Maddie is officially 9 months old this week! She topped the scales at 57.5 pounds this week. So that knocks a few more of you out of contention for the Weight Guess Contest. Sorry, What Remains Now, Vanessa J, Cleptogrey, Gyeong, Ady C, and Ximena. Loraine S, you are exactly right... at this moment, but I don't think she will stay at that weight much longer.
It is definitely getting warmer now. I think summer temperatures are finally here. It is time to break out the fans for my van and the reflective shade cover to hang over the windshield. A black dog offers more of a challenge on sunny days. Luckily, all of our competitions tend to be indoors or under cover so that will not be a problem in the future. My biggest issue is that my agility field is super sunny. In mid summer, I have to train before 8 AM if I want to train in the shade. In the evenings, I get shade around 7 PM.
MAD CAT!
On the bright side, I realized that Maddie will be full grown and ready for real agility training in September/October. So right as it starts to cool off, she will be ready for some serious work... at least physically. And then I will have 7 - 8 months of good, cool, and cold weather to train in. Much better than really trying to make some progress in the heat of summer.
Maddie loves to run and jump so I think she will love agility like all of my other hounds have. This week we have been playing a little bit on a baby teeter.
Otherwise we have been doing a lot of hiking. We did two four mile hikes this week with lots of hill climbs. I hope to get Maddie swimming this summer. She has been getting into the water already.... hopefully we can teach her to be a bit more respectful. Maybe running water has that effect on all species and not just humans.
Seven and Maddie have really gotten into wrestling. I really had no idea that Seven could be so playful. I have never had greyhounds that played so much bitey face or nip at each other's legs. Usually it is all of them trying to get one of them to run so everyone can chase, but rarely does anyone want to be chased. Katie is the only one who would offer and then shut them all down when she had enough. Love that hound!
Lastly, I introduced Maddie to the muzzle. My girls are pretty rowdy outside so I just prefer they do their wrestling, playing, and chasing with muzzles. Life is easier without sutures!
