Newsletter 2
Welcome to Edition Two of the A & B Animal Care Newsletter! It has been really lovely to see your pictures and hear updates from you and your animals, please keep your lockdown pictures coming. Theme for next edition is Easter! The newsletter is aimed to be light hearted and fun and hopefully gives you all a break from this whole situation as well.
Pre Lockdown Harvey Post Lockdown Harvey
Pre Lockdown Spud Post Lockdown Spud
Pre Lockdown Bruiser Post Lockdown Bruiser
Pre Lockdown Charlie G Post Lockdown George
And finally, a wonderful picture of Charlie W by Sharon. She credits the teaching skills of Sandra Hoods who runs classes in Driffield but I think it’s amazing!
What have we been up to?
Well this week has been highlighted by a stressful few days for Ben and I. Rory (our elder cat) went AWOL for a very worrying amount of time at the start of the week. We had been in new HQ a week, and the cats were showing an interest in going out, so after a couple of brief forays into the garden, we released them one evening. Eddie came back at bed time but Rory didn’t! This isn’t unusual for him, so didn’t think much of it. The fact he still hadn’t reappeared for his breakfast though was slightly more worrying and a very tense three days followed. We checked the old house (he has been known to travel Pock before), we checked all around the new house and neighbourhood, we whistled throughout the day (ironically our cats recall to a whistle but Jasper doesn’t! His is verbal), we contacted friends and family and vets but no sign, until Abby came down on the third morning and there he was, sat in the back garden of the new house, meowing for his breakfast!! He was clean and dry and no injuries but very hungry and not too keen to head back out for a few days, so we feel he maybe got shut in somewhere. Huge relief!
We have had deliveries from both our pet food suppliers (4PawsRaw and Pete at Oscar’s), so all animals are now well stocked up!
Abby has also made and posted a couple more videos for you and is very much enjoying videos of you having a go yourselves!
She is also doing Saturday morning online classes if anyone else wants to join in.
Nicki is still busy with her online teaching and getting cracking on her garden, which has been a work in progress since last spring… At least she has the time and some lovely sunshine to work on it now.
Daily Exercise Route Ideas
I have posted one from West Green below, then the second is from Bielby village. This can be linked to a slightly longer walk along the canal from Pocklington or Melbourne or you could walk to Bielby from the surrounding villages.
Alternatively, simply save it until we have more freedom of movement again!
1. West Green to Allerthorpe Woods. Approx 4 -7 miles.
This route can be done as a shorter out and back route, or made into a loop for a longer walk/ run.
From West Green head out of Pocklington towards Allerthorpe following the road.
Go past the Shell Garage and follow the cycle path into Allerthorpe itself. The pub is approx. 1 ½ miles from West Green.
At the pub (still doing takeaway food and drinks if you phone ahead), turn right down Back Lane and then left onto the public footpath by the farm. Dogs are OK off here if recall is good. Stay to the left fork on the track and follow it all the way into the woods. As you enter the woods stay straight on the main track. It is pretty dry now, you can just skirt around the muddier patches. You can go as far in here as you choose and return the same way, or keep following the instructions to make a loop.
Continue to the gate into the main wood itself (about a mile from the pub) and pass through using proper precautions. Stay to the left fork here, on a pretty main track and keep following it. Stay straight when you reach the pylons, by the edge of the wood and the nature area. You will soon come to a slightly muddier section and once through that need to look for a gate on your left, out of the wood into open fields, as the path in the wood bears right. Head out into the fields. There are pigs at the edge of this first one so I usually pop Jasper on until we have passed them. There are sheep on the left a bit further down, in the next field along, so be aware of them too.
The path follows a sandy farm track along the right side of the hedge for two or three fields, until you cannot continue forward for another hedge! The footpath sign points right towards Warren Farm and you head left at the farm itself, following a slightly bigger farm track, still keeping to the right of the hedge.
This leads you into the hamlet of Waplington and you keep following the track passing all the houses, past Allerthorpe Golf Course and onto the tarmac again as you come to Allerthorpe. At the end of the road, head left back towards the pub, then follow the road back into Pocklington and back to the start.
