Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas everyone.........

I was looking back through my old posts and found this picture of Zippy hogging the fire when he was only a few months old

Took this today, nothing has changed ........... Lol :)

What a beautiful morning, its our first frosty walk of the winter and it was nice to be out in the crisp cold air walking in lovely surroundings. I think the water stops were quite cold this morning as none of the dogs stopped in them for that long. I do love it at this time of the year when the ground is hard and its cold but dry, unfortunately the weather man said it will probably rain for the rest of the week so we definitely took full advantage this morning.

A quick catch up with what we have been doing, last weekend it was the BSD WC selection day, with the GB Team rule that you are only allowed to take one dog to the WC I decided to enter both Keisha and Zippy with the hope of qualifying Zippy, on the day it didn't quite go to plan, a few hairy moments with Zip on his first two agility runs he wasn't happy with the up plank on the DW so jumped off it on the first course, I was aware of the issue on the second class but stayed with him to get him across, im not sure what the issue was and even now on reflection im still not sure, we have never had this problem before and none of the other dogs including sensitive Keisha didn't have a problem. Anyway Zip managed his first round with 5R and his second class with 10F after a run by on the see-saw and a refusal at the last jump as he was too busy gorping at his toy !!! :) Keisha had two lovely clears so was gaining lots of points.

The third agility class was a bit of a disaster, I managed to get both Keisha and Zippy eliminated at the same point, never mind it just meant we had to work harder for the rest of the day. Then thats when Zippy and me finally got it together, we had 3 lovely clears in the jumping classes, still not at our best and I think I was queuing too late causing Zip to turn wide but it was clear and that was the main aim. Keisha had 2 out of the 3 clears in the jumping rounds, considering I haven't done any training with her since September I was chuffed to bits with how she performed.

So that was it the day had finished, Keisha had secured more points than Zippy however Zippy still had enough points to meet the criteria of making the team, I had already decided prior to try outs that if we qualified I would take Zippy. So the final placings are as follows:

Dave Leach and Rusty

Andy Brown and Sky

Jo Hyslop and Keisha

Di Griffin and Fin

Andy Brown and Thor

Jo Hyslop and Zippy

The team committee have decided this year Andy Brown and me can take both our dogs to the WC, Keisha will run in the individuals as well as the team event and Zippy will just run in the individual, I am so so lucky and incredibly excited to be taking both my dogs, although regrettably I would have withdrawn Keisha from the team if the single dog rule stood as I feel Zippy has the best chance of making the final out of the two of them, thankfully I didn't have to make that decision so we are off to the WC next year in Italy, yippee !!!

Well done to everyone else who qualified its gonna be a great team !!!

The new training field

So this is my new training field and menage, I moved in on saturday morning, I managed to do it all in one go which was a bonus, I think I need to space my equipment out the paddock is massive, no doubt Emma will be looking forward to her workout when she comes training, if your wondering where all the other equipment is its in the stable keeping dry.

This morning we had WC training, it was great fun and some of the courses were quite hard, infact very trappy and good handling was needed, mine was average, some good moments and some rubbish moments, Zippy was a good boy I have no idea how he understands what I want sometimes. I did get Keisha out for a few runs but to be honest we were a complete disaster, I think I will be taking advantage of my new training venue over the next week to make sure Keisha, Zippy and me are all singing of the same hymn sheet.

Not much else happening at the moment, I am currently debating whether to get my bike out and start taking the boys for a more vigorous exercise, ive just got this dreadful feeling one of them will cause me to fall and become more friendly with the floor, I think I might try one at a time to start with, work out who the likely culprit could be !!!

November already ???

November already.......... this year is flying by. It has been a busy couple of months for us here, I didn't blog about it last month but Zippy had been very poorly for 3 weeks after contracting an infection after being neutered. I made numerous visits back to the vet, infact 5 times in 7 days but they kept telling me he was just taking longer to recover than normal but he was fine.




Then on the monday morning (a week later) I woke up and Zippy wouldn't even move, he looked so poorly and wouldn't even lift his head, I decided to take him to a different vets, thank god i did .... his temperature was dangerously high and they immediately started to treat him, his body had gone into shut down. After lots of treatment and daily visits to the vets for a week Zip started to recover, to look at him now you wouldn't even know, thankfully there are some good vets out there who know what they are doing, its a shame others don't and for them to put Zip's life on the line is completely unforgivable.

Anyway, on top of all that I had lost access to the field I was training on, complete rubbish timing as the training season had just began, however, I have just found a new paddock that is even better, its part of a horse yard and im allowed to leave my equipment out in the field which is a massive bonus, i also have access to a stable to store equipment such as my tunnel and weaves so they don't start rotting away in the bad weather. All this comes with free access to the menage too if it is not being used, how lucky am I ???

Last weekend we went over to Kates to meet up with Nat and Reno and Jackie and Speedy, we had a few hours training in Kates paddock which was great, we were then spoilt with lunch and pancakes to follow which were absolutely delicious, thanks very much Kate. I think all the doggies enjoyed there day and I know the humans certainly did.

Thanks to Grace for the lovely photos taken at the ABC semi back in September.

Quick catch up

I keep meaning to update this blog but I never seem to get chance, lots happening at the moment but I promise I will try harder !!!

 

Well the first bit of news is I passed my judges course so I can now officially judge at KC Shows, I have already received and accepted two judging appointments for next year, it's so very exciting and I cant wait to get started.

BSD WC selection day is fast approaching, im sticking with my initial thoughts and plan to do very little with Keisha, I have a few training days coming up so I might get her out to practice a contact or two but that will be it, I think the rest will do her good and make her more motivated. Zippy on the other hand is the only dog in action at the moment, his training is going great and he is looking so confident in himself, we are still working on our A-Frame contact but it is definitley a step in the right direction. We had our first FCI type training day on saturday which he worked brilliantly at, the next one is planned for two weeks time and im already looking forward to it.

Happy 3rd Birthday Zippy

Happy Birthday to my beautiful Zippy

Happy 3rd birthday to all the Kronik Kidz

 love daddy Ronny

Training has started

Training has started, well for Zippy anyway, Ronny and Keisha will remain on rest for another month or so, im planning on giving them two a proper break and enjoy the slower pace of life for a few more weeks, walks and swimming is all thats on their agenda.

