Cheer for the Underdogs
Today’s National Underdog Day- weird day, I know, but hey! every dog has their day!
There are definite ‘underdogs’ in Agility- and we’re not talking about the dogs that like to duck under the bars! Some dogs don’t take to agility like ducks to water. They enjoy it, they do their best, but somehow, they just can’t make that Q, or they bounce off their contact every time in class. They run time after time, and never quite make it.
This post is for you. It may take a while, but what’s important isn’t the Q’s, it’s your dog and you doing agility together. At the end of the run, your dog tried to please you, and isn’t that what counts? That said- cheer for the underdog! Every time a dog does agility, they’re a champion in my book. It’s not easy! And so long as you don’t give up, your dog won’t either. You’ll learn a lot along the way, and all of us are cheering for you, too. When underdogs win, they win *big* Keep up the good work!
Share your underdog story!
I have a wonderful, smart, WORRIED sheltie. He’s obedient, rarely makes errors (unless I do) but he gets so anxious he begins stutter-stepping at jumps. This, of course, kills us on time. He has novice titles in AKC at both his regular and preferred jump heights, and he has two of three scores he needs for his Open titles at his regular height, and in preferred standard. He has his Open Jumpers, preferred title.
He will be three in January and I started competing with him a year ago last November. He seemed to become more and more uncomfortable as the year went on, so I decided to quit taking him. He was obviously unhappy. I still take him to one agility class a week and we are going to try some Rally which he seems to enjoy. I am not sure, however, that taking to agility trials is fair, since he never seems to be happy and I don’t want to be an evil stage mother!
My underdog story is my dog is 2 years old and gets the zoomies on the agility field. At a fun match in the Spring all she did was run wild on the course, blew me off, only did like 1-2 obstacles. She had a blast though!
Then in the fall we participated in our first NADAC trial. There was not a large turnout, so the atmosphere was very relaxed, and our judge was awesome–taking time to teach us as the day went along. We signed up for more runs as the days progressed and by the end of the day Sat and Sun my dog was hitting 90% of the obstacles and zooming way less. The last run of the weekend was tunnelers and she hit EVERY tunnel as directed except one when she ran it in the wrong direction. BUT WHO CARES! She went to every obstacle in order! It was so exhilarating!
She will turn 3 in a few days and will be out of her “terrible 2s” , and hopefully soon outgrow the zoomies!
Underdog story: Lily is a mixed breed with a lot of Shelty. Two years ago when I adopted this rescue dog, I had to carry her across the threshold of her new home, as she was too frightened to walk. A visit to the vet showed she had an upper respiratory infection, worms, malnutrition and was pregnant to boot! She was afraid of everyday sounds, from the slam of a car door to the ding of the microwave. We started agility a year ago. She was cautious, methodical, and slow…tail down, ears back, afraid of every obstacle but the dog walk! Without warning, recently the “new Lily” emerged. With tail high and ears up, she started zooming, not always taking obstacles in the right order, but taking them all without hesitation. She crested the A-frame and looked around, as if surveying her new world. She’s letting me know that I must become a “new handler.” We don’t compete; she’s already a winner!
Me and my dog Cider love agility! She is great at the jumps, but can’t quite get the weave poles down. We just love being together!