Ratting

Back in June, I went with my friend Tara and her dogs to a Jack Russell Play Day in Washington. The idea of the play day was to get a bunch of terriers together and let them do terrier things. On the list was Go to Ground, Barn Hunt, and Terrier Racing (both flat and over hurdles).

Working the rat

I took Ptera along to let her go crazy doing terrier things, and she had an absolute blast. Go To Ground involves the dog having to go through a series of wooden tunnels to find a rat, which is actually outside of the tunnel, visible through some wooden bars. The dog is then supposed to "work" the rat, attempting to get at it, for a specific amount of time. The difficulty in this sport is that some dogs realize that the rat is outside the tunnel and will refuse to go in, or will come back out and go around the outside to find the rat. The tunnel can have multiple turns and be a decent distance. Ptera absolutely loves Go To Ground, and I can set her up a few feet from the tunnel entrance and just drop her to the ground, and she dives straight in. Because it was a fun day, not an actual competition, I was able to take some time with the help of the volunteer running that station at the time and get some pictures of Ptera. Obviously the wooden tunnels make it a hard sport to photograph, so the only real pictures are either at the beginning, going into the tunnels (which isn't super interesting) or at the end, working the rat through the wooden bars of the tunnel.

The rats, by the way, are totally bored by this. They are people's pet rats who are brought out for events like this and Barn hunt, and so they are treated very well. None of them cares at all about the dogs. You can see this rat above actually has its back to Ptera, and you can just tell it thinks the entire thing is a little strange but no big deal.

I love her crazy face

Barn Hunt practice was also super fun. I ran Ptera in a Novice and an Open type set up (this wasn't a fun test or anything, just a practice for people doing Barn Hunt). She did great, and indicated really strong. We also tried a Crazy 8's set up, and didn't do so well there. I think that with all of the rats in Go to Ground and Barn Hunt, and the terrier racing, she was hot and over excited. But the volunteers there also humored me so I could get some pictures of Ptera doing Barn Hunt. When I run my own dogs in these things for real, I never get a chance to get photos, so this was a perfect opportunity.

Bite that tube

Watching terriers do what they were bred for (in our structured, for fun only way) is a super fun experience.

Paleoterrorist No Fly List RATI

Call name Ptera.

My adorable little jack russell puppy earned her first title this past weekend at a Barn Hunt trial in Grants Pass. I entered her in one Instinct run for the weekend, and she nailed it. In Instinct, one Q gives you the RATI title.

Getting her not to hunch in photos is impossible!

I'm super proud of her. She is in heat, so had to wear panties for her run, so she didn't want to jump onto the hay bales at all. But when she came around the corner and smelled the rat, she was all business. The rat was in the first tube she came to, and she was immediately hooked. However, since she hadn't smelled the other tubes, and a lot of new dogs get faked out by the bedding tube (in Instinct, there is one empty tube, one bedding tube, and one rat tube), I spent a little bit of time trying to call her off that tube to smell the others. When it was obvious she wasn't going anywhere, I called rat, and yup, it was a rat! Our final time was 25 seconds and change.

So proud of my little girl. I can't wait to see what we can do in the future.

JRT Fun Day

Yesterday, I headed up to Castle Rock Fairgrounds in Washington for a Jack Russell Terrier fun day/play day. I figured that Ptera would have fun, I would get to try some new sports with her, and there likely would be something for Koira to do.

From a few weeks ago, when she was still trying to figure out how ears work

The first thing we tried was called Go To Ground. The idea is that the dog goes through a series of tunnels made by wooden boxes, which can have turns, until they find the rat. The rat is on the outside of the tunnel, but can be seen and smelled through the white bars at the end of the tunnel. Once the dog finds the rat, they are supposed to work it for 30 seconds by scratching, barking, etc.