  

Zippy started back training last week, with the WC qualifier next month I want to work on his contacts, I have decided to change from a running A-Frame and use the 2o2o instead, its just not practical with the time I have to get the required amount of training needed for running contacts. So far so good, although its only been a week he is already showing great progress.

 

Next week im on my judges course, im really looking forward to it, ive just got to find some time to sit down and read the pre-course work, finding any spare moment at the minute is pretty impossible, it wont be long until Christmas is upon us, eek !!!

End of the season

Wow where did that last month go .......... ive been a really rubbish blogger.

Time for a quick catch up, over the last month we've had some good results, Ronny was running really well and gained quite a few places a couple of 5th places and yet another 2nd in agility, I hate 2nd place we definitely have the curse for that one, I would much prefer a 3rd or 4th or something, obviously that last win to go G7 would have been ideal but just not the dreaded 2nd place.

Zippy and me were just starting to come back into form, it's a shame the season has finished for us now, he has ran some really lovely rounds and is running so much faster, im already planning our winter training so we can come out strong for next year.

So now we will be on a month's rest, it will be nice to do nothing and not even think about agility, im sure the dogs will enjoy there rest and come back keen for their winter training. We have our BSD WC selection day at the end of November so we will be working towards that as part of our winter plan.

Next month im doing my judging course, I got fed up with my UP contacts constantly being marked which I think is completely unfair, it is obvious discrimination against large striding dogs, how can you fault a dog for running their natural stride pattern ??? Do they get time taken off when they have to crouch to go through tunnels or bend in two to get through the weaves, NO of course not so why should they be asked to shorten and slow down to get those UP's, I appreciate the safety with dogs jumping on from the side etc but that's a different thing all together surely ???

Anyway ......... now ive had my rant, Ive decided to do the judging course and give something back to the sport I enjoy and give those large striding dogs a fairer chance of winning !!!

Dog Vegas

Dog Vegas went well, the weather was a bit cloudy but generally stayed dry, I think we were lucky after I heard Wyre was cancelled on the saturday due to bad weather. Some good results from the weekend, Keisha is back in hormone land, more interested in sniffing the floor than actually running, very frustrating considering this was her first G7 show, when she could be bothered she gained a 3rd and 4th in her jumping classes so it wasn't a complete disaster.

The boys were much easier to run, I always know im going to get a 100% drive in the ring so it is just a matter of getting them round. Ronny had some cracking rounds, he gained a 3rd in jumping and then also finished joint 2nd in another class, I opted out of the run off, he's not the most reliable and it was our 5th day of competing, tired legs is just asking for an unnecessary injury !!! He also did me over twice in his agility rounds, running two cracking courses to only go and knock the last pole on both occasions, very heart breaking, then on top of that he ran a super agility round being judged by Lee Gibson to only get marked on his DW up contact (you know my feelings about up contacts being marked) what made it worse is that he would have won the class by 3 seconds, bummer !!!

Zippy and me are finally starting to run well together again, unfortunately we could only manage it in the combined 6-7 classes which I know we should strive to beat the best but he is still only a youngster and when he is only getting beat by G7 dogs it would be nice to get that win, however, ive noticed im moaning alot in this post so im going to stop. He was a good boy and im grateful that he loves his agility and that we are finally working well as a team again. :-)

For the last two weeks ........

Well for the last couple of weeks it's been a very busy one. After Scunthorpe Show the riots had started which meant I was working a minimum of 12 hour shifts (usually more), unfortunately the dogs had to take a back seat, I think I only shared their company during our dinner and bed time as the remainder I was just working, this also affected the weekend and we were unable to go to the agility show as planned, work can be hard at times and it is very annoying when it interferes with my social life, still plenty of overtime which means I have enough money to but some new agility equipment !!!

Now with everything pretty much back to normal we were able to go to Dashin Dogs this weekend, Emma and me had entered the Laser pairs which was great fun, Rupert and Zippy were the first pair who ran amazingly well to get to the second round, these two are gonna be great pairs partners in the future. Maisy and Ronny were our second pair, they are so much fun, we managed to get all the way to the quarter finals before stupid me pulled Ronny out of the weaves which was our only mistake, they were fantastic.

This was Keisha's last G6 show, on friday she won G6 jumping and then had a 4th and 8th on sunday. Ronny had only one clear but made it count by winning G6 Jumping yesterday, what a clever boy.

Still having problems with Zippy, in-experience, keen-ness and his young strong mind is causing us to have timing issues, great fun to run but just not very accurate yet, saying that we did manage to get round the jumping class yesterday to finish 6th behind Ronny. The running A-Frame is truly lost, to be expected considering we haven't trained it for many months now, I have retrieved it from the field today and set it up in the garden to try and retrain it, im off for the next two weeks so hopefully we will have it back in time for the ABC semi next week.


Emma and Rupert have had a brilliant weekend as Dashin Dogs, on Saturday they won G3 agility by two seconds taking them straight into G4 after only being out on the circuit for 7 weeks, then just to confirm it wasn't a fluke they went and did it again yesterday. Maisy also gained a 4th in her jumping class so definitely a weekend she will remember for a long time. Congratulations x

Scunthorpe Show

Out of the 24 runs this weekend we managed 20 x big fat E's, 2 x 5F and 2 clears. I guess you could say we weren't really in tune with each other.

Well ........ Ronny was just Ronny, really hard to run this weekend we didn't seem to get it right at all, even in our last jumping round today he ended up back jumping the jump two obstacles from the end, mind I did have 3 clears out of him last weekend so I guess im in for a bit of a wait until the next clear round comes along.

Keisha, well even we struggled to get our timing right, ive put the jumping round that we did today on the video below, we got right to the end when she took the last but one pole and then ran past the last fence, it was a tough course and I think there was actually only 2 clears, her best run came yesterday when she won the ABC qualifier.

