Cactus State AKC Agility Trial

 

Superstition Kennel Club AKC Agility Trial

I took a day off for an agility trial with Teka. I was hoping it was worthwhile and nervous that it was a waste of time and money. I didn't take the man with me. My instructor G was there and her friend took video for me. (I'll post it if I ever figure out how to get it off my I-pad!)

First was the Novice Jumpers with Weaves (preferred jump height). I decided against doing a lead out, opting to run with her. Of course, when we got to the weaves, she tried to not do them, but I was able to get on the other side and walk her in and out of the first couple. Then she did the rest. After that, she was great going the rest of the way through the course. And she Q'd.

Jumpers course map

Very shortly after we finished our run, it was our turn on the Open Standard course (also preferred height). She started out okay but when we got to the weaves, she walked past. I called her back to retry. She walked past--totally like "I don't see them, I don't see them..." I decided to go on. She did fantastic the rest of the course, although it felt like she needed some cheerleading through the 14 and 15 jumps into the tunnel but then she picked speed up again for the end. It wasn't a Q since she skipped the weaves, but I guess at least she didn't pee or poo in the ring. But I'm disappointed that she did so poorly with the weaves.

Standard course map

Surprisingly good photo of me; Teka is disinterested (that's a word, right?)

Fiesta Cluster AKC Agility Trial

Cassi ran her Excellent A Standard course first.  Coming off the dog walk was a flip into a tunnel, but she saw the teeter in the other direction and took a little detour; fortunately, she did not make it to the teeter so there was no fault.  Later she saw a little crowd and started to go in that direction but I was able to get her back.  On the table, she curled her lip a little and looked at the judge.  The judge almost laughed while she was counting.  My girl is such goofball.  We ran a clean run and ended up under time, so she got her Q!

Teka's first course was Open FAST.  This course was made for her.  She got her send bonus (when I stay on one side of the line and she does the obstacles on the other side); unfortunately, she shut down right afterwards because she thought she messed up by passing the teeter.  But in FAST, you can't mess up except for on the send bonus.  She did some things and skipped others, and ended up 5 points short and over time.  She almost did the frame which would have put her over on the points but I think the time still would have got her.

Next was Cassi's Excellent A Jumpers Course.  I did a 2 jump lead out and managed to get my crosses in where I wanted them, even the rear cross at #19.  We got another clean run and she really seemed to be having fun; Q!

We had some time before our next set of runs.  I think it was too much for Cassi.  By the time she ran Excellent A FAST, she was tired.  She barely trotted onto the course, but we gave it a try.  This was the most ridiculous FAST course I have ever seen.  You essentially have to run into the teeter to direct her to the tunnel, and then run into the A-frame to get her over the last jump of the send bonus.  She had a lot of trouble with the tunnel, so we were doing terribly on time, so we just finished without getting all the points.

Teka's next course was Open Jumpers.  We did the same 2 jump lead out.  She was working with me but missed her weave entry.  Then she managed to run right up to a double jump and I couldn't get her to back up so she knocked the bar.  We finished the course but the second fault kept her from getting a Q.

Her last course was Open Standard.  She started out okay but I lost her pretty quickly.  I had to walk her from the dog walk to flip into the tunnel, but I thought I might be able to get her through it.  Unfortunately, she got stressed out and pooped before she even got to the table.  It really makes me think that I should just give up on Teka.  But my friend A just got her MACH with her dog and she said she almost gave up on him but they work really well as a team now.  I thought about moving Teka to Preferred jump height (lower) so that it would be easier, but my husband doesn't think that will help her attitude (in public) and I'm not sure I can disagree.  I just can't decide what to do with her.

Cassi got first place for both Q's

Paws for a Wish AKC Agility Trial

Previously Wags for Wishes, held last year at Rawhide, Paws for a Wish was held at PERA Club in Tempe.  I forgot my page with the ring schedule (the order that things happen in each ring) and there were three rings, so I checked what was happening in each ring.  I was wearing my new Vibram Five Fingers; the grass was wet and it was cold, and I wondered if I should have worn socks--but then they would be wet, so maybe not.

