# UKC Premier; Dock Diving and brags!



## DJEtzel (Feb 11, 2010)

Hey guys! What an exhausting three days! I could have posted this in pictures or sports, but really wanted to brag on the boys (especially Frag!) so I just decided to post here!

We are finally done with UKC Premier showing. We had a fantastic time. Got sunburnt, met a handful of internet friends, ate a lot of fast food, and got very wet. The result? One new title, two new personal best jumps, and three happy, tired dogs! 

Frag ran two lure courses, one of which earned him his first ever title (other than the CGC) - his CA! And his second course earned a qualifying leg towards his CAX. It is slightly amusing and slightly annoying waiting to course with him; as do most of the dogs while waiting, he is just an amped up, screaming mess the entire time. But at least he didn't drag me to the ground like I saw another GSD do to his owner, while waiting the hour to course during a busy afternoon yesterday. He may have barked/screamed himself hoarse at one point and was absolutely foaming at the mouth; but it made for a great run! 

We were there from beginning to end Thursday and Friday jumping and swimming while shopping/vending when we had time. Each boy jumped twice over the three days; Sir and Recon Thursday, all three Friday, and Frag today. During the first two jumps my boyfriend held Sir and Recon for me on the dock, and Sir jumped his personal best of 9' 6" (I think). Recon was consistently jumping to match his personal best of 9' 8" until yesterday afternoon- without Brian holding him, he drove much better and jumped 13' 2"! I was so proud, fantastic personal best for a 40lb 10 month old pup! He had a lot of "relatives" out there jumping and made them all proud, including his breeder and ME! Frag was very tired after coursing yesterday and was barely jumping 13' - his personal best is 16' 7"... I was bummed, but today a friend rode with me to skip parking fees and help me out on the dock... Being held back by someone he likes (my co-worker) made a world of difference! She was able to amp him up and hold him long enough to get into it and drive even more, and he jumped 16' 3" this afternoon in the rain! Closest he's come since his first competition to jumping his personal best! So I was very elated and proud of him, and he's finally back to jumping in "his" division. Recon now has two legs towards his Novice title and one towards his Junior title. Sir has two towards his Junior title but will probably be jumping out of that division soon. Frag has one towards his Junior and two towards his senior. We'll be lucky to title by the end of the year at this rate! lol

And my last ramble is a brag on Frag! As some of you know, in the past we battled with some aggression issues likely stemming from adolescents/poor nerves and allergies combined. He would growl at people trying to pet him or hovering over him while he was leashed, specifically. For the last almost two years now we've had it under control and have come a long way, including getting our CGC! He's been measured by judges, squeezed by the disabled, xrayed, chiro'd, etc. and has been doing marvelously and he made me _extremely_ happy out there this weekend. Words can't describe just how happy, but numerous people who know him from the internet and IRL were commenting on how awesome he was. He was pronged for the event to keep control since we were coursing and dock diving and he could easily bring me to my knees if he wanted, so he was great on leash already, met a few dogs/puppies of people I knew, crated fantastically. But the best parts were Saturday. A little boy came up and asked if he could pet Frag and I knew Frag was in the mood to meet some people; I OK'd it and of course kept a close eye. I have been doing nothing but watching this dog and setting him up to succeed for the last year and he hasn't been able to meet too many non - dog people. Kid loved him, pet him a few times and walked away. Frag showed no calming signs, no whale eyes, no worries whatsoever. My co-worker (trainer who has followed Frag's progress) was elated with me. Then, we went to watch some lure coursing and were approached by a woman who asked if she could get some measurements from Frag for some SAR equipment her friend was making as a general size for GSDs- I said sure hesitantly and asked if I could measure most of them as he wasn't comfortable having strangers grabbing on him and such.. Well the next part astounded me. Co-worker still helping/supervising, I had started measuring but because we were so close to the lure coursing he was screaming and wouldn't hold a stay for me, so I ended up holding him WITH my co-worker, while stranger took NINE measurements around his face, butt, chest, etc. Not once did Mr. Perfect look like he was getting uncomfortable with it. I have a feeling the complete "OK" feeling from the woman who was very used to dogs and aloof dogs just set the mood perfectly along with my confidence to go with it. The distractions probably helped, too.. No growls, no backing up, no whale eyes... My co-worker was literally stunned and all we could say was that this would never be possible 2 years ago, or even a year ago to this degree! Pulled out my bait bag afterwards and gave him two handfuls of treats, followed by a handful of treats from said woman. Just... makes my heart melt. He is finally becoming the dog I always wanted and he is PERFECT. He is about as close to bombproof as I will probably ever get with a dog. 

