Sophie grins as she leaps through a hoop, giving a side-eye search for human Ron Wright.
The 11-year-old miniature Australian shepherd is clearly having a good time, checking in with Wright every few paces through her backyard agility course. Practice means treats, unlike competition.
Both are clearly enjoying themselves running about under the sun in North Saanich. Agility courses are a task the pair enjoys across B.C. and parts of Alberta, taking trips three out of four weekends a month to compete.
That consistency and joy eclipsed into a Canadian record May 16.
Sophie surpassed the long-standing lifetime mark for most qualifying scores in the sport of dog agility. Wright says it’s akin to when Alex Ovechkin broke Wayne Gretzky’s all-time NHL regular-season goals record.
It brings her total Canadian records to 11 – including the three highest season totals and most titles ever won. It’s a testament to their consistency and longevity.
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“She’s not the fastest dog, but I’d say she’s the smartest dog out there,” Wright said. “If she didn’t have fun and I didn’t have fun we wouldn’t do it.”
When a dog successfully completes an agility course within the set time and zero faults, that’s a Qualifying Score, or Q.
“You accumulate Qs. The record was 2,250 Qs and no one was close,” Wright said. “A little while ago I thought, ‘We can do this’.” It’s a record the 11.5-year-old dog and her 71-year-old handler would have broken last year, except Sophie injured a shoulder. Thanks to the wonders of skilled veterinarians, she got a second shot this season.
Sophie and her human came to the sport kind of naturally. The shepherd was originally Wright’s wife’s dog, and in a to bid bond, man and dog embarked on a variety of courses – with both falling in love with agility. It became evident quickly that Sophie had talent, and both were enjoying themselves.
“She really liked it and I really liked it and as they say in the cliche, the rest is history,” Wright said. “I get to do fun things with my dog.”
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