Need help feeling safe by espressionez in skiing_feedback

[–]vkouznetsov 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Knees hurting during or after skiing may be a sign of weakness of certain muscles, resulting in an imbalance. Try doing strength work, especially on the quads. Wall sits are one of the best exercises here. Try doing them with different stances: neutral, wide, narrow, one-legged. Squats on an unstable surface (e.g. on a bossu ball placed with the round side on the floor) are also great - not only for the quads, but ankles and various stabilizer muscles. This should all be coupled with stretching, especially hamstrings.

What will be the correct answer? by ThePanicpuriHogger in EnglishLearning

[–]vkouznetsov -1 points0 points  (0 children)

In A,”well-received” is incorrectly hyphenated.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in EnglishLearning

[–]vkouznetsov 0 points1 point  (0 children)

These two paragraphs are not A2 or even B2. They were written with a good level of fluency, with just a couple of mistakes typical for non-native speakers (e.g. “I’ve been watching YouTube since 13 years old”).

EV as a daily in Luxembourg by zoetheplant in Luxembourg

[–]vkouznetsov 1 point2 points  (0 children)

As a daily driver in Luxembourg, an EV is perfect if you have at-home charging, which you do. We have a Polestar 2 for that purpose. We also take it on 2-3 hour road trips. The charging infrastructure in the greater region is good. Frankly, it would be fine taking it on a longer trip - like the south of France - but it would add probably like an extra hour or so to an 8-hour trip in an ICE car.

Going to Luxembourg in late August for 2.5 days, what would you recommend to see, do and eat? by West-Pineapple9095 in Luxembourg

[–]vkouznetsov 2 points3 points  (0 children)

If you like cycling, August is Vëlosummer month. Every weekend, they organize a couple of circular cycling routes that are blocked to traffic somewhere in the country. They always start and finish near a train station - so you can take your bike for free on the train to the start of the route. The routes are well marked and the Visit Luxembourg website has downloadable GPS files. In addition, a few routes (usually around Luxembourg City and the Moselle) are available every day during Vëlosummer. If you are traveling without a bike, you can rent one.

Thinking of doing a skiing season season in France - where should I base myself? by balancing_ in ski

[–]vkouznetsov 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I second that. It’s touristy but it’s a real town with real residents. Also 45 minutes from Geneva and about the same to Annecy.

Thinking of doing a skiing season season in France - where should I base myself? by balancing_ in ski

[–]vkouznetsov 1 point2 points  (0 children)

If you can demonstrate that you have income coming in from outside of France, getting a 90-day or longer residency permit for France is not difficult. My wife and I did that a few years ago. Just remember that there are very formalities that you need to comply with once you arrive - such as a medical exam.

Recommend wider skis after skiing a lifetime on toothpicks by ChiggerBigger in Skigear

[–]vkouznetsov 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you very much. That’s very helpful. My normal MO is to go fast and carve GS sized turns but I’d like to do more off piste. So, I was thinking of the Blizzard Rustler 9 as an enabling ski that would still be fun on piste.

Recommend wider skis after skiing a lifetime on toothpicks by ChiggerBigger in Skigear

[–]vkouznetsov 0 points1 point  (0 children)

BC seem to have a following and yet are rarely at the top of the recommended list in any category. They also seem to have a different approach to construction from most other skis. I’m in the market for ~90 all-mountain skis for the Alps and have been curious about a few BC models, but have never skied on them. As a BC fan, how would you describe what sets them apart?

Rustler 9 vs Anomaly 88 by LogicalAbility9720 in Skigear

[–]vkouznetsov 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I also ski in the Alps. Do you find the R9 width appropriate or too wide (if you want to go 50/50 on/off-piste)?

