Great Shows, Great Results!

Really great news this weekend about the championship class that has been won by Dave and the superstar Malinois Rusty!! So the first part of this post must be a huge CONGRATULATIONS to them for winning their very first CC, having what I hear was an astounding and unbeatable run in the Championship Finals at Nottingham, very well deserved and the first of many I am sure!

But this weekend my little mally Kiah has also done me proud, with a 3rd in her Grade 3 jumping on the first day of the show up at Packington, and an even better result today, though a lower place, we got a 4th in a 3-4-5 combined agility class which I am so pleased with up against all the higher grades, she was really running well!! A slightly embarrassing note was that I probably held Kiah's contacts that bit too long for a qualifying round - as she was less than a second behind the winning time so I must start practising contact releases in training for use in the future. So we didn't qualify with a fourth place, but I really don't mind, I am so proud of Kiah today, for holding her own and just being her. This round was kindly videoed (hopefully attached!) by a friend Michelle who happened to be by the ring, and the video is just great, I don't get to see many of Kiah running so thank you so much!!

BATS Agility

Had a nice one day agility show this weekend at the BATS show up in Luton, no clears again this weekend which was a bit of a shame as this was the same show where Kiah-Pie won out of G1, but really pleased with Kiah again, just a little disappointed in my own inept handling therefore a lot of poles hitting the deck. I also think Kiah needs to go to the chiropractor when I can get an appointment (the good ones are just so busy!) just to check that she is all ok and not sore anywhere as she hasn't been for a while.

I was pleased with one of Kiah's runs especially, as it was a four jump start which pointed them straight at the tunnel at the end, though you had to call them off that and go another way, I thought it was a little mean for G3 but I enjoy a challenge. Well Kiah was brill, listening and she was running well and cleanly, listening to my scrappy commands and bless her turning left when I said left - though I meant right! The only problem we had here was the handler getting poor Kiah E'd cause we went one jump too far! Anyway, we had fun!

I've seen a question posted recently about whether 'agility is fun' well yes, it certainly is for me and Kiah. I know I don't have to justify myself, but I see a lot of people not always having fun with their dogs, and I just think that agility is just a hobby and you should enjoy what ever you decide to do with your spare time. Not going clear in agility I suppose can be frustrating but I don't see the point in getting like that, I have enough frustrations at work and agility is just for fun. So, Kiah and I have a GREAT time EVERY round, and she gets a fun game of get-it-raggy every time we get to the end of a run. And of course she gets plenty of treats, toys and spoiling whether we were E'd at the very first jump or we went clear and won the class, cause I know we had fun and she tried her heart out for me and that's all that matters!

Tunbridge Wells & Presents For Kiah

Just a quick blog update before the next weekend (not that I'm complaining!), the agility this weekend wasn't too successful, on Saturday all of our runs were first in and early-ish running orders too, so it was still a bit slippery underfoot. Skiddy ground always worries me a bit with Kiah, because she is so bonkers and fast, the third obstacle was weaves where she managed to slip in the second weave, spin around the whole pole and come out. So we didn't start off on a very good note, and I think maybe she perhaps wasn't feeling 100% after that, because in her next two runs she really bashed some of the poles down. After a good night's rest in her own bed (show very near to home, lovely!) Sunday was a lot better, Kiah was running well and being careful with the poles like she has been for the last few weekends, we just had silly mistakes like poles and early commands, must train the handler better!

I have bought Kiah a few extra presents recently for being SO good at her agility (of course she is always good, is certainly spoiled and gets presents anyway!) including a nice new brown and cream fluffy bed which she seems to love, also two new agility collars that are the same - as that trade stand don't do many agility shows, and a new every day walks lead. They are all in purple and/or with black, the colours really suit her, and she will be sporting her new collar this weekend at the one day agility show that we have on Saturday.

Vyne Agility Show

The Bank Holiday just gone was another show at Newbury, a one day show this time, it was nice as I managed to have a lie in on both weekend days, spend loads of free time with the dogs, and I also got quite a lot of well needed house work done though that won't be happening too often! Anyway back to the agility, it was nice as Alex had managed to get the day off work so he could come to the show too yay. He also brought Yahoo who came along for the ride and a day out, so with a chilly early start we met Lisa on the way there, and convoyed up for some of the journey.

Well we both did a fair bit of ring party in the morning, so it gave the dogs a bit of a chance to chill out in the car in their new cage (which they both seem to like) and my first run was the Grade 3 agility at about lunch time. Kiah was running amazingly well again, shame about the handler who let her down just by not being 'flowing' enough with my handling and taking a pole. A friend of mine won the class and when I went up to congratulate them on their win, she told me that Kiah and the winner Flick had EXACTLY the same time, so really pleased as I had done touch and go contacts in that class so I know Kiah could have been a little faster. In our other two runs I let Kiah down in the jumping class through rubbish handling and commands that I don't even use, and again pleased with Kiah in the ABC run with held contacts, lovely running and just me messing up the A Frame - tunnel combo. But still I am certainly not disappointed, very pleased with how she is working, she's obviously having a great time which is the main thing (and so am I), and really looking forward to a two day show next weekend!!

Safe Dogs

I have bought myself a new car crate this week for the doggies, it was something I'd been thinking about for a while, but couldn't decide on which one. I had almost decided on a tailgate guard when a friend suggested that if (heaven forbid) any form of car accident was to happen, the quarter lights (which are as big as normal windows in my car) can break leaving the dogs free to escape - so that swiftly changed my plan onto deciding which cage to get.

I had been looking around and getting recommendations on which would be the best, then I came across the Safe Dog cages which caught my eye partly because they look good, but the big bonus is that they have been crash tested. Last Wednesday evening we went to see Gill and Derek at Safe Dog who were really helpful and friendly, letting Kiah and Yahoo test out all of the cages and guards and giving them their seal of approval! One of the things that sometimes unnerves Kiah when she travels, is if the cage rattles or moves, but this is quiet, solidly built and securely fixed into the car. So not surprisingly, based on all of these positives, this was the cage I picked!