Monday, February 20, 2006

The Obedient One

My oldest collie is Pelido Chorus Girl at Glenspey, Saska, who will be nine years old in March. Although she was bought to show in breed classes, she had some fur missing off her nose when we bought her at eight weeks, which never grew , so I decided to do obedience work with her.
Saska loved obedience, but on her own terms, she would work perfectly if there was nothing better to do. But after she left the show ring twice during the 'heel free' to rejoin the rest of her human family I decided to retire her from competitions. I couldn't stand the embarressment even if she could.
We then took up agility which she enjoyed even more, but as I have trouble knowing my right hand from my left we struggled to go round the course in the right order. So, we practiced obedience and agility for fun, and she settled into the role of bossing the other dogs about, and making sure any puppies were trained how she thought best. Sadly, when Jorja arrived, she pretended not to understand Saska's English accent and decided she was head of the household. In order to prevent continuing conflict we reinforced Jorja's position and Sassie moved down the pack.
Saska is now content to join Clinton as he follows me round the house. The two of them are watching me typing waiting for something more exciting to happen.

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