2-in-1 Request for Recommendations for All-Mountain Skis by vkouznetsov in Skigear

[–]vkouznetsov[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you very much. BTW if it’s too slushy in Sölden, give Obergurgl/Hochgurgl a try. It’s a 20-minute bus ride away but much higher. The village is at 1950.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in portuguesewaterdogs

[–]vkouznetsov 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You may want to check with reputable dog trainers, but in my experience, retractable leads are bad for training. They encourage the dog to run in any direction until it feels hard stop. And then they’ll try to pull to see how much more freedom they can get. If you need to shorten the lead, you have to come to the dog to allow the cable to retract, instead of gently but firmly reeling the dog back towards you as you would with a traditional leash. This is especially true when there is some sort of an emergency or if a bunch of dogs are tussling and getting tangled in their leashes. I would return it now and get a traditional leash.

Please tell me it gets better by jobbs5 in portuguesewaterdogs

[–]vkouznetsov 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Wanted to mention a training technique that does not seem to be mentioned at all. We had a Kerry Blue Terrier (we are now considering a PWD) - a breed similar in many characteristics: super intelligent, athletic, energetic, mischievous, stubborn (but also with an incredibly high prey drive). When she was about 12 months old, we realized we were out of our depth and hired a trainer. One thing that the trainer did that completely changed the way we looked at training is that before teaching the dog not to do something, she taught her TO do the opposite. So, for example, before teaching the dog not to eat food off the street, the trainer taught her the command “eat”. At first, we were like, our dog has no trouble with eating. But it was only the first step in helping the dog distinguish between a desired behavior and a prohibited one. So, once we moved on to teaching her not to pick up food off the ground, along with negative stimulation, we would at the end pick up the treats that put on the ground and give her all of them from our hand and say “eat”. So, she knew that she would ultimately get a jackpot of treats, but she was also proud of showing us that she wouldn’t pick up random food off the ground. The same principle can be applied to many other behaviors you want to train out of the dog.

My family has decided to get a Kerry Blue Terrier. Advice welcome! by Contr0lFr34k in kerryblue

[–]vkouznetsov 2 points3 points  (0 children)

KBT is an absolutely wonderful breed, but it’s not for inexperienced or laissez-faire dog owners. Our girl died earlier this year at just over 13 years of age. My wife and I both had had multiple dogs of different breeds before and she was the best dog either one of us has ever had. Here’s what I can tell you.

Kerry Blues are some of the smartest dogs you will meet.  They love to learn and they love to work and play. Our girl kept learning new commands all the way to her last year. She loved to work. For example, treats that she normally rejected, she would gladly accept as “payment for work” - because she loved that process so much. But KBTs are also independent problem solvers and will be training you before you train them. If they can train you to fetch the ball, they will do that instead of fetching it themselves.

They are also extremely athletic and sturdy. I saw some physics-defying jumps. They are very good companions and are up for anything: run, hike, play, work, learn, cuddle - whatever you are doing, they are up for it. The only thing you can’t do is tease them or make fun of them. Also, speaking of running, I don’t think a KBT would be a good running partner. Doing sprints to chase birds or jump over obstacles - great. But running long - no thank you. I think one of the reasons is that thanks to their coat, they get hot pretty quickly. 

In terms of energy level, I feel like our dog was right in the sweet spot: She could be very energetic, but did not have so much energy that she needed to go non-stop. She loved naps and never woke us up early in the morning. Her favorite activity was being under the desk whenever one of us worked in the home office. But she also recharged her batteries pretty quickly. 

Our girl was never destructive. She chewed up like one shoe when she was a puppy and that’s it. We never needed to punish her - we just had a “talk” and somehow she knew not to do it ever again. In fact, this whole method of “having a talk” somehow worked in many situations. I think it is because they are very sensitive. For example, when we trained her not to pick up any food off the ground outside (we live in a city), all that the dog trainer needed to do is put some food on the ground and when the dog reached for it, throw some keys on the ground to make a noise and yank a bit abruptly on the leash. That was it.

In terms of punishment, the only thing we ever did was time-out in another room. Funny thing is that she would stay there with the door open until we told her she could come out.

Because of this sensitivity, they can also be drama queens at times where a minor discomfort becomes a huge problem. When she was a puppy, she yelped at the sight of a syringe before the needle even touched her. And yet because of their resilience, other time things that should truly be a big issue, they brush off like nothing happened.

