Blue Ribbon Puppy: DockDogs at the Fair

Here I am again, with another update about my week! Mom took me back to the County Fair to play in the water some more. I had a great time catching air into the big DockDogs pool. Check out my form!

Nice, huh? Well, I did jump pretty far a few times. My best jump was 14' 8", right near the top of the Junior Division of Big Air. Here's a few more:

I also have a great technique of squinting right before I go into the water. I don't even need goggles this way! Smart, right?

Thank you Suzanne for taking these pictures!

I had a great time and met lots of awesome dogs and people. The best part was that every time Mom got a latte, she gave me the whipped cream off the top! I know she did that because I am a very good dog. That's also why she kisses me on the nose.

In the end, I got five ribbons: Three First Place ribbons and two Second Place ribbons, all in the Junior Division. This earned me a DockDogs Junior Jumpers National Title! The DockDogs guy says I could go to the Western Regional Championships in Las Vegas this fall and jump in the Junior Division, but Mom says we don't need to go that far. I agree, since we have a perfectly good river to jump in just a mile from our house! Mom says I am a Champion every day.

Signing off for now. Happy jumping!

Saber Does the Fair, 2012

Yesterday Mom took me to the county fair (just like she did last year) to jump in the DockDogs competition. What that means is that she throws my toy in the water and I jump in and get it. It is not quite as fun as jumping in the river, but it'll do. Last year I was just a puppy and was kind of scared to jump off the big cliff, but this year I was brave and jumped really far!

Thank you Peggy for taking these pictures!

Yep, I did great! In yesterday's Wave I got first place in the Junior division. Today I jumped in two Waves; I placed first in one and second in the other. My best "official" jump was 14' (measured from the end of the dock to the base of the tail where it enters the water) but I had another measured, practice jump of 14' 8"! All of my jumps have placed me in the Junior Division (which is between Novice and Senior). I got some pretty ribbons that Mom will take pictures of later (with me of course). I am going back tomorrow to jump again!

Now if only they would throw a raw steak into the pool instead of a toy...

Saber, Certified Herddog

I have been one busy puppy over the past week! Between lure coursing, visiting new dog parks and preparing for DockDogs this week, Mom took me to Ewe-Topia Herddog Training facility in Roy, Washington to try my paw at sheep herding. I am, after all, a German SHEPHERD, so it's only natural that herding be part of the stuff I do. Right?

So Mom took me to this place and we sat outside the pens and watched some other dogs taking herding lessons for a little while. I had never seen "sheep" before, so I wasn't sure what to think. Then Mom took me into an empty pen and another lady walked up to a gate and let some of those big furry things in WITH me. What the heck are those?? Dogs? I watched them for a minute and then I ran over to sniff them. I discovered that they were not dogs, but actually large mobile treat dispensers!! Every time I chased them, fresh treats came flying out of their back ends! It was awesome. I totally know what I am asking Santa for for Christmas this year! Anyway, the herding lady called them "sheep" and encouraged me to run after them, so I did! It was great because usually Mom does not allow me to chase squirrels or other animals, but this time Mom was happy that I was chasing the sheep.

I ran around them in circles. I split them up and then herded them back together again.

And when the herding lady wanted them back in the gate, I helped move them in there.

Mom didn't tell me ahead of time, but this was actually a test called a Herding Instinct Test. Guess what? I passed! The judge who was watching me said I have plenty of herding instinct, lots of potential, and that the sheep responded to my 'power.' I wish the cat at home would respond to my power.

Here is my Herding Instinct Certificate. Notice, it says "Certified Herddog." I am so cool.

Two days later I went back for another herding lesson. I will post more about that later! But now, I am going to sleep and dreaming of sheep. Good night!

Retro Saber: Intro to Dock Diving, 2011

Saber here! I'm getting so excited for the upcoming DockDogs events I will be entered in this month and next month. Mom says I get to jump in the County Fair again at the National DockDogs event and then I'll also probably jump in the big event our local Club is putting on at a Sportsman's Show. The Fair is my favorite because I get to jump as much as I want for five days straight! I love to jump and swim. I started early! Here I am when I was 4 months old, the day Mom first took me to the Columbia River to see what "water" is all about.

"What is this, Mom?"

Hmmmm. (Blowing bubbles in the water with my nose)

Wheee!!!!!!!!!!!

A DockDog was born!

Of course, I was much too young to jump off a dock quite yet. I had to wait until I was 8 months old for that! Here I am with Mom at one of my first club practices last July:

I also practiced on vacation at a lake in Oregon so I'd be ready for competition at the Fair.

Then, when I was 9 months old, it was time for my big debut! I was ready! Looking so regal on the dock:

"Uh, wait a second, this is not exactly a river..."

It looked REALLY different from the usual river and wow what a drop-off! Did they seriously want me to jump off this cliff? (Remember, I was just a baby, and was not used to jumping off cliffs yet). Mom kept splashing my toy around in the water to help me decide to jump:

The DockDogs staff tried to help too. They were tossing my toy around with a net!

I wanted it soooooooooo bad! Just a leeeeeeeeeetle bit closer, please!

Well, I did jump in once. But then I found this REALLY cool ramp on the side of the dock!
"Hey people! Look at this! An easier way to get into the water! Now we don't have to do it the hard way anymore! Aren't I smart? You're welcome!"

I had tons of fun over the next 5 days jumping into the pool from the ramp! I know I was the best dog there because so many people were smiling, laughing and clapping for my performances. Score for Team Saber!

After the fair it was back to the river for less exciting jumps off actual docks. I leave you with some photos of me jumping at dock diving practices last September and October.

This year I am going to jump far! Wait and see.

