Dylan's Fall

Dylan had an awful fall last night off the dogwalk.

When we set the dogwalk up, one of the bolts wouldn’t screw in entirely. We do have a problem sometimes in that the bolts get clogged with the sand from the arena. We tested the plank and it was safe and sound, but obviously over the evening the bolt must have loosened — or the sand clogging it loosened and dropped off, which is what I think happened. I had Dylan doing some dogwalk-tunnel-dogwalk reps to try and cure the creepiness, and he was absolutely flying, which was probably what caused the bolt to loosen. Unfortunately the plank jumped up onto the bracket and then slipped as he was ascending and he went flying off the side, head over heels.

I screamed, and I actually thought he’d either killed himself or at the very least broken his neck. I’ve never seen such a horrible fall, he literally kept going for 5 or 6ft before landing in a horrible crumpled heap. Kim and Bailey were barking their heads off as usual and even they shut up. Somehow he got up and walked away with just a grazed face. He must have had some luck with him, because I don’t know how he did it. It was completely my fault, I should have checked the bolt after the first session to make sure it was still secure. I feel sick just thinking about it now, and I couldn’t sleep last night for playing it over in my head. Anyway, he got up, wiggled over to me for a hug with his worried face on. Not a yelp, not winded, not limping. I gave him a hug (hah, you try watching your dog do that and then not hugging him) and walked him around and he was sound, he trotted off to sniff the boards and just kind of asked what we were going to do next. He’s a lot braver than I thought he was.

We screwed the bolt back in properly and I walked him over the dogwalk on the lead. Some reluctance on both sides, I think, but I had to reassure him and myself that the dogwalk wasn’t scary. The first time he needed some real coaxing, the next few he was fine and just wanted his toy. He daren’t approach any speed on it and I didn’t ask him to. I don’t think I dare either.

Before his fall he was running around 2s – 2.2s for the dogwalk, even without quick releases. I think it’s going to take us a long time now to get back to that. We did do a few 2″ wide channel weaves and very simply jumping exercises (over Medium height) to finish with because I didn’t want him to fixate on agility, or the arena we train at, being scary. He was fine and raring to go, wanted his tuggy and being sneaky on breaking his waits.

Of course, Kim couldn’t have everybody ignoring her once she knew Dylan was safe. She made me smile when we were leaving. The yard sometimes have a flock of sheep inside in one of the pens opposite the arena. Jet likes to stare at the sheep quizzically from behind the arena gate, Dylan just ignores them, and Kim hadn’t really clocked onto their existence. As we were coming out, I was still in such a state of shock I completely forgot to put Kim’s lead on. She was heading back to the car with me when all the sheep moved and she spotted them. I thought she was going to start barking and chasing and had another heart-stopping moment, but Kim likes to be unpredicatable. She ran up to the fence with her tail wagging madly, head down, ears back; she sooo wanted to make friends. So cute, the poor sheep didn’t know what to make of her, and Kim was really disappointed that they wouldn’t come over to let her kiss them. She’d be a rubbish farm dog.