Teka ran in Open FAST.  We have been working really hard on her "out" but I know it's still hard for her.  I took her over a jump, into a tunnel, through the tire, leading into the send bonus area starting with a jump, to the A-frame, then to a jump, all at a 10 foot distance from me.  As she came down the A-frame, she started coming towards me; I tried to keep her focused out, but she came into me.  I was able to get her over the out jump on the third try, but I did get a fault.  I ran her through the rest of my planned course; she missed one jump, but otherwise did very well.

Cassi ran Excellent Jumpers with Weaves and was just spazzy and unfocused.  She started out okay, but after a few jumps, she did a spin before jumping, was sniffing, popped out of her weaves, and then, when she was nearly done, she ran off toward the entrance.  It was disappointing, but I guess she had fun.

Excellent FAST was running a little weird since Excellent JWW and Excellent Standard were running.  My husband and I had a breakdown in communication and he missed our run.  Cassi did really well, even doing her 15 foot distance four obstacle send bonus.  The judge even commented on our "perfect timing" as we hit the last jump as the buzzer sounded.

I was nervous about Cassi's Excellent Standard run since she would have to do the tire twice.  The tire was not her issue; she was sniffing the ground and completely distracted.  She started okay but got an early refusal, then went back onto the teeter when we were going to the table, then jumped back over the jump she just did instead of wrapping it.  On the other side of the A-frame, she completely lost her focus and made her own course, even going around the finish jump.

Teka's Open JWW course was similar to Cassi's until more than halfway through.  I had to cheer over every jump.  She missed her weave entry but I was able to get her through.  Near the end, she picked up speed and energy.  The judge clapped for us, but I later found that we did not get a Q.  I should re-read the rules, but I think she was just too slow.

Her last run was Open Standard.  She needed even more encouragement to start.  When she went over the jump to the tunnel, she wasn't paying any attention to me at all and went into the wrong end.  I sent her back in; when she came out, she would NOT do the weaves.  I ran her past and kept going.  She did everything, but just wasn't into it.  I got a clap from the judge at the end, I think just that he was glad to see she did it, although she couldn't Q without the weaves.

I was really disappointed that she did not get any Qs.  I was disappointed that neither of them were really playing on the same team with me, except for Cassi's FAST run.  For some reason--the judge didn't review the results after the class closed--that was the only run I had that didn't have the results posted when we left several hours later.  I was really disappointed that I did not get confirmation that we got our Q, so I did not get a ribbon, I have no photo, and I have no video.

The highlight of the day was actually not agility related.  We decided to take Teka to the lure course, and she went insane.  She loved it.  She went nuts for that little "mouse" on the pulley.  We actually had trouble catching her--she jumped over the fence, through the fence, around the fence--she was just crazy for that "mouse."  It was the best $7 we spent all day!  If she could run next to another dog, I would LOVE to run her in lure courses.  I'll have to just keep an eye for this type of event for her.

I'm pretty certain that I'm going to retire her from agility, I was thinking when I retire Cassi, but I'm thinking this might be her last season either way.  She's so great at it when we aren't at trials, so it's so disheartening that she doesn't really seem to like it most of the time in public.  And she's SO fun when she does like it.  *sigh*  I'm considering retiring Cassi too as the times may be too short for her in Excellent, but I think she likes it, and several people have asked me about dropping her to Preferred heights, which would mean starting over at Novice, so I have more to consider before the fall.

Agility fun run

There is an indoor agility facility where I have gone for some classes, and there will be a trial there soon, so they offered a practice session, or fun run.  I wasn't sure if I wanted to enter the trial, so I decided to take Cassi and Teka to the fun run.  I made it right on time and it was already packed.  I found an empty kennel for them and then set up my kennel for Teka, leaving Cassi in the other kennel.

serpentine on left coming from weaves

The jumpers course was set up with two sets of course numbers, so we could run twice with different course flow; unfortunately, it confused me and I missed part of both courses.  Teka would NOT do the weaves on the first course so I made her leave without finishing.  On the next course, I used the clicker and she made it through.  Now, if I could use a clicker during a trial, that would totally help, but alas, that is against the rules.

