Well, summer has set in and it is hot. I try to train Travis and Katie when it is not so hot, but it is difficult to avoid the heat. I work at home one day a week, so I still get up extremely early with Stephen (4:40 AM!! I can't believe it sometimes), go to the gym, and then train the dogs just as the sun is starting to come up. I try to do the same on the weekends, but we are usually getting out there around 7 or 8 AM.
Much of our focus has been on preparing for the Greyhound Nationals and 4-day all breed dog show and agility trial (5 days total) in NY at the end of Sept. Travis will compete in Open B obedience at the GH Nationals and then he will compete in the all breed, 4-day agility trial that follows. Katie is going to compete in Open B and Utility B at the GH Nationals. I have not decided on the rest of her show schedule in NY, but we have 4 more days of obedience available to us. I might enter all of it and just see how it is going. If she is competing well and loving it, then I would hate to have not entered her. Of course, if I decide not to show her and pull her out of an entered class, it is money down the drain. Might have to just spend the money since we are talking NY.
For the GH Nationals, I think we are preparing for a unique situation. I think that Katie and Travis could very well be the only "B" entries in obedience. That means that Katie could end up competing in both classes back to back with only a few minutes of rest in between. In Open they will both have to hurry back in for sits and downs without much of a break either and Stephen will have to handle one of them for the stays since I cannot do both. We are also showing outdoors, so who knows what the weather will be like. I hope that it will be a nice overcast day in the 60's. I am hoping for other "B" entries and I am hoping that another class will be placed between the "B" classes to give us a break, but if not, we will be ready. We have been training for this situation just in case.
Both dogs are working really well. Katie easily remembers the Open exercises and has not confused any of them with Utility exercises. We are doing some extra work with the scent articles to ensure that she can calmly, quickly, and confidently complete the exercise like I know she can. Travis seems to be taking it all in stride and has been doing some nice obedience work. His agility work is as good as ever. I know that they will make me proud and I'm looking forward to showing them both off in a totally different part of the country.
They both are very healthy, sound, and happy. They still very much want to work. Since they are 9 years old, I think I start to prepare myself for the possibility of retirement or worse, so I'm not caught off guard. But they show no signs of calling it quit anytime soon which is how I would like to keep it.