Saber On The Road

Hi again, Saber here! Last week I shared some pictures from my recent dog park experiences in Portland and Vancouver. Now I'd like to show you some of the other fun stuff I did on my trip with Mom and my Girl.

First, we went to Multnomah Falls, Oregon. Mom has taken me there before, see? Here I am last summer with two of my Boys.

Wasn't I cute back then? I was only 9 months old! This year I am 20 months old. See that bridge way up above the lower falls? Well, here's a picture of me up on that bridge last week.

What a fun little hike! And I got to share an ice cream cone with Mom when we got back down. For some reason Mom got to lick first, and then didn't seem to want anymore after I got my licks in. Oh well!

Next we went to see some sturgeon and trout at a fish hatchery.

"Hey, Mom, look! Someone mixed dinner in a giant water bowl! Yum!"

Thinking....

Right after Mom snapped this picture I flung myself into the retaining pond and almost took Mom with me. It was great fun. I'm not sure why Mom didn't get a picture of me swimming. Maybe next time.

Next we drove through the Columbia River Gorge. It was really pretty but I am prettier. See?



After awhile Mom drove across the river back into Washington around Marysville and we drove up, up, up until we had a gorgeous view. We were really high in this picture and for some reason Mom would not let me get any closer to that cliff behind me with the sheer dropoff. I have no idea why.

Apparently we drove up there because Mom wanted to visit the Stonehenge replica which is a war memorial. Generally I like rocks, but this seemed like overkill.

The best part was being with my Girl. I sure love her.

Travelling is nice, but it sure is great to be home! We have more adventures coming up though. Wait and see!

Saber Tracks!

When I was a wee pup, my Mom knew I was super special. I come from a long line of good sniffers; in fact several of my littermates went to Search and Rescue homes. My sister Jenga is a cadaver dog! Not my cup of tea, unless it is a bacon cadaver, but somebody's got to do it. I have a great nose myself, and my Mom started me tracking with the local dog training club when I was 14 weeks old (in February 2011). My first time out I did two puppy tracks lined with hot dogs (yum!) and kept my nose right to the ground like a good tracking dog. Two weeks later I was at it again and did three longer tracks. Here are some pictures of my Mom and me tracking that day:

Yep, I am a natural.

My third time out, at 4 months old, it was raining and cold and Mom took me out in the middle of nowhere to a hay field. I did a couple of short tracks, then a 60 yard track, then another pretty long one with a 45-degree turn and almost no food or markers. Mom didn't even know where the track was, but I did! I followed them all perfectly right to the end.

I went tracking every weekend for awhile. In May when I was almost 6 months old, I did three 100-yard tracks (one with a turn). Then we did some off-leash SAR work finding people hiding in the desert, and afterwards we went back and ran those three (now aged) tracks again without adding any new bait. I did great! I am so good at finding people and articles. I am pretty proud of myself!

One time in the fall, right after I turned a year old, Mom took me tracking at a local park on the river, which was supremely awesome because the whole field was covered in GOOSE POOP!! YUM!! Of course Mom was rather disgusted and kept telling me to "leave it" but hey how do you expect me to discern between a hot dog and a goose poop snack when I am following a track?? Both are so flavorful. It was rather difficult and frustrating for Mom but I secretly hoped we would keep going back there for tracking practice. Alas, so far we have not. So tragic. What a waste of good goose poop.

So we haven't gone tracking since last fall. There have been tons of rattlesnakes here this spring and Mom was a little nervous about that, so I had to get a rattlesnake vaccine just in case. Mom says we are going to start seriously tracking every week and working towards an AKC TD (Tracking Dog) title as soon as school starts again for the human kids. I can't wait! I will share all of my tracking adventures here on the blog. Maybe if I am lucky we will go back to that park by the river! Mmmmm. ::drool:: Well, a dog can dream!

Saber Reviews the Dakota Memorial Dog Park, Vancouver, WA

Hi again! I am so excited to share this review of my very favorite dog park adventure so far. This time, we visited Dakota Memorial Dog Park in Vancouver, Washington. This dog park is huge! It's a fully fenced 8-acre off leash dog area within Pacific Park, which my Mom says is an awesome human park in itself. But more on the human park later. Here is the double-gated entry to the dog park:

See how nice the fencing is? And the grass is nicely maintained as well as the paved areas. Poop bags, trash bags, wide open space, shade trees, and a great walking path all await you at this park. What more could a dog ask for?

STICKS!!! Trying to figure out how to fetch this one...

"Excuse me Mr. Pit-bull-type Dog, but I am afraid you will lose your balance when I pick up this stick in my mouth, so could you please remove yourself from my stick?"

"What's that?? You want to play?? Sure!"

That was fun. Then it was time for some fetching! Lots of room to run here.

I found someone with a Chuck-It and an Australian Shepherd! See that herding breed focus?? We had a blast together! Notice the long winding path beneath the trees behind us. The humans liked that.

I got to run and play with my Girl, too (yes, kids are allowed here!)

There's also fresh clean water for everyone! I loved this fountain. (Mr. Beagle, really. Do you mind?)

Just steps outside the dog park, there is a large, clean human rest room, a big field for kids to play sports in, a huge parking lot, a gigantic pavilion with picnic tables and a really nice playground for the human kids! I got to lie in the shady grass and watch my Girl play for awhile.

Mom and I agree this is the best dog park we have visited yet! We definitely will come back to this one. Next time we will bring a picnic lunch and stay for hours! I can hardly wait!

For more information, directions, and maps for dog parks in the Portland area (including Vancouver), check out this fantastic site: Portland Dog Parks. As you can see, we still have plenty of visiting to do!