Merry Christmas

Its Christmas for Dogs Too!

We have Kevin staying with us for a few days, so the three of us went to visit Molly on Christmas Day. We had lots of runs and plays at Molly's place and had a feed of Scooby Snacks for lunch. All Molly's toys were spread everywhere and by 3:00 pm we were exhausted and had to sleep. It was about then that we had to come home leaving Molly to clear up her toys. It was a great Christmas, and we still have the evening to go.

Merry Christmas to all our readers all over the world.

Summer Storm

Here we are, resting after a hard night of thunder storms. Rain, Wind, Thunder and Lightning all night, neither of us got a wink of sleep. The rain started yesterday afternoon, too late to save the Aussie cricket team, but it kept on for the rest of the day and was still raining a bit this morning. Now it is OK for the humans, they have indoor plumbing, but we have to go outside. Poor Hannah aged 4.5 months, had a reef knot in her back legs waiting for a break in the storm. Ah well, things have calmed down now, so we will try to catch up on our beauty sleep.

Party Time

We had a party on Sunday. Audrey and Kevin came to play for the day so there were four of us running round playing chasey, hunt the ball, find the Cricket and the best game of all, see who can scrounge the most food!. The pic shows us playing chasey, Hannah on the left, then Kevin, Audrey the Deerhound and then me with the sock in my mouth. They were all trying to get the sock off me.
There were lots of humans there too, but all they did was sit around talking, drinking and occasionally dropping a snack for us.
Hannah and I slept like babies last night.

Top Lady Dog

I won the Top Obedience Bitch at the club for the year, and all I got was a bit of glass. I can't play with it, I can't eat it, I can't even read it, all I can do with it is look at it.

You would think that after such an award I would have got a new toy, or a lump of steak or even an extra bonio, but no, I had to sit here and pose for ages while Keith fiddled with his camera, and this pic was the best we could do. Hannah was running about barking and carrying on like a pork chop laughing at me while I had to pose. Life is tough when you are a Toller.

Hannah's Show

Hannah has been in her first show as a Baby Puppy. There were two shows and she was the best Toller Baby Puppy both days. I taught her all the things she has to do in the show ring, but she forgot and went to play with the judges and started to gallop a bit in the triangle. Kathy soon brought her into line so there was no harm done. After all she is only 3 months old, and KNK could not even walk until they were 12 months old. The pic shows Hannah stretching out in her turn at the Triangle.

Tiffany is recovering

Tiffany went away for most of Monday, and when she came home she was all floppy, sleepy and could not walk very well, a bit like Keith after he has had a Glenfiddich. She has been shaved on her leg and has stitches in her belly. She was a lot better today, but KNK won't let us play. The pic shows us lying quietly in the sun on the back lawn.
Keith said she has been converted from a Miss to a Ms. and she will be back to normal soon. I just want my big sister back so we can play again.

Agility Trials

Tiffany here, last night I was in the Jumping and Agility trials. We were doing really well until we came to the second jump. I went round it on the first attempt, then got it on the second try. The next section of the course was great, the pic shows me touching the colour on the way off the dog walk. After the weaving poles we had 4 jumps to go but Keith got in my way and I went over the wrong jump, so that was the end of the trial. Not bad for the first attempt. We won't talk about the Jumping class, OK?
Hannah had an evening of being fussed over and patted by everyone. She is losing her puppy hair and is growing her big dog coat. Everyone thinks she is a beauty.
I am going into see Doctor Sally tomorrow to become a Neutered Dog, Not sure what that means, but it is bound to be good.

Bones

Hannah here. We got a bone to chew. It was so big we had an end each and did not get in each others way. It was too big really, so Keith cut it up into smaller pieces and gave us a piece each. That started fun and games, because whatever I have, I always want what Tiffany has, and what ever Tiffany has, she always wants what I have. So for the next half hour we were continually swapping bones until Keith could not stand the noise any more and separated us. At least I got to chew in peace for a while.

The Caravan

This is Hannah's first time in the caravan, and she loves it. We are playing with the new toy we got from Freki, well we got one each but we always play with the one toy.

