PSmitty Posted April 5, 2016 Report Share Posted April 5, 2016 My dream dog, Alex, Mr Perfect in every way (to me ) is not a super fast agility dog. And, I wouldn't change a thing about him, other than give him more confidence and take away his noise sensitivity, if I could. We did just fine together over our agility career (lots of titles and placements), and if my next dog turns out to be half the dog that Alex is, I'll take it.Ok, I must be feeling sappy today. I miss running my boy (sidelined with injuries and health issues for almost a year). I'm not sure there was a point to my post, other than there is something to be said for moderate pace and consistency, but there's also a lot to be said for speed. I think Slider will be faster than Alex, or at least I hope so. I'm looking forward to the challenge! Kristine, I think you'll have a ton of fun with Bandit. He looks good! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alligande Posted April 5, 2016 Report Share Posted April 5, 2016 I started with a slowish border collie, I thought my handling wasn't bad until I started running sequences with my current dog and I realized I needed new trainer and a whole other level of skill to get the best from both of us. 5 years on I am still learning still pushing, I can do things I never thought possible, we only run flat out, it's the only speed possible, other wise he spins bites and clearly knows some foul language! But my god I can't imagine a better adreline rush. I have not come close to ever running my dog to the best of his abilities, but I am always trying to get the skills needed too. Although we are always on the edge of disaster, we always look dramatic and I love every minute of it. I tell people I went from driving a Chevy to Ferrari ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PSmitty Posted April 6, 2016 Report Share Posted April 6, 2016 I started with a slowish border collie, I thought my handling wasn't bad until I started running sequences with my current dog and I realized I needed new trainer and a whole other level of skill to get the best from both of us. I'm sure this will be me, if things go along well with my puppy. LOL Luckily, I have a top notch trainer, and won't need a new one, but I'm looking forward to the challenge. I also think we all become better trainers and handlers on our second dogs (bless those first ones who lived through all the bumbling), so we're at least a little ahead of the curve. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gcv-border Posted April 7, 2016 Report Share Posted April 7, 2016 PSmitty - Alex looks great. Was that video sequential? i.e. were early scenes from earlier in his career, and later scenes from when he was more experienced. To me, he ran faster and more confidently towards the end of the video and your handling was also better. Good job! I am so glad to hear from other handlers that they also have a fast, powerful dog that can be a handful to handle because the sheer speed is unforgiving. I have often felt alone in that boat and thought I was a really poor handler. Maybe not so bad? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alligande Posted April 7, 2016 Report Share Posted April 7, 2016 I am so glad to hear from other handlers that they also have a fast, powerful dog that can be a handful to handle because the sheer speed is unforgiving. I have often felt alone in that boat and thought I was a really poor handler. Maybe not so bad? A few weeks ago, I was working with my students on a sequence I had trained on myself with a Spanish world team member, it involved some hard running and a blind cross, with my dog when I turned on that blind he was already airborne for the jump, two students were complaining that they could not do it as their dogs were fast, so I borrowed their dogs. One a lovely little Jack Russell I got so far ahead of him, I lost him! And the other a border collie, I had all the time in the world on that blind. Made me feel good, there are times I wonder if all my training is actually improving my timing and skills, that evening I realized I had lots of skills, just a very big and fast dog, and it made my much younger students try again and stop complaint about the speed of their dogs! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PSmitty Posted April 7, 2016 Report Share Posted April 7, 2016 PSmitty - Alex looks great. Was that video sequential? i.e. were early scenes from earlier in his career, and later scenes from when he was more experienced. To me, he ran faster and more confidently towards the end of the video and your handling was also better. Good job! Yes, it was sequential. (and there is a super awkward Snooker run in the beginning, that when I rewatched, couldn't figure out why I included it, but yes, we did get better. ) Thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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