NEVER SAY NEVER GREYHOUNDS

Head Spinning

2010-01-03T10:00:00.012-05:00

My head is spinning. There is so much to write about. I don't know where to start. Today is Sunday and the last day of the holidays. My eyes open at 6:30 AM and OH MY DOG, WHAT IS THAT SMELL?!?! Katie has diarrhea again for the forth time in recent past, but this morning she soiled two dog beds instead of one. I want to scream at her, but for obvious reasons I don't... so I am going to scream at my blog:

WHY ARE YOU SUCH AN IDIOT!?!? I'M SLEEPING 8 FEET AWAY! WAKE ME UP! BAD DOG!!!

Ok, I feel better. I need to get to the bottom of Katie's problem as it keeps reoccurring. Right now, both dog beds are in my front yard. I just want to throw them away and buy new waterproof dog beds, but yesterday we bought a new car, so we can't afford new dog beds... or at least that is my state of mind right now. More about the new car in a later post. Training has come to a screeching halt. Normally, nothing interrupts my training routine, but it is seriously cold. Right now it is almost 11 AM, the sun is shining, and it is only 20 degrees Fahrenheit. The greyhounds and I can tough out and train in 40 degrees. Usually, I choose to run or hike when it is 30 degrees. But 20's are downright cold. All I can say is that it better snow this year! Despite the training interruption, I do have several training update videos to share in future posts. Reagan is regaining her confidence on the teeter, but has some other issues. She seems so fragile at times. Long-term, I am not sure if she will hold up, but I hope she does. She has so much potential. More about that later. Riley on the other hand has gone from red-headed stepchild to the Golden Child. I am sometimes blown away by her intelligence. She is the only greyhound I have ever seen pull a sweet gum ball out of her paw with her teeth. Ok, maybe that does not make her a genius, but I appreciate the problem solving. All in all, Riley is ready and I'm contemplating her agility trial schedule. Happy New Year! Good luck with the resolutions and weight loss. I have a few pounds too lose myself.

Don't forget to get your Greyhound Puppy calendar if you have not already. Just click on one of the puppy photos on the right. I am loving mine! Shipping is $3 regardless of where in the world we ship or the number of calendars you order.

Favorite Posts - Part 2

2009-12-31T07:00:00.000-05:00

Here is Part 2 of my favorite blog posts of 2009.

I was turned onto this blog only a couple of months ago and burst out laughing at work when I saw this post.

All cows go to heaven, but a special few live long lives and are missed when they are gone. Ignore the title of the post (although I would have to agree that PETA sucks). Not sure why I like this post so much, but I do.

Funny picture post of a pup and his dead mouse.

I just loves this video post of my sis' GerMeagleChowPyRusky (DNA test results) and her pumpkin fear.

Last but not least, here is a thought provoking post On Choosing to be Happy. Just something for you to think about as you start a new year. I hope 2010 brings all of you a lot of joy.

Favorite Posts - Part 1

2009-12-27T07:00:00.000-05:00

Over the year, I have been keeping track of my favorite posts on blogs (mostly funny) and wanted to share them with you.

Let us start with Testicles.

A very sweet love affair (with lots of pictures) between a horse and a feral sheep. The pictures are very cute.

A lot of you are probably familar with the Cake Wrecks blog, but these two posts were my favorites from last year (at least while I was visiting). Cake or Death and Divorce Cakes.

Okay, this post is no where near year 2009. It was actually posted in February 2008, but its my blog and I can post it if I want to. It is a very funny post about a Camera Hogging greyhound.

If you are tired of greyhound stories, how about a Duck Story.

Hilarious post about Plastic Surgery and the greyhound who performed it.

Enjoy!

Best Lights Ever

2009-12-23T07:00:00.000-05:00

Merry Christmas everyone!
This is the best decorated house I have ever seen and synchronized with music. Some of the music is funny so it is worth watching the entire show.

