April showers have also brought lots of growth in the fields, to where we are not feeding hay to the sheep, right now. The sheep are enjoying a lot of green stuff to their hearts' content. The boys are also enjoying romping in the pastures, foxtail-free, for now. The end of May normally signals the beginning of bad foxtail (and tick) season around here so we are in that special time of year right now with no foxtails and very few ticks (I have only seen one).
We went to the Northern Nevada sheepdog trial which is a very nicely run event. This is the third time I have gone, not all consecutive years, but our third trip overall in the series of (I think?) four annual trials. The trial runs like clockwork, with many volunteers and great helpers. The BBQ on Saturday night, put on by the Borda family, who supply the fresh yearling sheep for the trial, is not to be missed. They provided deliciously prepared tri tip, lamb, chicken, and sides, for all the handlers at the conclusion of Saturday's trial; it does not get better than that! It was great to visit with old friends. The trial was filled to (over) capacity with good dog handlers and dogs. The weather was absolutely delightful; low to none of the winds that Carson City is famous for.
It Sucks To Suck
But, this year our own results at Carson City were the worst of any of our attempts there. Spot and I retired again, both runs. This is getting depressing. It does suck to suck. I know neither of us really sucks but it feels that way. I do think Spot is getting minutely better. He got a gold star for his outrun on the Saturday run. He accidentally was allowed (by me, handler error) to view too much of the exhaust of the prior run's sheep. Spot was pretty well focused on the exhaust. But, to his credit, when we went to the post, he ran up and out on the field as he should do, on the outrun, putting exhaust behind him. That is a huge improvement in his experience level. From there, it went down hill. Like many of the other dogs, he could not lift the very lively and fit yearling (freshly shorn) finewools away from the setout and its strong draw. They ran to setout and we retired.
Our Sunday run was not much different although he seemed to run out more confidently in a manner of speaking. But, again he could not bring the sheep against the strong draw, and we retired. This was after waiting all day, and running third from last out of 59 dogs. I almost bailed, watching team after team bite the dust. Out of the 59 dogs, 25 of them got letters, either RT or DQ (mostly RT). The fact that we do not have any chance to train on finewools is a huge disadvantage for us and this is the overall message that I am taking home to ponder, after this spring "series" of trials. Six RTs in a row, on finewools. In our lessons we have been working with Spot pulling sheep off of a very strong draw (the barn, "home", etc.) but those sheep are not these yearling range ewes who can out run a dog and are as fit as a Thoroughbred on the first Saturday in May. Trialling is pretty darn depressing right now. I'm glad we don't have much more before summer when mostly likely I will be taking a break. And yet:
It Is Still Amazing
I still find it amazing that these dogs will do what they do for us, consistently and over time despite the mistakes we make in handling and those inevitable and rare times that we let our emotions get in the way. I still find it fun, even exciting, to bring a dog on and train all the little bits and pieces that they need to know in order to be competent.
I am thinking, hard, about how I will bring on another dog (Cap) and the huge "holes" that need to be filled in the sheep department, for training. I am also thinking, hard, about when and whether I will (ever) move another dog to Open, again, because it is so daunting, and if I can't fill those holes then it hardly seems fair to the dogs.
Cap and I are awaiting his first real lesson. That will be a new chapter. Pondering.
No comments:
Post a Comment