Nutribyte South African Agility Championship 23

14/06/2023

We can’t thank all the sponsors enough for making this event so spectacular

09/06/2023

08/06/2023

How incredible are the goodie bags!

06/06/2023

30/05/2023

Second last week to enter the competition !

23/05/2023

16/05/2023

15/05/2023

02/05/2023

https://fb.watch/kgOQQ9cmcq/?mibextid=l2pjGR

26/04/2023

Thank you to these amazing sponsors

21/04/2023

Thank you to the incredible sponsors of the NUTRIBYTE KUSA SOUTH AFRICAN AGILITY CHAMPIONSHIP
more amazing sponsors to follow

18/04/2023

https://fb.watch/j_xryvDi01/?mibextid=DcJ9fc

15/06/2022

Ok so maybe I am ready to talk about Bob … a little

Our road has not been simple. For lots of reasons. I bought a dog that I did not get from Texas. It just went wrong.
I wanted a bitch and I got Bob nearly 3 years later. My life had changed dramatically and I was reeling from a divorce of the ugliest kind and was so emotionally and financially fragile.

And along came Bob.
Bob was born in a hotel room. Even his birth was a mini kind of unplanned event due to circumstance

I had a litter in the box and a 12 week import , it was all less than ideal.
From the start Bob decided I was his human , he bonded within the first few hours but like many imports he was rather rattled by the experience of it.

All went relatively smoothly until my happy best in show puppy was grabbed by an off lead dog at an agility show.
Bob ducked the lead and ran for his life. Unfortunately he ran towards the road and the agility handlers ran at him shouting to veer him off.

This incident has haunted Bob his entire life. Until this he was easy going with dogs and people.
This left him terrified of people trying to catch him … even today you will see me lie on the floor and wait for him to come to me , not me to him if he is off lead at the end of run.

And extremely reactive to other dogs.
It triggered something in him that required me to think out the box and then throw the box away to train him.
To this day off lead dogs and dogs too close at start and finish lines will trigger Bob.

From the beginning agility was his joy.
I honestly think it was his only way of getting one on one with me in a large pack and he made sure I saw the value in training him.

He thinks very strangely
We all thought he was seriously doff as he did the most bizarre things often.
Bernice was the only person who said “ that boy is really smart, just different and he is going to surprise you. “
Complete triggering and shut down were constant training companions in working with him.

And Bob , the surprises have not stopped coming.

In 2019 we had a fabulous SA Champs , we made the podium once and placed 4 th in smalls and around 7 th for AWC and gained a team and individual spot.

I cried the whole way home.
My life was a mess and there was no way going overseas was prudent or viable for me.

My clients and family and friends and even strangers were amazing and they got me to Finland.

And Bob triggered.
He triggered really really badly at the OneMind Dogs training centre before our first warm up round.

And I could not untrigger him.
Our warm up round he ran across 3 arenas at AWC to find Duffy. I nearly friggin died. !!

I landed up surrounded by bi***es coming out of heat , moving into heat and being on heat in the ring in front of and behind me … whats the point of a mat if they marshall in the same space leaving scent everywhere ( never understood that) !!!

So I battled my arse off in a very public arena to try and get my boy to run.
Ability he had in spades but his mind just was totally overwhelmed.

I felt terrible.
I felt I let my family and friends who had sacrificed to get me there down.
I felt I let the team down.
I felt like an utter as***le.

But …
I found a quiet equipment storage area and sat with a clicker and tried to get my boy back in his head.
We may have DQ ed but I attempted every course and got him running.
Not as I would have liked but we went out there against all odds prepared to make fools of ourselves and we got around.

Every course. But to this day
I refuse to even watch any of the videos

So I learnt so much at worlds.
I had time to sit and watch and absorb and think ….
But it did not ease the dreadful feeling that I let everyone down who believed me.

So home we came to be ravaged by 2 years of covid. But this was very very good for my Agility . I took my dogs back to basics with new knowledge. And during the lock down , no lockdown , back to lock down … it was a ridiculous crazy time in the world , I decided to do something for me.

I took my ex s wedding ring and decided to sell it to afford a OneMindDog premium subscription
I thought something that had brought so much pain and anguish perhaps can actually do something useful and put a smile on my dial.
And seeing his face in my head about me doing this also made me smile
… more than I should admit.

It was very symbolic to me.

I chose them as the amount of info they offered was very well rounded and more affordable than the separate courses offered by others.

Well that was an eye opener.

I was an agility ignoramus of note.

But I was also a sponge, passionate to learn and stubborn enough to fail time and time and get up and try another way again….

And my good dogs began to show flashes of brilliance. The brilliance was born in clearer understanding and a joy of the relationship growing with each of them.

And as we began to build a common language in the connection with each other , agility became an addiction of exuberant playfulness.

And our runs began to improve
Our results began to shift and I no longer cared … the results were nice but no longer the focus.

With this absolutely amazing past weekend , I finally feel that I justified the belief that my tribe had in me in 2019.

I rest easier feeling that I have put the feeling of letting you and myself and mostly my dog down, to bed for once and for all.

I am still dazed about what all the dogs achieved but Bobs achievement just is very very sweet given our journey.

Bob my little buddy , who defleas me every morning and at any other chance he gets …. Is my greatest teacher.
A teacher par excellence to make me a better human …

You have taught me patience.
You make me think laterally all the time.
You make me paranoid about loose dogs and silly people.
You have taught me to laugh at you and me.

And I am quite sure you have a whole lot more up your sleeves … or hidden in your furnishings and ear fringes to teach me yet.

I embrace the journey.

12/06/2022

Prize Giving! Thank you to all our sponsors 🤗