USDAA trial weekend

Went to a USDAA trail this weekend.  It was my first weekend with the RV by myself.   It started out kinda scary.  I was getting on the highway at home and as Im speediing up on the on-ramp, I come around the corner and there is a car backing up the ramp. WTH???    I cant slow down very fast and I wasnt getting off the road. The person probably had to go home and change thier underwear after seeing me coming. They pulled off the road.  I dont know what they were thinking backing up the ramp. Just go to the next exit and turn around.  People just dont think sometimes.     Everything else on the drive was ok.  After getting off the highway, there are kind of narrow roads to the site but I did ok and didnt hit anyones mailbox. LOL   I even manage to back into a spot at the site ok.  It was  hard to get the RV level. I tried and even got the front wheels on blocks but it wasnt right.  I needed to pull forward and try again. But I needed to get to the rings. So I  just plugged in the RV so the air conditioning would cool the RV down for when we get back. It was a warm sunny day.

I went to the site. We were only entered in Steeplechase and Java was also entered in Master Challenge jumping.   Well she broke her stay in MCJ , so we left the ring.  Its hard to do but we will just be off course if she wont give me a lead out.  The rest of the weekend,she didnt break again.   Next was Steeplechase.

Miley  popped the weave poles. Not sure why and I didnt go back and fix it. She also dropped the last bar.   So many dogs , after taking #7 took the #15 tunnel.   This one dog, even though  the handler was driving toward #8, the dog ducked behind her and took the tunnel. Ack!!     Java and I managed to stay on course. Yay!!!  We were the only 16 inch dog. 

So back to the RV to try to fix being level. I had to diconnect the electric and then move the blocks and drive off them. Then move the RV forward on our space, so we were move level to begin with. Then put the blocks back under the front wheels.  Getting in and out of the RV multiple times with the blocks. Then this lady next door came out to help me so I didnt have to keep getting out to look where I was on the blocks. LOL   Then put the lifts down and make yourself level with the levelers.   Then connect the water.   Then put out the expens around the door area, in case the dogs run out, they cant get far. Finally everything was done.   

See finally done. Now time to put your feet up and relax.   It is a lot of work but the best part is, my dogs not barking at night because people are talking in the hallways of the hotel or doors slamming all the time.  We slept all night. Yes, Miley didnt even get up to go to the bathroom. 

The next day Miley was only in PIII standard and PIII gambles. We didnt get the gamble, but nice run. 

She stuggled with this course. She broke the tire. It could have been the approch I gave her. I did a sling shot startline and then front crossed #2.  She popped out of the weave poles again and dropped the last bar.   Very unusual for her to pop out of weave poles. She might miss the entry but she hardly ever pops out .

Java 

Java had a nice run but missed the weave pole entry in the gamble. Ugh!!  She had nice dogwalks alll weekend.

In starndard , we only needed one starters standard Q to move up and we dropped a bar. Ugh! ( we got the starters Standard Q on Sunday but I didnt have video of it) 

Master Challenge Jumpers.

Man we had a nice run except she jumped off the teeter and I pulled to hard at the a-frame and she jumped off  the side and missed the contact. Ack!!  But beautiful dw to the weave poles. 

 Last up was  round 2 of Steeplechase.   Beautiful run!!  Yea, we won $14.00!!!

Even though we didnt have a lot of Q's it still felt like a good day. No off courses. Yay Me!!!

The video isnt to good because it was undercover and cloudy.  It rained during the night and in the morning but the rest of the day was ok. We were suppose to get thunderstorms but they never came. 

http://youtu.be/JLk8mc6XlCE

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  Sunday it was very foggy, so I didnt tape any runs in the beginnig of the day. Miley got the gamble in PIII gamblers. Yay!!

And it was even weave poles!!! 

Java's next run was Advance gamblers with the easiest gambler ever and we missed it.  I think because I had Grand Prix and Gamblers at the same time and then Miley was close to Java's run too. I was worrying about all the conflicts. Java was in both rings in 5 dogs and Miley was 4 dogs after Java in the Grand Prix ring. I took Java's crate ringside so I could switch dogs easily and When I put Java in her crate to run Miley, Java ripped the soft crate door open.  I lookd down and there is Java walking with us to the ring.  Ugh and I knew it was  locked too. So now I didnt have a crate to put Java in. I asked around and no one had an extra crate.   I finally was  able to pull the zipper door down and get the zippers to realign.  Then put stuff in front of the crate so she wouldnt bust out again. 

