Thursday, January 31, 2013

Stout's Rally Miracle!

Yes, a Rally miracle  :)
 
 
 
We scored an 87 in Stout's Rally debut!
 
I really should stop underestimating him... I mean, just look at the video below - no sniffing, no knocking over signs, no peeing on cones, no humping my leg, very little barking. He did not do any of the things that I had feared  :)
 
He just prances along, happy as could be! He did try to throw in a "prairie dog" & did bite the leash once, but I was ecstatic with his run. Even more thrilled with his attitude  :) Good boy!





So did you notice my confusion at about 1:16?  :)  Yep, according to the map below I turned the wrong way on the 270. I wondered why I was facing the wrong direction. And I didn't remember there being a Rally sign for a 450 degree turn  :)

Yep, I lost more points than Stout... I cost him what would have been a 97  :)



I could have re-done the sign for only a 3 point loss, but at the time I wasn't sure I did mess up. And I didn't want to ruin our flow. I could kind of start to feel things going down hill, so I just wanted to hurry up & get out of there! I didn't want Stout's first time in the ring to end in frustration.

Can I say again how thrilled I am? I know it's just one novice Rally leg, but I think it was a good start to his performance career!


 
 
Oh, and a funny story from our warm-up outside the ring: While we were practicing, Stout was his usual exhuberant self - barking, jumping, etc. Now I know there's no barking in obedience. And there shouldn't be in rally either, so I was trying to tone him down.
 
But this lady comes up to me and says very condescendingly "He can't bark in the ring."
 
I say "I'm aware of that. Thank you."
 
She says "He will lose a point for every bark. He cannot bark in there."
 
I say "Yeah, I know. But if that's the worst thing he does, I'll be happy." And I walked away.
 
Come on lady, it's only rally  :)  I'm sure she was disgusted by our score...

9 comments:

  1. way to go!!

    who was that woman of negativity? yeesh!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You can comment now! :)

      You know Stout, he's always got a lot to say!

      Delete
  2. He was such a good boy and he was so happy--watching him made me smile, and so did the judge. Great job, Stouter-puss!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I remember hearing some snickers from the sidelines... and even one from the judge :) Especially when he laid down, without quite letting his elbows hit the ground.

      Delete
  3. He did a great job esp. for such a young boy!

    I am thinking of trying for an RA on Wilson and Jimmy this year. I am afraid Jimmy will think I am taking the leash off for the start of an agility run!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The first time I did RA with Porter, there was the jump in the course. As we took our first step off the start, he took off for the jump :) But I was able to call him back & then he figured out it wasn't agility :)

      Delete
  4. You were wonderful! What a great attitude the baby has.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you! He has a wonderful attitude - and a pretty darn good work ethic! He has really surprised me lately with these bouts of maturity :)

      Delete
  5. How fun! And how odd the lady "helping" you. Yeesh. I did obedience with my collie years ago. Coming from a horse show background, I thought the dog shows were great fun, carrying everything I needed in a five gallon bucket :-).

    ReplyDelete