# Hobbes' AKC Debut



## mvhplank (Dec 5, 2012)

Yesterday (March 21, 2021) Hobbes tied for first place in AKC Rally Novice in a class of 12 dogs. This was his his first AKC show—he turned 18 months old that day! His score was 99, but the other dog was just a little faster.

There were two rally trials and in the other one he was just out of the ribbons with a score of 97. He also qualified in Beginner Novice with a 189 for his first leg for that title.


----------



## cowpony (Dec 30, 2009)

Congrats! It must have been so hard to prepare him due to all the Covid disruption.


----------



## mvhplank (Dec 5, 2012)

cowpony said:


> Congrats! It must have been so hard to prepare him due to all the Covid disruption.


True that! We have been taking masked in-person classes, but what with winter and covid, he hasn't been out and about very much. This event was held in a big agricultural center with 4 rings set up--up till now he has only shown in one-ring settings in UKC and CDSP (Companion Dog Sports Program). He started out overwhelmed by the experience and I had to experiment with ways to keep him happy and engaged. Treats were not highly motivating, but balled-up white cotton gloves (from Tractor Supply, in packs of 10--perfect for training purposes) were very attractive for him. With two gloves in hand, I'd find a quiet place and toss one out a couple of feet and when he brought it back, I'd toss the other one. That perked him right up.

The rally trials were running at the same time in two rings at one end of the building, so what happened was we did Beginner Novice first (189, low score of the day), followed by Rally Novice in Trial 2, which was running from Novice to Master (97, better score), and then Trial 1, which was running from Master to Novice (99, best score). I had a chance to really play with him before that last run. I was actually very happy with his Trial 2 run, done without a chance to do the walk-through and no chance to really warm up.

I'm not sure I should be putting him in Beginner Novice at this stage, but I'm entered in one more trial, a one-ring trial, and we'll see how that goes. For sure I'll wait to do AKC Novice until we have heeling well under control, which I can work on in CDSP, which allows verbal prompts (until I don't need the verbals any more). He's a young kid and needs lots of practice on meeting my expectations, I think.

But rally? He's pretty good at that already, and I can talk to him all I want. He and Neely both made UKC's All Stars list in Rally and received an invitation to the All Stars competition at UKC's Premier in June. Hobbes made the list in URO1 (Novice equivalent) and Neely in RM (UKC Master). I was offered a ride and shared accommodation, so we're going!


----------



## Click-N-Treat (Nov 9, 2015)

Great job! You're off to a fantastic start!


----------



## Skylar (Jul 29, 2016)

Huge congratulations to you and Hobbes especially given the challenging distracting environment. Great start to his career.


----------



## Johanna (Jun 21, 2017)

Well done! Congratulations! It's wonderful to hear about poodle achievement.


----------



## ThePoodlesMoody (Nov 2, 2020)

Way to go Hobbes!! It sounds like you guys are well on your way to great things.


----------



## cowpony (Dec 30, 2009)

mvhplank said:


> He started out overwhelmed by the experience and I had to experiment with ways to keep him happy and engaged. Treats were not highly motivating, but balled-up white cotton gloves (from Tractor Supply, in packs of 10--perfect for training purposes) were very attractive for him.


Great job finding a solution to the distractions.

The agility career of a friend's dog came to an inglorious but amusing end when he got to the top of the A-frame, paused to admire the view, and then sprinted out of the ring to dive headfirst into a tub of tennis balls someone had left by the seating area.


----------



## mvhplank (Dec 5, 2012)

cowpony said:


> Great job finding a solution to the distractions.
> 
> The agility career of a friend's dog came to an inglorious but amusing end when he got to the top of the A-frame, paused to admire the view, and then sprinted out of the ring to dive headfirst into a tub of tennis balls someone had left by the seating area.


Thanks! I'm taking a series of online courses from Debby Quigley (quite reasonably priced, especially compared to in-person classes). Her motto seems to be "engagement first--we'll work on other stuff later!"

Speaking of wonderful distractions ... there's a reason I haven't tried him in nosework-type classes. I started having nose-on-the floor issues during the trial and sniffing is not a behavior I want to train yet!


----------



## Liz (Oct 2, 2010)

Congratulations to you and Hobbes! That 99 is quite impressive!


----------



## scooterscout99 (Dec 3, 2015)

mvhplank said:


> Speaking of wonderful distractions ... there's a reason I haven't tried him in nosework-type classes. I started having nose-on-the floor issues during the trial and sniffing is not a behavior I want to train yet!


Advice from one of my training friends to limit sniffing . . teach the dog to sniff on command, then to look at you, then reward. (Maybe similar to teaching a dog to bark on command in order to limit barking.) Sniffing in the obedience or rally ring is totally different from competing in nosework. In NW they're looking for a target odor, which shouldn't be present in any other venue. Not sure if my dog sniffed (in rally & obedience) due to stress or was truly after other dog smells.


----------



## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

Very nice!


----------



## eeeeeek (Dec 13, 2020)

Congrats!


----------



## PowersPup (Aug 28, 2020)

I'm impressed! Congratulations, especially for finding a way to keep Hobbes interested in you and focused. That's the biggest issue I have with Topper - granted, he's only six months old, so I'm hoping that his focus will improve. Nose work has been good for him, but I admit that it may not be completely compatible with obedience work/Rally. At the beginning of our first class, the instructor informed us that the class was an "obedience-free zone." I would love to explore Rally. It sounds like the canine equivalent of dressage, but without the focus on the quality of gaits and ridiculous requirement to wear white riding breeches when handling a slobbery horse. Or a black coat in July.


----------



## mvhplank (Dec 5, 2012)

PowersPup said:


> I'm impressed! Congratulations, especially for finding a way to keep Hobbes interested in you and focused. That's the biggest issue I have with Topper - granted, he's only six months old, so I'm hoping that his focus will improve. Nose work has been good for him, but I admit that it may not be completely compatible with obedience work/Rally. At the beginning of our first class, the instructor informed us that the class was an "obedience-free zone." I would love to explore Rally. It sounds like the canine equivalent of dressage, but without the focus on the quality of gaits and ridiculous requirement to wear white riding breeches when handling a slobbery horse. Or a black coat in July.


Ha! Years before I ever competed with dogs, I showed a couple of my horses in schooling-show dressage. I'd say "formal" obedience and dressage are more closely related, but rally might be more like equestrian freestyle (except for the music), where certain elements must be included but the order can change and a little "flash" is encouraged. Or maybe eventing, where no one takes points off if you're talking to the horse and everyone has the same number of exercises to complete.

But I decided awhile back, and with great thanks, that dog sports were more fun, less expensive, and SAFER.

As far as working the dog's nose goes, I'm more likely to take up tracking, since most obedience trials are indoors these days and it's pretty clear to the dog whether he's expected to put his nose down and follow it when on a track.

Breeches, boots, and black jackets? Actually, I saw gold breeches, knee-high boots that never saw a horse, and a black jacket, on a lady with a head of multi-colored striped hair. It was at a conformation show a couple of weeks ago, and THAT'S where the fuss over "quality of gaits" really comes out.


----------



## Carolinek (Apr 2, 2014)

Very nice, congratulations!


----------



## pickleweed (Jul 14, 2020)

Congratulations! And I really like the idea of the gloves-- we're learning pattern games in training class, and I bet I could make one with the gloves that Pooka would really be into. It'd be some nice variety, compared to the usual treats.


----------

