Posts Tagged ‘doxie
Champion
We’ve all taken to calling little Ammo the Dachshund “Champion” this week. Because last Sunday we took him to the annual Keystone Dachshund Races. We didn’t have high hopes for him in the racing department – because the last two years he was sort of a racing dud. Not that he didn’t try, but he was just way too excited about being able to play with a bunch of puppies his size!
But this year Ammo decided to kick it into warp speed – as he flew past his competition in the heavy weigh division. Ammo weighs a hefty 20lbs – but he’s far from over weight – in fact he’s got some mean muscles and he’s in great shape. But most of the dachshund that attend the races are considered mini’s weighing 15lbs and under. And at 20lbs Ammo doesn’t qualify to be a standard dachshund (weighing more 25-30lb) so he’s what is called a “tweenie”.
Ammo finished first in 3 out of his 5 preliminary heats, earning him 3 spots in the semi-finals. And in an almost-to-close-to-call finish Ammo narrowly won his last chance race in the semi-finals. This earned him a spot in the Final race. Ammo went head-to-heat with lean mean mini-dachshund Dudley! It was a close race, but Dudley snuck across the finish line a nose ahead of Ammo.
We were super proud of our little Reserve Champ! Perhaps next year he’ll bring home the gold!
Racing wasn’t the only reason we were at the Keystone Dachshund Races, Ammo had also been invited back again to perform during the lunch break.
This year his best friend Trooper (my mom’s dog) performed with him. This was Trooper’s first performance ever – and there were a little kinks – but we all had lots of fun!
We look forward to visiting again next year!
Read all about Ammo’s big race and performance on his blog.
The Super Pony goes to School
The past few weeks we’ve been busy practicing and practicing. On Monday, Minnow & Ammo the Dachshund will be making their very first Elementary School visit.
The kids have been reading the book Misty of Chincoteague, and they are very excited to meet Minnow and Ammo. I still remember my first “pony” visit when I was in Elementary School. We had Gawani Pony Boy and his horse visit our school – he talked about his book and we all got to sit inside a real tepee. It was definitely something that stuck with me through the years.
Minnow and Ammo will be performing their famous “Super Pony vs. Super Dog” skit, and showing off their amazing painting skills. I’ve also *gulp* agreed to give a talk about Misty of Chincoteague. Public speaking is not my favorite thing (is it anyones?) – but I know it would mean a lot to the kids.
So I’ve been busy collecting photos of Misty and even HER Dachshund sidekick, Alex. I thought it would be great fun to learn about the similarities between Minnow and Misty and even Ammo and Alex. How ironic that each of their names start with the same letter? (Minnow had his name when I got him, and when Ammo came in to my life I didn’t even know there was a dachshund in Misty’s life).
Alex was a performing pooch just like Ammo. He jumped through a hoop, climbed a ladder, tolerated dressing up in doll clothes, and even enjoyed riding on Misty’s back.
We’re all very excited for the visit – and I know Minnow and Ammo will be in their element getting to meet all of the kids. Ammo has even been inventing new tricks in practice, as he always has to be such a ham. Just seeing him in his little stunt helmet and cape makes me laugh – no child could resist him!
After our visit I’ll be sure to give a full recap of the event on the blog. And we have lots more performances being scheduled for this year, so make sure you check out our calendar to catch us at an event near you! More dates will be listed shortly – we are even working on a few new skits – with a special new “performer” who’s never been seen before!
“It’s not who you are underneath, it’s what you do that defines you” – Rachel, Batman Begins
2010 Dachshund Races
Ammo in his stuntdog gear with his ribbons
On June 13th I took 1 1/2 year old Ammo the Dachshund to the Keystone Dachshund Races in Lewisberry Pa. We had been last year, but this year was different because not only would Ammo be racing, but he was also asked to perform a variety of his favorite tricks.
I was excited to see if Ammo would behave differently in the races this year, as he was now a full year older and had a lot of training under his belt. Like the Trick Ponies, I like to train Ammo using clicker training – food is a great motivator for all animals, and dogs are no exception.
