To my astonishment, Pico got a steeplechase Q this weekend at the All Dog’s Gym usdaa trial! (more…)

Not of a prong collar, but of gas prices that are well over $3.00 per gallon in this area, and closer to $3.25!

I’ve put together our spring event calendar and we will definitely be concentrating on agility and sticking close to home. Luckily there are trials within a reasonable drive every weekend from late March on, and usually several to choose from each weekend.

Unfortunately, the same can not be said of dock diving. There havent been any local events, at least not any worth getting out of bed for, and I dont see any on the horizon yet, so we’ll be putting that on the back burner til summer.  Pico won’t be happy about that, but my bank account will be!

Pico finished her novice jumpers with weaves title today at the Williamsport Dog Training Club AKC agility trial! I was hoping we’d pull it off, so we could move up to open and leave early!! Novice jumpers is the last class of the day tomorrow and I didnt want to have to stick around for it.

Her run was great, but there is some work that needs to be done before we can consistently Q in classes where refusals count. Open standard and jumpers might just be for practice and experience tomorrow, but you never know…

2007 was an incredible year for Pico. Technically she has one more event before the year is done, a usdaa trial next weekend, but I figured I’d write her year-end post early. With luck her performance next weekend will be such that it deserves it’s own post. I can only hope!

Pico’s year started in less than spectacular fashion at the Chicago Dock Dogs event. She had her worst finish ever, 12th place! I could only laugh, because the problem was obvious, she decided she was not holding her stay and nothing I did was going to change her mind. So, distances plummeted!

We put Dock Dogs on the back burner for a bit, and made our agility debut in March, where Pico quickly got her AKC novice title. We then turned our attention to USDAA in the hopes of qualifying for DAM team in Scottsdale. What on earth was I thinking?? Still, we had a lot of fun trying. We’ll try again this year and see what happens.

In any case, Pico is a wonderful agility dog, fast and intense, but very responsive, with an athleticism that is just not seen in tervuren! The Q’s will come in time. I’d rather have that than a slow, consistent dog.

In July we went back to Dock Dogs for an event in Battle Creek, MI where she got a new personal best of 25′9″ and won the event! I was thrilled because I really wasnt sure what to expect from Pico this year. At this event Pico made it clear what I could expect, consistently huge jumps!

Worlds was next on our agenda. Pico had some great practice jumps and I went into the competition with a good amount of confidence. Pico rewarded my confidence in her with a 27 footer in semi finals, and that jump made my year! We ended up with the silver medal and an automatic invite to Worlds 2008!

We did a few more events that summer, and got a lot of 25 and 26+ and foot jumps. We won most of the events we entered and with the exception of Chicago at the beginning of the season we did not finish worse than third at any Dock  Dogs events!

Dundee Michigan was an incredible event for us, and one of the highlights of our year! Pico set one new personal best after another at this event, reeling off  27′01, 27′8, 27′10 and a bunch of 26 footers to boot!

A national championship was the next thing I wanted and Pico gave it to me. She won the Super Elite division and ended her year ranked #1 dog of 2007, #1 female of all time and #2 dog of all time! I did some calculations and Pico had 38 super elite jumps this year! I think this is some kind of record too, or at least it will be. Pico’s only three and her best jumps are ahead of her.

Pico has given me soooo much this year. She amazes me with her drive, intelligence and heart. I’m incredibly lucky to have such a talented partner.

Next year I hope for more of the same! And I’m sure my little girl is more than up to the task of giving it to me! 

One thing I know I can expect next year - a LOT of fun! Dock Dogs people are the best, and events are a blast. Great friends, great competition, and great fun.