Puppy Class, Part I

Pinch got to go to his first puppy class last night. What an absolute blast. A Golden puppy about the same age as Pinch was the other student. There's nothing like a puppy and a nice blank slate. I always vow not to make the same mistakes, and I typically don't - I make a slew of new ones, sheesh. Right now Pinch has the capability of being that OTCH/200 I've always dreamed of, and I sure hope not to screw it up. I've already got some valuable pointers of things I need to improve on and new training ideas. What's so great at this point is everything is FUN and EXCITING and the time just flies by. We'll have a good time incorporating these new methods into our training routine.
Moto did well at class last night also. I've decided not to give him any room for error when it comes to heeling and he is tied to me as we heel. This worked well at class and I need to do this in strange places. Even though we had near-perfect ring conditions for our Wildcard runs, Moto was distracted at times and other times simply chose not to care which led to wide turns and extremely bad (by bad I mean 1 or more feet away from me) sits. I don't want him to EVER get away with that again, so for now, that option is removed by tying him to me.
Once home - at it was late for me (late is 10:00 at night) when I got a phone call from my cousin. We chatted for a bit and she came up with an interesting insight as I talked about Moto: she said for the first time since she's known me, it seems that Moto is a pet first, and an obedience dog second. All my other dogs have been the reverse. Huh. You know, I think she is right. While I'm not pleased with that priority, I think that is what is best for Moto. I'll train him and we'll work hard. OTCH is still a goal but the reality is, it just may not happen with him. I'm OK with that. Moto has a very important "job" at our house. He acts like the mama dog to Pinch and is always by my side when the chips are down. There's nothing better than hugging that big furry body and receiving those long-tomgued kisses as comfort. We have 2 sick dogs and one very elderly dog and it can be tough sometimes. I am very grateful to have a dog like Moto in my life right now.