Gemma came to live with Ann and Wayne Hall and son Michael at 7 weeks of age to be a companion dog and pet. The family had previously owned a border collie, so thought it was a good idea to keep with the same breed. Gemma turned out to be a lot livelier and more mischievous than her predecessor. She has a mind of her own and plenty of imagination to go with it.
We started control lessons with Gemma at Dog Sports Rotorua when she was about 5 months old. She had already attended puppy preschool at the vets. She is nearly 3 years old now and still does control lessons. She is very easily distracted in the company of other dogs, so has needed to spend longer learning control.
At the same time she started learning agility in a small class mid week. The Saturday morning classes were a bit chaotic as Gemma kept ranging off and doing her own thing. However, in a smaller group she could work well and showed talent for agility. We had to take her out of Saturday classes altogether for about 9 months as she created such chaos and nearly defeated me and her teacher. But we hung in there with the agility, getting good results and having a lot of fun. Now we do both agility and control lessons. We do our best agility when there are not many dogs or people around. Our control is steadily improving.
Gemma is a great companion dog; she is friendly and fun, she gets her family out walking every day so we are all getting exercised.
She is cuddly and affectionate in the evenings, and she now has an idea of how to behave at home and away from home.
She has also introduced her family to a new sport – agility. We never dreamed of doing agility when we chose her as a puppy. However, we have found it is the best activity for Gemma to keep her fit and healthy in mind and body, and out of mischief. As her handler, I have learnt many dog handling skills and increased my level of fitness.
We say a big thank you to Dog Sports Rotorua, and Raewyn her trainer, for supporting us during the two and a half years it has taken to make her manageable in busy dog situations. We encourage all dog owners with challenging dogs to hang in there and patiently build on the good things that are happening with your dog. Your dog is unique and special, and training will help you and the dog build a good relationship over time. Training through dog sports is fun for dogs and owners.
Anne Hall & Gemma
