Yesterday M and I went to our first agility competition. It was loads of fun. Our agility trainer had organized it to raise money for VOCAL (Voices of Chance Animal League). Its mission is to improve the lives of dogs without a voice. They provide free fencing, shelter, and medical resources for dogs that are forced to live their lives at the end of a chain. We came totally prepared, ahum, and showed up with one small bag with all my necessities: yummies and water. This was in contrast to others who seemed to have hauled their entire house to the event. Maybe they like to lift weights. Fancy crates, chairs, and even tents showed up on the sidelines.
During my run, I had to conquer 20 obstacles. Since M had never watched or participated in an agility event, I took charge as soon as she unhooked my leash. I started with a Mach 2+ victory lap. I got a lotta of applause for that one. Why save the best for last, right? Still, time was ticking and we had only 90 seconds to complete the whole thing. Not a problem for me but M is always lagging behind, so I knew I had to come up with something good. Instead of jumping over obstacles in numerical order, I just skipped the first obstacle, the tire. The second obstacle was the weave. To save even more time I pretzeled around only 4 of the 6 poles. Onwards to number three: a jump. From there I went straight to number eight, the A-frame. I ran that thing twice; it’s too much fun to only run once. At some point, after more jumps and the boardwalk, and of course thanks to my pawbulous ingenuity, we made it to number 20. I didn’t have time for another victory run, so my instinct to do that first was a good one.
There was a raffle at the end of the event. I saw some great dog toys displayed that I would have liked to get my paws on. Unfortunately, I didn’t win them. Maybe next time. All in all, it was a grand day. I made a lotta new fur-iends and friends and got hugs from many people. I can’t wait to go again.
Always listen to your gut,
Benji
P.S. Tomorrow we are expecting a furry important package by super express delivery. Stay tuned.
Life of Benji 
Benji, you can proudly say with old blue eyes (Frank Sinatra), “I did it my way.” And the A-Frame was Lexi’s favorite, too. When I would get lost and try to figure out what was next, Lexi would go over to the A-Frame and run it until she saw me signal her to where we were supposed to go. 🙂 She liked to run them at the dog park, too!
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WOL, I certainly like to do it my way. The A-frame is high and dry, my favorite perspective. Benji
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you are the bestest agility pro of the whole world… and I love your festive outfit… green and red is super super fabulous for christmouse!
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Thanks my fur-iend. Wishing you a pawbulous Christmouse! Benji
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Sounds like the perfect way to compete congrats.
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It is, no pressure, just fun, fun, fun! The ZAB team
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The sport does not have to be boring, your way of competing is very fun 🙂
For me you will always be a winner … and I am sure that, among the public, many thought the same, you deserved a nice toy … maybe on the next occasion.
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I got a new toy, a penguin soon thereafter but it is in the hospital at the moment… White stuff came out of his neck, it was like it was snowing. Not sure how that happened. Maybe because it is Christmas soon. Benji.
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Ohhh! a Christmas penguin …
I think your career as a surgeon is in its lowest hours 🙂
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I may have to practice some more. Benji
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You did it your way, Benji! You are like the Frank Sinatra of dogs. Well done!
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The Frank Sinatra of dogs, I like that! It’s all about having fun. And yummies but that goes without saying. 0 yummies = 0 fun. Benji.
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I’ve watched these agility events. Sounds like you had a great time!
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It’s quite addictive. At first M had to run a lot too as we were both learning. Now it’s mostly me who runs. Benji
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