This route can be done from Barmby Moor as well, along Back Lane, then briefly down the A1079 until you see the path on your right that cuts across the fields to join Back Lane in Allerthorpe. You could also tag it onto the Airfield route from last week.
2. Bielby Canal Loop from Mill Lane
(Approx 2 ½ miles)
Start in the turning area at the end of Mill Lane. This is a loop walk that can be combined with other sections of the canal. I will describe it anticlockwise.
Facing the canal, with your back to Bielby, head right from the parking area, down a track with the canal arm on one side and the beck on the other. Dogs are fine off lead if recall is OK.
Pass through a kissing gate when you reach the main canal itself, this is sometimes ajar, and continue between the beck and the canal. You reach the point the beck crosses under the canal and onto a path alongside open fields. Stay near the canal and hedge and follow the edge of the fields. Pass by/ almost through a hedge at the end of these open fields and you reach another kissing gate onto the road. Pop your dogs on lead briefly here. Use precautions passing through the gate and head over the bridge to your left. Nice views along the canal here. You can make this walk longer by heading right towards Pocklington and back, or continue the loop back towards Bielby by going left over the style. You are again between the beck and the canal, but the canal is now on your left. Dogs fine off lead if safe to do so. The track leads all the way along the canal for a good mile or so. The fields open out to the right after about ½ a mile as this is where the beck crosses under the canal. When you reach the black and white metal footbridge, you can either continue along the canal a little further, for an out and back section, or cross the bridge to return towards the start. There is a good paddling spot here for dogs and humans if they wish! You can either continue through the wood, along the canal edge, passing a War Memorial, or cross the field directly in front of the bridge and return by the side of the beck to where you started.
Training Games:
This can be done with any animal as well, not just dogs! Cats are very good at it, as are smaller rodents. Others may just take a bit more time.
All my training uses marker words or clickers to let your dog/ animal know when they’ve got it right. I have a tutorial about marker words/ clickers on my Facebook Training page (A & B Animal Care - Dog Training) and YouTube channel (A & B Dog Training).
Skill level is easy with harder progressions: Spin – Teach your dog to spin in a circle. Initially in front of you but you can then apply it to around objects as well. Great for your dogs’ core muscles and flexibility, as well as being a fun trick to do. Please note dogs are left or right sided, just like we are left and right-handed, so they will find one way easier than the other. Teaching the easier way first, then the harder way makes it easier for them to understand and succeed. Also use different words for each direction, eg ‘spin/ twist’, ‘round/ about’, ‘turn/ dance’.
Method – start with treat/ bit of food held between finger and thumb, your dog stood in front of you, facing you. Bend or crouch to your dogs height and hold treat just in front of their nose. Draw a big, slow circle with your hand, so your dog follows the food around and mark and reward with the treat when they get back to their start position. If they are struggling, you might need to draw the circle slower; reward at the half way point, then use a second treat to reward the second half; or try going in the other direction. Once they have successfully followed the treat a few times, speed up the circle very slightly, then remove the treat & try it with an empty hand. Reward from your pocket/ other hand/ food tub. Start naming it as you do it at this point, so as your dog starts turn, say ‘spin’ (or whatever word you are using). Reward the successful full turn.
Progression: Make your hand movements progressively smaller, so they are relying on the word more than the action. See if you can link two or three turns, then reward. See if they can turn around an object (I often call this a different name, as we do this in our agility, but you can use the same word if you wish). Then teach the other side, using a different name. Remember, the weaker side is harder so will take more practice and more time. Once you have learnt both sides, ask for one, then the other, then mix it up!
If you have enjoyed this, check out the other videos mentioned above or contact Abby to do a one-to-one or join an online class.
Jasper doing ‘spin’:
Send your ‘spin’ pictures/ videos in!
That is about it for this edition of our newsletter. Please send in your photos, walks and what you have been up to as we miss seeing all your animals!
Look out for the next edition dropping into your inbox soon.