Dec Disc Dog trial

OK So I am not sure where I wanna go with this blog today.  Not too sure what to discuss today...I have a few things in my head but am not sure they are ready to come out....or if they even should.

So I will go with the upcoming Disc Dog Trials on Dec 18th here in Truro at the Agridome, I am actually pretty stoked about this.  Especially after Storm's last disc dig trial in Norton NB,  for more details on the last trial see Tamara's blog http://smartpupsdogsports.blogspot.com/2011/11/slick-quick.html.  Storm had a great morning trial and a pretty good afternoon trial in Norton and I am hoping he does as well at the Agridome on the 18th. There is also a possibility that Blurr will attempt his RPT...we will wait till the day of to decide on that as he isn't ready today but 2.5 weeks is a long time in his world and he might be by then.  Jessica has no intention of going after Storm's record of failed attempts.

Storm seems to really love playing disc and now with his RPT out of the way he is planning on racking up some points! Tamara at 13 has a great consistent throw in the 20 - 30 yard range indoors.  We are hoping to get another Q on the way to his BDD title and hopefully a couple more Bronze ribbons!  Tamara was considering entering the Freestyle competition but has decided to wait till she is a little more confident with Storm for this.  Storm should also break the 100pt mark to get his DD title as well during this trial so that will be exciting as well.  No pressure Tamara I am sure you and Storm are gonna do great.  Hopefully we can get him returning with the disc nice and fast at this trial.  Would be nice to get 5 throws a round in single disc.

Be sure if you are in the Truro Area to stop into the Agridome on the 18th to see some of the best Frisbee dogs in the Maritimes have a great time

I gotta say I am really enjoying Disc Dog far more than I imagined I would.  It is actually rather exciting to watch.  I am also pretty excited that it looks like next year I will likely be doing some competing with Blurr in single disc and furthest catch.  But that will have to wait until after Blurr turns 1 in September.  Who knows you may even see me doing some agility in the future... should be funny if nothing else.

So here is a question for my readers, what do you do with your dogs?  Are you involved in dog sports?  What ones?  What have you tried and what do you like about your sport of choice.  If you are not involved in dog sports and you have a dog...what is holding you back?  It is so rewarding to spend time with your furry friend and as long as you are not too competitive you both will have lots of fun.  I gotta say the people we have met on our journey into dog sports have been wonderful and supportive, and I am glad to have met them and call them my friends.

Sorry this blog is a little lame....I wanna try to keep writing at least every couple of days and some days I might not have much to say....but if I don't write I'm fairly sure I won't keep it up.

Till next time

Trevor

How My Life Went To The Dogs Part 3 My Life Is A Blurr

So we have come to part 3...hopefully this will be the last episode of How My Life Went To The Dogs for quite a while.

So some of you may not be aware of this but I use to be Gymnastics Dad (without the super cool blog), my oldest daughter Jessica was a competitive gymnast for about 10 years, or pretty much all of her young life. I thought she would be in gymnastics till she finished high school and due to the time demands associated this gymnastics I never really considered getting her a dog seriously.  There were certainly other considerations there as well...lack of patience and empathy being 2 major ones.  Don't get me wrong....she is a good girl, but like all of us she has her weaknesses.

Her world, and mine, abruptly changed in Nov 2010 when she came out of gym and told me that was her last practice that she had quit.  There were a lot of factors there developing hip problems being one of them, but certainly not the only one.  She told me she wanted a dog at that time and I told her no we are a 2 dog family, our space works fairly well with 2 dogs and I didn't (and still don't) see how we could make our lives function anywhere near normal with another dog in the house.  Storm was just over a year old and a big handful and I certainly wasn't ready to add to that chaos.

So the topic has come up over and over as I have tried to help her find ways to burn the time and energy that was previously used up at gymnastics; and time and time again I held steadfast that there is no way we can get another dog.  As disappointed as she was I think she understood.

Let's fast forward to about July when my friend Andre (see his blog here http://ace-borderlinecrazy.blogspot.com/ ) tell me they are expecting a litter of border collie pups around September.  "That's nice" I said "I am sure they will be cute...good luck placing them all I won't be taking one." not sure those were my exact words but you get the point.  Also told my kids the same thing. Fast forward again to September and the puppies are born....the girls want to go see them  We are there on their second day alive and my girls are in love "Don't get attached" I say "we can't get one", but we return to visit a couple of times per week to see the puppies grow.  As we get into late October at the CAANS agility trial five of the seven puppies have found their forever homes and there are 2 left.  Jessica spends her weekend at the trial with the blue merle male that has yet to be placed.  Saturday at the end of the day Andre tells me that he has a potential buyer for the blue merle male coming to see him on Monday, it is not an agility home or a local home and we won't likely see the dog again (all the others have gone to local agility homes and we will get to see them all on a regular basis)  Jessica is devastated....how much I am unsure until Sun morning when I see her with a red splotchy face and swollen eyes...now I am really in a pickle.

