I am so sad to say that we lost another of the Alkemi A litter today. The very first puppy born in the very first Alkemi litter. Right after he was born and I was telling Jim his markings (so we could tell them apart later), I looked at his chest and said he had a white stripe, and Jim said then his litter name would have to be Jack (after Jack White from The White Stripes).
So he was Jack.
Little did we know he’d keep that name for the next almost fourteen years. Jack had a wonderful family who gave him a great life with adventures big and small, they took amazing care of him, and they loved and respected him enough to say goodbye when the time came, he will be missed, and he was loved. I am so sorry for their loss
I’m sharing this mostly for myself, but I am proud of the hard work Evie and I have done over the last six weeks or so.
Evie stresses UP, which is a good thing, but it also means that she needs to learn how to channel that up stress and not let it explode her brain. She was disconnecting, zooming, visiting, and just checking out, because she didn’t know where to put the energy she was getting from a trial environment.
For the past several weeks I have only entered her in games classes, only did FEO, and often only did two or three obstacles and then got out of the ring, and we stayed for matches (even if it meant I didn’t get home until after 9 PM).
I am proud that I have been disciplined about not going for the Q but playing the long game, getting her the experience and training and mileage she needs.
I am grateful for the folks who were willing to be pretend ring crew in the classes we dropped into, and for Sue’s help and support as always!
It is ALWAYS worth putting in the effort. It is ALWAYS worth taking a step back and working your foundations. It is ALWAYS worth throwing a Q in order to give your dog the right experience (DON’T FIX ALL THE THINGS!).
Train the dog you want to have in a year. Be patient, but don’t be lazy. And VIDEO EVERYTHING, because seeing even small improvements can be the cookie YOU need to keep going,
It’s obviously a work in progress, but we are for sure several big steps along the right road!
I am so excited about what the future could hold for this little dog!
(Also she earned her very first title – Novice FAST!)
Here’s a little sample of what Sue helped me with today: working Evie through distractions. It is SO helpful to have someone to train with who knows a lot and has good ideas (not to mention, it’s more fun).
Evie is very friendly and also stresses WAY up, the visiting is less about her being friendly though, and more about being an outlet for stress (remember even good stress is still stress).
I am absolutely THRILLED with this! Plus LOOK HOW FAST SHE IS, and look at how quick also – you can see her deke towards me and then back to the dogwalk when she isn’t sure where to go. And this is probably the best set of weaves in a course I’ve ever had from her.
Good girl Evie! She loves to work and is such a trier.
When you’re really invested in your dogs and your dog sport(s), it can make you feel all kinds of big, profound, wonderful, terrible, things.
For me, there are few things that cause me to doubt myself and my skill more than when I feel I’ve let my dogs down.
Since COVID I’ve been much more of a homebody than before (although I’ve really always been a homebody), and so I go to agility trials far less than before. Instead of doing 2-3 days 3 out of 4 weekends a month (or more), I go to 1 or 2 days, once or twice a month.
This has positives: it’s better for my bank account; I get to spend time at home (which I love), with my husband (whom I love); I get to spend more time with my dogs outside of our sport.
But it also has negatives: my dogs get far less trial mileage than before; I get far less trial mileage than before (this has a highly detrimental effect on our mojo); we fall behind with the titles etc.
Agility is just dogs jumping over plastic, yes. But it’s also an amazing bonding experience with your dog. When the mojo is working, you truly do become one mind.
Anyway, all that is a big preamble to me trying to work through how I’m feeling about Evie right now.
Evie is an amazing dog. She’s so fast and quick, in training when I can feel the beginnings of our mojo, it’s like running with a hummingbird or a rabbit, she’s so immediately responsive, it’s like driving a sports car. And, for a dog who can be a bit of a weirdo about some things, she’s really very confident out there (three different people remarked to me about how confident she is).
But she’s a very sensitive dog, and she’s really experiencing the throes of adolescence right now. She has a LOT of feelings about things. And while I absolutely love a dog who stresses up, because those are usually the dogs who end up being the most fun to run with, right now Evie can’t cope well with pressure. She’s run in a handful of trials, and initially she was what I expect out of a novice dog. But the trend over the last few trial days has not been what I want to see, and the way I’ve been handling her is not what I want to see. I am so thankful to have dog friends who are wise, and willing to tell me what they’re seeing and what they think.
Evie is zooming, and visiting, and tuning me out, and I’ve been dropping connection, which is a big part of WHY she’s doing that. I took the opportunity yesterday (after a really ungood trial day) to run her in a match (you have 90 seconds to do what you like on a course, you can bring a toy or contained food). And while I got some really good attention from her in our second run, I came home feeling quite defeated, and disappointed in myself.
So, I pulled her from all ucoming trials, other than the games classes, where I can run For Exhibition Only.
I’m going to do some Control Unleashed pattern games. I’m going to work on relationship. I really think she has the potential to be an amazing agility dog, but she needs more foundation work, and I need to step back, go back, and work this through.
