2011 News
3rd & 4th December 2011
Saturday saw us at the Scottish Beagle Club's Christmas party! We had a good time playing games, eating and catching up with beagle folk old and new. :-)
Sunday was Woodside Christmas Agility show near Broxburn, which was a bit of a 'non event' for us as I missed walking my courses and then only managed to get two runs out of six as I had to be somewhere else. But I actually managed a Clear round with Chief despite this!
20th November 2011
It was Ladies Kennel Association of Scotland Limited show today at Bonnybridge and Chief stood alone in Beagle Open. However, he was Best of Breed and then went on to win Hound Group 1!
He was very well behaved in the line up for Best in Show, but went no further. As Chief will be retiring soon from showing, this was a nice win. Pictured left is Chief when he was 6 months old, just before his first ever show.
8th October 2011
It was the Scottish Beagle Club's Open show today at Muirhead and Chief came 2nd in Post Graduate dog. Had a good time catching up and having a blether with everyone, as haven't been at many shows this year at all. (photo courtesy of Kath Parkin)
2nd October 2011
Weimeraner Club of Scotland's Obedience show today at Alva where Cosmo was entered. The weather and ground conditions were absolutely awful, and so Cosmo got fed up lying in 4" of mud/water in his down-stay and sat up right at the end. His heelwork etc was OK, but on the retrieve he managed to drop his article as he was presenting it to me, and actually managed to sit on it as it fell!!! So I had to take it from below his bottom without disturbing his sit, which I did....but then instead of him going to heel as normal, he went between my legs and sat there looking up at me pleased as punch! The judge and steward were both giggling and laughing, as was I. Needless to say we lost a lot of points and weren't placed but at least we brightened their day!
1st October 2011
It was Gleniffer's agiltiy show down in Bishopton today and we had a lovely day out! Just as well the show was indoors, as it absolutely tipped down with rain all day.
Chief did some lovely work, obviously enjoying courses with no weaves in them!! He came home with an unplaced Clear in G6 Jumping, and an 8th place in the Combined 5-7 Agility! I unfortunately got us Eliminated in the other two runs! Doh.
Wee Cosmo had one G7 agility run and thoroughly enjoyed it, running Clear but just outside the places. A lovely meal in the gorgeous restaurant finished the day off nicely!
24th & 25th August 2011
It was the Scottish Grand Charity show this weekend at Dundee in glorious weather all weekend! A true indian summer. This is a KC agility show, but with lots of fun stuff going on for charity also. Over £10,000 was raised for worthy causes.
Only Chief was entered and he gave me a mixed bag. Camperdown Park is not the best venue for Chief as he is always very sniffy there. True to form sometimes he went sniffy, and sometimes he run really well! This was his first Grade 6 show and didn't totally disgrace himself as he came 3rd in Grade 6 Agility on Saturday.
Picture courtesy of Gary Clacker, Misken Beagles.
10th September 2011
Up to Aberdeen today for ACTs Agility Show and my boys did great! Wee Cosmo had a run today and came 4th in Combined 1-7 Jumping. And Chief, well...he surpassed himself and came 5th in the Combined 5-7 Jumping! He was flying around the ring and paying attention the whole time and obeying commands straight away. He also had another Clear round which was unplaced but he was working so well today. Happy days!
1st, 2nd & 3rd September 2011
It was down to Coventry for the KC Olympia Small Agility Stakes Semi-final for Cosmo. We decided to take Chief too, and had a few days away - being 'tourists with dogs' - visiting some attractions etc and having a break. The weather was fantastic, a real indian summer!
The Semi-final itself is held at Stoneleigh Park during the City of Birmingham Show. On the day, Cosmo was on-form, he was focused and fast....unfortunately it was ME who badly let him down by being in the wrong position and sending him into the weaves at the 3rd pole. I could've kicked myself black and blue! Nevermind, he behaved brilliantly and I couldn't ask for more than that. And we had a lovely few days away. Here we are with our coveted semi-finalist rosette!
27th & 28th August 2011
Well, what a turn up for the books - Chief worked like a wee star and he WON OUT of Grade 5, by winning the C4-5 Agility at SKC, Edinburgh! He had three stonking Clear rounds and also came 2nd in the other C4-5 Agility too.