2009 Lights On Merrimac Ridge Animated Lights

Hit the Road

2009-12-19T17:18:00.009-05:00

I have started walking Katie in my neighborhood. There is a nice loop that blocks around to a distance of about 0.7 miles. It works perfectly because I can do it at night. Even though I leave work at 3 PM, there are just not enough daylight hours to accomplish what I want to with Reagan, Riley, AND Katie.My biggest concern is her nails. She moves funny and wears them down.So far, so good. Some of her nails are already worn down to tiny nubs, but none have started bleeding from the walks. Hopefully the quicks have adjusted and receded some.When it is possible, I do walk Katie off the road. This house is a foreclosure and is unoccupied. Katie and I serpentine across the lawn up and down the hill.Sometimes we even see some wildlife. I saw a possum last night and some chickens today.A registered sex offender use to live here. I never worried because kids were his thing. He was old and has probably died by now. Thank goodness for the kids next door. I always wondered if they knew.I carry a big stick just in case. It is my Loose-Dog-Club. I am happy that I have never had to use it.Sometimes Stephen and I talk about moving to a nicer neighborhood, but it seems hardly worth doubling our mortgage payment. I'd much rather spend money on a nice van and agility equipment.

Permission Granted

2009-12-16T07:00:00.005-05:00

KL's Mandoid From Marze CDX MX MXJ was the first greyhound to earn the Master Agility Excellent and Master Excellent Jumper titles (MX and MXJ) in AKC Agility. The MX and MXJ are earned with 10 clean runs in the Excellent Standard and Excellent Jumper levels. Mandoid was also the first greyhound to qualify and compete at an AKC Agility Nationals.I got to see Mandoid run a couple of times. Her agility career was finishing up as I was starting up with Jes and Teresa. Mandoid was a super diva. She passed away in 2003, but she is still the #4 or 5 greyhound in AKC Agility for lifetime achievement.When Mandoid passed away, Kate wanted Katie to have Mandoid's fleece coat. It meant a lot to Kate that Katie was kept warm with Mandoid's coat on the chilly February day that she became the first greyhound to earn an agility championship. The fleece coat was perfect for keeping Katie warm when she was camping in a tent or crated on a cold day.But Katie, does not need the coat anymore. I did not want to use the coat on anyone else without Kate's permission. I would retire it if preferred. I recently asked Kate if the fleece coat could be passed onto Reagan and she agreed. It fits Reagan even better than Katie and hopefully Reagan will do Mandoid, Kate, and Katie proud..... well heck, I'd like to be proud too! :-)

Utility Dog

2009-12-13T08:33:00.003-05:00

I switched Katie from Prozac to Buspar and she is doing much better. She is much less jittery than she was. She is still very noise sensitive. She won't eat kibble from a bowl because it rattles, but she did get in and out of the van a couple of times for some Swiss cheese. I'm not sure that Buspar is helping her at all, but I've concluded that Prozac was doing more harm than good.I am extremely proud of Katie's Utility Dog title. Obedience competition has been around for over 70 years and Katie was only the 14th greyhound to ever earn a Utility Dog title. Utility is the highest level of obedience and I have said it before... it was the hardest thing I have ever done. Katie earned 3 qualifying legs in 25 attempts. This is the only video I have of one of three qualifying Utility legs. I am so happy to finally be able to post it to the blog.

Wobble Board

2009-12-10T07:00:00.000-05:00

A friend loaned me a wobble board which is used to teach a dog how to handle movement under their feet. I thought it might be beneficial to Reagan as we work through her teeter retraining. Unfortunately, we had a recent set back on the teeter. She had worked back up to a full sized teeter, but was asked to do a teeter away from home that was unsteady and she did not like it at all. I think Reagan is now suspicious of "away" teeters, but is completely confident at home. I really wanted to avoid this, but no avoiding it now.

I thought it would also be beneficial for Katie to give the wobble board a try. She definitely does not like movement under her feet anymore, so its something challenging we can do indoors for with a clicker.

Reagan does not like the tipping either. She is willing, but cautious.

Riley, on the other hand, is hell bent for leather. She was hilarious and a stark contrast to the other two. Riley needs no wobble board work.

Confession

2009-12-07T19:30:00.002-05:00

I have a confession to make. Reagan is not my only kibble eater. Riley is also a full-time kibble consumer. As you know, Reagan suffered coat problems over the summer and I finally concluded that she simply was not extracting nutrients from raw food. For some unknown reason, Reagan simply requires that her food be cooked. She now eats a very high quality kibble and is doing very well on it.