Hannah has picked up a couple of nick-names. Some called her Buddha because she looks a bit plump with all that puppy hair, but she is quite trim under it all. Her other nick-name is Bat Dog, because if you say her name over and over, quickly, it sounds like the Batman theme. Try it, Hannah, Hannah, Hannah, Hannah, Bat Dog! ........ Now you will be humming the Batman theme for the rest of the day!

Sherbrooke Highway Hannah

Hi. This is Hannah the Toller, or Sherbrooke Highway Hannah if you need my formal name. The pic shows me testing my new cushion I got from Jessie, Billy, Big Mac and Gracie. You can see my coat is getting darker and I am not so fluffy.
Tiffany is in the dog house. A couple of weeks ago she was in a dog trial and got up in the down stay, then in the afternoon trial went even worse. Last night Keith took Tiffany training, and she got up in the down stay again! Keith is not happy. Tiffany had her electric blanket turned down as a punishment.
My 12 weeks in quarantine are up on Friday so I will be allowed out to meet all the other dogs and people that have wished me well. We will be at the Gundog Club show and trial on Saturday, then next week I can go to the dog clubs too.
Look out world, Hannah's coming.

Together

Since Hannah arrived we have been inseparable. I have shown her how to dig holes, how to play chasey, how to get in and out of the house through the dog doors, but I did not have to teach her how to eat! She can eat her own weight in dog biscuits in 10 seconds. If eating was an Olympic sport, Hannah would be the Gold medalist.
I have been under the weather recently with a tummy wog, and Hannah was a bit off colour too. I was supposed to see Dr. Sally to get a special award. I was going to be made a Neutered Dog but that will have to wait now until I am fully recovered.

Blogspot has a Stats link that shows where the readers of the blog come from. Hello to all the readers in Australia, UK, America, Canada, Russia, Netherlands and Saudi Arabia.
I did not realise I was so popular.

Hannah's Video, with me too.

We have done a video of our first meeting and our playing together. It took ages to get all the scenes and a lot went on the cutting room floor, but the finished product is worth it.

Click on the link under "Video Links". It is not as big as my adventure at the Tip of Cape York, but it could still take a while to load.

Hannah and I get on life a house on fire, we play all the time except when Hannah has to sleep, and then I play games with KnK. I don't want them to feel left out now that Hannah is here.

Hannah is Here

My sister Hannah is here at last, just 8 weeks old and she has thick fur, white socks, a white tail tip and already loves to play. She looks quite pale in the photo but she has a nice red colour in real life, not as dark as me, but still nice.
We have been playing in the garden, but she can not do much - yet!
Kathy has put my old basket under the desk so that Hannah can sleep there, right next to my day bed so I can keep an eye on her.
I will have to think up a new name for the blog to include Hannah in it because she will be in everything I do from now on. Perhaps "Tiffany's Tail and Hannah's House - the story of Two NSDTRs"
Keith said Hannah is a palindrome, but she looks like a perfectly normal puppy to me.

New Video of my Adventures.

This kangalow, or maybe buffaroo, has been covered in concrete and stuck in the ground at Camooweal. I kept well away from it.

The Video of my adventure at the Tip of the Cape York Peninsula has just been released, starring ME!.

It tells how KNK could not find the path from the Cape York car park to the Tip, and how I save the day by sniffing out the safe way.

It is about 8 meg so it could take a while to load. Click the link "Tiffany Saves The Day" under Videos on the left of the screen. Turn the sound on, but don't make the screen too big because the video will go all funny if you do.

Agility Training

I was invited to train at the Alice Springs Dog Club. Here are some pics of me doing my stuff. The main one of me on the table was picked because I was standing still and looked sharp. In the others I am jumping the Broad Jump and coming out of the Tunnel but I was moving too fast for the camera and appeared a little blurred. (OK, you can bang on about F stops, ISO settings and light levels, but I was still too fast for the camera!)

We are here for a week, Trials at the weekend and then we are heading home.

When we get home, my baby sister Hannah will be coming to join me. With two of us working on the humans, they won't stand a chance.

