Swimming, swimming, and more swimming

Ever since Pi learned how to swim, I've been working hard to try and get the other hounds to swim as well.

I've succeeded in getting Gil to jump into the pool for food; not the best motivator for this kind of activity, but I'm hoping eventually he will start jumping in for the sheer joy of playing in the water.

Pi's sister Patti is also making progress, although not as quickly as her brother and father. She did very well her first time in the pool; there was very little panicking (although the pictures may be deceiving), and even when she was allowed to get out of the pool she remained interested in the water and stayed close to the pool's edge.

She's been showing interest in jumping for food, but still needs some encouragement. Hopefully she will follow Gil's lead, and then eventually start coming in for toys. Patti loves her toys, which is something she and Pi have in common, and will play fetch with a frisbee. These are all good signs that she will eventually learn to retrieve from the water.

Hattie the Greyhound, on the other hand, would just rather be a land shark :-)

"Save me!"

Dock Diving

As mentioned in my last post, Pi has spent most of the summer learning how to swim. He had always been curious about the water, but was never much of a swimmer. Temperatures in the California central valley can reach high triple digits in the summertime, making it nearly impossible to exercise the dogs even in the evening on some days. As such, I decided it would be a great idea to teach the dogs how to swim since a good friend of mine happens to have a swimming pool.

It only took Pi a few days to learn how to swim, and only a few days after that to get enough confidence to start jumping in the pool on his own. He now swims very proficiently and without a life jacket. Because he was such a fast learner I thought it might a good idea to see if he would be at all interested in learning how to jump off of a dock. I have a lot of friends who enjoy the sport with their dogs, and since the Magyar Agar is such a rare breed it's always nice to try and reach new milestones with them and get them out in the public eye.

So, we headed down to the Doggone Dirty Dock Diving Facility in Hollister on Sunday, July 7th to give it a try. I was a little worried when we finally got down there because it was actually foggy and the weather forecast only showed a high of 85 for the day. I had no idea whether or not Pi would be comfortable jumping off a dock, let alone into potentially cooler water than he was used to.

Turns out I needn't have worried, because he took right to it once I figured out what his "on switch" was. The dock is about two and half feet off the top of the water, which is a bit intimidating for most dogs at first. But, I found that if I threw the toy out first, and then pulled him back away from the edge, giving him a running start, he was much more confident about jumping in.

Pi jumped in two waves, with his longest distance being 9 feet 11 inches, just one inch below the junior level jumping division. That jump earned him first place out of three dogs in his division. Hopefully he will continue to improve, and of course, continue to have fun.

Gone Swimming

Pi just learned how to swim, and I think he likes it :)

Pesh's Rally Video

As promised, here is a video of Pesh's first rally run. She still has a lot to perfect, but it was a great first effort and her owner Jairi says that she improved with every run over the weekend. Well done Pesh and Jairi!

New Rally Title!

On May 12th 2013, Peshamba became the first Magyar Agar to title in Rally Obedience! She and her person, Jairi, have been training hard for this moment and all their hard work has paid off! Pesh is now CH Stouthearted Babes in Toyland RL1. Congrats Pesh and Jairi on making breed history! In addition to making scores of 181 and 189 in her first two trial runs, she finished out her third qualifying run with a score of 200! I'm hoping there will be videos to share later, but for now, here's a photo of Pesh with her ribbon and new title medallion.

Pi Tries Barn Hunt

Thanks to Cathy Thomas and Lyndy Banducci, Pi got a chance to try barn hunting! For those not in the know, Barn Hunt is sort of like nosework but with a live animal as the target. They put live rats inside cages made out of PVC pipe and hide them around a barn or enclosed paddock area. The dogs have a set amount of time to find a certain number of rats and they get ranked by time.

This video was taken April 28th. I can't remember exactly, I think Pi found all three rats in 1:20.

UKC Show Updates: New Titles and Awards

Two of the Operetta puppies finished their UKC Championships in September 2012. Pi and Peshamba both finished at the Galt shows, with Pi also taking a RBIMBS award to go with his new title!

After the regular coursing season was over, we decided to attend one more show in early February before heading to the Grand Course. Entered were Gil, Pi, Pesh, Patti and Belle. Pi took champion of champions in both shows, earning his first Grand Champion leg! Papa Gil was not to be outdone by his kids, however, and took home BOB awards in both shows along with some Top Ten points.