We started out by introducing Ptera to the rat. She was immediately obsessed. We ran her through a single short, straight tunnel to the rat, and she had no issues. She didn't work the rat at all, but did stay there smelling it. We ran her through some longer tunnels, including one with two turns, and she did awesome on all of them, going straight in and straight to the rat, without trying to come back out of the tunnel. Each time, she stuck with the rat, but didn't really "work" it, so we encouraged her to scratch and bark. The last part of the tunnel has a lid on the top that we open to get the dog out, so we would open that and get her ramped up. With encouragement, she worked the rat from inside the tunnel. Outside the tunnel, she didn't need any encouragement.



The JRT fun day also had something called brush hunt, which is similar to Barn Hunt, but in brush rather than straw. We didn't have much brush to use, so it was a pretty easy set up. Ptera found her rat pretty easily, and worked it really well.

Lure coursing and racing were the other two events offered. Lure coursing is the same as what we do with our coursing club, though set up a bit different since JRTs have different needs from sighthounds. It is more of just a fun way to get some energy out of them than anything else.




Ptera also did racing, which is just a long straight away where they race with other dogs. The start box was really our main hurdle. It was a brand new thing, with loud dogs in the other boxes banging around, and due to some technical issues, the box wasn't able to be opened right away when I put her in the first time. I ended up holding her in the box the next time, rather than closing the back door, and that went better. I think I would need to spend some time introducing her to the box by herself for her to really like the racing game.

Unfortunately, Koira didn't really get to do anything. I did have her meet a rat, which she thought was great. But the straight racing boxes are too small for her. The ground was wet and it was raining, so I didn't feel safe letting her do the lure coursing. The course they set up was fine for JRTs, but was twisty and tight in places, and I thought Koira's speed and size would put her at risk of injury if she ran that course on wet grass. The Go To Ground tunnels were also much too small for her as well. So really, outside of meeting a rat and a few short walks, Koira had a pretty boring day. I tried to make it up to her by taking her to flyball practice on our way home.

I'll be honest that I don't know if I'll have Ptera do any of these sports officially. I likely will put her in Barn Hunt to find rats, but I don't know if Go To Ground is something we'll compete in. JRT racing we might try again, but I would want a slow introduction to the box to do it. But it was fun to meet other JRT owners, see the dogs in action, and was an overall really fun day.

Barn Hunt

I entered Koira in an official Barn Hunt trial for the first time this past weekend. We did Instinct and Novice in the morning trial, and just Novice in the afternoon trial on Saturday. Unfortunately since I was the one taking pictures at the trial, I don't have any pictures of Koira's runs. But I did toss in a few pictures of other dogs at the trial.

You can see the PVC tubes used in Barn Hunt here. They have plenty of air holes in them, are large enough for the rats to turn around and get comfy, but small enough that the rats don't get rattled around too much if the tube gets knocked off of a bale of straw. This is a mini schnauzer who was running Instinct in the morning.

In Barn Hunt, dogs are supposed to find rats and ignore bedding, and the handler has to tell the judge when the dog has found a rat. The rats are safe and secure inside of a heavy duty PVC tube, and they actually seem to like it, as they will happily hop into the tube if it is placed into their cage. The lowest level in Barn Hunt is Instinct. In Instinct, there are three tubes. One tube it totally empty and has never had anything in it. One tube has rat bedding but no rat. And then the third tube has a rat and some bedding. The goal is for the dog to indicate to the handler which tube has the rat.

Koira mauled all three tubes in Instinct and I called the wrong one as the rat (even though I called the only one she hit twice). She really goes to town on the tubes, biting and hitting them around. I can't let her do that for too long to a tube because if there is a rat in there, we have to make sure the rat isn't being injured by the tube being thrown around. So if the dog hits a tube hard, and you can't call them away to search the other tubes, you pretty much have to call it as a rat or get a DQ. Safety for the rats is very important- most of the rats used are household pets. 

In Novice, which you can run in the same trial as Instinct, there are the same three tubes, empty, bedding, and rat, but instead of the tubes being laid out on the ground, they are hidden in the straw around the course. The dog has to sniff the tubes out. They are also required in Novice to go through a tunnel made by the straw, and to get all four feet up on a bale, called a climb. These events are timed, so you have to do all of it quickly.

