Dock Dogs

Chevy starting competing in Dock Dog events two month ago where she jumps a distance of 14"-1'. We were happy with her jump and she loved it so we competed in another event.....then another... and another! In just a little two months time we have fell in love with the sport, the excitement, the people, and the competition. This weekend we competed in Somerville (just North of the Boston area) and reached new personal achievements!

 

 

Day 1: We got 2 first place medals in our waves! AND jumped a new personal record of 20'-4"!!!!!! This jump got us a spot in the finals in the semi-pro division! Never made it to the finals before and with this jump we skipped right past the amateur division to semi-pro :)

 

 

Day 2: We had another jump which also got us a 1st place medal in our wave. We tired speed retrieval for the first time and placed 5th place with a time of 7.7 seconds (the winner was 7.0 seconds)! AND we had finals to end the day...... out of the whole weekend we placed in 4th place to make the finals. The finals were tough! Every good dog was competing and knew to bring there A-game. We took 5th place out of 6 in the finals with a jump of 19'-7" (the winner took 21'-6"). SO proud of Chevy and can't wait to see how good she can and will become!!!!

 

 

 

Below, is our friend and fellow competitor Tucker. A 3 year old yellow Lab and his is his 3rd year competing in these events. He is a iron dog, competes in all 3 events, for a total scoring (like a triathlon). We are friends with his owner and have been getting training techniques and learning methods from him. Yes, those dogs that are pros have to cardio train to become great :)

 

 

 

 

Came home this weekend with 5 medals :)

 

Check out the videos! Speed retrieval and distance jump! She keeps improving but we still got lots to learn and growing to do. The timing, the throw, the speed, the voice.... lots of things to work on to get to become a champion :)

 

 

 

 

Our next weekend to compete will be in 2 weeks in Mansfield, MA. We can't wait!!! We also know that the competition will be big..... so time to get training and eat that protein!

 



Dog Days of Summer

Nanny & Pappy here is a update of Chevy's summer so far. Past few months Chevy has been learning a lot of new things. Here is what she has been up to.....



She has started field training. Field trials are a high skill level of obedience training for distance hunting retrieval. Most dogs are brought into this field from their puppy years so Chevy is older than most by a year. I don't intend to hunt with Chevy so I never got into in but due to being a Lab and having the training close I am taking advantage to have fun with her and build up "her resume".

 

These dogs are so smart! Its amazing how they listen to every instruction and at the sound of a whistle, will stop in their running tracks to look for their next direction instructions. The trainer who runs it is also a breeder of American field Labrador Retrievers and has had 30 dogs become Master hunting champions and a Master National Qualifier! Great dogs for Chevy to choose from for a mate :)


Yes, Chevy we hope to breed Chevy this upcoming Fall. Over the past weeks she has gotten all her tests and exams done to do so. We are still waiting all on results.

This past weekend we had a family day in Boston at the Rock N Dock Festival -Dog Dock Jumping Competition! This is 4 day event sponsored by Bass Pro Sport and fundraiser for Down Syndrome Awareness, we came the last day to watch the amateur, semi-pro, and pro finals in the distance jump. So fun!

Many different kinds of dogs entered but mostly Labrador Retrievers, Golden Retrievers, German Shepherds and many mixed breeds and all ages from 9 months to 8 years old.

 

This was the winner in the pro division, a Labrador Retriever! He jumped 26' but does hold the world record at 31'. Wow!

 

 

I had so much fun....... I started training Chevy for dock jumping competitions! Her first one will be on Saturday June 22 in Boston!!! She loves the water and so toy driven, she will have a blast :)

 

Another A?!

Ava knows her alphabet and all her letters and we often practice putting the letters in order with sight cards. She does a great job and enjoys doing it, the only letters she has ever had trouble with are the E, F, G.

Watching the video below you will see today was one of those days as she has together pronouncing the E especially. I have video of her doing it all correct, but this video is more funny.... she never had this much trouble but I am glad I was videoing it! Take a look at her trying to figure out the letter E :)

 

 

PS. I can't seem to turn my videos! Sorry its sideways again!

 



Just A Walk Through the Neighborhood is a Great Time to Make Family Memories



This is our front yard. The fact that my dog can go swimming in the ocean water right from the house is AWESOME! She did not seem to mind the salt water at all.

 

Today was a beautiful day! Being outside we were comfortable with no coats required, just sweatshirts. We took advantage of the weather and went for a long walk through the neighborhood, vineyard, and all the way to the main road. Even though it was just a walk we had alot of fun, took lots of pictures, and made lots of memories.

 

 

Walking through the vineyard also helped block most of the wind. That is one characteristic of living by the ocean, the WIND! It never stops.

 

 

Yoga tree pose within the trees :)

 

 

 

Yes, this is Ava rubbing it in that she is getting carried by Daddy, haha.

 

 

We walked all the way through the vineyard to the main road which has a bridge connecting Westport River to the ocean bay which we live on.

 

 

 

The dogs and I stayed back, Chevy never took her eyes off Ava and whined the whole time till they came back to join us.

 

Next to the bridge is a public water access (area to put your boats in the water) and a great spot to take some photos before walking back home ;)

 

 

 

 

 

As we started walking back Jason held Ava for a bit while she warmed up her hands (from touching the water) in Daddy's shirt and "I will put my boots out on the side of you so I don't get your shirt all wet Daddy"

 

 

Some tree roots we saw along the way. You don't realize just how big roots are until you are up close, wow!

 

Through the whole walk no one... not Ava or even little Joey got tired or complained! When Ava did start to slow down a bit on the way back, Jason made parts "a race" and Ava raced to the finish line  :)



 

 

 

She is such a Daddy's little girl :)

 

Monkey faces and monkey shoes.... and yes Victoria those are her pink leg warmers underneath her pants. She loves them :)

 

Even though it was just a walk through the neighborhood we had so much fun! Great family day!

 

 

When we got home Ava went to lay in her bed while lunch was being made..... to my surprise (because she is usually in every room I am) I found Chevy was right there next by the bed with her. Such a happy special moment for me! (This is the picture I took to show you Nan)