Feline Freestyle Take One

Recently, I dusted off my "inner freestyle" with Harvey and Dewey.  I have done canine musical freestyle with my border collie, Liam and my late mutt, Harley.  I found that it is something that is fun and I can easily do at home with enough space.  I decided to try it out with the cats.  Both Harvey and Dewey seem to be sensitive to noise.  I don't necessarily mean that in a bad way.  I mean that they are responsive to noises and music even on a subtle level.

As a kitten, Harvey would come to me when I sang amazing grace.  Some nights I would sing it to him while laying in bed.  He would come to me and promptly lay on my neck.  I'm not sure if he liked the noise and vibration of my throat or if he was trying to choke me so I would stop singing.  Either way, it showed that he had some sort of feeling/thought about the sound.  They also run to my cell phone when it rings.  They especially like the classical music ring tone.  This behavior comes in handy when I've misplaced my phone and someone is calling me.  I just need to follow the cats!

The biggest thing that made me start thinking about how the cats responded to music happened when I was judging a freestyle video competition.  As I sat at a computer desk watching the videos, Harvey would come up to be with me.  Some songs, he would fall asleep during.  Other songs he would get up and leave.  He wouldn't come back until they were over.  Then, for a few of the routines, he actually sat and watched.  This surprised me because it showed that he liked or disliked different songs.  After that, I started thinking about how animals other than dogs respond to music.

Harvey during freestyle judging

All these events lead up to my decision to train them in freestyle.  I will be taking an online class on heeling to music with them in a few weeks.  I liked the idea of the class because it provides structure.  Because we need to train heeling for the class, I have wanted to work with them more in that area.  I was going to do that tonight but after talking with a friend, I decided to play around with what music they liked.  I picked a handful of pieces and made a short video of us moving to each song.  The result was... interesting.

Dewey was up first.  He tends to think more during training.  I honestly think he had no idea what was going on.  He would follow me and then stop and look around as if to say "Huh?  I don't get it.".  The one video that we took had an interesting part to it though.  He jumped at my hand three times and it kind of matches the music.  I don't know whether it was a coincidence or not but it is interesting none the less.  Here is that video:

Harvey was next.  He was astonishing.  I will let the video speak for itself.

It was so much fun!  I really had a good time with him.  I'm interested to see where we go from here!

The Perfect Example

Again, the priest at my church has made the tiny gears in my brain start to work.  It is a hard task but he seems to get them moving each time I attend Mass which is a miracle in and of itself.  This time, it is about the examples that God gives us to learn from and follow.  During the Mass on All Saints Day, the priest was talking about how the Saints are examples for us.  He discussed the many qualities that we should learn from and follow.  I started to think about different examples God gives us to follow.

Some of these examples are easy to see.  There are parents who show unconditional love to their children and will do anything to help them without being asked.  Friends who show how to help others and being understanding.  Siblings who live honest lives, the way you strive for.  (All these examples include listening to one talk on and on because the only conversations that you normally have are with co-workers about work or with cats.)  Instructors who inspire you by pushing the limits and helping you along the way.  Strangers who show love and kindness when they are unexpected.  Leaders who not only lead but teach others to do the same.  There are so many different examples out there to follow.  Each one is special in and of itself.  Everyone has their own sins and issues that they deal with daily.  However, each of the examples I have listed are of people I know who inspire me and provide me with good examples.

Some of the examples God gives us are ones that we wouldn't think of.  As I was considering all the people in my life who are good examples, a dog popped into my mind.  He is a border collie named Dean Dog.  I started thinking about how he is an example too.  He shows us something that we should all learn from and try to do ourselves.  He likes dog sports, swimming, playing ball, the beach, butter, etc, etc.  But the one thing I think he likes the most is being with someone.  He is a true companion in that way.  He strives to be close to the people he loves and who love him.  After being gone for 1 1/2 to 2 years, I saw Dean again in his home.  We had our normal greeting of rolling around on the floor together filled with kisses and funny noises.  He laid happily next to me with a content look on his face all evening.  He seemed to want to just be with me.  He is the same way with his partner (owner just doesn't seem to fit).  Wherever she goes, he wants to follow.  They do fun things together but I truly believe that he just wants to be with her.

I feel like as a Christian, I should have that same innocent desire as Dean does.  I should strive to be closer to God.  Everything else in life is wonderful and fun, but what is the most important thing?  God's love is the most amazing, unconditional love.  Shouldn't we too want to be close to the One who gives us that great love?  Shouldn't we spend time with God just as we do with the people and creatures we love?  Dean's desire is a pure and simple lesson.  God gives us comfort and peace. We should have that need to run to Him and stay with Him just like the example Dean shows us.  We should do everything to get closer to Him in our relationship.  It truly shows that God gives us examples in all shapes, sizes, and colors, even blue.