Classes Week 3
I’m behind posting for this week.
We’re having so much fun in classes. Contacts and Weaves is getting old. It’s a class I’ve taken probably 10 times with Cisco over the years and always gotten a ton out of, but with Riot, I’m not getting as much out of it as I’d like. His weaves are coming along really nicely outside of class and different environments don’t seem to be effecting his ability to weave. Because of all the additional activity, it’s hard to work entrances which is what we need the most work on. We do need more work on contacts, but I don’t think we’re getting enough time on the equipment in class. He’s weak on the right side of the a frame and is much more likely to pop off than on the left. I really need more than 3-4 times over the a-frame in a class to work on this. He has no fear of the teeter which is great. And he has a really good dog walk.
Handling 2 is becoming the class I love and hate. For being as young and inexperienced as he is, he is doing really, really well. I’m getting much better at timely corrections when he tries to switch sides on me and he’s starting to work better on the right. Serpentines are still our weakness. Looking at his start line stay, you’d think he was part border collie — he’s just raring to go! We’ve got some great looking lead-outs. He’s also teaching me a lot about handling along the way. This weeks sequences were taken from this past weekends steeplechase openings. They were pretty challenging and lots of fun.
Last night we threw bumpers since I got home late and didn’t have time for much else. Riot is doing really well, he’s got great enthusiasm for the game. I finally figured out that if I turn around and run just a few steps then I can turn around and ask him to give me the bumper and I’ll have it delivered to hand. If I stand still, he drops it 5-10 feet in front of me every time. Amazing what a difference a couple of steps can make. I know force fetch should fix this issue, but at the same time, I do want him to get used to the concept of giving them to me and not dropping. We have field training on Saturday. It’s the first one we’ve made since the Gaylan’s reunion in August. I’m hoping he’ll decide to bring a bumper back to me and that he picks up a duck instead of rolling on it.
