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http://www.winstonglenofimaal.blogspot.com/


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National Take Your Dog (or Human) to Work Day

Friday, June 24th was take your dog to work day.  It was special for Winston and me because  it was the first day this year that Winston wasn't with me the whole day.  More about that later.

We decided to make it a photo opp because we are always looking for an excuse to take pictures of Winston.  Kelli agreed to stand in to test the lighting while Winston meet with a client.




















Winston came back into the office and we took some pictures while he worked:

So then the IRS agent says "I'm glad I can call you to explain tax code to me."  

If I've told you once, I've told you 100 times.  You MUST document your mileage.

No, the cat will never be a dependent.  A feline?  Sheesh.

Yes, you could deduct that, but you will go to jail.

Just tell it to the IRS agent, lady.  You ain't fooling me.

I'm glad we see eye to eye on the details now, aren't you?

Yes, another happy client.  Who's Next!

Whew.  I think I'll crawl under my desk and take a nap now.

As I mentioned earlier, today was special not because Winston came to work with me, but because he left work here to start his career as a Therapy Dog.  Kelli took Winston to Sable House, an assisted living facility (ALF) here in Pensacola.  This was his first visit and the activities director and Kelli decided to keep the visit short to about 10 minutes so he could transition from the office to ALF.

Winston in his therapy vest providing comfort to patients.

Kelli and Winston leaving the ALF

The ALF doesn't have regular visits by a therapy dog and Winston was a huge hit.  Everybody wanted to see Winston and learn about him.  He seemed to enjoy all the attention.  Over an hour later, both Kelli and Winston finally left after brightening the day for others.  Well done!  Now that's what I call bring your human to work with you day!

Reunion

Don't miss the latest post on Winston's new blog:


http://winstonglenofimaal.blogspot.com/2011/03/surprise-reunion.html

Moving on and on

Well, Winston has had so many adventures in his short 13 months that we have reached our maximum number of photos on this blog!!! I guess it is partly fitting since Winston has reached a landmark with his 1 year bday in January and his new experiences in the show ring.

So we will now be posting Part 2 of our life with Winston in a new blog. Please join us at: http://winstonglenofimaal.blogspot.com/2011/03/laissez-les-bon-temps-rouler.html


for our first post on the new blog!!!


Also, please take a moment to sign up at the new blog as a follower! We would love to see who is following Winston's adventures!

See you over there! It has been a great first year!

The biggest day ever!!

You may remember reading a few months ago when Mark posted about the dog show we went to. Mark watched the Novice Rally dogs and turned to me and said "Winston can do that!" So, a few short months ago Winston and Mark began practicing Rally. They learned the signs, practiced the moves and practiced and practiced! Then Mark entered Winston in Novice Rally for the PDFA dog show this weekend.

Mark and Winston entered 3 Novice Rally classes and Q'd in all three classes! So, today Winston won his first ever title!  Winston can now use the letters RN after his name!!!! Today Winston took 2nd place, too!


And if that was not enough for a big weekend, Mark and Winston took the test for the Canine Good Citizen ....

Winston completes an exercise in CGC testing. 

and Winston passed every exercise! Winston is now also a Canine Good Citizen!!!


Mark took several photos and turned them into a great slideshow on Vimeo. I am going to attach the link so you can check them out:  http://vimeo.com/20696464



What a wonderful weekend!!! Winston had such a super performance! This entire adventure started just because we wanted a dog who was well mannered! We never thought we would be going into a show ring with Winston! I am so proud of them and their hard work and teamwork!  We also want to thank every one who has helped us along the way--our wonderful trainer Lindsey!! We learned so much from you so early on with Winston!  We also want to thank Anne, Becky, Linda, Tami, Susan, Jean, Claudia, Connie, Joanne, Norma, and everyone else who helped mentor us along the way.

You just never know what Winston will be up to!

Feels like spring!

 Our weather has really been great the last week. The highs have been in the high 70's and the lizards have been out again!

You may not be able to see the lizard but all 3 dogs were watching the poor thing! Elliott spent about 2 hours waiting for the lizard to come down.

 Winston enjoyed his first dip of 2011 in the pond!

We attended a tracking get-together with some other dogs at the Equestrian Center. Winston works the track that was laid for him. 

 A few other doggies also did some track work!

 Our instructor said the "earlier the better" for teaching tracking! So, this 11 week old long hair daschund joined the fun! She did great!

Carly enjoyed some time outside chasing anything that moves!

Winston and Carly survey the perimeter.

Did you hear that?

Winston also enjoyed his frisbee--not for fetching but for chewing!

My Funny Valentine!

 OK, I do not think there are any words I can say about this, so I will just post the adorable pics!

Happy Valentines Day from Winston the Sloppy Kisser!

Very fetching!!

So,Winston loves to bring us stuff from around the house---he never tears the items up, just brings them to you for a treat. We decided the behavior was cute so we marked it and wanted to build on it.

Last weekend Winston fetched about a half dozen items from the pantry and brought them to Mark.

Here is his collection:

He also brought in an 10lb bag of sugar that is not in the picture!

This weekend, we built on Winston's excellent fetching skills to make them even more useful! Watch the video to see just how helpful Winston can be around the house!

