Salsa is competing mostly in agility at this point. My main focus is to keep her happy on course, which also keeps her speed up. I’m trying to determine how hard I can push handling-wise before she starts going around jumps to catch up with me. She likes to chase me, but if I get too far ahead, she sometimes pulls off of jumps. I’ve accepted the fact that Salsa isn’t confident enough to work ahead of me at trials which sometimes means some creative handling to avoid the need to rear cross. Salsa is headed to the Agility Invitational in December. I’d like to try to have as many clean runs there as possible and know we will have to push for speed to make time in jumpers. Salsa is working on open obedience also, but doesn’t have a retrieve yet. I’m taking it slow, because I know too much pressure will cause her to shut down. After the Invitational Salsa will need to take a break from training to have a large fatty tumor removed that recently formed.
Juno will also be attending the Agility Invitational. This is exciting because she is the first GBGV invited, but also a little nerve wracking since unlike my reliable PBGV girls she still does strange things on course fairly often. We are getting more Qs than we used to, sometimes even in standard where there is more “stuff” to get her in trouble, but every run is still on the edge. Juno is faster than the Petits since she is about 2 inches taller, but she also weighs 15 pounds more so turns are physically harder for her. Juno is more confident that my other agility girls, so things don’t bother her as much but she also doesn’t concern herself as much with what I ask her to do. I’m hoping she will look like she belongs at the Invitational and maybe have some clean runs. Also if she would stop making right turns after every single a-frame it would be nice…….. Juno is doing well in obedience. She’s also not retrieving yet, but holds a dumbbell. We will probably try Graduate Novice this winter.
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