Classes

A belated thank-you. 13/09/2011

 "In order to really enjoy a dog, one doesn't merely try to train him to be semihuman. The point of it is to open oneself to the possibility of becoming partly a dog."

- Edward Hoagland

So this will be the first video of what I hope will be many from the training classes I hold. Who better to start it off than my boyfriend Jamie and his West Highland Terrier Paddy.

I haven’t mentioned Jamie much on this, even though he is one of the reasons I am able to teach anyway. I would never be able to move the equipment or set up courses without him, but not only that he has proven to be a natural when it comes to teaching (sort of whether he likes it or not). Since meeting me he hasn’t really had much say in the matter when it came to agility or dogs, it comes as part of the package. I teach two nights a week and compete at shows throughout the year. I also have two spaniels, one of which has been the main man in my life for the last seven years. Jamie has to love dogs whether he likes it or not. Thankfully for me, he does, and he was one of the first ones that I began to teach.

When we first started with his dog, it became apparent pretty quick that, whether it is the breed, or whether it was just Paddy, there wasn’t a great deal of drive to want to do anything physical. Paddy loves a squeaky toy, so that became his reward, and slowly but surely we got him interested in everything. One of the main things is his jumping, for whatever reason Paddy doesn't flow, he runs to a jump, hesitates, than takes it, it’s something we have worked on for the last 8 months, and boy has he come on!. Although in the video the course is fairly simple, what is great to watch is how far Jamie is able to get away from him, and he still takes the jump. We previously found when Jamie stopped Paddy stopped. So we’ve worked a lot on trying to keep him moving even when Jamie isn't.

I have always been harder on Jamie in class, I think it’s because I know he can do better; he gets lazy, and tends to just ignore what I’m shouting. Though the only reason I push is because I can see how well they can do, and how much they’ve progressed already. There also sort of my make or break handlers, it shows that we must be doing something right!

I am yet to convince him that it’s time to start taking Paddy to shows to get him acclimatised, they have both come on so much since they started and I’m very proud.