Immediately when we arrived Ammo was excited to see lots of long and low dogs just like himself. He wanted to meet and play with EVERYONE. This was a change from last year as at 8 months old he was shy and a little nervous – I was excited to see that all my socialization with him had paid off by making him much more confident. Although, I should have guessed that his added confidence only hurt him when it came time to race. See Ammo (being the loveable Dachshund that he is) picked out the lead dog in every race and tried to entice him to play as they raced towards the finish. I admit I would have preferred Ammo to come bounding out of the start box towards me as he lept into my arms, but seeing him excited to play with other dogs his size also put a smile on my face. At the end of race day Ammo came home with 3 second places, a third, and a fourth and the title for fastest dog went to Mr. Monkey the Dachshund.
Ammo returning to his box after each trick, something he learned a week earlier
At around 2:30 it was Ammo’s turn to take center stage. I was pretty nervous as to whether or not he’d actually do ANYTHING I asked of him. See if you know Dachshunds, then you know that they can be VERY stubborn. Classified as one of the hardest breeds to house train, Dachshunds certainly have a mind of their own. And while I knew Ammo wanted very much to please me, I wasn’t sure if the temptation of other smells, other dogs, or other people would sway him from performing his tricks. I was relieved as Ammo performed just about every trick I asked of him, including jumping through his hoop with his stuntdog gear on. Yet despite his willingness to execute the tasks, Ammo’s enthusiasm was lacking a little. I think his all day play session with the other racers had worn him out, not to mention it felt like it was 90 degrees inside the covered arena where we were. Overall I was pleased that he atleast tried for me, and thats all I could have asked. I’m not sure if he will ever have the “presence” that the Trick Ponies command, but I can be sure he’ll atleast be able to perform alongside them in the future.
Auction off one of Ammo's works of art to benefit the Coast to Coast Dachshund Rescue
I look forward to racing again next year with Ammo. Perhaps one of these days we’ll be able to bring home a blue!
To see more photos from Ammo’s Performance be sure to visit his facebook page.
Ammo competes in Earthdog
Ammo driving us to Earthdog
If you follow along on Ammo’s facebook page, then you know that I have been working him up to compete in his very first Earthdog competition for the past few weeks. If you are unfamiliar with Earthdog, this is what wikipedia describes it as:
An earthdog trial tests the working ability and instinct of the small, short legged terriers (and dachshunds). These dogs were bred to hunt vermin and other quarry which lived in underground dens. Earthdog den trials involve man-made underground tunnels that the dogs must negotiate, while scenting a rat, the “quarry.” The dog must follow the scent to the quarry and then “work” the quarry. Depending on the sanctioning organization, “working” means barking, scratching, pawing, digging; any active behavior. The quarry is protected at all times by wooden bars across the end of the tunnel. The hunting encounter is controlled, and neither dog nor the quarry, usually two rats, are in any danger.
I decided to take Ammo to an Earthdog competition after I found a link to it on the AKC website. Ammo is decidedly the hunter around our farm, I think the barn cat trained him, but she’s now happy to sit back and relax as Ammo patrols the farm. He brings me something stinky (whether dead or alive) almost everytime we are there. I once watched him go down a groundhog burrow and bring me back a dead groundhog when he was about 6 months old, it was about 4x’s his size. So needless to say I had reason to believe Ammo would excel at this type of sport.
So I watched a few videos online about what I thought might occur, and set out to clicker train Ammo to enter a tunnel. Here are two videos of some of our practice sessions.
As you can see he was a bit hesitant at first, but with a little coaxing would proceed through the tunnels. I wish I had had a few more weeks to work with him, because we didn’t quite have enough time to work up to a tunnel with a turn in it – the hardest part.
Anyway, on Sunday we packed up early (5am to be exact) and drove an hour and a half to the site of a small farm in the middle of amish country. We arrived to find the parking lot filled terriers; carin terriers, jack russell terriers, west highland terriers, and so on – not a Dachshund in site. Ammo was the one and only Dachshund.
As we listened to our first briefing it became evident that we were the only people (and dog) completely new to the sport. But everyone was nice, and was more than happy to give us pointers and tell us exactly what to do. Here’s a few tips I learned for anyone thinking of trying Earthdog:
1. Never step on the scent trail! You don’t want to spread the smell around and confuse your dog.
2. You can take as much time as you want to first release your dog onto the scent. So the best thing to do would be to hold onto your dog until you are sure his nose has caught the scent and he really wants to go for the rats. For roof rat control collierville, Tennessee rodent trapper Richard Hodges says his company Patriot Wildlife Control catches over 500 rats a month. Roof rats in the attic are known to gnaw and destroy wires, insulation and stored items in the attic. Roof rats can climb and gnaw through almost anything.