Well, during all of this I started to notice that Riley's coat got very dull and dry. The red stripes in her coat looked bleached out and yellow (see below).At first I couldn't believe that I would actually have a 2nd dog that did not do well on raw food. What are the chances? I had fed raw food for 10 years happily and with no problems with seven greyhounds. I started to feed Riley half kibble and half raw and the improvement was almost immediate. Also, like Reagan, Riley never produced the kind of poop that raw diet feeders rave about. She was actually better on kibble as well. I finally switched Riley to a full time kibble diet. Now she is a picture of health (except her trademark ears... we can't do anything about those :-).Reagan and Riley's issues really threw me for a loop. With 2 young dogs eating kibble, what would I feed future dogs? I am happy with how my four seniors are doing on raw food, so I was not about to switch them too.

I decided that I was not really comfortable with my veggie mixes. Dogs have a hard time digesting fruits and vegetables. The availability of the nutrients depends on my ability to tear up the cell walls of the plant material. You can do this by using a juicer or a food processor, but I was not confident that I was doing a good job or providing enough quantity. So my seniors all get 1/2 a cup of kibble instead of veggie mix now. In the future, I think I will continue with a modified half and half diet and adjust accordingly if I have a hound that clearly does best on one or the other.

National Geographic

2009-12-06T00:08:00.005-05:00

In June 2006, we had a pair of house wrens built a nest in our garage, laid eggs, and raised 4 baby birds. It was a fantastic place for them. Safe and out of the weather. Everyday, we set up our camera for one hour. Here is a 4 minute clip of them growing up. We definitely found the pooping to be the most interesting. I did not realize they were potty trained.

The Cardinal at the end would attack that bathroom window several times a day for what must have been months. He was a crazy one.

Yippe!

2009-12-01T07:00:00.000-05:00

.... and then there were none!

Memory Lane

2009-11-28T13:07:00.004-05:00

Thank you for all of the positive thoughts, concerns, and well wishes for Katie. You guys had so many suggestions and questions, I thought I would address them here.

Regarding having a powerful sedative on hand, my vet did not like the idea. I guess in a traumatic event, blood pressure can drop significantly. Adding a sedative to the event could kill your pet. If I were trying to take Katie to a vet, I would be trying to save her. If she was suffering and needed to be euthanized, I would call a mobile vet or my own vet to come to the house (and, yes, I think he would). I am lucky that I have an excellent (but not my preferred) animal hospital not even 1 mile from my house and the emergency vet is actually no more than 3 miles away. I would just have to risk the stress if it comes to that.

My vet recently consulted with a behaviorist and she suggested switching her from Prozac to Buspirone and Gabapentin. She felt it was a better fit for seniors. We shall see how it effects my senior.

I do not think Katie is refusing to load due to pain. She still eagerly fetches her toy, does cavaletti work, and hops over low agility jumps. Also, she was loading just fine until a few months ago.... but for nearly a year has been clearly distressed once the van was moving. So I do not think a ramp would help.

I think it is possible that the noise sensitivity and car phobia are related. Since Katie is a 11, I would guess that there is a physical or pathological reason for it. There is just something going on in the brain.... is my guess.

However, on a happier note, I have learned how to use DVD rip software that takes files from a DVD and converts them to computer files.

I am pleased to show you Katie's very first agility trial run - October 7th, 2001. Please forgive the handler, I have improved a lot over the last 8 years. Katie is 3 years old. This was back when Novice courses were easy.

Warm Spot

2009-11-26T07:03:00.001-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving!

Last Wish

2009-11-23T19:51:00.000-05:00

Unfortunately, I don't think Prozac is going to bring back Katie's sanity. I thought while the drug was getting situated in her system that I would start working on loading Katie in the van. Just ask her to jump in for a treat and jump out immediately each day. No big deal, right? Generally, she resists, but today she started crying like I had never heard and shaking violently... just from being asked to load.If God ever takes one of my hounds while he or she sleeps, please let it be Katie. I would be so relieved if she passed away peacefully in her sleep when it is time for her to go. I fret about her needing a vet. I don't want to have to decide whether to panic her if she were sick or injured.I have started researching mobile vets. There appears to be several in my area that can do blood work and euthanize at home. If any of you live near me and have any experience with a mobile vet in our area, please let me know.For now, Katie is mostly content doing her cavalettis, hopping over a couple of jumps in the backyard, and extracting Kongs of every morsel. Every so often she wakes up and yelps in pain. I have no idea why, but I hope it does not get worse. I am sure she could use some acupuncture and swimming, but its not going to happen.Where is my Katie? This is not my MACH UD greyhound.

