wow – how could I have let a month go by? I do have several 2×2 sessions left to post, but those will take some remembering and some video editing. So – where have we been?
After the last few 2×2 sessions (the ones I haven’t yet posted), Gitta FINALLY came into heat at 15 month old. I decided to give her the time off. We don’t usually do the whole heat thing and I didn’t want to wonder if a bad session was because of a misstep on my part – or because her head wasn’t on straight. Just a few days later, my OB put me on ‘light activity’ for a few weeks. Tugging with a 60 lb rottweiler does not fall into ‘light activity’ – so Gitta and I took a break together. Don’t worry – all is fine and I’ve since been cleared to go back to my usual routines. After that came the rain 
But so much more has happened in the meantime in our dog world.
Sammie got invited to the Agility Invitational again, which was exciting. She finished the qualification year in 6th, so we weren’t sure she’d make it. It’s getting harder and harder to make it in with the show schedule we keep (no travel – lots of working weekends), not to mention time off for injury (a recurring event with Sammie). We promptly accepted. She hadn’t had a show since June, and had put on a little weight in her semi-retirement. We took it easy and started some training at 16″. She looked horrible. Then she yelped (screamed is more like it) when we were petting her on multiple occasions. Xrays showed some bridging of the vertebrae (apparently common in older dogs) and conclusively ended her agility career. In a way it’s almost a relief. That dog was all heart and brutal speed. She’d look a little gimpy – then come back with a win against world class competitors. We could have easily retired her a few years ago (she’s 9.5 now – even at 7 she was old for a rottie); before she made the challenge round, and before she made the finals at the invitational. She always seemed to have more left in her and loved running agility. Now we don’t have to wonder if we’re cutting her short. So much of Sammie’s career happened in the pre-blogging years, so look for some retro posts as we commemorate an amazing career.
In lighter, happier news; something happened to me that was totally unexpected (to me) but apparently completely predictable. I fell in love with Raph. When Esteban got Lexi – I made it clear that having two puppies was his problem to deal with. I had Gitta and I love her to death. So much fun to train. But Raph is a sweetie. I found myself commenting on how handsome and sweet he is every time I took the dogs out. I woke up this weekend and told Esteban I wanted to take him. It was the 2×2 work that did it. When I told our agility friends more than one (including Raph’s breeder!) said they knew that was coming when they watched our 2×2 videos. So apparently everyone knew but me and Esteban 
So now, Sammie (9.5 yrs) is completely retired. Gypsy (almost 9 yrs) is available for anyone to run (my Dad often runs her and I fill in sometimes). Esteban has Rook (7yrs) as his boss dog and Lexi (3.5 mo) as the up and coming puppy. I’ll be moving Denver (almost 9 yrs) to preferred in the spring. And I’ll be training Raph (18 mo) and Gitta (16 mo).
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