Belle's Graduation

Well, Belle had graduation from her Novice obedience training last night...and she got first place! I am so proud of my puppy! She did so good!

Her score was 148 (out or 200). He said, first of all, that our scores were all very good, and that our last place score (108, I think....) would have beat the first place dog at another class he just finished.

One thing that Belle missed was her sit stay, which was 30 points off her score. This is unusual, becasue one thing that Belle is VERY good at is a sit stay, she always has been, even in puppy kindergarden. And she didn't get up or anything...she just layed down in the middle of it. Unfortunatly, that lost all 30 points. (Its an all or nothing gig.)

Funny enough, all the dogs missed the sit stay, which left the scores pretty even.

The instructer said that had Belle made the sit stay, she would have had 170, and for a dog to get into the 170's at this class is unusual.

I was dissapointed that she didn;t, but consoled myself by knowing that Belle really is good at the sit stay... one of the down falls of an all or nothing competitiom like this (If there had been a recored of over all sit stays throughout the class, Belle would have won, hands down on the the sit stay part...she is good at that...)

But as I type, I realize something else. If Belle had done the sit stay, she would have won by a landslide. Becasue she didn't, she stayed even with the other dogs, which meant that she won on our handeling (the heels and the figure 8's and the come, and the stand for inspection, whjich she got perfect...) Had she won becasue of the sit stay, I wouldn't have remembered the other scores, and I would wonder if she had only won becasue of the sit stay...if that pulled her ahead with the free 30 points....but now I know she won all around! What a feeling!

Haver I mentioned how proud I am of my puppy? (Now, if we could just get off the leash, stuff down!)