Dear Kodie, as Anita refers to him, entered her life when he was 12 weeks old and she loved him from the moment she set eyes on him.
An English lady living in France bred Kodie by accident and couldn’t find a home for him or his litter siblings. For Anita this was a happy accident and she helped the lady find homes in the UK (pre Brexit) for the rest of the litter. The lady was loving towards her dogs but was, comically, naive about how to keep her adored pets; she remarked to Anita that she had put a pair of knickers on the bitch to stop Kodie’s dad’s ardour! Anita, as Grande Daze Rescue, organised the spaying and castration of the adult dogs in order for this kindly, innocent lady to continue to care for her 2 Collie dogs with the surety of no more ‘happy accidents’!
Finnegan, Anita’s champion agility dog and first French Agility dog, is now in his more mature years and has hung up his boots. As Finnegan has aged, Anita has found that the years have slowed down her own swift easy movements; her body doesn’t want to run any more. French Agility Competitions have many tests and rules different to those of the UK and Anita learned these with Finnegan.
Kodie has stepped into Finnegan’s role and he is fast and moves with swift grace around the obstacles. To continue to enjoy her passion for Agility, Anita has had to find a way to match Kodie’s speed and enthusiasm, she distance instructs him around the course. At times Kodie has been far ahead of Anita and if she hasn’t been quick enough to tell him the next task – he has found one! This is very different to the partnership with Finnegan who would always be at Anita’s side but old age and lack of speed let them down. Anita is concerned that at times she lets Kodie down; she is aware that with his speed the accuracy of her instructions is of the essence and the pair must be synchronised.
Kodie is now 6 years old and has been doing Agility for 2 years but 2 years competition experience has been lost due to Covid 19. The Agility Competition schedule has now returned to normal and the distance instruction work is improving. In fact, points are racking up. On Sunday, 17th July Anita was happy to report that the pair worked together superbly well and the feeling was fabulous!
“I love to watch all dogs and owners form this bond – it is pure magic! That’s why I do what I do.”, Anita Edwards, 2022. Read A WONDERFUL EXPERIENCE
You can read the results of the competition here The Agility Team Results – 17th July
grandedaze.com 