Monday, December 18, 2017

Jingle Trial

We went to the Jingle sheepdog trial at Point Pleasant Ranch near Elk Grove in early December. My goal is just to get to the post, whenever we can, and try to work on some of the things we've learned over the past few months in order to help  Spot to be successful.

It was a very constructive experience for us and I was so pleased to be able to finish the course on both runs and get a score. It is amazing how good it feels to be able to complete the run before the clock runs out. We were not competitive in the HA points but we were respectable. More than that, I felt like we put into play some of the advice we have been getting from the experts who have been advising us, and it sure seems to help. There are lots of holes in our work and many things to practice and improve ... but there is no better way to find all that out other than just putting in the time at the post. I am very grateful that the trial hosts are willing to have these trials!


Jingle Trial scores

We are into the darkest part of winter, and the shortest days. Some weeks it is hard to get out and practice on the sheep at all, during the week. The boys have been very patient about being cooped up at home but they do love an outing on the weekends, when we get one!

Sad, work from home dogs...

Happy dogs on the weekend!