Getting Ready For The ORT

Pongo is scheduled to take his Odor Recognition Test (ORT) on September 13th.  This is the first step we have to pass in order to compete and earn titles in National Association of Canine Scent Work events, and we have been working very hard toward this goal.   All summer, we have been preparing by taking private lessons at It's A Dog's World training facility. 

I became interested in nose work last spring when I was looking for a new way to keep Pongo active, but for something that would be gentle on his aging body.  At twelve years old, Pongo has had two torn ACLs and has arthritis in both knees.  His left knee, the one that was repaired by surgery in 2005, has very little mobility now and at times, he walks very stiffly because he has trouble bending it.  For this reason, he can no longer go jogging with me. Yet Pongo has always had a high level of energy and need for exercise.  Now that his body can no longer perform at the athletic ability that it once did, I chose nose work as a new way to challenge his mind and wear him out.  We took an Intro to Nose Work class in the spring, and Pongo immediately took to it.  It is so fun to see how much he likes doing this work.  He gets excited whenever I bring out boxes, or we drive to the training facility.  It's like he's thinking, "oh yea, I get to work!"

Pongo's trainer recommended that we video some of our training sessions so that I can go back and review them.  She suggests that this way I can learn to better read his signals, and tell when he is "in odor," as the scent will actually move and flow on the air and the dog has to learn to follow it to its source.  Last weekend, I roped my husband into taking some video for me.  Here, I explain about getting ready for the ORT. If you look at the way Pongo is sitting at the beginning of this video, you can see how he holds his leg out to the side. This is his modified sit that he has done since his ACL surgery.  For this reason, we can't do competition obedience - it's not considered a "proper sit."

Of course, Dewey has to come along and video bomb us! He likes to be in the middle of everything. 

Remember, there is one box that is dedicated to odor.  You always place the odor in the same box and mark the box so you know which one it is.  I marked my odor box with an "O." Odor is placed on Q-tips that are cut in half by putting them in a few drops of essential oil of the desired scent.  I keep the Q-tips in a baby food jar until we are ready to work.  Then I take a few out with tweezers so I don't contaminate them with my own scent and place them in the odor box, or whichever container we are working with.

Pongo will be testing for both birch and anise. When we registered for the test, we had to pay $25 for each scent we would be testing.  There are only three scents in nose work, but I thought that would be a little ambitious for us to train for this summer.  So I only registered for two.  I typically work with birch first, then switch it out for anise later in our training session.  On this particular day, though, we only worked with anise.  It was about one in the afternoon and about 75 degrees and humid outside.  Pongo was distracted by cars and people passing, and adopted a rather laissez-faire attitude which is not typical of his nose work sessions.  When we first started, he just walked through the boxes and didn't work.  I went back and paired food with the odor box, and on the second trial, he began to work.  Then on subsequent trials, I removed the food and he was only rewarded on finding the correct box.

Here's a video which shows Pongo working.

Notice that Pongo does a good job of working the first line of boxes, but then stops working when we walk back along the second row.  I turn him around and have him work that line of boxes again and he identifies the odor by stopping and pawing at the box a couple times.  That is Pongo's way of alerting to the odor - which I love because it's so obvious!  I didn't teach him that, he started doing that on his own.  You see that he actually kind of paws a couple other boxes in the video, but he keeps on going.  On the odor box, he actually stops and sniffs longer, pawing the box twice.  This is why they tell you it's important to learn how to read your dog.  Sometimes, Pongo's signs are really clear and he very quickly identifies where the odor is accurately.  Other times, he gives me some false alerts (like that light paw tap in this video) and I'm afraid I won't read him correctly when we actually do the test.

At the ORT, we will be doing blind hides - that is, I won't know which box contains the odor.  I will have to say "alert" to identify when I think Pongo has found it.  We have practiced this in our private lessons at It's A Dog World, and though we get it right most of the time, occasionally, I'm wrong.  Our goal for training right now is to practice in different locations as much as possible before the test to give Pongo practice in new environments with distractions.  Today, we went to the park and had a great session working on the sidewalk by the parking lot - until our session was cut short by pouring rain! 

I can't believe the ORT is two weeks away!  We are counting down!  And yes, Mommy is a little nervous.   Wish us good luck!

