Welcome to the new Power Paws website! It has been many months in the building and will be months more before I have put in all the content I hope to have here in our new web home. I like the new clean look though I can’t promise I won’t tinker more with colors and art and the overall look as time goes by. A while back I decided I did not want to make any more blog posts to my old word press page, thinking of course that I was only weeks away from completion of this new abode, now I have no excuse for not sharing all the stories and thoughts that have been lurking around in my brain.

I usually think about subjects for articles or a blog post, or projects in the works while I am walking my dogs each day. The last walk of the day is usually just before dusk, the sun is getting ready to set and the dogs are full of themselves after lazing around all afternoon. I am usually quiet and thoughtful while the dogs tear around the fields, but after seeing a mountain lion on a recent evening stroll, I have started to announce my presence on some of the trails. I am my own personal “bear bell” now while on the tree lined path through the ravine. The dogs like my new noisy enthusiasm, though it doesn’t do much for my thoughtful evening stroll mentality. I am often thinking about Scoop and what our next training goal is and what my next few days of training should focus on with him.

I have also been thinking a lot lately how an agility handling system is a lot like a recipe. A great chef can substitute ingredients and come up with a different kind of creation without the whole thing flattening like a ruined soufflé, or curdling like sour milk. There are a lot of handlers tinkering with their systems right now. Some of it looks very impressive, some, maybe not so much.  I have many students wanting to experiment with blind crosses and all the sexy European moves. The most experienced of these “chefs” could probably add some spice to their system without risking the integrity of the creation.  Without the basic ingredients of a simple and proven agility system as the starting recipe,  the new moves may just look like sloppy handling and you are left with a dog questioning his every line. When done right, like Sylvia Trkmans run to win the EO in July,  the addition of the blind crosses and an incredible threadle move to a rear cross, made it all look like poetry and it was the ultimate in agility entertainment. I am not ready to do blind crosses yet, but must admit when a great agility handler puts all those ingredients together like Sylvia did, it is a tempting dish indeed. Watch Sylvia’s run on you tube.  (EO2012 – WINNER – Silvia & Bu)

I am still thinking in cowboy mode after the recent Bay Team Western Regional where our team of Ace, Sweep and Switch won the Team Tournament. Husband Jim was running Sweep and Geri Hernandez was running her barely two year old mini poodle Switch who never put a foot wrong in every team class! The event was great if I do say so myself, and I do since I was the trial chair:) Ace won the local Steeplechase Round one and the Regional GP round 1, and did some other great stuff too. Scoop’ was on a training team with his dog sister Motive and our team of Scoop/Motive/Bounce  managed to qualify and finish in 13th place out of 42 teams!  The photo is of Ace in the cool piece of art that was created just for this event. We all had lots of fun taking photos on the western “set”.

Ace, Western Regional GP, Rd 1, First place

I hope you will come back and visit the new site again soon, I promise to have more for you to read and watch and maybe even a bit of shopping too.

Nancy