Two out of Three ... so far

Aslan with his favorite toy won at the November Rally Trial.

In 2018, Aslan competed at the AKC Rally National Championship, which was held in Ohio.  Originally scheduled for another location and moved to Ohio due to a conflict, I figured this was a once-in-a-lifetime event for us. [See May 26, "Time for Good News and Fun" for results.]

On July 16, I learned that the RNC was again scheduled for Ohio in 2020.  At first I was excited!  I thought that we could get out and compete in Excellent and Advanced and meet the eligibility requirements for the RAE class.  But then I was very disappointed to learn that the RAE class had been eliminated -- replaced with Master and Championship classes.  We had only dabbled in training the Master exercises, and Aslan was nowhere near ready to compete at that level!

Initially I was upset with myself for missing the location announcement that had been made back in March or April.  And honestly, I was a little upset with the AKC for eliminating "my" class, because now there was nothing for a dog with "just" an RAE.

The Master Class at the RNC requires the RM title and three scores of 93 or higher earned during the qualifying period; the Championship Class requires an RAE and three scores of 93 or higher in Advanced, and in Excellent, and in Master.  The qualifying period ends on November 30.

We had done a Rally Master run-thru a week before, and it was ugly. My plan was to start taking a Rally class at the dog club in August and hopefully be ready to compete late fall at the very earliest or next winter. However, the qualifying period would be over by then.  If I wanted Aslan to be eligible for the RNC, we had to significantly move up that timeline.  

I decided, "Oh, why not!" and set these three goals:  

1. Eligibility for the RNC Championship Class by November 30 -- three scores of 93 or higher in Advanced, Excellent, and Master;
2. Rally Master title, which requires 10 qualifying scores (70 or more points); 
3. Rally Champion title.  To achieve a RACH, a dog must: earn 20 Triple Qs; qualify in Rally Master (RM), Rally Excellent (RE), and Rally Advanced (RA), all at the same trial; and earn 300 points, at least 150 of which must come from the RM class. Points are earned based on scores of 91-100.  This one will take a while!

Knowing that it was going to be a training and trialing blitz, I began to mentally prepare myself for the challenge.

Justice died the next day.

There must have been a reason that the Rally challenge came up when it did.  I needed anything and everything to divert my focus from recent losses and stresses -- especially this loss.

I made a list of area trials and figured that I had enough chances without driving too terribly far.  I studied the signs, practiced with Aslan, and enrolled him in class.  Classes started less than a week before our first trial in mid-August.  

The trial morning began with our first ever attempt in RM, and I was nervous!  The send-to-cone exercise was on the course, and he has significantly struggled with that one, which made me even more nervous.  Aslan, I think in an effort to relieve my anxiety by making me laugh, was a bit of a wild boy. In spite of some what-the-heck-was-that? moments, he did some nice work, too, and ended up with a respectable 85.

Considering it had been only a month earlier that I made the decision to start trialing, and we weren't seriously training at that point, I was thrilled to have Qd with a score that was smack-dab in the middle between NQ and maximum possible.

At September's trials, he did a decent job, but I noticed that he was a little "off" his norm.  I noticed it in classes as well.  Then, following trials at the beginning of October, where he was clearly (to me) not himself, I decided to make a vet appointment for him.

Of course he was acting completely fine by the time he saw the vet.  His bloodwork came back great, and the vet was not concerned by other test findings.  I strongly suspect that there was something going on with him earlier and wish I had thought to take him to the vet sooner.  However, there were no physical signs that indicated "Vet, Now!"  The vet was supportive of listening to those instincts, and it was a relief to have found nothing wrong.   

At the mid-October trial, it was obvious that whatever problem there might have been had passed, and I had my dog back!  Aslan was having fun -- a little too much fun, as he cost us quite a few points over the weekend.  Despite being ecstatic about his back-to-normal attitude, I was aggravated at our inability to obtain the last good Master score we needed to be eligible for the RNC.  I did not post on Facebook about that weekend's trials because I was annoyed with my dog and very angry at myself for being annoyed with him.  Additionally, another competitor did a good job of messing with my head, which only made my emotional state worse than it already was.  