Pongo's Kitties

Pongo had separation anxiety when I first adopted him from the Washington Animal Rescue League in 2002.  Having spent six months in a cage, he was desperate for exercise, mental stimulation, and human companionship.  I lived in an apartment in Washington, DC at the time, and tried very hard to make sure all of Pongo's needs were met.  I used to walk him for two hours a day - an hour in the morning before I left for work and an hour when I came home.  Still, when I tried to leave, he would try to get out the door with me, and I felt guilty leaving him home alone. 

After six months, I ended up adopting a cat named Henri to keep him company.  It worked beautifully and they were friends long before she bonded with me. When Henri was killed by raccoons in 2008, we were both devastated.  I had never seen an animal grieve before, but Pongo did.  He missed her. 

Although I vowed I would not get another cat, one of my coworker's kept texting me pictures of a kitten at an adoption event at PETCO a couple months later.  I decided to go take a look.  The kitten she had been sending me pictures of had already been adopted by the time I got there, and so I asked staff to point out a cat they thought would be good with a dog.  They suggested a young, long-haired black and white cat that had been found on the streets of Kent with a litter of kittens.  All of her kittens had already been adopted, but she still awaited a home. When I picked her up to hold her, she started playing with my hair!  I was instantly smitten.  And so Bella came to live with Pongo and I in Seattle. 

I had met my husband earlier that year, but we didn't get serious until a few months after I adopted Bella.  My husband loved cats but had never owned a dog.  He had two cats when I met him - a long- haired calico named Cindy and a skinny, short-haired grey tabby named Zoumie.  Cindy was the matriarch and was clearly in charge.  She let Pongo know it the first time he came to visit, swatting him on the nose when he got too close.  Pongo had a little scratch on his nose from the incident, but it wounded his feelings more.  To this day, he won't walk past her if she is sitting on the stairs or in the middle of a hallway.  He will bark or cry to let me know if she is blocking his pathway to me.  He will only pass her if I put myself between them.

My husband and I were married in 2010, merging our pets in his home.  His daughter, Ashley, from a previous marriage also came to live with us full-time. About a year later, Ashley's mom gave her Dewey, a long-haired orange tabby as a gift.  Ashley saw him at her mom's every-other-weekend.  However, when her mom moved and couldn't take him to the new apartment, she asked us if we could take him.  What initially was a temporary arrangement turned into a permanent one. 

If someone had ever told me that one day I would end up with four cats, I never would have believed it!  But there you have it.  For Pongo, it has been heaven.  He has never been alone again.  Dewey, who was still a kitten when he came to live with us, is Pongo's favorite playmate.  Dewey will roll over on his back when Pongo approaches and bat at him with his paws. 

Pongo gets excited when the cats gather in the kitchen for treats or when we feed them wet food.  The only way to keep him out of the middle of the cat chaos is to have him do a down-stay in the entrance to the kitchen.  Of course, he gets rewarded with a treat too!

Here Pongo waits for the kitties to finish so he can lick their bowls.

Life at the Wulff house is always busy with furry four-footed activity!  And Pongo is happy with his job of guarding the house and his kitties when Mommy is away.

Mt. Peak

Pinnacle Peak Park is located in Enumclaw a short 25 minutes from our home.  Called "Mt. Peak" by the locals, it is a popular hike in South King County, especially for those who are training to climb Mt. Rainier.  Pongo and I discovered this trail four years ago, and it has become a favorite since it is an easy one to fit into a busy weekend.  We often hike it year round, even in the winter when the trail is covered with snow.  Last summer, we regularly climbed it 1-2 times a week.  However, this year, we hadn't been there since March and we missed it.

On Tuesday, it was my wedding anniversary and my husband and I were planning to spend the day together.  But I wanted to get a quick hike in with Pongo in the morning, so we headed to Mt. Peak.  The mountain is a 256-acre of volcanic rock that juts out of the surrounding farmland.  We got there around 7:30 am and there were already seven or eight cars parked on the side of the road.  We said good morning to two women who were just finishing their hike, having already been to the top and come back down.  I turned the stop watch on on my runner's watch.  Pongo and I used to hike Mt. Peak with a friend of mine whose husband would run up the trail while we hiked.  Then we would run on the way down, trying to make the round trip in an hour.  I knew I wouldn't be able to make it in an hour today, but I wanted to see how long it would take. 

