The end of the year is always bittersweet for me.
Trial wise - the dogs did great. CC and Ryka stepped up and got 3 QQs in a row! Geddy got into Westminster conformation, and CC and Ryka in Westminster agility. The girls are entered in the 2020 AKC National Agility Championship too. I also added a new member to the pack - Geddy's daughter River. She will have her own page up soon. She is totally naughty and sweet all at once. I hope she can take over for Lzzy in the coming years as my new service dog. Geddy has sired another litter as well - born on Christmas Day. However, I miss my mom more than ever this time of year. This was our first Christmas without Lady in 8 years, and our last Christmas with Priscilla. Priscilla was diagnosed with kidney failure the end of November. She was happy and eating her prescription food. On New Years Eve, she crashed. I rushed her to the ER vet and we got her stable so I could have one last night with her. My heart is forever broken with losing her. A new sport we got into in called FAST CAT. It is a 100 yard timed run where the dog chases a plastic bag (lure) in a straight line. There is a formula to convert the dogs time into miles per hour and then there is a handicap (varies by dog height) to multiply your dog's mph into points.
The faster your dog is, the more points you get and the quicker you can earn titles. BCAT = 150 points DCAT= 500 points FCAT = 1,000 points It is a lot of fun and the dogs can run to you instead of away from you. All breeds and mixes are eligible to play in FAST CAT. CC and I tried this on a whim and she went nuts for it. We entered some more trials instead of agility and she got her BCAT title in 2 weekends! We just tried a new site with a club offering it for the first time and she is on her way to her DCAT title! What I thought would take a lot longer got done fairly quickly! Geddy got his Open Jumpers title on October 5th at SOJAC agility trial. Not only with a clean run - he also got High In Trial for Open Preferred! Lzzy was my first HIT winner and Geddy is my first Bred-by. SOJAC is one of the clubs that offers High In Trials for all levels. We got a big rosette and some cash!
Now he is in the same rings and running the same courses as CC and Ryka! No more ring conflicts!
Geddy Sired his first litter that was born on September 22!
3 boys, 2 girls, black and white and 1 brindle boy I think. They were born at Xtacee Cardigans in PA, so you will need to contact Kathy for any puppy availability. [email protected] My first trip to Las Vegas for the Iron Maiden Fan Club trip plus 2 shows! Las Vegas was a lot more fun than I expected. We seen the aquarium at Mandalay Bay, gambled, and even had Lzzys picture go viral on Iron Maidens social media sites! We were in ADA seating for the show but we hung out with our friends beforehand. I will miss this tour, and meeting everyone over the year. See you all Somewhere On Tour in 2020 or 2021! our hotel is the giant pyramid on the plane don't worry, I just posed her on the seat for a quick picture. This picture went viral on Iron Maidens official social media pages! Then it was onto LA. A long bus ride but I got to see the desert, the worlds tallest thermometer, and old Route 66. It was HOT at the venue and we stayed on the floor for the show, but out of the wild crowd. Bruce Dickinson even recognized Lzzy! the famous "Zzyzx Road" that leads to an a defunct mineral springs spa.
This past Saturday, CC and Geddy trialed at Skyline for the first time in a long time (Geddy's first time there). CC blew me away and we got our first Masters Triple Q! With all first places. Geddy finished his Open Standard title! I love trialing under Oksana - her courses are amazing and she is loves to watch teams do well.
This was a great way to transition into vacation mode. Yes...vacation mode.
This week begins the journey out to Las Vegas and Los Angeles to see Iron Maiden! Yes, this is a non dog vacation (well except Lzzy the service dog). CC, Ryka and Geddy will be going to corgi camp. Priscilla and Iggy Pop will stay home and my neighbor Pat and my dad will take care of them.
This is the first time I am doing an Iron Maiden Fan Club Trip - so I am excited. I am looking forward to seeing all my friends on the road again. Access issues? Well I hope not. I have no answer from the Banc Of California stadium and MGM grand garden seemed ok with things...but we will see. I will not be glad to be in the desert in September...Las Vegas weather forecast is calling for a balmy 99 degrees F. But low humidity so at least I will be able to breathe.
I also hate to fly...but there is little choice in the matter...I just hope the trip goes ok. The things I do for my love of music. The west coast crowds also have been insane with pushing and shoving on the floor and in GA. I just hope the 2 shows I go to are the exceptions.
Here is to almost a week of no work! And hopefully a stop at the worlds tallest thermometer in Baker, CA!
Taking inspiration from lyrics of the Iron Maiden song "The Wicker Man", I have tried to remain in a "my time will come" mindset with dog sports. Some people love and live on the "competing as much as possible" mode, and thus their hard work gets them invited to important events like the agility invitational in Orlando, or chosen for World Team or Best In Shows and Group wins.
Me? I am competitive, no doubt...but I also love days where I can do absolutely nothing at all. Or do something not involving the dogs.
Between work and training the dogs, trying to keep my place to the point of "not appearing on the show Hoarders" Summer is usually uneventful in terms of dog sports.
