Friday 11 October 2013

Back to Base, and Back to School

Stratford upon Avon

Well, 6 months after we left, we're back where we started from.
Dad says that we've covered over 700 miles, and Mum says she KNOWS that she has done over 600 locks!....

I've been to some great places while we have been away........Thanks to Rosie the Rottie, I learnt to play football in Berkhamsted, saved an ungrateful man from getting carried away by a kite in Hackney, and won a prize in a Dog Show at the Rickmansworth Festival.
Between times, ducks, geese and pigeons have learnt to be a bit more alert on the towpath in the mornings, but in Tewkesbury, the sheep didn't seem to be that bothered.........

I've met some great people.......(who could forget 'The Boys from Norway' that we met in a pub at Lowsonford)...in fact, most of the people I met seemed to be at pubs............there's a story in there somewhere.....

Anyway, 'back to base' means that it's also 'back to school', because, for over 6 months, Dad's not done any agility work, (except for carrying a tray of beer glasses down the pub steps), which means that he needs to get back in training.

For those that don't know, Dog Agility takes place in a big field which has got up to 20 numbered obstacles set out on it.
The dog owners walk around the field, taking note of the numbers of each obstacle..........then they each take it in turns to RUN around the field, as fast as they can, making sure that they go round the obstacles in the right order.
Just so us dogs don't get bored, we are allowed to run around with them, and sort of 'drop hints' as to which obstacle is next...............
The winner of the game is the owner who gets all of the obstacles in the right order, in the fastest time.

When I first started taking Dad to Agility, he was hopeless! He kept missing out numbers, taking shortcuts and generally not keeping his mind on the job. Even when I barked at him to show him the next obstacle, he would go the wrong way, or trip over me.....I began to think he would never get the hang of it.......
Well now he hasn't been to school for a while, I've a suspicion that he's forgotten everything I've ever taught him, so it might be back to the 'bottom class' for a while...................the shame of it!!

I'll let you know how he gets on....

xx Beau



'You MUST remember this!!!

'Where's he gone NOW!!'