Tuesday, November 26, 2013

Monday's Trial...and Tribulations

This weekend was Monday's debut into AKC Beginner Novice and oh gee what a debut it was :).

We crashed and burned...

Image  found on Wikicommons: Fir0002/Flagstaffotos

All joking aside, it wasn't actually horrible - I have seen other people's dogs behave worse in the ring. And at the end of the day she was happy to be in the ring, there weren't any signs of major stress, and she was eager to work with me. She just couldn't gather herself enough to focus for the first few minutes in the ring - which is enough to garner us a non-qualifying run. And she couldn't handle the stay, which I knew going in would be a problem.

High Points

  • She handled the show environment pretty well and wasn't reactive at all on Sunday.
  • She stayed in the sit-stay while I walked all the way around the ring, she only stood up when I started walking towards her (which is huge for her!) both days.
  • She did the sit for exam perfect both days.
  • She did great on the recall
  • She was excited to be at the show both days and eager to work with me.

Low Points

  • She had a lot of problem with heeling (which is one of her strengths!!) and was very curious about the whole ring and all the distractions.
  • She forgot what a front was on Saturday, she remembered on Sunday but it was delayed.

But hey we had more high points than low points and now we know what kind of things are going to hard for her to handle. Life has been really crazy at my house lately so I was also at major fault here because I didn't put enough time into her training as I should have. Bad Erin!

But now we have a new goal - qualifying at the upcoming February show! :)

I'm ready whenever you are!!





4 comments:

  1. I'm impressed. My dogs and I are so not prepared for something like this. I love seeing others succeed though :) Gives me hope for me. Our dogs are easy to train; me, not so much.

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    1. Ah, you'd be surprised :). I am definitely the weaker link on our team but as long as I keep it fun for Monday she'll never know the difference. The show atmosphere is really difficult to prepare for and is super distracting - I still can't get over how all those dogs get along so well in such close quarters!

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  2. Your Pit Bull is amazing. Do you know which bloodline your dog comes from. At least you have participated better luck next time at the show :)

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    1. Nope, I have no idea. She came through a rescue organization - she was abandoned in an apartment.

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