Over the years we have had many articles about people and their dogs. We are adding to those contributions to the website with 2 more stories about the experience of competing in the Jersey Agility Festival. One piece is by the newest member of the Grande Daze Team and the other is from a long-standing, seasoned participant in agility work.
The Novices of the Team – Maryse and Roxane
“My agility baptism in Jersey with Roxane
These 4 days were intense and rich in emotion! Indeed the 15 courses, jumping and agility combined brought me an unparalleled experience, whether it concerns the memorization of routes, the management of the
stress and unforeseen situations, dog handling techniques, all in a competition situation!
For this premiere, I am proud of Roxane’s performances, even if I am aware that we have still many points to improve.”
Maryse
Our seasoned veterans – Denise and Fleur
“Fleur came into my life nearly 8 years ago. She was at deaths door when Anita and I found her at the local refuge; she was riddled with mites that were eating her from the inside. This tiny bundle had no hair and was so small she fitted into the palm of my hand. We dressed her in two dog coats and placed her beside a radiator, it was early December and very cold. Anita could see what the problem was and returned the next day with a pipette of medication at the princely cost of 9 euros. Fleur then spent Christmas with one of the helpers from the refuge before coming to live with my late husband and I. It was necessary for her to be given another pipette of medication 1 month after the first by which time her coat had started to sprout.
It took almost 2 years to get her back into reasonable health. Now Fleur has to have a special diabetic diet and occasionally has minor epileptic fits which can be quite frightening. The mites had damaged her pancreas.
We started agility to strengthen her muscles and for fun. She has taken to the discipline and enjoys it on her terms which can be unpredictable at the best of times. Her enjoyment of agility has been displayed very recently at 4 day Jersey Agility Festival where she went from winning a 1st,2nd, and 3rd places in the show to being completely dumbfounded as to what an agility course was. The only answer is ‘she’s a terrier’, but as my husband said, nobody else could love her as we do. Fleur and I regularly compete in agility competitions here in France which entails passing tests before you can enter shows. I hope we can keep going for a few more years before she retires and joins Pip on the sofa.” Denise
Read about the 4 day Jersey event JERSEY AGILITY FESTIVAL 8th – 11th September, 2022
grandedaze.com 