I am faced with making a very difficult decision very quickly, I talk to my wife, she wants the dog...the fool...how did I let them get this attached....I said there was no way we are getting this dog...now I am actually considering this an actual possibility....pro's and con's....con's...so easy....$$$, space, time, as well as a long list of others...pro's...I'm struggling here...this is good...hmmm Jessica's extra time could be filled with this new addition, and she would be with Tamara and I so I don't have to trade off times for 2 different activities, child stops crying....Needless to say Blurr is the blue merle male mentioned above, and he is now a part of our family.

So far training is going well and Jessica has been very responsible.  We are certainly focusing a little differently than we did with Storm at this age and hoping to not repeat the same mistakes; I'm sure we can find a new batch to make.  Storm isn't too sure about this new addition but I am sure with time he too will accept and forgive my weakness to give my child the happiness of her very own puppy.

Stay tuned for my next blog...who knows what it will be.

How My Life Has Gone To The Dogs Part 2. A Storm In The House

How adorable is this

So we left off with the last blog at the end of the our 1st season with Paws for Fun Agility Team.  We were asked by a member of the group of we might be able to help out at an agility trial that was taking place in Truro.  It was very interesting to watch...although I really had no idea what I was watching.  Shortly after that I received an email from a friend asking if we might be interested in a border collie pup.  I wasn't sure, I knew I wanted to get a purebred pup for Tamara to be able to do CKC events with as well as other stuff, primarily agility.  I asked them to send us a picture (big mistake) and next thing I knew we were getting a tricolor border collie puppy....he has been named Storm, and we have never once questioned if that was the correct name for him....he has been a Storm 24/7 since we got him.

Living up to his name

That fall saw the beginning of Tamara training Meeka to run competitive agility.  Meeka Started competing in 2010 and has become fairy successful at agility but has had some issues surrounding the table in standard runs.  She also competed in the 2011 National Agility Championships in Oro, Ont.  She also continues to be a part of the Paws for Fun Agility Team.  Storm has been training for dog sports pretty much since he arrived and has started to compete in Agility, Rally Obedience, and Disc Dog in 2011.

Favorite pass-time

Now Storm being our 1st border collie has suffered from a few training errors on our part.  Tamara his primary trainer and handler was only 11 when he arrived.  We are now working to reverse some issues he has with reactivity and socialization, it is a slow process but we seem to be making steady ground.  Storm is a very high energy dog with a lot of drive and would be quite a handful for any trainer I am sure, but Tamara is very persistent and has never given up in many situations where others might have.  Storm will be the dog that teaches Tamara how to be a great handler, and I am sure they will have a lot of success as a team in the future.

Superstar

Storm's favorite activity seems to be Disc Dog, so it seems fitting that his 1st dog sport title is his RPT (although I think he might hold a national record for most failed attempts).  Now that he has gotten that milestone out of the way he is on his way to many more titles.  He currently has 4 agility Q's in starter level (2 jumpers, 1 standard, and 1 gamble), he also has 2 Novice Rally Q's and 2 Novice Single Disc Q's so I am sure the 2012 season will bring him many new titles.

So our home seemed like it was complete, 2 beautiful daughters and 2 fabulous dogs (or so I thought).  Stay tuned for part 3 How My Life Became a Blurr.

How My Life Has Gone To The Dogs (Part 1)

OK So now I am blogging...who knew...

Not sure how I will use this forum or what I will have to say...but I'm gonna give it a go.

As you can guess from my blog title I am an Agility Dad...what does this mean?  It means my daughter Tamara is involved in Dog Sports.  It also means My other daughter Jessica will soon be as well.

We got our start with all this back in 2008.  My wife came home from a visit from the SPCA and told me that we found our dog and that she had put in an application on her.  I said "But we aren't getting a dog."  I knew this was something that both our girls wanted so much, but I also knew that it was gonna change our lives in so many ways....just how much I had no idea.

This dog would come to be know as Meeka.  As you can probably figure out Meeka is a rescue.  She is some sort of lab mix...possibly some border collie...but it could be anything.  She was about 7 months old the vet guessed when we got her in May of 2008.  So we have guessed her birthday as Sept 2007.

a young Meeka

When we got Meeka, I started to look into training options for her, at least some obedience.  I knew the girls enjoyed the Paws for Fun Agility Shows we had seen over the years, so I got in touch with Yan.  We did some obedience there and Meeka really caught on well.  The 1st session we did was in the spring and Jessica ended up doing most of the classes as Tamara was too shy.  We did another obedience session and an agility session in the fall and Tamara did both of these classes.  She did really well and at the end of the session she was invited to join the Paws for Fun Agility team.  She was thrilled.  Shortly afterward Tamara was asked to handle Tucker a papillion that lived at Yan's house.  Meeka was able to stay in the show with Jessica as a handler.  Yan saw something special in Tamara and invited her to train Competitive Rally and obedience with Tucker.  Meeka is/was ineligible for this (more about this in a future blog).  Tamara went on to get a taste of competitive dog sports.

We had a great 1st year with Paws for Fun, and met many new and wonderful people.  Also Tamara seems to have found her passion, her interest in dogs has helped her to come out of her shell so to speak.  She is a very different girl now, so much more confident and mature.

This is where I will stop this story for now, but be sure to stay tuned for Part 2, A Storm In The House.