Hotter than Hell on a Hot Day

Here I am in the caravan at Camooweal. Why am I in the caravan you may ask, the answer is, because that's where the air conditioner is. I have genetically evolved to cope with Canadian winters, where barks come out as frozen blocks and you have to throw them on a fire so that you can hear them, and they have brought me to the hottest place they could find on the edge of the Northern Territory Desert.

Humans! There are times when I could bite them.

A Real Australian

There is a sign here that says "You are not a real Australian until you have been to Mount Isa", well I am in Mount Isa so I am a Real Australian. It doesn't seem any different, but it must be somehow.

The pic shows me at the Chinaman Creek recreation reserve between Mount Isa and Cloncurry where we went for a visit and a run.

I get a run in the dog park near the caravan park, and lots of people want to pat me here, so life is good in Mount Isa.

Gulf Girl

I am on the Gulf of Carpenteria's south eastern corner at Karumba Point. Hot during the day, and hot at night too. I can not go for a swim in the Gulf because there is an 18 foot crocodile that lives in the river mouth right next to the caravan park. Lucky for me the van is air conditioned or I would not get any sleep at all.

I was taken round the Baramundi Farm here, but all there is to see are tanks full of fish. KnK seemed interested in the farm but I found the lady with the bucket of fish food far more interesting.

Atherton Training

Last night I went to the Tablelands Obedience Dog Club at Atherton. (The pic shows me looking at the Tablelands)
The club made all of us welcome and I had a practice on their Agility equipment. I tricked Keith by doing the weavers perfectly from the left, but I would not do them at all from the right. I have to do things like this to keep him trying.
Anyway, there is a trial on Saturday and Sunday so I will be back for a visit then.

Quiet Time Out

We have settled in Atherton for a while. The park is not very busy and there is a big open area at the back for me to have a run. Keith set up some jumps and weaving poles so I have been doing some training as well as chasing a ball.

KnK found a dog wash and car wash. I went through both. Inside the car for the car wash, I saw this big scary thing spraying soap and water all over us and making a lot of loud noise. I was glad when that was over. Then they put me in the dog wash and cleaned all the sand, grit, mud, slime and anything else that had stuck to my fur while we were camping on the Cape. They turned the blow dryer on me and I attacked it, but it still got me dry.

Since then I have been having a lazy time, playing ball and sleeping.

Cooktown Rock

After being cooped up in a tent for a week, I have finally got a chance to have a good run. I am at Finch Beach near Cooktown where there is a huge rock that I could run up, across the top and then down the other side. It was just like a big dog walk really.

Later on I went along the edge of the sea and barked at the waves, sniffed all the mangrove roots and jumped all over Kathy leaving sandy, wet footprints all over her. Oh what happiness!

Number plates grow on trees.

At Bramwell Junction Roadhouse, I found out where number plates come from. They grow on trees. Here I am next to the number plate tree, and you can see there is a good crop this year.

Our last night in the tent was at Archer River with cows in the same paddock as us! We have had horses, kangaroos and now cows sharing our camp site.

At last I am back in the caravan and do not have to share my bed with wild animals.

PS, the number plates don't really grow on trees, those in the picture have been found on the road after being shaken off the cars by the corrugations. If you come up here, make sure your nuts and bolts are tight.

Tip Top Toller

Swimming on top of Australia

I am as far north as it is possible to go, on the Tip of Cape York at the Top of Australia, and the only Toller in sight.

Right next to the sign that said we were at the Tip was a rock pool that was free from crocodiles so I had a swim, chased fish and cooled down after the long walk across the beach.

The walk back to the car tired me out and I slept most of the way back to camp, except for the times the shaking of the car on the corrugated roads woke me up.

Tiffany of the Outback

For three days now I have been traveling on dirt roads, sleeping in a tent and going as far north as a Toller can go. I am nearly at the most northern point on the Australian mainland. Tommorrow will be the day we get there.

KnK took me through some creeks, but the Jardine River near the top of the Cape York Peninsula is too deep so we took the Ferry. I posed for a picture to prove I was there. We are camped on a beach but I am not allowed off lead on the beach because of the crocodiles, however I did find some Sea Glass for Auntie Wendy.

