Pat and Emilu

**ObedienceLabs4Me** · 06-07-2010, 04:14 PM

How did things go Sunday?

**patm** · 06-07-2010, 06:26 PM

Well...... not as good as Saturday. She was "OK" until the broad jump, which she slowly walked. I knew she was going to and actually tried to get a second command in, but it was too late. I should have asked the judge if we could try it again, but he wasn't the most personable judge. I 'm not sure he cracked a smile the whole day. He did make the comment after she walked the jump that "now I don't have to worry so much about how many points to take off for all that lagging" (in her heeling) And THEN - she laid down on the long sit!!!!! She has NEVER done that - it was always the think that I didn't have to worry about. But she was very hot, and I think had done all she was going to do out there. Only one dog qualified out of 10, the same one that got first place on Saturday. But I am rejuvinated and Emilu will probably get a "Q" every once in a while - just enough to keep me going

**ObedienceLabs4Me** · 06-07-2010, 06:58 PM

I cannot tell you how unimpressed I was with that judge. It was terrible!!! I can't believe he said that to you! How rude!

**patm** · 06-07-2010, 07:22 PM

I think he was actually trying to make a little joke

**Milesmom** · 06-08-2010, 05:23 AM

Pat, I don't understand why some judges are just not nice. Isn't this supposed to be something we do for fun?

I have found my dog to be very heat sensitive. As soon as it gets hot, his performance deteriorates, especially if it is humid. I am doing a C-WAGs trial this weekend mainly to support the people putting it on so I am keeping my fingers crossed for the weather. I have also found with obedience that by day 2, he gets a little bored.
As for the heeling. My dog tends to have a big lagging problem. One trainer who was video taping me asked me if I like heeling. I said, not really. She said that I need to learn to like heeling. Honestly, it is something I tend to slack on because working on things like the broad jump, DOR, directed jumping is so much more interesting. Anyway, I've decided to re-add "step by step" heeling and more clicker training with my heeling to each day's training session and it seems to have improved our heeling a great deal! Another drill I did was putting him in a sit or stand stay, walking away and calling him to heel position and clicking and treating when he gets there. The idea (I think) there is to build the drive to find heel position on their own. In any case, once it gets hot, it is hard to motivate for heeling.

Good luck and congratulations on your Q! I know you'll get that CDX!!