Preparing for the Animalia Games was something that many Animalians that were participating in was extensive and to a degree continuous. Abby continued to train as best she could, particularly with regard to swimming. Her parents may not fully understand her choice of event, but she still She knew that horses were good swimmers in that they wouldn't instantly panic and drown if dropped in water, but that didn't mean they were well adapted for it. Their large size and narrow legs, which allowed for great speed and stamina on land didn't translate over well into the water. Her impressive bust also hampered her ability to try and increase her speed in the water, both from the sense that her bosom itself was a source of drag that slowed her down.
That didn't stop her from training and working to improving her time. She knew that she could run well, but swimming and biking would be her potential trouble spots. The spots for swimming were obvious, but Abby also had some worries over biking, and they related to her tail. Unlike Sarah and Malice how had a great deal of control over their tails and that the fur on their tails wasn't super long, Abby's tail, like all horse's tails was pretty much long hairs. Abby had the concern that the hair that made her tail would get caught in the bike's gears and lead to disastrous consequences. She had some ideas on how to counter and prevent that, but she couldn't really test them until the bike arrived, so that left her with practicing to improve her swimming.
As Abby finished one set of laps in the pool she soon caught a series of more soft footfalls. They sounded closer to Sarah or Malice's footfalls, but Abby didn't hear the clicking of any toe claws the way she could hear with Sarah and Malice. This meant that whoever was coming had padded feet but didn't have any obvious claws. She peered her head up above the edge of the pool to see that the person approaching her was one of the uplifted tigresses from the zoo. The tigress was almost as big as Abby and was actually dressed in a one piece swimsuit that looked to fit her fairly well.
"Uh... hello... I haven't taken up your time, have I?" Abby asked sounding a little nervous.
Instinctively, Abby had felt fairly secure around many of Animalia's predators, but then she also had a massive physical advantage in strength over the uplifted wolves, coyotes, and even the uplifted mountain lions like Clara, and she could also easily outrun the uplifted bears if things came down to such a confrontation. This tigress, however, was a different issue. Abby wasn't that much bigger than her and from the various documentaries she'd occasionally seen, she knew that the big cats like tigers and lions specifically tended to hunt prey that was often bigger than horses.
"No," the tigress said simply, "and you have no need to worry. I've already eaten. Human steakhouses are very fine restaurants, though they always seem puzzled why I ask for no sides."
Abby watched as the tigress simply walked forward and took a small hop to drop into the water. She also noted that the tigress actually looked over her shoulder as she went into the pool. She eventually surfaced and shook her head as she did so.
"Are you competing in the triathlon too?" Abby asked.
"Yes," the tigress answered, "and figured to practice a bit."
The tigress then looked to Abby as she threaded water.
"Would you like some advice?" the tigress offered.
"I wouldn't mind," Abby answered, "The swimming part is my weakest event in the triathlon."
The tigress nodded and held up one paw, which to Abby's surprise had some webbing between her fingers. The tigress's greenish gold eyes remained focused forward as the two of them floated in the water.
"You seem to be trying too much with your feet... but with only one toe, it's too narrow for that to be effective," the tigress commented, "you'd be better suited to use a stroke that plays more to your upper body strength rather than your legs, as your hands do seem to have your fingers to allow for using them as a sort of paddle."
Abby blinked and then looked down at her own hands. Her fingers were thicker than they were when she was human and far stronger with thick fingernails that could function like her hooves if need be. She had tried to use her arms more when swimming, but she did privately admit that her specific strokes were still more to using the more powerful muscles in her legs. As she thought over it, the tigress's suggestion didn't sound too bad. She didn't think there was any rule that said what kind of swimming stroke to use.
"That may be one to try... though I may need to talk with the swim couch," Abby commented, "though I saw her head out with one of the uplifted dolphins... I think her name is Stephanie when I came in to practice."
"I can help," the tigress offered.
"Really?" Abby said in surprise.
"Yes," the tigress nodded, "we tigers do enjoy water, as it helps us stay cool in the summer and the Animalian Games is something that could be very good for competition. My mate is in the wrestling events in the heavy weight section. I figured this might be a bit more challenging and a good test of strength and endurance."
"Wouldn't running then be the more important training?" Abby wondered.
"On land, yes," the tigress answered, "but before my uplifting I wasn't carrying such large orbs on my chest. My mate likes them..."
"But they slow you down in water," Abby nodded and watched the tigress nod in agreement. "So... why are you helping me?"
"Any event should be competitive," the tigress answered, "think of it... suppose you're in a foot race against a human. Would that really be fun for you, knowing you'll beat the human easily?"
Abby blinked and then nodded, "I suppose that wouldn't be fun for either of us."
"So, I'll help you swim faster and we'll all be able to overcome the challenges of competition," the tigress smiled, "now let's begin."
And Abby then followed the tigress who began demonstrating the strokes that would help her swim faster. Over the course of the week of practice with the uplifted tigress, who Abby learned was named Durga, Abby's swim times began to improve and grow better. Abby also offered to give Durga some tips to help the tigress, who like all cats was better at sprints than long distance running, improve her endurance with regard to running.