The Toller on Cape York

We stopped at a lookout on the way to Cooktown, and I posed for the picture of me on the start of the Cape York Peninsular.

All the rain that happened earlier did not reach here so we just might be going further into the Cape, going where no Toller has gone before, well at least not this Toller.

Lots of dogs at the Cooktown Caravan Park, and we are right in the bush too, so we have birds in the trees and those Bush Turkeys trotting around on the ground.

Agility Night

We went back to the dog club for their Thursday night training session last night at the Cairns dog club. Look at that picture of me going through the Weaving poles, I am going that fast I am just a blur among the poles. There were lots of people and dogs at the club and they all made me feel very welcome. They are having trials next week, but I probably wont be here then, so I have to wish them all the best for next week end.

Congratulations to Ricky on his graduation through the ranks of obedience. Ricky the Cavalier is another dog-blogger who also trains in Agility back home.

Why I have to go back to school.

Here is why I have to go back to school. Keith said "heel", so I went to the heel position. Just because I did a loop round his legs first is no reason to get upset. He could have easily got out of the lead round his legs. I can not see any reason for all the fuss!

Back at school

I had a run on a deserted beach between Cairns and Port Douglas. I had to stay out of the water because of the Stingers, Crocodiles and strong currents but it was good to have a leg stretch on the beach, even if I did have to stay on the long lead.
On Tuesday I went to the Cairns dog club training night and had a run on their agility equipment. I did not get to do sequences, just one piece at a time, but I had forgotten a lot of my training so maybe it was just as well.
There were lots of dogs to talk to, including another Toller, Fernando. I will be going back on Thursday night for more work.

Townsville

We went for a drive to Townsville where we climbed to the top of Castle Hill. It was steep, narrow and tiring, but the Navara Diesel coped well with it. Some poor dogs had to walk the 2.9 km up there so the council has put a dog water fountain alongside the human water fountain. Here I am at the top looking towards the Townsville beaches. I had a run on the dog beach, and found some sea glass.

We moved on yesterday to Innisfail. It started raining 2 hours before we arrived and has not stopped. I had a brief run on the paddock behind the park and since then it is just a quick trip out and then back inside to get out of the rain. Playing fetch under the caravan annex is not much fun.

Tropical Life

It has been a beautiful day here in Tropical Queensland. I have had my morning run on the big open space at the back of the caravan park, then we went for a drive into Ingham. When we got back I went for another run and then had to have a lie down in the shade of the palm trees surrounding the caravan.

What a tough life I have.

Turkey Spotting

There I was minding my own business when a Bush Turkey came wandering past. I was in my run in the annex of the van so I could not get out to see what he was doing, all I could do was watch. The van is in Midge Point Caravan Park in the Whitsunday region.

There is lots of wild life here. On the beach I chased hundreds of tiny crabs, then later on I went for my evening loo walk and there were several Cane Toads jumping around, but Keith would not let me near them. Tomorrow I will be exploring Midge Point again.

Dog Wash.

Here I am in a Public Dog Wash! No privacy, all the world looking on and me wet through in the trough. I have never been so embarrassed in my life. What made it worse was that it had been vandalised and the owner was repairing it. He had to stick his finger in the mechanism to make it work.

After the bath I did feel better, and I had lost my doggie smell, but it wont take long to get it back.

We have been touring again, round Rockhampton. Keith tried to get me in to the Rockhampton dog club for a training session, but we had missed their training night and they did not want visitors anyway. Maybe I can get in next week at Mackay.

Beach Girl

Today was spent as a tourist. We went to Bundaberg then on to the Beaches. Lunch was at Kelly Beach, where I went for a walk amongst the volcanic rocks. KnK set up the photo of me standing on one of the rocks.

The next beach was at Elliot Head where we walked for miles.

We were going to go further on to another beach, but I had had enough and curled up in my travel crate and went to sleep.

I was looking for sea glass on the beach, (Auntie Wendy collects it) but I could not find any. It just goes to show, dog owners do not take bottles to the beach as there is never any glass on a dog beach!

