Last Sunday, Rudy returned to the agility scene. It went better than I had predicted! No qualifying scores, but that was not expected. ;) First class was Excellent Standard- our first time at that level. It went surprisingly well, with the only fault being that Rudy missed a contact. I'm not sure which one, but I have a feeling it was the A-frame. I was sure that we did not make course time, but it turns out he was 7 seconds under SCT (standard course time). In retrospect, I should have handled him better so that he did not miss that contact (it IS his job to hit them, but considering he hasn't even seen a contact obstacle in 11 months, I should have been a bit more cautious in my handling). I am very excited that he made SCT, even with being ridiculously out of shape. I know there is a lot more speed in Rudy when he is better conditioned!
Second class was Excellent Jumpers with Weaves, where once again, handler error proved fatal to our run. After a series of strategically placed jumps, we encountered a curved tunnel with both entries facing Rudy. I sent him to the correct entrance, but "left" him before he had committed to that entrance which caused him to follow me resulting in him entering the wrong end of the tunnel (and a NQ). The rest of the run was beautiful!
I feel confident that Rudy can get his Excellent titles now. He will get more speed as he gets in shape, and our handling will become less rusty as we focus on agility more in the next few months. I am so thankful that my trainer has always given me combinations in the past that challenged us to the excellent level. It does not feel intimidating to me at all!
Next trial, 3 weeks! Maybe I'll remember to get some video. :)
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