Working dogs

One Man and his Blog…
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One Man and his Blog…

By Mark Laker

I’d planned to continue writing about goal setting and ideas for conducting annual reviews this month. That was until I watched One Man and his Dog on Countryfile recently. I felt moved to write about the incredible people and their dogs at this year’s finals.

Watching dogs work sheep has always fascinated me

I appreciate the hundreds of hours of training and dedication that must go into working a dog at the top level of the sport.

Karen and I went on a trialing taster day many years ago, we enjoyed it. The dogs we had at the time were hilarious. Millie couldn’t see the sheep, she was totally fixated on us, and Deacon my Border Collie, was apparently a natural, not on sheep though, maybe cows, or Buffalo! he was far too strong for sheep – I think the trainer was being polite and meant unruly!

This year’s young handlers put on an amazing show of professionalism and dedication while competing at this high level. Even when things didn’t go to plan, they continued to focus on the objective and worked with their dogs – I was impressed.

And then there was the judge, our very own Ceri

Karen and I were shouting at the TV “Hey, we know Ceri, she’s famous, we know her!”.

For me, this competition demonstrated top human and dog performers working in unknown and testing conditions – including a motley bunch of sheep, and under the pressure of TV and fellow competitors.

After the immediate ‘wow’ I got from watching these dogs and handlers, my brain flicked into sports psychology mode. I started wondering how the competitors prepare for these events, how do they warm-up (all that whistling must play havoc with your lips), do they visualise the outrun, the drive, how they’re going to pen the sheep. And how do they maintain focus when the performers (sheep and dogs) are working so far away. These questions and many others went over in my mind.

Congratulations to this year’s finalists who were all fantastic and a credit to the sport.

Find out more about Mark Laker:

https://agility1st.co.uk/

CSJ reigns Supreme at the Internationals – with a little help from Champ! CP30 and Go On!
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CSJ reigns Supreme at the Internationals – with a little help from Champ! CP30 and Go On!

  • Tom O’Sullivan – International Supreme Champion
  • Ricky Hutchinson – International Brace Champion
  • Reserve Supreme International Champion and International Driving Champion
  • Peter Morgan with son Peter Og Morgan – Young Handlers Champion
Winners at the ISDS International Sheepdog Trials 2021. Photos by Lisa Soar

Congratulations to TOM O’SULLIVAN, RICKY HUTCHINSON, PETER MORGAN AND PETER OG MORGAN AT THE ISDS INTERNATIONAL SHEEPDOG TRIALS.

Skill, talent and superb training has created the champions of the ISDS International Sheepdog Trials in September 2021 at Aberystwyth. Each top handler chooses to feed their winning dog with a highly nutritious, natural diet from CSJ:

  • Tom O’Sullivan from Ireland with NorthHill Tess, who won the International Supreme Championship. Tom feeds Champ! and Go On! Herbs
  • Ricky Hutchinson from England with Jonah and Denwyn Moya, who won the International Brace Championship. Ricky feeds Champ! and CP30
  • Peter Morgan from Northern Ireland with Mossee, who won the International Driving Championship and became Reserve Supreme Champion.  Peter feeds CP30 and Champ!
  • Peter Og Morgan from Northern Ireland won the Young Handlers Championship with his dog Tip. Peter feeds CP30 to his trials dogs

Champ! Adult is our highly popular, cost effective recipe, formulated for adult working dogs or active dogs.  Extensively used by champions for champions throughout all dog sports. More

CP30 is a super premium hypo-allergenic, high energy dog food for very active dogs, bitches in-whelp and puppies using salmon as the main ingredient. This ration has gained a great reputation and loyal following by champions in the various dog sports. (15 kg sack). More

Go On! has fast become a firm favourite among top agility, flyball and racing sled dogs. ‘Go On!’ is a natural ‘Competition Mix’ for active dogs. (300g foil pouch) More

Find out more about our feeds, herbs and supplements that make champions.

www.csjk9.com

  • Champ! Adult
  • CP30
  • Go On!

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Meet invincible Vince

Here’s a short clip of one of our stockist’s 8 week old Springer Spaniel puppy, Vince enjoying his meal of CSJ Puppy Food. He was the only the puppy to survive out of a litter of 13 born by C Section. His mother developed an infection and her milk bar dried up. He had to be bottle fed every two hours day and night for 2 days. His mum is now fine and getting back into condition ready for the start of the shooting season.


“As Pip was a CP27 puppy, I weaned Vince onto CP27. He’d been a reluctant eater, but my vet was happy enough with his weight gain. My dad commented this morning that I’d used “Puppy” for several generations without issues. Maybe it was worth trying with Vince”.