Zippy, again massive timing issues between us especially in the jumping rounds, we have also lost our running A-Frame but I guess that is to be expected seems as we haven't trained it since Feb/Mar time. Zippy won the G6 agility yesterday so it wasn't all bad, we are still battling with young in-experienced moments by him but overall he is really starting to come on.

Grade 7

After 11 x 2nd places in G6 agility classes Keisha finally got that win we have been waiting for, I now have a Grade 7 dog, yippee !!!

This weekend we have been at Dog Vegas, we have had some amazing highs and some horrible lows but overall we have had a great weekend.

Friday kicked off with a bang when Ronny won the jumping class knocking Zippy down to 2nd place, they both ran the round fantastic and they were split by only a few tenths, very exciting times !!! Keisha had a 2nd in the other jumping class so all placed on the first day.

Saturday, the first class was the Dog Vegas Qualifier with the final being held in the evening, none of my dogs had qualified so it was all to play for, Ronny ran first with a really messy round but finished clear, Keisha ran second with a lovely run, slightly slower than Ronny but still another clear, Zippy ran last and did a lovely run to beat both Ronny and Keisha, finishing 4th, 5th and 6th, all qualified for the final, how nerve racking !!!

Then the low hit, Ronny ran a super agility round but the horrid judge marked his up contact, he would have won the round by two seconds, what made it worse was the judge was so inconsistent and other dogs were missing both ups and downs but weren't getting marked for it, I guess we just don't get any luck !!!

Anyway, on to the final, Zippy was first dog to run, his first ever final very exciting, he ran brilliantly but stupid me shouted a command whilst he was right on a jump and made him crash it, naughty mummy !!! Ronny ran 6th, a bit of a quick turn around but we made it ok, we were out by the 5th obstacle as it was DW into the tunnel (the wrong end) Ronny got his self taught running contact but not the correct end of the tunnel, a big fat E, he was a good boy though. Keisha ran near the end and put in a lovely round, she finished 2nd in the final so I was really chuffed.

Then today, OMG Keisha started with another 2nd in the agility class, I was thinking we were under the curse of 2nd place again, so pleased but so down at the same time, was it ever going to happen, just one agility run needed and we just couldn't get it. Then the next agility round came, more of a sprinters course but quite trappy, well we did it, we finally got that first place, what made it even better it was the Vegas money class so we won £15 too. Ice creams courtesy of Keisha today, thanks for being the most perfect little consistent dog and putting up with me Ratty xxx

Keisha then went on to win the jumping class today and gained 5th in the other jumping class, Ronny had another clear (which is one everyday this weekend) in his jumping class finishing 4th just in front of Keisha, Zippy ran the best time beating both Ronny and Keisha by a second, sadly he just knocked a pole, bummer !!! Zippy also ran a fantastic agility round this morning too but this time took the last pole, bummer again !!!

I am so looking forward to next week, if the dogs are half as good I will be a very proud mummy.

Over the past two weeks

Ive been slacking again with my blog, updates from the following three shows, Rugby, Adams and Empingham.

Well there has been some very good runs between the dogs, infact ive been really chuffed with all of them, Keisha is finally back on form after a hard couple of months with her being hormonal, I thought getting her spayed over three years ago would stop this but obviously not !!!

Anyway ....... Rugby show, the weather wasn't so great, on the saturday morning it didn't stop raining, I had left by 1100hrs and went home, the dogs ran well but Ronny and Zippy were slipping everywhere so I decided to call it a day. On the sunday Ronny ran really well in his agility but knocked a pole, Zippy was brilliant but poor handling by me kept making him jump wide we still managed to finish 10th so I was really pleased with that, Keisha had a great jumping round to finish 2nd.

Last saturday we were at Adams, not a great day for the boys infact Ronny was a complete monster, in one of his rounds we didn't even get to run, he refused to wait at the start line and after three attempts we left the ring, very frustrating !!! Keisha was brilliant and managed a 1st in jumping, 2nd in agility and 7th in the C6-7 jumping.

On sunday we were at Empingham for the ABC qualifier, I just needed Keisha to qualify so she could join the boys in September at the semi, she ran really well and finished 2nd so all the doggies get to go. Keisha then went on to get 5th in agility and 8th in the C4-7 jumping. The star of this show was Ronny, after being such a monster the day before I was dreading running him in the first class which happened to be the agility, well he ran amazingly well and won the class, only one more win to go grade 7, im starting to think this might really happen !!!

Yesterday we went back to Adams, any excuse to avoid going to work, another good day, Keisha had another 2nd in agility followed by a 3rd in jumping, Ronny had no clears but only one knocked pole in each jumping round, in the G6 jumping it was the last pole and he would have won, annoying !!!, Zippy and me finally got our act together, albeit we are still not running smoothly and getting really wide turns but some really promising work, 2nd in Jumping just in front of Keisha and 3rd in agility just behind Keisha, so much to work on but so much to look forward too.

Today im off to work so the dogs can have a nice day of rest then tomorrow we are back at Adams, I cant wait.

Just want to say huge congratulations to Ann and Gloria for all their amazing wins over the weekend, I think 3 x 1st in G1 jumping and that G1 agility win too, I don't expect you will be in grade 2 that long !!!

Thanks to Helen and Andy Brown for taking the picture of Keisha at the WC, I cant believe she kept the pole up.

Happy 7th Birthday Ronny

Happy 7th Birthday to Ronny and Rusty, where has the time gone ???

Bretford and Chipping Norton

Before I update you with the weekend I just want to say massive congratulations to Amy Sadler and Summer for winning Grade 1 agility taking them into Grade 2, they also went on to win the jumping so certainly a good day for them.
Good company, good weather, good dogs and an ok-ish handler. This weekend has been quite successful for placings, Keisha is finally showing signs of getting back to her normal self, out of the 6 classes she managed 5 clears, on saturday she won the G6 jumping, today she finished 3rd in G6 jumping and 4th in G6 agility, she looks alot more bouncy and is actually interested in playing rather than sniffing the ground.

Zippy only had one clear this weekend, still timing issues between us, he is not reading my body language very well or im not offering it correctly so subsequently we are not turning in the right direction, I guess it's just practice and we need to train much harder on this. However ........ check out his start line wait, sooooooooo much better now !!!

