Moving on up!

Last night our agility instructor had an open practise session for all of her students, so Dax and I went to play. Fran decided (wisely) that Ceilidh's little brain would explode if she saw so many dogs she didn't know playing on HER stuff, so they stayed home.

Dax and I have been in Beginner's for about a year (with time off for poison recuperation). I used the practise last night to see if it's time for us to move on to Intermediate Class. Dax can certainly jump - if I'm too slow with the treats I get a French Bulldog hopping up to eye level to remind me of her presence. And while I'm a really, really short woman (5 feet), it's still an impressive sight to see Dax hopping to 4+ feet - straight from a "sit." She has no problem with the Teeter - although it was higher than she's seen it before. Her Weaving is pretty terrific - I just have to remember not to talk to her when she's looking at me, so that she concentrates on where she's going. Her Dog-Walk is at a dead run, I have to gallop to keep up so that she doesn't turn around to see where I am! She Tunnels jim-dandy-peachy!

And then there's the A-Frame. I have to make sure she gets a good run-up, so momentum can help her get over the top. And she's going to have to learn to use the slats on the Frame to help her slow down. We tried about a half-a-dozen times, the last couple were really good. The one that worried me was the run that had a flat Frenchie splatted on the mat at the end. She just slipped the last foot or so, but still....

So I asked Teacher and we got the go-ahead to move into Intermediate class. Yeah! And now Dax is going to have to be patient - the learning curve for this half of our team is rising sharply!