One thing I’ve tried to cultivate in myself is that everything can be a learning opportunity if I allow it. I also made a more-or-less New Year’s resolution to try to be less lazy. Trulli coming along meant that the two other green dogs in my house (Alice and Evie) got relegated a bit, and that’s not fair to them.
It became extremely obvious to me this weekend that Alice needs more from me than I’ve been giving her. I realize I’ve sort of been treating her like she’s at maintenance levels when really she isn’t at all. So: more Alice time!
I also found a few areas I need to work on with Evie (this is absolutely expected). She’s doing the thing that Alice also did where she wants to go get the cookies before she’s finished running (and to be fair to her, she was in the crate a LOT this weekend, plus we stayed overnight, so she had a lot of pent up energy both mental and physical). I talked it over with Sue and she reminded me of the really useful cookie jar game, so we’ll be doing that along with some other games to help. That said, there were flashes of real brilliance from her, and I’m super excited about what I’m seeing. She picked up her second Novice FAST Q, but more exciting is that there were real moments of being in sync, with glimpses of mojo starting to build. She is very, very different to run than my other dogs have been (they’re all different from each other, but she’s REALLY different): she’s so tiny and light and agile it’s like trying to run with a hummingbird or something. It’s really interesting.
Alice Friday FAST (Q):
Evie Friday Time 2 Beat:
Alice Friday Jumpers (Q):
Alice Saturday FAST (Q)
Evie Saturday FAST (Q):
Evie Saturday Jumpers (the second half of this course was amazing):
What an incredible journey this dog and I have taken. Once we got our mojo Zhora became a qualifying machine. Forgiving of my mistakes, a dog who usually chooses to slow down and look to me for direction rather than grabbing any obstacle or zooming or stressing. So many of our runs were Q’s because of this. She’s my comfy slippers, my cozy home feeling. When we’re in the zone with each other, it truly feels like we have one mind.
I always thank her for the privilege of her efforts, for her impeccable, unflappable working temperament. For her kindness and the joy she shows at the start of every run. She’s nearly 11 now (August 5), and she’s slowed down as you’d expect. But she still sometimes manages a miracle run, like our Friday Standard run where she ran it in 4.2 yards per second, which I think is her personal best. She’s a long and quite massive dog even though she’s lean and muscular. She isn’t a light and quick little hummingbird like Evie is, or a squat little speedy fighter jet like Nina was. Zhora is a dragster, straight lines are her milieu, collection is expensive for her. But even when I ask her to do something she really dislikes (like pinwheels), she does it, even if she does it slowly, she still does it.
She’s done everything I’ve ever asked of her. I am so grateful to her and for her. I don’t know what the future holds for her, she still comes to the ring with joy and good energy, but I think we can slow down a bit, put more energy into the up and comers. Whatever Zhora wants, I will (to the best of my ability to ascertain it and provide it) give her.
Dan Wolfson’s courses were fun and challenging. They got the better of Alice and I, but Zhora just scoffed at the traps and had a perfect two days.
Thank you my ZhoZho.
Friday Standard (4.2 YPS, first place):
Friday Jumpers:
Part 1 (Standard) of MACH8:
Part 2 (Jumpers) of MACH8 (featuring skipping Sue):
I’d kind of had Westminster on my bucket list for a while, but it’s a pretty expensive agility weekend and it’s a big hassle and blah blah blah.
But after losing Nina I got to thinking that if I was going to go with Zhora, I should just go. Zhora will turn 11 in August and while she’s still healthy and sound and running well, she isn’t getting any younger and neither am I. After all, it’s better to regret something you have done, than something you haven’t.
So while lots of folks overnighted their entries and all that, I handwrote our entry the day before the trial opened and snail mailed it. I figured if we got in, then the universe was telling me we should go. I was shocked when I got word that we were 13th on the waiting list. I realized then that there was some danger we might actually get in! And then less than 24 hours after closing, we were in!
Of course I hadn’t made any arrangements and had to hustle to find a (very expensive) hotel.
So off we went!
Nina (thank you Sue) came with us of course
We hit terrible traffic in New Jersey trying to get into the Lincoln Tunnel because of course we did. I’m used to city driving but we were at a standstill with no shoulders or anything packed in like sadines and I got a bit panicky about it and had to call Jim. Once I got into the tunnel though it was fine, and then driving through Manhattan on our way to Queens was just wonderful. Such a beautiful city.
Checking into the hotel I had to drive around the block four times before a spot opened up where I could stash the car while I went to check in. There was a guy screaming in the lobby, hotel staff were trying to calm him down, police were being called, two different women told me how much they liked my hair. It was so NYC.
Our room was in a half basement and tiny, but it was clean. A nice agility person saw me with Zhora and showed me where I could walk her. And then Zhora and I went for a stroll around the block to stretch our legs after being in the car all day.
