It’s Mr. Aidan’s birthday.
And a milestone one at that.
In my 20-plus years of owning male Toller puppies, turning 2 years old equates to their male brains beginning to really engage and to kick into high gear.
I’m hoping Aidan will follow his four male predecessors in this department.
It may be my lack of full vision, but in the last month I think I’ve “seen” the light bulb flipping on more frequently.
For instance, he actually looks at me when he’s out roaming in his fenced dog yard doing doggy things and I call his name. Let’s just say in the last year or so, there have been some serious “discussions” about the importance of at least looking my way when I say his name.
He’s easily distracted by other things in his world.
We’re starting to figure out what makes each other tick as well. I’m never unfair, but I do require precision. And he can be a quirky little fellow at times. Commands I thought I’d taught solidly suddenly become foreign concepts.
He likes to be challenged, so I am working on how best to meet his requirements by varying the training we do so he meets my expectations as well. Call it a balancing act.
And that’s where (I’m hoping) all the sniffing training we’ve been doing is starting to come into play. He’s free to sniff to his heart’s content, finding those four individual scents (birch, anise, cypress and clove) in little containers – and it’s all on him.
He’s in charge.
I’m merely a tagalong walking behind him attached to a 10-foot leash watching for behaviors that I’m learning to read, which mean he’s on a scent. Then I’m waiting for his response, which is a sit, to let me know when he’s found the source of that scent.
His nose is the deciding factor. And I have to trust his judgment.
Since dogs “view” the world primarily through their noses, finding those scents is not something you can force. Inside, he’s pretty solid. But open that environment up to the great outdoors and weather conditions, wind, air flow, noises, all kinds of outside forces play a role in whether he can find the hidden scent.
So, he either wants to go sniffing or he doesn’t. I can encourage him to keep working or to find another scent if there are more than one hidden. But, I can’t force him to do it. That decision is totally up to him.
However, when rally training, I’m in charge and all the decisions are mine. It’s up to him to listen to my commands and watch for my hand signals.
He’s got some very big paws to follow in the Rally ring. And my expectations are sky high because Mr. Aidan was chosen for the very qualities that make a great rally dog.
He’s nimble and very light on his feet, quick, agile with lots of energy. Well, maybe a little too much of that, but it will serve us well down the road when there are three classes in one day.
However, he’s also a free thinker and making sure we’re on the same page while allowing him the freedom to perform the exercises his way come into play as well.
My eye situation closed the door to our debut in the rally ring this spring. In fact, it’s now been delayed until next year. I am still quite limited in performing at my highest level while training and there are a lot of things I can’t do until my full vision is restored. I’m hoping by or before December.
So, our rally coming out party will take place a year later than originally planned.
In the meantime, we attended two sniffing trials before my eye went bonkers, so he starts being exposed to different venues, distractions and show situations.
In fact, we have entered our third sniffing trial on Aug. 3 in Midland.
And, it’s possible that the birthday boy might come home with his first performance title ribbon (or ribbons), depending on how it goes.
I’ll keep you updated.
