Ups and Downs

The sad news:  Bo has been diagnosed with some cervical disc issues and is on mandatory 24h crate rest for a month, as well as lots of meds.  I don't know whether he will recover to where he can work again or not.  However, I am glad to say he is already out of pain.  Last week he was walking funny and could not even shake his head! So I had to pull him out of the next 3 weekends worth of shows, and only Tip will be going. 

The good news: We just came back from the weekend of trials at Mattaponi, where Tip finished his NA and NAJ (with first places and clean runs that were 20-30 seconds under SCT).  He then topped off the weekend with a Q, clean run, and first place in Open standard!

CH. Waytogo's Walk This Way CD BN NA NAJ NJP PCA-VP

The first run of the weekend, I ran him like Bo, which stressed him and made him drop a bar and go visit the ring crew.  I then remembered what dog I was running and he did great -- he cannot take pressure.  Started off a bit slower (and controlled!) and after a couple obstacles sped up!  He nailed the weave poles all weekend.  In the novice classes I didn't always give him the perfect entry, but he slowed down and worked to get the entry and do the poles.  I was honestly dubious of his getting the 12 weaves in open, but he nailed the entry and did the weaves like the little machine we believe he is.

Tip is a serious little dog and doesn't want too much fussing before he starts, but man is he ever proud of himself when he finishes!  And I have just spent 15 minutes contemplating having a dog who is reliable but what if he isn't fast enough to make excellent course time!!!! arrrrgggghhhh.....

This weekend also showed how incredibly kind agility folks are.  I accidentally sprinted into a plexiglass wall ... I realized I was late for the class I was supposed to be working.  And forgot about the fact that I was in a plexiglass lined soccer field and slammed into the wall while sprinting for the far ring.  People were so kind and made sure I didn't have a concussion and got ice on it right away, so in fact I have no bruises on my face!  My knees are bruised and my left hand is a bit sore, but I came off remarkably lightly!

Tip does it again: CD in three straight shows!

Tip continues to surprise me.  OK -- so I knew when he was ready to show in conformation.  And I told Suzanne and Colleen that he wanted to show in conformation.  And they didn't quite beleive me until they took him to a big weekend of specialty shows and he brought home either WD or RWD every day.  Then he only needed one more weekend to finish his title:  with three majors.  Yeah -- that Tip!

Then a couple years ago I showed him in Preferred agility jumpers, and he Qed every run adn finished his title  bam bam bam!  Like that!  Then last year I showed him in Beginner Novice Obedience (doing the bad handler thing of scarcely training her dog before she entered him), and Q got 3 Qs and a new title.  Then a couple weeks ago I showed him in agility (not preferred) and he Qed almost every run (the NQ run was handler error).  And the there is obedience.  Much to my shock, that little dog Qed every time he stepped into the Novice Obedience ring.  It wasn't always pretty, but that little valiant heart did its darnedest to be good.  And his stays were perfect.  I don't think he has ever lost anything on a stay (stand, down, or sit).  Its like he freezes into place and just turns off.

Tip finished his CD at the Hyattsville DTC trials in Beltsville Maryland on Sunday September 23, 2012.

The huge newly minted CD smile, with Tip gazing lovingly at judge Don Levinson.

On Saturday, people said he was heeling quite nicely (even the judge), but he got a fairly abysmal score (173) because his "Sitter was broken".  Yup -- I had a handsome little dog who stacked every time I stopped on heeling and who stacked in front on the recall. On Sunday, I got a decent number of sits in heeling, but I lost him partway through the heeling pattern (he caught up with me after I executed the about turn after the fast, and finished nicely in heel position.  With a sit, as I recall.  He does have a lovely wait and recall, except he ends up stacked in front of me looking slightly confused.

Working out technical difficulties in the photo shoot.

Finally, Tip is facing the correct direction and the humans are not being silly!

 Here's to a valiant little dog:  CH. Waytogo's Walk This Way BN CD NJP!

MX for Bo!

Well that went far better than I had hoped.  Bo and Tip brought home a stash of ribbons and rosettes. 

Bo and Tip with their satin haul from the Belgian agility trial (September 2012)

I am not sure:  Was the high point the fact that Bo had a perfect start line down-stay on every single run (6 all weekend???)  Was it how spectacular Bo's runs were?  Was it Bo finishing his MX with a 4th place run that earned him 29 MACH points in a class of 22 8"Exc B dogs?  (A run that had the judge stop me later to comment on it?)  Was it the fact that Tip came home with 3 first place rosettes from Novice?  Decisions decisions.... I have no idea -- it was all good.

I realized the command "wait" on the start line actually means "jump up and down and bark madly".  Funny what you unintentionally teach your dog.  In all other instances wait actually means ... quietly hold position until I tell you otherwise.  But I put Bo into a down and a stay and he ... held his down until released.  I even did lead-outs!

Then there was little Tip.  He didn't Q in T2B, simply because he cannot do 12 weave poles in trial setting yet.  But he gained confidence all weekend.  I flubbed up our final run, because otherwise he would have finished his NA title.  However, despite my handling blunder it was a great run -- lots of energy and a fair bit of speed, and quite a bit of assurance.  Once we have those weave poles down, I think he will be meeting up with Bo in Excellent quite soon.  And I fear he will be quite consistent (unlike Bo who is so very brilliant).

Bo = Ferrari (Italian, flashy, fast, breaks down, but everyone wants one the second they see it!)
Tip =  Audi (German, machine-like, well engineered, reliable, very functional)

OMG! What was I thinking?

I remember entering the trials.  All I really thought was "Let's just make sure I am not entering agility and obedience trials on the same day, right???"

