Frankie changed my world. All of my animals have had an impact on my life, without a doubt. But Frankie not only turned the page on a chapter of my life, she threw out the whole book and started a new one.
Because of this dog, I am happier, healthier and kinder. I care about training my animals. I eat healthier and I workout in a brand new way. I have found my life's passion in the rescuing of this breed. And best of all, I became a part of a club that has become my second family.Frankie is appx 4 years old now. I pulled her from a kill shelter when she was about 9 months old. Her only fault was that she was an Aussie. A very young, energetic Aussie with nails like razors. She was so happy to be let out of her shelter kennel that she would bounce and chirp and scratch everybody she came into contact with. They couldn't handle her, and nobody was adopting her.
The moment I saw her, I knew she was my soul mate. Our first months together were admittedly not the easiest. It took time for us to get on the same page with each other. But she always remained the happy, friendly Aussie and eventually, we clicked.
I found the Minnesota Disc Dog Club by accident. No wait, what's that word for happy accident? Serendipity? Does that apply here? I often drove transports for rescue dogs and one day, shortly after adopting Frankie, I met a woman on one of these transports named Denise. As we waited for our passengers to arrive, we started chatting about dogs and training and agility, and eventually, she brought up this club she was with. Frisbee with your dog. Huh. I bought a fabric frisbee at Fleet Farm, and a star was born.
Frankie took to disc dogging like a fish to water. Me, not so much. I've been convinced from the start that if I wasn't her handler, Frankie would be a world class disc dog. She just is just flat out phenominal at it. In 2011, we (she) qualified for the AWI World Finals at Purina Farms in Missouri. It was an honor (and scary as hell) to be one of only 50 teams in the world competing on that field that day. I tanked. Frankie did not.
Frankie makes me look good in everything that involves frisbees. If I throw a really bad toss, she manages to not only catch it, but add enough Aussie flair that it ends up looking cool. I don't know how she does it, or why I was blessed to call such a dog my own, but had Frankie not entered my life, I cringe as I wonder who I would be today. 