Discouraged about everything, when asked by a trainer/fellow club member about our weekend, I said, "We're running out of time to get that last good score, and it looks like we don't deserve to go to the RNC."  She wisely reminded me that we have been working at this level for only a short time and that Aslan is doing great!

That was my V-8 moment (for those who remember those commercials <lol>). Duh! I was expecting a lot from Aslan, and I needed to appreciate him waaaaay more for what he had accomplished so far! 

Based on some Facebook posts I had seen, I began to think we might be eligible for the Excellent class at the RNC and planned to contact AKC to ask.  I resigned myself to the fact that we weren’t going to make it to the Championship class, and that was okay.  Based on our scores we didn’t deserve to, and that was okay, too. *  If we could at least compete in the RE class, that would be enough.

With that in mind, I went into the next trial weekend with the goal of simply having a good time and the hope of finishing his RM & getting a few more Triple Qs in the process. Saturday morning, I was happy, he was happy, and we were going to have fun no matter what! While his exuberance cost us a few points for sloppiness <lol>, we came out of the first trial with a 94. That gave us the last score we needed to be eligible for the RNC – I was over the moon! And the afternoon trial was even better with a 97! That finished his RM, and we also picked up two more TQs, making a wonderful day even better. 

Sunday’s trial was not as good, but we were both tired from the long weekend (this was the farthest-from-home trial we had entered), and the dreaded send-to-cone sign was on that course, or else he would have scored in the 90s again.  He’s getting much better at it, but we need a lot more practice to become proficient at that exercise.

We finished the weekend with:

• Three Triple Qs and more RACH points, including some from the Master class. 
• Aslan's Rally Master title! 
• The last RM score he needed to be eligible for the 2020 RNC! 
• A perfect score in Excellent for a 4th place (there were four 100s, and Aslan had the slowest time of the four).
• A 2nd place in Excellent (there were two 98s, and again, Aslan had the slowest time of the two). 
• A 4th place in Advanced (there were three 98s; one took 3rd place, Aslan took 4th, and the other one did not receive a placement).

Pretty sweet for going in with the goal of only qualifying!

Teams who received placements won a toy. Aslan rarely plays with toys, so I picked one that I thought the dogs at home would like. When I showed it to Aslan for his approval, he took it out of my hand and squeaked it. Then he proudly and happily carried it all the way back to his crate and took it inside. LOL! 😍

At one point, I looked inside his crate and saw him asleep with his head resting on his toy that was tucked between his paws. 💖 Later, I had to take it away from him because he was squeaking it, and I didn't want to disturb the dogs still competing. I put it in his crate in the car and left it there Saturday night. He squeaked it several times on the trip home Sunday.

Sunday night before bed, I pulled out the toys that Aslan won for placements. Normally, he couldn't give two hoots about toys, but he did NOT want to share these with the other dogs <LOL>. Before too long, he went back to his favorite and hopped up on the bed to play and cuddle with it. He was playing with it the next morning, too. My sweet, funny boy.

Since we started this RM/RACH/RNC journey, we have had some ups and downs, but that November weekend was the most fun we have had thus far.  Aslan struggled with focus/distractions, but he sure had a good time! He had a little TOO much fun in some classes, but I'd rather have a happy dog lose some points than a perfect, perfectly miserable dog (at least, I think so 😉).  A fun, (mostly) successful weekend with my canine partner and pal. Who could ask for more? 💗💗

Results from the three goals I set in mid-July:

1. Eligibility for the RNC by November 30 -- ACHIEVED!
2. Rally Master title -- ACHIEVED (10 for 10)! 
3. Rally Champion title -- In process (more than half of our Triple Qs and total points achieved).

We are entered in one more trial this year, and then will take a short break from competition while we train more.  Next year will bring more Rally Trials and possibly Agility and Obedience Trials as well.  Looking forward to it all with my happy lad!

