Perri's first Obedience class was tonight. It seems like approximately four hundred years ago that I signed up for it, so I was pretty psyched that the day was finally here!
It gives me a smile that I used to look down on obedience classes as sort of unnecessary. Figured that I could do any training at home, myself. I have learned so much.
I love being able to work Perri in a distracting environment. I love having a trainer to guide me. I have my eye on a CD obedience title for Perri, so home grown training simply won't do. I also love the social aspect, and pointers from other dog owners dedicated to training.
This evenings class was an "intro" class. We also practiced some leash walking, heeling, sit work, and sitting when halting. And focus work.
I am totally bragging about my dog here, because her heel and focus was absolutely incredible. She gazes up at me while she heels, she sits as soon as I stop walking. Brag, brag, boast. I really love working with Perri.
On the way out I talked to a friend of mine, who is in Molly's agility class. I said that I had fun at tonight's class. She said "Sure, it's fun if you have a good dog."
I thought about that. I remember Molly's first obedience class. She was a 6 month old pitbull when we took our first class. She was a leash pulling, screaming-at-other-dogs, boisterous bull in a china shop. It took practice, practice, practice but Molly somehow has her CGC and I anticipate earning her first Rally-O title this weekend.
Perri has been easier to train than both Molly and Ein. Ein's anxiety has always been an issue. Molly's reactive personality has been her issue. I feel like I am cheating by having a dog like Perri in a way. Isn't that silly? Perri has separation anxiety, though. It is not an obstacle in our obedience training, but every dog has her dark side.
Anyhow. I am looking forwards to next week's class.
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