The Obedience Match

Yesterday I went to an obedience match...my first one in several years. With Saber retired and out of commission, Star too old and retired, and Daisy Mae focused on agility, and not seeming to be motivated to do obedience, there was no reason to do so. But, I decided that I hadn't done much training with Daisy Mae, and I should give it another shot.

Since this match is held by this club each year on the 4th of July, many people come very year. It was wonderful to see so many people that I haven't seen in years! I think for many of us, the social aspect is as important as the dog training aspect. This was also my Corgi puppy Pirouette's first agility match! This match was well-run, and over before noon...very important in Sacramento...which is hot at this time of the year.

One thing I had forgotten is that, for many dogs, obedience is a "punitive" sport. Any mistake is corrected with pops and jerks, with seemingly no effort to understand why a dog did what they did...or didn't do. Obviously the dog didn't care or didn't chose to do what the handler wanted and deserved to be punished. The scary thing is that I came from that background! It certainly is not where I am as a dog trainer today. And it made me very uncomfortable to be around people who were doing that. But the upside is it made me really think about how I am training. I do know that, if that is what I have to do to get my dog to perform, it just isn't worth it!

Pirouette

In October of 2014, I lost my beautiful Corgi, Star, at the age of 15 1/2 years. Losing a dog you have had for that long is very painful. We had a great life together, and I had no regrets...I just missed her!
When I got Star, at the age of 3 months, I did not set out to find a Corgi. She was bred by one of my students, who wanted to place her once she found out that Star was going to be a "fluffy" (long hair) and could not be shown in conformation. I loved Star's "mom" Lacey, and decided that as a trainer I needed to train a small dog...so Star came home with me. Once I learned about this breed's intelligence, willingness as a worker, and ability to train and compete in a variety of venues, I was sold! Star's passing left me with a Corgi-sized hole in my heart.

 In January I started my search, not knowing how long it would take, and not being in a hurry to bring home just any Corgi. I was looking for a smaller Corgi (hopefully to jump 8" in agility). I wanted a dog with lots of energy, but a sweetness that would allow her to be sweet and lovable, as well as a good worker. As it turns out I found the total package in a December litter, bred by a long time competitor-friend Christine Johnson, Goldenroad Corgis. I chose Pirouette as she was the most outgoing, the most energetic, the most energetic and the most inquisitive. That selection was made when the litter was 5 weeks old, and reconfirmed when they were 8 weeks old. She came home with me at the age of 10 weeks. After her third night in my home, she was sleeping through the night. 

She has learned most of what I teach in puppy class in the first 3-4 weeks, and is now training in Agility, Rally and Obedience. Her training is more like play...I don't think she knows its training...she just thinks we play lots of games with cookies! Almost more important than the training for various competitions is the training between her and Daisy Mae, my 6 1/2 year old German Shepherd, and current competition dog. Daisy Mae has never really had a dog to play with, except playing chase with Saber when they were young. I am so happy with the results of this ongoing training!