Ivette's Blog

New videos!!

2009-09-03T06:48:00.001-07:00

Well I was able to spend some time yesterday editing a DVD I purchased from the USDAA regionals in June. I thought I would post them here to share. Thanks to Amy Dragoo Photography for shooting the videos.

This is Zip's team standard run

This is Dasher's team standard run:

This is Zip's Masters Gamblers run:

Dog days of summer

2009-08-25T10:13:00.000-07:00

After the JRTCA show the boys have been enjoying the summer by not doing much of anything excepting hanging out in the A/C. We went to two indoor trials, the USDAA TAG trial and the Salisbury Kennel Club's AKC trial. TAG was fun, had some challenging courses and both boys did great. Zippy won Jumpers and Dasher got a pairs Q. Unfortunately some bobbles in Standard cost us a Q so we are no closer to Dasher's ADCh or Zip's MAD as we were going into this trial but we still had a great time. For the AKC trial, I only entered Dasher and Zip as well as I wanted to give Zorro a bit more time to train before trialing again. Both boys did great. Out of a total of 12 runs over 3 days, we came home with 8 ribbons and Q's, 6 first places and 2 second places. Zip got 2 legs in both Open JWW and Standard, so he only needs one more leg in each to move into Excellent. Dasher finished up his Excellent A JWW title on Friday and got one more Exc A Standard leg (only needs one more to move into Exc B). Dasher Q'd all 3 days in JWW so on Saturday and Sunday he started earning some MACh points!! The 12" divsion was huge, a nice change from USDAA. There were 55 dogs in the 12" class! Dasher picked up some nice points!! Unfortunately I have no pictures to share but our next trial is in 2 weeks and all 3 dogs are entered (another AKC trial). Hopefully I will have some video or pictures to share then.

Zorro's debut at the Liberty Bell JRTCA Trial

2009-07-14T08:38:00.000-07:00

On July 11-12 we made our annual trip up to Dowingtown, PA for the Liberty Bell JRTCA trial. Unfortunately, due to the USDAA schedule we don't have a chance to do many JRTCA shows, but they are a blast!! We always get to sleep in at these trials as nothing gets started until after the racing is over. So we can roll out of bed well after 7:30 and still have time to kill before agility starts around 11:00 a.m. I decided to enter little Zorro this weekend as I knew it would be low key and fun. Zorro was entered in Starters Agility on both Saturday and Sunday. Dasher and Zip were entered in Agility I, II, and III as well as Jumpers on both days. The Agility I course and the Starters Agility course are the same so I ran the two more experienced dogs first. They both did great! As I began to warm up with Zorro I was a little worried about all the distractions. Zorro tends to be easily distracted but he has been to so many dogs shows with his older brothers I hoped he would focus. Well he was a champ!! He stayed focused the entire course, didn't not even look outside the ring or at other dogs in the distance. He stopped at the bottom of all his contacts and had a great start line stay. I could not have been prouder!! He ended up 2nd in his class!! The great thing is his dad, Devlin, was also in his class and he came in 1st place! So father and son ended up 1st and 2nd!! On Sunday I decided I would add the Jumpers class at the end of the day for Zorro since he really seemed to be enjoying himself. Zorro's standard run on Sunday was just as good as Saturday! He stayed focused and did his job wonderfully!! Dasher and Zip had some nice runs as well, my handling was less than stellar which cost us, but they both tried hard and had a great time. When it came time for Jumpers at the end of the day I had all 3 dogs entered. I ran Zippy first and he did great! As always, quick and efficient it was good enough for 1st place!! Dasher's run was not his best, dropping the 1st bar and protesting throughout the course. Zorro ran last. Again super start line and stayed focused throughout the entire course!! Although not the fastest (I think speed will come with more confidence) it was good enough for 4th place and he beat out big brother Dasher!! Who said faster is always better!! All in all we had a great weekend. The dogs had a great time and Jeannette and I had a blast. Jeannette's dogs had a super weekend as well. Surge ended up Champion both Saturday and Sunday and Figit and Muchie were reserve on each day. we had lots of good loot to take home at the end of the weekend. Here is a clip of Zorro's Jumper run on Sunday, enjoy!

Zippy the 2009 NE Regional Grand Prix Champion!!