Ronny ........ the hardest dog in the world to run, yesterday he started the weekend of well with a super run to get 2nd in G6 agility, his jumping rounds were also great but just a knocked pole in each, today his jumping rounds were pants, they are on the video below, pole after pole after pole, very frustrating. Then out of nowhere he goes and runs a mad and messy agility round to finish 2nd again, one day I will get that win im so desperate for, not that im ungrateful but im am so fed up of 2nd place.



Just want to say well done to super duper Rupert and Emma for their runs this weekend, they ran an amazing agility round today but unfortunately he just took the last pole, what was more amazing is that he won have won it by miles, considering this was only his second show it's leading to very exciting times.

Bad Blogger

I'm sorry to all those that have told me off for not updating my blog, I guess ive been slacking the last couple of weeks, trying to find the time to sit down and write a post is quite difficult at the minute, im not sure why as I am doing nothing more than usual.

Anyway ....... last couple of weeks, Lansdown was first, not a great show for us, a few issues with the dogs and me, Keisha is completely off the game at the minute, im not really sure why, possibly due to hormones, maybe an undiscovered injury or just a lack of enthusiasm, she is still running but generally quite slow, not showing much motivation at times and then in other classes I get a glimpse of her coming back to form, 2 clears at Lansdown but no places.

Since Zippy has gone up another gear we seem to be having timing issues, he doesn't seem to be able to read my body language and at times either turns the opposite direction or jumps long when he should be jumping short etc etc, you get the picture, a complete weekend of E's at Lansdown.

Ronny is still as mad, probably running as my best dog at the minute, not many E's but still rushing making pole knocking or missed weave entries quite common.

Then this weekend we were at Tuffley, Keisha had her worst round yet on friday, just completely refusing a jump and running round it, eerrrmmm not sure what the problem is, Emma and me discussed it on friday night and decided if she wasn't on form on satuday then I was going to not run her over the weekend, then on saturday she did a nice jumping round to finish 3rd, not at her complete best but not a bad effort at all, especially at Tuffley where there is alot of good dogs competing, she also had a good clear in the agility to finish 14th, so im confused. Then on sunday she had 3 out of 3 clears, signs of her coming back to form, 7th in jumping and 11th in agility, im thinking its hormones, lets see how she does this weekend.

Zippy and me had a much better weekend, we have started to get our start line wait back so im really pleased with that, he had a lovely clear in the C1-7 jumping on friday, albeit we had a few wide turns but we are getting back to running like a proper team, saturday we had a lovely agility run to finish 10th, I panicked right near the end of the class and made him steady far too early on the DW contact which wasted valuable time. Sunday we had another 10th in agility, a clear each day means we are working as a team again, im more than happy with that, his enthusiasm is brilliant and when we get it right we will hopefully be fighting for a better place.

No clears for Ronny this weekend but he is still running well, people keep telling me he will steady and mature with age but he is nearly 7 and there is no sign yet !!!

Swimming Part ll

Considering it was supposed to rain today we have actually had a lovely day of sun, which meant there was plenty of time to splash about in the pool after work. Ronny and Zippy are mad for it so always want a quick fun two minutes at the end, I did try and film it but its pretty much impossible to get the camera properly aimed at them whilst throwing their toys and being the lifeguard.



This weekend we are in Bath for the Lansdown Show, I have never done this show before but I have heard good things about it, im always a bit wary of a new show as you never know what to expect, im just hoping for a relaxing weekend.

Golden Valley

Well I did what I planned this weekend and have started on my quest to get Zippy’s start line wait back (and Ronny’s at times) it’s been very frustrating as he has ran some cracking rounds after being E’d on the start line, still it will only make us a better team in the long term and im determined to stick to my goal.

The boys have been ace this weekend, Ronny has ran some brilliant rounds, a couple of knocked poles but I can live with that, as long as he listens im happy !!!

Saturday was Ronny’s and Zippy’s first ever pairs together, Emma ran Ronny whilst I worked Zippy, we managed to get them both E’d but it was soooooo much fun, not the easiest pairs course either but we gave it our best shot and I think Emma and me came away with the biggest grins on our faces.

Today was Team Dash and in action were Zippy, Summer, Speedy and Ronny, I love doing team and there is nothing better than seeing the whole team smiling at the end, we didn’t go clear infact I think Amy and Summer had the only clear but all the dogs tried really hard and zoomed round the fast flowing course. Unfortunately Megan and Heidi who were the other planned team dogs came into season this week so were unable to attend.

Thank you to Emma for running Ronny in both the pairs and team and to Amy for stepping in at the last minute to make up our 4^th team member.

Just want to say a massive well done to Emma and Maisy getting 5^th in a really tricky C3-4 Jumping class, sorry I missed your run.

It's the start of our swimming season

I thought it was about time to get the swimming pool out of the garage and back in action for the doggies, all my mob love the water and what better way to exercise the dogs, what makes it more rewarding is it has a low risk of injury to the dogs and it doesn't cost me anything, yippee !!!

Ronny was the first in tonight, I was playing toy with him and then the next thing Zippy had managed to do an almighty leap to join him in the pool (im still in shock by the leap). They have started with a couple of minutes each tonight and we will progress steadily over the next few weeks until they are at peak swimming fitness. I didn't manage to film Zippy tonight but hopefully I will get him next time.



This weekend we are at Golden Valley, on Saturday Ronny and Zippy are doing their first ever pairs together, Emma is running Ronny whilst I work Zippy, im very excited, it's either going to go horribly wrong or incredibly well, hopefully we will catch it on video. On Sunday the Kronik Kids are back in action, sadly Nat and Reno cant make it this weekend but we have another Mali on hand to temporary fill his place.

North Derbyshire

It's nice to be back in action with all the dogs, I love being able to have three attempts at the same course, its a shame I couldn't of done that at the World Champs. Anyway had some really good runs this weekend and all the doggies had there own brilliant moments and some not so good I must add !!!

Keisha and Zippy finished 2nd and 4th respectively in quite a tricky jumping round yesterday, they all ran well in their agility class but all of them got marked for up contacts (not to groan too much as I know judges do a good job etc etc but 2 of them blatantly got the ups, very frustrating as they would have been clear !!!)