If you recall, CC needed one QQ to qualify for AKC agility nationals. Just one. We had the "Just one thing" go wrong in our trials that prevented this one way or another and I was getting frustrated. I took several weekends off to do some "me stuff". Often if I get stressed or worry too much about getting something done, the dogs pick up on it. I need to take breaks and remind myself that it will happen. Especially with people losing their dogs so suddenly, or getting horrible news, step to the line like its your last and forget about the rankings, what you need, etc. Your time will come. Music is the best therapy for me. I went to see Iron Maiden both nights in Brooklyn, and one night in Philly for their "Legacy of the Beast" Tour. To say it was amazing was an understatement. If you miss this tour, you are missing a lot. I also am seeing them 2 more nights in September as part of the fan club trip! Since Rush retired, Iron Maiden is one of the few bands still touring that gives me a much needed mental break from the world, and making new friends along the way is a plus! Shoutout to all the new friends and current ones I met so far - makes a great show even better. This is where I was (in the shark hat) for the Philly show. (Photo taken from the Official Iron Maiden Facebook Page). It was Shark week kickoff the night of the show so I had to represent the best week of the year.
So, after the 3 mind melting shows, I went back to work and then had a dog show on the 10th of August. My first trial back in almost a month. I *almost* didnt go. Why? Because I was seeing Hootie & The Blowfish that night at Madison Square Garden. Yes, the band from the 90s. Yes, they are NOT Iron Maiden. My second concert ever and the first concert I remember going to as a child was Hootie at - yes - Madison Square Garden with my mom and cousins. It was coming full circle.
But I said, you know, trialing before the show will tire the dogs out. So off we went. I am glad we did. Both Ryka and CC got QQs...yes. We did it. Both girls qualified for 2020 AKC agility nationals in Georgia (Ryka was qualified about a month prior being the overachiever she is). CCs time will come. Will we ever be an agility national champion? Probably not. But we have to write our own stories. Getting there is the first step. (and yes, Hootie & The Blowfish were great) The month of June is a rough one for me. The anniversary of my mother's death, and her birthday are all in a week.
I try to keep busy - but it was why I ignored this blog and site for a bit. Sadly, I lost Lady, my mother's beloved dog less than 24 hours prior to the anniversary of my mother's passing. This is the first time in decades I do not have a cocker spaniel in my house...and Lady was such a sweet dog her presence is missed. She slept in bed with me every night. My only solace is that her and my mom are reunited once more. For some good news - Geddy completed both his Novice Standard and Novice Jumpers agility titles! He also has one leg towards his Open Standard title! He is becoming a fun dog to run and he loves the game! CC still needs 1 QQ for AKC Nationals...I have a feeling she is going to keep me waiting until the eleventh hour. Since CC got her PACH, we have not had a double Q. It was always one class or another. I am happy we are Qing still and she is as fast as ever. We still need 1 QQ by November to go to Nationals in Georgia next year. Hopefully we will get it done.
There is also Invitationals...Agility invitationals is an invite only event for the top agility dogs. AKC invites the top 5 dogs of each breed at Excellent or Masters level agility based on their own points system (number of QQ x 10) + speed points. They also invite the top Preferred dog of each breed. Now CC doesn't have a lot of QQ, but she does have a lot of speed points. This has kept her consistently in the top 5 for a couple years out of all the cardigans running at the preferred level. Because of how cardigans are built, most of them run at the preferred level. Getting to number 1 without trialing multiple days a week, and QQing almost every trial is near impossible. Invitationals is a dream to never be for me unless I win the lottery (and even then I dont want to trial my dogs that often). However, I do like keeping CC in the top 5. It shows what one team CAN do if they are fast enough (and crazy enough). An invite to Orlando in December is one dragon I will never catch - unless I get a rare breed (looking at you, Cirneco Del'Etna...). Life is also short and fleeting - there has been many unexpected losses in the agility and show community- both canine and human. Also many career ending injuries...I cherish every run with my dogs, and every day with them. We are partners and they are members of my family. They live to play games with me and they love laying at my feet or in my lap and watching TV. I wouldn't have it any other way. But moving on from this mushy stuff... Geddy Lee also has been holding his own in agility! He finished his Novice Jumpers title this past Sunday and got his second Novice Standard leg as well - with beautiful clean runs! He also is getting really good in his weaves! Look at him nail that entry! Geddy is pushing 4 years old (how did that happen?!) and he has some "ladies in waiting". This means health testing. In cardigans, that usually means tests for: PRA (progressive retinal atrophy) DM (degenerative meylopathy) Eye exam X-rays of hips and elbows I throw in a spinal xray for good measure in case anything looks out of whack. I found a breeder clinic hosted by a local Cavalier King Charles Spaniel Club, on a day I actually could attend. Breeder clinics hosted by clubs are awesome because the price for the xrays are much cheaper, they are still done by a vet at a vets practice, and they are sent out that day. These clinics fill, and can be a bit hectic but we all are there for one reason. Many clinics offer sedation free OFA xrays, some do not. I always try to not sedate my dogs if necessary. I made the hour drive to the clinic (the GPS took me to the liquor store instead of the vet...HA) and checked in. Geddy got the drops for his eyes and while we waited, he went back for hips and elbows. I got a call in the waiting room saying his microchip was missing...as in it is not in my dogs body. Luckily they re-chipped him for me (I bought a chip reader the next day...more on that later). I got his xrays on a CD and he got his eyes done - about an hour or so of waiting...we were done! He was very well behaved for it all and I got to coo over some cute boston terrier puppies (named after The Golden Girls) while I waited. Now the chip - please buy a reader for yourself and check your pets. It also is good to have for stray animals. Amazon has them for 50-60 dollars (use the search "microchip reader for pets"). I knew it was common for chips to migrate, but to totally be gone also happens more than one thinks. I found out all my old dogs no longer have chips in them. The younger dogs still are chipped. If you do not want to buy your own reader, Vet clinics at stores like Petco and Tractor Supply will gladly scan your pet and redo the chip if needed. 2 weeks later, I get some good news in the mail! He passed all his OFA tests. Certificates below. |
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January 2021
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