2009-06-15T20:47:00.000-07:00

Well the boys and I have been busy since our last post. The spring trialing season is coming to an end and we will be taking a break from showing. We have had an awesome spring. Dasher is closing in on his ADCh with only needing one more super Q in Snooker and 2 standard legs. Zippy has been getting some nice top points in Gamblers and Jumpers and he is plugging away at his MAD, only needing 2 more standard legs. They have also each earned another DAM team Q which is always nice. Both Zip and Dasher have qualified in all three tournament classes (GP, Steeplechase and DAM Team) for the USDAA Nationals in Arizona this fall. Needless to say both boys will be making the trip to AZ this year. I think we are opting to drive out instead of fly. Since Jeannette and I are showing multiple dogs we feel more comfortable driving than trying to fly the dogs in cargo.

Our spring show season ended with the North East Regional competition in Bethlehem, PA. Except for one fairly severe thunderstorm on Saturday, we really lucked out with the weather. Partly sunny skies and not too hot for this time of year. Both boys did really great all weekend, each earning 2 DAM team Q's and having some really nice runs. Zippy had earned a bye into the 2nd round of the Grand Prix through a previous win at a local show a few months back. I went into round 2 not really thinking about winning or not winning, just wanting to do our best. Well I think Zippy had ideas of his own!! As soon as I released him from the start line he took off like a rocket, I was merely a passenger!! Forget doing any of the front crosses I had walked, I was sprinting just to get my rear crosses in! He nailed his weave pole entrance (something we have been having issues with) and just kept trucking!! There were obviously lots of amazing dog and handler teams in our class so even after Zip's stellar run it didn't occur to me that we had a chance at winning. It wasn't until later in the class that I checked his time that I realized we were sitting in 1st place. With only a few dogs to go I held my breath. Turns out it was Zippy's day to shine!! I was so proud of him, he has only been showing a little over a year so needless to say he has blown me away with his ability. Jeannette also had a great weekend with her dogs so we celebrated the only way we know how....Dairy Queen!! :-)

Unfortunately I had to scratch both boys from round 1 of Steeplechase. After the thunderstorm the ground got really torn up and sloppy as it continued to drizzle. Our group was the very last to go and by that time dogs and handlers were slipping and sliding. I didn't want to risk injuring the dogs so we opted to scratch the class. Jeannette put a bug in my ear that we may have to hit the Chicago regional in August, it is inside on artificial turn....hmmm may be a possibility.

All three boys celebrated today by playing most of the day in the yard and swimming in the kiddie pool.

MAD Dasher!!

2008-12-10T05:34:00.000-08:00

Well the show season is winding down a bit for winter and both boys have done amazing!! Zip has won 2 Grand Prix's!! Not only does this mean he has all his tournament requirements for the 2009 Nationals, but he also has 2 byes into the finals at 2 regionals. I am so proud of him!!!

Dasher still needs 2 Grand Prix Q's and a DAM Team. We have a shot at both at the Mid-Atlantic MADness trial after Christmas. We'll be keeping our fingers crossed!! This past weekend at MAD Co, we missed the Grand Prix Q by inches!! My mistake cost us a refusal. Even though we did not get the GP Q, we did have a fantastic weeked. Dasher got 2 Q's (and 1st) in standard this weekend!! Standard Q's have always been difficult to get so I was floored when he got 2 in a row!! The 2 standard Q's were what we needed to finish Dasher's Master Agility Dog title (MAD)!! Words can't describe how proud I was of my little Dasher!! He was a star all weekend!!

So we go into the last trial of the year feeling pretty good. Zippy is completely qualified for all events so he is going to have fun. Dasher has been running great so hopefully we can get a team and GP Q before the end of the year.

Zorro has also been doing great in class. he is much more focused and really is getting into the game. He is already getting on a low dog walk and has been on a lowered A-frame. His 2o2o is pretty solid so that is great to see.

I will leave you with a couple of recent pictures:

Zorro racing around the yard:

Zippy at Keystone in Oct:

What a great Fall!!

2008-11-09T09:16:00.000-08:00

The boys and I have had a great fall season! We have been to a ton of trials and Dasher and Zip are doing great. Our best show was Kintetic Dog's Fairhill trial. We really lucked out on the weather especially since Fairhill is notoriously very rainy and cold. Dasher finished up a couple more Master's titles, (Gamblers and Pairs), and finally got our first elusive Master's Standard leg!! Zippy got a DAM team Q as well as a 2nd in Steeplechase and a couple more Master's legs in Jumpers and Gamblers. He is just one advanced standard leg away from getting his AAD. Not bad for a dog who started trialing 5 months ago!!