Today we started on a rubbish note, no clears in their agility round, Ronny ran the best but he just wouldn't pull off the tunnel after the DW so another fat E for us. The heavens then opened and the dogs seemed to come alive, Keisha won jumping and Zippy finished 3rd, I was chuffed with Zip in this round, the ground was so slippy and he found it hard to dig in which caused him to run wide on several occasions but he still ran his socks off.

The last jumping of the day all the doggies went clear, Zip had a moment of confusion coming out the tunnel and did a turn but apart from that they were all brilliant. Ronny finished 2nd, Zippy 4th and Keisha 8th.

It's nice to be back home out of the rain, it hasn't stopped all day and it's still going strong now !!!

Back home from the BSD WC

Just back from the BSD WC, arrived home early hours this morning and I am truly exhausted, I have only had a couple of hours sleep as I wanted to get up early and collect Ronny and Zippy from my mum and dad's, I have missed them very much this week and it was lovely to be mobbed by them on my arrival, as expected Ronny and Zippy both look like Hippo's and appeared to have had the best time, it's nice to be back together as our Mali mob !!!

Anyway ........ The WC, another experience I have learnt from, Keisha and me didn't manage a single clear in our qualifying rounds which is very unlike us as a team, we had a missed weave entry in one class, a pole in another and then two big fat E's. The standard is so high on the continent and we only had one option to just attack the courses to try and qualify for the final, the luck was just not on our side, our jumping round was the best but right near the end of the course Keisha brushed a pole with her back foot which was a real shame. In our team jumping round Keisha had 5F, she didn't even see the double pole jump and piled straight into it taking the wing and both poles out, again completely out of character for her, however, we did manage a clear in the team agility (after I bribed her with an ice cream) which I was really chuffed with, this was the one thing that has haunted me ever since last year when we missed our A-Frame contact in the team agility. We finished 4th in the Team event so hopefully next year we can improve and finally get on that podium.

The courses were fantastic, we watched the judges lay out there courses and used a minimum of 6-7 paces between each obstacle which is completely different to our UK courses which usually consist of 4-5 paces max between each obstacle, there were parts on each course that you really had to trust your dog and send them on, im going to set them up at home and start practicing ready for next year. The most noticeable thing for me this year was how the majority of countries ran each round as if it was a final, none of these steady runs that we tend to do to get a clear round, definitely something im guilty of, !!! but from start to finish attacking every part of the course, the French (who won the individual) and Finland (who won the team event) were phenomenal, infact the top four going into the final had two from each of these countries, they ran with such conviction and it was amazing to watch.

As soon as I get the course plans I will post them on here

BSD World Champs

This week its the BSD World Champs, we set off on wednesday morning to arrive for the opening ceremony in the evening, training day on thursday followed by two competition days and then the final is on sunday if we are lucky enough to make it. I'm really looking forward to competing and I have my fingers crossed for all our team to do well, good luck to each and everyone of you.

If you want to keep up to date with our progress follow this link
http://www.facebook.com/pages/BSD-World-Championships-Team-GB/103309969760157

Back from Dog Vegas 3 day show

Just got back from the three day show at Dog Vegas, the weather has been horrible with rain and gale force winds, im not going to moan too much as it's nothing new for our country.

Anyway, lots of positives and negatives this weekend. The negatives are I have lost Zippy's start line wait well and truly now, im so cross with my self at letting this happen, I already know that if there is no control at the start then there will be no control in the course, ive just spent the last few years battling with Ronny over it. What makes it worse is Zippy has gone up another gear and I just cant get places to help him out which means we ended up with alot of E's this weekend. This week im going to work hard on our waits and the battle returns with making sure we get them in competition. On the plus side when we did have good classes we had some amazing runs, Zippy got 6th in G6 agility, 3rd in C6-7 Jumping which im thrilled with and he won the Helter Skelter today.

Ronny has had some good and bad moments too, he is testing me with his start line waits, its not as bad as Zippy but it will definitely be perfect next week. I think we have had another record this weekend, a clear round every day, yippee !!! He got 4th in Jumping then 5th in Agility and today 2nd in Jumping, I have to check I have the right dog when he goes clear, it's not normal that he gets them !!!

Keisha as always has been brilliant, 2 x 2nds, 2 x 3rds, 4th and 6th, thankfully her start line waits are good but there will be no harm in confirming them this week.

Just a final note to say Congratulations to The Kronik Kidz in their Team Dash, they finished 3rd which was amazing, well done Reno, Zippy, Speedy and Megan and of course the humans !!!

High Peak Show

The weather has not been so great this weekend, wind and rain yesterday and today cold and cloudy, I guess we have been a bit spoilt with all the sunshine and now the Great British weather is back !!!

We have been in Bakewell this weekend, I do like this show ground but I think this was the furthest camping pitch away from the rings we have been given, I guess on a positive note I have done lots of walking to and from so its all good fitness training.

On the agility front Saturday was a bit of a disaster, I think we managed more E's than anything else, Im blaming my handling, it was a bit pants. Today we didn't get our first run until 3pm and then all three classes came up at the same time, typical !!! By this time Ronny had lost the plot and was just in manic mode, he tried really hard but I knew we were going to be rubbish. Keisha ran really well, she got 2nd in agility and 2nd in jumping, she seemed alot more driven today so im really chuffed with that. Zippy is being a very naughty boy with his start line waits, im going to have to get a grip, for his first Grade 6 show he did really well, he is so keen and eager to please, we only had one clear and that was today in his jumping class, he finished 3rd behind Keisha by 0.04 of a second, what a clever boy !!!

Saturday was the Team Dash, the Kronik Kids were all in action, its on the clip below, running order ..... Reno, Zippy, Speedy and Megan, they were very well behaved and we had so much fun, we get to do it all again next week as we are running as a team in the Dog Vegas Show.

What a FINAL way to finish Grade 5

This weekend has been very relaxing, yesterday I did lots of shopping and eating and then chilled in the garden with the doggies enjoying the sun, it's not very often I get to do nothing !!!