Cherish your dogs,

MDW

-----

* A post-script...  While looking up info on the AKC Rally National Facebook page, I came across some comments in which people were saying that the Championship Class requirement was too low.  If folks qualified with scores of "only" 93, there was no way they could win, and those folks could take away spots from more qualified teams.

Originally I was embarrassed, because we really struggled to get our Master scores.  

Then I began to doubt myself, thinking that maybe I shouldn't enter because we don't deserve to go.  

But then I got mad!  Aslan and I worked hard in a very short time span, and he received scores of 94, 96, 97, and 98 to earn his eligibility!  

The RNC is seven months from today.  We have a long time to train, practice, and improve.  When the entries open, I will proudly send ours in and hope that we are selected, because Aslan DOES deserve to compete!

Aslan with his new Rally Master title ribbon.

A (mostly) Non-Dog Adventure

Hello Friends,

Once again, there has been a too-long lag since my last post.  A lot has happened since then, much of it (of course) dog related. But I wanted to share about a 12-week adventure that came to a conclusion this past week.

For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated with anything mystery, crime, or law-enforcement related, and I always wanted to be a police officer or a private detective.  Other interests intervened, and I traveled different paths for a few years after high school and college.  

A family friend learned of my interest and encouraged me to apply with the Highway Patrol.  I passed the first round of testing, and then came the eye exam...  They told me I would need to see an eye doctor and have him fill out a form to return to them. Sometime later, I received the news I had dreaded:  my eyesight was not correctable to their standard.

After that devastating blow, I tried to explore a couple other avenues of law enforcement, but at the time, no one seemed interested in answering a young woman's questions, so I stopped asking and moved on, allowing that dream to die.

Several years ago, I learned of the Citizens Police Academy program, conducted by our police department.  My best friend and I attended.  It was an educational and enlightening look into the workings of local law enforcement.  Afterward, we both joined the alumni association, which allowed us to assist the department with tasks such as traffic control at special events, patrolling local parks, and other duties that, while not acting as official law enforcement, provided officers with extra sets of eyes and freed them to do more urgent and important police work.

After I moved away from my hometown, there were honestly only a few things I missed -- my best friend and the CPA topped the list!  About a year after I came to this area, I checked for a CPA opportunity here, but there was none.  

Recently, though, I learned about "scenario-based training" conducted by the local PD. Here is a partial description: "During the traffic stops and match house scenarios you will be playing the role of a police officer, armed with a gun that shoots secure blanks.  You will conduct a traffic stop with members from DPD as role players and you will complete a building search for an active shooter in our match house - which resembles a ranch style home."

This sounded interesting and intriguing!  But every time it was offered, I had a conflict.  I plan to do this in the future, though, so I signed up for their e-mail list.

Then, two days after Justice died, I received a message from the e-mail list:  "Citizens Police Academy - Enroll Now."  Given my decision to start serious Rally competition with Aslan [blog post with more info coming soon], the timing was terrible!

I told myself I should wait until the spring session was offered, but I needed anything and everything to take my focus off of all the losses and stresses of the prior few months, so I signed up.

The Citizen's Police Academy is a 12-week program, meeting one night a week for a 2-hour class each week.  We learned many aspects about the operation of the PD, from the K-9 Unit to the Bomb Squad, from SWAT to Traffic.  Most of the presenters did not sugarcoat the information they shared, and I think many of the students had an eye-opening experience.

Sadly, during our session, the PD lost one of its own in the line of duty.  Detective Del Rio's memorial service was one of the saddest, yet most amazing, events I have ever attended.  His murder was a great loss, not only to his family, but also to the entire country.  The presence of the great number of officers who came from all over told a story all its own of the law enforcement family.