ASFA Greyhound Specialty

2009-11-21T08:00:00.001-05:00

A month ago, Southeastern Greyhound Association hosted the National Greyhound Specialty for ASFA lure coursing in Moreland Georgia. ASFA is the American Sighthound Field Association. As you know, I do not lure course my girls since the risk of injury is very high, but I enjoy watching the occasional event. This lure coursing event was extra special because some greyhound coursing fans from England came to visit. Arron Atmore is a professional slipper (seen below at the Waterloo Cup in England). At dinner, he spoke about coursing in England and Ireland and also told the story of Evie, the only American Greyhound to compete in the prestigious Waterloo Cup. The story of Evie's adventures in England is an awesome one, but unfortunately her coursing videos are not on Youtube to assist in the telling. Another Brit below. Everyone called him Froto or Frodo and claimed he was a hobbit. Isn't he adorable! :-)For those who have never seen lure coursing below, here you go:

Here is John and Laura Parker's greyhound, Cole, getting ready to run.And don't ask. All I can say is this greyhound is well loved by her young owner..... and warm. :-)

Error In Judgement

2009-11-18T22:00:00.002-05:00

Okay, so I made a stupid mistake at the seminar. As you know, Reagan had 2 fly offs on the teeter in recent agility trials (see example below).

You never want your agility dog to get hurt or surprised on an obstacle. There are many dogs that are never fully comfortable with the teeter.

So when it was my turn to have Reagan do the teeter, a little voice in my head said I should put her on leash, but I did not listen. I thought Reagan would see that it is a teeter since we were working the teeter by itself. Well, Reagan assumed it was a dogwalk and charged to the end only to be surprised when it dropped out from under her. Dang it!

After that, Reagan refused to get back on it and then refused to even do the A-frame. This was not the place to work out such issues so I put her away for the day.

I was not sure what to expect the next time we went to our home field. Luckily, she demonstrated the problem at home which gave me ample opportunity to start from scratch. So Reagan and I have been doing some remedial teeter training, starting small, and gradually increasing the height and pivot range. She is doing great and I think will be ready for January's trial.

Obviously, she is not losing any sleep over it. However, I am so obssessive I did not sleep well for a couple of nights because of it. I was so mad at myself :-).

Seminar

2009-11-16T19:50:00.005-05:00

As you know we attended a Chris Zink DVM, Ph.D seminar in Huntsville Alabama. It was about performance dog structure, gaiting, fitness, and soundness. I learned a few interesting things:

Spay/Neuter - Spaying and neutering should not take place until the dog is at least 14 months old. Estrogen and testosterone are needed to close growth plates. If the dog is "fixed" early there are no hormones to tell the bones to stop growing. Therefore, the dog may continue to grow over an extended period of time causing bones to grow out of proportion making the dog prone to hip dysplasia and knee injuries. I am glad I waited until Reagan was 26 months old. Those of us that rescue greyhounds are lucky because they are generally not "fixed" before 18 months.

Cross cantering - Dogs mostly cross canter. Dr. Zink called it a rotary canter. When horses canter, they lead with the inside front and hind legs. For example, if the horse is circling left, the left front leg and the left hind leg will lead the others. Here is a picture of Travis doing a traditional canter on the dog walk on his left lead. However, dogs will often canter on one lead in front and the opposite lead in the rear. This has always driven me crazy since I have a horse background and cross cantering does not seem correct. This was the best photo I could find of cross cantering. Reagan is clearly on the right lead in the rear. In front, the right front will land next and the left front leg will extend further out before landing and is thus the lead leg. Dr. Zink assures us that cross cantering is normal for dogs. Thank goodness for that!

Hotel Huntsville

2009-11-14T21:00:00.001-05:00

The girls and I traveled to Huntsville Alabama for a Chris Zink seminar. It was Riley's first time in a hotel and Reagan's second.... Reagan has actually logged more nights in our tent.I splurged and stayed in a La Quinta this time... a little more upscale than Motel 6. Nonetheless, I still have to clean all my hotel rooms. I spray the carpet and the tub with Lysol and Clorox wipe the tables, counters, knobs, locks, faucets, remote control, clock, and so on. I also pull off the bed spread and all of the pillows, cover the bed with my own sheet, blanket, and pillow. Hello. My name is Jennifer. I am a germ phobic. The girls were allowed a special priviledge and slept on the bed with me. I am not very cuddlely (space aggressive - Don't touch me!), but the girls did great and did not disturb me at all during the night. Reagan kept her princess complex at bay and was able to share the king sized bed with Riley and I.