So if you've made it this far, thank you! You are now rewarded with pictures! I have TOOOOONS, so I am going to post my favorites/the best here, and you can always check out the links below to my flickr album for sequences, etc. I only got a few shots of Recon from the photographer on site via facebook and some of Sir during warm ups, but will be buying the digital copies of more jumps from the photographer once he uploads them. 

Nash! The UAD Mascot was on site Thurs/Friday having fun with everyone.

DSC_3344 by DJetzel, on Flickr

Copyright UKC

reconpremier2 by DJetzel, on Flickr

Copyright UKC 

reconpremier3 by DJetzel, on Flickr


DSC_3359 by DJetzel, on Flickr

Before getting amped up watching the other dogs, Sir wasn't too sure about THIS dock... And the water was cold. 

DSC_3364 by DJetzel, on Flickr

So he laid down and acted like I beat him. He's never refused a jump like this before!

DSC_3367 by DJetzel, on Flickr


DSC_3368 by DJetzel, on Flickr

Then he decided it was ok... 

DSC_3379 by DJetzel, on Flickr

How is this pleasant, though? 

DSC_3380 by DJetzel, on Flickr

Silly ears.

DSC_3382 by DJetzel, on Flickr

Nikon!

DSC_3395 by DJetzel, on Flickr

Labradoodle

DSC_3401 by DJetzel, on Flickr



Lots of air on this jump!

DSC_3413 by DJetzel, on Flickr


DSC_3414 by DJetzel, on Flickr

Pimg!

DSC_3419 by DJetzel, on Flickr


DSC_3420 by DJetzel, on Flickr



DSC_3422 by DJetzel, on Flickr

Cash; awesome Dutchie... top in the US for conformation, I believe?

DSC_3448 by DJetzel, on Flickr

Everyone gets vocal while waiting their turn to jump

DSC_3457 by DJetzel, on Flickr

Colt; 7 month old Dutchie!

DSC_3460 by DJetzel, on Flickr


DSC_3461 by DJetzel, on Flickr


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## DJEtzel (Feb 11, 2010)

American Eskimo Dog? I'm not sure what this was... 

DSC_3464 by DJetzel, on Flickr


DSC_3471 by DJetzel, on Flickr

Brian got to hold one, though!

DSC_3472 by DJetzel, on Flickr

He got to hold Colt, too. I was a little jealous. 

DSC_3473 by DJetzel, on Flickr

Cash was jumping 24-25' all weekend!

DSC_3479 by DJetzel, on Flickr


DSC_3480 by DJetzel, on Flickr


DSC_3488 by DJetzel, on Flickr

Lol Ears

DSC_3489 by DJetzel, on Flickr

Recon's uncle Blurr!

DSC_3498 by DJetzel, on Flickr


DSC_3499 by DJetzel, on Flickr

Spirit! Honorary "Red Dog"

DSC_3515 by DJetzel, on Flickr

Look at that take off footing!

DSC_3517 by DJetzel, on Flickr


DSC_3518 by DJetzel, on Flickr


DSC_3522 by DJetzel, on Flickr

Cash, again!

DSC_3527 by DJetzel, on Flickr

A cute spectator!

DSC_3530 by DJetzel, on Flickr

Toller! Lots of them out there this weekend!

DSC_3536 by DJetzel, on Flickr


DSC_3537 by DJetzel, on Flickr

Blurr coming in for a landing

DSC_3540 by DJetzel, on Flickr

Ears!

