Class 2 and a rare bird

Yesterday morning mom read on a birding list that there was a rare bird - a long tailed duck - sighted at a small pond in a metro park about 15 minutes from here. So since dad and mom had never seen that duck, we drove to the park to see if it was still there. To me it was rather boring. This park doesn't have any pet trails and birding is not really my thing. Now if we were there to herd the bird, that would be a different story! I was a good sport about it though and hung out on the dock while mom and dad and several other birders ooohed and aaahed over this duck way out in the middle of the pond.

Unfortunately this is the best photo that dad could get. This long tailed duck is a female and only the males have the long tails. They are diving ducks and can dive as deep as 200 ft. to forage for food! Sounds crazy to me!

Then last night I went to my second agility class of this session. I was lucky and got put into a group with just one other dog - a cattle dog that was in my class last time and that I think is pretty cool! Things went well - in our first section we had the broad jump for the first time in the class. We have something like it at home and mom has been practicing with me so I jumped it and didn't try to walk on it at all. I also did the triple jump - wow, I really have to jump far out for that one! I also did the full-height teeter again and am not startled much by the noise of the bang when the teeter falls back down after I get off. I attempted the chute once and as it is my M.O., I ran right into the opening and then didn't move until mom lifted the end just a little bit. It was the longer chute this time. I'm sorry, but I like to see just a little bit of light at the end of the chute!! In the second section we practiced start line stays and front crosses. After trying the stays a few times to prove that I could do them, mom switched back to running with me because that always makes me more confident and faster. After that we went to contacts and I am getting faster on my dog walk and a frame. We did a little work with tunnel and dog walk discrimination and this time I wasn't afraid to do the walk just because there was a tunnel underneath it. Our last section of the night was weave poles. We worked on 90 degree entries. Mom has to line herself up across from the first pole and then send me into the entry. We did pretty well and were excited to really start working on this. Yay, something specific to practice at home! My instructor was very excited that my weaves in class were faster last night. She was cheering and so was the cattle dog's mom. Boy if they only saw how fast I am at home with my stick-in-the-ground poles!

Gotta zoom!

Ricky

Birding in a Cemetery

Mom and Dad took me on a birding trip to a local cemetery this afternoon. Birding in a cemetery you say? Yep, this place is a hot spot for spring migration - lots of warblers and other migrants show up here every May. Part of the attraction is this old quarry pond that I am sitting next to. It is ringed with big old trees and birds love it. On the rest of the cemetery grounds there are lots of old trees - many, many varieties. It's a lovely place to walk even if you're not looking for birds! Good thing, too, because we didn't see many birds! There were more warblers in our own neighborhood than at the cemetery today! We did see a rose-breasted grosbeak, a warbling vireo, and a great-crested flycatcher. Here I am posing on a crypt (I think that's what it's called). Eastern wood peewees nest on this structure every year.
And just to prove that we are indeed in a cemetery, here I am paying my respects to fallen servicemen.


Gotta zoom!

Ricky