Top dogs rise to challenge
John and Aprille McGee live in a caravan with their six miniature poodles, travelling from dog show to dog show.
At Labour Weekend that nomadic lifestyle brought them to Rakaia, for the New Zealand Dog Agility Championship show.
Like many others, they set up camp in the Rakaia Domain, ready for four full-on days where the country’s top agility dogs were crowned for 2016.
Competition was tough; there were more than 300 dog handlers and more than 400 dogs of all shapes, sizes, colours and breeds vying for supremacy.
Among them were two of the McGee’s black miniature poodles, Fancy Pants and Smarty Pants - aptly named according to their owners.
The McGees, like many taking part in Rakaia, have been in more dog shows than they can remember over the years, and the Rakaia show hosted by zone four - which takes in dog agility clubs from Ashburton to the top of the South Island - was right up there with the best.
Originally from the Kapiti Coast, the McGees packed up their home and moved in to a caravan about a year ago.
‘‘We really just go from dog show to dog show,’’ Aprille said.
How long they live the life they’re currently living for, they don’t know. Eventually they’ll put down roots again, somewhere up north, but for now life on the road and seeing the country with their six dogs, is where they want to be.
Rakaia’s population swelled for the weekend; the local 4 Square even had to bring in extra stocks of necessities like toilet paper.
And overall, Rakaia put on a good show for them, apart from rain on Friday’s first day of competition. After a full-on, action packed weekend, it all wrapped up on Monday at lunchtime.
Show secretary Meredith Evans said feedback from participants had been positive.
‘‘Some people said it was like a carnival,’’ she said.
There were endless prizes given out for different heights, classes and finals, and Selwyn took out one of the flygility teams events.
Evans said it was the first time that particular trophy had gone to a team from out of the North Island.