It was a long drive home from Toledo, so plenty of time to talk all things dog. My friend said something that took me by surprise...."I don't know if I like all these MACH 2, 3, 4, 17 dogs".....what?? I said. Her point being, that they got their MACH title, what's the point in continuing, further she worries about the impact on the dogs health.
I couldn't disagree more. In all likelihood Kittie will have her MACH by the Fall of this year, I couldn't imagine retiring her, she *loves* agility and just gets better all the time. That title isn't the purpose for doing agility, it is simply a tangible marker of our success and a goal to work towards, along with specific goals for each individual dog.
My dogs are in good physical condition and their bodies go through more "abuse" in an average day than they do in the less than 2 minutes they spend running at an agility trial. They run, climb, jump and literally flip themselves over as they aggressively chase toys in the park. Agility is like a vacation compared to their average day!
We do agility first and foremost because it's fun and we love it. We wouldn't stop because we got a title, or because we couldn't get a title. The only reason to stop is if you or your dog are not having fun.
1 comment:
The judge on Saturday's standard run had a great comment. He said good luck and hoped everyone there would earn their MACH. And then he said the real fun of agility could begin with no more pressure to get titles - it's all fun, fun, fun at that point. :-) How true I think and I can't wait to get there someday
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