Things to Remember Before the Show

Weather permitting, Pinch and I head off to our first Obedience trial this weekend. It's UKC, a new venue for us and I'm very excited to give it a try. I really want this to be a successful weekend. So, here's how I plan to do that:

- Remember I'm to be there for my dog. This is his first time in a real show, and he's going to take his cues how to behave from me.
- Be confident. We've done our homework.
- Set a reasonable goal for this weekend. What is that goal: to have FUN, and if I have fun, Pinch will enjoy his time in the ring.

Aside from that, this weekend I will see if Pinch is ready to enter AKC Novice this spring, or if we need to take a few steps back, retrain and let him gain some more maturity.

This is our first road trip in a very long time. Moto is coming too, for the travel experience and get used to different environments. He is REALLY coming along and coming into his own. He makes his Open B debut in just a few weeks. My goals with him are the same as above. He's not as green as Pinch, but he still needs to believe in himself and that he can do the job.

Hubby and I went to Trader Joe's this weekend, and I bought some "road food" for the upcoming weekend. S'mashing S'mores - check! Cheddar popcorn: check! Trail mix - check! One of the things I enjoy most about road trips are having a hotel room to myself, a rare treat. Moto and Pinch don't have to sleep in crates and get to snuggle on the bed with me. They both really like that. I'm almost as excited about that as going to the show.

So we have a few more days to train, then do laundry, pack, groom dogs, and off we go on what I hope will be a very fun adventure. I'd love for Pinch to get his U-UD some day, so it will be great fun to watch the other dogs.

Onward and forward to new frontiers!