Our big day...

On Sunday at the Gateway Agility Club of St. Louis trial in O'Fallon IL, Maggie earned her Master Agility Champion Title. It hasn't been that long since we realized that getting this prestigious title would even be possible, and I could hardly believe it was happening.

You can tell from these photos that Maggie is the one that did all the work... I don't think I ever appreciate how far I am able to work from this little dog to save me countless steps. My role in this has been pretty simple... point her at the right thing and stay the heck out of her way!

By the time we got to the final jump I had completely stopped breathing. While I don't remember much of our run, I do remember this moment. I remember thinking... "all we have is one last jump as long as she doesn't knock the bar.... and Maggie almost NEVER knocks a bar, so this is our moment!"

But what would a moment like this be without friends to celebrate it with!

In fact, there are a couple of friends that I have to say thanks to. First, a HUGE thank you to the the people at Missouri Kansas Border Collie Rescue who were Maggie's first home... and especially the McVeys, her foster family, who were the first people to show her love and kindness. Thanks to Kim Berkley at Dog Sports at Kim's in Caseyville, IL. When we first met Kim, Maggie was afraid of her own shadow, but Kim saw Maggie's potential and taught me how to bring out her best. Kim gave us the very best foundation training and prevented me from making big mistakes.

Starting from the left in this photo, our friend Sue who also trained and runs a rescue dog. She has been our cheerleader from the beginning, and knows the extra difficulties of working with a dog with "history" and the extra pride is watching them overcome it.

Next, our best bud Carol who started at the same time as us and we've been through everything together. Carol is the one who convinced me that Maggie should compete in agility. She actually filled out the ILP application and took the pictures to get Maggie's AKC number. We trial together, we train together, we laugh together, and sometimes we even cry together.

Anyone in the agility world knows the next person.... Joan is a premier handler and has taken us to the next level. When we started agility, we would watch Joan from the sidelines and admire her handling techiniqes. Before long, we were taking lessons, and now I'm honored to call Joan a friend. She always knows the right thing to say to cheer us up when we make a mistake, and she is always the first one to say, good job!.

Last, but not least is Chris, and I can't say enough good things about her. When we began, Novice agility was always the last to run, and with a 24" dog, we were usually one of the last dogs there. By the time we ran, it was only Carol and I left. Except for one experienced handler who would stay and cheer us on... that was Chris. From our very first runs she has been there to applaud, to cheer, and to laugh with us. But more than that, Chris always brings some extra fun to the trial and helps us to remember that it isn't always about the titles, or the times, or the points. Sometimes its just about being with your friends (2 legged and 4 legged) and making some memories together.

There are many more people to thank, but this has gone on long enough. So I'll wrap it up with just one more thing.

Thanks Maggie girl.... you are a one in a million dog and you've brought me such joy. If not for you, I would have missed a lot of good times and not met a lot of fun people. Here's to a long agility career for the both of us!

We still miss you big girl...

We first met Murphy at the Reynolds County Fair. We watched a demonstration of some great herding dogs before the team penning event and the announcer said "for any of you that were impressed with that, Bob has a litter of Fay's puppies over here and you could probably talk him into selling you one!" We went over just to look.

A few years before I had been in an obedience class with my cocker, and a fellow classmate had a border collie. It was my first exposure to the breed and my heart would speed up when Ritzy would leap high into the air, spin, and land at heal position when her handler said "finish." I knew then that one day I would own one of these crazy aerobatic wonders, but I hadn't expected to find one in the back of a pickup at a county fair.

The pups were all cute, and I had no idea what to look for in a BC. But when that split face looked up at me, I knew she was going home with us. She was undersocialized, skinny, and full of fleas and I loved her from the first instant. She loved the kids as much as they loved her and she wanted to be where they were, whether that meant in the pool or in the top bunk of their beds. Except for one chewing incident, Murph never gave us a moment's trouble. She was the world's best babysitter, and she would jump into the pool if she thought someone was under water too long. She was a frisbee maniac and I could take her anywhere, without a lead, and she would behave without incident.

Unfortunately, her life was cut short and we lost her at about 10 years following a battle with an auto immune disease. We fought, she fought it; but it was a battle that wasn't to be won.

Six years ago this week Murphy passed over the rainbow bridge, and I miss her as much today as I did then.