Cosmo run in the invitational Scottish Agility Dog of the Year Final, he was a good boy and run Clear. This was my aim for him - to behave and run Clear so I was over the moon with him. He also run in the Crufts Mixi Pairs heat with his pal Fly the Collie and they both had lovely runs coming 3rd in the class! Yay!
6th & 7th August 2011
Kingdom of Fife Agility show up in St Andrews this weekend. Saturday's weather was fantastic and Chief came home with a 1st in Grade 5 Agility and 1st in Grade 5 Jumping! The agility win again was with a fault so thankfully still no Grade 6 for him! But the jumping win was Clear and well within the coursetime which was great.
Sunday's weather was awful, it rained constantly from Sat night until we left on Sunday afternoon, so the ground was very heavy, wet and muddy. Chief decided he didn't like these conditions and run very slowly trying not to splash himself!!! So he didn't have such a good day, but still managed a 3rd place in Grade 5 Jumping, but only because I think a lot of dogs weren't happy in the rain and cold either!!
Here he is with his lovely trophies and rosettes.
31st July 2011
Down to Dunbar today for East of Scotland dog show, where Chief won his class and Best of Breed. He decided he wasn't going to stand still at all in the Group, so quite rightly was overlooked by the judge.
However, I was happy with his best of breed, because he earned the last point he needed for the Show Certificate of Merit title. :-)
This means his full proper name will now be Newlin Anchor Chief AW(B) ShCM.
After the show we went to the nearby beach and the boys had a great time playing. None more so than Cosmo who would just have stayed there forever chasing his ball!
23rd & 24th July 2011
Back to Aberdeen this weekend for Granite City agility show. While the rest of Scotland basked in glorious sunshine - Aberdeen had it's own micro-climate and was freeezzzzing, very windy, dull and at times drizzling. Lovely. :-( Despite the weather (that even Cosmo felt cold and that's saying something!) me and the boys had a good weekend. Wee Cosmo got a 2nd and a 3rd in the G7 Agility classes and Chief won G5 Agility - luckily he had 0.6s of a timefault which means he doesn't move up to G6 - I think I was the happiest person ever to see they had timefaults! There is no way Chief should be moving up and I was so glad that he wasn't. He also had 3 Clear Rounds which were within the coursetime, over the weekend.
16th & 17th July 2011
Up to Aberdeen this weekend for Bearded Collie Club's agility show. The weather on Saturday was pretty horrible, but yet Cosmo still managed to come 2nd in Grade 7 Jumping and 1st in Combined Grade1-7 Agility. He was really enjoying himself!
Was so glad we were staying in a hotel on Sat night though, and not camping, as the rain continued to tip down! Chief had 3 Clear Rounds on the Sunday in lovely weather (what a change from Saturday) and did some good work.
9th & 10th July 2011
Down to Tranent this weekend for East Lothian Agility show; and the big news - Chief now has his Agility Warrant Bronze award!! We only needed 1 point more on Saturday morning, but he came 2nd in Grade 5 Agility which meant he earned a further 19 points, yay! He then came 4th in the Combined 1-7 Down&Out in the mud and rain, getting one and half way around the course in the time set with no faults!! And you should've seen his weaving - wow!
Sunday and it was off up to Alva for the Hound Association Limited Show where (after cleaning the agility mud off!) Chief came 1st in Open Beagle. Had a lovely relaxing day in sunshine catching up with everyone again.
Sunday and it was off up to Alva for the Hound Association Limited Show where (after cleaning the agility mud off!) Chief came 1st in Open Beagle. Had a lovely relaxing day in sunshine catching up with everyone again.
2nd & 3rd July 2011
Clyde Valley agility show this weekend at Lanark - in glorious weather all weekend - what a novelty that was! Chief and Cosmo were both working well, Chief had 3 smashing Clear Rounds but no places (all classes were combined to Grade7) , but wee Cosmo was a star on his 3 runs over the weekend - a 1st, a 2nd and a 4th. :-)
25th & 26th June 2011
Down at Kelso this weekend for Tweedbank agility show, and what a lovely relaxed show it was. Cosmo had a nice wee run on the Saturday and came 2nd in the Combined 1-7 Agility.
Chief had 3 Clear Rounds out of his 6 runs over the weekend and came 4th in the Combined 1-5 Agility! We had to 'have words' though in one run where he was just refusing to do his weaves because he wanted to get to the end of the course for his reward!
