News, fresh off the Farm

April is coming to a close, and everything is popping here. Busy in the garden, busy getting the outdoor agility field ready for the coming year. Already done prep work and even mowed once. Agility equipment is starting to come outside, if the weather holds up it will all be outside pretty quickly.

The asparagus is beginning to showAspargaus is already showing up, rhubarb has been out of the ground for a few weeks. Lots of daffodils, even some dandelion getting early flowers. I just moved the first year crowns that I started from asparagus seed last year into their new "forever" home, only just barely in time. For a while we were wondering when Spring would really arrive, and here it is. If this keeps up I'll have my hands full just trying to not fall behind.

the flag of the Ukraine

Events Calendar

calendar gifWelcome to the new home for our consolidated events calendar.

Preliminary information is published for a regular class CARO trial June 01st. Entry opens Wednesday April 30th.

Click on the + to expand the section of interest.

We have a full schedule of training

  • Weekdays by appointment - Melody Murray with specialized private instruction.
  • Tuesday evening - Debby DaCosta with specialized private instruction
  • Wednesday afternoon and evenings - Heeling with Michaela Bouzkova.
  • Thursday morning & afternoon - Melody Murray with specialized private and semi-private instruction.
  • Friday afternoon - *New* Melody Murray with specialized private and semi-private instruction.
  • Saturday - Debby DaCosta with specialized private and semi-private instruction and classes.
  • Sunday - Debby DaCosta with specialized private and semi-private instruction and classes.

We continue sessions with Dr Roxane Pardiac, DVM B.Sc here at The Poodle Farm. Please let us know if you are interested in attending, what services you require with which dog and what time suits you best.

Scheduled 2025 Dates (Tuesdays 6:30 to 9:30pm) -
~ May 20
~ June 10 *revised*
~ July 22
~ August 19
~ September 23
~ October 28
~ November 25
~ December 23

We will have more CARO trials in 2025, just waiting to finalize details before announcing dates.

April Rally


June Rally

click here forfingerOnline Entry Form


Our 2025 schedule of CKC events is already kicked off. We have applied for dates for Agility and Obedience/Rally in the second half of the year.


August All-Breed Agility

  • Poodle Club of Canada
    ~ Sunday 24 August, 2025
    - Two Trials JWW ~ Judge: Gloria Mitchell
  • Poodle Club of Canada
    ~ Sunday 24 August, 2025
    - Two Trials Standard ~ Judge: Gloria Mitchell

For further information, contact Michelle Ross tealwoodss@gmail.com.


September All-Breed Scent Detection

  • Brantford & District Kennel & Obedience Club
    ~ Sunday 21 September, 2025
    - One Trial Scent Detection ~ Judge: Nathan Clarkson
  • For further information, contact Nancy Bencsik - Trial Secretary nabencsik@gmail.com

November All-Breed Rally & Obedience

  • Poodle Club of Canada
    ~ Friday 31 October, 2025
    - Two Trials Rally ~ Judge: Susan Bell
  • Poodle Club of Canada
    ~ Saturday 01 November, 2025
    - Two Trials Obedience ~ Judge: Susan Bell
  • Poodle Club of Canada
    ~ Sunday 02 November, 2025
    - Two Trials Obedience ~ Judge: Ted Leslie

Official Premium List and entry forms will be published later this year. Please check back early in the Summer.

We have the entire calendar here now, one less click to get the information you want.

Classifieds

There have been changes in CKC Obedience going forward in 2025. No more separation of the H & 18 streams in Open, everyone is back to a single stream. We have a new reference card available to summarize the required exercises for training. More details…

2025 CKC obedience exercise card

We are no longer making the full CARO rally sign sets, however for those who have the 2022 sets we do offer the new signs for 2025 so you can stay up to date. More details…

Health & Lifestyle

I'm a bit of a heretic when it comes to Tech. Not a Luddite, I don't have any issues with using smartphones, computers, digital calculators and an assortment of other modern tools. But I install apps and software and if I like what it does and don't need anything "better" then I just don't do the updates. No automatic updates, disabled on just about everything.

I started setting updates to disabled a long time ago, when I began to notice that apps and software that had previously done everything I wanted suddenly stopped doing things. Features were removed, usually for "security reasons". Sometimes the entire GUI and layout would change because "They" decided it was getting stale and needed a new look. In one case, an app that was "free" suddenly ducked behind a paywall. If you didn't immediately subscribe and pay money all the information you had stored in the app would be inaccessible. Legalized data kidnapping, because you have to agree to the terms and conditions to update the app, if you don't agree it won't update and if it doesn't update it won't open.

Sometimes it is very difficult. Adobe Reader was very challenging, they buried the update triggers in a number of redundant locations in the Windows Registry but I finally figured out how to corrupt them all. Still works just fine, no more surprises.

If I didn't ask you to fix something it is probably because it ain't really broke. And if you insist on trying to fix things that I don't think are broke, then I will go out of my way to break your stuff until you give up and go away. I still have working computers running Windows XP, Windows 7, Windows 8.1 on a Surface RT, and Windows 10. Some old stuff still works and it is useful to keep it working. I'll give it up when it stops being useful, which is why my Windows 95 computer is in a box in storage not on my desk. Someday I will get a Windows 11 (or 12?) computer, or maybe I will convert to Mac. Who knows. We will cross that bridge when we have a reason to cross the bridge, and crossing the bridge "because it is there" is not a good enough reason.

Sports

February has not been nice for weather, but if you keep the trials small then there are fewer issues. Our CARO trial in February was just working class, and only 25 runs but some people still managed to achieve some major milestones.

CWCh Willow and BeatriceCongrats to Willow (Beatrice) and Luna (Sarah) on claiming the top CARO Working Class Champions title. Unofficial results are available, February here (PDF).

We have our first CARO trial of the year all wrapped up. The weather you expect from January, rain and warm one day and the bottom falls out of the thermometer the next. Thank you to Judge Whitney Shaver for coming out for a full slate of regular classes, and to everyone who participated and helped move things along at a reasonable pace so we could wrap up just about when it got dark.

Unofficial results for January, Click here (PDF).

We had our first CKC trial on the first weekend of the year. Scent Detection for the Poodle Club of Canada, with Judge Nathan Clarkson. Fortunately we had a very nice day, although cold. A few light snowflakes early in the morning, then the sun came out in time for the Exterior tests in the afternoon. Very well attended, especially in Masters division. The best part is that we wrapped up just before the Sun went down, and no one had to do any searches by candlelight.

Entertainment

Poodle Poetry & Pynky

Black & Blue

Poodle Poetry

Some poodles are blue,
some poodles are black.
we can play outside,
'cause agility is back.


Pynky & the Brain

Pynky & The Brain

Pynky, are you pondering what I'm pondering?

I think so Brain, but it would be a better world if volcanos would stop venting and instead complain loudly.

Title

Stuff

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