Jumpers course

Cassi was pretty excited to play.  She went around the start jump, which was a triple (pictured above), so we restarted.  She tried to go under the tire but I said no and she went through it.  (I'm sure that would be a refusal at trial.)

serpentine around to jump

The standard course was also set with two sets of course numbers.  Teka and Cassi both had trouble with the weaves and another lady thought her Vizsla didn't like how close they were to the wall.  As with the jumpers course, there was a serpentine, but the 3 jumps here were exactly in a row while they were more angled on the jumpers course.  Cassi did fantastic, and did the teeter (and I used the clicker, which she seemed to like.) Teka did well on the weaves when we were heading to the wall and I used the clicker.

weaves go straight back from jump

I had a chance to talk to a lady who has been doing agility a long time and been involved with dogs for decades.  She recommended that Teka might benefit from wearing ear plugs (one human ear plug cut in half) during trials to help her tune out the noise and nervous energy.  The lady who runs the place recommended I teach a verbal with the clicker; I'm not great at noises but I'll have to figure out a "click."  She also told me to be careful about running in socks because someone "broke her toe that way."  She doesn't want "outside" shoes on the matting, so I was running in socks because I only have one pair of athletic shoes that aren't humongous on me, and that pair is the one I've been wearing to my outside agility class, so they are dirty.

The upcoming trial will have all of the Excellent courses run first, then the Open and Novice levels will run.  After today's adventure, I'm not sure that I will enter Teka in the trial.  I usually enter Teka since I'll "be there anyway" but this trial, I can leave after Cassi is done.  Oh, what to do, what to do....

Valle Del Sol Golden Retriever AKC Agility Trial

Excellent JWW

Cassi ran first in Excellent A Jumpers with Weaves.  I'm not sure if (as another handler said) the starting jump to the weaves was directly into the morning sun, caused her to change her behavior, but she went really slow through the weaves.  She never really picked up speed, and it threw me off.  I didn't adjust well, so right before we got to the end, I called a switch--she normally would have taken the jump and turned, but she didn't take the jump.  That was her second refusal--of course, in Excellent, it's a non-qualify after the first mistake.

Excellent Standard

Then she had her Standard run.  She did the tire just fine (yay).  I wasn't where I planned to be after the dog walk, and she got a refusal at the #7 jump.  She did the teeter super-slow.  She missed her weave entry but completed them.  She was actually under time but did not qualify with the 2 refusals (jump and weave).

Open JWW

Teka had been waiting for a few hours when it was her turn to run Open Jumpers with Weaves.  She went over the first jump, entered the weaves, and then totally shut down.  We think Princess Teka decided it was too hot.

Open FAST

Next, she ran her FAST run.  I took her to the teeter so she would have something fun (she loves the teeter) to get her going.  But when we got to the send bonus, it was just way to much distance for her.  My husband gave me all kinds of grief about I shouldn't have entered her in that and I should have made her do the tunnel after I got my fault (when I thought I just had to leave the course, but I guess I could have gone up to the tunnel with her.)

Open Standard

She ran her Standard run, and actually got almost everything, until we got to the weaves.  She popped out right before the end and would not finish them.  She finished the course, but the failure to complete an obstacle kept her from qualifying.

Excellent FAST

Last, Cassi ran her FAST course.  I had to bribe her out of her kennel, she was so tired, probably from the heat, as she had been resting for a while, so I thought she'd be recovered.  She was doing okay, but slow--I took her around the outside loop.  But she could not get the send bonus as it was just too much distance for her, as slow as she was going.

I was feeling terrible today, on and off having serious pain and having uncomfortableness the rest of the time, so I wonder if that affected the dogs.  My husband just thinks it was too hot, Cassi is too old, and neither of them should be running FAST.  I really need to work distance with both of them but haven't figured out where to find the time.  Oh, and I still need bars for my jumps....

We also discussed that I haven't been at a trial for more than six months.  Besides not getting enough practice, it was interesting to see people who haven't seen me in all that time.  They were very vocal about their reactions to my weight loss.  I was really hoping the weight loss would make running the courses easier, but it was hard to tell what effect that had since I was in pain all day.

Update: I found the posted count results interesting.  Cassi's Excellent A Standard group had a Qualifying (Q) ratio of 21%.  Yeah, that's really low, isn't it?  Teka's Open Standard was 39% Q ratio.  Cassi's Excellent A JWW group was 30% and Teka's Open JWW group was 29%.  Wow, that's pretty bad, IMO.  Cassi's FAST group was 57% and Teka's was 31%.  Based on the October heat, if nothing else, we are not going to enter this trial in the future.

