Abby David of Houston is taking on the world with her speed-demon 41/2-year-old black-and-white female Border Collie “Bungee” (IAC2 IWAC Spitfire’s Taking The Leap CSS Agility Bronze Jumping Silver Games Bronze AX MXJ XF TD FM RM AAD).
The world of dog agility, that is.
She is thrilled they have made Team USA for the third consecutive year and to be headed to Givrins, Switzerland, June 16 to 22, 2025, to compete in the International Federation of Cynological Sports (IFCS) World Agility Championships (WAC). Abby and Bungee, who jumps the 500 mm (20-inch) height division, are among 18 handler-dog teams who will represent the United States Dog Agility Association, Inc.® (USDAA®) at the iconic international venue.
“Bungee is amazing,” says Abby, of the dog she credits with her return to agility after many years of participating intermittently. “Honestly, I think she just likes to line up at the start line and be with me. We have the best partnership.”
“Abby is like a lot of people on the team who live, eat and breathe agility,” says Janet Gauntt, manager of Team USA, who helped choose the team with a committee headed by herself and Ken Tatsch, founder and president of USDAA. “We are excited about the team’s potential and believe we have put together a team that is capable of many podium placements.”
“We tried out on a whim for the 2023 Team USA,” Abby says. “I had never heard of the World Agility Championships, but someone at Cynosport (Cynosport® Dog Agility World Games Presented by Purina Pro Plan), said, ‘Why don’t you try out?’, so we did.”
It was a “pinch-me” moment when she learned they made the team.
“Before we went, I would get ‘imposter syndrome,’” Abby says. “Bungee helped me realize that we are good enough to do this together.”
In her international debut, Bungee, who was then 3 years old, notched a silver medal in Individual Jumpers at the IFCS WAC in 2023 in Newark, England.
The trip almost did not happen.
“Before going to England, Bungee underwent physical therapy for an injury to the supraspinatus muscle of her left shoulder that caused calcification of the tendons and limping,” Abby says. “I wasn’t sure we would be able to go, but we managed to do all the correct things to make her strong.”
Right away, they were hooked on the team camaraderie and spirit of sportsmanship of the event that draws elite competitors from around the world. This year’s WAC is expected to host 14 countries, including teams from Australia and Russia who are expected to return to WAC after a long absence.
“Technically at WAC, we are competing against one another, but the members of Team USA are very supportive. The team really bonds, and we have such fun,” Abby says. “By the end of the event, all the teams are celebrating together, cheering for one another.”
Abby recalls getting Bungee at 8 months of age, after her first owner returned her to the breeder.
“Her breeder is one of my best friends,” Abby says. “She knew I was on the list for a dog. She said, ‘I think you should just give her a try.’
“Bungee came as a mini-adult dog,” says Abby, of her constant sidekick when she’s not working as a trauma nurse. “She never had any puppy tendencies.”
The good-natured Border Collie sprinted through foundation agility training while transforming to a new life filled with purpose and affection. Meanwhile, Abby rediscovered her love for agility after many years of not having a dog to train and show.
“During college and for a few years later, I would hang out at shows with my mom, who does agility with her Doberman Pinschers, and often someone would say, ‘Hey, can you run my dog for me?’” Abby says.
“I actually did not come back to agility full time until I got Bungee,” she adds.
As a girl, Abby saw agility on TV and wanted her own dog to try the sport.
After a year training a family friend’s Shetland Sheepdog in obedience, a litmus test of her commitment, Abby’s parents allowed her to get her first dog, a Doberman Pinscher she named “Penny,” when she was 12 years old.
Their natural talent shined through in conformation, agility and obedience. At the Houston World Series of Dog Shows, they won Best Junior in conformation.
Abby’s strategy to prepare Bungee for WAC incorporates her best practices.
“Everyone has a different training mantra,” she says. “We are working on conditioning and making sure Bungee is fit and healthy as can be. We do underwater treadmill, conditioning and physical therapy every two weeks.”
In terms of practicing skills, “we do coursework one time a week or every two weeks,” Abby says. “It’s already hot in Texas, and everywhere we train is outdoors, so it’s hard to ask her to do an entire course. We work on skills like jumps, contacts and weave poles once or twice every two weeks.”
Abby concedes that though Bungee loves running agility best with her, she truly enjoys the sport immensely.
“Any of my friends can take her, and once they step up to the start line, she’s willing to show them agility is the best sport in the world in her mind,” Abby says. “Bungee always gives 110 percent.”
Bungee will have a chance to prove her love of agility at two international venues this summer. After she goes with Abby to WAC in Switzerland, she is traveling to the Junior Open Agility World Championship July 9 to 13 in Abrantes, Portugal, to compete with junior handler Katie Williamson of New Orleans.
As for Bungee’s future, Abby says, “She’s done everything I’ve ever asked of her. Anything after this is just a gift.”
Importantly, Bungee melted Abby’s feelings of imposter syndrome.
“She’s taught me we are good enough to do this together,” Abby says. “Bungee has been the biggest blessing of my life.”
