Monday, September 27, 2010

Happy 6 Month Birthday Levi!

I can't believe Levi is already 6 months old!  Time sure has flown by. 

So 6 things I love about Levi:
1. He is a snuggler with his toys/blankets.  He really likes to curl up against things as well as to rest his head on his toys. 
2.  When he is tired he plops down onto the floor like it would take too much energy to lay himself down softly.  He has done this ever since he first came home at 8 weeks old.
3.  He is so well behaved in his crate now and he doesn't even whine anymore (I never thought that would happen).
4.  He loves coming to school with me and getting attention from everyone.
5.  He loves playing with other dogs, big or small.  It is really cute to watch him play with little dogs or younger puppies because you can tell that he is trying to be gentle with them.
6.  He is getting so much more interested in retrieving.

Sorry this has to be a short post today.  Tomorrow is the first test of the quarter, Oncology, so I have to get back to studying.  I think I have a new appreciation/interest in oncology since Kobe died.  It's kind of a double edged sword though because that is also what makes oncology class hard for me emotionally.

Thursday, September 23, 2010

Flyer Day

This past weekend Levi and I went to the Norcal Golden Retriever Club's Flyer Field Training day.  Mom and Melissa were visiting me in Davis for the weekend so they came along to watch for a little bit too. Christine and Don were there with Thistle, Ronan, and Sport.  We also got to meet Levi's sister Avalon (pink girl) as well as her humans, Bill and Miche, and their other golden, Sammie.  We had a little puppy group with our four from the same litter and a black flat coated retriever pup, Sam, that was only 4 months old.  She was very cute and did so well!

(from L to R: Avalon, Ronan, Thistle, Sport, Levi)
We started out doing short retrieves on a gravel road with dead pigeons.  Levi hasn't had any exposure to birds since his bird test as a small puppy so I was very happy with how well he did.  He seemed pretty interested in the birds and actually retrieved a couple of the pigeons.  There was one pigeon in particular that he seemed to like, but the other two he wasn't as fond of for some reason and he didn't really want to pick them up.

Then we took the retrieving into light cover (grass/plants).  He seemed really interested in the birds and was very excited watching his siblings have their turn, often doing acrobatics trying to get free from the leash.  He retrieved one of the pigeons on the first try but the next two he picked up and then dropped so I had to keep encouraging him to pick it up.


Next we went to the water (or more like the mud).  He wasn't as interested in retrieving in the water, and I think that as the day went on he got more worn out and less focused.  Towards the end of the day we were able to practice in water that was deep enough to swim in and he retrieved the first bird but not the second.  You could tell he really wanted to get the second one because he kept swimming back to it but he wasn't so sure about picking it up.


His brothers and sisters did great, especially Ronan and Avalon, who really loved the birds.  We got to watch the adult dogs do the real thing, retrieving ducks that were either shot down or already dead ducks that were launched to retrieve.  We got to see his mom, Sport, go as well and she did fantastic.


It was such a fun day (although a little muddy, I'll be more prepared next time).  I can't wait to get Levi some more bird experience.  It probably won't be for awhile though because in about a week and a half we start our intro to agility class.


And a picture from our walk on the green belt this past weekend with mom and Melissa.

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Pictures from the Arboretum

I had a couple hour break today between class and a meeting for Equine Medicine Club so I took Levi for a walk through the arboretum on campus.  It's really close to the vet school and is really beautiful.  Today we found these little garden areas off of the main paved path that had all sorts of flowers and plants.  It was really neat and I'm surprised that I hadn't seen it before when I had been there.  I thought it was a good time for some pictures (although all I had was my phone).  I need to start carrying my camera with me.


He really seems to like coming to school, especially getting to play with the other dogs here. The past two days he has gotten to play with my friend's 3 ½ month old miniature Australian shepherd, CJ, during lunch or after class. He is still learning to not be too rough with him since he is so much bigger than CJ but they seem to have a lot of fun together.  He also seems to be taking after momma Sport more and has gotten a lot more into fetching his rubber chuck-it ball.  We've been playing a little bit of fetch on one of the lawns at school during lunch time to give him some fun and exercise and he has been really into it.
 