During our CPA session, we are encouraged to go on a "Ride Along" with an officer.  It was also an opportunity back home, but I never took advantage.  I was determined to do it this time, but my schedule was so full that I couldn't fit it in during the session, which ended last week.  Knowing that I would be on vacation during the week of Thanksgiving, I decided to start my time off with my Ride Along, which I scheduled for last night/this morning (5:00 p.m. - 3:00 a.m. shift).  

CPA, Scenario-Based Training, and Ride Alongs are all opportunities open to members of the public (must pass basic criminal background check). I believe many communities offer similar options.  There are certain rules that must be followed on the Ride Along, but I was surprised by the access we are allowed.  The Community Engagement Officer who runs the CPA program told us that people would think we were detectives, and that actually happened on one of the calls last night.

I was able to schedule my Ride Along with a K-9 Unit, and I had hoped to be able to see the dog in action, but the nasty weather apparently kept the bad guys inside, and it was a fairly quiet shift.  The officer did get a little training time in with his K-9, which I was able to watch.

One call was a domestic disturbance.  These are the most dangerous calls an officer can answer, so two cars are required to respond.  While another officer spoke to one party, the officer I was with spoke to the other party.  Even though I was not the one asking questions, that person directed most of their responses to me, and while the two officers were speaking to each other, the person asked me if I was a detective.  LOL.  

Another incident would have been amusing if it hadn't been so serious.  We were waiting at a red traffic light, when a car came through the green light in the direction of the gas station across from the intersection.  It took us both a second to realize that the driver didn't use the driveway; instead, the car had went up the curb, across the sidewalk, and stopped partway into the parking lot.  I said, "I don't think that's the entrance..."  The officer appeared as confused as I felt and said as he changed lanes, "We'd better check this out." 

He approached the car and discovered the driver unconscious from an apparent drug overdose.  Medics had to break the car window as the driver was unresponsive.  Later at the hospital, the driver admitted to relapsing after being clean for many years.  They shared some other history, which left me wondering that perpetual question, "Why?  Why would someone like that waste their life on drugs?"  So sad.

It was certainly true in this case that "timing is everything."  Because the officer was in the right place at the right time, that driver is alive today.

When our 10 hours was over, the officer laughingly apologized for the uneventful evening.  I laughed as well, but then told him wholeheartedly, "That's okay, because it means you and your K-9 partner are safe tonight."

After all these years, the dream still lives inside me.  Despite the hard work and the danger, if I had the chance, I would gladly take on this job.

Everyone be safe out there.

MDW

Justice

Justice, age 9, at the start line of an agility trial. 
One of my favorite photos as it captured the love in her eyes. 
And, oh, how much I love her, too.
(Photo by Columbus Sports Photography Network)

Back in 2005, I co-bred and whelped my first-ever litter.  Without going into details, it was not a good experience (other than the puppies themselves – puppy breath is awesome :-).  However, rather than making me want to never breed again, instead, I wanted to breed MY OWN litter.  I had three options: (1) breed my bitch again; (2) lease a bitch; (3) get a puppy, grow her out, and hope that she would prove to be breeding quality in a few years.  For multiple reasons, Option 1 was pretty much a “no,” and I figured Option 2 would be out for a newbie who didn’t know that many other people in the breed, so I thought Option 3 would be my only choice. 

I mentioned my dilemma to a friend, who told a mutual friend.  Imagine my surprise when I was offered a very nice bitch to lease!  Jo was not only beautiful, but she had a fabulous temperament!  I will never be able to adequately thank Kelley!!

We talked about possible sires, and Kelley suggested a dog named George.  I had met and fallen in love with one of George’s sons (Hero), and my dog, Sharcole, was a George daughter from another line.  However, due to George’s age, we would need to do an AI breeding, and Kelley felt that would be too expensive for my first litter, so we kept looking.

One thing I will never forget and always be grateful to Kelley for is the way she treated me during the sire search.  When she posited a dog, she never belittled my questions or concerns.  When I asked her about a dog, she never disparaged my suggestions, only told me what she knew of that dog—both good and bad points.