Kachina Kennel Club Agility Trial

It was raining during our drive to the University of Phoenix Stadium.  It drizzled on and off while we were setting up and unpacking our gear.  And then it stopped raining but stayed overcast, the skies threatening to dump rain on us.  Todays runs were "small to tall" so Cassi was the last dog to run Open FAST.  Since it was so damp out, I planned my course so that Cassi did jumps and weaves but skipped the teeter and the A-frame.  The send bonus was lined up perfectly coming out of the weaves, to go over a jump, into the far side of the tunnel, and back over the jump.  We did a couple of jumps on our way out, skipping the contact obstacles which I think everyone else had done, so the judge sounded a little surprised to say, "I guess that's it."  Cassi was listening to me and did her weaves awesome.  She hesitated at the tunnel but she did it.  That finished her Open FAST title!  She had a first place (as the only dog at her height.)

I was glad that I didn't enter Teka in Open FAST, as it was extremely unlikely she would have taken the distance tunnel, although it would have been nice to run her in the morning.  We had to wait for quite a while for the rest of my runs, and Teka's were last.  During our long break, I volunteered to be a pole setter for Novice FAST, and then we went inside the stadium to do a quick shopping trip at the Pet Club (a little cheaper at the show than buying at the store.)  We also got a few freebies from Petsmart, and got a hot dog.  (for breakfast?  It was still pretty early...)

After a long wait, we started having ring conflicts.  I walked Cassi's Open Standard Course, but before she could run, I had to walk Cassi's Excellent Jumpers course.  The Standard course started with a tire jump, which I thought could work to my advantage since she has been pausing at the tire, which in the course could be a refusal, but at the beginning, her time doesn't start until she goes through.  And she didn't pause at all!  We went on to the dog walk, taking a right turn to a jump and then curved tunnel, entering the end closest to me.  She came out the other end, over the A-frame, into the chute, out to a jump (and we got some distance there!) and a sharp left turn over another jump leading to another jump, U-turning to the next jump, and a slight left turn to a table.  Then we had a U-shaped sequence: double jump, panel jump, teeter.  She did fine on the teeter, and we moved on to the next jump, then U-turned into the weaves and she got her entry and finished them.  We ended with a tunnel.  She had no faults and was under time.  She did almost leave the ring between the double jump and the panel jump, but she came back quickly.  This finished her Open Standard title!  AND she got first place because 2 or 3 dogs got NQs and the one that did get a Q got 2nd place.  She is now in ALL Excellent level courses.  (Downside: LOTS of dogs enter in Excellent relative to Novice and Standard, but they do separate the course walk through and running into 3 groups of small, medium, tall.)

After a short break, we ran the Excellent Jumpers with Weaves course.  We started with a 2 jump lead out, with me on her right, and she did 4 jumps and then a sharp right turn into the weaves.  She got her entry but popped out at the 10th pole.  I heard later that an agility person was walking by with a stroller, but Cassi should have finished anyway.  I had her re-do the weaves and she finished them.  I later found out that she had a non-qualifying run (NQ) as soon as she popped out of the weaves--no mistakes in Excellent!  Out of the weaves, a slight right turn to a jump far away, which she did fine with the distance, then a sharp right over the next jump, leading to another that lead to a jump that she had to turn right over, then left into the curved tunnel.  Coming out of the tunnel, she went over 8 more jumps that included a couple of switches and ended with a triple jump.  She rocked the course except for the mistake on the weaves.

The sun came out for Teka's runs!  Teka's Novice Standard course was similar to Cassi's.  She did awesome, even on the distance at the chute to the next jump, which is where the similarities ended.  That led to the teeter, then the table.  Coming off the table, there were 6 weaves to a panel jump, U-turn to a jump leading to the broad jump, into the tunnel, coming out to a finish jump.  She did everything exactly as I asked, with enthusiasm, and had a clean run.  She finished her Novice Standard title!  AND she got 1st place--a great accomplishment for the size group she was running with, in my opinion.  Now she is in Open level for all of her courses.

