DIY Dog Training Pouch - Take One

Maggie and I started obedience classes last week. Very exciting. She's already such a good pup, but she gets very impulsive when other dogs are in sight. Impulsive meaning she jumps and pulls all 75 pounds of her to try to get closer. I'd like to curb this habit and keep my arm as is. Luckily, like her mama, she is treat oriented, so training should go well once I learn the techniques.

The obedience class instructor recommended buying a pouch in which to keep treats to allow the dog handler to be hands free. So instead of running out to PetCo/Smart, I pulled out my sewing machine, fabric, and thread, and got to work. I did this project flying by the seat of my pants. Overall, I'm happy with the results, and it will be functional. As is the case with most projects that are entirely improvisational, there are tweaks I would make to improve and neaten it. I'll point them out below.

My pouch inspiration, an envelope.

I started with a rectangular piece of fabric approximatey 8x16 inches (I will start with a 10 or 12x16 inch rectangle on the next version). I eye-balled where I wanted the top flap to meet the bottom part of the pouch. Measured and marked the halfway point on the top flap. Drew from the top left and right corners to this middle point to cut off excess fabric to make that triangular top part.

upside down: making guidelines for cutting on top flap

 I repeated a similar process for the bottom flap.

And then used this cut-out, which is the exterior of the pouch, to trace onto the second fabric, which was the interior of the pouch. To make hemming the sides of the two pieces together easier, I ended up reduced all sides of the interior fabric by about 1/4". (I should have reduced it by 1/2" as it turns out).

 To start the hemming process, I placed the exterior and interior on top of each other with right sides facing out. I then ironed the excess fabric along the edges of the exterior piece over the edges of the interior piece. On all of the edges but the top of the bottom flap, I folded the hem over once more and ironed to hide the raw edges.

I hemmed the top edge of the bottom flap before pinning the rest of the hems and pinning the lower half of the pouch together with rightsides facing. This way it could be flipped rightside out after sewing and the stitches were hidden. The double fold of most edges versus the single fold of the top of the bottom flap is kind of visible. I just figured that bottom flap edge would be hidden when I flipped the pouch back out. I was being kind of lazy, and wanted to avoid some of the extra bulk double folding creates.

After getting it all sewn together, I finished the last pieces. This included making a loop, made the exterior fabric reinforced with canvas, to sew onto the back of the pouch to insert webbing to make a belt. (I made two loops but ended up only having room to sew one on). I also sewed on a snap-on button and cleaned up the messy corners that showed when the the flap was snapped down.

Here's the final product. I hadn't intentionally centered the purple graphic to be centered like that... what a happy mistake! Anyway, the next version will be the same height but will be wider. This will let me place two loops on the back, which will help stabilize the pouch on the belt. This will also let me sew two separate pockets for the pouch instead of just one. I want this, so I can put boring, old dry food in one pouch, and super smelly, highly motivating treats in the other one. It's a bit floppy as it is. I will either 1) make the top flap overlap the bottom half a bit more, so when it's snapped shut, there won't be open gaps, or 2) use velcro along the whole flap instead of the snap-on button. (I may still try the velcro on this pouch).

Where has the summer gone and what have I been doing?

Over the long 4th of July weekend, I headed to Mount Whitney in California with John and Dave to summit the highest peak in the United State's lower 48. Located just outside of a bunch of little towns (e.g., Lone Pine, Independence, Bishop) hardly anyone's heard of but in an area I love, I could easily see the still snow-packed peaks rising above the forests and drier salt desert shrub valleys further below.

Knowing I would be arriving from Las Vegas and acclimated to elevations between 3000-4500 feet, I was kind of worried about being above 10000 feet. I've never experienced altitude sickness but have seen friends struggle and knew it was one experience I wanted to avoid. With that in mind, we decided to spend a few nights at the lower elevations (8500 feet) of the Whitney Portal area before putting our packs on and heading up. Don't you love that name, the Whitney Portal?? I've heard John talk about it since I've know him, and a sort of mystique has been built up in my brain about it, like we were going to be transported somewhere once we entered. What I imagined was pretty vague. As it turns out the Whitney Portal consists of campgrounds for car and RV campers, parking lots for folks hitting the trails, including the Whitney Peak trailhead, creeks, a pond, which was surprisingly packed with avid fisherfolk and fish (hardly seemed like fair sport for the fish: imagine a big, couple-feet deep swimming pond that the fish can't escape and that tantalizing foods keep getting tossed into; we were a little worried there was one pair that appeared to be catching enough to serve at a restaurant ruh-ruh), and a shop that contains mostly souvenir-type stuff but also a cafe, an amazing and wonderful cafe. Check out that cinnamony pancake!!That'll get you ready for a backpack trip. Although the day I consumed at least half of that monster (plus bacon and eggs), I mostly sat around camp trying to keep the mosquitoes at bay. That's tough work too.

Out of two nights camping at the Portal, we did hear neighbor campers whistling and ringing bells like there was a gypsy wedding going on or something. Turns out they were "scaring" off a bear. I think Pepper-dog had the right idea for where the safest place in camp is should a bear of come by... Hey, isn't that box supposed to be used for keeping bears from our food, Pepper-dog?!?!?Anyway, to make a long story short, the Whitney Trail is pretty and long and kicked our butts. All along the trail, we kept running into folks who said there was still a lot of snow above Trail Camp (12000 feet), the highest campground and still 5 miles from the Summit, and that crampons and ice axes would be necessary. We had been planning a pretty mellow walk up the mountain and really weren't prepared with that kind of equipment, so we quickly scrapped the idea of summiting. With that change of plans, we ended up camping at the lower camp and just day hiked up to Trail Camp. Yes indeedy, there was still a lot of snow above Trial Camp, and I'm sure even more above that. Wowza, going down is faster than going up. Check out Dave's quick downhill descent. This was much steeper and scarier looking in person than in film.

This is what we saw as we bailed off the mountain around 5 p.m. on day two. Because we were all trying to save weight in our packs, none of us brought rainflys for our tents. This was unfortunate for us as we watched thunder clouds build all afternoon before we made the decision it would be in our best interest to be in dry hotel beds instead of soggy sleeping bags that night. This is one of those 'where's Waldo' pictures. Can you find the rainbow or lamebow as John called it? It really was bright and vivid in person but uncaptureable on film. And here is the really pretty Mirror Lake, which is an easy day hike, along the Whitney Trail.

Last snow??

We met up with John's friend, David, and went snowshoeing a couple of weeks ago in Lamoille Canyon outside of Elko. After a slow start of avoiding getting David's car stuck on a snowy road, we hit the trail. I loved it! And I had plans to spend the rest of the winter's weekends stomping around northern Nevada, but two weeks later and the temperatures are in the 50-60s, and I think most of my snow sports may be done for this winter. Here's John, David, and a straggler we picked up along the way breaking trail...

Pepper was in over her head at times and managed to accumulate LOTS of snowballs on her fur.
And Maggie found she loves any form of water, even the snow version.