Right now Levi is acting like a silly boy playing in my room while I write this post. He thinks he is pretty clever tunneling under the pillows on the bed.




Sunday, September 12, 2010

Lake Berryessa

Levi and I went hiking out at Lake Berryessa today.

  (the water is a little low in the lake)

I had been planning to go this past Thursday but then it rained on Wednesday and I thought it might be a little bit muddy so we postponed it for the weekend.  I found a trail online that sounded good and it was supposed to have water access so we headed there.  It took us about an hour and a half to get there (very windy roads), but there wasn't a day use fee like Lake Nacimiento so that was nice.  There wasn't anybody else out on the trail we went on so it was nice and peaceful (well except for the bugs).  Next time I'll remember to use bug spray.  There were a couple areas of the hike where I had to continuously swat little flies out of my face which was a little annoying.

Levi had fun though, and I even trusted him enough to let him off leash for a little bit.  He would run up ahead but then he always stopped and waited for me or turned and ran back to me.  I didn't even have to call him to me once. 

It was a little warm so we stopped for a few rest/water breaks in the shade.

At the end of the hike we made our way down to the water and he swam and retrieved bumpers for a little while.  He really enjoyed rolling in the dirt when he was done.  That just meant that it was bath-time when we got home. 



Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Ramblings

Today we got a nice surprise on our evening walk.  We went to this big field near our house to do some training and bumper retrieving, and shortly after we got there a beautiful golden retriever came over to say hi to Levi.  I think his name was Milo.  I chatted with his owner while Milo and Levi wrestled together.  Levi really liked him, and I was glad that he was getting to play with another golden. :-)  Milo is also half American and half European.  I guess there is a normal group of dog owners that all get together at this field in the evenings to let their dogs play.  I decided to let Levi off of his long leash since he kept tangling the other dogs and he did really well.  He stayed nearby and we even got to work on our recall a few times when he wasn't super engrossed in playing.  He did really well, and after coming back the first time and getting a handful of hot dog pieces he realized that he really liked to come when I called him.

All that playing really tired him out.  I thought it was funny how he dug his bed out of the crate so he could lay on the cold metal and then he used the bed as a head rest.

Today was the first day of my second year of vet school.  It was really good to be back and to see everyone again, but it was weird going into the second years class room.  I kept wanting to go to our classroom from first year.  Levi stayed at home today since we had a short day and I got home at 2.  He didn't seem too upset about it, so I hope that he continues to do well.  Tomorrow is a really short day (9-12) and then Thursday we have off for Rosh Hashanah.  Why?  I don't know, but I don't care, it's a day off!  Levi will get to come to school with me for the first time on Friday when I go all the way until 5pm.  I already have his crate set up in the home room so he's ready to go.

Now that we have been back in Davis for a few days Levi is feeling more like this is home again.  He really likes that he has a step so he can go on the bed here.  One thing that I think is really funny though is that most of the time he chooses to lay on the step instead of the bed.  I think he likes it because he can lean up against the bed.

Friday, September 3, 2010

Back in Davis

Levi and I are back in Davis!  We are still in the process of getting unpacked and settled in, but we have already been taking full advantage of the green belt, going for long walks in the morning and evening.  It has been really hot here so we have to do outdoor activities early before it heats up.  Today I was able to get a little video of Levi going down the slide since I know my mom wanted to see him do it.  It isn't a very good video, just a forewarning. Oh, and this was his first twisty slide.  He was a little hesitant to go down it at first, but then he did great.



Earlier this summer when we were in Morro Bay I saw this shop that sold these really cute stuffed animals/pillows.  They are called pillow pets, and they are like a stuffed animal that unfolds into a pillow.  They were all so cute and I really wanted to get one for Levi so before I moved back up to Davis mom and I went to pick him out a pillow pet.  (I might have gotten one for myself too because they are just so cute!)  It was Levi's belated 5 month birthday present.  He really liked it, and played with it for about an hour straight when he got it.