Today we have been at Beacon Agility Show, we have been lucky with the weather today as it stayed nice and dry. This was Zippy's last Grade 5 show and out of the three classes there were two qualifiers up for grabs. The first run this morning was the CSJ qualifier, I know Zippy has started to be cheeky on the start line and self release so I had already made up my mind before going in that when he broke I would put him back, well he didn't ...... when I turned around to take him back he was still sat there (what a good boy) so that was it we were off ...... he ran a super course, at one point I think he thought he had finished and went off to collect his toy, thankfully I spotted it so managed to call him off, a wide turn but nothing too major, he finished 4th and picked up a qualifying spot so now we are off to the CSJ Final in September. His jumping was next, a bit of a battle at the start as he was definitely going to break on this one, i stood my ground and managed to get him settled, another cracking run to finish in 2nd place. The last run of the day was the Dog Vegas qualifier, a really lovely course that just suited Zippy and me, he ran fantastically well, another toy moment in the middle of the course causing a wide turn but again we managed to save it, he finished in 3rd place so we have qualified for the final in August, how exciting !!!

Today was all about training for Keisha, im trying to prepare for the BSD WC and give us the best opportunity when we are over there, I really don't want her to miss a contact in the team event, it's the worst feeling ever knowing you have let your team down, anyway ...... I think training was definitely a good plan, she broke her wait twice today so I had to put her back, although she got all her contacts she self released on the DW so she got put back on that too, it wasn't all bad, she ran a lovely jumping round to finish 3rd and there were a couple of really hard sequences that she flew through so ive come away happy.

Ronny...... he always keeps my feet on the ground, such a hard dog to run, this morning was a disaster, he had a moment of the naughty Mali doing his own course and actually not even looking at me for direction, I decided to take him straight out on this course in the hope he would see im not playing that game anymore, well I think it worked, his next agility round was ace, we got most of the way round when naughty mummy sent him to the wrong side of the jump, he was so on the ball and his contact were solid and not a single pole down. His jumping was also brilliant, weave issues on this round but due to them moving as the ground was so hard it wasn't holding the pegs in, im pleased with him today, let's hope naughty Mali has gone for ever.

Huge congratulations to Jackie and the clever Speedy for gaining 3rd in their jumping class today, it was such a lovely run and his weaves were brilliant. Cant wait for next weekend when all the Kronik Kids are in action in the team dash !!!

Vyne Agility Show

So today was our third and last day of our agility weekend, Newbury was very very windy but the sun still managed to shine. Today was the ABC qualifier, I was hoping I would qualify one of my dogs, when I walked the course this morning it was set more towards a grade 1 class, so very fast and flowing, more suited to Zippy than Keisha.

Anyway, to cut the story short both Ronny and Zippy have qualified for the semi's, Ronny ran fantastically well to finish 2nd and Zippy ran just a second slower to clinch the 4th qualifying spot, I think my picture sums up how I am feeling. Keisha also ran clear but just wasn't fast enough on this course, she finished in 10th place.

Shrewsbury Success

Another lovely weekend of agility in the sun, we have been at Shrewsbury for the past few days, I love this show, great memories as this was where Ronny won out of Grade 1 back in 2007, how time fly's !!!

We have had some fantastic runs this weekend, not many clears but some really encouraging runs, Ronny is still being amazing, when we get it right my god it feels good, his agility has been brilliant again, he ran a super round today just gaining 5F he also had some great jumping classes but my handling was pants and sadly let him down, im just so thrilled with how he is running.

Zippy just makes me smile, he tries so hard, he did a very challenging G5-7 Jumping yesterday and we got most of the way round until my handling let him down, he also ran an amazing agility class but I ran so hard past the DW to test his contact that I actually pulled him off, it's good to proof these contacts as if it was a championship class (sadly not solid in that department yet) but def a good training area to work on. Today he won his jumping class and he is looking so confident.

Keisha has been ace this weekend, an odd pole here and there but some lovely sequences, we held our contacts in the ring which was great, something that we have never really been able to do before as either she would ping them or I would rush her. Today she won the C6-7 jumping class to get her 3rd win to G7, she only needs an agility win so fingers crossed we will get that before the end of the season. She then went on to win the G6 jumping so I know we are working well as a team at the moment.

The dogs have all be spoilt this weekend, I was in debt to Ronny and Zippy for their previous wins and with Keisha winning today it was only fair we had a trip to the ice cream man, I think Mr Whippy went down a treat with my doggies.

Tomorrow we are off to Vyne, it's great having a third day at agility, yippee !!!

Break through .........

So this weekend was our annual show for the WBSDS, it was really hard work ring managing for two days but it was so much fun, I had two lovely judges and my ring party were fab so thank you very much for helping. On top of that we had beautiful sunshine and lots of Easter eggs to keep us going over the three days. Like all the other Belgian handlers I didn't get to see my doggies very much and it seemed I just met them at the ring, ran them and handed them back over to mum so she could take them back to the caravan.

After saying all that it sounds like my weekend was a disaster for running my dogs, well it actually turned out to be the opposite, my doggies were all amazing and we have been a bit greedy ........

I had a few timing issues with Zippy this weekend, we managed to clock up quite a few refusals, I think he is reading my body language so much quicker now that he is starting to catch me out, you will be able to see this on some of his video clips, he is turning into Ronny more and more (how exciting). When we got it right we had some amazing rounds, saturday was his best day winning G5 agility and 2nd in jumping, we didn't film on this day it's sods law isn't it !!!

Keisha was a good girlie this weekend 3 x 2nds, 3 x 3rds, 2 x 6ths and a 7th in the ABC qualifier, we had some really nice runs, I got lost on a couple of her rounds, I think the sun must have got to my head but apart from that we worked well as a team, she is such a lovely dog to run, thanks Ratty x

Ronny ...... this is the break through ......... a clear round every day this weekend, not just a clear but three cracking places, on friday he won G6 jumping so we are now half way to G7, Ronny and Keisha are at the same point so if any of them get to G7 im wondering who will be the first, my money is on Ronny !!! I know your all a bit shocked that I just wrote that but he is such a different dog at the minute.

