MACH Snowden’s Swiper MXB MJB MFB TQX T2B2 owned by Cindy Snowden of Peoria, IL
A friend from the animal shelter texted Cindy a blurry photo of an All American dog stating, “I think I found you a dog you can do some agility with.” When she met him, she knew this was her next dog – agility or not. “One day with a side glance, this black and white, Holstein cow-looking cutie patootie tip toes quietly past us, flip-flop hanging out the side of his mouth. We named him ‘Swiper.’”
They earned their Novice and Open titles quickly, then were thrown into the “big leagues” earning two double Q’s in Excellent. Cindy’s instructor told her that she had a “MACH Dog.” “I didn’t even know what that meant!” Cindy said. “I was having a blast with my teammate. We just really click. I am amazed at his start-line stay, distance and jumping abilities.”
Their first trial after a six-month COVID break was at home in Peoria, Illinois. “No way we’re going to have a perfect weekend, earning 3 double Q’s to finish our MACH in front of EVERYBODY! We were on fire that weekend, with 11/11 going into the last run. I rear-crossed a half a second too early and he pulled with me. He was right in front of the jump, but being the great dog that he is, he came with me. Was I disappointed? I just messed up the perfect ending! We would get it… just not today,” Cindy said.
The next weekend, on September 12, 2020, in Davenport, Iowa they earned that MACH. “Guess how many people knew we were going for our MACH that day? One – the person I asked to videotape us ‘just in case.’ During the final run, it was just me and my dog working as one. We quietly walked off the course. No applause or victory lap. I felt relieved and satisfied. Swiper and I went outside for our post-run Frisbee time. I smiled, then started running through the grass, my dog by my side and yelled, “YES! Way to go my little MACH dog!”
“No fairytale ending with a perfect weekend… but yet, this ending was perfect!”