His nose does not come out of the bowl until the last scrap of food has gone 😁

DPD. The UK’s Most Sustainable Delivery Company. Together, we can make a difference.
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DPD. The UK’s Most Sustainable Delivery Company. Together, we can make a difference.

We’re delighted to see the latest addition to the DPD Green Fleet – the Maxus edeliver

DPD has ordered 750 of these vehicles, which will double the size of their all-electric fleet. DPD have already started delivering green to cities in the UK. See their new and first ever TV ad here. 

Save money by ordering in multiples of two bags – without spending more

It’s a good idea to order your food in multiples of two bags to minimise the number of deliveries per year. In general, approximately one-fifth of CSJ customers order one bag per month.

If you could order two bags at a time and order six times a year instead of 12, it halves the number of deliveries, and saves you 50% on the delivery charges.

More sustainable. More savings.

Of course, we know it’s not always easy to do this because of the cost and storage space. However, this change in the way you order could make a real difference. Think about it.

Press release: No Ake! from CSJ
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Press release: No Ake! from CSJ

25.5.21

No Ake! Is a highly potent herb that is aimed at the nutritional maintenance of the dog’s musculo-skeletal system and in particular the inflammatory response.

Composed of Devil’s Claw Root it is extremely effective and can provide that extra bit of help for dogs experiencing acute stiffness of the joints or are perhaps getting over an injury – without the need for steroids or pricey alternatives AND it won’t upset the dog’s tummy.

Here’s what one dog owner posted: “Amazing supplement!!”

“I used No Ake for my elderly golden retriever, Ellie, to ease her aching joints for several years. She only needed vet meds as well from about the age of 15, and lasted past 16 years and 4 months. Thank you CSJ!”

The tiny daily dose can be added to the dog’s dinner on a continuous or ad-hoc basis and is provided in a 100g foil pouch of the dry herbs or in the 250ml liquid form of ‘No Ake! Tincture’.

Find out more about No Ake!

For more on CSJ products visit www.csjk9.com or call 01745710470

… and follow CSJ winners on

Facebook: https://facebook.com/specialistcaninefeeds/

Twitter:  @CSJDogFood

Instagram: @CSJDog_Food

YouTube:  CSJ Specialist Canine Feeds

www.awaywithdogs.co.uk

LYNDA WARD

pet trade SOLUTIONS

lyndaward@pettradesolutions.com    

tel: 07946 743784

Despite March winds and a lack of April showers, May brings dog powers…
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Despite March winds and a lack of April showers, May brings dog powers…

By Mark Laker

The light at the end of the lockdown tunnel is gradually getting brighter. As lockdown measures ease around the country next week there are signs of a different and yet recognisable normality emerging.

Agility competitions and other dog activities are gradually returning around the country, albeit under new rules and conditions. I notice that governing bodies of other recreational sports and hobbies are giving guidance on how to resume under new measures allowing friends, families and other competitors to meet up and enjoy their activities again. Many sports are already trialling ways to resume competitions without masks and social distancing – an advantage of being part of a recognised sport body.

It’s a welcome return and I believe people are just pleased to get out and do what humans have done throughout our evolution – socialise.

Despite April’s unseasonal weather, frost and not a lot of rain… someone will need to rewrite the April Showers rhyme. Our dogs have continued with their daily exercise, agility fitness (for those who will be competing) and learning other activities. Lockdown hasn’t seemed to affect them, although I’m sure they’ll welcome a change of scenery to run in when we start venturing out further.

Let’s hope the country stays on this road to recovery and we can all enjoy whatever activities we find pleasurable again.

–

Mark Laker was the Kennel Club’s Agility Team GB Manager from 2013 – 2020 where he used his experience in sports psychology and business skills to enable high performance to deliver medals at the European Open for Juniors, The European Open and FCI Agility World Championships.

Mark has built a reputation for effectively transferring these techniques and skills to dog agility and coaches handlers to help them to develop their skills. Mark has used his knowledge, enthusiasm and experience to develop Agility1st’s high quality training and coaching programmes. Mark lives Nottinghamshire with his wife Karen their four Border Collies and a Jack Russell X: https://agility1st.co.uk/

CSJ’s new bags pay tribute to dog sports
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CSJ’s new bags pay tribute to dog sports

The innovative new bag design for CSJ Specialist Canine Feeds illustrates the masses of dog sports whose competitors use their products.

Ranging from sled dogs to working gundogs CSJ feeds the most Champions in the most fields and designed their new bags to pay tribute to the countless dogs and owners who have benefitted from CSJ products over the last 20+ years.