So, I never let him finish the course until he did the weaves - it took six attempts, and I thought he was just going to run off anyway to the end, but he didn't and my perseverance paid off as he did it perfectly! I don't know who was more stubborn though - me or him!
19th June 2011
Today was a day of two halves!
First thing this morning, we travelled to Lanark for the Scottish Beagle Club's Championship show, where Chief got Reserve in Post-Graduate dog.
But we couldn't wait to enjoy the rest of the show, as we had to hotfoot it to Tillicoultry in the afternoon for a display with our team, Auchinlay Agility Group.
Both boys loved their time out entertaining the crowds at Tillicoultry Gala Day, and behaved perfectly for the audience.
11th & 12th June 2011
Cosmo again came home with the 1st Place rosette this weekend, this time from Prestwick Agility show, after winning the Combined G4-7 Agility on Saturday.
Chief worked well this weekend too coming home with 5 Clear Rounds out of his 7 runs. And two 2nd places in G5 Agility and Jumping. Really pleased with my boys.
However, if anyone has a spare SatNav for me that'd be great as I seemed to forget where I was going in just about every course this weekend!
4th & 5th June 2011
Cosmo was a complete star this weekend at Avon DAC Agility show, winning the Olympia Qualifier on Saturday! This is the 3rd time he's run in the qualifier, and the 3rd time he's qualified, so not a bad record. So, it's the Semi-finals again at Stoneleigh in September - Gulp!
Cosmo also had another run on Sunday in the G5-7 Agility, where he run even better than on the Saturday and won this too! He was absolutely on form, not bad for a semi-retired, almost 9 year old! Here he is showing off his KC Olympia rosette and his trophy.
Chief did some nice work but still his weaves continue to cause a problem. But he came home with one Clear Round, and in another course it was ME who let him down terribly by sending him the wrong way right at the very end when he was clear up until then. Poor Chief!
28th & 29th May 2011
It was Gleniffer AC's agility show this weekend. In what can only be described as 'crazy' weather, Chief managed to come home with a 2nd place in Grade5 Agility and a 3rd in Grade5 Jumping on the Saturday.
I was judging on Sunday, so the boys were left relaxing at home while I braved the elements to judge some fantastic dogs all trying really hard for their owners. Had a smashing day with brilliant ring-party and helpers. Well done to everyone who came home with prizes in my courses.
22nd May 2011
Back to SKC for the agility today. It was very very windy so in Chief's first run of the day, he picked up a scent which distracted him (and me!!) resulting in Elimination. However last run of the day was the Combined G4-6 Agility, where Chief went Clear and actually came 3rd in the class! Here he is coming over the last jump to claim his rosette.
20th May 2011
SKC Championship Dog Show today at Edinburgh and Chief won the Post Graduate dog class.
I was really pleased, because this also means that he has qualified for Crufts 2012 too! Had a nice day (if a little chilly) catching up with everyone again too as we'd not been at a show for quite a while. We're back at SKC on Sunday for the agility, so fingers crossed Chief will continue to keep his 'behaving' head screwed on!
14th & 15th May 2011
Fair City Agility show up at Scone Palace this weekend. And I was so pleased with Chief; he was very focused on his agility. He came home with three Clear Rounds, a 3rd in Grade 5 Agility and the Judge's Special award for trying so hard in one course, but being eliminated at the very last jump which was my fault.
Wee Cosmo had the hard-luck story of the weekend, run a fantastic Agility round and just clipped the pole on the last jump. Never mind, he came home with 6th in the charity Snakes & Ladders special, which was such great fun to do. We were all shattered on Sunday night as the picture shows!
8th May 2011
It was the Doggy Day Out at Strathclyde Park today - a fun day in aid of charity and we had a great time. It was also Chief's 3rd birthday today and he celebrated by passing his KC Canine Good Citizen Bronze Test! (with runner ducks being herded just behind him in the next ring too). He also had two Clear Rounds in the Agility and to top it off, won the Sporting section at the Dog Show! Not to be outdone, wee Cosmo came 3rd in the Sporting section at the Dog Show and won the Small Agility! Here's Chief pictured with his winnings.
30th April & 1st May 2011
Woodside agility show this weekend at Biggar, and we had a lovely weekend in the sunshine. Chief seems to be getting to grips with the more technical courses, although a bit slower as he is trying to work out where I wanted him to actually be! As a result, my handling was pretty sloppy!
