April 30, 2012

Hmm... 2 and a half years since a last post...

Well, lots has happened!  Let's start with Tink!

She finally did get her ATChC! She also started having seizures, linked to epilepsy.  As of today, it has been almost 10 months since her last seizure (knock on wood), and she doesn't let it stop her!  In 2010 Tink suffered a knee injury during a flyball tournament, and she was off dog sports for over a year, but know she's back to her crazy self, and is faster than ever at her new 16"special jump height!

Kessie is competing in the Master level in agility now, she still has clingy moments, but she is really starting to come into her own now!  She even qualified for and competed in Nationals last year!  Her flyball training has come along great as well and she is very consistant.

My little brother got a Jack Russell, named Barney, who I just recently started training in agility, he'll be a fun boy to run!

Maybe I'll keep up with this thing again...

November 26, 2009

Continued Improvement

Last Sunday the girls and I headed to Royackers. This was the first time I entered Kessie in standard. Her weaves aren't yet perfect, but I thought they were better then most starter dogs. All of the courses were difficult for there level , so I was very proud of Kessie! The only time she ran into me on the standard was when I ran too far ahead of the entrance to the dog walk, she was running great. So fast in fact that she bounced right off the table! She had trouble with the weaves (only 6) and wasted a lot of time there, and took down a bar, but she is improving at every trial and I couldn't be happier. Jumpers went pretty well for Kes, she turned into me a few times, most at turns, because I am not at the right place because I still need to babysit her a bit. She had a few 'could have been refusal' moments, but was never called, and walked away with her first jumper Q!

Tink had a really bad day... she was losing it out there.. off days are allowed.

November 15, 2009

One more down, one last one to go!

Tink and I went to Kingston to the Morning Star trial. It was my first time ever going here, it is held in a soccer dome, two rings, with tons of space left over! I only entered the last 4 runs of the day, 2 snooker, and 2 jumpers. The first snooker was tough... lots of call offs, and Tink finally went off course after #2 in the closing. The second snooker started off real bad... after the first jump, Tink went off and did her own thing... my whole run was flying by the seat of my pants, but we did great and made it all the way through, eaning our MSDC. One more leg to get for our ATCh, and two tries to get it! Our first jumper run went quite well, but I took for granted the fact that Tink would pick a tunnel over a jump, and as I sent her to the tunnel, she sailed over a jump. The rest of the run was great! The next run looked trickier in the walk-through... and boy was it ever! It was quite a disaster! Oh well! There's always next time!

November 09, 2009

Kessie's time to shine

Tink Kessie and I go to K9 Klubhouse's second trial at WindReach Farm on the weekend. Tink had some brillent moments, and a snooker Jr Q with Natasha, but only got one steeplechase Q (with a bar down) out of 8 runs all weekend.

But Kessie had a great weekend! She was herding me FAR less the usual! She made it all the way around our planned snooker course, only herding me once, or twice, and got her very first Q. The next day we did Gamble, she probably turned into me the most in that run, but we would have twisted and turned the most in that run. She did a great leadout through a tire even! The closing was 3 jumps, after the first she turned into me, but I was able to send her out over the second one, and she soared forward to the last jump! She held all her contacts in both runs. I didn't take her through the weaves, but when her weaves are better in training, I'll consider entering her in Standard runs. Jumpers went so good for Kessie! There were a lot of jumps in a row (when she tends to herd me the most). Out of 15 obstacles, she made it through the first 9 beautifully!

November 01, 2009

Acton Nov 1

The indoor season officially started for Tink and I. I didn't enter Kessie, so I left her at home. The day started off with a bang! Steeplechase went great, one down bar, but we had the fastest time of over 35 dogs! Master Snooker also want great! Got our 3rd Q finally! Getting closer to that elusive ATCh. Master Gamble, Master Team, and 2 Master Standard classes later didn't go so well, but it was a great day, anyways!

October 12, 2009

Steeplechase Expert

Tink, Natasha, Kessie and I went to the last outdoor trial of the year. It was a very cold, windy day, but it was still fun! This is how the day went:

Advanced Jumpers: Natasha ran Tink for the first time in Advanced Jumpers. The first 3 quarters of the run was very open and fast, and I was happy that she kept up all the bars. Natasha got lost at a 270 at the end, and sent Tink off course, but it was a good run.
Challange: Next Tink and I ran Challange... this one was far more forgiving then the first one we did. Tink kept on course the whole time, but we had a couple refusals and knocked bars
Starter Jumper: Kessie and I ran another Starter Jumpers... she went back to herding me a lot...
Master Standard: This course I found harder then the challange course... we bombed it, so did some training in the ring
Steeplechase: Tink had a great Steeplechase round, even pulling off a tricky sequence. She got her Expert Steeplechase Bronze title.
Master Jumper: It was a decent run, but Tink took and off course jump, then knocked a bar when I pushed for speed.

October 10, 2009

Starter Games both way!

Natasha, Tink, Kessie and I went to the last outdoor K9 Klubhouse trial of the year. This is how it all went down...

Saturday
Master Standard: The run went very smoothly! She seemed to know where she was supposed to go, even without me! We ran it great and got a Q!
Master Gamble: It was a tricky main gamble with a teeter and a set of weaves, but Tink was one of 3 dogs out of 25 or so to get it!
Junior Advanced Gamble: Natasha moved up to Advanced last trial, so this was her first time. For Tink, it was a much more difficult main gamble, she had to come out of a tunnel and run between the other end of the tunnel and a jump to a tire with Natasha on the other side, of the jump. Though she never made it to the tunnel... Natasha said 'Get out!' and she went past the tunnel to the dog walk! Shocking!
Steeplechase: Tink had a great run and walked away with another Q. Running 3 for 3 that day, I knew that the odds were stacked against us for the Jumpers run, that I actually really needed!
Master Jumpers: I set Tink up on the line and started my lead out, I looked over my opposite shoulder to make sure the other dog was on leash, and turned back to Tink and she was standing beside me! Crud!! Starts off with a refusal! But wait it gets so far worse... she actually runs the rest of the course CLEAN!!! Rotten devil finally gives me a clean jumpers... after she creeps up on me in her start line, which she doesn't normally do!
Starter Jumpers: Kessie has a usual 'Kessie' run... Jump, jump, tunnel, jump, herd, jump, tunnel, jump, tunnel, jump, herd, jump, herd, herd, jump.... something along those lines!

Sunday
Starter Jumpers: Natasha and Tink finally keep up all the bars and get Natasha's Junior Starter Games Award of Merit... or whatever they are calling it... Kessie has an amazing run for her, and makes it about three quarters of the way through the course before herding me, what a girlie!!
Master Jumpers: Not so good... already gone from my memory, but we had a couple wrong tunnel entries, I think...
Steeplechase: Took down a bar, but had tons of time left over, so got another Steeplechase Q for the weekend.
Master Standard: Was a great run, but I got too far behind her at the end, and she took down the last bar!
Master Standard: I was so busy building all day, that I didn't get to see the courses until I was building them, so imagine my horror when my nightmares came back to haunt me! It was a replay of the opening from Standard round 1 and the Nationals this year. Here is the Nats course. We occurred 60 faults at Nats, and if you didn't automatically get an E in Masters, we wouldn't have been much better off!!

Over all it was a great weekend, with threats of rain, we didn't get very much and the cool autumn air was bearable. Off to the last outdoor trial of the year tomorrow!