# Introducing...



## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Nauti Herd Compact Flash CGC

Miss Panda's got a title too. (Can't leave it ALL to Kodi! )


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## Ditto's Mom (Apr 29, 2007)

Congratulations Karen & Panda! I bet Panda was very proud of herself!!


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## KarMar (Jan 14, 2016)

Yay Panda! Seeing a dog with obedience/agility titles at the end of their name in a show makes me happy. With our current show schedule, we don't have much room to focus training on non-conformation stuff but plan on getting his CGC and starting agility once he finishes.

I would love to see some videos of Panda's current training. I can't wait to see what she has in her future. She's such a gem  (Still can't get over how similar she looks to Nino with the top knot...I need to post more current photos so you can see)


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## Hanna (Feb 25, 2016)

Congrats! I'm happy for you


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## Ollie"s Mom (May 23, 2014)

Oh Panda, you little cutie, congrats to you and your momma! She looks so happy in her picture. Well done!


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## Molly120213 (Jan 22, 2014)

Congratulations Karen and Panda! She is such a doll and growing up so fast!


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## Zoe093014 (Jan 27, 2015)

She's adorable! Congratulations Panda and Mom!!!


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## Lisa T. (Feb 5, 2015)

Congrats Panda!!! You are awesome and such a pretty girl.


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## Chi-Chi's Mom (Dec 10, 2015)

Congratulations Panda!


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

KarMar said:


> Yay Panda! Seeing a dog with obedience/agility titles at the end of their name in a show makes me happy. With our current show schedule, we don't have much room to focus training on non-conformation stuff but plan on getting his CGC and starting agility once he finishes.
> 
> I would love to see some videos of Panda's current training. I can't wait to see what she has in her future. She's such a gem  (Still can't get over how similar she looks to Nino with the top knot...I need to post more current photos so you can see)


Panda starts her conformation show career for real next week. I think we are planning 4 shows for her this summer. She's going to do Obedience, Rally and Agility as well as conformation.  (real agility won't start until she's a year old, but she went to an agility readiness clinic with me a few weeks ago) I'm not in a huge hurry for any of it, and will let her lead the way, as skills rarely all develop evenly. So we will continue to work on all four as time goes on!

The funny thing is, I went for my lesson, expecting just to practice a couple of parts of the CGC that we haven't done at all. I usually split my lesson between Kodi and Panda. But Kodi is showing next week too, and got hurt a week ago. He looks fine now, but I'm still taking it easy with him to give him as much time to heal as possible. So more of the time this week went to Panda.

The parts that Panda hadn't done were approaching a strange, neutral dog, the out of sight 3 minute stay with another person and the distraction test. But when I told my trainer what I wanted to work on, she said that she was sure Panda could do the whole test. She said we could either practice the parts I wanted to work on, or we could just do the test. If she failed an exercise in the test, of course, we wouldn't pass, but we'd know what she needed to work on. So I agreed. (my trainer is a CGC evaluator too) Panda did great on everything... Better than is required on most parts, with longer stays and recalls, and real heeling rather than loose leash walking. Of course she was good about being petted, handled and groomed... not a surprise for our dogs!  But she was also great about approaching the strange dog and just standing on a loose lead while I talked to the person. She was really funny about the distraction test. First Fran threw a tennis ball past her. She wanted to chase it, but I told her to wait, and she just stood and watched it, then Fran chucked a couple of small random things on the floor, which she totally ignored, and ended up dropping a metal chair on the floor. She did turn and look at what made that big noise, but she didn't even flinch or duck. I was amazed, actually. It would have made most people jump if they didn't know what was coming. When I left her with Fran for the 3 minute out of sight, (they don't have to maintain one position like a formal stay, but they can't fuss, bark or seem stressed, and the "holder" can't "manage" them) Fran said she checked the floor for crumbs, sniffed her pant legs, then just settled down to wait for me.

So she passed all parts without any trouble! After we were done with the formal testing, I did ask Fran to bring her dog (a well behaved, highly trained Golden Retriever) out again so that we could do more practice around a strange dog. First I walked Panda in small circles around Dove, asking her for sits and downs as we went. then I had Panda sit in the middle and Fran walked Dove around her. Panda was great about both parts!

So, we went with the expectation of just practicing, and ended up nailing the test. I was very proud of my little girl.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Ollie"s Mom said:


> Oh Panda, you little cutie, congrats to you and your momma! She looks so happy in her picture. Well done!


Ha! She's ALMOST always happy... Except when I yell at her for biting Kodi's poor ears!


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## PaulineMi (Feb 5, 2016)

Congratulations to Karen and Panda!


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## Pucks104 (Aug 16, 2012)

Congratulations Karen and Panda! Well done.


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## KarMar (Jan 14, 2016)

krandall said:


> Panda starts her conformation show career for real next week. I think we are planning 4 shows for her this summer. She's going to do Obedience, Rally and Agility as well as conformation.  (real agility won't start until she's a year old, but she went to an agility readiness clinic with me a few weeks ago) I'm not in a huge hurry for any of it, and will let her lead the way, as skills rarely all develop evenly. So we will continue to work on all four as time goes on!


