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U-AG1 Winfree's Best Kept Secret JS-N, OA, OAJ "Bethany"
U-AG2 Winfree's Summer Tans and Breezes SJ, JS-N, RS-N,
OA, OAJ "Breezy" |
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| On October 2, 2010, Bethany earned her NA (Novice Agility) title at a trial sponsored by the Greater Fredericksburg Kennel Club. The trial was held outdoors at Fredericksburg Fairgrounds. The judge was Melissa Frye. | ||
| On September 18, 2010, at a trial sponsored by the Potomac Valley Belgian Sheepdog Club, both Bethany and Breezy earned their NAJ titles under Judge Keith Vanhousen. Also on the 18th, under Judge Denise Vanhousen, Breezy earned her NA title. Sunday's trial on the 19th was sponsored by the Warrenton Kennel Club and yielded Bethany's second qualifying run in Novice Standard under Mr. Vanhousen. Both trials were held at Warrenton Kennel Club Grounds in Rectortown, VA. | ||
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Hi Lisa, You can again be proud of our little agility athletes. We competed in our second trial ever, this time UKC (United Kennel Club) in Fredericksburg, at our home training facility, Pup N Iron. Both girls ran four times each day, twice in AG I (simple, basic course) and twice in AG II (includes several unusual pieces of equipment like a crawl tunnel and things that move when navigated; e.g., a swing bridge). Of our 16 runs, we again came home very well decorated with 9 Q's, two new titles and lots of first and second place rosette ribbons. There were a few bumps in the road, like "What the heck is this pause box (different than the table)?" and what does those words "sit" and "down" mean again? I think that these temporary brain lapses might have been due to stress over the earlier pause box experience. Anyway, the problem areas were easily identifiable and hopefully fixable. Yesterday, we took the day off and went to
Richmond where we walked the girls around Stony Point Mall which is dog
friendly and went to the Three Dog Bakery. Yes, it is a bakery for
dogs! Today, we are off to our private training lessons which are in an
open air horse barn. And, yes, the girls have learned all about horses
and the accompanying smells at the barn. Tonight, we have Canine
Freestyle at Pup N Iron and tomorrow we have Foundation Training for Dog
Performance Sports. These girls love to stay busy and be challenged
with new things. Be sure to tell Tanzy that she can be proud of her
sister and half sister! |
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Hi Lisa!! Bethany, Breezy and I competed in our first agility trial this past weekend in Leesburg VA. Our instructors asked me what my goals for the weekend were. I said that in addition to having fun, I wanted to try for a "Q" (Qualifying score in agility lingo). They both said that hoping for a "Q" was too lofty a goal for a first time. They said to be happy if the dogs don't bite the judge (a joke, I think), don't soil in the ring and to have a lot of fun. We far surpassed these goals coming home incredibly well decorated with 28 ribbons. Both girls ran in 4 events each day for a total of 8 events each (Jumpers and Regular). Out of the 16 runs, we earned "Q"s in 12 of them plus lots of first and second place ribbons. Breezy earned 7 "Q"s out of 8 runs with 1st places in all of them. Her 1 second place was behind her sister in the one event where she did not "Q" (I think because she ran over the time limit due to a little sniffing detour). Bethany earned "Q"s in 5 of her 8 events and usually finished in second after Breezy. Only 1 bar was knocked down all weekend (Bethany). I also found out what happens when the handler makes a late and indecisive turn. The dog continues in forward motion which, in our case, took Bette over 2 out of sequence jumps and landed her very close to the exit gate. So, she exited and headed straight to the food concession table. I turned to the judge and smiled and said that we would do better next time. And we did. Both girls got consistently better, faster and mostly more cooperative and focused with each run. I was worried that they might be bored/tired at the end of a long weekend spending lots of wait time in crates that they were not at all used to. I was wrong. Their final runs were their best. What a way to finish a super weekend. I will say, in Bethany's defense, that because the running order all weekend put her first, that she was the recipient of all this novice handler's errors. I quickly learned from them and Breezy was the lucky beneficiary by running after her sister. If we decide to actually register them with this ASCA organization, Breezy will have already earned Novice titles in Jumpers and Regular. Bethany will have a Novice title in Jumpers and only needs 1 more "Q" to be titled in Regular as well. Anyway, we all had a great time and whether you call this bragging or just reporting the facts, I am very proud of my little athletes. As today is my birthday, I can think of a better gift than the terrific performances given by these little girls. Hurray! Out next trial is in 2 weeks in Fredericksburg. Included are a few photos of my little stars. Diane, Bethany and Breezy February 2010 |
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