Back in Training

Here we are, back in training. I am practising for the Down Stay, and Hannah is being the distraction. Hopefully I will be able to stay still for three minutes on Saturday at the dog trial.

Last week was not too good. I thought I did well, I did all the jumps in the opening sequence of the Snooker Trial, got all the way round the closing sequence up to the last obstacle which was the Weaving Poles, and just because I missed ONE pole, two from the end, they said I failed! Then we did the Gamblers Trial. I got well over the minimum of 20 points in the opening sequence, did the first two jumps in the closing sequence, and just because I ran past the broad jump, one jump from the end, they failed me again. Most unfair.

Holiday Time

We have finished the competitions and now we are on holiday. The pic shows us at Kiama, on our walk along the cliff path.

We had a day out at Dolls Point while the humans visited relatives and we had a walk along the coast. Dogs were not allowed on the beach so we could not have a swim.

Today we are traveling again, heading for home.

Hannah - Minor Puppy in Group

Here is Hannah in the show ring getting awarded Minor Puppy in Group at the Sapphire Coast Kennel Club Show. She was magnificent in the ring, performing expertly as though she had done it all her life. Out of the three shows, Hannah made Best of Breed three times and Minor Puppy in Group twice. She is on 48 point towards her Champion Title.
I got so excited for Hannah I messed up in the Trial Ring, only passing 1 trial. It has got Keith worrying about what keeps going wrong. He said I was getting worse, not better. It is all too much excitement for one dog to cope with for so many events in two weeks.

Success

We have had a successful week-end at Bermagui. Tiffany had a 181 and 2nd place in the Novice trial, and I got 3 Best of Breed in the shows. I now have 30 points towards my Champion title and Tiffany has her first pass towards her Companion Dog Title. Tiffany had some bad luck in two of the trials, she was spooked by someone in the shadows on Friday night and broke the down stay when she was on a pass, then on Sunday she got distracted by a smell, stopped to sniff and that was the end of the trial.

The pic shows us with our awards. Next week there are more shows and trials, so we have some time to rest and recover.

Hannah - 24

Hannah has now got 24 points. She was Best of Breed last night and again this morning, just tomorrow's show to go for her.
The trials were a different story. While we were waiting, a big thunderstorm came in. There were bangs and flashes and lots of rain which caused them to delay the start until 7. pm to allow the thunder to go away. Lots of dogs went home, but Hannah and I did not get upset by the storm. Anyway, I went into the ring and was doing well until Keith gave me a shocking down signal and I was not sure what he wanted. I did my best and we just scraped through. In the Stays, I did the sit stay but halfway through the down stay someone was pushing a dog trolley in the shadows. It was upsetting most of the dogs. I barked at them to go away but they kept on coming. Eventually the Irish next to me jumped up and barked, which frightened me and I jumped up too. Well that was the end of that trial. Another one tonight and then one more on Sunday morning for my last chance of the week-end.

Dogs at Play

Here we are having a run at the dog area of the Bermagui caravan park. Tiffany can't speak because she has a mouth full of tennis ball. There are lots of dogs here, getting ready for the shows and trials tonight. I am in my third show and Tiffany is in the novice obedience trial. Tonight should be an exciting night.
We had a big storm when we first got here, the humans were out in it tying everything down and getting wet through. Tiffany and I stayed in the dry and gave the occasional woof of encouragement. Well, you could not send a dog out on a night like that.

Its Too Hot

We are having a rest from traveling. We have had an early run while it was still cool, but now it is getting hot. Hannah is lying on the cool bed, and I found this spot on the bed where the fan blows cool air from the air conditioner. We keep getting dragged outside in case we need the loo, but we don't stay out long. There is a strong north wind blowing even hotter air on us, so we are back inside as quick as we can.

Hannah won Best of Breed on Sunday so now she has 12 points towards her title.