I learned that another George son (Hero’s littermate) would be at an agility trial fairly close to me, so I drove down to meet Merlin and his owner, Marti.  Marti is one of those genuinely nice, kind people that are rare in this world.  And I immediately fell in love with Merlin!  He was perfect!

Merlin and Hero were sons of George x Marissa; Jo was a Marissa daughter from a different sire.  So breeding George to Jo would hopefully produce similar offspring.  On the hour-and-a-half drive home from the agility trial that day, I was doing all sorts of calculations in my head.  When I got home, I opened up a spreadsheet to plug in the numbers and confirm my thoughts… Yes!  It would be tight, but I could make it work.  Mac & cheese would be in the budget for a while, but, hey, mac & cheese is one of my favorite dishes J

I e-mailed Kelley and asked her, “Do you still think George is the best choice if I could afford it?”  She said that if I could afford it, George would still be her first recommendation.  We discussed it and agreed to be co-breeders on the litter.  George’s owner, Kathy, agreed to let us use George as the sire.  I cannot say, “thank you” enough to these two ladies who helped and supported this newbie.

July 13, 2006, I called Kelley to let her know that puppies were imminent.  We lived two hours apart, and five of the puppies arrived before she did ;-)  Number six waited, and Kelley handled the delivery on the last one, who became Orange Girl, a.k.a. Little L’Orange, a.k.a. Brat Puppy.

When the pups were about five or six weeks old, I remember saying to Kelley that I didn’t know which of the girls I was keeping, but it probably wasn’t going to be that orange thing because she was such a brat.  You guessed it… that orange brat became my Justice.

We’ve been through a lot together, and she has always been my rock.

July 28, 2018 - age 12

There is so much more I could write about her.  But fast forward to a few weeks ago…  On a day off of work, I took Justice and Aslan to the dog club, and this is what I posted on Facebook:

Justice, who will be 13 in a couple weeks, did some fun agility. I set the jumps really low, as her movement isn't that smooth any more (I hate that she's getting older <sob>), but she did a great job, and she had SUCH FUN!She hasn't done obedience or rally for a long time (finished her CD in 2010 and her RE in 2013), but as a result of this outing, I think I will enter her in Beginner Novice this fall.

A couple years ago, I finished a BN title on my Belgian Sheepdog gal, Spirit, who was almost 13 at the time, and it was a journey I'll never forget. I'm looking forward to taking a similar journey with my Justie-bear ❤<3 “

Then, last week, on July 11, 2019, I made this Facebook post:

From my Facebook memories on July 11, 2010: "started working on obedience training with Justie. Step 1: RE-train the automatic sit that I UN-trained when we started working on conformation <LOL>."

--- 

Funny that this should show up in today's Fb memories. I took Justice to the club's C-Match tonight to see how she would do on a Beginner Novice run-thru. It's been 9 years since she earned her Novice Obedience title and 6 years since she finished her Rally Excellent title, and we haven't practiced much since then. 

She didn't do too bad considering how long it's been, but she wasn't doing many automatic sits tonight -- partly due to lack of practice, but also in part, I think, because she was stiff. Despite the happy bounce in her step, her gait was definitely off. 😢  So, the jury is now out as to whether or not we will go for her BN title. 

I love this little girl so much, and it breaks my heart to see her aging. On the bright side, she really is in pretty good shape and good health, so hopefully we have much more time together ❤

In addition to possibly working on her Beginner Novice title, I had planned to do tracking with her.  I’ve worked with her off and on for years, but was never committed enough to follow through like I should have.

Yesterday, July 17, all of those dreams became impossible.

When I arrived home, she didn’t get up and run out the door with the other dogs.  While she has never scared me with “old dog sleep,” I figured this was the first time.  There was a bit of a ruckus at the door, which I figured would wake her, so I was surprised to turn around and see her still on the floor.  I said, “Hey, now you’re starting to scare me, sweetie.”  As soon as I touched her, I knew.  I kept thinking I was having a nightmare and that I would wake up any minute.  I’m still hoping to wake from this horrible reality.