Homebound

2009-11-12T20:00:00.000-05:00

Katie is finally trapped at home. She is no longer able to fight off the demons as they now accompany her in both of our vehicles. I know there are many dogs that get car sick or who associate cars with a bad experience, but Katie is the worst I have seen. She is truly panic stricken. She refuses to load and if given a chance will jump out and run to the house. It truly boggles my mind when she has thousands of positive experiences to draw from.

We started Katie on the generic form of Prozac. My dream would be that she regains her mental balance and can once again go every where I go. Her quality of life would be so much better. If not, maybe the drug will reduce her overall stress level and reaction to noises.For now, I do my best to entertain Katie at home. She gets 2 stuffed, frozen Kongs everyday and I groom her. I work with her when the backyard is dry. I occasionally bike her around the neighborhood... unfortunately, her nails wear down excessively in the rear so I cannot do it more than once a week. I would love to teach her some tricks, but she gets really stressed when we fluctuate from the usual. Katie is a machine and will do the things she is trained to do all day long, but she seems unable to download new programs at this point. We also do not allow our dogs on the couch, but decided to start inviting Katie to sit with us. However, it is a new thing and Katie is not comfortable on the couch at all and gets off as soon as she is given the opportunity. Maybe the Prozac will ease the stress of new things as well.

Riley Brag

2009-11-10T18:26:00.003-05:00

I am long overdue on a Riley update. The "Golden Child" (Reagan) is getting far too much attention here. Riley is coming along and I would say that her agility work is really good except that she is still learning to weave. Weave poles are hard, but she has been by far the slowest learner. She has been working on them for over a year now. On days I train agility, my primary focus is on weave poles and Riley continues to make progress....
I am very pleased that Riley is consistently able to weave with just 2 guides at each end.

However, I must share a really big brag and I so wish I did not delete the video. Normally, I cut out the errors I make so you guys think I don't ever make mistakes (just kidding :-), but this one was a big brag for Riley. I had placed the middle and last 2 guides on the weave poles incorrectly. Instead of bailing, Riley ducked and continued to weave below them. At first I was not sure what happened, but when I reviewed the video I could see that she remained correct despite the "obstacles" in her way. Good dog!

California - Last One

2009-11-08T22:00:00.000-05:00

Anna and I stayed with my friend Helen in Livermore, California on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night (15, 16, and 17th). Anna and I especially enjoyed our down time lounging around in Helen's backyard.I met Helen via email when she contacted me about competing greyhounds in agility. Helen is very active with her greyhounds and competes them in conformation, agility, obedience, and tracking. In tracking, Helen has the most Tracking Dog Excellent titled greyhounds. I'm jealous! She and I swap training tips and advice. You can see her hounds here. She and I met face to face in December 2007 when I competed Travis at the AKC Agility Invitational in Long Beach, California.The reason why I was crazy enough to plan a trip in October (my busiest month) is that there was also a Greyhound Specialty show going on at the same time. So it was a great opportunity for me to meet other greyhound email friends, see their hounds, and see other greyhounds in action.You can see a lot more photos and get the show results here and here.Lisa debuted Andretti in Open obedience (2nd level or the level after Novice). Since he was the only obedience entry he had to do his 3 minute sit stays and 5 minute down stays by himself. And in Open obedience, stays are done with the handler out of sight from the dog. Talk about all alone, but Andretti stayed like a champ. I am sure he will earn his Companion Dog Excellent title (CDX) in no time.I also got to see Helen compete Whisper in agility. Helen and Whisper are doing awesome. As of October 23, 2009, Whisper had 77 MACH points and 1 double qualifying score (750 MACH points and 20 double qualifying scores are needing to earn a Master Agility Championship). I think Whisper has a good shot at being the first AKC Greyhound and conformation champion to earn an agility championship. Whisper is only 3 years old and has plenty of time. Helen posts videos of Whisper competing periodically on her blog. Her are a couple of runs from the weekend I was there.I thought the pink agility equipment was interesting and fitting since it was Breast Cancer month. Just about everything else was pink too. California takes Breast Cancer month very seriously.Last but not least, I got a little cat love from Helen's cat.... who's name escapes me right now. Cute little kitty though!This concludes my summer (okay, fall) vacation!

