The Adventures of Mookie the Mudi

    Titles and awards earned this month....    UKC  Advanced Interior (AI) UKC Advanced Vehicles (AV) UKC Advanced Containers (AC) UKC Advanced Exterior) (AE) UKC Advanced Nosework (AN) AKC Farm Dog AKC BCAT AKC Novice Exterior Elite (SENE) Link to Mookie's titles   What is a title, really?  (...a must read!)  MAY photos are in this album!  MAY videos are added to this album! Barn Hunt - Well, we moved 40 points closer to a Crazy 8s title but have a LONG way to go!!  Mookie happily found (and told me he found!!) 2 rats and successfully did the tunnel and climb!  Then back to Novice to get those last 2 legs for his X title and, what do you know, he happily again alerted on litter tubes!!   I see more practice sessions in his future in June!! Scent Work/Nosework  The first trial this month was a UKC trial in Wausau at a ROUND BARN that is an event center!  What a fun place to search!  Day 1, Mookie passed all 6 runs (2 novice each vehicles and interior and 1 advanced run each of veh

COOPERATIVE CARE  involves training an animal to not only tolerate handling and husbandry procedures, but also to be an active, willing participant in these experiences. This is a sentence from a great article in the Whole Dog Journal that can be read by clicking this link !  I can't say that any of my German Shepherds actually cooperated in their care and, for sure, they were often not a willing participant!  I thought this is going to change with Mookie..  Time will tell, it's a LONG process and I'll update here.  Below in reverse order is the progress we are making with all the things listed!   2023 May  The cone and muzzle were put to good use this month when Mookie tore his toenail on the right dewclaw.  I immediately put the cone on his head and he was fine with it and when we went to the vet, I took along and used the muzzle when she cleaned his foot!  2023 April  We made some progress this month!! Muzzle  - THIS is great!  Got a muzzle that fits and he accepts it w

Tricks are FUN and the AKC has a program to earn a Trick Dog titles!  Jake earned Trick Dog and Stunt Dog titles through Do More With Your Dog  so I know how much fun they can be to do. MANNERS!!   (titles earned in August of 2022) Before we can do tricks, however, it's important to learn MANNERS !  The AKC has Virtual Home Manners titles that ease a dog into the Trick Dog  (5 levels of titles) and the Canine Good Citizen programs (CGC, CGCA, CGCU) with two levels of titles: Virtual Home Manners Puppy (VHMP)     (Link to video)   (View certificate) Virtual Home Manners Adult (VHMA)     (Link to video)   (View certificate) The puppy title was videotaped by Jackie K at the Winnegamie Dog Club and it went well. It was so easy that I decided to video the adult title at home and submit it to her.  Jackie is an evaluator for these titles plus the Trick Dog and Canine Good Citizen titles. TRICKS!!   With the Manners titles behind us, I looked at the list of novice tricks and choose the

DOCK DIVING ...  or jumping into the water to retrieve toys!  What dog wouldn't enjoy that!  Well, lots I suppose but I was introduced to it because of Jake and Brita who loved the water and loved to retrieve so it was natural for them to combine the 2 loves.  Jake was the only one who participated in organized events and had titles in DOCK DOGS and NADD (North American Diving Dogs)!   SO..  because it was such fun I wanted a dog who could compete and I think Mookie is that dog and will learn to love it!  In the meantime, progress is slow and getting wet was just the first issue (drought in Hungary and he looked at rain the first time as if the sky was falling in).  We started our dock diving adventure in August of 2022.  Below, in reverse order is the progress he has made! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 2023.5  Swimming is not Mookie's favorite thing but he's learning that when his toy is in the water, the way to get it is to jump in and swim!  Slow and steady and he'll get

From the  K9 Frisbee Toss & Fetch website: Dogs love to chase and catch Frisbees — anyone who plays with their pups in their backyard knows this. It’s great exercise and mentally stimulating for your dog while strengthening the bond between you and your pet. With K9 Frisbee Toss & Fetch , you can take your backyard game to new levels by meeting up with local disc dog enthusiasts and competing in your home town — against other disc doggers across the planet. K9 Frisbee Toss & Fetch is an easy game to learn, a friendly yet competitive environment, and great fun for you and, especially, your dog and is the easiest, friendliest, "funnest" dog sport on the planet!!! SO...  we discovered this sport quite by accident from a Realtor friend in Milwaukee, Andrew Han, who pointed me in the right direction for disk play for dogs!  We checked out K9 Frisbee Toss & Fetch which led us to Fox Valley Disk Dogs .  Winter came and went and in the spring (2023) we started with