It’s an absolutely gorgeous facility. Purple and gold was everywhere (yes, the dog show starting tomorrow is the big draw, but there were still a LOT of people there as the day went on).
We checked in and got our awesome swag (an embroidered North Face knapsack, a picture frame, a dog toy, a bandana, a really nice t-shirt, and a ticket for a free lunch).
Standard was in the stadium:
Jumpers was in an outdoor ring under a tent (this is actually where the biggest crowd was – most were just bystanders and they were AWESOME! The cheered LOUDLY for every team, it was so much fun!):
And then! We walked and ran standard, had lunch, then walked and ran jumpers:
Standard was first (Q and 14th place!). There are supposed to be “official” videos coming but Jesse kindly videoed too:
ProPlan gave us a lovely, healthy, and delicious free lunch (not dog food but I did share my sandwich with Zhora):
Then Jumpers (Q and 12th place!!):
I was hoping for one Q, and instead we doubled! And Saga the Vallhund was in the top 10 (awesome!) so made it to finals, but if she hadn’t, we’d have likely gone to finals too!
I am always humbled and amazed by Zhora. She always rises to the occasion, she thrives under pressure. I am so very glad we went, it was a whirlwind, tiring, crazy and expensive two days, but it was so very worth it for the amazing experience we had. Thank you Zhora for being the wonderful partner you have always been.
Finally, I just want to say that it was so awesome to see so many of my usual agility peeps there being supportive and having fun running their dogs and doing wonderfully. And it was so nice to see Whitney and Susan with their amazing Vallhunds (ALL FOUR VALLHUNDS QQ’d!), and it was just so lovely to feel the support we gave each other, we were all genuinely happy for how well each other did. Agility might just be dogs jumping over plastic but wow can it bring out the best in people sometimes.
“Official” standard video:
“Official” JWW video:
(and finally, as if my heart wasn’t full enough, tomorrow Zhora’s son Orbit and his co-owner Ruth will compete at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show. I wish I could have managed to stay and watch but it wasn’t to be, I’ll be watching on the live stream though!)
Jim and I are very excited to welcome Kleinhaus Trulli Madly Deeply at Alkemi LT to our pack! Two weeks ago I drove to Massachusetts to meet these little monsters, and this little girl cuddled into me, took a deep breath, and melted. And then so did I. So on Friday after the agility trial I went and picked her up. She’s been doing great: stable, brave, bold, sassy, smart, and adaptable (just my kind of dog).
Trulli (pronounced “truly”) is out of a very genetically diverse breeding (as diverse as you can get in Vallhunds, with parents who carry the least common alleles, this was a BetterBred “10” breeding for those who follow that), so I knew I might be interested just from that standpoint when I learned Kat Klein was planning this litter. That, combined with the fact that Kat does an absolutely stellar job of raising her litters, meant that I just couldn’t say no once I met her.
Trulli is named after the Formula 1 driver Jarno Trulli (because of course she is). Because she was born near Valentine’s Day I knew I wanted a Valentine’s sort of name, and her name just came to me as I drove home from meeting her that first time.
The last puppy in our house that I didn’t breed was Nina, so it’s been a while since I didn’t grow my own. Thank you so much for trusting us with this little girl Kat!
Alice and I had a great time at the Kayl McCann and Jamie Moreau (both Canadian world team members and certified OneMind Dog instructors) seminar! We learned some really useful things. I usually think if I learn one or two things to keep in my training toolbox it’s worth the price, but we learned so much more from these two, including some really good ideas about commitment!
Austin was born upside down (with dogs back feet first or front feet first doesn’t matter, as long as they’re belly-down. Belly up can be a problem. Austin was belly up. It wasn’t the easiest thing to get him out safely, and this was my first litter, but eventually we got him out and nursing. Jim decided his litter name should be Immelmann, after the aerobatics maneuver.
He was the only stub-tailed boy in the litter, and one of only two stub tails (Demi was the other).
A fellow agility competitor had approached me about a puppy. Her name was Lisa, and she’d been very successful with her Basset hounds in agility. More importantly, I knew she took excellent care of her dogs, and I knew he’d have a good home.
She took wonderful care of Austin, and Austin took care of Lisa too, through many life changing events. He ate things he shouldn’t and needed emergency surgery, Lisa made sure he got it. Austin was her constant companion, along with one of her Bassets named Hobbes, who was Austin’s BFF. He played agility, he raised puppies, he traveled, he got up to no good with Hobbes, and most importantly: he was part of a family.
Even at the very end, Lisa (and her husband Chuck, who also loved Austin) did everything she could for him, including surgery because while he was 13, he was a very young and vigorous 13, and they thought if he had a chance, they should give it to him. And at first he looked like he was pulling through. But then he was gone.
Lisa and Chuck: you did everything for Austin, he knew so much love, and ahd so much fun in his life. They’re never here long enough, but to have lived a good life with love is everything.