 You  just had to be outside the line when you sent to dog to number 1 in the gamble.   Her teeters were beautiful. Of course I changed my comand to "You Wait", since she doesnt seem to understand "touch"  or "scratch" in the ring. LOL

Grand Prix was awesome with Java. Just missed the weave poles, which was a common theme for everyone. It didnt seem to matter if you started the dog on the left or the right. I really didnt think Java would miss but she did. 

Miley had a lot of trouble and then stressed in the ring.  Ugh!!.   So then we were done for  the day.   Time to pack up. 

Everything was good until I got home and tried to back up into the fenced in spot that I keep the RV in. There isnt much room on either side of the gate opening, so needless to say, I hit the corner with the RV. Ugh. 

Sad, but at least it isnt brand new and already had to dings in it to start with. LOL

I did buy some wireless head phones to use with my phone.  I have hands free stuff in my car but the RV is old, so no hands free stuff.  I do not feel comfortable answering my phone and  Im really not comfortable with calling  someone while driving the RV. I tried using the ear plugs that came with my phone but they were just regular ear plugs.  So I saw on QVC and ad for  samsung Circle gear head phones. ( I didnt buy them from QVC, they were cheaper at BestBuy) .They have an app that comes with it so you can talk and it was call or text what you want.  Your phone just has to be somewhere near you. I used it at the field while waiting for a phone call from the vet and I was across the field from the phone and it still worked.    Worked great. If someone calles me, I just put one ear piece in my ear and talk while driving . If I want to call, just press the button on the ear piece and say "call Lou Husband"  and it says to me "calling Louisiana husband".    Im not sure why it says that but it calls Lou.   LOL    Other things  that is handy for, it if Im walking the dogs and picking up poop, I dont have to hang up or call the person back because I need both hands.  I can also keep doing things when talking to  Lou on the phone and dont have to hand up because Im trying to get ready to go to work.   (So Im making lunch and giving the dogs medicine ect... ).

Why dont I post something?

Pictures By Matt at  Lowcountry Dog Agility Pictures.  

Im not sure why I cant seem to post anymore.  I think about it all the time but by the time I sit down to do it, Im to tired. Plus, its just easier to post somthing on Facebook.  The thing about facebook is, you cant find older post easily. They seem to get lost. 

Last  weekend I dove down to Charleston for a USDAA trail. I wanted to try to get Steeplechase and Grand Prix Q's.  I have none this year and havent done much USDAA.  Plus Java is still in starters standard.  No change there.  First she had gamblers and I lead out, she stayed.  I did make her do the teeter 3 times and finally on the 3rd time, she did a 2o/2o.  But then in standard, she broker her stay. Whell I cant run her if I cant lead out. We just go off course.  She jumped the dogawalk contact, flew off teeter, left the table before released. Ugh!!  I felt pretty bad about that one.  She did Q in Steeplchase and gamblers.  So the next day I decided I was pulling her if she broke her startline. I feel like I have no choise.  So Gamblers she stayed. Yay!!  We made it to round 2 of Steeplechase. I set her up at the start, started to lead out and she broke. So I said "Thank you " to the judge. She said , "Your leaving?" (she seemed surprised). I said yes. I walked Java back to the car, no treats.   Not knowing if it made an impression. Boy did it.  Now anytime she sat, while we were at the trial, even if I didnt ask for a sit,she didnt move until I said ,"ok".  LOL  She stayed the next two classes.  She had a beautiful GrandPrix run!! 

Miley had a nice run too.  And also Qed.  Both dogs got Bye's for Regionals!!! Yay!!!Mission complete. How unusual is that? To have a goal and actually meet it. LOL  It doesnt usually happen for me. 

Miley struggled at this trial. The doctor started her on Prozac.  She feels Miley, having to get up at night to urniate , is more behavoral than physical .   I dont tend to agree but I was willing to try something. Because when we stopped all the meds, she started getting up multiple times a night.   So we started the Prozac and she is just acting werid. Yes , she sleeps through the night most nights but at what cost. She really had weird jumping this weekend. (More than usual).  Even her weave poles, which she has always had awesome , fast weaves, were screewed up. She got through them but not as fast and not the same way all the way through.   Also, I beat her over the dogwalk, which NEVER happens.   So  after running her in jumpers and she looked terrible, I didnt run her again until later in the afternoon.  She seemed more like her self (I hadnt given her the whole dose of medication Satruday night) . She ran Grand Prix much better but still didnt seem like herself.   

When I watched the video's, I didnt realize how close she was to the edge of the a-frame. Im so gland she didnt fall off. 

And here, if you watch the begining of Speedjumping on Saturday, you see the werid jumping and the weird weave poles. Plus she is really slow.

While at the show, Miley would go the whole day without urinating.  Wierd.  I tried bringing flovored water, which usually she loves, to the try to  increase her urine out put , but it didnt work.  

