Clean Run - February 2012 - 34

If you build it... they can run!

Jolie enjoys the closeness of Rally obedience exercises, and I improve my timing and handling as we move in sync around the course (Straight Figure 8 AKC Rally exercise)

Our teamwork has improved and I see a conﬁdent spring in Jolie’s step thanks to Rally obedience (Spiral Left, Dog Inside, APDT Rally exercise).

A friend suggested we try APDT Rally, which was steadily growing in our area. I decided to sign up Jolie and me for class, expecting to be bored, honestly. We took a few competition obedience classes when she was young, but I never got around to competing because the everchanging courses in agility ﬁred me up in a way that no precision heeling could. Turns out I was wrong. Jolie loved the closeness of heeling, and the bit of string cheese popped into her mouth for a gorgeous tight turn. The set patterns bolstered her conﬁdence because she knew what to expect next. The signs and courses gave me the variety I craved. She smiled through entire Rally courses, prancing proudly beside me, sometimes even forging ahead! When we drove to class, about 5 minutes away from the building, she would start this high-pitched whine that until then, had only been reserved for arriving at the dog park. I loved experiencing a joyful teammate again. At our ﬁrst APDT Rally competition, Jolie was relaxed ringside and enthusiastic during our performances. She received
Ginger Peach is less anxious in agility settings when she can practice favorite freestyle moves.

one perfect 210 score, two 1st places, and ﬁnished her Rally Level 1 title with an Award for Excellence for scores above 200, all in the same weekend. Several people complimented me on her drive and conﬁdence. I wanted to hug them and thank them and ask them what their name was so I could name my ﬁrst child after them. It was the most fun Jolie and I had ever experienced in a show environment. We were a team. Not only did Jolie excel in Rally, but the conﬁdence we both gained also spilled over to agility. We returned to class and practiced Rally exercises while waiting for our turn. I asked her to back up, ﬁnd heel position or go into a stand from a down while our instructor talked to us mid course. No more sticky stays. No more snifﬁng. She looked at me with bright eyes and tail wagging. I decided it was time to return to agility competition with our newfound conﬁdence. Her absolute favorite move is the left about turn, or what I call the “eggbeater.” This alone made her practically jump out of her spotty skin with excitement. Just before we would go in the
Ginger Peach leaps over my knee to make the catch. This will evolve into a leg vault as part of our freestyle disc routine.

Jump cup strips Clip-on jump cups PVC ttings: 3-way, 4-way, and 5-way connectors 1" and 2" vinyl tape 1" and 11/4" PVC pipe in red, yellow, blue, violet, and white

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Darby shows oﬀ her back-up trick, which improves rear-end awareness and strength.
34 Clean Run | February 12

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Clean Run - February 2012

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