Hey Agility Nationals, Here Comes Shelby!

When Tami R. last updated the Daily Corgi about Shelby, we heard all about her rescue story, her family, and how she had done in her first year of agility. Shelby is now three years old and 2012 was a great year for her on all fronts, so Tami wanted to update Corgi Nation on how she was doing (and introduce us to new little one Bentley!)

“What I have learned about Shelby in the past year is that she is HIGH ENERGY. I knew that before, but I’m not sure I fully understood how busy she likes to be. We run some type of agility trial most weekends and that keeps her happy. But on those rare occasions when we are off and not trialing, I have to watch her like a hawk so she doesn’t get in trouble. Her favorite non-agility past time is de-stuffing all her toys. We will often find random stuffie arms, legs, squeakers, or stuffing all over the house when Shelby gets bored. She now has many stuffie “skins”, which are nothing but the remaining cloth of what used to be a toy with no stuffing.”

“Shelby runs in a few different agility venues, one of which is DOCNA (Dogs on Course North America). I love this venue for it’s open courses and laid-back demeanor – just a fun one to run. In February of 2012, Shelby earned her Merit of Excellence (MEX), and followed that up in September with her Bronze MEX and in December with her Silver MEX. These awards require the completion of a set number of qualifying runs for all the events at the Specialist level.”

“She also competed in the DOCNA National Championships in September and I’m proud to say she is the National Champion for her jump height and class (8” Specialist Select) for the North America Challenge, which is DOCNA’s signature event!” Here is her winning run:

“We began running USDAA (United States Dog Agility Association) in late 2011. I find USDAA to be extremely challenging and competitive, and Shelby has thrived in this venue. She progressed through “PI” and “PII” to the highest level in the Performance program which is called “PIII” in under a year. She has already earned her Performance Tournament Master, Performance Jumpers Master, and her Performance Relay Master Titles. She only needs 6 more qualifying runs in Gamble (1), Snooker (2), and Standard (3) to earn her Performance Dog Champion title.”

“USDAA’s “Tournament” events are unique to this venue and are their signature items. Grand Prix is like a very challenging Standard course and Performance Speed Jumping is a race built for speed. We had a particularly good day back in November of 2012 when Shelby took 1st place in both Performance Speed Jumping and Performance.” Here are both her winning runs:

“We have focused a lot of time on running AKC agility and during the last year, and Shelby has made some significant strides in this venue. At the start of 2012, she had finally progressed into the Masters level for all events (used to be called Excellent B). AKC tracks competitors “QQ’s” – which is when you have a qualifying run in both Standard and Jumpers on the same day. They base their big advanced agility awards on QQ’s (MACH/PACH), as well as breed rankings and National Championship qualifications.”

“Shelby earned her first QQ in January at the first show when she was in Master for both Standard and Jumpers. She got another QQ in March, and at this point, I started dreaming that she might be able to qualify for AKC Agility National Championships. (You needed 6 QQ’s and 400 speed points – seconds finished under standard course time – to qualify for the 2013 Championships.) But then we hit a skid — no QQ’s for over 5 months — until September. She got 2 QQ’s in one weekend and that broke it open for her.”  Here is QQ #3:

“She went on a real tear after this and we finished the year with 7 QQ’s and 667 speed points. She is the #12 Preferred Pembroke Welsh Corgi in the Nation for 2012 and … SHELBY QUALIFIED FOR AKC NATIONAL AGILITY CHAMPIONSHIPS!“

Here is QQ #5:

“I’m a just a little bit excited for her … I think about all those folks I run agility with who paid big $ for their dogs from exclusive breeding lines. And my little rescue girl is going to be running with them at Nationals in Tulsa, Oklahoma in March of 2013! What a great experience this will be for both of us. I absolutely can’t wait!”

“Like Shelby, Bentley is a 15 month old rescue that came to us through Arizona Cactus Corgi Rescue. Bentley’s previous owner passed away and as she came through the rescue, she had the build and temperament of a future agility Corgi. So Shelby is now teaching her the ropes. Bentley goes to all Shelby’s trials and cheers on her big sister. She is also planning to make the trip to Tulsa with us for AKC Championships, where no doubt she’ll be Shelby’s biggest cheerleader! And someday, when she gets to be old enough, Bentley can run agility, just like Shelby!”

And THAT, my friends, is a whole lotta Corgi Power!