An accident damaged his vision but did not dim his agility prospects.
This article appears in the November/December issue of AKC Family Dog Magazine.
If you tuned into the livestream of the AKC Agility League Championship, you may have spotted a spunky young Poodle in the novice class.
Tribute jumped, weaved and tunneled with joy, and his handler Lyndsay Klemens looked just as happy to be running by his side.
Their enthusiastic performances did not reveal that this pair’s agility career nearly ended before it began.
Klemens’ journey with Tribute began a little over two years ago when she was looking for a new agility partner. The Indiana veterinarian is an experienced agility handler and competed with a Belgian Tervuren at an advanced level.
“I wanted another dog to compete in a different size division,” she said. “Fellow competitors recommended a mini-poodle and also the breeder Estelle Kapsner for her devotion to versatile and competitive Poodles as athletes and family members.”
Klemens brought Tribute home when he was 10 weeks old, and agility foundation training began immediately. Socialization was part of the process, and then what should have been a fun outing changed everything.
“Tribute had a tragic accident when he was about 4 months old. During a puppy play date, he was playing with another larger pup. They were jumping up on their hind legs and slapping each other in the face. This is still one of Tribute’s favorite games,” she said. “Unfortunately, the other pup hit him just right on top of the head, and his baby face sustained multiple fractures leaving his left eye with permanent retinal damage. This left him completely blind in that eye. I thought his agility career was over.”
Klemens started thinking of other sports that the puppy could pursue with the damaged vision, but her Agility League teammates at Stoney Run Canine Camp refused to let her consider options.
“Luckily, all my friends in Agility League encouraged me to still play the game with him,” she said.
Instead of turning to a different endeavor, Klemens developed a plan to make agility work for Tribute.
“His depth perception for jumps and contacts is a challenge as well as seeing the obstacles and keeping track of me at the same time. When he has to run on my right side, it is much more difficult for him because he loses my position unless he completely turns his head to see me, making it more difficult to assess the obstacle in front of him.”
Jump training was very important and she took longer with Tribute on jumping foundation than any of her previous dogs. Jumps are kept low for Tribute, and Klemens often uses targets after contact obstacles and jumps to help him focus ahead. The young dog loves praise so Klemens gives him plenty of both verbal reinforcement and pats and hugs.
“A big issue with losing 50 percent of the visual field is that the remaining 50 percent becomes his 100 percent. This is an advantage to him in life because he sees small details (a tiny fleck of hair or dust) that other dogs aren’t as likely to investigate. This often gets him a missed piece of kibble or tiny piece of paper. He loves playing with paper!
“However, in the ring this also means he sees a fallen tissue or course map off the line of jumps that other dogs will run right past. While this is also a young dog issue, his limited vision plays a role. In everyday life, I verbally praise him for his detective abilities, but on course we just keep running. I praise him for leaving foreign objects. “
When she walks the courses, Klemens covers her left eye so she can better see things as Tribute will.
“This helps me figure out where challenges might occur, especially with turns or striding. I give more verbal cues with him then my other dogs, and I do my best to give those commands early enough that his GPS has time to recalibrate,” she said.
The AKC Agility League has enabled them to receive encouragement and coaching from teammates, as well compete in a lower pressure environment. Hundreds of teams around the country compete in the AKC Agility League that features at-home competition for all skill levels. Teams and dogs are ranked against the other participants around the country, and the winners are named at end of each League season.
Jodi Zandstra is the captain of Tribute’s team, SRCC Speed Demons, based at Stoney Run Canine Camp in Hebron, Indiana.
“Lyndsay and Tribute have grown so much as a team since starting league. He is doing so well and has made so much progress,” Zandstra said. “We love watching his enthusiastic runs and his love for the sport.”
The SRCC Speed Demons cheer every run for every member as though each course was set up for the national championship. The commitment to the success of every dog has kept Klemen’s spirits up while she works through Tribute’s physical limitation.
“League has renewed my commitment to the sport of agility. It’s so easy to feel defeated, especially when the odds aren’t in your favor. To be able to enjoy my sport again, with a group of people who are just as excited as I am, is wonderful.”
Tribute has also become active in scent work and rally competitions, but agility will always be a part of their lives. The AKC Agility League Championship, held at Purina Farms in Missouri, was his first AKC agility event. Tribute did so well that he won the 12-inch Preferred Freshman class and made his debut on the podium.
“I hope that Tribute can continue to have an agility career where people are surprised that he is blind in one eye. After competing at the Championships and listening to other competitors exclaim they didn’t know he had visual deficits, I’m excited to continue our hard work and training!”
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