California - Part 2

2009-11-06T22:00:00.000-05:00

On Friday, in Livermore California, Anna and I went on a hike recommended by greyhound friend, Helen. It was beautiful. After living in crowded and smoggy Orange County, I am always amazed at how beautiful California can be and by how much space is actually left in some parts.Bessie the cow was not very happy with our visit. Despite Anna and I chatting loudly about the cow on the trail ahead, she did not seem to notice us until we were upon her. She tested Anna, but Anna called her bluff and we continued hiking.One more California post, but the next one will include greyhounds.

California

2009-11-05T07:00:00.000-05:00

I have been so busy lately. The fall season is always full of events, seminars, and other activities. I also went to California for a week and left Snookums behind to take care of the dogs (Thank you, Snookums). I feel like I have so much to write, but I have been sick for nearly a week with a terrible cold. I had several posts planned, but now I feel they are so out of date.... but because I am sick, I have not done anything interesting with the hounds and thus have nothing interesting to write about.... so here you go with my California vacation.

I lived in Orange County California from age 12 to 17. Best friend, Anna, and I have known each other since I was 14 when we boarded our horses at the same stables. I moved a lot as a kid, but Anna is the one friend I have kept all of these years. She and I are very much alike and our friendship is easy and low maintenance.

Here is the trip summary..... Leaving Atlanta behind.... Well, Atlanta is somewhere behind the fog.Nothing, but clear skies.... at least above the clouds.Finally, some beautiful sights from the sky. I lucked out. The plane was very full, but I was on one of the only rows that with no one sitting in the middle seat.On the day of my arrival, Anna and I went to the stables to take care of her horse, Junior. I switched to greyhounds, but Anna is still very involved with horses.The next day (Thursday), Anna and I drove to Monterey Bay. We took the scenic route and it was very beautiful in some places. Once in Monterey, Anna and I went to the aquarium and had a great time.
Anna and I then proceeded on to Livermore California to stay with another friend, Helen. Here is the cute down town area.Yep, that is a guy wearing cut off denim shorts and pretty top with spaghetti straps. Fascinating!More to come...

Agility Trial

2009-11-02T17:11:00.000-05:00

Reagan competed in her third agility trial last weekend. She earned 2 Open Standard legs with a 2nd and a 3rd. Both had flaws... allowable flaws in the Open level..., but flaws nonetheless that would not be allowed in Excellent. So we have some homework to do. Here are her 2 runs from the first day:

I thought the Jumpers run (1st one) was awesome. The opening sequence was once again very difficult. Much more difficult than the Excellent level course the same day. The course started with 2 jumps in a straight line and then a left turn into the blue tunnel. Well, the correct tunnel entrance was facing away from the dog, but jump #4 was an obvious choice, but not correct one. Great run otherwise.

In her Standard course (2nd one), Reagan assumed the teeter was the dogwalk and surprised herself when she ran to the end and it dropped out from under her. I believe this is why she then ducked out of the A-Frame. Neither of these disqualified the run and she placed third.

On Sunday, she ducked out of the teeter, but then came back and teetered smartly. She qualified in that run with a 2nd. However, Reagan also scraped her head.I have no idea how this could have happened on course. I checked the tunnels and the chute and found nothing that would have scraped her head. :-/

We now have 2 months to work on our issues. I am not happy with the A-frame performance. She seems unclear about what to do on the downside and is wasting time by stopping mid way. I also need to work on differentiating the teeter and dog walk, so she does not get surprised on the teeter anymore. Lastly, we need to work more on collection so we can handle those tricky openings.

Riley did great this weekend. She was mostly herself and worked on heeling and fronts ring side.... at least until we saw this on Sunday afternoon:Again, I kind of think it is the smell because she will be walking along and suddenly stops in her tracks at seemingly nothing. Wierd! We will keep working.

Happy Halloween!

2009-10-31T06:00:00.000-04:00

Sweet Travis humoring his Mom a few years ago.