Clean Run Magazine - August 2008 - 71

Teacup Dogs Agility Association By Jeff Boyer The TDAA 2008 Petit Prix, which is the Teacup Dogs Agility Association’s Nationals, will be held October 10-12, 2008, in Westminster,Vermont.The Petit Prix is designed to provide a championship format suitable for performance by dogs of small stature. Additional information and the premium for the Petit Prix may be found at www.k9tdaa.com/2008PetitPrix.htm. TDAA judges recently completed their ﬁrst biannual recertiﬁcation exam. As part of the exam, each judge was required to design an agility game that could be used as a qualifying game. TDAA has two titling tracks—Standard and Games—and there are no speciﬁc games that must be played for the games titles. Almost any agility game can be used for qualifying purposes. Sample course maps and brieﬁngs for many of the games submitted are now available on the TDAA website at www.k9tdaa.com/TDAAJudgesBrieﬁngs.htm. In some cases, multiple variations on the rules are presented, with the differences reﬂecting the goals (or whims) of the judge.These games provide a spectrum of opportunities to test a variety of skills—distance work, strategy, course planning, obstacle discrimination, and handling—in fun and challenging ways. Take a look—there is probably a game that will help (and amuse) you, your friends, and your students in your training and in developing your competition skills. United Kennel Club By Staff Congratulations to UGRACH Piaffe Mini Me Moon Beamer, a Shetland Sheepdog owned by Phyllis Puskar of Michigan, who tops all three of the UKC agility rankings through May 4, 2008. United States Dog Agility Association By Kenneth Tatsch USDAA’s IFCS World Agility Championship team brought home 16 medals from Belgium in May, where they found a ﬁne-tuned Russian team out for the gold. The Russians, after ﬁnishing second in the medal count in 2002, 2004, and 2006, were clearly committed to returning home on top this year, ﬁnishing with 12 gold medals and 24 medals total. Svetlana Tumanova, a name familiar in USDAA championships the past few years, took 10 gold medals, turning in near ﬂawless performances with her two dogs throughout the medal classes. She ﬁnished with a number of silver and bronze medals as well, accounting for more than half of the Russian team medal count. Watch for her to come to the U.S. for seminars later this year. Mike Murphy led the U.S. team in the medal count, taking all of the USA gold medals won. Full results, with pictures, can be found on USDAA.com and a DVD of the event, giving run comparisons and other analysis will be available in July for purchase in the USDAA online store. Also watch for information on the IFCS 2010 event and team selection information on the USDAA news page this fall. D KAREN MOUREAUX WWW.DOGSPORTPHOTOS.COM 2008 USDAA IFCSA World Team. Top row: Janet Gauntt, Stacy Peardot-Goudy. Middle row: Suzanne Wesley, Mike Murphy, Dana Pike, Suzi Cope, Elizabeth Evans. Bottom row: Anne Andrle, Rachel Sanders, Stuart Mah, Lisa Bowers, Kate Moureaux, Mary Ellen Barry. Brenna Fender is a freelance writer with an undergraduate degree in mass communications and a masters degree in elementary education. She lives with her husband, two young children, a Vizsla, a Whippet, and a cat. The dogs are collectively titled in agility, obedience, conformation, hunting, rally, and lure coursing. The cat, husband, and children are lacking in this regard. Contact Brenna at BrennaFender@gmail.com. August 08 | Clean Run 71

http://www.k9tdaa.com/2008PetitPrix.htm http://www.k9tdaa.com/TDAAJudgesBriefings.htm http://USDAA.com http://www.doggytoyland.com

Clean Run Magazine - August 2008

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Clean Run Magazine - August 2008