Another Title!!! Boca II CD RN RA

I did it! I earned my 3rd qualifying score in Advanced Rally at the Mid-Continent Kennel Club Round Up dog show.  I am going to have my mom combine some pictures from Friday's not so great performance and yesterdays success, just so you can get an idea of what I had to do and how it all went down.

First things first, mom takes me to the trial. As you can see there are dogs, and crates, and chairs, and people everywhere! It can be quite overwhelming for everyone who enters.













Then mom goes over to the ring that I have to do my thing in and signs me in (since obviously I can't write with paws) and gets a copy of the course I will have to do on that day.  The picture here is the course I did on Saturday to get my 3rd qualifying score.  You can see it's quite complicated and challenging.








This is what it looks like while mom and I are on the course.  I am supposed to be hanging out right beside her.  These pictures are from Friday's attempt. 
















I was right where I was supposed to be in this picture.  Right next to mom and trying to pay attention to where her legs move.













This is a picture that shows what it looks like when I get distracted.  I got a little bit ahead of mom, and then as you can see the orange sticking up behind me, I missed one of the signs.  I did a good job of paying attention to mom on Saturday.  I got a little ahead once but when she called my name I went right back and got in line.  You can see from the pictures there are 3 rings all connected so there are other dogs walking around and people moving and it's a lot to take in.  The other big thing are these gray mats! All of the 2-leggeds have commented on how gross they are...us dogs agree, but we can't help but sniff them.








 This was my judge on Saturday.  He was a nice man and smiley.  He didn't make nervous at all when I was in the ring with him.












He gave me my green ribbon, which indicates it was indeed a qualifying score!  Since I got my title, I won a travel mug too.  I'm not too sure how I am supposed to carry that around or even get my nose in it to try to drink out of it.  I guess I will give it to my mom.  She said she would buy me a new toy if I gave it to her.  I was pretty excited, as were many of my dog friends and 2-legged friends from school.  It was so nice to do well at the trial and get all of the pawsitive feedback!









One special thing about Saturday is that I got to see my friend Thor!!  I think he grew another foot or 2.  Mom took a picture of me and Thor and Thor's dad.  Thor was competing in Rally Novice.  For a first timer I thought he did pretty well!
















 I wanted to give mom one of my serious looks to show how studious I can be.  This is my look of knowing I earned my title, rather than my previous look of shock and enthusiasm.  I thought this was going to wrap up our day at the dog trial, but mom had another plan for me...













 I had to get my 2nd measurement for agility.  This is a scary contraptions.  I really liked getting measured on the table at Bridle creek better than everyone hunched over me with that silver stick thing on my back.  Obviously this picture isn't of me, this is the Corgi that was in front of me in line. You can see his mom is having to help him out too, just like I needed my mom to help me.  I was measured at 12".  My first measurement was 11 3/4".  All that means is that I now will always officially jump 12" high bars in agility.  My mom knew that already, phew.

I took the rest of Saturday off and celebrated my new title with a nice nap and a car ride with mom.  On Sunday and Monday I will give it a go in agility.  Mom says it's all pressure free.  That I just need to try it out with a big audience and people walking around and clapping and stuff.  We are just gonna go out there and have fun and entertain!

Keep your tails waggin'!

Not my best

Hi all,
Well I have to admit that I forgot how hard it is to be in competition at the QuikTrip Center.  Mom had uncle Pat video record my performance.  The first 3 signs went great, and then after that well I just got caught up in the environment.  You can take a look for yourselves:

Thee good part of the course CLICK ON ME

The not so good part...click here

Needless to say it wasn't my greatest performance.  Watching it back mom says that we probably should not have been excused from the ring, but I guess when I went too close to the exit gate that was it. 

I have another "test" tomorrow.  I'll let you know how that goes...

Til then, keep your tails waggin'

Odds and Ends

Well hello everybody!
My mom has been really busy wrapping up the school year.  It's not that I haven't been doing anything lately, despite how the picture may look, but finding time where I was awake and alert and my mom was awake and alert and not busy has been challenging.  My mom is officially on her "summer break".  I, however, am not.  I am actually getting ready to have a very busy school weekend, but I'll talk about that more in a few. 

I have been working hard at school in both my Advanced Rally and Novice Agility classes.  Mom and I have been working so hard at school, that there aren't any recent pictures of my skills in action.  Perhaps after next weekend that will change.  Outside of school, I have been helping out mom lots.

