First NADAC Title

Given Zoe's recent performances, I wasn't sure what to expect this past weekend at the ACTS NADAC trial in Lake Elmo.  It was our first outdoor trial, rain had been forecasted for the day, and I was prepared to use this weekend for training contacts.  I never expected to have a near-perfect weekend!

The trial started out very rainy - well, downright sloppy with the downpour.  A few teams scratched their runs, but plenty still competed.  By the time we were up for the first run - Touch N Go, it was still raining, although a bit lighter by that time.  I was super nervous - needless to say my handling wasn't up to par.  To my surprise, Zoe had no issues with the dog walk or A Frame and actually ran rather well.  Her only mistakes were taking two hoops in the wrong direction, which could at least partially be blamed on my bad handling.  Nonetheless, I was THRILLED with her confidence and motivation, and I knew that she had the potential for a good day.  She had been doing just fine with the obstacles in class, so this showed that her recent lack of confidence was only temporary.

The rest of the day was awesome.  Zoe had a small distraction in her next run, but I got her back quickly enough to make course time.  The last 4 runs were also clean and Zoe ran with good speed with no distractions.  We earned Q's in weavers, chances, jumpers, and two rounds of regular.  Getting the two Q's in regular also earned Zoe her first NADAC title, which allows her to move to Open Regular for the next trial.  In the Open level, our main challenges will be facing a set of 12 weaves and having less forgiving course times.  She will have no problem making the times if she doesn't get distracted.  

All in all, I couldn't have asked for more.  The rain persisted until the late morning, but all that rain left us wet and cold.  Sitting in your car with the heater on is not a fun way to experience an agility trial.  But fortunately, all of that bad weather was clouded with success and good company.  I actually had a pretty good time and am looking forward to two more NADAC trials next month.  

A few runs from this trial are on the videos page!

Building Confidence Part 2

Well, the CPE trial last weekend was almost a complete 180 from the last one in Isanti.  Zoe ran with much more enthusiasm and is starting to build her confidence again.  She mastered the A frame and even the teeter, but still had some issues with the dog walk.  However, almost every class without a dog walk she Q'ed in.  Distractions are becoming less of an issue and she is really starting to shine.  Almost all of our Q's this weekend were first places - so she ran pretty fast!  We also Q'ed in level 2 Snooker finally to get our last level 2 title!!  Yay!  

We still have some training to do in order to get back into shape, but I feel confident that this will come with more practice.  I am very proud of our progress and since she seemed to have fun and ran with confidence, I'd consider that a big personal Q.  I am looking forward to our next trial, which will be NADAC in Lake Elmo, MN!!

Also, this weekend couldn't have been more fun without the support of our friends - both new and old to CPE!

Building Confidence

Well, despite our comeback in NADAC, CPE didn't go quite as well as planned last weekend.  On a big positive note, we got our third level 2 title by finishing a qualifying jumpers course.  All we need now is one snooker course to finish level 2!  It was apparent that Zoe was still having confidence issues with the contact obstacles - any runs with contacts were a challenge.  However, we are working on them in practice and so far so good!  Hopefully all she needs is a little practice on them to gain confidence and we will be set for the next trial next weekend.  Check back soon for more updates!

NADAC Trial 3.20.10

We had another successful NADAC trial this weekend.  We only went 3 for 6, but I was absolutely pleased with Zoe's progress and improvement despite the NQ runs.  The main problem this weekend was contacts.  I didn't think she'd have a problem - especially with the A Frame, but she seemed to be having trouble generalizing to new obstacles again.  It may have been related to her injury, maybe to being tentative with the teeter again, but whatever the reason, she didn't want to do them.  With a little practice, though, this should be an easy problem to fix.  So with that said, we didn't qualify in the standard runs or chances, which was hard anyways with the distance challenge.  However, I was very pleased with the runs because Zoe stayed focused and didn't shut down when she shied away from the contacts, as she does in class when she's nervous.  She got off track a couple of times, but never left the ring and came to me when I called her.  I really appreciated her enthusiasm, despite being nervous about the contact obstacles - that was a big relief!

I really think finishing the first three runs on a positive note set us up well for the last three, which all received Qs.  Next was weavers.  I was really excited for this class because Zoe has great weaves.  In the novice level, the run consists of hoops, tunnels, and three sets of 6 weave poles.  Surprisingly, she missed the first set, but she came back to do them wasting little time and finished the run beautifully for a Q and 4th place.  After that was tunnelers - perhaps the most fun class ever.  She picked up great speed and followed my lead, earning her another Q and 2nd place.  The last class was jumpers - just jumps.  She again had a clean run and I was impressed that she still had energy left despite this being the last run of the day.  We ended with a third Q and a third place in that class.  

So overall, very successful weekend.  The problems we were having before her injury improved greatly.  Her focus and motivation was better than I expected.  Hopefully the contact issue won't be hard to fix - I just have to get her comfortable again.  Videos from the day will be posted soon.  Next up is CPE next weekend.  We'll just be doing one day since the contacts are an issue.  Hopefully she'll have the same motivation and focus!

We're Back!

Well, it's been a long two months, but we're finally back to practicing agility.  Zoe got her second round of prolotherapy last Thursday and the vet was pleased with her progress.  It looks like her knee is looking stable enough to ramp up her activity level.  We did an agility session on Friday and it looks like she didn't miss a beat, so I am not terribly worried about prepping for our upcoming trials.  We've also been doing some long walks and going to the park again - the nice weather has really been wonderful.  In the mean time, we've been doing a lot of obedience work, so hopefully that will help us out a bit in the agility ring!

Road to Recovery

It's been almost 5 weeks now since Zoe hurt herself and is doing great!  It's been hard to restrict her activity, but I think it is paying off.  We're due for another prolo treatment in the next few weeks, and then we'll be back to agility.  We've got both NADAC and CPE trials scheduled for next month, so I hope we'll be ready for those!

Small Setback - New Lessons in Canine Sports

Well, we had our first small setback.  Zoe was suddenly lame in her back leg last week for a couple of days.  Being the conscientious dog owner that I am, I promptly brought her to the vet to have her leg examined.  It was determined that she had a small cruciate tear in her knee, but nothing is 100% certain with a manual exam.  A second opinion and x-rays pretty much ruled out a complete tear, so that is a big relief.

To be on the safe side and prevent further injury, we treated both knees with prolotherapy, which is an injection that stimulates regrowth and healing.  If this works, we may be able to avoid a future injury and surgery, which could potentially affect her agility career, not to mention general well-being.  I decided this was the best option since she is an active dog and the injury appears to be minor at this point.  Post-treatment, Zoe looks great and is showing no signs of limping or lameness.  We'll continue to take it easy so that she can fully heal.

This was truely a humbling experience and taught me a lot about health maintenence with an active/performance dog.  Hopefully we caught the issue early and we'll be lucky enough to escape reinjury or surgery.  I already consider myself lucky enough to have good resources and have a relatively minor injury.

If anyone is more interested in prolotherapy, here is a good link with information: 
med-vetacupuncture.org/english/articles/prolovet.html