She was far from my first Belgian, but she shared a lot of firsts with me: 

My first home-bred keeper dog.

My first Rally competition dog.

My first Agility partner.
My first dog to compete at the Terv National -- my first time to attend, too!

My first home-bred titled dog (CD, RE, NAP, NJP).

And my first dog to go to the Rainbow Bridge without me by her side. 

She appeared merely to be asleep, so I hope that is how she went... peacefully in her sleep.  I wish she had been able to wait for me.  When the time came, I wanted -- expected -- to be by her side, stroking her fur, and telling her over and over how much I love her.  But I believe that if it was within her power, she would have chosen to spare me the pain of having to make that final decision.  Maybe she did.

My heart and soul.

"Justice"

July 13, 2006 - July 17, 2019

January 2013 Rally Trial
(Photo by Dick Clark Photography)

January 2019

July 2016 with her agility ribbons

May 2011 with her daughters, Feather (left) and Mystery (right)

May 2014 with her son, Aslan

November 2016

October 2014

Tornadoes, Dreams, and Guilt

On Memorial Day night, the Miami Valley area of Ohio was devastated by tornadoes -- 15 to 19 tornadoes, depending on which news article you read.

Other than a few shows on Me-TV, I don't watch much regular television, choosing Netflix instead.  ("Father Brown" is my latest series -- LOOOVVVE Father Brown!)  One week ago today, I had finished watching television, but had not yet switched over to Netflix.  I took care of the dogs, did a few chores, and got ready for bed, all to the background noise of Me-TV.  I was about to settle in for an episode of "Father Brown," but just as I had the remote in my hand, the local news interrupted with a severe weather alert.  

I must admit that, like many other people at first, I was annoyed.  It seems that the meteorologists spend hours on the air at the slightest raindrop.  This time was different.  They were not "crying wolf" today.

As they tracked the paths of the numerous twisters, at one point they announced one was headed directly my way.  Terrified, I waited for the locomotive to come crashing through my neighborhood -- possibly my house.  Silence.

Later, I learned that particular tornado had changed direction and ripped through someone else's neighborhood in a different area of town.  I was glued to the coverage and shocked by what I could see in the dark news footage.  Storms like this are frightening enough during the day, but at night, it is unbelievably worse.  

I got very little sleep, and even that wasn't consecutive, as I would wake from a fitful doze when I heard wind or thunder, certain the storms were back.  Then I would watch some more of the unfolding news stories of devastation in my area.  Tears streamed at the thought of those poor people who had lost everything.

Today was the first time I saw any of the damage in person.  I honestly cannot come up with words to describe what I saw.  All I could do was gasp and say, "Oh my God." 

Trees, businesses, homes ... bent, broken, destroyed.  One life confirmed lost.  Countless other lives in turmoil and upheaval.  

And here I was, mildly inconvenienced for a few days by a couple things resulting from the storm.  

In my mind, I keep hearing the words on the news that the tornado was headed directly this way, and I realize how incredibly lucky I am.  I have seen the devastation on the news, and saw a little of it as I drove by this evening, My heart aches for those who have been more than merely inconvenienced.  My heart breaks for those who have lost everything.

And there is guilt.  A touch of survivor's guilt, I'm sure.  More than that, though, is the guilt that I want more.  For years, I have wanted to move.  My childhood dream carried itself into adulthood, and I prayed for a farm with horses and sheep and dogs, oh my!  My wonderful husband and I would -- Oh, wait; that part of the dream never came true, either.  No husband (wonderful or otherwise).  Just me and my mediocre salary.  One failure after another after another, and I realized that I would never fulfill my dream of having a farm or horses.  I have downsized my dream again and again.  Two years ago, when I began my most recent home search, I hoped for 5 acres, then 2, then 1.  Days... weeks... months... years have passed, and I am still stuck here in my rental house in a neighborhood where I am afraid to walk my dogs.  Short of winning the lottery, it appears that I will be stuck here until I die.  

