Drives...and I'm not talking a Sunday one in the country

I am contemplating drives. Food, play and prey drives, as well as the drive to please.

Schutzhund, ring sport and police dog trainers often speak of drives, and through researching the types of methods used in training dogs for these different venues is where I learned the most about them. Agility trainers too speak of drives, but often in a different sense. Every one's idea of what drives are what differs, and I have seen arguments over personal definitions. No one can really agree, and what it seems to come down to is personal opinion. So, for my sanity, I will use my own personal opinion formed by studying different methods of training and behaviour.

I've had the privilege to assist with some agility classes over the past couple months, which is what got my little brain ticking on the topic of drives.

I have a VERY drivey dog. She is also a Jack Russell Terrier, which might account for the prey/play drives that I see in her (of course she is a chow hound too, but to her, killing a toy is much more satisfying). She is not a hunt club bred JRT (though recorded and participating with the JRTCC), she's more on the shortie side, but I wouldn't have her any other way. And even though she was not bred with the specifics of drives in mind, she carries these drives from her recent hunter ancestors. She is a Jack, after all, not a breed bred for the show ring, but a breed or type bred for work. Any type of work you throw at her, she will gladly do ... if it gets her something in return, be it a toy, the chase, food etc. She is extremely well balanced in her drives. She is not over-the-top at home, but when it comes to training, trialing, and chasing, I have a little demon on my hands. She didn't need to be taught or helped along with her drives, she never needed motiviation, she just had them. She came with them, as an added bonus. Kind of like, "if you order this fillet knife now, we'll throw in an extra fillet knife and a paring knife for the same price!" Or "if you order this little dog now, we'll throw in some play, prey and food drives for the same price!".

Sometimes dogs don't come with these added bonuses and this is what I have been observing in the agility classes. I have a more experienced dog on my hands, with knowledge and understanding of the sport, so I shouldn't compare apples to oranges, as this great group students are green and still learning the in's and out's of agility. I can say, however, that I am still somewhat disappointed?... No, that's not the right word, maybe taken aback better describes how I feel. So I am a little taken a back with the lack of prey/play drives that I am seeing.

Quite a few of the dogs have the drives to please. Sometimes I envy their handlers, but then I realize that I wouldn't be having as much fun with a dog who's main goal it was to make me happy. I like the independent terrierness (yes, I made that up, it's now the word of the day) of my little girl, she's a challenge, and with that challenge, has taught me a great deal. I have some of that "terrierness" myself, so I can appreciate the temperament and attitude.

Almost all of the dogs have med-high to high food drives. Great, that helps immensely, but doesn't get the excitement level going quite as much as a high prey/play drive.

I have yet to see any of the dogs with high prey/play drives. Some have medium versions of these drives, but none have the intensity of a drivey border, kelpie, malinois, GSD or JRT.

So, from this point, I wonder ... can we really teach a dog to have the drive we desire? I think we can teach a dog to enjoy the chase, we can teach a dog to enjoy the game, and we can teach the dog to enjoy the tug, but I don't think we can teach a dog to have the drive. I believe they need to be born with it, in order to really possess it in it's entirety.

I am lucky. I am VERY lucky. But I've also picked a breed/type that most certainly can not fail when it comes to prey/play drive. I'm sure that there are some JRT's out there somewhere, that lack the intensity. Mine does not. However, my JRT is, as stated, nicely balanced. She's great in the house, calm to the point of laziness. She will, the odd time, obsess over the "ball" or the "toy" or the cat in the backyard, or the rabbit who is making it's home (without permission) in our wild flower garden, but these are all manageable. And I personally would prefer a dog that obsesses just a little to one that doesn't care in the least.

Is a dog who is bred for work/sport in a better position to receive it's natural drives than one bred for show or pet? I would have to say yes, though it does depend on the breed/type of dog that you acquire.

