Tika's First Competition Prejitters

Backfill: 11/10/02 Well, Tika'll presumably be in her first USDAA Jumpers competition this weekend. It's scary. I don't think we're ready. I snuck in some medium jumpers layouts up at power paws last night between classes, and wow, do we suck, and wow, is she fast. I think I finally figured out in the yard today that I have to be giving her directions for obstacles 2 obstacles in advance, or she goes blasting by so fast that there's nothing I can do with her. Of course, that's what they've been telling us forever anyway, but now I really see it...

She's doing good at start-line stay. She's doing good at sending out to a tunnel... but not as good if I don't have a toy in my hand. She's periodically crashing bars. We've been doing some teaching-dog-how-to-jump exercises in Rachel's class, and she looks pretty awkward a lot of the time. How any dog can take shrubs & random other obstacles at top speed but then doen'st really have a good idea of where its body is is amazing... So we have a lonnnnng way to go before we're really ready for jumpers, I think. I was a bit optimistic last month when signing up for trials. But I guess I'll keep doing it.

Also, I don't think we've yet done *any* course of more than about 8 obstacles, so I don't know whether she'll even have a clue about sticking with it for 15 or so!

Anyway, it'll be an adventure. I'm taking my camera & hoping I'll find someone to tape us. Argh.

Did I mention that Jake got his Superior Elite Gambler's title 2 weekends ago up in Carson City? Both boys got both gambles!

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