All I want is a house, preferably one-story, with a little bit of acreage and a building or room to train my dogs.  Is that too much to ask?

A week ago, I would have said that it was not too much to ask.  Today, I feel guilty for asking.

Time for Good News and Fun!

My favorite photo of Justice from Louisville.  She was so very happy!!
Photo by Libbye Miller

In my hiatus from the blog, some good things have happened...

In 2017, Aslan finished three Obedience titles, CD, PCD, and BN (in that order), and his Rally Advanced Excellent title.  In 2018, he finished both of his Novice Agility titles.

Aslan qualified to compete in the 2018 AKC Rally National Championship!  My goal was to qualify in all four courses and not finish last -- though, of course, I hoped we could do better than that :-)  A lot of nervousness on my part and a lack of focus on his part combined for a good number of lost points, but we ended up with 373 out of a possible 400 points, putting us in 56th* place out of 132 qualifiers.

My friend Sherry with her dog Dakota (Aslan's son) were only three points behind and ended up in 61st* place.  Spending the day with them was a wonderful memory. ♡

A couple years ago, I posted about "signs" that Aslan and I were not meant to show in Conformation at that point.  I figured that we would try it again sometime later.  However, last fall, Aslan had an ear hematoma, and his ear is damaged as a result, and thus I believed his chances to show in Conformation were over.  When I mentioned that concern on Facebook, I was encouraged to give it a try anyway.  A damaged ear, unless hanging as on a hound, is not a disqualification.  Several folks shared stories and photos of their damaged-ear dogs earning their Championships.

Spurred on by their motivation, I decided to enter Aslan in the Louisville Regional Specialty.  Though I was disappointed by how poorly we both showed and discouraged that we received no placement, I have not yet given up.

I also entered Justice in Veterans Sweepstakes there as well.  The only dog in the 12 years & over class, she was the oldest dog entered in Vet Sweeps. Even though she didn’t place, I thought she showed beautifully. Most important, she had an absolutely grand time! I was bursting with love & pride, and on our last go-round, I had to fight back the tears. If she's able, we'll do it again next year.

Aslan has been shown three times since then and has picked up Reserve Winners Dog twice (once to a 3-point major), but no points of his own yet.  Trying again in June... fingers crossed!

I have recently begun training Aslan for Open Obedience and Rally Master, and I hope to be able to get some agility training in at the dog club to practice for Open Agility as well.  

Not only is Aslan multi-tasking in various venues, but I am also multi-tasking, as I am training (and/or soon planning to train) multiple dogs in multiple venues: Rally, Obedience, Agility, and Tracking.  I plan to post details of their journeys in upcoming blogs.

Because of the events that happened in April (see my previous post), I was too emotional to take my week-long vacation scheduled for that month.  Now, I have decided to use that to my advantage.  I will be taking small blocks of time off, two to three hours at a time, to train my dogs.  It is such a joy to work with these wonderful canine companions, and we are going to have a blast!

Annnnd, our office is closed for a week in June, which means more free time for training!  Did I mention that we are going to have a blast? 🙋

I'd love to read your comments about what you enjoy doing with your dogs.  Please share!

Cherish your dogs,
MDW

_____
* Screenshots of the final results on the day of the RNC showed Aslan in 55th and Dakota in 60th; a later download of results from the AKC website listed 56th and 60th places, respectively.  (I did not go back through the list to see if I could determine why the results had changed.)

Aslan, July 2018

The Lost Art of Apology

Hello there!

I just realized it has been over a year since my last post here -- YIKES!  Writing is cathartic for me, so I should aspire to post here more.
  
It has been, as most years, a period of ups and downs.  It feels like mostly downs, though, especially recently.  

Phantom

At the end of March, I made a late-night trip to the emergency vet with Phantom, and he didn't come home. 💔  Vet suspected sepsis or cancer.  I wish I'd asked for a necropsy, but in the emotion of the moment -- the shock that Phantom was gone -- it did not occur to me.  

