More Agility

Every weekend this month is either agility or tracking. A busy month. Last weekend was agility only and once again quite humbling. Just when you think you know how to handle every situation, a new one comes along to teach you that you are wrong. Either my decisions for handling are getting worse or we are just going through a dry spell. Either way it is frustrating. Our Q rate is remarkably low. To think one time I posted we Qed 75% of the time in Excellent. Well no longer.

This last weekend we were entered in Novice Fast to practice contacts. It doesn't really seem to count Qing in that class. We only Qed one out of four Excellent runs. However the Jumpers run did have a hard weavepole entrance. If I wasn't feeling so discouraged at that point(last run of the weekend) I wouldn't have risked handling the weavepole entrance like we did. A push to the left and a rear cross. It was the best way to handle the course and it worked our only Q that weekend. Maybe sometimes I just have to trust that Whisper knows her job and stop micromanaging situations.

Toe Injury

Swollen toe


Normal toe

Last weekend Lyric ran agility and played ball. The following day I noticed one of her toes was terribly swollen. It was the same toe that had surgery 2 1/2 yrs ago for a torn lateral collateral ligament. I knew it had retorn. It is frustrating as I don't know what she did to tear it. She has lure coursed with no injuries. Chased her foxtail ball endlessly with no injuries and run numerous agility courses with no injury. I bandaged it until I could get back to my clinic and have it looked at by the surgeon. A figure 8 bandage of elasticon works well at holding the toes together.






The following day it was confirmed and she went to surgery. The original surgery looked excellent, enough organized scar tissue to act as a collateral ligment, no arthritis had set in. Hopefully she will do as well post surgery as the first time. But it is now a couple of months of no exercise splints and later bandages.



Plans for future agility will have to be questionable since this is a second tear/surgical correction. Plans for coming out in Open obedience this spring are on hold. Even though she is a big dog she is not a highly active dog and thus is not hard on her body.

The day after surgery Lisa and Darby came down to wish Lyric well and give her a present.

Echo's New TD

This past weekend Echo was in her first tracking test. Since the draw for the TD portion of the test was so early 7:45 AM we arrived the night before and spent the night in a hotel. Bryn and Marie came down for a quick lesson on clicker training sits,downs and recalls. Bryn and Echo also played a bit afterwards.



It is always a good idea to arrive early at the tracking headquarters. The draw started at 7:45 AM and any dog/handler team not present forfeits their spot to an alternate team.






Getting into a tracking test is unlike any other AKC events, it is not first come quaranteed entered. Once entries have closed, a draw is done about 10 days before the trial. However many tracks are available-in Echo's case there were 4 tracks-the first 4 names pulled out a hat are entered. In Echo's test there were 18 dogs entered, only 4 tracks were offered so 14 dogs didn't get in and were on the alternate list. It pays to be early to the draw and not lose your spot by being late. Once that everyone has checked in, the draw happens to determine which track each team will run. The first dog/handler team in catalogue order then pulls a slip of paper with the track they will run. In Echo's case she was third dog picked for the test and we drew 3rd track. What a coincidence.




Then the waiting begins for the tracks to age. California is going through another dry spell and the tracking conditions this year were less than ideal,no moisture and little green vegetation. Once the track has aged sufficiently the dog and handler are taken out to the beginning of the track and allowed to start when ready. Nothing is more humbling than to be at the start flags and know it is just you and your dog-well mostly your dog to navigate the 450-500 yards out in the field, multiple turns and find the glove. Echo started off gangbusters-she loves to track-and completed the track in my fastest time to date 470 yds in 6 1/2 minutes. There really was very little for me to do except hold on and follow her. She got distracted once by some old horse straw but with a little verbal cue went back to tracking. Turns were no problems and I was told she rarely came off the track. Six and one half minutes later she lead me straight to the glove and she eaned her TD! There is a special feeling when you pick up the glove at the end of the track and you and the dog are a proven team.





Ch Aragon Black Ice RN TD

Santa Rosa Agility Part 2

Along with Lyric, Whisper of course ran agility that weekend. In the morning it was cold-you can see her breathe running the Standard courses. Contacts are a continous struggle as it is hard to correct in a trial. She is managing to hit her contacts-but just barely.



The first day by the afternoon it was warm and she was asleep in the car. Dumb mistake assuming she would be ready to compete with no warm up. I took her out of the car to potty, went in the building and did one practice jump and went into the ring. She was slow and as I tried to send her to a jump she just followed me. No QQ.

Learning my lesson the next day we QQed.





All in all agility is a constant learning experience. Just when you think you know what to do and how to handle a situation something comes along to make you humble.

MACH goal
13 QQs
678 MACH points

Santa Rosa Agility

A couple of weeks ago both Lyric and Whisper were entered in the Santa Rosa trials. Whisper of course in Excellent B Standard and Jumpers(more on her in the next blog) and Lyric in Excellent A Jumpers. Lyric did super and earned her first two legs that weekend. Ever since Lyric got hurt in a tunnel 2 1/2 yrs ago she has hated agility. A friend Lisa(of Darby) copied that run onto a DVD so I could post it here. If you watch with the sound up you can hear her reaction in the second tunnel-and certainly see her changed demeanor coming out of the tunnel. She wanted to be any place but in the ring.



It has been a struggle until recently to get her to willingly play the game again. Starting November of last year-when she earned her Open Jumpers title she has seemed to enjoy the attention and treats that go along with agility. She definitely is still a bit unsure of herself and what to do when the tension and excitment is on but she is now willing to eagerly try. Her two excellent jumpers runs are posted below.