DSC_3547 by DJetzel, on Flickr

And an Alaskan Klee Kai for good measure! This little dude was hilarious and had his eye on me while shopping; gorgeous!

DSC_3561 by DJetzel, on Flickr

Thank you for looking!


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## Shade (Feb 20, 2012)

Wow, fantastic photos!!  Sounds like a super awesome day!


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## DJEtzel (Feb 11, 2010)

Thank you! I can't edit my post anymore, but I realized because I copied this from another forum where I posted it, I have words like "today" in there... lol. Which should really be Saturday.


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## wildo (Jul 27, 2006)

Way to go on the jumps! A new personal best, and jumps close to- awesome! I was surprised at just how draining the coursing was and how it affected jump lengths. It was nice to meet you- and thanks again for the photos! 

(Oh- and I'm glad you got a photo of Nash. I'm surprised at how much Jinks looks like him!)


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## DJEtzel (Feb 11, 2010)

wildo said:


> Way to go on the jumps! A new personal best, and jumps close to- awesome! I was surprised at just how draining the coursing was and how it affected jump lengths. It was nice to meet you- and thanks again for the photos!
> 
> (Oh- and I'm glad you got a photo of Nash. I'm surprised at how much Jinks looks like him!)


Thanks! Yes, I coursed Frag on Friday before his first jump and I think he MIGHT have jumped like 13' 6"... lol. But unfortunately with the other dogs jumping we had no other time to course! 

It was definitely great meeting you, and yes, Jinks _does_ look a lot like Nash! I was really surprised that they just let him wander around the way they do, but he seemed pretty polite and bombproof to me.


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## wildo (Jul 27, 2006)

DJEtzel said:


> I was really surprised that they just let him wander around the way they do, but he seemed pretty polite and bombproof to me.


I was super shocked by that as well, but agree on the bombproof part. I actually watched another dog very aggressively lung at Nash, and he had no real reaction. Just strutted away. Pretty amazing actually...


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## DJEtzel (Feb 11, 2010)

wildo said:


> I was super shocked by that as well, but agree on the bombproof part. I actually watched another dog very aggressively lung at Nash, and he had no real reaction. Just strutted away. Pretty amazing actually...


Yeah, really interesting. I wonder what his breeding is and how old he is. haha.


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## LifeofRiley (Oct 20, 2011)

@DJEtzel - Great photos! Thanks for sharing. Looks like everyone had fun. I love the photos (and story) of Sir. Very funny.

And, the photos of the dog named Spirit are AMAZING! How long was that jump? Also, what does "Honorary Red Dog" mean?

@Wildo, I think you must win the contest for actually having met the most forum members in person : )

Your dogs look great! Pimg looks like she can jump! And, the lure coursing videos were a lot of fun to watch.


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## arycrest (Feb 28, 2006)

AWESOME ... CONGRATS ON EVERYTHING!!!

Those pictures are really great ... amazing shots!!!


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## Liesje (Mar 4, 2007)

It was nice seeing you and your dogs! I wish I could have hung out more but I feel like 80% of my time was spent dashing between dock diving and lure coursing.

I have some pics of Frag and Sir I'll get up eventually.


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## DJEtzel (Feb 11, 2010)

Thank you guys! 

@LifeofRiley, I think Spirit was jumping in the 24' range! We call him an honorary Red Dog because he is the only dog in the family that isn't a "Red Dog" - From Red Dog Kennels/Border Collies. All of the rest of the dogs handled and/or owned by his owners are Red Dogs.  My Border Collie is a Red Dog, as well.


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## DJEtzel (Feb 11, 2010)

Liesje said:


> It was nice seeing you and your dogs! I wish I could have hung out more but I feel like 80% of my time was spent dashing between dock diving and lure coursing.
> 
> I have some pics of Frag and Sir I'll get up eventually.


Ooooh! I know, haha you were all over the place and then weren't feeling too well, no worries! I didn't have half as much stuff going on and I was stressed and worried about making it to things on time half of the time! 

