There Was a Little Girl

There was a little girl
Who had a little curl
Right at the tippy tip of her ear
She tried to be good
So very very good
But alas, her handler wasn't very clear.

Weasel and I had our first agility trial. We entered Nov A FAST, JWW and STD both days. The first day was a bewildering mass of confusion - getting there late, Spoiled One escaping, not knowing where to unload or sign in or be measured, or show up to volunteer, forgetting phone and dog brush and a zillion other things that it turned out I could survive without just fine. The second day was much more relaxed and fun.

Weasel did decently, considering. She ended up with two qualification ribbons and two 2nd place ribbons. Various people gave me grief over signing her up under the Canine Partners instead of ILP'ing (is it now PAL'ing) her as a border collie. Yes, I think she's a border collie. But, she is a pound puppy. She is spayed and her exact ancestry is unknown. Why make a fake purebred almost registration for her? Every title she earns (if she earns any) I want people to know that this dog is a rescue, a dog someone threw away.

Anyway, I now know I need to work on weaves, and directional cues with my little flying ferret, and start line stays.

During this adventure, the Demon Puppy of Albuquerque visited with some of my flyball friends who took wonderful care of her. They posted pictures of Demon Puppy stalking and chewing on their dogs and admired how smart and cute and ferocious she was. She grew, of course.

It's Like She Came Housebroken

This is so weird. Not one accident in the house so far. She seems like the perfect puppy. Sekhmet bounces around the room at my feet playing with her toys. She follows me around, and objects when I leave her for an instant. When she starts wandering around, sniffing the floor, I go to the door, she rushes out and pees! I'm happy about it, but I was expecting a LOT more issues.

She had her first vet visit and was proclaimed in excellent condition.

Weasel is giving her the full dose of puppy license. She seems to enjoy having the little thing around. Zephram finds her annoying, but tolerates her violations of his personal space. I make sure and give him safe zones where he doesn't have to worry about little puppies cramming their noses in his ears and climbing all over him.

The shrieking has really toned down. She seems to understand that she is okay, and loved, and I will be back in a minute.

Ooopsie - first accident inside. Guess she's mortal after all.

(Brief pause while I take puppy outside and clean up)

I swear she is already learning to retrieve! Her favorite toys are rubbery Kong-like toys and I found one that was a squishy sort of lattice-work sphere with a fuzzy little ball inside it. She loves it. We were playing tug of war and fetch with it. Weasel and Spoiled One were very jealous. (I played with them, too)

She likes to sleep under foot, between my feet and the computer desk. When she sleeps. It isn't often. Such a good little girl.

In other news, after a three-week break, Weasel did well at agility drill. She listened to me when I told her the wrong course, but it's not her fault she has an idiot handler. She responded to my turn cues and was a good little girl.