The team gets ready for the trial on Sunday.

Otterpop and Gustavo have a trial coming up this Sunday. It's been a while. I hope we've gotten better since last time, way back in December.

We've been practicing a lot since global warming took ahold here. Class with Nancy on a regular basis. Class with Rob every week. Practicing with our champion pals. Tervgility with Rob's dogs. And every time we can, we slip up to our favorite spots to practice on my days off or on the way to work.

I like how Otterpop is running right now. Fast. We are having a grand time, the two of us. Otterpop may be an ass, but she has been getting more and more awesome at agility.

Otterpop practiced a gamble today that involved rear crosses. After I taught her the gamble, didn't matter what hair brained arm I was waving around, which, after a few times through, I realized was the key to success in this one. Left arm. Left arm was the key. She also treated me to a couple stunning leaps off of the dogwalk. Much gusto, those incredible leaps.


Gustavo worked on coming into me better on his serps and threadles. He worked on his dogwalk turn away to a tunnel. He worked on me being gamble distance away from him and doing ALL the poles, not just many of the poles. Gustavo worked on a lot of things. I keep a list. I think if Gustavo and I could practice agility twice a day, every day of the week, we might get better. Even with all the practice I do, I always feel like we are so behind in all the skills I want him to get better at.

We do get slowly better, me and him, but our progress feels like tiny, baby steps going up the side of a sand dune the size of Mount Everest. Takes a long, long, time, grasshopper. Very zen. When he does something right, though, and stays focused for more than 12 seconds at a time, it's a victory. And, he's so sweet, when he's sitting on my lap, I don't worry about his crappy weave poles or that he was afraid of some toilet paper blowing by in the street today. I'm just happy he's my dog.