I had to walk Teka's Jumpers course once before taking her into her Standard run, and a half time after we were done with her Standard run.  Fortunately, it was the same as Cassi's course until the third jump after the tunnel.  The rest of the jumps were a little more of a round course with a switch to the last (double) jump.  She did some slow weaves but she did all 12 of them.  Other than the weaves, she was enthusiastic and happy and she had another clean run.  This was her first qualifying score in Open.  She got 4th place--not bad with those slow weaves.

Although I had some intermittent pain throughout the day, it was worth it.  With four Q's, 3 of which finished titles, it was a very successful day.  (Cassi may have been "promised" a bird to get that goofy look; Teka was less pleased with this part of the day.)

Fiesta Cluster AKC Agility Trial

We drove across town (after a detour off the 101) to Westworld, where we encountered a stream of idiots who work there.  First was the guy who took our money but couldn't tell us how to get to the agility unloading zone--so he sent us straight ahead into the main (east) parking.  Then the guy at main parking who obviously had never heard the words "agility" or "unloading zone."  Then the guy near the RV parking who was just a jerk--since he did not know what we were asking, he was rude.  So we parked in the vendor/dog show unloading zone, walked across the whole dog show to the agility area, and found the agility unloading zone.  I asked the guy monitoring the area how we could get there and had the most annoying, circular conversation of  the day.  We found out that we should not have entered the main parking but gone down the street to the west entrance, which can really only be accessed by exiting the 101 from the south (rather than the north as we arrived).  We pulled the truck around and unloaded; M took the truck back to the main parking.

Cassi ran first in Open Standard.  She was doing pretty well until I sent her into the other end of a tunnel she had already gone through.  I'm not sure why she hesitated, but I wasn't expecting it and she pulled her out, getting a refusal.  We continued on, and she did a really great A-frame.  Coming off the table, she went over a jump and then slid and face-planted on the grass when she had to turn back towards me.  She did a good teeter.  Then she paused in front of the tire (like she does), looked at me and moved to the side, getting another refusal.  We finished well enough, but she did not get a Q (qualifying run).

My walk-throughs for Cassi's Excellent Jumpers with Weaves course and Teka's Novice Standard course were at the same time and I got very nervous about my impending conflict.  I was getting hot by then too, not helped by running between two rings and trying to figure out which dog would go first.  I'm not sure if it was my stress or the heat or if she just wasn't feeling well, but Cassi did not act like she wanted to go.  On the course, she did what I asked, but she was slow and got a refusal, so she got a NQ (non-qualifying run).

Then I ran over to the other ring to run Teka.  She did everything I asked, without being too slow, except for the (6 pole) weaves.  I almost took her off course when I got confused after the tire jump, thinking I needed to go to the teeter but still had a jump first.  She recovered and finished strong.  And got a Q--third place.

We had a break for a while and then everything was total chaos.  The ring where Teka was going to run Open Jumpers with Weaves was running behind, so she was about to run when the Open FAST course was ready for walk-through.  FAST is the hardest walk-through for me too.  I ran to get Teka into her course, where she had a great lead out--I was standing with 2 jumps between us and she jumped them both when I released her from her stay.  She had a little trouble with the weaves, so even with our strong finish, she didn't finish in time to get a Q.

I was able to walk the FAST course for another minute, and then all of a sudden it was Cassi's turn and I wasn't ready.  I ran to get her, and warned M that Teka was only a few dogs away.  Well, maybe I shouldn't have done that, because he missed Cassi's run.  She did the weaves just fine.  I thought the best way to go for flow would take her to the tire jump, and since there aren't refusals in FAST, I went for it.  I think the judge was kind of amused by Cassi's pause and jump.  She got her bonus, finished strong, and got a Q--second place.

Then I had some time with Teka, so I tried to keep her happy.  I thought we were doing well, until we got on course.  She just didn't want to do anything (except the teeter which she did just fine).  I was trying to send her over the jump in the bonus, but she pulled off the first time.  So I took her around to another obstacle, trying to get some momentum, and she still wouldn't do it.  And I tried a third time and she wouldn't do it.  We left the ring--defeated.  I mean, with a NQ.  That was a pretty frustrating run to end the day.

