A compliment!

Last night we had agility class, and things went pretty well. We got to work on the chute, which I was hoping to do since we hadn't used it in a while. Shelby was pretty attentive most of the night.


For our run through at the end of class, we had a 16 obstacle course, including stuff like the tunnel, A frame and pause table with a couple of rear crosses, which I love, but I think most people don't like so much. I was the first to run the course. We did pretty well, with a couple stumbles and some motivation issues at a few points, like the table, but we got through it pretty smoothly as far as my handling and cues go. I wasn't totally happy because of the motivation issues.
Some of the other advanced teams ran the course after I did, and experienced some handling problems at a couple areas, but nothing major.
When class was over, I was getting my stuff together, and some of the students were talking to the instructor, and I heard her say "I don't think Liz heard that." So she repeated that Patricia had said it was hard making mistakes when the person who goes first does the course perfectly, like Liz and Shelby. I was astonished, because to me, we had a few glaring problems and it wasn't perfect at all! It just reminded me that each dog and handler has their own things to work on and their own standards of success, so you shouldn't try to live up to someone else's performance.
Later, when we were getting in the car, the instructor told me that we're doing really well, and Shelby's distraction issues will get better with time and experience and that I'm doing a good job staying positive and trying to keep it fun for Shelby. So overall, a good night.