Then on saturday he got 3rd in C6-7 Jumping and on sunday he got 5th in G6 jumping, all of which were really tricky courses, mum got his winning run on video.

Zippy has zoomed into 6

The weather this weekend was fantastic, we were at Lincolnshire agility show and the sun was out all weekend, it was a lovely venue and we actually ended up with a pitch right near the rings. Saturday Keisha ran some lovely rounds, gaining a 9th and a 13th in agility, Ronny had some good runs but we had to do a lot of training this weekend, he broke his wait so I had to put him back which got us eliminated (he then went clear, typical !!!) He had the first pole in another class other wise that would have been clear too, his agility was fantastic, his contacts were solid so im sooooooo chuffed with him, he is finally starting to respect me !!!

But the little star of the show has to be Zippy, he won his agility class today which now puts him up to G6, I was hoping to keep him in G5 for a while but I guess Zippy has other ideas, he then went on to get 2nd in his C4-5 jumping class, he is such a good boy. I was on my own this weekend so no video's of the runs, Kate took these pictures of Zippy in his winning agility run so thankyou very very much.

Well done to the other Kronik Kids this weekend and the handlers of course, they are all looking good, im so proud of you all.

Spring @ Shuttleworth

I am so glad to be back in the agility season, we had such a great few days and I can wait to do it all again this weekend. So Spring @ Shuttleworth turned out to be a very busy show for us, I was helping on saturday and ended up being the ring manager on sunday which although it was great fun it was also quite stressful trying to get my dogs run. Saying all that my doggies wee fantastic and it ended up being a successful show for us.

Zippy kicked us off on saturday with a lovely jumping round to finish third and then followed it up with another 3rd in BSD agility. Keisha had some really nice rounds in her agility and jumping to gain an 8th and 9th and also a 3rd in BSD jumping.

The star of the show for me was Ronny !!! He was such a good boy, he ran some lovely rounds, knocked one pole in his jumping and two in his agility, admittedly he did turn his DW into a running contact without my permission on two occasions but apart from that he was surprisingly very very focussed on me. He ended up winning the ABC helter Skelter and the BSD Jumping and also gained a 7th in C4-7 jumping which he lost by a second and that was down to me giving him a late command and making him turn the wrong way, naughty mummy !!!

Here are a couple of the runs we managed to catch on camera.



Well done to Amy on her brilliant 5th and 6th place this weekend with Summer and all those other clears that you got, well done to Ellen for your 15th with Hamish and a big well done to Emma and Maisy who had some fantastic rounds this weekend, I managed to catch a couple of them and they looked brilliant, I think it was a good weekend for everyone !!!

Im counting down ........

One more day at work then we start our agility season, it will be great to catch up with everyone again, it seems a lot longer than 6 months !!!

We are at Spring @ Shuttleworth this weekend, I love this venue and what makes it even better is the sun is supposed to be shinning all weekend. We plan to arrive early friday afternoon, get the caravan set up and sort the dogs before Keisha and me have to scoot over to one of the rings for the BSD WC training.

The doggies are all ready to go, Ronny had been suffering with his stopper pad, im not sure how he did it but he sliced half of it off, it finally looks like it has fully mended, due to this I hadn't been able to do much agility training with him, I took him last sunday to club to refresh his memory, he was a bit wild but thats nothing new, im expecting him to be the same this weekend, I guess it's nice to have a dog that makes you work really hard for those clears, im just far too spoilt with Keisha and Zippy !!!

Anyway, looking forward to seeing you all this weekend, good luck and I hope you all have a brilliant season x

Last night's course

Last nights course ............ What a run !!!

This was so much fun, we split it up into three to practice the sequences and then ran the course at the end of the night. It was a good course to test direction control, the ability for the dog to work ahead and another mean weave entry.

I'm loving Zippy, he is so much more confident and doesn't hesitate to run straight past me and keep going, I found it hard to steer him from the A-Fame into the tunnel especially with him running the contact, we did crack it though, I wouldn't normally use his name but on this occasion I chucked it in as he landed jump 8 to get him to turn his head from the flat tunnel and also the left side of the rigid tunnel. The rest he ran beautifully, I love the fact I can send him and hang back and not worry about the fact he might take a pole, it allows me to get in such a better postion to help him around the course, it's like having a sensible Ronny !!!

Zippy is allowed to travel

Zippy has been granted his pet passport today which is great news, im hoping if the season goes well both Keisha and Zippy will be eligible for the BSD WC qualifier at the end of the year.

Talking about the agility season .... one more weekend of freedom then 6 months of competing, yippee !!! I have entered all my April, May and June shows and half way through July, im so excited.

Last weekend mum and me cleaned the caravan out and have put all our stuff back in, now it has been serviced and cleaned we are ready to go, just waiting for our first running orders to land on the door mat.

Good Zippy.... rubbish mummy

Last night we did a jumping course, it was really nice just to let the dogs have a blast and not nag them too much. At the start of the session I practiced the turns we had learnt at Toni Dawkins training day, Zippy did them brilliantly, if im honest im not sure if he maintained them when we were running the sequences as I was too busy trying to run him. I MUST TRY HARDER.

This was one of the sequences, it was really good fun, we kept getting a wide turn after jump 12, obviously I was telling Zippy too late so I then started to cue it early, too early ...... and then he would stop short, my timing on this jump was pants, poor Zippy !!!

Then we had a couple of issues with jump 14, I was either rushing off to get jump 15 which meant he was taking the wrong side of 14 or I was pushing him through the gap putting him on the right side to take the jump but still rushing off making him just run past it completely. My timing on this sequence was rubbish.

The other sequence was harder but we always managed to get round it, I think because I have to concentrate more which makes me give clearer signals to Zippy. It was nice to go back to more flowing courses, it has highlighted that I still need to work hard on my basic handling.

Toni Dawkins Training day

I always try and do training days with different people in the hope I can pick up some new techniques or find out what faults im teaching my dogs without realising it, some have been good courses and some have been far from it, I guess it depends on what suits you as a person and what methods you prefer to train with. Yesterday I took Zippy on a Toni Dawkins training day, what a great teacher she is, the hours flew past and we have learnt so much. We worked mainly on turns and contacts but also on rewarding or not at the appropriate times. Zippy had a great time and the techniques we learnt yesterday really do suit us as a partnership. I would definitley go on another training day with Toni.

