Dream Run

I took Maggie to a Show and Go Saturday to work on her speed issues. I planned on doing the course and stopping to treat every 3 obstacles to get her charged up. I did treat her a few times, but she was flying regardless. It was the run of my dreams. She flew through the weaves and didn't stick on any obstacles. We finished the course and still had 35 seconds to play around out of our 90 seconds.

There were so many things that were different from a show that I cannot figure out what got her happy. The dog in front of us was one of her buddies. There were no other dogs waiting with us. I played with her before we went into the ring and she actually flopped on her back for belly rubs.

At a show, the gate is crowded with strange people and dogs. The atmosphere is very charged. She is constantly looking around at the other dogs. I am tense although I try not to be.

In the ring, I had treats in my pocket.  There was no judge hovering around. There were no crowds in the stands right next to the ring. It was quiet. No barking dogs. No loud speaker announcements. No squealing pigs. Yes, we've had to deal with a pig auction at a show.

At a show, it is incredibly noisy with barking dogs. There is always a judge and Maggie takes a moment on the obstacles to look at him or her. The weave poles are usually near a grandstand where dogs and people are sitting.

It would be so easy if there was just one thing I could target, but on our second flying run, Maggie stopped on a dime and buried her nose in the ground and would not get it out no matter what I did. I had to pick her up and carry her out of the ring. She had dug up some little ball of crap and was getting ready to devour it. Ugh.

At a show, I put Vicks on her nose to reduce her sniffing.

The highest of highs and the lowest of lows. That's our Maggie.