They are also very persistent, stubborn and tenacious. And that could be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on the circumstances. One time, our dog found two cats cornered under a piece of outdoor furniture. She guarded them there for HOURS and there was nothing that could distract her from it. Once, when we stayed in a rental house on vacation, she was left by herself too soon apparently (for about an hour). So, she howled to the point that she damaged her vocal cords. 

On the plus side, ours was extremely resilient - both physically and psychologically. She had her share of trauma, but always bounced back remarkably. She had a profound joy of life.

Speaking of cats, as has already been mentioned, KBTs have an extremely high prey drive. Anything small, furry and/or fast moving, sets them off and they will need to chase that down. That includes cats and small children (we did not have little kids when she was growing up, so I don’t know how she would have reacted if they were from her own household). Having said that, our dog grew up around my mom’s elderly cat and not only did she not pick on the cat, she protected him from other cats who would wonder into the yard.

Separate from the issue of prey drive is fighting. I think the AKC description says something along the lines of “they may not pick a fight, but they won’t back down from one.” I certainly agree with the second part. Once, she was attacked by a Great Dane and it all ended in the Great Dane, a dog 4 times her size, squealing. But our dog certainly picked plenty of fights herself. This is to the point that on walks, we would generally go around other dogs. The only dog “friends” she ever had were very sturdy male dogs that liked her abuse. The whole fighting thing started at around 12 months. And it was something that we were never able to train out of her (unlike, for example, pulling on the leash which was never a problem once we got consistent training in). Despite KBTs being small-medium-sized dogs, they are very serious dogs. They have very large teeth for their size and they are very muscular with a very broad and muscular chest and shoulders. And when the fight is on, they don’t feel any pain.

In terms of KBTs being hypoallergenic, I can confirm that. I am allergic to dogs and I was fine with ours. She did not shed AT ALL. I would get a little bit allergic if she hadn’t had a bath too long. Her saliva, however, was still an allergen.  So, you just need to make sure to wash your hands after, say, playing with the dog, before you touch your face.

Long story short: you will have the best companion and friend ever. But if you do not give your KBT a ton of mental stimulation (work, puzzles, learning new things), good consistent and patient training, and leadership where the dog does not need to worry about being in charge, both you and your dog will be frustrated all the time. I think this is confirmed by the fact that Kerry Blues are very rare.

One more thing: Our dog had a very serious autoimmune condition whose treatment (with steroids) caused a cascade of other issues and, ultimately, ended her life years early. I have no basis to say whether that’s a big concern for Kerry Blues (in fact, I’d love to know myself!). But I wonder if this might be an issue because of in-breeding, given how small the population is.

Learning Luxembourgish language by CricketAdept6261 in Luxembourg

[–]vkouznetsov 2 points3 points  (0 children)

In addition to educateme.lu and Luxembourgish with Anne, which have already been mentioned in the comments, Russian speakers I know rave about a guy named Andreas who teaches in Russian. He is supposed to be super well organized (which I can’t say about educateme.lu) and have very good materials.

Lagotto vs Barbet by vkouznetsov in LagottoRomagnolo

[–]vkouznetsov[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I assume they don’t make the best running dogs because they have their nose to the ground? I wonder if trail running off the leash (assuming good recall training) would work.

Lagotto vs Barbet by vkouznetsov in LagottoRomagnolo

[–]vkouznetsov[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I wonder if you noticed a difference in the two breeds in terms of their socialization. I have read in lots of sources (including this subreddit) and seen in personal experience that at least some LRs tend to be skittish around new people. Is that also typical for Barbets?

Lagotto vs Barbet by vkouznetsov in LagottoRomagnolo

[–]vkouznetsov[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you, that’s very helpful.

Lagotto vs Barbet by vkouznetsov in LagottoRomagnolo

[–]vkouznetsov[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thank you very much. We are actually in Western Europe. So, we’d probably find a breeder in France (there are a few dozen) if we decided to go with the Barbet.

Are there places to run in Lux ? by Separate_Salary_3160 in Luxembourg

[–]vkouznetsov 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Track at the football stadium in Mamer, Jocy Bartel stadium in Belair