Great job, Winston! Some of our Glen friends think he may be part retriever!

We had some fun last week.  Winston is getting pretty good at closing drawers and cabinets.  Sometimes when I get toothpaste out of a drawer in the bathroom, Winston will come up behind me and shut it before I can.  We decided to shoot a little video of Winston showing his talent and it turned out pretty good (or so we think).

Winston working a deer track

Saturday we decided to get serious about Winston's tracking.  He successfully found 6 deer this year, two of which would have never been found without him.  However, Winston's method of tracking isn't the way I want him to track.  Instead of finding the deer's path, Winston found it easier to cast downwind in the direction I sent him and he would work an area until he smelled the actual deer.  Then he would follow his nose to the deer.  In the picture above, he's looking for one of our deer.

I guess bird dogs work in a similar fashion working an area when sent by the hunter until they find a bird.   This technique will work as long as he gets close enough to the deer.  I'd rather he would follow the  actual deer trail.  Oh well, the end is the same ... unless you are going for a TD title.

The AKC Tracking Dog (TD) title requires your dog to work a 30 min to 2 hour old track with 3 to 5 turns over a 440 to 500 yard distance.  It is a pass/fail exam.   Before your dog can take the exam, he must be certified by a judge that your dog can pass the test.  Once you are certified, you must then get drawn in an event to run your dog.  If you think about it, tracking trials are both land and labor intensive.  Only one dog can run one track per day and the tracks must be carefully laid.  2 judges must follow you and your dog across the course.  Therefore, much land is needed and several judges/support crew for each event.  Few dogs can run, so a lottery is required.

Winston works the track

 Last weekend we tried Winston on 3 tracks.  I made the first track before lunch and it was about 300 yrds long.  I went home, ate lunch and then we went back to the track area and Kelli handled Winston around the track which was now 45 minutes old.

Winston comes across a marker that makes my track visible to nose challenged handlers

 Winston was spot on and didn't need any help as he worked 5 turns and finally located the lost glove.

Winston finds the lost glove!

 For the second and third track, we took Winston to the local equestrian center.  This was a new area for Winston and I set a 400 yard track that we aged only 10 minutes.  I expected Winston to knock out such a fresh track in record time.  He performed terribly!  He was distracted by people, cars, horses, tarps and barrels.  Kelli had to repeatedly show Winston where the track was and encourage him again and again to follow it.  So much for slam dunking this TD title.

We tried yet a third track and this time Winston settled down and ran the fresh track with ease.  What I learned is that we have a lot of training to do to make sure Winston is dependable.

Post track debriefing meeting

Here I discuss the 3 tracks with Winston and point out his errors and our errors.  He seems to be listening.

Well, all work and no play is boring so we played for a while.  Here Kelli gives Winston a treat for his 'stack'.

Just hanging out!

So Winston had another awesome hunting weekend with Mark this past weekend! Winston tracked a few more deer and was the MVP of the weekend! It is amazing the progress Winston has made in just one hunting season at one year old!! Winston has gone beyond our expectations!

Here, Winston demonstrates the Glen Sit on his birthday! He has perfected it now and will do it on command! Mark has also incorporated "wave" with this and it is so cute!

Mark and Winston played with "The Dog Brick."

Winston is really good at finding the treats and problem solving. He really finds it entertaining.

Just chillin' on the couch with my magazines and remote!

Carly still does not like Winston but I guess jealousy got the best of her and she joined him on the couch with us. They stayed like this all night! It was such a shock that she stayed here with him touching her!

 They look like friends but she still only tolerates him and never misses the opportunity to remind him that she is alpha!

Winston likes to sleep like this with his head hanging off the couch! It looks so uncomfortable!
Winston has really grown into a fabulous dog! Mark and I were just reminiscing about his puppyhood when Winston would go "Pyscho puppy" and run all around the house like a crazy man around 8pm! Now, his favorite place is right between us on the couch!

Happy Birthday, Winston!

Today, Winston turned one year old!!! I made him a special cake with buckwheat flour, soy flour, shredded carrots, honey and peanut butter. It has a peanut butter and banana frosting, too!

Winston says: "Do I smell cake?!"

Carly, Winston and Elliott posed with the cake and party hats!

Then it was time to cut the cake!

Let them eat cake!!

All gone!

Winston received a Nina Ottosson interactive dog toy for his birthday!

It is a puzzle type game for dogs that allows the human to "hide" treats and allow the dog to think and problem solve to find the treats. The dog has to slide a tile or move a wooden block to get to the treat. There are also added slats to make the game more difficult. Winston had a great time playing! Since he loves food so much it was easy to get him interested! I used his dog kibble and he thought it was like fine gourmet food!

Everyone knows the best part of birthday cake is licking the bowl! So Winston got to lick the peanut butter "jar!"

Choosy mom's choose JIFF!!

Winston had a full week! Earlier this week he graduated from his last Petsmart training class!

Here are a few of his fellow graduates:

Taz

                                                                     Jackson

                                                                          Brendee!

                                                              Congrats to all the grads!

Winston has had such a full life already in his short 12 months! He has tracked deer in the field, completed 3 training classes, attended several earth dog practices and been a loyal office mascot for Mark almost every day! What a great dog!