HiTrails Activities

Agility

I started working with Tess and Marti in agility during June of 2004, Then added Tripper in July. We trained outdoors in a horse back riding ring with the Pioneer Valley Kennel Club program. Weather, and the smells of fox and other wildlife sometimes made training a challenge!

During the spring of '05, Tripper and I journeyed down to Chicopee for indoor classes and trained there through the summer - when our instructor decided to "take a vacation from teaching." Tripper and I picked up classes in January of '06 with the Hilltown Hounds group in Cummington, where we trained in a very large [and extremely cold] unheated horse arena. After a very hard winter and freezing our bumbs off, we decided to look for a heated facility!

Now we travel to Brattleboro, VT 2 nights a week, where Tripper, Tess, Skylar - and soon Rosie - all train with Elise Pathrath and her excellent staff in a wonderful heated indoor facility at BreezeThru Agility Center.

In the summer of 2006, Tripper and I participated in our very first AKC trials! This showed us that we still have lots of work to do - but was a wonderful experience for us both. In even the most difficult of circumstances, Tripper made it through every course from beginning to end - when many more experienced dogs refused to run due to extreme heat! Although we did not Q, we finished together and had a great time doing it!

"The real joy is in the privilege and ability to step to the start line with your dog by your side, not in the crossing of the finish line victorious over others." Author: Gail Storm

Photos are purchased and owned - just not scanned in yet ;-)	Agility I started working with Tess and Marti in agility during June of 2004, Then added Tripper in July. We trained outdoors in a horse back riding ring with the Pioneer Valley Kennel Club program. Weather, and the smells of fox and other wildlife sometimes made training a challenge! During the spring of '05, Tripper and I journeyed down to Chicopee for indoor classes and trained there through the summer - when our instructor decided to "take a vacation from teaching." Tripper and I picked up classes in January of '06 with the Hilltown Hounds group in Cummington, where we trained in a very large [and extremely cold] unheated horse arena. After a very hard winter and freezing our bumbs off, we decided to look for a heated facility! Now we travel to Brattleboro, VT 2 nights a week, where Tripper, Tess, Skylar - and soon Rosie - all train with Elise Pathrath and her excellent staff in a wonderful heated indoor facility at BreezeThru Agility Center. In the summer of 2006, Tripper and I participated in our very first AKC trials! This showed us that we still have lots of work to do - but was a wonderful experience for us both. In even the most difficult of circumstances, Tripper made it through every course from beginning to end - when many more experienced dogs refused to run due to extreme heat! Although we did not Q, we finished together and had a great time doing it! age this photo - 4 years old @ American Spaniel Club Cocker Spaniel Nationals © Matt Allison, July, 2006 - all rights reserved

Tracking group shot - 10-26-03 PVKC Workshop Tracking with PVKC on a better day!	Tracking Crysta, Tripper, and Marti have all had some level of instruction and work in Tracking, but Crysta is my main Tracking dog. She has been involved in Tracking - on and off between litters -since her first workshop in October 2001. She absolutely LOVES the sport and would like to do more of it than I have time for. We track mainly with the Pioneer Valley Kennel Club, where I am a member of the Tracking Group. Our Group goes out almost every week for a half-day session of tracking, working together to learn more and improve skills. Crysta and Me in the fog - from the left top photo!

	Obedience & Rally-O I began working Max in Obedience way back in 2000 with PVKC. In 2001 I added Crysta to the training classes. I now work all of my finished Champions periodically in our Novice drop-in classes. I am not nearly as diligent about this as I probably should be! When I first saw Rally-O at the Field Spaniel National show in 2005, I decided to start competing at that level of Obedience work as I expected I [the handler] might be more successful since I don't train as regularly as I should in this activity. I took Skylar to a full day seminal given by Tibby Chase and decided that this was a wonderful way to work with my dogs. Since that time I have continued to train in the standard Novice drop-in classes and work on Rally at home in the yard due to time constraints and wanting to train 4 dogs for this event. Crysta first competed at the July 2006 Cocker Spaniel Nationals, and received a qualifying score and first leg toward her title. I then entered her in the PVKC show and trial in August 2006 where she picked up her second leg. Then we waited to try for her finishing leg and Title at the ASC Flushing Spaniel show in King of Prussia, PA this January 2007. At that show, Crysta finished her RN title with a score of 89 and a 4th place. Tess went into the ring for the first time and Q'd with a score of 83 and a 5th place. Tripper - being a boy - scraped by by the skin of his teeth with a score of 73 and his first Q as well. So we had 3 entries and 3 Q's at this trial. I am very pleased with how these kids are doing and plan to continue working them more in the future - with a goal of better attention and higher scores. Tripper - mom Crysta - Tess . . . Qualifying @ ASC © Ashbey Photo, 5 January, 2006 [to be published when it arrives] - all rights reserved

More to come soon ;-)	Just Playin' Around

Agility

age this photo - 4 years old @ American Spaniel Club Cocker Spaniel Nationals

© Matt Allison, July, 2006 - all rights reserved

Tracking

Obedience & Rally-O

Tripper - mom Crysta - Tess . . . Qualifying @ ASC

© Ashbey Photo, 5 January, 2006 [to be published when it arrives] - all rights reserved

© Matt Allison, July, 2006
- all rights reserved

© Ashbey Photo, 5 January, 2006 [to be published when it arrives]
- all rights reserved