Some of these dogs, though lacking certain drives, will do very well in the sport, as they have the intelligence and desire to please that is also pertinent in training. Some of these lower drive dogs will even surpass their high drive counterparts because lower drives are easier to handle, easier to manage and easier to control. They will work for food, and the food will be good enough for them as a reward for a job well done. Food drive for these dogs will be imperative. Food may even entice them to reach a level of excitement close to that of a highly play/prey driven dog. Some drives to please will even show these results, the dogs being so eager for praise and affection that it gets them excited at the prospect.

Those who can hone the highly prey/play driven dogs seem, in my own observations, to have the quickest, most intense runs. Though, this isn't always a goal as sometimes slow and steady does win the race.

And, with high drive dogs, if the dog is not balanced, you run the risk of "craziness", major obsessions, hugely immense exercise needs, dogs who can not settle and so on.

So again, I am extremely lucky. But then, a JRT is like no other dog out there, and perhaps that is what is so special about them.

I'm looking forward to seeing how these students progress and will watch with interest as to how they motivate their companions in the sport.

Work in Progress...Long Progress

I've become fed-up. I've taken an extended break from this piece as it is just not conforming to my original idea the way I would like it to. When (and if) this piece finally gets completed, a portion of the proceeds will be donated to the Jack Russell Rescue of Ontario.

I'm hoping that by posting it here, I can look at it in a different light, and figure out where the heck I've gone wrong...wrong in so many ways. This is an acrylic on canvas, and my hope was to create that generic look that any JRT lover would want to hang in their home. I'm still hoping.

In the mean time, check out the JRTRO as they have many wonderful mature JRT's that are looking for new homes.

Forests

Kelso Summit Trails

Crawford Lake Trails

Mountsberg

Valens Conservation Area

If you love the outdoors, hiking and the natural world, check out this site. Amazing images of forests around the world.

www.forests-forever.com

Am I Crazy? Of Course I Am!

1st 2 photos courtesy of Gabrielle Deans

Well, the thought has been travelling through my mind, and I can not squash it. It's nagging all day, everyday at the tip of my subconsciousness, driving me nuts!

Shall we try the AAC Agility Ontario Regionals once more this year? Let's see, our past two Regional showings have been less than stellar performances, in fact, they've been down right embarrassing. Of course, the little dog is much higher caliber than what she presents at these two day tournaments. She gets lazy, and I know, I'm making excuses for her, but the concept of "run for 2 minutes, then lay around for three hours waiting for your next run" just doesn't sit well with her...or me. Hell, if I played soccer tournaments like that, I wouldn't be in the mood for the next game either. Hmm, does the word "lazy" and Jack Russell belong together? For me it seems a bit of an oxymoron, but she does loves her sunbeams in the afternoon.

The drive is turning me off a tad, being that it is a 5 hour drive for a two day weekend in Ottawa. I'm not a long distance driver - I just don't have the stamina. I've actually never driven that far, thus not being properly trained in long distance driving, I'm leery of the outcome. It's a real shame that Brandy couldn't take the wheel so that I could get a break. I suppose that's illegal, plus there is no way she could reach the pedals.

Also, the option of dropping her to specials has been looming on the horizon as well. She was jumping 10"regulars in AAC, and 8" regulars in CPE. Since her knee operation (which has healed nicely I might add) I've been considering dropping her AAC height to 6" specials. I believe it would be easier on her joint, and the fact that the A-frame is lower in the specials division is another bonus. So I am seriously considering this option and have pretty much made up my mind that this would be the best avenue to take for her sake.

Perhaps she'll be more comfortable at 6" and maybe, just maybe, she'll give me a better performance this year. Well, I can only hope. She is Jack Russell after all, and her mind is her own. She is not a fawning do-what-you-ask-any-time-you-ask type of dog, so I am always kept on my toes during our performances. But, that's the joy of running a Jack...and I wouldn't trade it for all the border collies in the world.

Asian/Indian Elephant

The Asian elephant is smaller than the African elephant, and can be differentiated by it's smaller, more rounded ears. These elephants are endangered in the wild with only about 24,000 - 48,000 individuals roaming the earth today.

