From A Scared Little Rescue To An Agility Star

Agility allows Gracie to release much of her energy and shine like a star

 

- Dawn Bell

In February 2006 one of my beloved Dachshunds left us for the Rainbow Bridge and we were left with only Chloe, another little Dachshund. We needed to get another dog and soon, as she was very lonely, particularly since we were both out at work most of the day. So I started my search for a puppy – starting with Dachshunds, but nothing was immediately available. Since getting Chloe I had dabbled a bit in dog training, mostly obedience. But on a couple of occasions my eye had been caught by the dogs doing agility. It looked like a lot of fun and the dogs seemed to love it. I extended my search to other breeds and in particular ones that might be suitable as agility dogs. I stuck to small dogs, as we were living in a townhouse with a small garden. Nothing. My husband, Dave, was very keen to get a rescue. I was not particularly keen, as I didn’t want to get a ‘second-hand’ dog!

Anyway, as the prospect of getting a registered breed puppy was not looking promising, I relented and we started going to the animal shelters to see what was there.