 Dog love to sniff!  Dogs NEED to sniff!  And yes there are lots of things they can sniff for!  (Google is your friend with this!)   The sport of NOSEWORK  or SCENT WORK is a very cool activity for all dogs!  I started with Jake, by default actually, when I was having my knees replaced and needed to entertain him for a few winter months.  After researching the sport, I started taking online nosework classes from the Fenzi Dog Sport Academy and was immediately hooked on the training.  Jake's 5 year journey from zero to UKC Champion and AKC Master Elite and Detective is documented on his website, Rock Star Jake . Naturally, because I love the sport, I plan to teach it to Mookie.  The 3 venues we will start with are: AKC Scent Work UKC Nosework NACSW Nosework I've revisited the beginning classes I took and we are well on our way.  Below the photos, I'll document (in reverse order) the monthly progress of this adventure! Click here to go to Mookie's Scent Work Photo Album

AKC Fast CAT® – which stands for Coursing Ability Test – is a timed 100-yard dash where dogs run one at a time, chasing a lure. It’s over before you know it — and it’s nothing short of awe-inspiring to watch your dog run at top speed, ears back, eyes focused, legs strong.   Titles are earned as points are accumulated based on speed and a handicap for small dogs.  The BCAT Title is awarded when the dog reaches 150 points.  The DCAT Title is awarded when the dog reaches 500 points,  The FCAT Title is awarded for 1000 points. An FCAT Title number e.g. FCAT1 is awarded for each additional 500 points. The handicap system works like this: Handicap of 2.0 for dogs below 12 inches at the withers. Handicap of 1.5 for dogs 18 inches or greater at the withers. (Mookie) Handicap of 1.0 for dogs 18 inches or greater at the withers. This is a summer sport in this part of the country and dogs need to be a year old before participating so Mookie is just starting as of May 2023.  We plan to take our ti

Barn Hunt ...  dogs finding rats safely tucked away in a tube and then telling their handlers they found it.  That's it!  Sounds simple doesn't it?  Well, for some dogs it is and others, well, not so much.  This is from the Barn Hunt website: Barn Hunt is based on the traditional roles of many breeds in ridding farms, barns, crop storage areas, and homes of destructive vermin. Some breeds were specifically created to fill this role, and for many of those breeds, Barn Hunt provides their first true opportunity for responsible breeders to test proper working traits in their dogs. Barn Hunt is also open to any dog of any breed or mix who wishes to play the game and can fit through an 18" wide by bale-height tall tunnel And now you want to know more, right?  First thing, click here to check out the Barn Hunt website. I was introduced to the sport at the second trial offered in Wisconsin in 2013 with Jake.  He excelled in it and was one of the first 2 dogs in WI to reach the Ma

Weekly (now monthly) progress reports (in reverse order)! 2023.5 May 2023.4 April 2023.3 March 2023.2 February 2023.1 January 2022.12 December 2022.11 November 2022.10 October Fall Adventures 2022.9 A September to Remember 2022.8 August - Summer Days 2022.7 July - Jumpin' July 2022.6 June - Getting out and about! 2022.5.23-29 - Week 2 -  Learnin' is such fun! 2022.5.22 The first FULL week! 2022.5.15 What he's learned so far!  (the first 4 days)    

Yes .... SHED HUNTING IS A THING!   I started to do shed hunting with Jake but when his back gave out he couldn't continue.  Now I think this is something that Mookie would love to do AND the United Kennel Club (UKC) has a program called ELITE SHED DOG ! Click here for a link to info on the UKC website that explains the sport. Click here for the rules of the sport. Below is a video I found from the UKC that explains the sport. I plan to log adventures here (in reverse order) so I can keep track of Mookie's progress.  :) 2023.5 - More fun!   We've done a lot of searches at Winchester Park, the yard and other places.  I discovered an organization that has virtual titles if you can't get to a trial so we started to do and record those!  It's called NASDA (North American Sport Dog Association) and Shed Dog 1 and Shed Dog Level 11 are both available  2023.4.2 - Talked with nice neighbor and he dropped off a SHED antler!!!  I was so excited that I hid it around the ho

   Titles and awards earned this month....    NACSW ORT (Odor Recognition Test    Scent Work Container Novice Elite (SCNE) Scent Work Container Advanced (SCA) Scent Work Interior Advanced (SIA) Scent Work Buried Advanced (SIA) Barn Hunt Crazy 8's - 30 points! Link to Mookie's titles   What is a title, really?  (...a must read!)  APRIL photos are in this album!  APRIL videos are added to this album! NOSEWORK training and trials (Click here for more details) NACSW ORT - This Odor Recognition Test was held at Camp Bandy and the final odor Mookie needed was anise which he got with no problem earning him the title!!   AKC trials The  Timber Ridge Obedience Club of Central Wisconsin ,  held a trial at the Plover WI Boys and Girls Club.  They offered INTERIOR and CONTAINER searches so Mookie was entered in 2 searches/day each element in both novice and advanced which is 16 searches of which he passed 14 earning him the Scent Work Container Novice Elite (SCNE) title, the Scent Work