From rags to ribbons

Couple bring out the champion in shelter dogs through agility training

By CANDACE CHASE/Daily Inter Lake

Lori Fisher's dog Shemaiah would make the perfect poster pup for adopting a shelter dog.

Fisher has a design in mind featuring a photo of Shemaiah surrounded by his ribbons from the recent North American Dog Agility Council's national championships.

"It will say -What can you do with a shelter dog? Adopt, Achieve, Astonish,'" she said.

Shemaiah wasn't the only adopted dog to achieve astonishing feats with Fisher and her husband, Jody Middleton. Two others, Sarin and Treva, have their own collection of agility ribbons while a fourth in training, Zip, shows tremendous promise.

Yet, the competition glory pales in comparison to the love their four dogs, plus two shelter cats, have added to their household. Fisher wanted to share their story to show people the potential of dogs with shelter pedigrees.

"They can do amazing things," she said with a smile.

Since Fisher began adopting and fostering pets from the county shelter, she has seen dogs learn to catch Frisbees, perform search and rescue, and assist the handicapped as well as earn certification as therapy animals.

Fisher and her husband trained their dogs to leap over jumps and weave between poles. During timed trials, they scamper over A-frames and through tunnels and hoops.

By opening their hearts to these dogs, the couple discovered a new world of fun for themselves as well as a side business making agility obstacles.

"Agility is an amazing sport," she said. "It's such a team effort."

Their adventure began about six years ago with a mixed-breed dog that came into Fisher's life as she was grieving the declining health of her older dog. She named the pup Shemaiah, a Hebrew word that translates to "God hears and answers."

It seems that God heard not just Fisher's prayers but also the cries of the tiny dog in Browning.

"When he was just five weeks old, he was spotted under a bush in a yard freezing to death," she said. "Some kind soul picked him up and called the Humane Society."

The little dog ended up in a foster home with Kristen Kehoe, an obedience trainer who recognized the puppy's propensity for agility work. When Fisher took a peek at the dog online, it was love at first sight.

She went for a face-to-face meeting.

"He was just three months old and extremely bright," she said with a smile. "I just loved him."

She and her husband adopted and continued Shemaiah's obedience classes with Kehoe, which included some light agility-type work. Next, they hooked up with Jean Carter, a dog agility trainer, and the Glacier Chasers dog agility group.

"We started taking lessons four years ago," Fisher said.

Glacier Chasers hosts competitions sanctioned by the North American Dog Agility Council, an association that allows mixed breeds to compete in its agility events. The group uses Elk Park Arena in Columbia Falls for training and competitions.

"They really emphasize safety and fun for the dog," Fisher said.

The basic sport involves a handler directing a dog over and through a variety of obstacles with judging based on time and accuracy. Dogs compete in divisions such as jumpers, tunnelers and weavers, all within groups based on size and proficiency.

"There's no collar or leash Ð the dog runs naked under voice command," Fisher said.

She said an agility dog also watches every part of its handler's body for cues for running the course. As the dog becomes trained, the handler must fine tune his or her movements to keep pace while making split-second decisions.

Fisher's husband began as the dog handler, memorizing the course, figuring the best routes and telegraphing instructions under the pressure of timed trials.

"Jody is so good with the dogs," she said. "I'm the support staff."

In the last year and a half, Fisher has started running the female dogs while her husband handles the speedier males, Shemaiah and Zip.

According to Fisher, Shemaiah's speed has been both an asset but also creates a problem with accuracy when obstacles slow him down. Even with a dog who is a natural athlete, the training takes a lot of time and patience.

"The weave poles are actually the hardest - that's so unnatural," she said. "Shemaiah would not do it."

Fisher said an agility trainer must stay positive and make it fun for the dog. After two years of effort, patience paid off when Shemaiah began getting the hang of bending between poles.

The dog's initial resistance to weaving made Shemaiah's wins at the 2008 North American Dog Agility Council nationals even more amazing. Described as the agility Olympics, national trials bring together the top dogs from around the nation and Canada.

Fisher and her husband traveled to Gillette, Wyo., in September where Shemaiah rose to the challenge of competing with the big dogs of agility.

"He got highest-scoring jumper," Fisher said. "We ended up with 21 ribbons."

Those included a first and second place in weaving, the event he took two years to master.

Fisher gets misty-eyed remembering the pride they felt in their champion shelter dog that, for the grace of God, may have spent his life running the streets of Browning. Others at the event couldn't believe Shemaiah won all the ribbons they had on display.

"People came up and said -You brought how many dogs?'" she said with a laugh.

Each one of their other dogs has an equally compelling story. Sarin, a rescued purebred German shepherd, has a wall full of ribbons, and Treva, a basenji-husky mix, has earned five basic titles.

Zip, the latest to join their agile pack, looks like a mix of border collie and terrier. Fisher said he wasn't even on her list of dogs to foster but she just couldn't resist his hopeful look each time she came to the county animal shelter.

For two and a half months, no one chose to take him home.

"He was just so sweet," she said. "I couldn't stand it anymore.

Zip became the fourth and final dog adopted by Fisher and Middleton. She laughs about how they had to keep getting bigger campers and then a bigger truck to pull the camper to events.

"Three dogs was perfect. Four - that's a full house," she said. "They're our kids but that's a lot of exercise, feeding and training."

Fisher, who fostered 80 dogs over six years, said she hopes her experience encourages people to go to local shelters or rescue organizations when they want a pet. Dogs range from small to large, young to old, mixed breeds to show-quality purebreds.

The next agility champion may be among them. Fisher, her husband and others in the local group welcome others to join them in the sport.

"The best dog for agility is the dog you can love," Fisher said. "First and foremost they're your pet."

People interested in additional information on dog agility or finding a perfect pet may contact Fisher at 257-3319.

Reporter Candace Chase may be reached at 758-4436 or by e-mail at cchase@dailyinterlake.com.