So out of 6 runs at Grade 5 - he got 3 Clear Rounds, which I was very pleased about. For some reason though, the weave continues to be causing us problems at shows, but at training - Chief manages them fine on all his own, with no issues.
17th April 2011
A quick turn-around from St Andrews to get to Edinburgh for the evening, where our display team was making an appearance in the Edinburgh Science Festival event 'The Science of Dog Training'. Unfortunately my van broke down on the way home from St Andrews and I had to very quickly sort things out, re-arrange transport and get there with the dogs and the equipment needed for the night. Testament to my dogs who after a very unusual day, including being towed in a tow-truck, were still able to go into a theatre environment and perform on stage in front of hundreds of people - I was so proud of them. The display was a success and everyone seemed to enjoy it. The whole team did fantastically well. Here is a link to a short video of the event.
16th & 17th April 2011
It was up to St Andrews this weekend for Kingdom of Fife DAC's agility show and Chief's first Grade 5 show, which meant he was subjected to much more technical courses and he was up against the Grade 6 and 7 dogs too. On the Saturday, the courses 'blew his mind' a bit, so much so at one point a kiddies picnic ringside was a much more appealing idea! However, by Sunday he was getting to grips with it all a bit more, and we almost got our first Grade 5 Clear, with just 5 faults for a refusal in the agility.
Wee Cosmo had just one run on the Sunday and loved it, coming 3rd in the Grade 7 agility. Here he is pictured thoroughly enjoying his run (photo courtesy of Nicola Liddell).
9th & 10th April 2011
It was Woodbank's first ever KC agility show this weekend at Glenrothes and I had been asked to judge on the Sunday. What a lovely weekend.
Cosmo won a 2nd place in G7 agility on the Saturday and Chief, although he never won anything, had fun in the sun with some nice work.
It was perfect weather all weekend and I thoroughly enjoyed my judging - there were some cracking runs! Had good fun on the ring with an excellent ring party keeping things running smoothly.
2nd & 3rd April 2011
Dundee AATC's agility show this weekend and the start of the outdoor agility season. I was a tad worried Chief would take off, considering this venue wasn't ideal for him last year. It is a highly utilised public park with stray dogs, picnics, rabbits, deer and plenty of open space. However, he did very well - coming home with two clear rounds and two 2nd places - and best of all, he didn't go off sniffing once. Good boy!
27th March 2011
West Lothian Canine Society show at Edinburgh today and Chief came 1st in the Post Graduate class! Had a lovely wee morning catching up with everyone, then went off down to Portobello beach for a nice walk and some lunch.
19th March 2011
Gleniffer AC's agility show down at Bishopton today and Chief had a fantastic day - he had 3 Clears out of 4 runs, WON the Grade 4 Agility and came home with a 3rd in Jumping!! This means he now moves up to Grade 5. Yikes! Here he is showing off his rosette and photo-frame trophy though and this is a link to his winning run.
12th March 2011
Off down to Birmingham for the madness that is Crufts this weekend!
Unfortunately Chief came away empty handed from the breed rings, but we had a fabulous time again and thoroughly enjoyed our wee break away at the biggest/most famous dog show in the world.
Here is Chief strutting his stuff on that famous green carpet.
.
And here he is posing!
26th February 2011
So proud of my boys today! It was the SJDC agility show and they did so well.
Chief won Grade1-4 Jumping and came 2nd in the Grade1-4 Agility.
Cosmo was a wee star today, and won three out of four Grade5-7 classes that he run in.
My wee boy still has it. :-)
Here they are pictured proudly showing off their medals and rosettes.
9th January 2011
Off up to Tayside today for Dundee AATC's Fun Agility show, and it was exactly that - Fun! Once we got there that is; as the roads were awful after overnight snow again - but it was well worth it. Both Chief and Cosmo were entered and had a great time. Chief won Grade 4/5 Jumping and Cosmo won Grade 6/7 Agility.
8th January 2011
Up to Fife today in the snow (again!) for St Andrews & Cupar's Limited dog show. Chief won the Open Beagle class, Best of Breed and then Hound Group 4! He was a very happy boy today, moved well and his tail was wagging the whole time in the ring.
Nice friendly wee show with lovely rosettes that Chief is showing off in the photo.