The forested trail is one-mile long, climbing 1000 vertical feet to an 1800-foot knob. Near the top you see some columnar basalt.  It is well-traveled - a popular family trail where you will encounter hikers with dogs or trail runners.  Half-way up, there is a bench to rest on, courtesy of the local Boy Scouts Troop. 

When we started up, it was overcast and cool. I put on my pack - more for added weight than anything else - and used the trekking poles my husband bought me one Christmas.  I enjoy using the poles for added balance and for the added arm workout. They have proved to be helpful when I have, at times, slipped on the way down.

 Pongo pauses on the trail ahead of me.  Maybe it was my imagination, but it seemed as though we were both moving a lot slower up the hill than normal.  Maybe I am more aware of him slowing down with age, but he seemed to walk or trot, instead of bounding up the side of the mountain.

 The first half of the trail is always difficult for me because of the swift climb in elevation. But it is worth it once you get to the top.

  

There are benches at the top in a small alcove in the trees.  You can sit to rest, drink some water, or eat a snack. We never linger here long.  In Pongo's younger years, he would have jumped up on this bench, but he was posed for this picture and is contemplating getting down.

 After a water break and a few pictures, we headed down the hill at a trot.  We stopped to look out between the foliage where you can see views of the White River Valley. 

Then phone in my pocket, I started running again. Pongo seems to love it when I begin to run - he likes the faster pace.  He will stop to sniff and fall behind, then have to run to catch up. 

We made it off the mountain in an hour and twenty-five minutes - not bad considering I was taking pictures for the blog.

Here is a blissfully happy Pongo on the car ride home!  This is what it's all about!  Now with a tired dog at home, I could enjoy the rest of the day with my husband!

Happy Hiking!

Greenwater Lakes

The thing I love about working for the public schools is that I get school holidays.  I cherish the summertime when I get to spend lots of time with Pongo.  Although I do work a second job at a nursing care facility, I generally get to work as much or as little as I want.  Usually, I work a couple weeks in the summer, a few days here and there spread out over ten weeks, covering vacations for other speech pathologists.  There is always lots of time for doggie adventure.

We explored yet another new hike yesterday, called the Greenwater Lakes. I met one of the teachers from my school at Wally's Drive-In in Buckley.  She brought her golden retriever, Bella, and we all piled into my car.  To reach this trailhead, we drove on Hwy 410 to the little town of Greenwater, just as we did a week ago for our hike to Snoquera Falls.  But this time, we turned left onto Forest Road 70 about a mile past town.  The trailhead is about 9 miles from there and is clearly marked by a large sign. 

It was a cloudy, cool day and to my surprise, was threatening to rain. I was unprepared for cold, wet weather and had forgotten to bring a jacket.  Luckily, the entire trail was forested and protected us from rain.  Pongo and Bella immediately charged off into the forest and we followed at a good clip to stay warm. 




We followed the Greenwater River upstream.  The trail crosses the river three or four times before it reaches Greenwater Lake, a long, shallow lake, after 2 miles.  This part of the hike is easy and quiet and we didn't encounter any other hikers on the way up.  This proved to be a good hike for late summer, as there was plenty of water for the dogs to drink and cool down in. 



     Greenwater River



Pongo enjoys getting his feet wet, and lapping up the cool, clear water.



We crossed the river on narrow log bridges where we had to walk single file.



Here Pongo climbs up the steps to cross one of the log bridges.

After a couple hours, we decided to take a break and sat down to eat the peanut butter sandwiches we had brought.  Pongo and Bella begged for bites and we rested on logs in the lush, old-growth forest. 

If you continue on, you eventually will reach Echo Lake, which is a seven mile hike from the trailhead.  We decided to save that for another day, and headed back down after going only a few miles.  I had goosebumps on my arms and had gotten chilled while we sat to eat.  I wanted to get going, and it would only get colder if we continued up the trail.

On the way back, we encountered a couple of hikers with big packs who were headed to Echo Lake to camp overnight.  I felt a little pang of jealousy, but did not envy the weight they were carrying.  Maybe one of these days we'll do an overnight hiking/camping trip.  It's certainly on Pongo and my bucket list!!