 This weekend, I went to my mom's house for my mom's birthday.  Miley acted really werid there too.  She stayed far away from all of us on Saturday.   She stayed in the sunroom, instead of comming and sitting near me in the dinning room area.  Its were all the other dogs stayed.   She wouldnt leave the patio area to go the bathroom. I would have to take her out into the yard to get her to go the bathroom.  She has been to my mom's house many, many times and never acted like this before.  Sunday, she stayed in my room and wouldnt come out.  Shelite's like to be with you and follow you every where. She didnt.  Also wierd.  Im stopping the medication even if it is helping her sleep through the night. If she is becoming a different dog, I dont want that.  I think I will talk to the vet about medication that will concertrate her urine.  I think that is the real reason she is sleeping through the night.  Like today, she has peed since 6am, she just went now (which is 7:45). Thats not good for her, IMO. 

Guiness is getting old.  He also went to my mom's house too. He was so excited when we got there. He ran around like a crazy man in the back yard. Then fell twice going up the back steps and I noticed him off loading wieght off his right back leg.  He was fine shortly after that. 

Dog trials, chest pain and Senior art projets.

 

Yesterday Stephanie had her exhibition for her senior art project.  I drove down to see it, then we went to dinner and shopping.  All the projects had to mean something.  Her project is about the way school are cutting the arts out of schools.   The decreasing density of the pencils represents the way elementary and middle schools are getting rid of  art programs. Then each different colored pencil also has  a specific meaning.    I think it turned out pretty cool. She is very happy it is done. It been pretty stressful trying to come up with the project and then putting it all together. Next week the go in front of a board of professors and have to "defend" their project.

 

Last week was our clubs agility trial. We were having a 4 day trial with another club.  On Wednesday , I was driving to the site to help with set up, and started having chest pains. Ive had chest pains before but nothing like this.  It really hurt and then the pain was in  my shoulder blades. I kept thinking it was going to go away. Then my right jaw started hurting. Ack.  I decided to stop at the ER. I figured I would go in, they would do an EKG and say you are fine.   But they didn't. They said they saw ST depression in several leads and I needed to stay and have more testing done.  Ugh. So more EKG's, blood work every 6 hours, shots in your stomach to prevent blood clots , nuclear stress test and Echo.   So Friday afternoon, they decided I was fine. They couldn't find any reason for the chest pain or the ST depression, which was  now gone.   So I could go  and resume my regular activities.   I wonder how much this is going to cost us. LOL.  

It was stressful being at the hospital because first my dogs were in my car. I had parked in the shade at the hospital but called my neighbor and she came and took my dogs home. Then I had hired a chief course builder and  I allowed her to use my RV so she wouldnt have to pay for a hotel room.  But I was planning on bring the RV their on Wednesday.   Ugh. So a friend of mine went and got the RV and  drove it to the site. She also helped set it up.  Boy do I owe her. How many friends would do that??? And poor Lou was very worried.  He left work but it took an 1 1/2 to get to the hospital. And I forgot that his mom had a massive heart attack when she was 50 years old. She died. And Im 50. So I think that really freaked Lou out.

 

They trial didn't go to well.  Miley did take 1st place in Standard on Friday. But then Saturday and Sunday , she jumped on and off the table and stressed. So she did a big out run around the ring. Ugh, why is this back. I thought she was over this.  So a few days later I remembered  we had stopped all her medications for her bladder problems. The vet felt it wasn't helping since she was still waking up once a night to use the restroom.  But since stopping the medications she was now getting up 2 and 3 times a night. So yesterday I called the vet, or the day before, and told her about the increase in getting up at night when stopping all the medications. So she put her back on the oxybutynin and  ordered Prozac. I will start the Prozac tonight.   She is already back to only getting up once after 24 hours on the oxybutynin.  Will see if the Prozac can get her to not get up at all. (She doesn't have a bladder infection, they have checked multiple times).

I didn't run Java well at all. They first run, she was crazy and jumped all the contacts.  Then I messed up all the jumpers runs.  She did get on Q in T2B.  I ran a friends dog on Sunday in T2B. She was having leg pain.  Her dog is a lab and jumps 20 inches. I actually Qed with her dog.  Then I felt stressed because I thought if I Qed with someone else's dog and cant with my own, that will be embarrassing.  But that was the one run I Qed .  I tried to run the Lab again in Standard. We were doing well and then  her dog left and went looking for her mom.   O'well, I tried.  Miley had a beautiful run in standard except the table thing.   Java also had  a beautiful run but got called on the teeter. Im never going to get that darn teeter fixed.

 

 

I love dead tress. They are so cool. I just couldn't capture the picture.