I love you big girl... please wait for me, I can't wait to see you again.

A day to remember

Those of you that know me probably know that my mom is in her late 80s and suffering from short-term memory loss and dementia. She is currently living with my brother, but she is still physically able-bodied for a woman her age. So this weekend I had her over to play in the pool. It has been years since I've gotten her into a swimsuit, but she used to be a great swimmer, so I wasn't too concerned. As expected, instinct took over and she could still swim well. But more than that, we had fun laughing and goofing around in the pool, just like old times. I don't know if she will remember it, but for several hours, she acted like her old self. She and Sarah had "kicking contests" keeping the raft going straight instead of turning.




Of course, no pool party is complete without the addition of several dogs. (It is easy to see why we call Reba "the buttinski") I tried to get some more fun pool photos of her jumping in the water, but I just couldn't seem to get the timing right.























But after a few failed attempts, I managed to get this one of Ree and Sarah jumping together. But what is with that nose pinch? If Ree can jump in without pinching her big nose, you should be able to as well!

It's a WINNER!

Congratulations to Tookie for winning this completely biased contest! The fact that I have a taste for one of Tookie's winning magarita's had nothing to do with this choice... maybe.
I'll have another contest in a few weeks in honor of my Maggie-Girl's birthday.

Swimtime and a surprise!

There are few days that rank up there with agility trials, but today was one of them. Maggie has always been a swimmer, but until now, she had to make do with me, doing the dog paddle. This summer, her new best buddy Reba, swims along side her for hours on end. Reba's first time in the water we went slowly so that she wouldn't be afraid, but this little dog had no fear. She took to the water like a duck takes to.... well.... she really likes the water.
She's actually more crazy than Maggie and will hop in for a lap or two when you let them out to potty. She will even hop on the raft and "surf" to the opposite side of the pool.
I am trying to convince myself that riding that raft, with the bumps and twists from the water gives her better balance and muscle strength for agility. I totally made that up, but if the tippy boards help, then this certainly would, wouldn't it?
Anyway, we had a great day in the pool, and I very carefully took my camera into the water to get some shots of their splashing. I managed to get a few good shots without getting too much water on it... I've posted a few of them here.

So, in honor of a glorious day in the pool, I've decided to have a contest. The contest is easy, just send me a comment that would go in Reba's or Maggie's "talk bubble (right now it points to Ree, but I can adjust it to Maggie, or both to fit your entry). Make sure that you put something in your entry to tell me who you are, because next Sunday (July 4) I'll pick the best entry, and send you a $20 gift certificate to Helping Udders, OR, make a donation of $25 to the dog rescue of your choice. I'll put the best comments in the talk bubble and post them here on Monday.

Good luck and Happy Summer!

Agility consumes me

Though we looked forward to the Paducah KY show with much anticipation, it wasn't meant to be. We love the venue at Paducah... great surface, they keep the air conditioning fairly cool, the people are very nice... we even like the hotels! But on Thursday evening shortly before we went to bed, Maggie and one of her agility friends, a big Weim nearly twice her size had a collision and Maggie came up on the losing end. After a quick scream, she tried to scramble to her feet, but she held the right rear leg up close to her body and would not try to put it down. I thought perhaps it was minor and that she would "walk it off" but no doing. The next morning she was still reluctant to put weight on it, and she had a difficult time getting up.
I was terrified that it was an ACL tear, but a local vet examined her and said it was a strain in her hock and would probably heal in a couple days. While I was glad to hear her injury wasn't serious, it was no fun to go back to the show site and pack up all of our stuff, without even getting one run.
On the way home, though, it made me think about how much my life has changed in the past 2 years. Almost all of my free time and most of disposable income goes to agility. Almost all of my friends are from agility, and a day doesn't go by that we don't talk about a show, a practice, or run, or even a specific handling method. It also made me realize how much of my life is dependent on the fragile legs of my partner.
I'm not saying it is a good thing, or a bad thing.... but it does make me think about it.

my new favorite quote

I saw this quote on a T-shirt the other day, and I probably don't have it exactly, but you'll get the point...

The real joy in agility is stepping to the start

With your best friend by your side,

Not in crossing the finish, victorious over others.

I made a point to think of this on every run this weekend and how lucky I am to go to the start line with such a great friend. And I hope I remember this before each run for the rest of our days.