Well, I succeeded.  Agility trials next weekend.  Two dogs.  Weekend after?  Obedience trials, two dogs.  Then I go on travel for a week and a half, come back, host dinner for 40-60 ravenous teenagers, then promptly go to another 2 days of obedience trials.

Its a real pity my dogs' handler is insane.

On the good side.  I went and practiced with Bo and Tip at Capital this morning.  Both dogs were insanely excited to work.  Especially Bo.  Bo was (of course) brilliant.  Had a bit of that "I am so excited about the gloves that I will not picot to heel position but hunker down insanely behind you".  So I actually gave him a pretty stiff "THIS is heel" correction.   

Tip was Tip.  He was clearly trying.  Heeling is not really sunk into his bones thorugh, and he still has a tendency to stack in front and look at my face when confused.  And sometimes thinks he ought to stack and pose while I walk away.  And his fronts are far too far away, off center, and often stadning.

But besides that he is great...  Talk to me in a couple of weeks, and we shall see what really happens.

Dual Dog Agility -- day one

Today I ran both Bo and Tip at agility.  I picked the Hyattsville trial, because it is a one-ring trial.  That way I don't have to stress about trying to be in two different rings at the same time!

To cut to the chase:  4 runs, no green ribbons.  However, the runs were very good, so it wasn't all bad. in order:

 - Bo's Exc JWW was first thing.  I thought it was going to be hopeless.  But he did great and (again!) I flubbed the handling on an easy jump.  He was heading towards it, I called "right" and he turned right and avoided the jump.  D'oh!  Nice fast run, and otherwise the directionals were absolutely necessary as I ran around that course following Bo's butt!

 - Tip's Novice JWW.  ugly. stressed. He got the first jump, then theoretically right into the weaves.  only 6 poles!  He just could not do it.   So we bailed on them and tried to do the rest of the course.  We got the next 3 jumps, then he went through the long tunnel and came out like greased lightening.  got the next couple jumps then completely could not work.  I think he was just too wigged out and that was part of the tunnel speed.  But at least he didn't run away!

- Bo's Excellent STD.  The good news is he got his weaves and contacts.  I didn't get him coming out of the tunnel so he ran past the triple.  All I could think was "really?".  Then he popped out on weave pole #10.  He was almost over the last jump when I called his butt back, and made him do all 12 poles, then finished.  And made much of him.  No Qs but I felt they were lovely runs.  He was about popping out of his skin before we went in, he was so bunched, so I knew it would be a bit mad.

- Tip's Novice STD.  Tip knocked the first bar.  I think because I lead too far out and didn't give him enough space to jump.  (He is not the natural athlete Bo is).  But he started plowing up the dog walk, and I encouraged him greatly, to great effect, he build up speed, zoomed through the U-shaped tunnel, and went screaming up the teeter.  I was frantically trying to get him to slow down -- but not quite effective enough.  He zoomed off the end before it hit the ground.  Did the table nicely and another jump.  Then I think he scampered lightly across the broad jump, instead of jumping it.  But he did everything!  even the chute, and the tire, and the weaves!  And he finished the course with 30 seconds to spare!  And he was happy.  So I was happy.

Sure, I would have liked some Qs, but all things considered, I think we had a good day and hope for some Qs tomorrow.

Superfly!

Two weekend of agility trial (5 days) and we are still looking for that pesky last MX leg.   And we still have only two QQs, but are pushing close to 500 MACH points.  

Time is not an issue here.

However, we have been running much better, which means I have also been handling better. (perhaps not hard to do, but we'll take any improvements!) Usually just one little thing NQs us, but the rest of the run is usually really nice: fast, decent handling, right course.

What was amazing is the last 2 days I got a start line stay on Bo this weekend.  YEAH!!!!  They are not the "hold the stay for the 3 jump lead out", but they are him maintaining position while I stand up and even move a foot or two away!  I like this not because I need the lead out (I have learned to handle without it), but the self-control it entails in Bo makes the rest of the course run better.

Today we NQed standard because at weave pole #10 (of 12) he saw the sucker tunnel ahead of him, skipped the last poles and made a bee line for it.  I managed to call him off before he got in, then he had to go back and redo the weaves again (ALL 12 of them).  Then I had to call him off the sucker tunnel a second time to get a hard right turn onto the teeter.  Yesterday was another really hard STD course, that we only NQed because I was on the wrong side of the A Frame so he took the wrong end of the tunnel.  Even with the extra tunnel he as faster than any other dog in that class. 

But he was brilliant both saturday and sunday in JWW:  second place each day with 14 MACH points yesterday and 19 today.  Today's course had two long lines of jumps, that I sprinted down, counting on my dog to follow and take the jumps, which he did.

My reward is to go pull more weeds out of the lawn.

Maybe 4 is the magic number

For Tycho, everything clicked when he was four years old.  He got a brain, all the years of training clicked, and all of a sudden we were Qing and earning titles hand over fist.  It was kinda weird.

Bo has always been good, but 4 was a really good year, even for him.

And now Tip. He is currently 4 years old.  Got his BN in 3 tries without training. Qed first time in the CD ring with ridiculously little training.  And I tried him in agility practice this past saturday: he did everything perfectly, ran, took direction, was speedy.  Did the weaves (a year since he'd even seen them).  all 12, just like that. bam.  Did the teeter -- OK -- fly off the end the first time, but stormed right up it again and waited for it to drop like a pro.  Then I tried him in the chute (which we'd never done before).  Any guesses?  yup -- he did it.

So I took him to the minisession with Paulena today.  Ran Bo on each course, then a little beagle ran, then Tip.  Tip did each course just about flawlessly.

weird, I tell you.  Guess I'll try him at a real trial and see how things go!