It's been two years since we brought the Audi home from Norway, right through storm Otto.
In that time he has gone from being a little bandit to a big bully. At this moment he is running around the sofa throwing a grape.
With each passing day, and with each experience I have with him, I love him more and more.
Mini Corgi loved Audi from the first second he set his little paws here at Autogaarden. She has taught him almost everything a real corgi should know.
Audi has been a very easy little guy to learn. He has become really good at emptying the trash can all over the floor, stealing from the table, chasing bicycles and joggers, which is of course something we are working on changing. He has also come up with a few tricks of his own – including emptying the toilet, tearing paper into pieces and attacking my and my daughter Sigrid's feet when we walk around the house.
Even the train has been taught by Mini to run after him – or rather, Audi has not understood the concept 100 percent. When we are in the field and he hears the train, he RUNS, not necessarily in the direction of the train, but he runs and has a lot of fun doing it.
She has apparently also taught him the ability to figure out what I am "thinking" about. Unfortunately, he is not always good at guessing correctly. This means, for example, that in the middle of nosework training he may hide under a table because he thinks I am about to let him out of the room to train with one of the other dogs, or that he refuses to come in to eat a biscuit because he thinks I am about to leave the house - without him.
There was only one thing my little schipperke Audi needed to show his skills at before he could call himself a full-fledged Welsh corgi cardigan – herding sheep!
That - and because I love herding with my dogs - meant that Audi and I managed to sneak in a Herding Instinct Test with a pack of corgis at Jesper's in Lunde.
There are many types of herding dogs. Some shepherd with their eyes, some use their voice, some are made to retrieve animals in the field, others function as a "living fence", and others are made to drive animals home from the field. Thus, the small, short-legged corgi is actually capable of driving a herd of animals up to 30 kilometers home from the field.
I was quite curious to see what Audi would say to the sheep. After all, he only weighs 7 kg, which is not a lot for a sheep. Would he be scared or aggressive? Or just indifferent?
For the record, it should be mentioned that the shepherd Jesper takes very good care of his animals. He is always nearby and makes sure that the dog keeps his distance from the sheep, with something that most resembles a leaf rake. Three sheep come into the round at a time, and there are regular changes between his approximately 15 sheep, so that no sheep gets tired. In addition, the sheep are used to dogs and people. The sheep quickly read the dog and if they see the slightest bit of uncertainty, they test the dog by standing facing it and scratching the ground. The dog is always on a leash the first time it comes near the sheep.
Herding is the most fascinating form of dog work I have ever tried. It is amazing to experience the very special abilities a herding dog has and the cooperation you have with your dog when it all works out.
All herding took place in a round and all participants with dogs were allowed to sit around to learn from each other's herding trips. It was a long day with many experiences for both me and Audi.
It quickly became clear that Audi was not afraid of the sheep, but as always, really curious. While waiting for his turn, he enjoyed himself with a couple of corgi puppies.
Audi showed great talent when he finally got into the round. It was clear that he understood that it was about moving the sheep. He was a visibly proud dog who subsequently walked out of the round with me.
In the second round, Audi was let loose with the sheep. Audi did his best, but since he is still a young dog, he quickly lost concentration and started eating sheep shit instead of herding. However, it was a pleasure to see how friendly and relaxed he walked around with the sheep.
It was a very tired dog that I brought home from Funen. He snored all evening – something that is otherwise rare for a female Schipperke under 2 years old. Even Cookie, who often wants to send him to Pomeranian, came over a couple of times during the evening to sniff him a little worriedly.
Mini is proud of his little prospect. He can now call himself a real corgi, because if the truth be told, his herding skills are not quite up to the corgi's in that regard. He did his best, no one can do more than that and he and I had another nice day, which helps to bond us together and make us a good team.
About this week's blogger:
Helene is an early retiree and spends a large part of her time with her animals. The animal team consists of 4 dogs, 1 cat, 15 free-range chickens, approx. 80 aviary birds and her daughter has three axolotls. And now she and Cookie can also call themselves a reading dog team.
She loves writing short stories, poems and stories from her everyday life and enjoys reading a good Scandinavian crime novel.
In addition to Helene and all the animals, the family consists of Birger 55 years old, Thor 12 years old and Sigrid 10 years old.
