Loss

Video-making with Elaine

How May I Help You?

Elaine at the counter.

Fourth of July - from Elaine's Perspective

Merry Christmas!

 Oops, I can't seem to rotate this video.

Elaine playing with a Christmas balloon. The expression on her face when that balloon popped was priceless.
Taking care of the in-house pets before heading home for Christmas morning stuff.
Eski barking in the background.

Brushing Elaine's Teeth

Trying to make a video of home dental care is tough when I have to use the tripod with the camera.  Elaine was great but I had the mark off so we end up having her back and rear in view instead of her mouth!

Take 2 was better though but I ran out of memory so did not have both sides. O well.  We'll keep working!

Working with Elaine in the Dark

Practicing cues with Elaine. She was distracted by some passerby but did finally learn to stop, attention, and come.

Elaine Acting Her Age (Not)!

A ritual for Elaine. She runs circles around the treats or toys before picking the one she wants.

Elaine & Rope Ball

Elaine chewed up the last rope toy (knot) easily. They used to last months; we'd buy a couple a year. But this last one was chewed up in a month.

So we went shopping at Petco.

This was our second trip to Petco. She did great. Not even a growl or bark. She was a little nervous when a nice brave Petco employee approached us to see if I had any questions. She (the employee) wisely kept her distance and did not try to baby talk or coo-coo at Elaine. Then a pit puppy came bouncing down the aisle and I thought "uh oh." Lo and behold, Elaine sat down and just looked at me! Needless to say, I couldn't hand over the treats to her fast enough :).

The same employee started talking to the puppy owner. I took that opportunity to test Elaine and gave her the "down" gesture. She plopped down and stared at me. She always had problems in a strange environment and is easily distracted. But not today. She did us proud!

We had a small glitch at the check out line when a lady pushed a full shopping cart towards us. Elaine had been wonderfully by my left side the whole time. She was freaked by the cart coming at us and scooted around and hid behind me! So much for guarding me! But she redeemed herself by patiently waiting by my side as we paid for the rope ball.

Notice the furrow between her eyes as she kept a wary eye on the shopping cart

Everyone kept their distance and I was careful to turn corners ahead of Elaine to avoid walking into anyone, 2- or 4-legged.

The car ride was also great. No jumping around or barking after skateboarders. We used the Roadie today. She did not seem as comfortable (compared to the Champion Canine) but tolerated the harness fine.

So far, she seems to like it. And, Lis, yes, it does roll away :).

Bloopers - Demonstrating the Floating Chest Pad

Elaine had a full day today. Before we left for the day trip, we taped a quick segment showing the floating chest pad in action. One of the feature of the Champion Canine Seat Belt System was this floating chest pad but I never understood its purpose until I saw it in action. Basically, it allows the harness to be pulled down the side without twisting the harness under the dog -- the chest pad stayed on the chest, not pulled to the underarm.

To be honest, I thought it was just a neat feature but didn't think it was such a big deal. But after using it these past several weeks, it does seem to make a big difference. I don't see Elaine getting twisted in the harness as she turns every which way in the backseat.

Towards the end of the video, I had tightened the harness so it couldn't slide as designed. Ended up wrestling with Elaine instead.

It was an impromptu taping. I have been putting off finishing the reviews since we've been busy at work. I also had to postpone Kobi's part when he hurt his back a couple weeks ago. So, on a spur of the moment, I grabbed Elaine for the segment. Only after did I realize I was wearing my colorful Farmer Tran plaid shirt I bought years ago for my New Zealand farm visits. Oh well, may not be professional, but I guess it's in keeping with the informal nature of the reviews.

This is what it looks like when I edited out the end.

Day Trip w/Elaine

Elaine made her first visit to the "new" Petco in town. It was a better place for her because it's still not busy midday. We did not have to worry about other dogs or too many kids. We were going to the park afterward but changed our mind (rather I changed my mind). This parking lot was up the hill and isolated. We end up walking around the mini plaza instead. Elaine did well considering she is still confused about walking on my left instead of my right.

That's what I get for not knowing any better when I first leash trained her. She got used to walking on my right. Now, I'm trying to retrain her to be on my left so we can go running (safer for her to stay on my left).

Elaine & Hands-Free Leash

Notice the slack leash! First walk with hands-free leash in public. Elaine tried to go after a barking dog but quickly came back to my side. Progress!

