The Dog of Destiny flies!

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Steve007
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The Dog of Destiny flies!

Post by Steve007 » Wed Jul 03, 2019 10:23 am

This is obviously a bird dog forum, but it is summer and there is a lot to be said for cross training, especially if it benefits the dog and owner under all conditions. My noble Wirehair is certainly a bird dog. However, he is also a competition obedience dog at the highest levels.

There are, for the benefit of those who don't know, four levels of AKC obedience competition; BN (Beginner Novice), Novice (CD- Companion Dog title), Open (CDX-Companion Dog Excellent title ) and Utility (UD – Utility Dog title). Each of these has two classes in competition, A for inexperienced dogs trying for the title and B for experienced dogs who already have the title at that level. Exercises to qualify are different for each and obviously are at ascending levels of difficulty.

My wirehair got his UD title six months ago, but because "B" is much more difficult, the competition much much stiffer and because the judges have "sharpened pencils", we quit competing for six months and just trained until I thought we were good enough to compete at this level. We were in four trials the past two weekends, and qualified at two with good scores. NQs (non-qualifying scores) were mostly due-- darn me! – to handle errors or are easily fixable. With improvement on both our parts, we can be competitive at this extreme upper echelon level.

This sort of training -- all levels , not just Utility -- is fun for both handler and dog, greatly improves communication and interaction, is highly useful in normal life and is greatly recommended. If you like your dog and want a fun activity during non-bird season, you ought to give it a try.

Here are a few photos. Two more in the next post. As a sub comment, he is a TPLO surgery survivor (I have posted on this before) and two years ago, could not walk. You can see why competition at this level under these circumstances qualifies-- if not quite as a "brag" --, at least as a "proud of my dog", who is a great guy and a hard worker with a good work ethic.

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Last edited by Steve007 on Wed Jul 03, 2019 1:19 pm, edited 2 times in total.

Steve007
Rank: 5X Champion
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Re: The Dog of Destiny flies!

Post by Steve007 » Wed Jul 03, 2019 10:24 am

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Featherfinder
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Re: The Dog of Destiny flies!

Post by Featherfinder » Thu Jul 04, 2019 4:45 am

Wow...congrats!! That looks very cool! You must have put a lot of work into this. Good to see you & your dog rewarded.

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Sharon
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Re: The Dog of Destiny flies!

Post by Sharon » Mon Jul 29, 2019 1:03 pm

Those pics are great! Thanks. :)
" We are more than our gender, skin color, class, sexuality or age; we are unlimited potential, and can not be defined by one label." quote A. Bartlett

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mtlhdr
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Re: The Dog of Destiny flies!

Post by mtlhdr » Mon Jul 29, 2019 2:49 pm

Very cool! Congrats!!

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NEhomer
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Re: The Dog of Destiny flies!

Post by NEhomer » Tue Jul 30, 2019 5:53 am

Very nice, thanks for posting.

I know that obedience dogs LOVE to do what they do so this is just a joke but but one day I was musing over what would be a funny Onion headline:

Obedience Trials Dog Fed Up With Owners Giant Power Trip

"....at first it kind of seemed worth it for the treats but then...."

Again, just a funny I thought I'd share. Congratulations on the pay off for all that time.

Steve007
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Re: The Dog of Destiny flies!

Post by Steve007 » Tue Jul 30, 2019 12:51 pm

Thank you for the comments. I was beginning to think my noble dog was being ignored. Serious obedience training – regardless of the level – not only greatly improves communication between yourself and the dog in the field; it makes him a much better house dog as well.

I well remember my non-dog person wife saying when I got this dog as a young adult, "this dog is crazy!" She honestly thought he was mentally deranged, when in fact, he was just a dog with no training. She now thinks he is perfect, and always has been. You can't find a better all-around house dog (and office dog, in my case) than a genuine advanced-level obedience dog. Bird season is not 12 months a year. And as the joke goes, it's only work if you'd rather be doing something else.

I'll admit it is funny when I'm walking him in my suburban location, and pet people say how "lucky" I am to have a dog that "minds." Yep. Just luck.

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