 Photo by M Gurney 2012 Well you can't ask for a more successful weekend than we had on Sunday! All three dogs were entered in Rally Novice and all three successfully gained their final pass for their titles! First up was Jedi, who worked his rather fluffy butt off in the ring and scored a 98/100. Unfortunately his time was a little slow due to needing to have a scratch of his muzzle at the first station! But once he relieved his itch, I could barely fault him! Ahsoka was next, who absolutely shocked me by gaining the same score as Jedi! She even beat him and came 5th in the ring based on time! I'm very proud of my girl and although not as 'showy' as Jedi, she did a great job. But the star of the day was Mr Revan who gained his first ever title!!!!!! He was very distracted in the ring and scored 93/100, but all that doesn't matter. I am just so proud that after only 10 months he has transformed from a nervous, abused little boy to a confident rock star! I can't wait to see what the future holds for this boy and I hope this will be the first of many titles he gains this year. Also congratulations to our friend, Shell Gurney of MG Studios and her Siberian Husky, Zero who gained his first Rally Novice pass on the weekend! Well done!
The dogs had another great day at the Sydney Royal Easter Show for the Easter Variety Flyball Competition. For a bit of a change, Ahsoka and Jedi were on separate teams, which meant I got a chance to run Ahsoka for once! Both of their teams were successful at gaining 3rd place in their respective divisions (Ahsoka - Division 3, Jedi - Division 4). Both dogs ran perfectly the entire day. Revan also had a chance to practice during beginner's training throughout the day and he made significant progress, doing full runs in a rather distracting environment. I am very proud of Rev and am looking forward to his racing debut later this year.
There's no better way to spend Good Friday than at the Sydney Royal Easter Show Flyball! Jedi and Ahsoka were competing in a team together with their friends, Zero the Siberian Husky, Max the Tibetan Terrier, Kyha the Australian Kelpie x Border Collie and Misty the Minature Poodle. We had a fantastic day and all the dogs ran beautifully despite the heat! For a laugh, we decided to run the Spitz combination of Zero, Ahsoka and Jedi with an honorary spitz, Kyha or Max! We caught the fun on video... Click here. Revan also had a practice during the lunch break and ran perfect runs the entire session despite some challenging distractions! He's certainly making progress! Overall we came 3rd and can't wait to do it all again next weekend!
It was time for us to attend our second Rally-O trial and we were lucky enough to continue our quallie-streak! Jedi again was the star, with a score of 98/100 and 3rd place! Ahsoka also quallified with an amusing 87/100, where she decided to add her own personal touch to one particular station in an attempt to earn extra points for artistic merit! Revan put in a beautiful performance, but his score unfortunately doesn't represent how nicely he worked! Let's just say his 82/100 can be blamed on his handler! It will be a while before we compete again in Rally-O, but I am looking forward to putting some Rally-O titles on the crew!
Since Jedi and I attended our first Rally-O workshop in 2009, I have been hanging out for Rally to become an official ANKC-recognised sport. At the end of 2011, it was finally confirmed that Rally-O trials were to commence in 2012 and so I was very keen to enter the first Rally trial in Australia! On Saturday night, the dogs and I attended the Manly & District Kennel and Dog Training Club. Jedi, Ahsoka and Revan were all entered making it Rev's first ANKC competition in any dog sport. There were 201 dogs entered, with four rings going (all at Novice level, obviously!). To make the night more interesting, Rev, Jedi and Ahsoka were all in separate rings, which meant I got to compete in three different courses! The atmosphere was great, with people clapping and cheering others on and the judges were very supportive, helping people to understand where they had gone wrong. The presentation was very long, with the vast majority of the competitors qualifying.Among those to qualify were Jedi, Ahsoka and Revan making it three for three for the Pawformance team and a great start to the year! Jedi scored 96/100, losing most marks due to a 're-do' of an exercise. He worked beautifully otherwise and placed 5th in his ring. Ahsoka scored 95/100 and placed 4th. She had a great time in the ring and loves to have the verbal feedback I can give her in the ring. Revan scored 83/100, having to repeat two exercises. This was Revan's first trial in any dog sport and he did a great job. His heelwork was beautiful and he ignored all the distractions around the ring. The poor boy managed to pass despite having not been trained in left 360 turns, left 270 turns and right finishes prior to an hour before we went into the ring! What a trooper! We are very much looking forward to our next Rally-O trial at Hills District Kennel and Training Club later this month.
 Photo by N Boyd 2011 After a big year, Jedi was rewarded for his efforts at the Hills District Kennel and Training Club presentation for Obedience achievements. Jedi received a gold medal for his title in Companion Dog (CD) Obedience, with his three scores putting him in the highest category. What came next was a huge shock for me! Jedi was also awarded the Dianne Atkins Trophy for the Highest Achievement in Canine Competition! This award is given to the dog who gained the most titles in a variety of canine sports in the year. In 2011, Jedi achieved his Companion Dog Obedience Title, Flyball Dog Excellent Title, Flyball Dog Champion Title, Australian Flyball Champion Title, Neutered Champion Title and Jumping Dog Title. What a busy boy! I am very proud of him and hopefully we can continue this level of success in 2012 for all the Pawformance Team!
 Photo by N Boyd 2010 Jedi and Ahsoka have officially made their TV debut, featuring in a commercial for Red Balloon and the Lifestyle Channel for their Wacky Christmas Photo Competition. Click here to watch the commercial!
 Photo by N Boyd 2011 What an evening! Jedi, Ahsoka and I attended the Hills District Kennel & Training Club in Castle Hill this evening and what a night it was! First up, Jedi was entered in Neutered Sweepstakes where he came 2nd. Jedi later picked up Best Neuter in Group. Ahsoka had her third show in Neutered class and came away with Best Neuter in Group as well! She showed beautifully tonight and I am so proud of her!
 Photo by N Boyd 2011 Yesterday, Manny went to his new forever home in the Hunter Valley, NSW where he will be absolutely spoiled for the rest of his days!
We will miss the old man here at Pawformance, but know that he will be living the life of luxury, getting lots of food, cuddles and pats! What more could a Manny-Moo want?!
We wish Manny and his new owner all the best for their future together.
 Photo by M Gurney 2011 What a weekend! It was jam-packed and full of success! Saturday morning, we attended the Children's Cancer Charity Championship Show where both Jedi and Ahsoka were awarded Best Neuter of Breed in their respective rings. This was Ahsoka's first show as a Neuter and she thoroughly enjoyed being back in the ring! Later that afternoon, we trekked over to the GSD rings at Erskine Park for the Dogs NSW Agility Committee Triple Jumping Fundraising Trial! Both Jedi and Ahsoka were entered. My goal for this trial was to get some good times from the dogs and not 'play it safe' for the sake of a quallie. Throughout the night, Jedi put in 110% and really ran his heart out! I was thrilled with his effort! His first run was beautiful! He flew through the course and cleared the run, giving him the last Quallie needed for his Novice Jumping title! To top it off, he came 2nd over all heights by only 0.2 seconds! The rest of Jedi's runs for the night were nice and fast, however he gained one fault in each run. Ahsoka failed to quallie all night, however she put in a valiant effort and really showed that she has loads of potential! Today we returned for the Campbelltown & District Kennel Club Championship Show, where Ahsoka was awarded Best Neuter of Breed and Jedi was awarded Best Neuter in Group under Mrs J Mayne (NSW). The dogs are now all having a well-earned rest!
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