It's Gracie's turn to shine!

It's been a year since Gracie has attended any kind of formal agility trial. This month it's her time to shine!

This Saturday the Gracester is entered in a USDAA Show N Go that's being put on by a new club in our area. It's being run just as a regular USDAA trial would be, but the nice thing is it's located right where we practice every week at our Trainer's house. She's entered in Standard, Gamblers and Jumpers.

If this morning's practice is any indication, she will be amazingly great! She was totally focused, did an amazing aframe, jumps like a pro, and has some pretty good speed. Today she got to do nearly an entire course and stayed focused for the whole thing. Mum had to work hard to keep up with her, and has to really concentrate on keeping her attention. But the two of them are really starting to get a good communication going.

This weekend she may not be perfectly clean, but as long as she pays attention to Mum and doesn't run off, we will definitely, and I mean definitely, consider her run a complete success!

After a nice first showing at a CPE Trial last Summer, you may remember that Gracie was running at a USDAA trial a few weeks later, when she started running off. On her last run she ran off and tried to get under the orange fencing to get out to the road. She freaked out. Mum pulled her from the rest of the runs that weekend. And entered her again in an indoor trial a few weeks later, where she continued to run off, sometimes not even taking a single jump. After that Mum decided that Gracie just wasn't mature enough to trial and needed a break. So they have spent the past year working on focus, foundation work, tricks and games, and/or sequencing, every day.

Mum and Gracie have an incredible bond and it's really starting to show at practice. Gracie is having the time of her life doing agility, she loves it! And she really gets jealous when it's my turn. Mum thinks if Gracie can just keep her brain (and of course Mum needs to stay really cool and calm, and be right on top of cues for Gracie) she has the potential to be an amazing agility dog.

And if she can stay focused at trials, and continue her focus at practices, Mum can really start getting her to understand her job better on contacts, working away, nailing those weaves and more.

It's been an entire year. I sure wish you good luck my sis, Gracie, even though you're in my same jump height! I look forward to many, many more great competitions to come with ya girl!