Grace is a wonderful dog, but she is very different than Magic. She can do all the required aspects for Novice, and at times she can do them beautifully, but other times you would think she had no clue at all. We are not consistant together. So do I enter her for the experience, and enjoy the time together, or do I not?
See here is the thing, I enjoy going out and playing with the dogs. We always do our best, but I dont stress over the win or the q or any of that. I truly like going out and having fun with my dogs. Grace LOVES going. Grace gets very happy and very excited, and therefore less likely to be focused and listening. But, that is Grace and I love that about her, and dont know that I want her to lose that excitement even if it does make our times in the ring often interesting. So do we enter and try and hope for the best, or not?
Some people say never enter before you are perfect. I will never be perfect, how can I hold my dogs to that standard. Is it wrong to go out and have fun even if we score 70? In some peoples opinions it is. And I don't hold anything against the people who want to earn perfect scores, but I also dont think that should be a requirement to play. Someday I may be interested in that, but right now, honestly I am not. I would prefer to Q but if I can go, have fun, see improvement, or at worst see what more we really need to work on, I don't think trying/playing is wrong. What do you think?
7 comments:
I figure you go for yourself and the dog, and if you score high and have fun, it's a win. If you score low and have fun, it's still a win! :) Either way, it's spending time with our 4 legged friends that we love dearly! Go for it, and best of luck!
Ditto Sherilyn. You're there for you and your dog, not for anyone else!
There are people who think anything less than a perfect score is a loss. Truly, anything less than an enjoyable time with our dogs is the loss. The most precious thing we have is time. When we give it with love and with enthusiasm, we get it back tenfold. If there is also a Q -- it's the bonus.
I agree with all the other comments. The only thing I would add is that you also need to take into account your financial situation and if you can really afford to enter. If you can, or are willing to eat Ramen or mac n cheese for a while, then do it!
My theory--my dog might not always be 100% ready and we might squeak by with a 171--but my green Q ribbon is the same green Q ribbon that the other person got with a 200. Somedays it's just a really expensive fun match instead of a Q. In the end, do what makes you happy.
if you know your expectations and meet your criteria then you already know the answer!
My personal criteria with Vito is that
a) he knows rings are a fun place to be. i must go to several fun matches/run throughs where he learns that fun things happen in the ring
b) he can do a full novice heel pattern without verbal encouragement during it
c) we have a way to transition between exercises and keep his attention
d) I'm confident in his ability to perform each exercise to a level that could maintain itself many trials without needing to be retrained.
I'm all about the fun and the Q even it's only in the 170's and both times we Q'd, we got either a 3rd or a 4th place...of course, there aren't that many entered in Novice A. I'm not perfect, I'm not a great trainer, therefore, I don't expect the high score and I don't stress over it. I agree with Judy, the ribbon is still green, and I'm having fun and so is my dog, so go and have fun!!
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