2 USDAA WEEKENDS, 6 TITLES!!

We started our trialing season in McKinney for USDAA. I like the McKinney venue and we usually have good luck there. They have a nice picnic area out back and we take the girls out there on Saturday to let them blow off some steam before going back to the motel.

I entered Marley in 2 Advanced Standard runs. The first day she was awesome and clean until coming down the DW and I saw that little gleam in her eye. You know the little gleam that says 'I'm jumping over the contact zone'. And she did. She leapt right over that yellow with a big grin on her face. But there was so many positive things about her run that far overshadow one error. And she was under time!! We have struggled before in USDAA with not making time and both days she was under time. Sunday she had some Marley moments and had to take an off course tunnel, jump off the Aframe and she cheated on her weaves. One thing I've learned with Marley is regardless of whether she makes an error or not, we keep running. If I stop and try to correct her it frustrates her and we are just better off to just keep running.

Kalea-Kate continued to show she is a consistent little agility dog. She Q'd 5/8 runs. Her NQ's were both Standard runs where she was refusing to down on the table and she was taken off the course and put in her crate. The judge was super nice about it and even offered me some advice. She also NQ'd an Advanced Gamblers run. Got the gamble, but we were totally out of position when the buzzer went off and she ran out of time but she completed the gamble correctly. She finally got her Starters Relay Title, and her Starters Snooker Title. We went for the Q and not the win in Snooker because I wanted that title!!. She also earned her Advanced Jumpers Title (3 out of 4). Very proud of her!!

The next weekend we went to Holly Springs, MS. Marley didn't compete as the dirt there in previous years hasn't been the greatest and I didn't want to risk it with her. But this year the dirt was good.

KK started off with a Q/1 in Starters Standard with me doing a happy dance at the table. She immediately jumped on the table and went down. She was a little leery of the teeter and was crawling up it. Painfully slow. My teeter wasn't weighted down on Thursday and she got on it and was dumped off and then when I got her back on it, Marley barreled up behind her and threw her off. I did put her back on after that and thought she was ok but apparently she had that in the back of her head and was scared of it. The teeter cost us Q's in Snooker and Gamblers. She ran Steeplechase clean but didn't make the time cut off...perhaps when she stopped at the top of the Aframe and admired her kingdom, she lost too much time. In Masters Jumpers I forgot the course. OOPS!

I let someone get under my skin on Saturday and it really interfered with my mindset and game. After a pep talk by a great friend, I decided that I wasn't going to let another person ruin my game. I've let this person upset me for awhile and it's just not going to happen anymore. She's not worth it.

On Sunday, KK and I were unstoppable! She started off with a Q/1 and Title in Advanced Gamblers with a DW in the gamble. Over to Advanced Relay where we ran clean and got a Q/1. Starters Standard required a happy dance at the table and she did the teeter slowly but was upright and not crawling. Q/2 and Title and along with that she earned her Agility Dog Title. The judge was super nice and cheered for us and congratulated us on the table and teeter performance.

KK wanted to give the judge a kiss!!

 

Our last event was Master Jumpers. It was a serpentine all the way across the ring. I was a little worried that it might be over our head. But, KK ran it flawless and won the C22 division running it a little over 5.2 yps. So proud of my baby girl! We are getting it together and our confidence is growing every trial.

ANNUALS

I've gotten a little behind blogging so I've got a little catching up to do.


Because I'm nuts and it's easier for me, I take all 4 girls into the vet for their annuals on the same day. We take a late appointment and they are usually shutting down by the time we leave. They staff are always amazed at how under control all 4 of my dogs are. We get in the door calmly and everyone is usually chilled in the waiting room except for Marley who looks for a corner to hide.


Everyone is healthy and doing well. My two senior girls, Molly and Missy are doing well at almost 14 and 12 1/2 years old. They are getting some old girls bumps and Molly has some arthritis in her knee for which she is on daily meds for.


Kalea-Kate is in excellent health, just a little chubby. She doesn't have a waist, looks like a little sausage. This was her first vet appointment where she didn't do a blood curling scream during the blood draw and fecal. The vet 'noted' she's growing up. :)


Marley on the other had a mixed appointment. Her weight is good (getting ribby) and we discussed getting a few pounds off her for her hip health. Her hemangioma has not healed and we had to have it re-frozen. If it doesn't come off this time, she will have to have it surgically removed. Her wounds from the car accident have healed. The vet noted her hips are stiffer and he doesn't think it will be long before she's on daily pain meds. He looked at Molly and Missy and said ' Marley won't be like them at their age.' I really had to fight back the tears. I feel like we've been living under a dark cloud since her HD diagnosis and now that cloud is getting darker and closer.

