The little mico-journey that Hoot and I have been traveling lately involves her sense of proper-ness (for lack of a better term). Hoot, like many border collies has certain expectations and needs for certain things to be done a certain way.
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| Hoot on the field |
Hoot believes that certain things happen on the agility field and it isn't agility. Some mornings I let the dogs out on the field so that they can stretch their legs and run. Hoot has developed the belief that the agility field is for herding the other dogs or watching over things. Certainly not for playing with me.
Am I worried about this? Not at all. The nice things that comes with having trained a number of dogs is patience, the knowledge that I can change this behavior, and the wisdom to know that a ton of things in a puppy's life are just phases (like kids).
I went out to the agility field knowing that I would get this same behavior out of her. Sitting, at a distance from me, and watching the field. I didn't bring the other dogs out to keep the stimulation level manageable. I went to the north side of our property which is only used for playing Frisbee with the dogs (no equipment) and called her. I slapped the toy on the ground, ran and soon she was biting my ankles :) We played tug and chase.
We gradually moved this game into the agility field and keeping engaged the whole time. I gave her a mini-break while I set up a cone. (I have used the cone inside, send her around, and tug with her.) Called her again, slapped the toy and ran. She once again chased me.
Soon we were playing games around the cone ON THE AGILITY FIELD.
One of the many things that I love about this dog is her ability to progress in learning so quickly.
We will play this game several more times, each time starting with more of a challenge. I am confident she will understand that the agility field is for so much more than just herding dogs. And that I am a valuable part of that experience.
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