I'm very excited for Frag pictures, because I wasn't able to get any! I was going to wait for Rog (or is it Rob? I always forget) to upload pictures from the event to smug mug and hope that there were some of Frag in there.


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## Liesje (Mar 4, 2007)

Oh yeah do you know that guy's web site? You mean the big dude with the UAD hat?


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## DJEtzel (Feb 11, 2010)

Liesje said:


> Oh yeah do you know that guy's web site? You mean the big dude with the UAD hat?


Yes! At the right moment

He's got some Premier pictures up now, too! 

eta; He got some awesome shots of Recon, but holy crap why does my arm always have to look like I'm dancing and my mouth open?


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## NancyJ (Jun 15, 2003)

Wow looks like an absolutely great day of fun!


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## wildo (Jul 27, 2006)

LifeofRiley said:


> @Wildo, I think you must win the contest for actually having met the most forum members in person : )


Ha! I guess I have met quite a few- I can count 8 people off the top of my head. And some of them have become very good friends indeed! I still have a short list of a couple people I want to meet in person but haven't yet...


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## Cassidy's Mom (Mar 30, 2003)

Big congrats for all your hard work with Frag paying off! Awesome pics too - I love Sir's dock diving form. :rofl: What a great event, with so many fun activities all at the same place.


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## Cassidy's Mom (Mar 30, 2003)

LifeofRiley said:


> @Wildo, I think you must win the contest for actually having met the most forum members in person : )


Actually, I think that might be me.  I added it up once and if I remember correctly the total was 23, counting couples as one forum member. Part of that is because I've been a member here for a long time, and also because we've had a few Bay Area GS.com meets over the years.


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

Great weekend/great photo's! I almost went again Saturday after training, but it was raining. 
Congrats on the titles to all! 
The Premier should be very proud of the turnout of competitors, vendors, celebs and everyone else that came out. I hope they keep it in the Zoo from now on.

Nash has been in that atmosphere his whole life, though I'd hate to see the day some aggressive dog decided to go off on him, even if he is neutral. He is a great representation to his breeding for sure.


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## Liesje (Mar 4, 2007)

They should Jane. I think they moved it one year because the expo building was being remodeled. There is also Gateway Nationals in St Louis.


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## LifeofRiley (Oct 20, 2011)

@DJEtzel... thanks for the clarification re: Spirit's Honorary "Red Dog" title. I still can't get over the picture of that dog in the air. If you put a cape on him, it would be a great "Super Dog" photo.

@Cassidy'sMom... Wow, you definitely win  Sorry Wildo... . Fun!


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## DJEtzel (Feb 11, 2010)

Cassidy's Mom said:


> Big congrats for all your hard work with Frag paying off! Awesome pics too - I love Sir's dock diving form. :rofl: What a great event, with so many fun activities all at the same place.


Thank you! Haha yes Sir is definitely there for comic relief above all else. 



onyx'girl said:


> Great weekend/great photo's! I almost went again Saturday after training, but it was raining.
> Congrats on the titles to all!
> The Premier should be very proud of the turnout of competitors, vendors, celebs and everyone else that came out. I hope they keep it in the Zoo from now on.
> 
> Nash has been in that atmosphere his whole life, though I'd hate to see the day some aggressive dog decided to go off on him, even if he is neutral. He is a great representation to his breeding for sure.


Yeah, it was pretty nasty Saturday and I was very wet. lol. I sure hope they keep the event here, though I'm going to be sad if we ever move and can't make it back for it!

I figured he had been; makes me wonder how easily it would be to raise a dog _that _bombproof... I couldn't imagine the anxiety I would have over letting my dog wander around like that in such an environment! :crazy:



LifeofRiley said:


> @DJEtzel... thanks for the clarification re: Spirit's Honorary "Red Dog" title. I still can't get over the picture of that dog in the air. If you put a cape on him, it would be a great "Super Dog" photo.


Haha, there were a ton of huge jumps out there this weekend, it is really neat to see them flying through the air like that!


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