I'm coming to terms that we aren't going to achieve her agility goals but I would give back every Q and every Title if it meant she wouldn't be in pain. I want so bad for her to know life without daily pain, but that's not going to happen. I can only love her and give her the best care possible.

BACK TO CLASS

We got back to agility class last week. It was our first class in probably 2 months. I have been working with KK on distance, independent obstacles, layering, lateral distance at weaves, and rights & lefts over the holidays.  So it was good to get back to class to see where we stand and where our weak spots are and what we need to work on. KK as usual is a little rockstar! Miss Marley came to class too and she was awesome. Good work attitude and very much wanted to please me. That girl loves the cool weather! It was a great class and I learned a lot and left in a very positive mood!!

Next weekend we head to McKinney for some USDAA agility!!! The next weekend more USDAA in Holly Springs.

A YEAR OF TITLES

2013 was a roller coaster year for us. As I think back on it, it seemed like we trialed all year long. But we didn't. This was the first year that Marley was on rest more than she competed. She basically competed in March, June and July. She earned 2 titles but I am more proud that I got to run with my girl. I love all my dogs and have special bonds with all of them, but Marley is my soul. I can never undo what was done to her in her first few weeks of life. I think that is why we are so connected. She needs me in a way none of my other girls do. I have had people tell me to retire her because she doesn't have a high Q rate or because she has her moments when she doesn't seem interested. But what people don't know is that I love to run with Marley. I never know what to expect with her, but whatever she does makes me happy. So I will run with Marley as long as she wants to run with me. And when her hips won't let her run anymore, she will still be my best buddy. Agility has just brought us closer, it doesn't define her.

Kalea-Kate competed almost 9 months and earned 8 titles in 2 different venues. She is improving each and every run. We are learning how to run together and she's teaching me to be a better handler.  I have big goals for KK. She's young and pretty inexperienced, and I don't think she will achieve our big goals this year. But I think 2015 as a 3 year old, she will have some big titles in front of her name! Regardless of when we get those big titles, we will continue running and learning together!

MARLEY UPDATE

Marley was hit and went up underneath a car on Jan. 2. She knows where she can get out of the fence and she got out. She came in bleeding profusely from a wound to her ear, was limping on the left rear leg and had motor oil all over her face. She spend the next day at the vet. She was lucky. The wound to her ear didn't require stitches and she was placed on pain meds for a few days. She also was having a bad time with her tummy and got put on Flagyl for 10 days to combat the severe diarrhea.

She is driving me nuts wanting to go back out in the front yard to explore. Marley is a smart dog and can open doors. Yesterday she managed to hit the gate latch at the exact time a gust of wind came up and she got out and took Missy and KK with her. Thankfully she didn't stay out long and came back unscathed. Marley is a Marley! :)

2013 AGILITY TRIAL YEAR REVIEW

2013 was a good year for us in the agility ring.

The end of January found us in McKinney at an AKC trial. Marley finished off her Excellent JWW title. She had a good Master Standard run going until she stopped in front of a jump to cough. She also earned her first Master JWW Q but I caused a refusal in her Standard run.

March was Monroe AKC. Marley was phenomenal!  She Q'd every Standard run and earned her first QQ. Miss Kalea-Kate debut was in Monroe at the age of 16 mo. She came off the start line in her very first agility run and earned her first Q, Novice FAST. She proceeded to earn 2 Novice JWW legs with well over 4 yps. She had some great moments in her Standard runs but had some issues with the panel jump (never practiced it). She had a great rookie debut!! The very next weekend we went to Shreveport for another AKC trial. Marley earned a couple of Q's before coming up lame and I had to pull her from the trial. KK earned her Novice JWW Title (3 times in the ring, 3 Q's). She also added another Novice FAST Q to her weekend. KK decided that contacts were optional and didn't do a single one all weekend.

Marley continued to be lame and stayed on hip rest until the end of May. She was Xrayed form nose to tail to see if there was any other skeletal issues besides her HD that could have been causing the lameness. They found nothing. Then she had a mass appear suddenly on her shoulder. It was aspirated several times and a sample was finally sent to Texas A&M. The results came back as an infection within a fat pocket. Since she was already on antibiotics for her tummy, she didn't require any additional treatment. The mass disappeared as quickly as it appeared. The vet confided in me after the results came in that she thought it was going to come back as cancer.