Asian Elephant Facts

I am very about pleased how well this sketch turned out. It is unusual that I'm drawing anything else besides dogs, but I wanted to take on this challenge as I would like to create an acrylic wildlife series in the near future (when time allows - which it seemingly never does). This piece and others like this will give me practice on something other than the canine form. Mr. Asian/Indian Elephant was created in a sketch book with a mechanical pencil. I really enjoy the fine lines I can attain with the mechanical as well as the deep darks/shading that I can create with this tool.

T-Rex

I believe almost every child must have had an obsession with Dinosaurs at one point or another in their early years. I know I sure did. Kindergarten and grade one did it for me with colouring projects and research projects on these huge lizards. Our teachers even delighted us with a trip to the Royal Ontario Museum to see the giant beasts, among other things. I drew Dinosaurs, I read about Dinosaurs, I played with Dinosaur toys, dreamed about Dinosaurs and even imagined that I was one. They were the coolest thing since sliced bread. My original career choice way back in grade one, was to become an anthropologist. Let's just say that I was a little early on the decision making, and I found out that math, chemistry and me didn't get along, so that train of thought was kiboshed rather quickly. No matter, I still find them fascinating. I have all of the Jurassic Park movies lying around the house somewhere, so they fill my Dinosaur craving every-now-and-then.

This guy above, Mr. T-Rex himself, was just for fun. A little bit cartoony as it's been many, many years since I put pencil to paper to create one of these amazing creatures. I drew him from a image of a set of bones, and was pleasantly surprised at the outline result that I could come up with merely working from a skeleton. Perhaps I'll add a few more dino selections to my sketch book though a little more detailed next time would be preferable.

16 Valley Conservation Area

Ice Flows on the bank

Fencing that runs along the upper paths

The little dog in her macho sweater

Listening to the wild roosters

It was a nice day today, sun shining (very brightly I might add), it was about 1 Celsius (warm for February) this afternoon and it's a holiday - the "all new" Family Day. This is the 2nd year for this added day off work in Ontario, which is a welcome bonus to the long dreary months of winter (and the lack of holidays that we North Americans face). Family Day is now to be celebrated every third Monday of February thanks to Dalton McGuinty. To read the news release, click HERE.

So, I thought, what better way to spend part of the day then taking pictures at one of Haltons many beautiful conservation areas with my family. Well, I only spent it with part of my family. One part is off to work today (which is a bit of a shame, kind of defeats the purpose of the holiday), so it was the JRT part that I took along. I figured it was a good idea to get her back out in the woods again, and work that leg in a nature environment.

We decided on 16 Valley Conservation Area, since I didn't want to over do it with the little dog, and we just planned on mucking around near the creek. I regret not having the camera with me the day we had a major thaw, along with ample amounts of rain. The valley was completely flooded that day and I have never witnessed the water at those levels - amazing to see. A couple of the above are pictures of the after-math of that thaw, you can see the ice flows on the banks. The water is still fairly high and moving at a decent click, so of course, no swimming for the little dog, and I don't think she'd appreciate the water temperature anyway.

Conservation Halton History HERE

As far as I know, there are two separate areas to walk in this conservation area. You can park down in the valley in the unmanned parking lot (or mud pit, and I like to call it), cross the bridge and venture out and up the path that takes you for a hike-and-a-half (if you're willing), snaking along above the creek or one of its many tributaries through the woods and fields. You can walk for miles up there, so the weather today was much more forgiving for that kind of hike, rather than the 30 Celsius and humid weather that we decided to venture out in this past summer. Or you can park at the top entrance along the road, with an opening to a few upper hiking paths. We did a tiny bit of both today, never having entered from the top, I'm really not sure where it goes, but I'll definitely be finding out this spring or summer.

While on one of the upper paths, I thought I heard coyotes, unusual for the middle of the afternoon in this area. I was going to return to the car anyway, this just encouraged me to do it at a faster pace. All I had with me was my little 12lb Jack Russell and my Canon camera. Though I know she'd try her best, Brandy is no match for a coyote especially with a leg that's not quite up to par yet, and wearing her macho knitted sweater wouldn't help the intimidation factor. I really didn't want to have to beat anything off with my camera, it was expensive, plus I didn't have the BIG lens with me which would have done more damage if need be. The closer we got to the car, the more I thought that the coyotes sounded like a group of malicious of roosters. I take no chances in the woods by myself, I'm not exactly an imposing figure, and if there was a gaggle of wild roosters out hunting, feeding on unsuspecting hikers, I didn't want to take any chances. They have spurs you know. Back at the car, I still hadn't figured out what the sound was ... but I did decided it was coming from one of the farms in the area, which relieved me immensely.