Elaine's New Rope Toy

Update 03/01/2010
Looks like Elaine prefers the old rope toy after all. I've trimmed and removed the ends of the old toy as it got too worn and scraggly. But she still likes it better than the new rope. The new rope falls apart easily too. Same brand. Guess they don't make them like they used to :)

More of Elaine & Roadie Elite

There are tricks and tips to help in putting the Roadie Elite on your dog. I had a difficult time in the beginning. The company website's video made it look so easy. I saw the difference was that I was pushing Elaine's legs through the opening, whereas the demo video (animation) showed the legs being pulled through the opening. So I gave that a try today and it was easier. I still have my doubt about using it for geriatric dogs and/or those with joint problems. I can still see dogs that are not used to harnesses or restraints panicking when one of their legs is still caught in the opening and hurting themselves trying to get free. Probably not a harness for first-timers.

Taking the harness off can also be a challenge --- at least, it was for me. Maybe I had my directions and orientation confused trying to face the camera. Instead of reversing the leg out of the opening, I tried to pushed the leg through into the next opening (for the neck). Luckily, I realized my mistake and backed out in time. Once I re-oriented myself, taking the harness off was not that bad.

After the videos, we went outside for some pictures and a test drive. The Focus is a small car. Even with the harness, Elaine can easily slobber on the front passenger. We will remove the wire barrier as soon as Elaine gets used to the harness and learns some carpooling etiquette :)

Click on image to enlarge

Plan to finalize the review for the Roadie tomorrow. (02/09/10: Done!)
Next week, it's the Champion Canine Restraint System!

RuffRider Roadie Elite

As you will see, the Roadie is not really the easiest harness to put on, especially if it's the correct size (not too loose). This was the first time (actually second if you count the time I put it on incorrectly) putting it on Elaine. Maybe it will get easier after the harness stretches a little? I had to flex Elaine's paws and elbows quite a bit to get her legs into the correct openings.

I will try to get better videos later to show tips on how to get the harness on. But thought this was a good one to show how difficult it can be in the beginning --- and Elaine was good for this; can't imagine a dog who is not used to wearing a harness in the first place. Also tricky to get the harness OFF. That will have to be another video later.

Brushing Dog's Teeth - Rehearsal

We've been thinking of doing some short videos on pet care. Elaine is turning out to be quite cooperative for my crazy schemes. The problem is that she is not that well-behaved with other people. You have to meet her to believe me :) --- completely my fault; never really socialized her after the trainer for her puppy class told me to consider private training since other puppy owners may not feel comfortable with a pit puppy. I know, crazy but that was almost 8 years ago when the anti-pitbull sentiment was prevalent. Anyway, I managed to convince the trainer to let us stay with the class. But we had to be off to the side :( and none of the other puppy played with Elaine.

I probably should have pushed harder to socialize her but what's done is done. She is great with me and the staff but really would just behave with me.

Anyway, what does all that have to do with videos?
I can't have someone operate the camera! Elaine turns into a misbehaving crazy maniac with other people around. So I figured a way to use a tripod and am playing with different ways to record stuff.

Here's a "first take" on brushing her teeth. I'm just trying to get an idea on where to place the camera and how to position ourselves, etc. Guess we have to figure a way to do close-ups on the teeth. Maybe Elaine will be good with Elias behind the camera.

Note the last part of the video when Elaine gobbles up all the treats on the bench as soon as I turned my back!

Elaine & Roadie Elite

Sweet Elaine was a trooper today. She modeled the Roadie Elite harness. And thanks to my clumsiness, she also modeled what the harness looks like when incorrectly worn. Check out this video and you can see how getting the harness on properly can be a little tricky.

Click on image to enlarge

Click on image to enlarge

These will be used in a series for work as part of my review on canine car restraint systems. We're looking at the following harnesses:

• RuffRider Roadie Elite
• Champion K-9 Seat Belt System (*** Do NOT order from champk-9 site; use usak9outfitters. See the review later for details)
  
• BeBop Secure Fit Harness
• Easy Rider Harness
• Four Paws Harness

Should be a good one. Just hope I can do it in a timely manner!

Chef Michael's Canine Creations

Bought a sample bag from Petsmart for $0.47 to try as training treats for Elaine.

The dehydrated chicken pieces were so-so. Elaine did not take to them initially. She licked at them, chewed and spat them out and finally ate them. It took her almost a minute to finally eat / swallow one chicken piece. Not a good thing for training. Need her to eat it quick and pay attention to me, not test and savor the treat :)

We'll try it again but this may be fine as regular treat, not as training treats.

Elaine and Her Rope Toy

Merry Christmas!

Caught in the act. Elaine went digging around the packaging and got the sticky side of a bow on her collar. Got my Treo to record her playing but she stopped when she saw me approaching. She sat up with the "what did I do?" expression. Couldn't resist the almost perfect holiday camera-phone moment, complete with the red bow. In many ways, Elaine is one of my gifts --- and not just for today. Blessings are all around us. Sometimes we're too busy searching to actually see and appreciate what's in front of us.

Merry Christmas, everyone!