After some shopping, we brought the truck back over to the agility unloading zone and M sent me to get my final scores.  And then I waited.  And waited.  And asked about them--they weren't ready.  And waited.  M had to go back to the east parking since it was more than 10 minutes (unloading zone limit).  He came back and reported that they tried to charge him for parking again.  Power hungry idiots.  I finally got my scores and ribbons and we left.  A long, hot, frustrating day for such a fun sport.

Wags for Wishes AKC Agility Trial

We decided to enter one day at Wags for Wishes. Cassi missed her weave entry on her first course, the FAST course (so it's not a refusal) but then she did pretty well and got her distance bonus. The Open Jumpers course was very similar to the Excellent course, and Cassi did awesome--one of a handful of dogs that managed to get a Q. She got Qs in Open Standard and Open Jumpers with Weaves and Open FAST--she went 3 for 3!

Teka ran Open FAST and Open Jumpers with Weaves but wasn't able to get either one. She almost got the FAST but didn't get her distance bonus. If she comes into me, I have a lot of trouble getting her to go back out and over a jump. She did get her first Q in Novice Standard. It was slow but she did everything I asked of her. There was a very good example of how she doesn't go to the most obvious choice, instead making me work extra hard to take her to everything she needs to do.

Arrowhead Kennel Club Agility Trial

Teka ran early, while it was still cool, and got a second place Q in Novice Jumpers, earning her title.

After a long wait, when it was getting hot, was Cassi's Open Jumpers course. She missed her weave entry, messed up the correction, and popped out at #10. Then I thought she had committed to an out-around for a jump sequence where I need to get across to the other side of the next jump, but she hadn't, so we got another refusal. Not a Q.

Next was her Open Standard run. She got distracted briefly but nailed her weaves, did the teeter fine, and finished strong. This earned her a first place Q--the only Q in her height.

Next was Open FAST. Teka ran first, really nailing the serpentine and the send bonus of two tunnels, but we ran over time. Then I ran it with Cassi, thinking she could do it but she lost time on the serpentine and totally messed up the send bonus so we went over time without completing it. It was pretty difficult, not very good flow, and the time is so short. I was just so pleased with how well Teka stayed focused.

Our last course was Teka's Novice Standard. She seemed really upbeat so I was a little hopeful. The first half of the course was just like Open Standard. We started off well, but as we approached the weaves, I said "with me" and she knew it was the weaves, so she did the nervous pee. Oh! She still has NO Novice Standard Q's and she is done with Novice FAST and Novice Jumpers.

The weekend tally: Cassi got a Q each day and Teka got the three Qs she needed to finish 2 titles. I wore my "Change your attitude" shirt today to remind me to breathe and have fun, and remove the dog from the situation if it's not working. I think I helped them both have a good time for the last trial they will have until the fall. This summer, we will need to practice weaves (in public) and tire jumps, and broad jumps for Teka.

Kachina Kennel Club Agility Trial

I was running a little late to the show but made my walk-through for Cassi's Open FAST. She didn't get much "me" time since she was the very first dog to run. She did alright until she got to the send bonus--she went through the tunnel, then around the jump, back over the wrong way, and we were done.

Teka's Novice FAST was next, with a very similar course, but less distance to the send bonus. She did pretty well, although she got very distracted right before the tunnel. I got her focus back and she finished nicely. That was a Q, finishing her Novice FAST title. She gets moved up to Open Sunday--this will be much harder for her as the send bonus is more distance from me.

Cassi ran Open Standard. It was pretty difficult--I was concerned that the first two obstacles were her worst ones, the tire and the teeter. She did have a hard time deciding to go through the tire, and then she did the teeter just fine. And it was all downhill from there. She took the jumps at odd angles, popped out of the weaves at the 10th pole, went around a jump to go to the chute, which was not the next obstacle anyway. And then she pulled it together at the end and did a very pretty walk-it, turn into a tunnel, and a couple more jumps. Not a Q!

Now things got hectic. I had to walk Teka's next course, then walk Cassi's next course, then run Teka, then run Cassi. When I was walking Teka's course, Anabel told me that I had been crowding Cassi, especially on the weaves, so I was thinking about that when I walked her course. Also, she reminded me that when Cassi is frantic, I need to pause and breathe and regain her focus instead of feeding off her.