So, we didn't get chased by coyotes, or a gaggle of wild roosters, nor did we get very far in our hike, but we caught some good shots, had a breath of fresh air, and I did it with part of my family, the whole point of the day.

I always miss the woods in the winter months, so this was a nice little taste to carry me until the weather gets a little warmer.

Lycanthropes

Just to clarify, I am not into horror movies, so in no way is this related to the new flick "Return of the Lycans" that just recently made it's debut, however the word "Lycan" inspired me for this quick piece. 

Lycans, or Lycanthropes are derived from two Greek words meaning "wolf man".  These wolf-men (werewolves) are often thought of in relation to full moons, as this is the time when the shape-shifting from man to wolf takes place.

These mythological creatures are gifted with super senses, and were usually characters of European imaginations, however, their fame has travelled throughout the world, and they can be seen in tales from almost every corner of the earth.

For more interesting information, see the Werewolf Wikipedia page HERE

Working Utensils

Yes, these are my "working utensils". I use a lot of paper clips at work, if find them indispensable in my field, and I could never even image getting along with out my hardworking, blue ink pen. I prefer to utilize these for my working environment, of course, I would be no where without my electronics, but I'm a sucker for old school devices. These two items work well in the field, and can ever be introduced to a home environment. Clearly I am insane.

Life Sketch - Just glad she doesn't drool...

Just having some fun with Brandy. Drew this while she was watching me eat popcorn. The pieces that fall are hers (and rightly so, I don't want them). So she watches very carefully, hand to bowl, hand to face, making sure she doesn't skip a step and miss that important drop.

Just done in mechanical pencil on a sketch pad. I haven't drawn from life for a while, so the proportions are slightly off. Brandy doesn't mind though, all she cares about is the popcorn, the luscious, cheese coated popcorn.

Hot Dogs Anyone?

Flying Nuggets

I think that this happens in my house on a daily basis. Diapers and a bib anyone?

A Mouse Amoung the Money Trees

Anyone else feel like the electronics are taking over? I'm forced to sit and stare at an inanimate computer screen on a daily, 7 hour basis, while my mouse plays games on me, deciding at the most inopportune moment, that it's going to shut itself off, laughing in my face as I struggle to minimize the Internet porn sight that I have open on my desktop while sales people are pouring into my office. Actually, I don't look at Internet porn - especially not at work. I'm not that stupid. I only look at dog sites. And no one really pours into my office - I try to make it as inhospitable as possible. But the mouse teases and taunts me, flickering it's little red light in my face ... isn't that a laser beam or something, that could destroy your vision with even an inadvertent glace in it's direction? My mouse at home is much more forgiving with me, never gives me any issues, doesn't turn off at odd times, doesn't try to burn my eyes out and never talks back. Oh, but to go back to pencils, pens, erasers and paper. Computers and other electronics can be bad for your health, or so they say. As far as I know, pencils do not cause cancer, and they're not bright enough to take over.

The Calgary Rays

It’s easy to kill a fish

The below are links to articles about the recent Calgary Zoo Cow-Nose Sting Ray inquiry:

DailyHerald Tribune

CTV

The Globe and Mail

It’s easy to kill a fish. I don’t mean intentionally, but inadvertently. It is such an unnatural environment when they are held in captivity, living their life behind four glass walls, with so much that can falter in such a close-knit, small ecosystem.

Minute changes in water temperature, ph, hardness, deficiency of dissolved oxygen (allegedly in the sting rays case) and levels of elements can reek havoc among a community of aquarium fish. Not to mention keeping aggressive species together. Captive bred animals are hardier in their tank raised environments, adapting to changes with more ease than their wild caught brethren, though the chance for mishaps still remains high, especially with more sensitive species.