Can't wait to hear how she does! There are no shows in these parts for all of July, but things really pick up mid-August (I think our biggest break is 2 weekends until January).

Our training center doesn't allow dogs to even take the CGC prep class until they have done puppy kindergarten, intro to obedience, and basic obedience (all 6 week sessions). Then there is a 4 week CGC prep class), so we are planning on finding a third party to test through after some private lessons. If prep goes well, he may be tested before we pick up in the ring again.

It's good to practice walking by strange dogs. On your way to your ring, you will pass numerous dogs (some not so well-behaved), and distraction is the last thing you want. Very fun that you guys went in expecting a practice and came out with your first title


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

KarMar said:


> Can't wait to hear how she does! There are no shows in these parts for all of July, but things really pick up mid-August (I think our biggest break is 2 weekends until January).


We have a big (5 day) cluster indoors in July, then a bunch of outdoor shows scattered around NE (which we WON'T be doing) Then the indoor shows start up again in August. You can be showing almost every weekend if you want in this area, but there are also agility and obedience trials the same weekends, and not always in the same place. (or the same organization (AKC, UKC, CDSP, WCRL, NADAC, USDAA, CPE, ASCA...)) For me it's mostly about scheduling BOTH dogs and making sure I don't burn ANY of us out.



KarMar said:


> Our training center doesn't allow dogs to even take the CGC prep class until they have done puppy kindergarten, intro to obedience, and basic obedience (all 6 week sessions). Then there is a 4 week CGC prep class), so we are planning on finding a third party to test through after some private lessons. If prep goes well, he may be tested before we pick up in the ring again.


Well, THAT kind of stinks! Panda didn't do a standard "puppy K" program, just drop-ins. She needed the socialization aspect, but not a "pet curriculum". Even during the drop ins, when the instructor was teaching other people how to get a sit or a down or whatever, I was doing my own thing in the corner with Panda. And we went right into a competition obedience class for puppies, offered by our competition obedience instructor. She's great at modifying whatever is being worked on to the stage the puppy is working, but they get exposed to EVERYTHING from the very beginning. Panda already knows what a bar jump is (on the floor) what a broad jump is (one panel), and has started retrieve work and scent discrimination (using Altoid tins rather than "real" scent articles) None of these are "finished behaviors", but we work on everything over time.

But there's nothing in the CGC that you, as an experienced pet owner, couldn't teach Nino on his own. GO onto the AKC web site and they have little videos of each part of the test. The criteria are NOT overly high. It's NOT like formal obedience.



KarMar said:


> It's good to practice walking by strange dogs. On your way to your ring, you will pass numerous dogs (some not so well-behaved), and distraction is the last thing you want. Very fun that you guys went in expecting a practice and came out with your first title


Although, I have to say, in our tight ring and crating areas (since most of our shows are indoors) I have to say that I RARELY put my dogs on the ground, even Kodi, until we are RIGHT outside the ring, warming up to go in. There are just WAY too many clueless people with large, poorly behaved dogs. (and snarky little dogs too, for that matter... There are a lot of toy breeds that have a lot sharper temperaments than Havanese) I don't want to take a chance with a dog even scaring mine on the way into the ring, let alone hurting them.


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## Raffi'sMom (Jan 25, 2016)

Way to go Miss Panda.


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## MarinaGirl (Mar 25, 2012)

Yeah, Panda earned her CGC! What a great story!! Is she the first in the family to achieve this title? And is Pixel training for any titles?


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## Heather's (Jun 18, 2012)

Congratulations Karen & Panda!!!! She looks like a very happy girl and so adorable too!


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

MarinaGirl said:


> Yeah, Panda earned her CGC! What a great story!! Is she the first in the family to achieve this title? And is Pixel training for any titles?


I didn't even know about the CGC when Kodi was a puppy, and by the time I DID know about it, he had higher titles, so it seemed a bit silly to go backwards. (though there are parts of the CGC testing that not all performance dogs could automatically pass, like staying calm around a strange dog, being petted casually by a stranger or staying with another person for 3 minutes with the owner out of sight)

Having done the CGC now once with Panda, I think it's an excellent goal for people with pets, who want a dog that is just plain easy to live with in the "real world", whether they have any intention of going on to formal performance training or not.

No, Pixel doesn't have any titles yet! She has been very afraid of large dogs, which put her training at a training center on hold for a while. She has gotten LOADS better, and has done both a general obedience class and a nose work class recently... then she went into heat! :roll eyes:

The other factor is that Dave has fallen head over heels in love with her, and considers her "his dog". He had a severe heart attack about a year and a half ago, and lost about 1/3 of the function of his heart. He told me one day, "Pixel has filled the hole in my heart." What was I to do?  I feel like their relationship is so special, I feel funny taking her away to go do classes. I really want her "main" relationship to continue to be with him.

She heels beautifully, and knows all the "typical" cues needed as a pet dog, and is a lovely companion, both at home and when we go places with her. So she hasn't gone completely uneducated by any means. But at least for now, she is his special pet more than anything else.


