Hello All!

So Vancouver got snow this January, and it even stayed on the ground for a while! In fact, the last traces are just melting now. Murphy has discovered that snow is fun to play in, and delicious to eat, so he had a ball. His fur keeps him nice and warm, so when I go to rub all the snow off when we head inside, he's still dry underneath. His paws though, they're a different story. I had to soak them in warm water to get all the snow unpacked from between his toes, off his feathers...

In this first shot I have Murphy sitting in the snow in our front yard. He was not so thrilled with this as his bottom probably got very cold very quickly...but I did manage to capture this picture, which I think is adorable.

Next we have Murphy catching snowballs. I think he assumes that anything being thrown at him is meant to be caught, so he took to the concept of snowballs very quickly.

  

We played out on the deck for a little while that day. Luckily we got the big dump of snow on a weekend, so everyone was out playing. Murphy and I romped around, played catch, he even made a little snow angel. you can see some of the snow packed onto his coat in the pictures...look closely and you'll see little white dots on his belly and legs. Murphy doesn't mind baths at all, so having to defrost him in the tub wasn't any trouble at all, really.

And here we have Murphy enjoying his new found delicacy, snow! After discovering this treat he kept on acting like he needed to go outside to pee. But when we took him out, he'd stroll about the yard, eating snow here and there. I'd be standing out there with him, practically begging him to get down to business, but he'd take his sweet time.

So that's it for the snow pictures. I was thrilled that the ones showing him catching turned out...it took several tries to get one. But Murph enjoyed the process, getting to catch over and over again.

To your left we have Murphy with his newest toy, a stuffed mailman named "Pete the Postman". Murphy adores this doll, and I have the feeling that they put some equivalent of doggie catnip in it, because he went crazy for it the moment I brought it into the room. I let him play with it only until he starts ripping at the seams, at which point The Postman goes away. The Postman has lasted over a week so far, which is a record, so my new technique is paying off. I think I might spend a lazy weekend, if I get one, sewing up all his old toys, and then apply the same ground rules to them too.

On to other topics! Murphy and I are just about finished this round of beginner's agility, and he's doing quite well. We did a "speed circle" the other day, where 5 jumps are set up in a pinwheel layout, and you run around the circle, doing each jump. Murphy's instructor said he is "very enthusiastic", and on our 3rd try said we did "excellent!". Murphy has also learned how to jump through the tire, and has gotten a little more time on the teeter. Still no chute though. Every Saturday an instructor says "I need the chute!". And *every* Saturday the guys in the van that brings all our equipment say "There is no chute, we didn't bring it!". This has happened 7 times! How hard is it to remember the damned chute? This Saturday will be our last class, so I'm *praying* that we get this legendary chute!

I think we're going to take a break from agility, and go back to obedience for awhile. I need to work on Murph's stay and recall, which are fine at home, but not too trust worthy in the real world, which is, of course, where it counts. If I can get him more focused then we can head back to agility, and practice without a leash, which is really how you're supposed to do it anyway! But agility is paying off in terms of obedience at home. Murphy listens much better, and, ironically, stays more reliably. Plus he heeled most of the way down the parkway on our walk a little while ago! I didn't know he had it in him, but he just kept on heeling, for several minutes. I was so impressed!

So what's up for the next little while with me and Murph? Well, on Saturday we have our last agility class, and then Sunday will be a busy day. I'm taking him over to Three Dog Bakery for some Valentine's Day treats, plus to stock up on Jump 'n Sit Bits (training treats). Then we're picking up Heidi and heading for a hike. Poor little guy is going to be exhausted by the time we make it home. I'll try to remember to take my camera. Hopefully it will be a nice day, and then I'll have fodder for the next update!

Email me!

Meghan

Here's the link to the next update: March 7, 2002
Here's the link to the previous update: Jan 31, 2002

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