Dog Handling

Testimony of a Journey

Hi, my name is Hilary Quemby and I am relatively new to sharing my life with dogs (commonly known as dog ownership).

Jess came into my life 5 years ago. Blue Heelers are amazing dogs. So intelligent that they learn what you want very quickly but this also means that they soon work out how to push the boundaries and they find sneaky ways to get their own way. Jess has always been and still is a challenge for me. Blue heelers are a breed that nip and if she gets over excited she will give me a play nip. I know what she is doing but I do not trust her around small children who may be frightened by this behaviour. Dog sports have been great in helping me work out what to do about this and other blue heeler issues.

Having mentioned one major challenge with a blue heeler - there are many lovely benefits too. Jess is fiercely loyal to me and very loving. I love sharing my life with her and I get the feeling she feels the same about me. I also love sharing my life with Jay, my heading dog.

Jay came into my life when she was one and a half years old - very scared and traumatized, nervous and very hyper. Desperate to please but too scared to get close. A sneeze would scare her into a cowering wreck behind the sofa. She had been a farm dog who didn’t quite make it. She had spent the last 6 months on her own with nothing to do and nothing to play with. Her life changed dramatically when she came to live with me, both our lives were enriched immensely.

So I found myself with 2 working breed dogs and a small back yard. If we were going to live in harmony I was going to have to find things for them to do and learn. Exercising them every day is imperative, but these dogs (dare I suggest all dogs) need more than just exercise. They need to think and feel they are doing a useful task and being a valued member of the pack.

This is where ‘dogs play’ came in and saved the day for me.

To get my dogs to do stuff I knew we all needed to understand obedience rules. But I wasn’t sure learning to order my dogs around in a controlled manner was what I was looking for, it sounded like boring school to me.  I wanted to have fun.

Agility and Flygility proved to be the answer for me. And guess what - we learnt the rules too but had fun doing it.

Training Jay has and continues to be virtually opposite to training with Jess. Jess is laid back, confident and likes to think about what is being asked of her and get it right. Jay is massively over nervous/hyper and rushes around wildly barking “Am I doing it right? Am I? What’s next? Hurry up Mum� - often getting things wrong but enjoying trying to work with me and enjoying going very, very fast. One dog needs slowing down the other needs speeding up. Raewyn’s experience means that she can adapt the training to all types of dogs AND people. Often I find it is me that needs the training first so I can then learn to understand and work with my dogs.

There have been times when I have been frustrated and times when I have been elated, but all the time I have been building a stronger and stronger bond with my dogs.

They are no longer dogs in my eyes. Training has brought them so much closer than that. We are friends. They are fur children. Yes, I have to remember I am the pack leader and enforce that. But over all  - the more time we spend together, the more we learn to work together the better it feels.

The other major benefit I have enjoyed is the growing companionship with other people training their dogs at the club. This is so wonderful especially at show times when we all band together to support and help each other.

So if you have a dog and you think you may like to offer your dog and yourself a bit more challenge, an opportunity to grow and bond and have fun.....why not come along and test it out?

Each week is different so give it a good few weeks to see if it is right for you. Raewyn is a wonderful teacher with so much knowledge, experience and patience. She offers it all to us virtually for free. The class prices are beyond reasonable. Whatever you decide I am wishing you happiness with you and your fur friend.

All the best, Hilary