Again, another trial, another single Q. We haven't double Q'd in two months??? More??? It is a serious drought! I SO wanted to qualify for AKC Nationals this year. They will be held in PA next spring and that is a totally do-able distance!!! We need 4 double Q's and 500 MACH points and 20 total Q's. Last year by this time we had 6 double Q's and nearly 400 MACH points. I just don't see us catching up at this point. I don't know. I do have a few trials coming up, and certainly feel like we will get 4 double Q's, but the 500 MACH points are going to be tough. We can't get points if we don't Q!!! Yesterday he got 18. Sigh..........
But, I do have some VERY good news!! Heard a rumor yesterday that USDAA is going to make the table positionless. Meaning, just like AKC the dog only has to get ON the table, they don't have to lie down. That has been a major bummer for Spur and for many dogs. In fact, I know some competitors who will not even trial in USDAA because of that stupid rule. It is the ONLY venue in the WORLD to require that. It causes so many dogs to have their person give them a verbal beating to go down, it takes TIME - Spur usually takes about 5 seconds to go down with me having to really get on him about it and it SUCKS. I was to the point I had decided we would never bother to Q in standard ever again! This rule won't start until September and when it will actually take effect, I am not sure. My friend said she heard it from a judge who is on the board. So, hopefully it is a true rumor!! We are PUMPED!!!!
I am also pumped that all our snow has disappeared!! YAY!!!! That has made for a MUCH happier Colby. She was even "running" on our walk yesterday!!! In fact, she has been so happy lately she hasn't needed her xanax to have an appetite and has eaten without it for five days in a row!!! She is definitely feeling better!!!!
Sorry, no new photos, but here is Spur's homework. We worked again on threadles, serps and pushes and he is doing GREAT and then some rear cross work. An exercise that I think was very fun for a dog who isn't keen about RC's.
What Temperature Is Too Hot To Walk Dogs?
2 months ago
Bummer :( I can't say I'm a fan of the QQ, actually it's the reason I have zero interest in AKC. You'll get there though :)
ReplyDeleteI would love it if the table rumor is true!!! I can't say Vito really has an issue with the position on the table, but I see so many sad doggies. Actually I just wish the table disappeared all together! Know of any other rumors?
It's funny, LL and V, I actually enjoy AKC very much. Spur likes it WAY more than most USDAA trials because it is much more crowded. I like having more runs in a day, but our USDAA trials are not as popular and much less crowded. I am also not a big fan of some of the gamble courses designed by USDAA judges. Totally designed to have a dog ignore our training and go against what makes sense. Why some judges do that I don't know. Many will design a course that makes sense and IS about utilizing a send cue and that's cool, but so many design gamble courses that make NO sense. That and I really don't get the pairs class. I enjoy it, it's fun and all, but really half a course?? Huh? So, there are sure some things about USDAA that I don't like and I often enjoy AKC more because Spur has WAY more fans in AKC and the crowd cheers WAY more for him there. USDAA is so often all about BCs. If you don't have a BC, you don't get noticed as much. That I run a mix in AKC is something really special and I have been welcomed there with Spur so much more than I ever thought I would. He has a HUGE AKC fan club. And I sure don't think the QQ thing is bad. The only thing I don't like is when people run slower and more carefully to get the QQ. But, when you run a dog like Spur, who worries some, or one with lots of drive and you train a lot of skills it just isn't possible to run carefully I don't think?? The reason Spur is not getting his QQ lately is often because he is going faster and taking off courses. That is hardly a reason for me to be unhappy!!! :D But, it also shows me that I need to be a little bit earlier and clearer with my cues, because when he DOES take off courses, sometimes it is hard not to let him know. I try to just continue on like nothing happened, but sometimes that isn't always possible in the moment. Like the course where he shot out of the short chute and took a jump on the OTHER side of the weaves. He was supposed to do the weaves. That time I just couldn't easily keep going, as I was on the other side of the weaves, so I had to call him back and that bums him out. But, when he takes an off course tunnel or wrong opening, I can just keep going. Anyway, I very much enjoy AKC!!! I sure like USDAA, too, but there are some things about both venues that bug me and since Spur is happier running at AKC trials I am doing more of them. :D I miss some of my friends in USDAA as there are some awesome people there and the small, intimate trials are fun for ME, but Spur likes it crowded and claustrophobic and LOUD. And our USDAA are rarely like that. I would say the parking lot is half the number of cars at a USDAA trial around here.
ReplyDeleteTo each their own! I certainly agree about the gambles in USDAA, some just make no sense. I LOVE NADAC's Chances courses though as while they are often very difficult distances at the elite level they are still all flowy. Vito likes pairs because he gets to watch another dog go first, but I'm really not sure why the class exists. It does make me sad that the jump heights are so unfriendly to other breeds in USDAA. Very few small dogs and i don't blame them.
ReplyDeleteI just personally don't like the QQ in agility because I don't think it embodies what I think of as agility. I like teams putting it all on the line and really pushing the dog and many people don't do that in AKC. I also see a lot more disappointed teams when their dog NQs, much more so than I know of people who do the other venues. But of course since there are a lot more people who do AKC than who do the other organizations out there, there is also a greater pool of people to have that perspective.
To me, the QQ in obedience makes sense because obedience is about consistency and precision, but I'd rather have the fast, enthusiastic dog in agility vs the more controlled dog. Of course it is possible to have both :)
I agree 100% here, just saying that I enjoy AKC more because Spur enjoys it more. More crowded, louder, more cheering!! Personally, I would much rather do USDAA as it is more interesting, the courses more challenging and the atmosphere more relaxed!! And I am a claustrophobic person, so I would much rather a quieter trial, but Spur worries in that setting. But, the distaste I have for the people running carefully to get their QQ's is probably equal to the distaste I feel for some of the things I see in USDAA, like the dumb gambles, the unfair jump heights and the absolute favoritism seen for the BC's. I SO loved when the aussie won Nationals in 2011. That was AWESOME!!!!
DeleteI just very much enjoy our AKC trials and never really understand when people slam AKC for so many things. There are many things about AKC that is better, in my mind, than USDAA. AKC Nationals you are treated with utmost respect. USDAA Nationals you are just another competitor. I was horrified by the welcome packet I received by USDAA when I attended Nationals in 2011. It had a rule book and a poop bag. Seriously!! WHAT?? I spent a lot of money to attend, I think maybe at least some candy!!! LOL!!! AKC gave me toys, treats, trinkets, stickers, etc.
I guess I am just saying there are things about both venues that I can bitch about, but Spur has WAY more fun in AKC, so we sure enjoy it more. More people watch him, more cheer us on, it is very fun for ME to watch all the different breeds. I enjoy USDAA, too, but it is much quieter and more full of BCs and very few little dogs, for sure. Sometimes in AKC the 8 and 12" classes are bigger than the 20" class!! :D
Wish we had more NADAC around here!