KK and I went to Memphis AKC in April. Mar came along for the trip. KK earned her Novice FAST Title and Open JWW and FAST Q's. Her contact issues continued.

While Marley was sitting out on rest, I was notified by the AKC that Marley was the #1 AKC All American dog in Arkansas!! Very proud of my blue eyed girl!

Marley was cleared to run again so we went to Tulsa for another AKC trial. She ran well all weekend and earned a Master JWW Q. KK earned her Open JWW title and finally her contact issue was solved. She ran a smoking fast Novice Standard course on her last run of the weekend for a Q. We went to Springfield in June and ran on turf for the first time. Marley had a fantastic weekend going 3/4 with another QQ. KK earned another Novice Standard Q.

We were back in Monroe for more AKC in late June. Marley just wasn't herself. She was back on antibiotics for her stomach issues and had some lackluster runs. She did earn a Master Standard Q with a ton of MACH points. KK finished her Novice Standard Title. She also earned an Open Standard Q and an Excellent JWW Q. Her JWW run was over 5.3 yps!

July found us in Franklin for USDAA, my favorite agility venue. Marley was only entered in 4 runs. I caused 2 NQ's in Master Snooker. She missed a running contact in Advanced Standard one day and the second day we just weren't in sync. KK had a phenomenal weekend going 6/10. She ran a Starters Jumpers course in 20 seconds! Another great rookie debut.

July was a NADAC trial. Marley was just entered in Tunnelers and earned her Novice Tunnelers Title. KK had a great trial and went 5/10. KK got to see her foster mom too.

We were back in Springfield for another AKC trial in August. Mar earned a Master Standard Q but was not running as Mar. She began another round of hip rest. KK earned Open FAST and Standard Q's.

Marley stayed home in September when KK and I went to Shreveport for a USDAA trial. KK continued her steady agility performance. She earned 2 Titles: Starters Gamblers and Jumpers. Her Gamblers Title was 3/3 Q's.

I took Marley to the University of Missouri vet school for a hip replacement in October. Her HD had progressed but at the last minute I changed my mind and opted to manage her medically for now. She tore a pad on her foot after we got back and we spent a month trying to get that healed. KK finished her Open Standard Title in Carthage and her Open FAST Title in Little Rock. She also earned her first Excellent Standard Q. We also went to Holly Springs for some USDAA. KK had a great weekend earning a Starter Standard, Advanced Gamblers, Advanced Jumpers and Steeplechase Q's.

Our last trial of the year was December's Shreveport AKC trial. KK earned an Excellent FAST and Excellent Standard Q's. She had some great runs with just a bobble here and there. Our distance work is coming along and we are getting our act together as a team.

It was a good year for us. Marley earned 2 Titles  and the honor of being the #1 All American in Arkansas but was on hip rest for the majority of the year. I will continue to run her but on a very limited basis. Kalea-Kate debuted at 16 months and proceeded to earn 8 titles in just 9 months of competing. 2013 was a good year indeed!!

SHREVEPORT AKC

Miss Kalea-Kate had a good trial last weekend in Shreveport. She earned a Q/1st in Excellent FAST on Saturday. It was a send to teeter, then to jump, and then out to a tunnel. It was a course that had 2 send lines, which was a first for us. I haven't trained teeter from a distance but this is the second time we have encountered them in FAST so that is now on our training list. She had a beautiful Excellent JWW course going until I did a blind cross at the tunnel and wasn't fast enough and she blew past a jump. Her time was still fast enough that she would have won the entire Excellent/Masters JWW class. She had a beautiful Standard run but slid off the table.

Sunday in JWW, I did a long lead out and did not anticipate where she would land and she ended up behind me and took off course jump. I decided that since she had already NQ'd, that we would work on our distance. She did some great work on her own and I left her weaving and ran to end of the weaves and did a front cross and was waiting on her to finish the rest of the course. That was the first time I have left her weaving and went on. I'm learning to trust her and our training. She earned a Q/1st in Excellent Standard. Beautiful run. We couldn't buy a Standard Q back in the summer and now she's doing them effortlessly. I didn't get bitch barked once on that course! As I was recording her results in her agility book, I noticed that she is getting faster. Every Standard Q run has increased in YPS by a quarter second. She's becoming quite the little agility dog!

We are on an agility break for the next 6-8 weeks. I am planning on more USDAA trials this coming year. Excited to get back to my 'roots'!!