On the weekends in April and May, I went to mom's work with her and helped guard the door so no one would be able to sneak up on here while she got her work done.  She had to write tests and grade papers.  Mom shared with me that she is going to try to write a children's book with me as the STAR, oh I mean main character.  That will be exciting and I am going to make sure to keep my paws in the mix.  I don't want to be misrepresented.

Mom has been really watching what she eats and trying to be healthy.  She has stated that I am on a doggie diet too, really?  So when it was a little cooler outside without so much sun, I took mom down to Riverparks for a walk.  I was such a good pacer!  There were times that I felt mom was starting to slack off a little, so I would move a little quicker and pull her along with the leash that connected us.  I didn't bark and any bikes, people, or other dogs while out on the walk.  I knew that I had a job to do...get mom exercising.  As you can see from the photo my mom took, I was working hard and my tongue was really hanging out.  The awesome part of this job was that when we got home, mom had made me some special doggie frozen treats that tasted like cheese!!  It was cold and one of my favorite flavors.  I hope the weather stays cooler in the morning or evening so I can continue to take my mom on walks.

Mom has also been working to get our house cleaned up.  It got pretty messy there as school was winding down for mom.  So while mom worked inside I, of course, guarded the outside of the house.  Now don't get me wrong, mom let's me have play time and does take breaks to play with me.  When I'm guarding the back yard, sometimes my friends come over to say hi.  My backyard friend by the shed is known as "Big Dog Friend" to my mom.  I don't really want to disclose his true name because he may not want anyone to know.  Next door in the back yard, there are 2 boston terriers that love to play "run the fence" with me.  I have actually got to play with them in the front yard a little bit too.  I think I prefer when there is a fence to run.

For now, I am trying to rest up, and thankfully mom is letting me, for my next dog trials!!  Coming up this weekend (Memorial day weekend), I will be competing in 2 different types of shows, 4 days in a row!  I am going to be competing in Advanced Rally on Friday and Saturday, and then my first Agility trial on Sunday and Monday.  This dog show is down the street from my house, so I won't have to go for a long car ride to get there.  If I can get 1 qualifying score out of the 2 days in Advanced Rally then I will have another AKC title.  My official name would then become:  Boca II CD RN RA.  I am only competing 2 days in Agility, so no chance of getting a title in that this weekend, but I could get a qualifying score, or two.  However, mom says we are doing the agility stuff this weekend just to get a feel of what it is like to hop in the ring for the first time for a score, with no warming or sniffing around or anything before hand.  I am a little nervous, and so is my mom, but we'll go and have a GREAT time! You are welcome to come watch.  There will be tons and tons of dogs around.  I compete early in the morning on Friday and Saturday and around 1-2 o'clock on Sunday and Monday in the agility ring. 

I am hoping that mom and I will find time to update you on my performances immediately following the trial.  Until then, keep those tails waggin'!!

Spring break and my latest trial

Hey everyone!

Well I was on spring break from my school for a couple of weeks, and mon said I should just take it easy. So I kind of did. Well I totally did from my typical school work, but I helped out mom with a few projects around the house.

In the pictures below you can see that I helped mom really overhaul her closet in the bedroom. It was pretty much useless space before I convinced her to do a complete demolition job on it and start over. I did get to go on a trip or two to Lowe's to help pick up a few essential pieces needed for the make over. I think with my supervision, mom did an excellent job on the closet.

I also got to go on a couple of house calls with mom and she took my condo. Mom told me that there is a little boy who is a little nervous about dogs. Well I sent him one of my fabulous Christmas cards and mom said that he always wanted to talk about me when she saw him. So since I was on spring break and my mom was on spring break we decided to pay him a visit. Mom told me that she took my condo so that I wouldn't get too excited for him. It worked out great. He even petted me a couple of times. I tried hard not to lick him, but I love kids and I love to lick people!!! Mom said I did a really good job, and would maybe get to go visit him again sometime.

On spring break, I also took some time to visit my Gramma and Granddad. They have a great setup in their living room. I can sit on either one of their laps and can watch tv and see outside their window all at the same time! Mom says I am gonna get to spend the weekend at their house next weekend when she goes to Austin for some running thing.

