Oh Yeah, You Blend

Judge Oksana Syrkin is a perennial favorite. Zhora earned her very first MACH under her after all, and she was the judge last November for my mini puppy reunion at which Nina earned her last QQ and then got really ill. So it’s fitting that Nina’s first Q whatsoever since then was today, under Oksana again! Nina’s been running great, and I put her in Preferred very recently to see if it helps her Q. Well today, she Q’d!

Zhora QQ’d yesterday but a stupid handler trick today cost her a double.

Alice ran WONDERFULLY yesterday, and picked up her second Novice P JWW Q. I am really happy with how she’s running, and I can tell you it was a huge relief to see her run fast and happy and drivey after she was so not-herself at the Anna Eifert seminar! She’s driving lines, taking distance (I think she actually prefers more distance than I’m used to).

Love my girls!

Nina Saturday Jumpers (NQ):

Zhora Saturday Jumpers (QQ # 101, second place in a BIG class, 21 points, 5.082 YPS):

Nina Saturday Standard (NQ)

Zhora Saturday Standard (QQ # 101, second place again in a BIG class, 32 points, 4.076 YPS):

Alice Saturday Standard (NQ but really happy with this run):

Alice Saturday Jumpers (NJP leg #2! Driving lines! Running fast!):

Nina Sunday Jumpers (NQ):

Zhora Sunday Jumpers (Q, second place, 19 points, 4.694 YPS):

Nina Sunday Standard (FIRST PACH POINTS! FIRST Q SINCE NOVEMBER! First place, 33 points, 3.704 YPS):

Zhora Sunday Standard (NQ):

What can I say about this dog? MACH 5 at 6.5 years of age with TWO breaks for puppies. She’s amazing. I am humbled and grateful to have her as my agility partner. Judge Mary Mullen’s courses were tough but really fun! I have some kind of crud so I was tired and winded and hoarse, but we got it done!

I decided to try running Nina in Preferred. She isn’t having trouble with 8″ but it’s worth a try. Well…she sure liked it…she can run even FASTER if she doesn’t have to really jump…love that dog so much. Agility is her bacon bits.

And Alice! SO HAPPY with how she is coming along! I learned that, at least right now, she is more like Nina than Zhora for warmup. She doesn’t need revving up, she needs focus work. You’ll see in her Standard run she’s a bit crazy (that was when I revved her during warmup), whereas in her Jumpers run I did more focus/shadow handling type stuff and she was much more focused. Good to know! She earned her second Open FAST Q and had a LOVELY T2B run including 12 weaves. I am still very much not fixing much, if anything, with her, so I am happy as long as she engages with obstacles and stays with me. I am very impressed with the distance and independent obstacle performances she is showing!

Nina Saturday Jumpers (NQ but ALMOST a Q):

Zhora Saturday Jumpers (NQ, weird haunted weave poles for many dogs):

Zhora Saturday FAST (NQ):

Alice Saturday Open FAST (Q, note my “OH SHIT” moment when I see her take the dogwalk!):

Nina Saturday Standard (NQ):

Zhora Saturday Standard (Q, second place, 28 points):

Alice Saturday Novice P Standard (NQ):

Alice Saturday JWW Nov P (NQ):

Nina Sunday JWW (NQ):

Zhora Sunday JWW (Part 1 of MACH 5, close call! Fourth place, 17 points):

Alice Time 2 Beat P (NQ, but lovely run!):

Nina Sunday Standard (NQ….never stop being Nina, Nina…):

Zhora Sunday Standard (MACH5 ZHORA!! Third place, 29 points):

Laura English’s courses were AMAZING! Wide open, run your ass off, technical but fun. They were just masterful. We only went on Saturday, even though we were entered Saturday and Sunday. Alice ran and my goals for her were the same as they’ve been recently: have fun, stay with me, and this time do the dogwalk. She did! She earned her first Open FAST Q, and would have had a Q in JWW and Std except for a knocked bar in each. In Standard I didn’t set her up straight to the jump so she ran around it, so I had her do a backside (which she did perfectly). Thrilled with her!

And Zhora! QQQ! She’s one away from MACH 5 now! I should check how many triples she has for her TQX.

Nina had a great time, ran like a looney, got the walk of shame in Standard for bailing off the teeter (she can do what she wants, but she can’t do that, it’s dangerous).

