Go. The thrill of running takes over and you hear nothing but the connection that passes through you and your dog... The perfect harmony of person and animal. Every movement you are in tune with your dog and your dog with you. It's the perfect partnership...you hardly say a word but she knows every command you signal. Granted, it takes a while to get to this friendship.

I got Ivy when I was twelve years old. I had been using my agility teachers' dog, Tucker, to show and train. Though I was grateful, I wanted my own dog. I heard of a litter of Pembroke Welsh corgis that had been born and teased my dad for one. "No, no, no," he said.

I wasn't going to give up that easily, though!

Then, for my twelfth birthday, my dad surprised me with the permission to get my own dog! I was ecstatic and earned over half of the money to buy her by myself. I named her Mavrik Poison ivy. The name turned out to be too true. She is itching to go all the time!

Through mischief and devilishness, we trained for a year and a half in agility classes and now we have been competing for two years. Ivy is three and I am now 15 years old. We will be heading down for the AKC Juniors Only Competition in Florida this December.

We continue to strive for that perfect run...the perfect connection between person and dog.

Kara Knotek, age 15, is a sophomore at Seward High School. She lives with her Pembroke Welsh Corgi, Ivy, in Moose Pass, Alaska. She is a member of the Kenai Kennel Club. Her other interests include marine science, debate team, and drama classes.