Spirit (photo by Phyllis Ensley Photography)

In mid April, I made the decision to take Spirit for her final vet visit.  I had so hoped she would make it to her 15th birthday, but just over a month was too long to make her wait for some human-observed anniversary.  When I came home from work that day, she seemed a little brighter as she got up to come greet me, and I thought, "maybe not today."  Then she laid back down and looked at me, and I felt her telling me, "I'm tired."  I knew I couldn't delay the decision.  Two dogs away to The Rainbow Bridge in twenty days. 💔

Between those two heartbreaks, I suffered a human-delivered heartbreak, the event that triggered the writing of this blog post.

How many times have you had your feelings hurt?  Many, I would venture to guess.  How many times have you been apologized to?  Did you then forgive the person and move on?  Or was it "too little, too late" and your friendship severed beyond repair?  

How many times have you not received an apology at all?  What did you do?  Forgive anyway, or "No Way!"?

As much as I often say, "I hate people," I would never -- EVER -- intentionally hurt another person.  And if I knew that I had unintentionally hurt someone, I hope I'm a good enough person to say, "I'm sorry that I hurt you."

I admit it:  I'm a Caspar Milquetoast.  I let myself get walked all over, again and again.  Because I despise and fear conflict, I never tell people when they have hurt my feelings. The pain rides around in my soul, and I usually distance myself from the person for a while.  

The self-examination that comes with this writing also leads me to the conclusion that part of the reason I don't tell someone when they've hurt my feelings is that I am trying to spare their feelings; if they don't realize what they've done, opening the issue might hurt them.  

Eventually, I realize that they have no idea what they have done -- that it is my problem, not theirs -- and I forgive them and myself.  

The above scenario has happened numerous times with one particular friend.  Thinking that I knew her well enough, I thought "surely she didn't mean it that way," and I let it go.  Over and over.  You'd think I'd learn, right?  Nope, not ol' Caspar here.  

Then, in early April, she hurt me more than I thought I could be hurt.  Someone can say that I'm ugly or fat, and though I might be stung, I can usually laugh it off.  But the insult she delivered to me will echo in my mind forever.  Though I won't post her words here, I will say that it involved my dogs.  

Surprisingly (or maybe not), I did not hear from her right afterward... I thought she would call or e-mail an apology, ask if I was okay...  Certainly she saw me sobbing as I walked to my car?  

Obviously not, as the next time I saw her, she greeted me like nothing had ever happened.  She was spared my scathing reply because there was a mutual friend present, whom I didn't want to put in the middle of it.  (Yeah, yeah, I know.  Sigh.)

Finally I decided that I would not repeat my past mistakes.  This time I would get it all out in the open, and I sent her a message outlining exactly how I felt. ... 

...

...

Crickets.

...

...

I suppose at this point I will never receive an apology.  I'm not asking her to say that her opinion is wrong; all I wanted was an acknowledgement that her words deeply hurt me.  I also suppose that it doesn't matter; our friendship has been irreparably severed.  

More self-examination makes me wonder if I apologize enough.  If I make a mistake at work, I apologize and then fix it if possible.  When someone points out that I have hurt them, I feel terrible about it, and I sincerely apologize.  

I think apology is becoming a lost art... like common sense and common courtesy.  How do you handle it when you feel you are owed an apology that doesn't come?  Do you personally apologize when asked?  Do you apologize even if you are not asked?  

Could I or should I do more?  I don't know.

Do I want to know?  I'm not sure about that.  I think I want to be told if I need to apologize.  Sometimes, though, it's true that ignorance is bliss.  

In any case, I thank God for all of my wonderful dogs who help me dry the tears they don't understand.  Dogs, unlike we humans, have nothing to apologize for.

Cherish your dogs,
MDW

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Stay tuned... I'm already working on another new post.  I promise it will be more upbeat and dogcentric ;-)

               Spirit, approx. 2 yrs. old

Puppy Phantom