Reruns

My last post apparently ruffled a lot of feathers, which is sort of funny really, since most of the offended parties weren’t the people I was thinking of when writing. Strange how that happens, isn’t it? None of the offended people spoke to me directly either in response. I stand by what I said however. There are a lot of issues in flyball, some which are just topics of debate that I haven’t made my mind up about (ie. the NAFA/European swing) but some which are genuine problems (and the issues which aren’t problems are much less pressing than those which are, but that also seems open for debate). I heard lots of stories at Drax about all the temper tantrums from various people, and whether those things happened or not, the fact I was being told about them was a case in point. And yes, this all happens in agility too, and yes, I know I’ve participated in being part of the problem. Whether I want to continue to be part of that kind of community is one of the many questions I’m considering with regards to my future to flyball.

Either way I’ll be going to the Rocket Relay seminar (hopefully). It’s too good an opportunity to miss, Kelly and Aaron are amazing trainers and I do tend to feel all motivated after the seminars!

Now that’s all cleared up (hmm, I’m sure!), I have been working on heelwork with everyone bar Kim. Rally isn’t something I’m wildly enthusiastic about, but it’s definitely offering some training challenges. I try and remember Silvia Trkman’s attitude to heelwork: “It’s much harder to motivate your dog for long minutes of just heeling. If you want to learn about motivation, obedience is a way to go.”

So, my rough sort of goal is to enter a few Rally trials next year, just the local ones. Rio does not find obedience very exciting, but again, see quote. I am trying to make it exciting, and I just liking working with my puppy. Mollie will be able to play as well, since she has great heelwork (she came ready trained), and there is nothing a partially sighted dog can’t do in Rally. Dyl and I are practising as well, but Dylan’s stride is too long for my stumpy legs, we aren’t good partners for heelwork!

I’ve also been working on Rio’s target for boxwork again, we haven’t done anything in months and it’s a bit shaky. Need more hours in the day to do all this training.