This morning I went down to the field and practiced some of the techniques we learnt yesterday, it was so much fun and already I can see the benefit in our turns. The house is looking a bit bare with no DW in the front room so im going to bring in a couple of jump wings to fill in the space instead, that way we can practice a turn every time we go and make a cuppa tea.

Not long until the season starts, two more weekends of doing nothing and then it starts, yippee. Our first show is Spring @ Shuttleworth and we (dogs and me) cant wait. Kevin our caravan has just been serviced today, we will start to put our stuff back in over the next week or so and then we will be good to go.

Last nights training

I really enjoy going training on thursday's with Alan and Jackie Gardner, we always do some fantastic sequences and last night was no exception, infact I think this has been our best night yet, Zippy is running really well and he is so much fun. The sequences had some challenging parts last night but it was such a buzz.

Sequence 1:

This sequence ran really well, I started Zippy on my left and then almost scooped him between 3 & 4 to get the right line between the A-Frame and tunnel, this worked really well, if I had been running Ronny im not sure a scoop would of been the best option as he is so hard to call off a tunnel, thankfully Zippy is alot more responsive so it worked great. I then kept Zippy on my right and sent him on ahead from the A-Frame to the tunnel to get the weaves on his own. I was really chuffed with Zippy, we didn't struggle at all with this sequence, his line between 3 & 4 was always good and his weave entry was perfect, I was really trying to test his entry (almost trying to get him to fail) and sending him straight into the weaves from the tunnel but he just kept nailing it, what a good boy !!!

Problems on this one: It was mainly the weave entry, so many dogs were going in 2nd or 3rd pole down, handlers kept the tunnel on their right to try and call the dog out left and then run on a bit to straighten them up but the dogs still found the entry difficult.

Sequence 2:

This followed straight on from sequence 1 so coming from the weave poles, I left Zippy in the weaves so that I could get ahead and push around for jump 2, I pushed him around the outside (right side as you look at it) and then pushed through for jump 3 and sent him on ahead to do the see-saw which allowed me to cross behind him, the rest I ran several different ways as I wanted to see which lines suit Zippy the best.

Problems on this: there was only one problem area on this section, all revolving around jump 2 and 3, handlers were either too late in getting there so couldn't push around jump 2 or some handlers tried the push around on the inside line between jump 2 and 3 and dogs were pinging all over the place causing them to get the big fat E.

Last weeks training.

Sorry im a bit behind with posting last weeks club training plan. I loved this course, a great opportunity to test certain elements, sending the dog on, difficult weave entry, finding the best line. Last week we were joined by the international handlers that were competing at Crufts. Sergio from Portugal and Daisy from the USA, both their dogs had amazing running contacts and it was really interesting to see what training techniques they used. Sergio used the funny turn quite alot and made it look so easy, I must say I think I have finally mastered it and it feels quite good now, im going to use it more often.

Anyway, Sequence 1:

Quite straight forward, some dogs were taking a pole at the spread (jump 6) I think probably due to not driving the dog over it enough as they were trying to get a tight turn into the tunnel. The right end of the tunnel was actually facing the DW so if the handler waited too long for the dog to take the tunnel they didn't make it in time to get a nice line onto jump 8 and the dog either jumped too long or they missed the pull through. The right end of the tunnel also made a nice trap for those running contacts !!! 

Sequence 2:

Loved this part of the course, Zippy was ace at getting his weave entries, I took the tightest line from Jump 3 straight into the weaves, I then ran ahead and put in a blind cross so I could be on the right hand side of the long jump, that way Zippy chased me and sent on ahead to do Jump 6 and 7 on his own. This then gave him a tight turn onto the see-saw where I was waiting for him and then a long dash home with another opportunity to send him on.

Problems on this sequence: Missed weave entries or either a really long line into it. Some handlers also had to go to jump 7 with their dog which then made the run home slow as the handler was always playing catch up, a couple of dogs even tried to go back into the weaves after the flat tunnel.

Crufts 2011

Crufts has been a very successful one for our Mali mob this year. Friday was our breed day and in action was Jackie and Speedy, over the past year they have done really well in the show ring and on friday he looked fantastic, Speedy showed his socks off and won his class, he then went on to get reserve dog which is a great result for his first time at Crufts. The winner of Best of Breed actually turned out to be Speedy's mum, Bonvivant Habibi. Ronny and Zippy are very proud of you both.

Friday was also agility day for Keisha and me, this was our first time competing at Crufts and we were running in the ABC event, agility was first up but it didn't quite go to plan, Keisha jumped her DW contact and then shortly after we got eliminated. In the afternoon we had the jumping round, the course looked great and I was really looking forward to running it, Keisha ran brilliantly, she slipped on part of the course but she still managed to finish in second place, just 3 tenths behind the winner.

1st Nigel Stains and Zico 32.66
2nd Jo Hyslop and Keisha 32.96
3rd Mark Douglas and Ruby 34.32



Today Amy Sadler and Summer were competing in the dogstable event, they are now Crufts 2011 winners !!! Congratulations to both of you.

Sunday Training

This morning it was club training, it was mainly focused around the funny turn ive previously blogged about, I had been avioding it as I just couldn't seem to get my head around it, however, Yvonne insisted on it this morning so I had no choice. I actually found it much more simpler today, I had Zippy in the first lesson and with him having a much longer stride and therefore a bigger jumping range I found it actually worked quite well. I worked Keisha in the next class, we usually struggle with this turn as she jumps incredibly tight but again we seemed to master it, I think I might start training it again, if nothing else its another tool in our box.

This afternoon Emma came up, we worked on contacts, weaves and the funny turn, Rupert is looking amazing, he is a really good boy in his weaves, considering this was only his second time with them fully upright they are looking fab, his contacts were equally as good. Maisy was also very good, no problem for them doing the funny turn, they make it look so easy.

This is a clip of Zippy doing his running A-Frame on thursday night at training, filmed by Alan Gardner, thanks Alan.