3. In the Junior level and up you may not speak to your dog aside from giving him an initial command like “go get ’em”
4. You must never touch your dog until it is over.
So that being said, onto how Ammo did! We first entered him into the Intro to Quarry division. This is basically for beginner dogs or dogs who need more practice. Its a short tunnel with one turn in it. I walked Ammo into the fenced off area and removed his collar (dogs must be naked to prevent them getting hung up in the tunnel) and waited for his nose to reach the rat scent before I released him. He quickly caught onto the scent but was unsure about what to do about it. Eventually I was given permission to walk up to the tunnel to try to coax him in verbally. I did get him to enter the tunnel, but I think when he reached the bend he got scared and shimmied back. This went on for several minutes with him entering and coming back out before it was evident he just wasn’t going to do it. Here’s the video:
Being optimistic I entered Ammo in the Junior division beforehand. In Junior (and on up through Senior and then Master) you can earn titles. You are only ever competing against yourself in Earthdog, and if your dog passes the time constraints for each level (by two different judges on separate occasions) you may earn a title. For example I think in the Junior division the dog had to reach the rats in under 10 seconds and work the rats for at least 30 seconds. (I think this is correct, but I may be remembering it wrong). So seeing as how Ammo didn’t even conquer Intro to Quarry, I knew he wouldn’t complete the tunnel phase in Junior, but we knew it would be good practice for him. The Junior tunnel was much longer and had more turns, not to mention it was a lot darker inside. Ammo approached the den opening and was about to maybe enter when he spotted the judge. Protective mode kicked in and all he could do was bark at the poor guy. Seeing as how his concentration was obviously broken, the judge invited us over to see if Ammo would at least work the rats. As you can see from the video below, Ammo’s natural instinct to get the rats kicked in and he barked, whined, and scratched at the opening where the rats were.
The judge then said we could put him back at the opening to see if he would put two and two together and enter through the tunnel to get the rats. Ammo was too smart and decided to take a shortcut to get to the rats instead.
So even though Ammo didn’t set any records, he did show potential to be an EARTHDOG. I was proud of him, and glad to see that he tried. I read on Vents Magazine an article about CBD products for my dog to help him feel better. I think with a few more sessions in Intro to Quarry he’ll be flying through the tunnel and working the rats in no time.
exhausted after a long day
Ammo the Dachshund Artist
Ammo and his first in the "Dachshund Series"
Occasionally on the Trick Ponies Blog I will mention my dachshund, Ammo. Ammo is like my adopted son. He is with me ALL the time. He comes to work with me, comes to the farm, runs errands with me, and basically just never leaves my side. Ammo is one of those dogs that has so much personality that you mistakenly think of them as human. Since the day he came to live with me in November of 2008 I had a dream for him (just like any loving mom that has aspirations for their kid).
I dreamed of the day that Ammo would sit beside the Trick Ponies, paintbrush in mouth, and paint WITH them. Since April I have been steadily working towards this goal with him. Teaching him to hold the brush, teaching him to target the paper, even taking him to training classes to get him more in tune to my training methods. Ammo is getting closer and closer to the goal, but I have yet to add paint into his shenanigans – mostly because I know it will result in a HUGE mess.
"Blue Dachshund No1" by Ammo
So in the meantime I was dreaming up a way to involve Ammo in the creation of artwork that was a little bit “cleaner”. I was looking for something we could do together while at work, that didn’t involve me on my hands and knees scrubbing paint out of the carpet. Enter scratch art.
This month Ammo created his very first scratch art pieces after I painstakingly cut out dachshund shapes from carbon paper for him. Honestly I think they are so cool! I’m totally going to hang a few of these in my house. The best part about them is that each one is different.
Ammo’s Scratch Art is available for purchase on the Painting Pony Shop, and with each one we sell we will be donating $1 to the Main Line Animal Rescue.