Zhora Saturday Jumpers (QQQ/QQ # 99, first place, 18 points, 4.796 YPS):

Nina Saturday Jumpers (NQ):

Zhora Saturday FAST (QQQ, first place):

Alice Saturday FAST (first Open Q!):

Zhora Saturday Standard (QQQ/QQ #99, second place, 26 points, 3.613 YPS):

Nina Saturday Standard (Walk of Shame):

Alice Saturday Standard (NQ but look at that backside and teeter!):

Alice Saturday Jumpers (NQ):

We love judge Sherry Jefferson even when she isn’t our sherpa on an Invitational trip.

What a great weekend! Zhora was perfect, earning three double Q’s (two of which were TRIPLE Q’s), and is now just two QQ’s away from MACH5!

Nina had a perfect weekend….of NQ’s, but every weekend I get to run with Nina being happy, fast, sassy, naughty Nina is perfect.

And Alice! Alice earned her very first agility title (Novice FAST Preferred) and her first Novice Jumpers Preferred leg. She also jumped off the dogwalk. My best guess is that she was looking at the ring crew, suddenly wasn’t sure what she was doing, and bailed, like Sue and I trained her do. She was fine going across it afterward.

Nina Friday Standard (NQ):

Zhora Friday Standard (part 1 of triple Q and QQ # 96, first place, 31 points, 3.99 YPS):

Zhora Friday FAST (part 2 of QQQ, first place):

Alice Friday Novice FAST (Novice FAST title!):

Nina Friday JWW (NQ):

Zhora Friday JWW (part 2 of QQQ/QQ 96, second place, 15 points):

Nina Saturday Jumpers (NQ):

Zhora Saturday Jumpers (QQ # 97, 17 points):

Alice Saturday Time 2 Beat (NQ):

Nina Saturday Standard (NQ):

Zhora Saturday Standard (QQ #97, third place, 27 points, 3.75 YPS):

Alice Saturday Standard (jump off the dogwalk, my best guess is that she was looking at me or the ring crew and suddenly didn’t remember what equipment she was on so she bailed off):

Alice Saturday Jumpers (Q! 4.137 YPS):

Nina Sunday Jumpers (NQ):

Zhora Sunday Jumpers (QQQ/QQ 98, fourth place, 19 points, 4.66 YPS):

Zhora Sunday FAST (QQQ):

Alice Sunday Open FAST (would have been a Q only I overhandled and pulled her off the jump in the middle of the send):

Nina Sunday Standard (NQ):

Zhora Sunday Standard (QQQ/QQ 98, third place, 30 points, 3.97 YPS):

Judge Kristine M Schmidt wasn’t everyone’s cup of tea. She’s from Long Island and is a little brusque. I don’t know, I’m not looking for a new BFF, just a fair judge with fun courses, and she provided those!

Her courses were really technical and challenging but still fun, and they were quite devious in that often the solution you found for the challenge created a whole new challenge!

Nina had a perfect NQ weekend but ran fast and happy and sassy and I will take ANY NQ’s like that! Love her! She didn’t knock any bars all weekend either!

Zhora had a FAST Q on Saturday (her only Q that day), and QQ #95 today. Our “slump” (such as it is) is I think because she’s kicked up a notch in speed and distance and it’s taking me a while to adjust my handling to it so our mojo is off. She’s amazing. I love her so much and she loves this game so much. I am very lucky to have her.

And ALICE! Her first time doing “real” agility and she ACED it. Beautiful FAST Q (her second NFP leg!), beautiful Standard Q (her first NAP leg!) and got the zoomies in Jumpers, which I was happy about! She seems to stress up like her mum and grandma, which is perfect. I dared to fix the weave poles in Standard but I USED her zoomies in Jumpers and was thrilled she came back and worked with me even with an attack of the crazies going on. Just thrilled with her. My goals are simple: show her how much fun this can be, get some experience under her belt, find the holes in my training, zero expectations otherwise. We are doing one day a weekend plus games on other days if appropriate. I am going to be strict with myself per Melanie Miller’s advice and fix just about nothing.

There is a HORRIBLE wind storm going on here, big branch off the tree in front…we are SO glad we put the money into trimming that tree and taking down the dead ones!