Kath Hardman, Team Manager of Heelwork to Music Team GB, emailed to say, “Just to say I love the Heelwork To Music logo on the bags of food! The other disciplines are good but WOW!  The HTM is perfect!”

Formulated by dog people for dog people and chosen by Champions in every field – CSJ never forgets its roots …

When founder Ceri Rundle and her father H. Glyn Jones couldn’t find great food at a sensible price for their own working and competing Border Collies they enlisted the help of leading nutritionists and herbal experts to devise their own winning recipes.

Made in the UK with an ongoing commitment to develop natural feeds, supplements and treats together with sustainability plus support for canine activities, CSJ is rightly renowned for being ‘the whole package’.

For more on CSJ products visit www.csjk9.com or call 01745710470

… and follow CSJ winners on

Facebook: https://facebook.com/specialistcaninefeeds/

Twitter:  @CSJDogFood

Instagram: @CSJDog_Food

YouTube:  CSJ Specialist Canine Feeds

www.awaywithdogs.co.uk

LYNDA WARD

pet trade SOLUTIONS

lyndaward@pettradesolutions.com     tel: 07946 743784
Have you had yours?
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Have you had yours?

By Mark Laker

It’s been a while since I had my childhood inoculations or even since my son had his, but I remember the importance of them.

Over the years as childhood diseases have nearly disappeared, parents have become worried about the chemicals they’re using on their baby. Likewise, as dog owners we can feel it’s nonsense to put our pets (and our pockets) through the annual dog inoculations, wormers and flea control drugs.

Personally, we trust our vet’s understanding of what is good for our dogs. Like many vets they don’t give every inoculation each year. It means our dogs get a good check-up, loads of fuss and treats from our vet.

Fleas… Prevention is better than the cure.

I was therefore surprised at my own decision in the winter to give our dogs a break from their Billy No Mates! herbs. We don’t have fleas; they don’t have fleas so why was I giving them a supplement?

Roll the clock on a few weeks and: Chic was itching – well, she loses her coat when she’s due in season, it was probably that. Rhyme and Moog were itching – well, we’d been down that track the farmer had just dug up, which must have unearthed something that irritated their fur. Two weeks in, I spotted a little black crawling thing in Chic’s fur – Oh yes, a flea!!!

Several baths with a suitable soap bar later, all bedding washed (why do I have so much bedding for them??), furniture moved to hoover behind, under and over.

Hmmm now, I remember why we give them Billy No Mates!

I have no idea why it works, but it does, and if having it every day means no little friends then every day it is. Billy No Mates – it says it all.

I love the different names the CSJ crew come up with for their products. Pikachu is trialling Ring O’ Fire! – no prizes for guessing what this will hopefully help with.

I wonder what name they would have come up with for the Covid jab – Popular Prick? 😀

“One step at a time…” says Mark Laker
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“One step at a time…” says Mark Laker

By Mark Laker

It’s been a year.

‘One step at a time’ a message which will forever remind me of Captain Sir Tom Moore motivating the nation with his incredible fund raising and life story – what an amazing man.

Taking one step at a time in my pre-lockdown world wasn’t easy

For the last 10 years I’ve had to be very flexible in my career as a Project Manager. I’d have a few days working from home, then I’d be away on business trips for 3-4 days, then a couple of days spent on-site locally. No day was ever the same. That all changed in March 2020 when we went into the first National Lockdown.

Since then, I’ve definitely been taking life one step at a time

That doesn’t mean I’m not planning ahead (I love planning), but for the first time in many years I’m now time-rich (sounds like consultant talk). I’ve had time to plan ahead, consider what I want/need to do, do it properly i.e. not rushing because I may not have time again, finish it, check it’s finished and then really make sure it’s finished. This may sound like common sense, but it’s surprising how many times we think we’ve completed a task/activity and then discover there were still some loose-ends. I suppose in dog training terms, it’s like proofing what you believe you’ve trained is the desired behaviour you’re getting.

And what about our dogs, how have their lives changed over the last year?

They’ve had even more exercise. Over the last year I’ve challenged myself to walk at least 5K every day. Karen has had time to brush up their existing skills and train new ones and of course they have our company at home all the time. Dogs are incredibly adaptable though, I’m sure they will soon adapt to the next routine as life changes again as lockdown restrictions lift.

I’m not sure what our next routine will be

I’m beginning to dislike the over-used term ‘new-normal’ because, I don’t want normal. It sounds boring, repetitive and non-eventful. I’m hopeful it will not be a new-normal, but life will be interesting, exciting and present different opportunities. I also hope there’ll be more appreciation for how fragile the planet and our lives are, and we’ll start seeing more proactive steps being taken to look after what we already have.

One step at a time.
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Best regards,

Mark.