Starting in the middle

“Begin at the beginning and go on till you come to the end: then stop.”

– Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland

I am far from the beginning of my journey, but where exactly does the beginning start? While I've had my current dogs for a while (5.5 years and 2.5 years), agility has been a part of my life for 5 years, and I've been dabbling in photography for the past 10 or so years, I still feel quite like a beginner in all these areas.

Me:

My interests include dogs, agility, photography, my husband, and insects. Yep, insects. Although this blog is directed towards agility, consider this your warning that insect photographs may pop up occasionally. My hubby really enjoys taking apart and putting back together our home, so I anticipate some photos of our ongoing projects also making an appearance.

My dogs:

Rosey – Prairielight Once Prairie Rose

Happiest around water

        Being a Flat-Coated Retriever, her outlook on life is something I cherish and aim to remember when ever things get tough. Her goal in life is to play hard, love lots, and enjoy every moment that comes her way. I like to think that she’s the type to tell you a joke and you both laugh at the punch line.

        Agility hasn't been easy with her. It’s been a long path full of learning about each other, about communication, and about listening. I was committed to giving her an outlet for her energy before I knew enough about the sport to teach her how to get there without frustrations. Luckily we both have learned a lot and are finally figuring things out.

Samantha – Sammy Sweetheart

Waiting by the bed

        Sam is black German shorthaired pointer rescued from the Arizona Humane Society and we got her when she was around 2.5 years old. She came with a complicated past that included multiple homes, the last of which she was forced out of because of too many dogs. I could probably write a paragraph on her neuroses that could or could not have resulted from her past, but instead I’ll say we have overcome most of them and are working on the rest.

Sam is a sweetheart with a wild streak. She’s the type to stand next to the bed (and head on the bed) for and hour until you wake up to invite her up for a cuddle. But she also gets moments of pure abandon that are little more than “zoomies” and make me wonder if she’s at times possessed by a demon.

Agility has been an adventure with Sam for different reasons, mostly an exploration on gaining trust and learning self-control. Once we establish the ground-rules, things hopefully will start to fall into place.