Zippy little critter!

We spent much of Sunday at John Parker's place over in Newnan, GA practicing the dogs on a 200 yd straight. We ran Lobo, Nellie and Carmela a couple of times each (We had forgotten our accouterments for taking care of Sweeney's and Everett's feet so they didn't get to run). Everyone had a great time and we got to see some pretty fast runs. I was really impressed with Carmela the most. She's a speedy thing, running completely like a grown up dog. Actually, she's really never run like a puppy, always running with her head down and reaching well with her front legs. She seems to always be in control of her body. I was also impressed with Nellie's runs. I slipped her so all I could see was her ass as it quickly faded into the distance, but what I could see was something I've recently learned from reading Gazehounds and Coursing by Dutch Salmon. Nellie tracks very well when she runs. It looks like she's running a rail and her feet occupy a width of about 4 inches on the ground beneath her. Very pretty to watch!

I don't think the dogs will be running much for the next few months since it's going to be so hot. I'm really looking forward to the fall racing season so we can get Carmela out and see how she does!!

Speaking of Carmela and racing, I'm going to need to get her box trained. I'd like to build a simple one hole contraption that I can use to get her accustomed to going in and out. I'm thinking of using corrugated plastic board and making something simple. If anyone has any ideas, I'd love to hear them.