On the move again

We are moving again. Today we left Esk and went to Lake Monduran via Ban Ban Springs. There I am in the pic outside the store.

I liked Esk, there were lots of people to pat me and the people at the Caravan Park were really nice to me. There was a puppy I got to know on the walk down to the creek, and I was beginning to know my way about, then we upped sticks and left!

The new place has a big area for me to run, only a few metres from our site, so I can get lots of exercise, but we will not be here for long so there is no point in making friends with anybody.

There was a dead cane toad near the road but I was not allowed to investigate it. Even dead ones are dangerous, so I was dragged away. It seems there are a lot of nasties in Queensland, what with ticks, toads and taipans a dog is not safe at all. Maybe that's why KnK keep yelling at me every time I go off to sniff something.

New Video Added

I have put up a video of Freddy and me playing at the dog club grounds just before we left for Esk.
We kept this up for ages, but the video is just 25 seconds.
The music is The Sabre Dance played on chainsaws by the Texas Chainsaw Orchestra.
Click on the "Tiffy and Freddy" link under Video Links on the left of the screen.

Running with Freddy

The trials are over, and I was not in them. KnK were judging all day and I was left on my own for most of the day. However, when we were packing up to leave, Freddy the Poodle came to visit and we spent ages just running and playing all over the paddock.

We had to leave eventually, and we are back at Esk with the big walk round the back of the caravan park.

I slept all the way to Esk, and also while the van was setup. I went for a walk near the creek then went back to sleep. I really did have a big run with Freddy!

How I Travel

I have found a really good way to travel. I climb up on top of my soft crate and stretch out. It is springy, comfortable, I can see out of the windows and I can bite Kathy's hair without moving. The only down side is I have to get down to get to my water.

We had a short drive today so it was over in just one nap.

I am having the tick treatment so I will have a greasy spot on the back of my neck for a few days. Still, that's better than one of them horrible ticks sucking at my blood.

Long Drive again.

Tonight I am in Goondiwindi, in Queensland, a long way from where I was last night. I have been in the car all day, sleeping mostly with just a few minutes outside for a leg stretch. We had a stop at Gilgandra while I had a walk in the park, (see pic,) and a walk at lunchtime. The rest of the time I was in the car.

We had a bit of excitement when a man called us on the CB to tell us to get off the road as a huge truck was coming, and earlier there was a herd of cows wandering about on the road, but that was about it.

When we got here I was playing fetch on the nearby paddock, when I saw this huge fan up in the sky, a Windmill KNK called it. It put me off my game so I would not do anything until KnK took me round it. I'm still not sure it is safe.

Travelling again

I am on tour again going to Queensland. Last night was freezing cold, and when I went out for my morning ablutions, the grass was white and crunchy. We were at Burra on a big oval where I could run and chase a ball, until Keith got cold and had to go inside.

We left Burra early and got to Broken Hill where I went for another run in a park. The picture shows me bringing back my ball. I did a bit of training, a lot of playing and finally back to the caravan where I can have a well earned sleep.

Champion Tiffany Community Companion Dog

At 15 months I have letters before my name AND after. Today I got the third pass in the CCD Class, and won the class too, so my full name is now Champion Sherbrooke Tiffany Ale, CCD. Here I am with my first place trophy and sash.
Yesterday I gave Keith a fright when I turned towards Judge as she came to examine me, but I only moved my front feet and still got a Qualification in CCD. Today was the third pass, so I did behave better. That is until the down stay when I had a sniff and wriggled a bit. It all helps to keep Keith on his toes.

Champion Tiffy

I DID IT! At nearly 15 months old I have the 100 points to be an Australian Champion. KnK have to go into the office to claim my title, and that makes my title official.

It has taken a long time. I have been through all sorts of training, grooming, trimming, bathing, and traveling, but now I am a Champion.

99

I am on 99 points for towards my Australian Champion title.

I just have to get one more point and then I will be a Champion. There is one show tomorrow, and if I get the challenge, that will be IT.