Zhora Saturday Jumpers (NQ):

Nina Saturday Jumpers (NQ):

Zhora Saturday FAST (Q):

Alice Saturday FAST (Q, NFP leg #2!):

Zhora Saturday Standard (NQ):

Nina Saturday Standard (NQ):

Alice Saturday Standard (NAP Leg #1!):

Alice Saturday Jumpers (ZOOM!):

Zhora Sunday Jumpers (QQ #95, 16 points):

Nina Sunday Jumpers (NQ):

Zhora Sunday Standard (QQ #95, 29 points):

Nina Sunday Standard (NQ):

Lobo’s owner Jan Robles says:

“LOBO’S CRAZY 8S BRONZE

Crazy 8s is a fun two minute search for 8 rats hidden along with four litter tubes. Your dog earns 10 points for each rat, a climb, and tunnel. A false alert is minus 20 points as are failures to climb or tunnel. A second false alert is a NQ. 500 points are required to earn the Bronze title.

My Little Man loves this game. “

Lobo is Alkemi Beowulf del Roble LS and Zhora’s brother. This is Lobo’s THIRD breed first. Jan and Lobo are a force of nature!

Judge Ginger Robertson set some technical, tight and fun courses for us. And NINA IS BACK! Feeling great, like her old self, sassing me, crazy to get going, just does my heart so much good to be playing with her again!

Zhora earned QQ #94, an uncharacteristic bar cost us a QQQ, and two NQ’s today, but fast and fun and awesome runs.

Zhora Saturday Jumpers (QQ #94, third place, 15 points):

Nina Saturday Jumpers (NQ, but WHO CARES!?):

Zhora Saturday FAST (NQ):

Zhora Saturday Standard (QQ #94, second place, 27 points):

Zhora Sunday Jumpers (NQ, nice run):

Nina Sunday Jumpers (NQ, I got in her way):

Zhora Sunday Standard (NQ, rear crossed the weaves!):

Nina Sunday Standard (NQ but nice run!):

With severe storm warnings for Saturday/Sunday, I decided to make the drive today for just one day. Sure was worth it! Zhora Triple Q’d (she is so awesome) and her daughter Alice made her trial debut (I had a sentimental/superstitious need to have Alice make her debut under our dear friend and favorite judge Sherry Jefferson). My goal was simply to have her get her feet wet, maybe do some obstacles, hopefully mostly stay with me, so I came up with a simple FAST course, just jumps and tunnel and the aframe (which she loves), I didn’t ask for a startline stay, just wanted to keep it up and high energy and fun. HOLY MOLY! She was a ROCK STAR, ran amazingly well, COMPLETELY ignored Judge Sherry (who is also her beloved Aunt Sherry, and even Zhora had to give Sherry the “hey Aunt Sherry!” eye), stayed focused and happy and completely unfazed and the icing on the cake was that she QUALIFIED! She’s never run on turf, she’s never run in a match or a trial…no worries. I had zero expectations of her (and I still don’t, my only goal at this stage is for her to learn how fun and exciting this is), but holy moly was I impressed. She’s the first dog I did OneMind Dogs methods with from the start, and I do think it made a huge difference, she understands so much more at this stage than I ever hoped she would, plus she has that awesome temperament, she doesn’t worry, she doesn’t fret, she takes her job seriously, she is a working dog and exactly what I hoped for from this litter. Zhora and Bert, you did good!

Zhora Standard (part 1 of QQ # 93/TQ, 32 points, 4.097 YPS):

Zhora FAST (QQQ, first place):

Alice Novice FAST (FIRST RUN, FIRST Q!):

Zhora Jumpers (part 2 of QQ #93/TQ, 19 points, 4.769 YPS):

The first trial of 2019 is in the books under judge Laura English. Nina’s bout of pancreatitis that started at the Alkemi reunion and kept her out of the Invitational flared up acutely the weekend before New Year’s and culminated in three days of hospitalization over New Year’s at Orchard Park Veterinary Medical Center. I genuinely thought we could lose her for a bit but she’s home now and doing very well. I am cautiously optimistic.

So Zhora ran alone this weekend. I could tell that my stress levels have affected things so I wasn’t thrilled with my handling but I was thrilled with her performance.

Saturday Jumpers (second place, 17 points, 4.675 YPS, love this run):

Saturday FAST (first place, 71 points):

Saturday Standard (NQ):

Sunday Jumpers (NQ, I didn’t get the cross in I wanted before the jump before the weave poles and it cost us a Q):

Sunday Standard (second place, 30 points, 3.879 YPS):

Here are the official videos. That first jumpers run really shows just how costly a moment of disconnect can be, she looks to me for reassurance, I wasn’t looking at her, so even though she made a valiant attempt to get back into the poles, she was too far along.

Time 2 Beat:

Round 1 Jumpers:

Round 2 Standard:

Round 3 Hybrid:

Round 4 Jumpers: