Back in the Ring

Rosey and I took the summer off from doing anything but playing and tugging. This is something that I did last summer as well, mainly because she really doesn't do well in the heat. I figured trying to beg convince her to run in the heat wasn't really going to help either one of us. At the beginning she seemed a only little jealous of Sam going to class, but as the weeks went on, she got more and more anxious when I left for class.

We started back at the beginning of September and our first classes back were a little rough. After the whole summer off, she was more eager to just run and play and less eager to play with me! With 3 weeks of working out the kinks, things got better, but we still have a few kinks to figure out. Unlucky for her, two hurricanes off the coast dumped tons of rain over the valley, so our weeks back should have been cooler, and were instead some of the hottest and most humid Arizona has ever seen in September!

Two weeks ago, we had our first trial (USDAA) back from the summer and although we only Qualified in one run, the whole weekend felt great. We had some awesome teamwork and she was happy to be running. Plus the one Q we did get was Grand Prix, which was something we've been working towards for the past year. (woohoo!)

This past weekend felt even better! It was AKC this weekend under Judge Kylie Bourke. With some tough, but really great flowing courses, I'm happy to say only 3 bars down over the entire weekend and one wrong course (all my fault with a poorly done rear cross). We managed 47 speed points this weekend with a QQ on Friday and a Q on Sunday in a really tough Standard run (only 30% Qualified in that class). Positives from the weekend: 2 classes with Rosey doing weaves nice and quick, and sticking everyone of her contacts (3/3 beautiful striding dog walk contacts! - we did work them in class this week). With a little more jump work to help with the bars, I think things can only get better AND faster. After our long journey together, this weekend had such a rewarding feeling to see the results and to know we have the potential to get better.

PACH count: 6/20 QQ and 258/750 speed points 
1/3 there!
Also, she earned her Master Agility title this weekend :) Now she's got some new letters after her name:
Prairielight Once Prairie Rose NA OAJ MXP AJP OF CGC PD APS APJ APG PKM

Tough course! Tricky parts that had most handlers were 3-4 (people didn't support the jump), wide turns at 6, the backside at 9 (options that worked was hang back at the teeter and push 9, or get ahead and blind cross 8 to the backside of 9; lots tried to rear cross the flat before 9 with mixed results and confused dogs), lots of dogs popping out of the weaves, LOTS of dogs that took the off course of #20 after the chute (we almost did too!). 

Love that face! So happy!

Staying Connected

I figured that today is a Dog Agility Blog Event and I might as well use it as an excuse to write. The topic is “The Mental Aspect of Agility”. To find more blogs exploring this topic, head over to Dog Agility Blog Events.

My view from the computer.

I find this topic well timed and very fitting for my situation, it seems that most of my failures on the agility field are when I’m not focused or mentally prepared. The mental aspect of agility can be pretty tough, especially in a show situation. I have dreams of having perfect runs, but I know what my limitations are and go into any agility situation with realistic expectations and aim my mental strength to improve as a team, not necessarily to Q or win every class (yeah right!).

Running a Flat Coat and now a GSP I understand I need a sense of humor, patience and love. I enter the ring with the goal of doing justice to my dog and being better than last time. For Rosey, my goal is to be on time with my cues so she doesn’t get worried about being wrong (and thus goes off sniffing), and for Samantha, my goal is starting together and finishing together… the middle section has yet to be worked out. My mental game is focused towards these goals, which in the long run will get me to Qs (so far its been working out).

I find I can break the mental aspect into 4 parts:

Knowing the Course

The most obvious part of agility’s mental aspect is memorizing the course; knowing where your path is and where you need to direct the dog to get around a course. I like to look at the map, draw my dog’s path and figure out where I need to be in relation to the obstacles and my dog. Then I’ll walk the course from both the dog’s point of view and then a second or third time from my point of view and I start memorizing where I need to be. The third aspect is to be able to visualize this course while standing on the sidelines. If I can’t remember something or can’t “see” where I should have been standing as they come out of a tunnel or after my front cross, I’ll head out for a last walk of the course to make sure the course is clear in my head.

Relationship building

The second mental aspect of agility is building a relationship and being able to be connected with my dog in the ring. This starts with the instant that she gets out of her crate/xpen. I make sure that I am completely ready to give her my complete attention before I go even to put my hand on the latch. This has been the hardest thing for Rosey and I, it’s been a really hit-or-miss aspect of our agility and really depends on everything going on around us. As we are getting more solid in our relationship, it’s gotten easier, but I still make sure that I’m 100% mentally there for her when I get her out to make sure that I don’t lose her trust again.

In the ring

AKC - October 2013 - Rosey

Keeping my mind in the ring and connected with my dog is the hardest part for me. I have learned that if I’m thinking too far ahead (or worrying about what people on the sidelines are thinking or if my dog might leave and sniff), my dogs will start to lose interest and get sluggish, start sniffing, and get zoomies. I’ve learned that I need to be actively playing with my dog, not just directing her where to go. As long as I’m in there with them (mentally), they are more than happy to keep playing with me.

Staying mentally sharp

Agility isn’t all about the dog, it’s about how physically fit and mentally acute I am. I find that a perfectly well thought out and well planned course can go completely downhill if I’m struggling with my mental sharpness. I make sure I always bring food for me to munch on and water to drink. If I’m feeling a little hazy I make sure I have some protein or complex sugars (bananas, apples, or protein bar) to perk my brain up. It definitely can get tough by the end of the weekend! All the training, all the practice and relationship building I work on is all worthless if I don’t take care of me. Without the right nutrition, it doesn’t take too long for my reaction time to slow down, my thinking get hazy and I start tripping over my feet by the time I get to the end of a run.

I’ve found that the idea of preparing mentally is starting to catch on in the agility community. It’s become a topic and I’ve seen more and more people talking about getting mentally connected with their canine teammates. I know its definitely made the difference in my dogs!