That just about sums up my thoughts at the moment. I finished up a beginner 1 agility course with Parker just a few weeks ago, and I'm hooked! I really wanted to do something with him that didn't involve Skye. Parker is such a momma's boy, which I love, but it's been hard for him to adjust to having a sister. He's a trooper, and I thought doing agility would be a good way for us to spend time together, while he gets to use his smart little brain to learn new things. As I expected, Parker was a teacher's pet and loved to show off. His only downfall was his need to check in with me between obstacles, which I think will get better as he becomes more confident. Once the class was over, I decided to try something with Skye. I'd love to get into flyball or rally obedience, but I'll have to wait to try those with future dogs. Neither of mine are really good matches, which makes me sad. Skye's clutzy nature also made me reluctant to do agility, but I thought I'd give it a try.
Sadly, the beginner 1 class was full, so on top of her personal shortcomings, we decided to put her in a more advanced class. I had a chance to practice once ahead of time, but she was nowhere near where she should have been. We had the first official class earlier this week, and WOW! I've never been more proud of my little girl. She did the entire course (much slower than everyone else) off leash! Her fearless nature was balanced with her recently acquired ability to focus when I ask her to, and I was pleasantly surprised. Now I have two little agility champs in the making- go team!
But enough about my little oddballs- anyone out there involved in dog sports? I saw a demo of dock diving dogs, and thought it was basically the greatest thing ever. What do you do purely for your dogs? How do you let them enjoy their natural talents? For me it's such a relationship boost- we're just having fun. The most stress I feel is when I send her through the tunnel, and wonder if she'll come out the correct end. Definitely not a bad way to spend an hour.
Luce my little red pit bull does rally and some regular obedience. I wish that I could do agility and weight pull with her, but she has bad knees and can't physically handle either.
ReplyDeleteSteve the Border Collie lives to play flyball. It's not my favorite sport in the world, but he thinks it is the best thing EVER, so we play. I'm also making him do rally because that's what I want to do, and we've taken a few agility classes. I think he'll be a good agility dog once I find a class that is a better fit for us. I'd also like to try dock diving and weight pull with him.
Mushroom holds down the couch. He's not really of the sport dog mentality, and that's fine. He's an awesome pet dog, so that's his venue.
When she gets old enough, I'm hoping my girl will be a good candidate for agility. I don't think I want to do it competitively, but mostly just for fun. For now, she's excelling at in-home Nose Work, which is amazingly fun to watch. She has a blast. :)
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