Koira hit a tube hard in Novice so I called it, but again, not the rat. I don't know if it was the bedding tube or the totally empty one. She was really into it though, which is why I called it. She did do both her tunnel and her climb before hitting the tube, and was up and excited and eager to search.

Dogs of any size and any age over 6 months can compete, regardless of breed, as long as they can fit through the tunnel. I've even seen Great Danes do Barn Hunt, though they have to belly crawl through the tunnel. This is a young Malinois who was in heat at the trial. Bitches in season can compete, but have to run at the end of their class and have to wear panties.

Our afternoon Novice run, I tried staying totally quiet. People told me I was talking a lot during our morning runs, which can distract the dog. The result was that Koira didn't take the tunnel and didn't get a climb. She hit one tube hard, I called her away to keep searching, she hit another tube hard, I called that one as the rat (because why not?), but no. Neither of those tubes held rats (and since both of them were buried in straw and she had to find and dig them out, and one had to be totally empty, I can't help but assume she is actually scenting for the PVC the tubes are made out of, or the paint on them, rather than for rats or rat bedding). Staying quiet on my part seemed to result in a very flat dog in the ring, who attempted to leave twice, so I don't think we'll be doing that again. The goal after all is for us to have fun, and Koira has always worked better and happier and more "up" in training with verbal feedback from me. So no Qs for our day. 

Koira had fun for the most part, and if we get a chance to do some practice, we may enter another trial in the future. Without practice, though, I think entering trials would be pointless because Koira needs to learn what the goal of the game is. Right now she thinks she is just supposed to find PVC tubes. She needs to learn that she is supposed to find rats in tubes and ignore the other tubes. For that I need some rats and some tubes though, so we'll see if I'm able to do any practice or training. 

This smooth Fox Terrier was an awesome dog. I've never met a smooth fox before, and I kind of fell in love with the breed, all three of the ones at the trial were just adorable, amazing, friendly dogs. You can also see in this picture the grating at the end of the tube, which gives the rat plenty of airflow.

I also did photos for the morning trial, and for a small part of the afternoon trial, but Koira decided to be a Bad Dog and dig madly and chew on the bars of her crate. Since it was too hot to put her in the car even with shades up, we headed home early. I headed back on Sunday, minus the dog, to take photos for the morning trial and part of the afternoon trial. I left Koira at home, since it was supposed to be hot again and we weren't entered in the trial. I knew she'd have fun if we did enter, but like I said before, I think she really needs to do some practice before we blow money entering trials.

I have been photographing Barn Hunt for a year and a half at this point, and I have to say, it is a fun, enjoyable sport. The dogs seem to love it, and there is a big amount of teamwork needed. And, unlike pretty much every other sport, where the handler is the head of the team, in Barn Hunt, the dog is the head of the team, and the handler has to take cues from the dog. I think it gives the dogs a unique experience different from a lot of the other stuff we do with them on a regular basis.

Has anyone else tried Barn Hunt? How did your dogs do?

Sports for Dogs: Barn Hunt

Last weekend, I spent Saturday and Sunday as the official photographer for a Barn Hunt event. Of course, that was followed with a few days of editing photos from the event as well! A number of people have asked me what Barn Hunt is. Since it is a new, but potentially very fun, sport that is open to pretty much all dogs and people, I thought I would share a little bit about it.

Barn Hunt is a young sport, only a few years old. Participation has been growing fast, though, and barn hunt trials are getting easier and easier to find in many places. Here in Oregon, we have trials every few months put on by a few different clubs.

The basic idea of Barn Hunt is simple- dogs use their noses to find rats. Yes, live rats are used, however, they are kept safe from the dogs with PVC pipes. The rats generally are found calmly sleeping in the tubes and enter the tubes voluntarily, so I genuinely believe that they know they are safe and don't mind participating in this sport at all. Barn Hunt has very specific rules about the care and consideration of the rats, which can be read on their website.