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## LauraLuna (Apr 25, 2016)

congratulations! Panda is so cute!


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## Eveningpiper (Sep 23, 2015)

krandall said:


> Dave has fallen head over heels in love with her, and considers her "his dog". He had a severe heart attack about a year and a half ago, and lost about 1/3 of the function of his heart. He told me one day, "Pixel has filled the hole in my heart."


That is so beautiful. I cried as I was telling my husband about that.


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## Zoe093014 (Jan 27, 2015)

That's so beautiful, about Pixel! What more of a purpose can a dog have!


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## whimsy (Apr 3, 2010)

What a cute little smarty pants you have!! Congrats! I can't believe how fast she is growing up. Adorable face.


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## boomana (Jul 9, 2015)

Congrats to you and Miss Panda! I, too, love the Pixel story. 

My children may never pass it, though we still keep trying to get there. At least they love training and classes.

When I first got Watson, my mixed-breed boy, I really wanted to do therapy work with him, but although he's shown to be very sensitive to people and animals with infirmities, he goes off on them instead. I took him to work once when he was a puppy, and knowing all the patients were in group, let him run around saying hello to the staff. He was super happy, then caught sight of a visiting former patient, who is schizophrenic, and went ballistic on him. If someone at the dog park 50 yards away has a diabetic wound, to use one example that shown up a few times, he'll take off at lightning speed to tell him off. He's, sadly the same with dogs. His mortal enemy is a 5-pound, 17-year-old blind poodle in the neighborhood, whom he has never met. We were working this for a year or more, and he got better, but recently has gotten significantly worse, and about the time Lola went into heat, which I'm thinking played a factor. He decided about four months ago he can't tolerate intact male dogs, or the scent of one (never had a problem before), and we're back to working with a behaviorist vet, as he's recently felt the need to chase down and go off on a young German Shepard, a Pit Bull, a Standard Poodle, and two Frenchies at the park. Had to put the park and classes on hold (quite a few intact males around as it's also the center for conformation classes and shows) as he's become a problem child. He has all the training, but it would be a hit or miss with the CGC depending on his emotional state, and it wouldn't mean anything unless I can get a handle on his reactivity. It took me four months to get an appointment with the vet this round, so we'll see on the 11th. 

Jump to Lola. I'm still working on letting other strangers touch her without her backing up. She's night and day better, and no longer growls, but she looks to me for a treat now as soon as she steps forward rather than showing any interest in the other person. She 100% fine with people after a few minutes, and loves being petted by people she knows, which she used to not tolerate, but that's not the CGC test. We'll get there. She also still struggles with waiting with a stranger for three minutes. I can leave her at home, in the car, in the park if I chose to step out to the car for a sec. no problem. She doesn't like being left with someone else holding on to her leash, and has zero issue with letting them know. 

The only sad thing is that if they could do the CGC and then pass all the therapy classes, they could come to work with me, and Watson could do the local reading program with kids, where he would be wonderful. I've not given up yet, but have a long way to go.


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## PaulineMi (Feb 5, 2016)

Karen does the nosework class help Pixel with her confidence? Lola will begin her nosework sessions next Saturday. I spoke with the instructor and she stated that she tailors the classes to fit puppies....lightening and shortening sessions to prevent a physical and psychological load. I like her approach as I don't want Lola pushed or shutting down due the bar being set too high for her. It's all about fun at this point.

We've just about finished a basic manners type puppy class. Like you we just do our own thing away from the group. Sometimes I even simply sit with her so she can observe without worrying about her well being. We only occasionally pass through very open areas to avoid the big, happy pups with owners not fully in control. 

Lola was happy and bold the first week. The second week all of the incessant big dog barking stressed her. I'm hoping the nosework will help her understand that she can stay focused without concerning herself with the rowdy big kids surrounding her in class.


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## Heather's (Jun 18, 2012)

That is such a beautiful story about Dave and Pixel. ☺


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

PaulineMi said:


> Karen does the nosework class help Pixel with her confidence? Lola will begin her nosework sessions next Saturday. I spoke with the instructor and she stated that she tailors the classes to fit puppies....lightening and shortening sessions to prevent a physical and psychological load. I like her approach as I don't want Lola pushed or shutting down due the bar being set too high for her. It's all about fun at this point.
> 
> We've just about finished a basic manners type puppy class. Like you we just do our own thing away from the group. Sometimes I even simply sit with her so she can observe without worrying about her well being. We only occasionally pass through very open areas to avoid the big, happy pups with owners not fully in control.
> 
> Lola was happy and bold the first week. The second week all of the incessant big dog barking stressed her. I'm hoping the nosework will help her understand that she can stay focused without concerning herself with the rowdy big kids surrounding her in class.


Yes, from what I've been told, nose work is really wonderful for dogs who need to increase their confidence and feel more in control of their environment. ...And your instructor is doing it the right way... Dogs should NEVER be pushed in nose work. It's really important to build their confidence slowly and carefully so that you end up with a dog that is sure of him/herself in competition. (if that's your goal... in Pixel's case, I just wanted to do something different with her. We have NO time in our schedule for yet another sport at this point!!!  )


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