We are at Red Cliffs, in the caravan again. I had my bath, hair trim, foot trim and brush up before we left on Friday so I was all ready for the show today. The trip up here was over quickly. I got in the car at home, had a quick nap then had lunch at a roadside stop, then had another nap, and we were here. Don't know why KnK were so tired after such a quick trip.

Going for a walk around the oval, then an early night to get ready for tomorrow.

Community Companion Dog part 1

I have had busy weekend at the dog trials. On Saturday I was in a trial where there were lots of kids playing soccer while I was in the ring. At one point I had to wait for 20 seconds while they moved a couple of kids away from the fence because the ball was distracting me. Well they were right, I got too interested in the game and lay down in the Recall and blew my first attempt at a trial.

Next day we were in another trial, and this time I passed. The picture shows me in the middle of the Recall where I have to run to Keith as quickly as I can. I am in mid-air in the photo, showing how fast I can run.

After the trial I was given a ribbon and a certificate. I need 2 more certificates to get the letters CCD after my name. Not bad at 14 months, Keith took 20 years to get letters after his name!

Port Pirie

Here we are at Port Pirie for the dog trials. We stopped at Port Wakefield for a loo break on the way up yesterday, then came here in time to meet up with Freki, so there have been the three of us having a ball so far. We went for a walk across the causeway for about an hour, then came home, got fed then we collapsed while the humans had their food. Tomorrow we are back at the trial for the morning then we go exploring again.

Bert has to go home when we get back, so we are making the most of our time together.

Bert is Back

Bert has come to stay for 3 weeks! I missed Scruff when he had to go, but now Bert is here I have another live-in playmate. We are playing Tug in the picture. We have toys all over the house so where ever we go there is a toy to play with. Kathy keeps spoiling the fun by picking them up and putting them in the box, but we just spread them out again as soon as she is not looking.
I am learning how to do agility weaving poles using the 2 X 2 method. This means that I occasionally run through some poles stuck in the ground and Keith gets excited and throws a ball for me. It does not take much to entertain the humans.

Scruff's Visit

Scruff has come to visit for a week. He is staying with me while his humans are away. We spend all day playing until we are exhausted, then we have to have a nap. The best game is Chasey, we go running flat out through the house until KnK start yelling at us and kick us outside, but we just run back in through the dog door when they calm down.

I am going to miss having a live-in playmate when Scruff has to go back in a couple of days.

Back to normal

After all the excitement of Easter, we are back to the routine life. I am learning Agility on Thursday nights, learning Obedience on Tuesday nights and going to trials at the weekends. Kathy said I can not get into another show until June because we are all booked up.

Keith disappeared for 3 days, so when he came back and I gave him a good licking. They say I should not reprimand when he comes back, but if he does it again I will bite him.

At last I can now settle down to an afternoon nap under his desk.

Skinny Bum

It seems that my bum is too small! The judge said my pelvis was too small and would cause concern if I had pups so he refused a challenge. However the next two judges said I was fine and gave me my points, and then another judge refused the challenge, but did not say why. On the last day I was Best of Breed again.

So out of the 5 shows I got 18 points towards my title. This leaves me needing only 7 more points. Ah well, I will have to do some more shows now.

Showtime

There are 5 shows at Mt Gambier this weekend, and I am in all of them. If I get the points, I could be an Australian Champion, just keep your paws crossed.

We got down the Mount early so I have had time to fill in the blog, Keith took the picture of me trying to think what to write.

Last night we stayed at Keith (the town) as we started out late as usual, partly because I had to have a shampoo, manicure, pedicure and a coiffure.

Anyway, I have to get off the computer as the humans want it back, I will write as soon as I know the results of the shows.

Molly's Visit

Molly came to visit for a few days, along with her mum, and Susan. They were here for a 50th birthday party for Audrey's mum, (that's 350 in dog years) but we were not invited. We had to stay home while the humans went out for the afternoon.

It has been fun having the extra people around to pat me and Molly, but they will all be going home soon.

I have been learning Agility. I can do it but Keith is too slow and can not get round quick enough to show which jump is next. He gets upset if I pick one, so I will just have to find some way of making him run faster.