So, here's how it went. Teka's course was Novice Standard. The tire was again the first obstacle. Teka looked at it, sniffed around, went around it, continued sniffing, not paying any attention to me. I asked to be excused and took her off the course. For her non-effort, she got a refusal, off-course and elimination.

Cassi's course was Open Jumpers. She did very well and would have done even better if I hadn't forgotten where I was going a third of the way in. She got a refusal but we recovered and she got a Q.

After my walk through for Teka's Novice Jumpers, I grabbed some french fries and Teka for some focus and play time. She seemed to be recovering from whatever funk she was in. (Several people insisted that taking her off the other course REALLY helped her attitude.) So we ran the course and Teka did everything I asked. Well, she got a refusal at the last obstacle, which was a tunnel--totally odd--but almost everyone was having that issue. Anyway, she got her Q so we had a good ending.

Fiesta Cluster AKC Agility Trial

Cassi got a Q in Novice Standard and Open Jumpers--her first Open Q. She did not get the Novice FAST because she decided to stand on the teeter and then jump off the side and ran out of time. It was disappointing because the course had a choice for the distance work--either weaves or a tunnel a little further away. Cassi chose the weaves and DID them perfectly. And then didn't Q--so annoying. If I had been faster improvising, she could have still Q'd without the teeter. Oh well.

Teka got a Novice Jumpers Q. It was with a lot of spectators and I had to do the special weave treatment for her: I told her to get in, and then gave her the out, in routine through the weaves, which was super slow and everyone laughed. But she made up the time and got her Q.

So Teka got one each day and Cassi went 5 for 6. Great weekend!

Fiesta Cluster AKC Agility Trial

Cassi went 3 for 3! She got Qs in FAST, Jumpers, and Standard. She moved up to Open FAST Sunday.

Teka got a Q in FAST.

Wags for Wishes Agility Trial

It was really cold this morning--we could see our breath. We headed to the FAST ring. Cassi did okay but was not able to complete the send bonus. It was a tunnel and then teeter, with the tunnel coming out toward the line rather than the teeter, so she came out across the line. However, she did go back and attempt the teeter, so I was happy with her performance.

Teka was able to complete the course and the send bonus for 56 points (needing 50) under the time limit. I was excited about her run because she actually seemed excited and NOT stressed. This was her first qualifying score!

After the runs, we had a very long wait. I don't understand the way this trial runs. The jumpers and standard courses ran Excellent, Open, and Novice in that order. So they ran the Excellent small dogs in one ring and large dogs in the other, then swapped, while all the Open and Novice sit around doing nothing. Then they run Open in both rings, with Excellent LEAVING and Novice waiting some more. Then they run Novice jumpers followed by standard, in the hottest part of the day, while everyone is packing up and leaving. The Novice walk-through for standard was actually happening while the Novice jumpers were still running. Nothing like a little extra stress...

Anyway, we ran jumpers and they both ran over time, but Cassi finished strong and actually, Teka found her focus near the end. The standard course was just too long for the heat of the day for them. Teka got distracted by a guy that walked up to the ring right next to the Aframe and stood there and her weaves suck, but she didn't potty in the ring! Cassi flubbed her weaves and went under the tire jump at the end. I have to remember to just stop her when she does that instead of trying again! Oh, if only they had a better handler....

Wags for Wishes Agility Trial

First was FAST class. I walked it differently for Cassi and Teka, but Cassi decided she wanted to go the way I was planning for Teka, kind of. She went over the first jump and then beelined for the teeter! And did it quickly! I actually thought we qualified but I must have stepped on the bonus line or something cause I got a fault and in FAST, you can only get a fault on the send bonus. She did the bonus, so I'm disappointed in whatever I did! Mike and his dad had a communication problem, so Mike was not there to see or video.

Teka went next, and actually did pretty well, but after she got through the tunnel for the send bonus, she didn't do the jump and came back across the line, so she got a fault too. And then she poo'd in the ring. Aargh! Well, at least she wasn't going to qualify anyway.

In Jumpers with Weaves, Cassi did very well, even got the weaves. Q!

Teka was harder to get through the course, but we managed to get through it. The weaves took long enough to keep her from getting a Q, and she had to be coached through every obstacle. She is a LOT of work.

