# Decisions....



## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

Not about a puppy this time (though that's eating at part of my brain). :bowl:

I guess airing my brain static right now.  I'm sure I can be a bit more relaxed considering I'm not considering jumping back out there at a NATIONAL specialty.. 

It's getting close to the cut off point when I need to plan ahead as far as fall trials. Plus there are a few that need me to request vacation days... 

I do not have any immediate plans to do rally right now. I really want to focus on novice and getting that novice title (or legs). 

So here's my choices:

*September*:

Indoor show - 2 hours away from home, golden specialty, he may do fine here, because it is wide open. Noise would not be an issue at this show, because it's a pole barn and they have the doors open. I don't know anything about the judge, I've never seen his name before. 


**** I really want to wait for October, because he has just gone 2-3 months without breaking stays. I still want to build momentum. However, we do not have very many opportunities for outdoor shows. The advantage to outdoor shows is the noise issue. When we are in a sealed/closed building, there is more echo/concentrated noise.

*October*: 

Indoor Show - home turf #1 (he should do fine here, I do know they put novice in the bigger/quieter room where we always have class)

If I choose to skip the September shows, I could probably aim for Friday and Saturday. I've shown under the one judge before and while I've never shown under the other, I've heard he's good and fair. 

Indoor Show - home turf #2, golden specialty (iffy, they put novice on the agility side of the building, he had a little anxiety last year, though he pulled through it in rally and bn). I've shown under the judge before with Danny and Jacks. She _will_ take nitpick points off for heeling, but good.

Indoor Show - Very crowded, tight, noisy... but we've done fun matches here. Shown under him before, _very_ nice judge. 

**** The best bet is only doing #1, because he has the best chance of being relaxed and happy in the stay situation. We've done fun matches here too, set up exactly like they will be at the show. I'd be tempted to skip the other shows because they are too much. 

*November*:

Indoor Show - Crowded, _smelly_ (they have an indoor poop area for who knows what reason)... advantage is they have a warmup ring, so you don't have to stress about dealing with people and dogs getting in the way. Never shown under this judge... I've heard different things about him, good or bad. About the only thing I do know is that he's a golden person. 

*** Again the advantage is this is the last show before spring that I'd consider entering with him. And I do know some of the people there and we showed there before. While it can be crowded, it's not as noisy as it could be. The building is bigger than the ring area, I think because they only lease part of the building? So the noise concentration isn't that bad.


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## Titan1 (Jan 19, 2010)

Kate... You are thinking wayyyyy to much about this..lol! 
If you want to PM me I can probably help with the judges but I am not sure there are any bad judges for Novice. They all try to be very welcoming. Are you going to be in A or B?
I like indoor trials because then the weather does not affect them.. Quieter is not always better. I like background noise because then you don't hear every movement. Give me a busy loud show anyday! Noisy also gives the dogs something to think about or look at during stays... helps ... if they are watching something they are less likely to get tired and lay down..
Best of luck whatever you decide!


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

I rushed Jacks out back in 2010 and it took 2 years before I could get back to the point where I semi feel comfortable about him being in novice. 

The only reason why I'm concerned somewhat about judges is probably because of their way of approaching the stand for exam. We had exactly one judge in both novice and beginner novice who made the same mistakes and caused Jacks to break his stand. He gave Jacks a utility type exam in BN. Same thing in novice, but with the addition of his loose tie hitting Jacks in the face. >.< I don't know if that judge is retired, but it seems he may be pulling back? He normally does that September golden specialty. 

Busy shows are good. Noisy aren't. Jacks starts getting wild-eyed and staring at the ceiling like he thinks it's gonna fall on him. He did that at one of our home turf places during a fun match (I wound up with Jacks trying to heel between my legs), so I'm nervous about what he'd do in an actual show. *sighs*

(this is B for us, a couple of those judges I showed under with my previous guy)


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## K9-Design (Jan 18, 2009)

Just enter them all and don't freak out about it. It's just a dog show. You'll do fine. Don't overthink Novice.


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

Here's another "overthinking" question.... 

When you fill out entries on oaklines, can you send that in as is? Or do you have to send a copy of the clubs' premium thingy as well? 

I decided to enter them... whether we show or not is a different thing. I'm prone to panic attacks just as much as my dog is.


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## Loisiana (Jul 29, 2009)

I'm one who does look at the venues and pick and choose what is best for my dog.


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## AmberSunrise (Apr 1, 2009)

I too look at venues, judges etc. Why spend the time and money in a venue that you KNOW your dog will not be comfortable in? 

Kate - you just send in the paper with Jacks info on it and page with the agreement and signature on it.


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## Titan1 (Jan 19, 2010)

Megora said:


> Here's another "overthinking" question....
> 
> When you fill out entries on oaklines, can you send that in as is? Or do you have to send a copy of the clubs' premium thingy as well?
> 
> I decided to enter them... whether we show or not is a different thing. I'm prone to panic attacks just as much as my dog is.


Sorry I have never entered using oaklines..
If you are truly that nervous about his performance... stick the home shows, he knows the building and is safe there...JMHO..

Whichever you decide....remember...breathe and have fun.. your nerves go right down the leash to him..


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## BayBeams (Jan 3, 2010)

Do you have any small shows around, such as ASCA or UKC trials? With my last dog I used those shows as starters to help with my nerves and Baylee's comfort in a ring setting. At least in my area, those shows tend to be more relaxed and less stressful than an AKC trial.

I would suggest picking the shows that you would feel most comfortable with since our comfort level can make a huge difference with our dogs. If you go into a show with a thought that the venue isn't going to be good it can affect your entire run.

Most of all, have FUN!


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## K9-Design (Jan 18, 2009)

BayBeams said:


> Do you have any small shows around, such as ASCA or UKC trials? With my last dog I used those shows as starters to help with my nerves and Baylee's comfort in a ring setting. At least in my area, those shows tend to be more relaxed and less stressful than an AKC trial.


On the flip side, by "skirting" AKC and practicing at these smaller venues, in your mind you might actually make your anxiety worse when you do show up at an AKC trial. You create even more of a difference in your own mind. There are LOTS of AKC trials. There will be lots more. Just enter a bunch, that way if you fail the first couple, there are still others. Nothing makes me more paranoid than ONE show that I want do to well at -- yikes!

Besides, wouldn't you rather qualify and get a leg in AKC than the others? 



> Most of all, have FUN!


Now that's the truth


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

Thanks guys<:

These shows were handpicked because we've trained, shown, or matched there currently or before. So two home turfs, 2 familiar territories, and 1 nice spot with room to breathe and move.  

I will go ahead and mail the entries in and go. But as I did with rally, be prepared to keep him out of the ring if he's flaking out too much. $25-30 for a training outing isn't bad. 

@ASCA - I honestly don't even know if there's anything like that here? 

@UKC - My instructor was pushing me to enter the one show that was this month? But I didn't have my registration done (it's filled out but sitting in a stack of papers somewhere) and I'm not sure about that front over the jump thingy. And I think they do an honor stay as well? Or something? I have no idea when the next UKC show will be. Not too many of them.


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## Titan1 (Jan 19, 2010)

K9-Design said:


> . Nothing makes me more paranoid than ONE show that I want do to well at -- yikes!
> 
> 
> Or if there are some beautiful magnets for HIT and HC....UGH>>>>CHOKE:doh::doh::doh::doh::doh::doh:


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