Two years with Audi
It's been two years since we brought the Audi home from Norway, right through storm Otto.
In that time he has gone from being a little bandit to a big bully. At this moment he is running around the sofa throwing a grape.
With each passing day, and with each experience I have with him, I love him more and more.
Mini Corgi loved Audi from the first second he set his little paws here at Autogaarden. She has taught him almost everything a real corgi should know.
Audi has been a very easy little guy to learn. He has become really good at emptying the trash can all over the floor, stealing from the table, chasing bicycles and joggers, which is of course something we are working on changing. He has also come up with a few tricks of his own – including emptying the toilet, tearing paper into pieces and attacking my and my daughter Sigrid's feet when we walk around the house.
Even the train has been taught by Mini to run after him – or rather, Audi has not understood the concept 100 percent. When we are in the field and he hears the train, he RUNS, not necessarily in the direction of the train, but he runs and has a lot of fun doing it.
She has apparently also taught him the ability to figure out what I am "thinking" about. Unfortunately, he is not always good at guessing correctly. This means, for example, that in the middle of nosework training he may hide under a table because he thinks I am about to let him out of the room to train with one of the other dogs, or that he refuses to come in to eat a biscuit because he thinks I am about to leave the house - without him.
There was only one thing my little schipperke Audi needed to show his skills at before he could call himself a full-fledged Welsh corgi cardigan – herding sheep!
That - and because I love herding with my dogs - meant that Audi and I managed to sneak in a Herding Instinct Test with a pack of corgis at Jesper's in Lunde.
There are many types of herding dogs. Some shepherd with their eyes, some use their voice, some are made to retrieve animals in the field, others function as a "living fence", and others are made to drive animals home from the field. Thus, the small, short-legged corgi is actually capable of driving a herd of animals up to 30 kilometers home from the field.
I was quite curious to see what Audi would say to the sheep. After all, he only weighs 7 kg, which is not a lot for a sheep. Would he be scared or aggressive? Or just indifferent?
For the record, it should be mentioned that the shepherd Jesper takes very good care of his animals. He is always nearby and makes sure that the dog keeps his distance from the sheep, with something that most resembles a leaf rake. Three sheep come into the round at a time, and there are regular changes between his approximately 15 sheep, so that no sheep gets tired. In addition, the sheep are used to dogs and people. The sheep quickly read the dog and if they see the slightest bit of uncertainty, they test the dog by standing facing it and scratching the ground. The dog is always on a leash the first time it comes near the sheep.
Herding is the most fascinating form of dog work I have ever tried. It is amazing to experience the very special abilities a herding dog has and the cooperation you have with your dog when it all works out.
All herding took place in a round and all participants with dogs were allowed to sit around to learn from each other's herding trips. It was a long day with many experiences for both me and Audi.
It quickly became clear that Audi was not afraid of the sheep, but as always, really curious. While waiting for his turn, he enjoyed himself with a couple of corgi puppies.
Audi showed great talent when he finally got into the round. It was clear that he understood that it was about moving the sheep. He was a visibly proud dog who subsequently walked out of the round with me.
In the second round, Audi was let loose with the sheep. Audi did his best, but since he is still a young dog, he quickly lost concentration and started eating sheep shit instead of herding. However, it was a pleasure to see how friendly and relaxed he walked around with the sheep.
It was a very tired dog that I brought home from Funen. He snored all evening – something that is otherwise rare for a female Schipperke under 2 years old. Even Cookie, who often wants to send him to Pomeranian, came over a couple of times during the evening to sniff him a little worriedly.
Mini is proud of his little prospect. He can now call himself a real corgi, because if the truth be told, his herding skills are not quite up to the corgi's in that regard. He did his best, no one can do more than that and he and I had another nice day, which helps to bond us together and make us a good team.
About this week's blogger:
Helene is an early retiree and spends a large part of her time with her animals. The animal team consists of 4 dogs, 1 cat, 15 free-range chickens, approx. 80 aviary birds and her daughter has three axolotls. And now she and Cookie can also call themselves a reading dog team.
She loves writing short stories, poems and stories from her everyday life and enjoys reading a good Scandinavian crime novel.
In addition to Helene and all the animals, the family consists of Birger 55 years old, Thor 12 years old and Sigrid 10 years old.