Kasey Gets a Little Sis

Yes it has been a few months since my last blog entry, and lots has happened, including an addition to our family. That's Mia on the right, with Kasey. She's 6 months old now. She's pretty fearless and energetic, and I'm figuring that she'll take very well to agility once she's old enough.

In the meantime, Kasey earned his Rally Novice title a couple of months ago...



....and I've been bragging to my hospital colleagues about the "RN" that goes after his name. Next weekend, he'll be doing CPE agility trials, and I'll blog about that later.

More on Mia later too....

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Canine Good Citizen

Last week was a big one for Kasey.

On Wednesday, Kasey took his Canine Good Citizen test. He was a bit cautious with the examiner, but that was his only rough spot among the ten test items (sit/stay, down/stay, come, heel, accept a stranger in a friendly way, don't freak out when owner leaves the room, etc.), so he passed the test. It's kind of cool now to have letters after his name to validate his education.

We also started beginner's agility last Thursday. It was the first time that he has gotten to interact with the equipment, and we were curious to see how he would like it. Well, after seeing how he easily took to the jumps, and also to the tunnel and the dog walk after a little coaxing, we think that he'll love it and do well.

Since we brought this little dude home, we've been watching to see what his particular talents and favored activities would be (e.g., he'll fetch, but doesn't seem to love it). I believe, as does Patricia McConnell, that a dog's happiness depends upon whether he gets to spend time doing what he loves (whatever that is....agility, herding, chasing a ball, etc.), and not just upon pleasing his owner by performing arbitrary tasks. So, in the weeks to come, we'll see if agility keeps his boat afloat.

I hope if dogs ever take over the world, and they choose a king, they don't just go by size, because I bet there are some Chihuahuas with some good ideas.
- Jack Handey
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Obedience Debut

Well, Kasey got his big start in the... eh... amateur ranks today, with some achievement at a local Fun Match. He took third in Rally and second in Obedience. Ooooh, ribbons! Both were at beginner level (on leash), but hey, that's okay, it's a "tune up."

He was a little nervous, and his attention wandered when he was supposed to be maintaining a good heel, so we lost points there.

But then I think that we got some points back when he impressed the judge with his Elvis impersonation.