Prunedale Agility Practice Match

Just got back from the SMART club's agility fun match in Prunedale (near Salinas). It was drizzling in San Jose when we left at 7 a.m. and pouring when we got back about 2, but nary a drop sullied Manzanita Park! Lawn was sloppy--running dogs' feet sprayed as they went, and some of the frequently traversed parts of the courses were getting a little muddy--but the weather itself was lovely. Cool, mostly overcast.

Tika ran jumpers beautifully and reallllllly fast. We missed a couple of jumps the first time thru, but I just hustled more and talked to her more the 2nd time. Wow. No knocked bars, either, even with the wet ground.

We weren't quite so hot on the standard course. Even after 3 runs we didn't do everything perfectly, but the 3rd time we were pretty close. First 2 times Tika flew off the teeter big time; last time she went really slowly. So we clearly need to get in a lot more teeters before competition in 3 weeks.

She didn't stick her contacts consistently, although she didn't fly off any of the others. Took us 3 runs to get her out over the last jump, which was a little bit of a turn away or push out. Never DID get that darned jump-jump-FAR-side of the tunnel cleanly--same danged thing I've been struggling & struggling to get (and seldom succeeding at) in the back yard the last 3 or 4 weeks.

A little bit of dingling around at the start line the 3rd time, but actually otherwise she was pretty good. Got her weaves all 3 times (all the emphasis on practicing those is paying off!). Slowwww down on the table, but we're really still learning at how to put that all together (plus NADAC--in 3 weeks--doesn't have a table any more).

Remington I wasn't sure felt up to running; not clear whether he was limping beforehand, but he certainly hasn't been acting in peak form the last week or 2. Sure enough, I tried a jumpers course with the jumps at 12"; he went over the first 3 at a moderate pace, then pulled up with his paw in the air. So although the paw *looks* good, it's clear that it doesn't feel right.

Plus he's probably wiped from the low blood counts from the adriamycin, I'm guessing.

Jake ran like the seasoned pro he is in both runs, and both he & Tika got a ton of frisbee chasing. That hasn't stopped them from begging me to play some more now that we're home.

Rem trotted or galloped around the open field just a little bit, but he's completely wiped out. I didn't want to overdo it, but he's been more active in the back yard at times since his operation than he was today. So something's amiss.

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