Kanzu and his best friend Daisy Mayhem took their very first airline flight this August when they attended the Cook Inlet Kennel Club Dog Show in Palmer, Alaska and a two day “night time lure coursing trial” under the Alaska night time sun. Kanzu and Daisy were accompanied by Daisy’s mom, Jennifer and our good friends Justin and Curtis along with their Ibizan Diesel and new Whippet puppy of their own breeding, Brooke. We had exceptional good luck at the shows. Diesel and Brooke both took placements in the Hound groups. Brooke’s second place on the last day was especially exciting with Curtis showing her in the Bred-By class and Justin taking her into the group ring. What an accomplishment for such a young puppy and an awesome acknowledgment for Curtis and Justin’s breeding program.
This show marked Kanzu’s return to the conformation ring to work toward the new AKC title, the Grand Championship. In order to earn this title a dog needs 25 points with 3 major wins. With Curtis as his handler in the breed ring, Kanzu took Best Opposite Sex on August 6, Best of Breed on August 7 and Best Opposite again on August 8. In this first weekend back in the ring he earned 9 of the 25 points needed for his Grand Championship.
At lure coursing Daisy was the star and earned a BOB and 3 LCX points. She also spent time in the obedience ring making her mom very proud. Great fun was had by all. However, for Kanzu, the highlight of the trip was probably when he found his way into the front of our SUV and ate our dinner of 2 Subway sandwiches and cookies!

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The Ridgeback boys did very well at the recent Orange Coast Rhodesian Ridgeback trial held at Brookside Park in Walnut, August 27-29, 2010. The trial hosted more agility ridgebacks than we usually see at local trials as it was a great opportunity to prepare for the upcoming Nationals. In the photo from left to right, High Scoring Excellent went to Kanzu with 5 Qs. High scoring Novice Ridgeback was earned by Kim Strid’s Rafa, and High Scoring Open was Betty Scattini’s Ranger. The trial was especially good for Kanzu with his handler Tracy Tennison who earned two more double Qs toward the 20 needed for his agility championship (MACH). But the girls were very close behind with Carie Krumme’s girl, Scout earning 4 qualifying legs and a whole lot of MACH points. Watch out boys, the girls are fast and smart!

For Videos of Kanu’s runs taken by Carie Krumme
8-27 JWW
8-27 STD
8-28 STD
8-29 JWW
and another taken by Videos4you
8-29 STD

While most of my posts are about Kanzu and his achievements and progression toward titles, I am also proud of my girl Ema and her latest accomplishments. Recently, Ema has a whole new ‘lease on life’ thanks to Chris Ashton, a dog trainer, ‘dog walker extraordinaire’ and owner of Enlighten Dogs http://enlightendogs.com/about

Ema is my 7 year old, female Rhodesian Ridgeback who came to her ‘forever home’ with me after 4 homes in her first 1.5 years of life. (For more information about Ema and ‘Ema’s Story’ she her page https://africantreasurerr.com/?page_id=20

While Ema is very affectionate and gentle with humans, she has always been highly dominant with other dogs. She can be unpredictable and aggressive if she feels she needs to protect me from other dogs or especially if she thinks Kanzu is being threatened. This combined with her strong prey drive for the many cats in the neighborhood have made walking Ema a real challenge for me. And, as I became more nervous about walking her because of some of our close calls, Ema became even more protective. As I became less likely to walk her because of her unpredictable behavior she had less opportunities for socialization and the cycle perpetuated itself.

Then I saw a flyer for Enlighten Dogs. I have a strong commitment to positive dog training and to the value of utilizing pack dynamics to shape desirable K-9 behaviors. I had tried many dog trainers and behaviorists with little success. But I was immediately drawn to Enlighten Dogs’ emphasis on positive dog training and their understanding of pack behavior and the value of breed specific exercise for eliminating undesirable behavior. Chris began ‘walking’ Ema and providing positive training experiences and much needed exercise and stimulation twice a week. He used a variety of positive training techniques to give Ema a sense of purpose and to strengthen her trust and understanding of boundaries. (See the photo of Ema in her doggie back pack that is used to emphasize to her that the walks are her job which is calming to a dog.)

Within a few weeks Ema was walking not only with Chris but with other dogs. At first Chris exposed Ema to one new dog at a time with much structure and firm but fair boundaries. Gradually, he increased the number of dogs on a walk until Ema was walking with a whole pack. And now, Ema enjoys not only walks but even bike rides and pack runs with a wide spectrum of breeds of all shapes, sizes and temperaments.

Within only a few walks, Ema was a new dog. I can now walk her with confidence and without fear. She is happier and more interactive with both me and with Kanzu. She is playing more and is generally just happier and healthier.
I am very proud of her and grateful to Chris and Enlighten Dogs. It is as if Ema has truly been enlightened!