I guess I've really slacked off on keeping this updated. To catch up from the last post in October, Zio had another great tournament in November. Lucy was back to being the start dog and Zio ran even more 3.9 second runs than he did in October. I'm pretty sure that one was his best time on the clock with a 3.94, but I know he's running 3.8's line to line.
Over the previous winter, Zio had put on excess weight due to inactivity and a change to a different dog food with more protein. He probably started racing in 2013 at a weight between 50 to 51 pounds. By the end of 2013, he had slimmed down to a weight closer to 46 lbs and I really think that made a big difference in his times.
This year, I cut back his winter food intake when we can't be active and he's been around 45 lbs, which I think is a good weight for him. The first tournament last month had him running consistent 4.0's with 3-4 ft passes, so definitely 3.9's line to line. I don't think he had the stamina this early in the season, but he should get stronger as the year progresses and we can get out more. I was struggling with the flu during the tournament, so didn't get to race him on Sunday. John filled in and it sounds like Zio ran good for him. The team ran good overall on Saturday with Lucy, Zio, and Mav all running 4.0's on occasion. We ran a best of 17.3 despite not having Luna running with her broken toe. Sunday's best was a 17.29 with Teegan running fourth, but we'll have to work with him running team some more. I'm looking forward to running in Grove and seeing how we do!
Over the previous winter, Zio had put on excess weight due to inactivity and a change to a different dog food with more protein. He probably started racing in 2013 at a weight between 50 to 51 pounds. By the end of 2013, he had slimmed down to a weight closer to 46 lbs and I really think that made a big difference in his times.
This year, I cut back his winter food intake when we can't be active and he's been around 45 lbs, which I think is a good weight for him. The first tournament last month had him running consistent 4.0's with 3-4 ft passes, so definitely 3.9's line to line. I don't think he had the stamina this early in the season, but he should get stronger as the year progresses and we can get out more. I was struggling with the flu during the tournament, so didn't get to race him on Sunday. John filled in and it sounds like Zio ran good for him. The team ran good overall on Saturday with Lucy, Zio, and Mav all running 4.0's on occasion. We ran a best of 17.3 despite not having Luna running with her broken toe. Sunday's best was a 17.29 with Teegan running fourth, but we'll have to work with him running team some more. I'm looking forward to running in Grove and seeing how we do!