You can start in either Instinct or Novice. In Instinct, three tubes are placed on the ground near each other. One tube is completely empty, one has soiled rat bedding, and one tube has a live rat it in. The goal in Instinct is for your dog to find the tube with the rat and indicate it in such a way that you, as the handler, are able to tell the judge which tube holds the live rat. As is suggested by the name, many dogs are naturals and can find the rat with no previous experience, using nothing but natural instinct. Some dogs, though, will benefit from prior exposure to barn hunt through a practice or seminar. Upon passing Instinct, your dog will receive a RATI title.

This is an actual set up during an Instinct test. The tubes are all in the open and placed near each other.

The RATI (instinct) title is not required to enter your dog in Novice, the beginning level of Barn Hunt. In Novice, the same three tubes as pictured above are used. This time, though, the tubes are hidden in straw or hay bales. The goal is the same. The dog must find the tub that contains the live rat and indicate it in such a way that the handler is able to tell the judge where the rat is located. In addition to finding the rat tube hidden in the course, the dog is required to go through a tunnel made of straw bales and climb on top of at least one straw bale. No breed or size of dog is unable to participate as long as they can do these things- and I have seen Great Danes fit through the tunnels and dachshunds jump up onto a bale of straw.

This is a doberman in Instinct, sniffing each of the tubes to determine which one has the rat. He passed and gained his RATI title.

After three Novice qualifications, the dog receives a RATN title and advances to Open. In Open, the goal remains the same. However, there are now two tubes with live rats and the dog must find both of them. The tunnel in Open is also longer. Senior comes after the RATO title, where there are four rats to find in a larger course.

This collie is searching for the hidden rat tubes in the bales of straw.

Master is the highest level of Barn Hunt as is the most difficult. In Master, there are always 10 tubes in the ring, but the number of rats can be 1-5, with the rest of the tubes filled with bedding. The handler must indicate to the judge when their dog finds a rat, but also must tell the judge when the dog has cleared the ring and there are no more rats to be found. This requires not only that your dog has a strong indication when finding the rats, but also requires that the handler have total trust in their dog when they indicate no more rats are there to be found.

For more information about Barn Hunt, or to locate a trial or training group in your area, check out the official Barn Hunt website.

Barn Hunt

While my dogs tried barn hunt a while ago and more or less failed at it, I still think it is a pretty cool sport. I am doing the photography for an upcoming barn hunt trial in a few weeks, so this weekend, I headed to the trial location to shoot a practice. Lighting indoors in barns can be interesting, so I wanted to get a feel for it before the trial.

For those who haven't heard of barn hunt, the basic idea is pretty simple. Dogs are trained to find and indicate where there are live rats inside a given area, with a course made of straw or hay bales. The rats are kept safe from the dogs in sturdy PVC tubes.

The handler here is holding up the tube with the rat to let their dog get a nice good smell.

To make the entire thing more difficult, there are three kinds of tubes that can be on the course- empty tubes, tubes with used rat bedding, and tubes with live rats. You want the dog to only indicate the tubes with the live rats. This is the part that my dogs failed at, since they were equally excited about the tubes with the rats and the tubes with the bedding. It is something you can certainly train to overcome if you have that problem and want to pursue the sport, I just already have so many sports and training plans that I decided not to with my dogs.

Here is one of the tubes, partially buried in loose hay. There is no real way to tell which tubes have what in them just by looking, so the handlers really have to rely on the dog to tell them what is where.

Depending on the level the dog is in, the number of total tubes and total rats in tubes can change to make the course more difficult. In all levels, the dog is also required to climb onto a bale and go through a tunnel made of bales either before, during, or after finding their rats in order to complete their run.

Butt up, nose down after climbing two bales high and then deciding to check out what is buried in the loose straw a bale below her. The rats can be hidden on the ground, between bales, or on top of bales.

Overall, I had a good time. It was chilly, but not freezing cold. The lighting was kind of crazy since the weather was veering wildly between sun-and-clouds all the way to super-dark-rain-clouds-plus-downpour, and all the stages in between. I'm looking forward to shooting the actual trial in two weeks (and hoping for sun that day!).