So, can I fault the Calgary Zoo for their recent loss of those beautiful cow-nosed sting rays (which I had the pleasure of viewing and interacting with at the Toronto Zoo – amazing creatures, full of intelligence and personality)? I’m not sure that I can find them fully at fault, as there are issues with keep fish in a captive environment that are sometimes beyond control (though I will not speak of the other losses that have also recently happened with some of their mammals).

So many factors must be taken into account when dealing with aquarium species. My husband has been involved with raising and breeding fish for more years than I can count. And he has seen his ups and downs with these water dwelling creatures.

Tanganyikan cichlids, namely the tropheus variety, can really shoot down your confidence when raising and breeding these African beauties. They need hard water, they need specific ph levels, nitrate/nitrite levels, acidity levels, and temperatures or they do not thrive. The levels fluctuate, and they become sick. A loss of a whole colony can happen overnight as they are extremely sensitive to the aquarium environment. No poisoning, or toxins involved, which was the original hypothesis on what happened to the rays. And this can happen with many other species of captive, aquarium raised fish.

We had an incidence with our Koi Angels, in a tank that housed many different types from tetras to discus and rainbows. Overnight, the Kois all died, including one in a separate tank. We have no idea why, as the other fish living with them were completely unscathed an thriving.

So, unknowingly, it is very easy to kill a fish. It does depend on the sensitivity of the species that you decide to raise. Each type is different, and some handle changes in environment much better than others. My hump-backed limas are a perfect example of a hardier species, as they thrive and breed in water that doesn’t get changed on a regular basis, and that fluctuates in levels frequently (most likely the nitrates/nitrites are higher than they should be). They are just a hardier fish. Sting rays, apparently, are not.

This is the same, regardless if the fish are salt water or fresh water. Some are more sensitive to what we think might be insignificant changes than others, and environments need to be closely monitored in order for the fish to thrive.

It truly is a huge loss to have so many of these sting rays loose their lives – if you’ve been able to interact with them, you will know they are unlike any fish you’ve been in contact with before.

So is the Calgary Zoo at fault? I suppose in the long run, even though unforeseen circumstances and changes can happen in an instant when keeping fish in a tank or other captive environment, they are to blame as they are the keepers of these elegant creatures, and the rays depend upon the zoo staff for survival.

I would like review the long term effects that the handling of these rays has on their health. Precautions are taken before the viewing public is allowed to enter the tank area, however, this is definitely not a fail-safe, and I can not see human handling being good for their health in any way.

I just hope in the future more diligent measures are taken to ensure that no more harm comes to these delightful, intelligent and personality filled sea dwellers. And I hope that the Calgary Zoo is able to overcome their recent tragic losses, and move forward for not just the benefit of the zoo, but for the benefit of the animals that they protect.

Robins in the Winter?

I've never seen a robin in the winter, let alone heard one sing in the fridged weather, until this year. I, along with I'm sure many others, always assumed that the robins flew south for the winter, and only reappeared to announce that spring would be arriving shortly around the March/April time period. In the last few weeks I have observed more and more of these little red-breasted fellows roosting in the trees outside our office building. They even go so far as to sing a little in the cold morning air as I arrive for the 9:00am work day. This starts my day off great, however doesn't carry the mood into the building, which is unfortunate.

I want to tell these little guys, "You're not suppose to be here yet - don't you know it's still minus 15 celsius??!!". I want to give them little boots, a hat and perhaps a scarf to keep the chill off, because God knows a tree lacking leaves offers little protection from the elements. I want to invite them in the office, for tea and cookies, for warmth, and also for the entertainment value.

Perplexed by these early spring symbols, I decided to find out what the heck was going on. To my surprise, most robins will migrate to the southern regions for the long, long winter months, but not all of them partake in this vacation (I suppose the economy may have something to do with this, high fuel prices, jacked up flight prices and all). Apparently robins migrate more in a reaction to food supply as opposed to the change in seasonal lows. The ones that move further south are offered the opportunity of higher ratios of sustenance, but the ones who spread out in a more northern area, moving here and there, experience an average/low food volume. But, because the birds have spread out, it does leave a little more eats for one bird in a larger area. Robins, as most birds and animals, unless they're hibernating, need more food in the winter months when remaining in the cold in order to keep their bodies maintained properly for the climate. The spread of the birds in the winter months allows for this, which is why some may remain. If all the robins decided they'd take a year off from the sunny south vacationing, there wouldn't be enough food to maintain the population, hence the spread.

