Entries from August 2007 ↓

There are two excellent articles on the Sure Shot Flyball blog about these incredible hybrids. Robbie & Sonya Barton have done a great job of explaining the attributes of these amazing animals. Please see:

• Designer Dogs in Flyball
• My People

I am sorry but the the article on the Sure Shot Flyball blog are no longer available.

Larry

Every time I attend a tournament, I like to watch what all the other teams are doing so that maybe I can pick up new training methods or tools. I tend to pay closer attention to the faster teams because they are obviously doing something right.

We have all seen these teams with their video cameras and television sets. These teams all sit around after the each race reviewing their passes. It is common knowledge that if we could just improve our passing we could have better times, but for most teams video taping and reviewing just seems like too much work at a tournament. What if there was an easier way to get almost instant accurate feedback right after each heat? I know that many teams use people to call passes, but how accurate is this? With the speed of some dogs, it is almost impossible, unless they have wide passes, to call passes with any accuracy. So what is the answer?

The Digital Camera

Many of the new digital photo cameras are video capable. They can take short video clips up to 3 minutes or longer. This is more than enough time to record a heat. Armed with a digital camera, the pass caller just has to quickly review the clip and tell everyone what his or her passes were.

Picking the Right Camera

From my perspective, picking the right camera for the job is the most important thing. Some things to keep in mind when choosing a camera:

• It should have a larger LCD screen on the back for viewing. You need to be able to see it and quickly review each dogs pass.

• It should be easy to use. After all, you will need to record and delete each clip after each heat unless your camera has the memory and capability to record and store multiple clips.

• It should have frame-by-frame review capability. Not only should it have frame-by-frame review capability but also scrolling through the frames should be fast. I have an older digital camera which is frame-by-frame capable but it takes too long to scroll through the frames. It would take too long to review the clip before the next heat starts.

I am not a camera buff by any stretch so I cannot recommend a camera. The person that I saw using a camera for calling passes was using a small Nikon but I do not know the model. Perhaps someone that knows more about cameras can recommend one. Alternatively, armed with some of my suggestions you can head to your local camera store. If you find a good one, please let us all know. I will do the same.

Larry

I was just reading on the USA TODAY website the “Ten pressing questions surrounding Vick’s case” written by Gary Mihoces, USA TODAY. The federal judge, Henry Hudson, is saying “…Mr. Vick will be making a plea of guilty next Monday morning at 10:30.” In my opinion, they should have never offered him a plea. This should go to trial and he should get the maximum, which is not even enough.

Here are the questions Mr. Mihoces asked in his article on USA TODAY with my answers. You can read Mr. Mihoces answers and complete article at the above link.

• Why did he plead guilty?
  

He is pleading because he knows that if this goes to trial he will be convicted and he could face a stiffer penalty. Friends are no longer friends when jail time is involved.

• What sentence will he get?
  

Who cares? Whatever the plea is it will not be enough for torturing and killing these poor animals.

• Would an NFL suspension of Vick run concurrently with his potential prison term?
  

The NFL should suspend him for the rest of his life from playing football. He not only tortured and killed dogs he also gambled which is against NFL rules. To top it off, he lied to the NFL commissioner when he told him he was not involved in dogfighting.

• Given he is about to plead guilty to an indictment alleging dogfighting — and gambling — is Vick’s NFL career over?

It should be. He does not deserve the big salaries and endorsements after participating in this type of behavior.

• Could Vick and his co-defendants improve their chances at sentencing by providing prosecutors with information about other dogfighting rings?

If Vick and his cohorts are truly sorry for their behavior, they should come forward with any information that would help stop this activity regardless of the sentencing.

• Has the Vick case damaged the NFL’s image?

I would hope that no other NFL players are involved with this but chances are some of them knew about it. Bad people that do bad things, tend to shine a bad light on the organization that employs them. It is sad, but it happens. One bad apple spoils the bunch.

• Is Vick finished as a high-profile product endorser?

I would hope so. After all, what large company would want any part of this? It would be like endorsing dogfighting.

• Can Vick ever find public forgiveness?

We, in this county, are good at forgiving people for bad behavior if they sincerely ask for forgiveness. I will withhold my forgiveness for when and if he asks. However, torturing and killing animals for fun is an illness, which may never be cured.

• Is dogfighting a Vick problem, or could there be more NFL players involved?

I pray that it is only a Vick problem.

• What will happen to the dogs that were involved in the Bad Newz Kennels operation?

This is the saddest part of the whole story. I feel sorry and sad that these animals were trained this way because they were not born this way.

There is a good article on the Humane Society of the United States website about what we all can do to help end dogfighting. See “Taking Action to End Dogfighting: How to Spot the Signs and What You Can Do.”

Larry