Dasher and I just got back from the USDAA Nationals (Cynosport Games) in Scottsdale, AZ. We had an amazing time!! We went with our friend/instructor, Jeannette H. and her young dog, Munchie (who also happens to be Dasher's younger sibling). Since we were each just running one dog it was more like a doggie vacation than a stressful trial situation. We arrived a day early so we took a drive up to Sedona. I had never been so it was a real treat for me. The landscape was unbelievably beautiful. We stopped along the way and took the dogs on a fun trail where they got to play in the woods and swim in the creek. Here is picture of the Sedona landscape and Dasher on the trail:

Dasher did great at Nationals. We were entered in the Steeplechase Quarter Finals and had a great run. Unfortunatly we had 2 rails down so that cost us 10 faults but his time was right up there in the top 10 dogs in his height. I was pretty proud of him!! We were also entered in a Eurpoean Jumpers class and he had another amazing run. We ended up 4th out of about 65 dogs!! Since our show schedule was so light we had lots of times to enjoy the other things going on at the Cynosport games. We tried dock diving and realized that even though Dasher loves the water he does not swim very well!! Oh well, at least he was able to cool off in the heat!! Cynosport also had flyball, disk dog, herding, lure coursing and canine freestyle. Here is Dasher in front of the herding pen.

Dasher did not seem very interested in the sheep, so I guess we will stick to agility!!

Even though we had a great time in AZ, I was happy to get home to the rest of the boys (Brandon included!!). We have one week off before starting agility class again. The weather back home is typical fall like weather, cool and crisp with all the leaves changing colors.

Brandon and I were both home this weekend so I thought I'd take advantage of the down time and take some pictures of the boys.

I can't believe how grown up Zorro looks!! He has been doing great in agility class. He is learning about 2o2o, and touch. Our winter project will be to get familiar with contact obstacles and possibly start the weaves.

One non-agility related bit of news....Brandon and I got married!! WoHoo!! We both decided to make it legal! We got married on Oct. 14, just the 2 of us outside the courthouse. Spencer was our witness.

Summer 2008

2008-08-29T06:07:00.000-07:00

Well the summer has flown by!! Brandon and I unfortunately did not have a chance to get away together but we are planning to do something together this winter. I did manage to get away for the weekend and go to Naples, FL to have a mini Foxcroft reunion with the girls!! It was a small group of us; Julia, Molly, Betty and Anna. Anna was nice enough to let us all stay at her place and we had a blast!! We ate, drank, lounged by the pool and Anna even arranged to have a dolphin show for us when we took the boat out!! We promised ourselves that we would try and get together once a year, it had been way too long since we last saw one another.

The dogs and I have stayed busy as well. During the early parts of the summer we managed to attend a few trials. Our biggest show was the USDAA Regionals at the end of May. The courses and the competition were tough!! I didn't enter Zip since I knew I would be pretty busy competing in the Tournament classes with Dasher. Our team had ups and downs, Dasher and I had a few less than stellar performances, but it gave us lots of "homework" to work on!!

July 4th weekend we took the boys up to a JRTCA trial. That was a hoot!! Had a great time!! All the jumps and equipment were "terrier" sized which took some getting used to and although the tunnels were sub-par, we managed to get around. Both Dasher and Zip did great and came home with some nice prizes.

A couple of weekends ago we went over to N.VA to the TAG trial. Both dogs were great, but I really saw the most improvement in Dasher. I am hoping all our hard work is paying off. His start lines were solid, bars were up and contacts were great! Zippy also managed to move up in a few classes, but we have our "homework" as well.

Fall class at Jeannette's will be starting up and Zorro will be joining the beginners class. Should be fun. I have been working with him at home and at Jeannette's but he has never been in a formal class. He is growing like a weed and is really enjoying clicker training.

Well the days seem to be getting shorter and cooler, and the fall show season is fast approaching. Sorry I don't have any new pictures of the boys, hopefully next time I post will have some recent pics.

Spring 2008 Update

2008-05-22T17:43:00.000-07:00

Hi all,
Well we survived the winter, thank god!! Luckily I was able to get away to Mexico for a week in Feb, so it was nice to hit the sun and beach for a bit. My parents bought a place outside Puerto Vallarta and this was my first time out to see it. Here is a picture:

Unfortunately we lost our Lille girl this spring. Her health was deteriorating and I think she was ready to go. Even with the day to day chaos our house still seems a bit quiet without her.

