Practice and hours at the hairdressers

Before I was allowed to go compete I did have to do some practicing. Mum had set up most of the Trec obstacles we were going to encounter in the back garden. So with Benji's help I started practicing. He's our chief trainer whenever any of us are doing something in the back garden. He will woof encouragement, well when he is not chasing cars up and down the hedge or talking to other dogs.

On the first training session Mum was a bit bold and decided not to wear her back protector. I didn't think this was a good idea so started being silly and bouncing around, Mum quickly got the hint, dismounted sensibly put on her back protector and told human Grandpa to keep an eye on us out the window, which he did.

Here's some of the obstacles below. We started with the bending at walk, which was ok, my steering was going somewhat wonky at points because I wasn't always concentrating on what Mum was saying. We also practiced the S Bend, which is trickier than it looks when you are still working out where to put your feet which is a lot harder when you are carrying a human. The grey box is our mounting block, I tend to walk around it a couple of times before I stand still, Mum doesn't seem to mind, she's very patient but does insist I stand still while she gets on, which I try very hard to do.

By day two (and my last day of practicing) I could trot the Bend poles and walk through the S Bend without touching it. mum was super impressed. 

We also had to do a jump, we have been walking over it, but as Mum got more confident and I had had a couple of goes we even tried trotting. I even jumped it properly on day two of training - but that's quite hard with a human on, I think I prefer to walk it. Mum says as long as I don't stop she doesn't mind what I do. 

After all the training I then had to go to the hairdressers. Mum said there was no way she was taking me out in public looking like a mobile mud pony, with my tail dragging on the floor. This was me before my 2 hour session with Mum as hairdresser. 

It's a work of art my muddy tail. 

This was me after, it was dark by the time Mum finished, so she took pictures the morning of the competition. We were all starving hungry by the time she had finished combing out my mane and tail, and brushing the mud of my tummy - which tickled. 

I think I scrubbed up ok, I hope I enjoy this competition stuff as much as Cyril and Woody do, it's all quite scary when you have only been carrying a human for 5 weeks.