Stuff for Boston Terrier Lovers

Annual Christmas Parade, Deland Florida

Hi Ann,
Happy Howlidays! Lilly was in the annual Christmas parade in Deland last night. The training club that she belongs to had a float entered and all of the dogs were decked out in holiday outfits. She carried a rawhide candy cane for a while causing the crowd to cheer and point as she walked by...what a ham she is!

She made her first attempt at her CGC title in late October. In order to receive the title she must pass a series of 10 tests and score a perfect 100%. She did fantastic except on test #9 which is:

Test 9: Reaction to distraction
This test demonstrates that the dog is confident at all times when faced with common distracting situations. The evaluator will select and present two distractions. Examples of distractions include dropping a chair, rolling a crate dolly past the dog, having a jogger run in front of the dog, or dropping a crutch or cane. The dog may express natural interest and curiosity and/or may appear slightly startled but should not panic, try to run away, show aggressiveness, or bark. The handler may talk to the dog and encourage or praise it throughout the exercise.

The judge hit the clipboard that she was holding with a brush as she was talking to me, making a loud noise. I think Lilly may have felt threatened by this and she panicked. She was frightened and began to bark at the judge. Ha ha, barking at the judge is a no no so we have been working on this for the past month and will be trying for the title again very soon. We are still thrilled with her performance and score of 90%! Yay Lilly!

Lillies Summer Break

Hi Ann,
Just thought I'd update you on Lilly. She is on summer break from training but we register in late September for the next round of classes. We train outside and the heat is just too much for the dogs. She will be taking her first AKC test when we go back and will hopefully earn her first title. She is weighing in at 24 lbs. but is solid muscle. She is very active and her hobbies include chasing lizards, swimming and playing with the neighborhood kids. She also enjoys bike rides immensly. She rides in a basket on the front of the bike and she also has a her own trailer that attaches to the back of the bike. She gets so excited when she see's the bikes come out! She is so well behaved and the first puppy that I have ever had that I could trust in the house not to destroy something daily. Each morning she races Marley, our Labrador out to get the paper. Sunday is the only day that she will allow Marley to retrieve the paper and that's only because it's bigger than she is, ha ha. I've inserted some pictures that were taken last week and I'll keep you posted on her progress. Let me know if the pictures don't come through and I'll attach them.
Maureen

Lillie Graduates

Lilly graduated from her second class and took second place in her competition. Her next session of classes will include a personal trainer that will work with her on each individual rally sign, which includes 50 signs. She and one other dog have graduated to this next class and she is still the youngest to advance! Here she is standing proud and showing off her ribbon and certificate

Scooter & Lou Lous Lillie
Won a Ribbon

Here's an update on Lilly. She graduated from her first obedience/rally training class last night. The final exam was a run through the novice rally course and she was judged by two individual judges. When we got there Lilly was wild! She was the youngest in her class with the exception of a German Shepherd and she wasn't exactly as calm and focused as the others. Well, when she got up to the start line she sat and focused on the course as if there were no other dogs around. She ending up taking third place!!! YAY! Only one medal was awarded, The Most Improved, and we were surprised and thrilled when they called Lilly up to accept it. When she first started the class she had an attitude and was a bit of a clown out there. If it was cold there was no way that she was sitting her but on the ground, lol. Well, as the weeks went by Lilly really excelled in her training, became focused and has come to love class. We have two weeks off then we begin again but we'll be practicing on our own until then. Yay Lilly!!
I'll keep you posted...Maureen