The boys and I have been busy trialing most of the spring. We have been having a great time. Dasher finally got his lat Advanced standard leg so now he is in all Masters classes. He also has qualified for the USDAA Nationals in AZ in the fall. We are hoping to get Q's in a couple more classes for AZ, but if it doesn't happen thats ok too. We go to regionals in a couple of weeks so that should be a great time. Here is a great picture Nicole Fischer took of Dasher at the Hog Dog trial last month.

Zip started showing and he has been doing awesome. After just a few shows he has moved into Masters Jumpers!! Last weekend was the first time I entered him in all classes and he did great. Here is little Zippy in his first Jumpers class. Again, Nicole Fisher photography:

Another bit of news...we have yet another Jack!! Yup call us crazy, obviously we didn't think our house was crazy enough!! The new kid on the block's name is Zorro. He is a half brother to Dasher. He is a trip and a half!! Certainly keeps Brandon and I on our toes!!

Here is a picture of the entire crew:

Wanted to add this picture

2007-12-03T08:49:00.000-08:00

I took this picture the other day and thought I would post it here. The Jacks are "trying" to look very innocent here!!

Latest and Greatest

2007-12-02T16:40:00.000-08:00

Well we have had a busy summer and fall. Dasher and I had a great time trialing. We have had our ups and downs. In Sept, we went up to New York for the Y Agility trial at Blackthorne resort. It was our first time at Blackthorne, we drove up with my friend Jeannette H. and we had a blast!! We got a Q and 1st in our Master's Jumpers class. Not only we were happy with the Q, but we got tons of top 10 points as our class was pretty big. The rest of the weekend less than stellar. Dasher decided this would be a good time to blow his start line stay. So for the next few trials worked really hard to correct this. Man it was tough to walk out of a class before Dasher took the first jump when he would break his stay!! Luckily his start line has gotten much better but it will always be a work in progress.

In October we entered the Fairhill trial. We did the team competition for the first time. It was tons of fun!! Our team did not have a very good showing but it was a great experience. For the team relay our team dressed up since Halloween was just around the corner. Here is a picture from the team relay, I am dressed up as a beer keg!

Another bit of news on the dog front.....we have a new addition!! At the end of June we adopted a JRT from the humane society. I sit on the board of our local humane society and came in to the shelter for a meeting. A friend on the board told me to go back to see the stray JRT they recently picked up....well that was the end of that!! Introducing Zip!!

Zip and I have started agility classes and he is doing great. I think he really likes the game!!

Brandon and I have been busy. We have not had a chance to get away since Belize earlier this year. Hopefully we will have a chance to get away sometime this winter.

We have 2 trials left in 2007, then we will have a bit of a break for the winter months.

Ruff Riders Agility Show

2007-05-03T09:02:00.000-07:00

Ok, its been a while since I posted anything new, so here I go....
Now that spring is upon us, Dasher and I have been going to lots of agility shows. He has been doing great. Fortunately I have not been screwing him up too much these days although I must say my learning curve is much steeper than Dasher's!! Luckily he is very forgiving!! I decided we would pretty much show strictly USDAA shows from now on, I would like to stay focused on one venue and I think they are more fun anyway!! We earned our Agility Dog title a few weeks back at the Mid-Atlantic MADness show and now we are showing at the Advanced level. These pictures are from the Ruff Riders show at Morven Park 2 weekends ago. He did really great. The pictures were taken by M.Nicole Fischer Photography, she takes really great pictures!!

This first one I thought was cute, none of his feet are touching the frame, he is really flying!!

He looks very focused in this one....

Bio

2005-12-07T05:40:00.000-08:00

My name is Ivette and this is my first blog attempt. I will try and make it interesting. I have 2 dogs, 2 cats and one horse. I have been doing agility with my dogs for the past 8 years. My first agility dog was a Dalmatian, Reese. We competed in USDAA and AKC trials. Although Dals can be a challenge to train in agility, we were able to recieve our Novice Standand and Novice JWW titles and were working on our Open titles. Unfortunatly Reese passed in Nov. 2004.

I got Dasher in the spring of 2005. He is my first small dog. He is a joy to have around. His tail is always wagging. I got Dasher from my agility instructor who also breeds JRT. I knew if I was going to get a JRT I would defenitly want one of Jeanette's dogs. Her dogs have the temperment I was looking for in my next agility dog. Here is a picture of Dasher at our second show ever.

My first post

2005-12-07T05:36:00.000-08:00

Hi All, Just getting the hang of this so I should post pictures in a bit