I still want to give them winter gear...bear legs in the snow, oooohhh, I can't imagine.

For more information and some charts on robin movement check out this website.

See, she likes the water...

Ah ha! Proof, she likes the water!! Brings back some good memories. (Bancroft, ON)

Swim, Swam, Swum

My little dog, she likes the water. Except when you put her in a tub, hold her in place and make her tread. I know, it's not nice, but it's not water torture for bad behaviour. She is recovering from a luxated patella surgery, over 2 months in, and the vet suggested swimming as a means of rehab, building back the muscle in her somewhat atrophied rear left leg (the colourful one).

I can attest that it is working, as I can see much improvement in her surgically altered leg. She is a muscley little creature anyway, so it's great to see the progress, as the leg was looking quite out of place on her pumped up little body.

In her earlier years, she wasn't one for swimming. Never showed any interest in the water, and especially loathed bath time, giving me that "look" when ever the deed was required. We bring the dogs camping and cabining with us in the summer, up to the land-o-lakes: semi-northern Ontario. Needless to say, avoiding water is not an option up there, especially when the temperature reaches 34 celcius in the shade, and your only protection from the sun is a bit of leaking tent fabric that doesn't sheild you from the bugs, and just barely deflects the sweltering suns rays.

So, on one of those days was her first time, and she screamed. We were at an out-of-the-way shallow lake (Coe-Island Lake, Bancroft, ON), with a nice easy, gradual slope, and we thought this would be perfect for a first time swimmer. Not a chance, she wanted to splash on shore, diddle around, do her own thing, but not involve her body touching water in any way, shape or form.

We tried to entice her in, we'd wade out a bit, and call her, HA, not a chance. We held her near shore for a bit, so she could get her paddling down pat. Then hubby carried her out a little ways and plopped her in. Right back to shore, no hesitation. We called her back, not a chance in hell. Hubby, once again, scooped her up and plopped her back in a shallow section. Right back to shore, no questions asked. We decided, perhaps we could coax her if we weren't so close. Out further we went and called her, very enticingly I might add. Oh did she scream, screamed with her mouth wide open, screamed like someone was killing her, screamed like when she watches the other JRTs race and she wants to chace the knot halfway through the rope instead of the tail tied to the end like she's suppose to be focusing on.

Suffice to say, that technique did not work either. We came back to shore and threw a stick for her own entertainment purposes, and the lightbulb over the head thing happened. Idiots, she's crazy about moving objects, throw the stick in the water and she'll chace it. Tadaa, that worked, and the rest is history.

I now have a smooth coated, tri-colour Jack Retrieving Terrier. Her form in the water is unparalled, and her speed, unmatched. She will retrieve any object you throw out there and bring it back with pleasure for you to throw again. She jumps in puddles and mud holes now just for the heck of it, and will swim and swim, so much that I know have to stick with her when I send her in the water because she'll take off. This is much to my displeasure, as I'm not a fan of swimming. I'll do it, yes, but not because you've thrown something for me to retrieve. She enjoys water retrieving so much that we can't even take her fishing anymore because she assumes that the large-mouth bass lure you've just cast out (hoping for the big one) is for her to fetch and bring back ... scream, oh does she scream.

So why, oh why does she harbour so much anger and resentment for the "tub". Perhaps its the fact that there is nothing to chase, or its because she has to stay in one spot and can never reach the edge - that would piss me off too. If it was bigger, I would make it entertaining for her, throw her ball, a kong, a stick or maybe a T-bone. Then she wouldn't have evil thoughts about me during her rehab sessions, I swear she's given me the finger every single time. Little bugger.

Alien Love

"Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder" - how true, how very true.