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Progress Made With My Belgian Malinois Puppy Flash

Progress Made With My Belgian Malinois Puppy Flash

The progress I have made with my Belgian Malinois puppy, Flash, has been incredible. He is so smart that he seems to get bored and wants to go onto the next big thing.

Motivating Factors

Food is not his big motivator however, his toys and affection are his greatest incentive. Most of the time, he just snubs the food and it does not matter what it is. Liver, high quality tasty treats. I do not know if this will change with time, but I will keep posting his progress here.

Very Fast Obstacle Course

The obstacle course is becoming very easy for him. He flies through it, especially when I have one of his favorite toys. I do not give it to him until he finishes the course. He is actually faster than me when he runs through the course. It is my hope that I can keep challenging him.

Giving Things To Me

Flash’s biggest challenge is giving things back to me so I can either throw them or play with him again. I am trying out something new that I saw on a YouTube video where a guy has a leash and a tug toy {one of Flash’s favs} and he tugs for a while, then lets the dog win several times in a row. This seems to resolve the issue slowly. I will have to keep it up and see how long it takes. With our brief sessions only lasting 10 to 20 minutes, it’s hard to get too much down.

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Belgian Malinois 13 Weeks Old First Obstacle Course

Flash Bad Ass McCullough

I love training my Belgian Malinois puppy. This is his first obstacle course. Of course, it is not as fancy as other dog training courses out there, but he is nailing it. Basically, I take the things around my yard and try to assemble them into an obstacle course and it’s working!

Playing Fetch and The Risk

I realize that playing fetch may be a risk, but it is a chance that I will take for now that he is just a puppy. I am not sure if I will continue it when he gets older. The research I did shows possible injuries while playing fetch.

Food

My Belgain Melinois is not food motivated, but he loves his toys. So when I want to get him excited to do something, I bring out one of his favorite toys and include them in the training when I can. I try not to overdo it.

Dog Training Videos

I am watching tons of videos on dog training. Some I like and some I am reserved about. I am learning as much as Flash is during this process. I really like to understand how my Belgian Malinois thinks. This is a real challenge, but I love the process. I find that “Patience” is one of the most valuable virtues to have during this process.

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Why I Quit Hiking on the Appalachian Trail

First off, I want to let everyone know I value the time and the good people that I met on the Appalachian Trail. That being said, a big personal problem with me is that there were way too many people. I don’t think the sanitary conditions were safe either.

Post Office Never Delivered My Supplies

The biggest reason why I came off the trail in North Carolina is the fact that the post office never delivered my food or supplies. I needed a bear can to hike though the Smokies and did not have one. So with no food or a bear can I could not go any further. I bought my food for 6 months before I started this trip, I did not want to resupply with junk food at the stops along the way.

Sanitary Conditions on the AT

The sanitary conditions on the AT are less than perfect and you can expect that with all trails that have no showers or bathrooms. However, on the AT there are designated camping spots, {you are NOT allowed to create any new camping spots} and you are there with 25 to 100 other people using 1 YES ONE privy.

The Privy

The privy is one of the most disgusting things you will ever grace with your ass. I prefer to go dig a hole and do my business there. That being said, women pee on the seat as much as men do because they lift their asses off the seat in order not to touch it with their skin.

So needless to say, I had to go home early and I don’t miss it! 🙂

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Pre-trip Ideas for the Appalachian Trail

Pre-Trip ideas Appalachian Trail

So I am 3 days from my start day and I have some last-minute pre-trip ideas for the trail. One thing that I did was talk to many people. I talked to military people and a lot of hikers. Of course, I watched endless videos.

More Pre-trip Ideas for Appalachian Trail

So, I went to my brother Jons’ place, and he was talking to me about moleskin. He said they used it in the military a lot for training and ruck marches. He explained how to use it and I am sold. Beware, though,  because there are a lot of YouTube videos that do not illustrate how to use it properly. I will include a YouTube video below that shows you how to do it right.

Get moleskin here.

Moleskin
Moleskin

Over 50 Baby Asprin for AT

So for your hikers that are over 50 like me, include some baby aspirin in your pack. It’s very light and only takes one baby aspirin in the morning to help you with blood flow. Of course, you would want to talk to your doctor because I am not. For the benefits of baby aspirin daily, you can check it out here.

Need More Tent Stakes

Another thing that I need to add are more small tent stakes. I could make them out of wood and branches, but I want to get my set up and tear down time to the absolute minimum. When you have to build your house, bed and tear them down everyday you want to be as efficient as possible. So that is why I am opting for more tent stakes.

Yes, I am taking an Umbrella

Why am I taking an umbrella even though I have a tarp and a very good poncho that covers everything? Well, because I watched this video, that convinced me it may be a good idea.

This is not the exact video but the same girl that said if she had to do it over again she would take an umbrella on the AT.

Trekking Poles

So I made it to Georgia and noticed that I forgot my trekking poles that have my duct tape, para-cord and some other things that I put on them. So, this is another last minute thing I’ll have to purchase.

Last Minute Pickups

Salt
Tent steaks
Baby aspirin
Bane strong line
Moleskin
Trekking poles
Umbrella
Clamps

 

 

 

 

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Setting My Goals for the Appalachian Trail

Setting My Goals for the Appalachian Trail

So I am setting my goals for the Appalachian Trail. Sure, I am excited about it but I try to be stoic about it as well. I enjoy living life one moment at a time. I’ve ordered tons of gear, made checklists, paid my bill until the end of the year but I know that I will never be completely ready. I think that is why they call it “Adventure” because you really never know what to expect.

Going Over My Gear

In future posts one at a time I am going to go over my gear and let you know what I bought and why I bought it one post at a time. There is definitely a strategy here and the most important word is anticipate.

Practicing & Training

Currently what I am doing is using my gear day to day at home. This is so that I can understand my gear and be more efficient when using it. I am going to take a week or two in March and see how I can ration my meals and pack them into a small bear proof container. I am looking forward to both my failures and successes.

Being Realistic With Myself

Although I do like to think I am superman from time to time that gets me into trouble. My realistic expectations of myself my be less than or greater than someone else. Like many people that attempt to hike the AT I have been watching tons of videos. In fact, I have been watching hiking videos for years, that’s what got me into this in the first place.  The more data I take in the more I feel I am prepared for this.

Hiking History and Why This Is Different

Although I am an experienced hiker my hikes consisted mainly of 2 or 3 night hikes. Sometimes I would go for like 7 days but rarely. I remember at the end of those 7 days I was ready to come home, get a real shower and meditate on my hike.

Wish Me Luck

Well if you are interested in this type of thing be sure to subscribe here and my YouTube channel. Also I have a Rumble account if you are on there. You can also get ahold of me because I try to post daily on TymeWarp.comÂ