Our last course was Standard. Cassi did very well, including a tire jump and a fast teeter. She took a bit of a detour when I had a late call; she came off the dog walk and over a jump, and I called her to the weaves but she was already heading off to explore. I got her back and had to coach her into a sit on the table, but she managed to get her Q. Whew....

Teka started off well, but she wasted a lot of time on the weaves and never got the last one (and it was only 6!), so she did not Q. The upside is that she did all the obstacles and I was able to get her attention when she started looking for a place to pee.

Another interesting thing today was that Teka is acting like she wants to play with other dogs on occasion, so I am encouraging her with a good girl. Of course the one time she did it in front of Mike, she started growling, so I smacked her butt lightly with the floppy Frisbee to break her focus on the other dog, and led her away. (It was someone who knows us.) I don't know if I'm doing the right thing, but I don't want her to think that other dogs mean bad things for her.

I am trying to keep my hopes low, but Cassi could finish two titles tomorrow. (JWW and FAST) My goals for tomorrow are: with Cassi, fast teeter, no hesitation on the tire, and for me, early calls; for Teka, keeping her motivated and reducing her stress level, completing the course and hopefully all of the obstacles. A complete weave from Teka would be awesome!

Valle del Sol Golden Retriever AKC Agility Trial

Two days, two dogs, two rings, one me! Teka was in the wrong height class; she has been measured now and will be entered at 20 inches instead of 24, but I entered her in 24, same as Cassi. That was NOT good. I think Cassi was feeling it that she didn't get enough one-on-one time before her runs and she was a total flake half the time. She also did the super slow teeter moves and the refusing the tire and didn't get one set of weaves completely correct all weekend. I'm not even sure if she had fun, but I think she did at least some of the time.
Teka did much better than Cassi but she went right after Cassi all but once so she didn't get enough "focus on me" time and ended two runs with (probably from stress) peeing on the course. One of them, a FAST course, she actually would have qualified if she hadn't peed. She also had some trouble with the tire, and near the end of the weekend, the extra tall jump height was getting to her--she started dropping bars on jumps. But she stayed pretty focused on me (some sniffing issues, but that's to be expected at her FIRST trial!) and she does a beautiful teeter and broad jump. Weaves are super slow; we'll have to work on that.
I was very stressed out and probably did not help my dogs with that energy. I tried breathing but I'm really glad I decided to skip the USDAA trial next weekend. The next AKC trial is the following weekend when I have to be out at Robbins Butte for the VSWC Hunt Test, and the next one is the BIG show Cynosports at Westworld, happening while I'm in Denver, so the next AKC Trial for me to consider will be Wags for Wishes around New Year's. The only other trial I know of before then is the USDAA Contact Zonies show the first weekend in December, which I may do, but I won't have the truck, as well as Mike or his dad to help out.

I would like to get a real teeter so I can work on Cassi's issue. I also need to take my weave poles out to some parks and work on them with both girls. And more!

It was still too hot for agility running this weekend. I didn't get sunburned but I went to bed at 8 last night and slept for about 10 hours straight.

Agility

I'm submitting entries for both Cassi and Teka at the AKC Agility Trial to be held at PV Park on the 24th and 25th. That's Jumpers with Weaves (6, not 12), Standard, and FAST for each of them each day, so I am going to run 12 times. I've apparently lost my mind somewhere; if anyone finds it, please return it to me--I'm too busy and lazy to check the lost and found.

Kachina Kennel Club AKC Agility Trial

Cassi and I had so much fun this weekend. At this AKC trial, we were able to run Jumpers with Weaves, FAST, and Standard courses on Saturday and again on Sunday. Cassi got two FAST qualifying scores and a JWW Q. FAST required 50 points so she just barely got the second Q. She would have had another JWW but she went under the hoop (tire) jump and everyone laughed. There were a lot of spectators, and once Cassi hears laughter, she thinks it's great and does it again. Class clown! So we'll be working this summer on the hoop and the teeter, which she is still doing super slow. She was really listening to me, so I was extremely happy with the weekend.

All are Novice A 24" Jump Height

4/4 FAST Score 59 Time 30.66

4/4 JWW Score 100 Time 25.64
4/5 FAST Score 50 Time 24.54