School started back for me this last Tuesday. I am again taking an Advanced Rally class and now I am in Novice Agility. In class on Tuesday, I was a little rusty on how the whole rally thing worked. I didn't really pay as close of attention to my mom as I should have. I am sure you all understand, all of us dogs were chit chatting about what we did over spring break and what was happening and about the agility trial that was the weekend before and the obedience trial that was coming up this weekend.

I didn't compete in the agility trial at Bridle Creek, but my mom took me there on Sunday. I got officially measured by one of the judges. I am now documented with AKC (American Kennel Club) as being 11 3/4 inches tall. Mom was pretty close she had guessed that I was 11 1/2 inches. All that means is that I have to jump poles that are set at 12". The really cool part about getting measured, is that the judge who measured me is from Lawrence, Kansas. Rock Chalk! And it was final four weekend! He noticed my name tag and commented that Jayhawks are cool! He sure does know his stuff!

Anyway...back to school. Mom says that during school this session our focus is on me really paying close attention to my mom and not trying to do my own thing while in the ring. She said this is going to be true for both my Advanced Rally and Novice Agility classes! B-O-R-I-N-G!

Well that's what I initially thought anyway, until this past Friday! Mom took me to compete in and Advanced Rally trial. There were two trials on the same day and I competed in both of them. In Advanced Rally you have to receive a score of 70 or better to get a qualifying score. Once you get 3 qualifying scores by at least 2 different judges then you earn a RA (Rally Advanced) Title. Which would mean another diploma hanging on the walls of my room! Well...it seems I was somewhat distracted during both trials but especially during the first. Mom took a picture of my scores for the trial as well as the other dogs. I did get a qualifying score in both trials, but my performance was less than stellar. Mom might be right about the whole needing to work on my focus in the ring thing.

Today is Easter! The Easter Bunny visited my house. I got some new toys and treats, and even a new short leash for agility class! Mom and I got an awesome new fountain for my garden just outside the window of the living room. I helped mom assemble it and get it up and running!

I hope everyone has had a great start to spring! Mom said that she things I am going to compete in an agility trial over memorial day weekend. I am a little nervous about not keeping my cool in the ring, but if I work on focusing to mom it should all work out just fine!

Until next time, keep your paws cool!

Boca

I Passed Beginning Agility!!!

I don't have a whole lot to say for this entry, but I just had to share:

I PASSED MY BEGINNING AGILITY TEST!!!

My mom did great in walking through the course and really getting down the sequence of the obstacles.  She only made one minor boo boo.  When I got to go over the contacts (a-frame, dog walk, and teeter), mom walked right around one jump and we went straight to the A-frame.  It turns out that my mom wasn't allowed to let me do any jumps or tunnels or anything else other than the 3 contacts.  Well...when it was my turn to go...I skipped the first jump and went straight to the A-frame. 

I was excited that my gramma and granddad got to come see me strut my stuff on the agility course.  Granddad even said that I looked "fearless."  Granddad also said that I was super speedy, and he thinks I would have passed even the novice test.  Mom told me not to put the cart in front of the horse, whatever that means...I'm just having a blast in my classes.

I have my Advance Rally Obedience school test tomorrow.  Mom says it's pretty important because I'm competing in a Rally Trail at the beginning of April.  I am ready get some more ribbons and awards to hang on the wall in my room.

I will make sure I let you all know how it goes...

Until then, keep those tails wagging!

Show and Tell!!

Good afternoon everyone!  It has been a crazy week!

I guess I'll start with the bad first.  I had to go to the doggie dentist on Friday for a teeth cleaning.  Mom seemed a little nervous about it, but she told me that all would be cool.  I had a little bit of a tantrum as we headed into the office on Friday, but I tried to appear calm, cool, and collected once we walked in the door.  It was a pretty traumatic experience, I think for both my mom and I.  They would up shaving one of my front legs, so now I look kind of strange with one leg with short hair and one leg with my stylish do.  Mom promises me that it will grow back.  I sure hope she is right.  They also removed two of my teeth while they were cleaning the rest.  My mom says that the vet told her they were about to fall out anyway.  I thought they were okay, but I guess the doc knows best.  They also removed the little cyst that I had on my eyelid.  I really wish they would have done it while I was completely asleep and unaware, but mom says they forgot. So they did it 2 hours after they had finished my teeth cleaning.  I was so happy to see my mom when she picked me up 11 hours after she dropped me off.  Mom says that we are now looking for a new doggie doctor/dentist for me.  I am open to whatever.

