister Raven both did short demo’s of the recall refind indication sequence and abby was available for people to meet and greet.
social butterfly
Our table attracted a lot of attention and hopefully we were able to scout out some new volunteers to come hide and train with us!!! If you are ever interested and in the Broome County or Delaware County area email me EliteInstinctCanine@gmail.com We are always looking for volunteers to go get lost!!!
❤
Elite Instinct K9 Training 