I was so traumatized by my teeth cleaning experience that I knew it was time to ask mom for something big.  As many of you may know, I love to ride in the car with the windows down and my head kind of out the window.  Well, I have been trying to talk my mom into a convertible for a year or two now.  I knew that she was starting to listen, because I heard her asking granddad about cars and all.  So...after my teeth cleaning I gave the best sad face, and said mom I think a convertible would help my owies.  She listened!!  Check out my new ride:

I of course was the first passenger! I think it goes nicely with my fur coloring!

 I think I will have to adjust to have so much wind blowing around.  I can't believe my mom snapped the above picture as I was wiping my nose.  I happen to know that when it's really windy outside my mom's nose runs as well.  Maybe it runs in the family. 

Anyway, I love my new ride!  Mom and I are having a blast tooling around town with the top off.  Especially with the absolutely beautiful weather we've had lately.

I had my next to last agility class for the session today.  I am having so much fun in agility. I am rocking it out and holding my own.  My mom had another two-legged record my last run of the day during today's class.  You should know that the teeter totter was at full height; pay attention to how I don't even hesitate. My video can be viewed by clicking below.

CHECK ME OUT!!!

Until next time!

Boca Bear

Homework???!!!??

Good evening all!

I finally found some time that my mom and I were both awake and not consumed with many other things that we should be doing.  The phrase "dog days" didn't start for no reason you know!

Let me start by giving you all a dog school update.  I LOVE school!! My mom has been wavering about whether we should continue to attend dog school or not.  I get it takes up time, but I think it's great.  So in order to convince my mom it's a good thing, I have been paying super close attention to my four-legged classmates and trying to catch on as quickly as I can. 

I am enrolled in 2 different classes on 2 different days.  What's the big deal about that you ask?  I get to go for a car ride to school 2 days a week!!! I LOVE riding in the car.  My mom has been talking to me about the possibility of us getting a new car.  I have been pushing for a convertible.  I can just picture myself driving into school during the spring months with the top down, my hair blowing in the breeze.  It would be awesome!! and I, would continue to be the envy of all the other four-leggeds at school! I think I almost have mom talked into it, but we'll see. Anyway, back to my school progress. 

On Tuesdays I am taking an advanced rally obedience course.  This is a class where my mom has to read a command on a sign along a course and then tell me what I am supposed to do so that I can get the maximum number of points.  There are a lot of new signs, according to my mom, and well she is having a hard time understanding them all and the best way to tell me how to do my part.  I am sure my mom will get her part down with practice.  I have been paying super close attention to my classmates though, and really picking up on what it is their owners want them to do.  So when it gets to be my turn to be in the ring with mom and "run the course", I have been copying what I saw my dog friends doing.  My mom has been giving me looks of shock that I knew what to do!  My mom told me that I have been doing so well that she has entered me into a advanced rally trial in April.  I am so excited to try to win more ribbons, toys, and get more diplomas!!  I'll keep you posted on how that goes.

On Thursdays, I am taking a beginner agility class.  Yes, this is the 3rd time I have taken this specific class, but my mom has been really cool about letting me get comfortable with the agility equipment at my own pace.  I have been fearless with all of the contact equipment pieces: dog walk, A-frame, and yes even the teeter-totter!  I have been a true leader with my classmates in agility.  Taking it during the morning hours has been so much better for me, I don't feel as tired or worn out!  I have been getting a little crazy and out of control at the end of the class meetings, and my teacher Ms. Dovie gave my mom some ideas on how to help me learn to increase my endurance during agility.  We have been getting after our homework, and I hope it pays off.  I think my mom is going to enter me into my first agility trial at the end of March.  I am so excited that she finally bought a set of weave poles to have at home, to really get me comfortable with them!

So on the whole dog school is going GREAT!  I have been resisting doing some of my homework at home, because I have been doing so great at school.  But...my mom is trying to teach me the fact that the more I do it, the more confident and comfortable I will become when I have to compete with other four-leggeds.

I will do my best to try to keep timely updates of what's going on! My mom has been pretty busy with work lately, and has had to travel a lot lately.  So although I know you all would like more frequent updates, I try to spend as much time playing with toys with mom rather than always bugging her to get a blog entry up!

Until my next entry....keep those tails wagging!!!