# Um, so does anyone else...



## Stretchdrive (Mar 12, 2011)

You need to think of it this way. 

A deserving owner takes care of all the mental, and physical needs of their dogs. They feed them the best food they can afford, though it may not always be the best quality, it is the best the deserving owner can afford. A deserving owner spends time with their dogs, not necisarrily at shows, but spending time with them for the enjoyment of being together. A deserving owner listens to what their dog is telling them, and takes care of their needs, before the owner takes care of their wants. I could go on and on here, but I think it is obvious what a deserving owner is, and I definately think you are one!


----------



## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

oh you hit on something I feel guilty about all the time. I never train Tito at home, in any venue. He just has to absorb the stuff in 1/2 hour to an hour a week, at a lesson somewhere. 
I can only imagine what he would have been capable of had he had an owner who had the time and motivation to really work with him.
That's why I always say he wants to go live with you, Sharon. You constantly do the most fun, creative and interesting things with your dogs, and I admire you tremendously for it.


----------



## Loisiana (Jul 29, 2009)

I think most of us think that of ourselves at some point. I feel bad I don't take my dogs out on hikes like you do. I think of what my dog would be capable of with a more experienced trainer. But I also know nobody loves my dogs as much as I do.


----------



## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

I do all the time, particularly since you do more with Comet's sibling than I do with Comet.

But I think Susan has it right. It's more about fulfilling your dogs' needs and treating them with love and dignity than it is about external measurements of success. You treat your dogs with unbelievable care.


----------



## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

Loisiana said:


> But I also know nobody loves my dogs as much as I do.


And that's what it comes down to.... 

I'm sure every single one of you is spoiling your dogs in whatever way you can whenever you can. 

Of course, I have the benefit of owning a dog from one of "those" breeders. I think as it stands, if we get his RA, he will be the most accomplished dog with the kennel name (there is another dog that got an RN).  I'm sure if I owned a Sunfire or Tanbark golden, I'd be dealing with the rush to keep up with the littermates....


----------



## Loisiana (Jul 29, 2009)

Megora said:


> I'm sure if I owned a Sunfire or Tanbark golden, I'd be dealing with the rush to keep up with the littermates....


well Flip is the only one in his litter who is in a performance home, so no pressure there. And I KNOW I will never reach the accomplishments of some other trainers with Sunfire dogs (nope a NOC 2 just ain't going to be happening here), so I don't feel like I need to try to live up to those standards. Most pressure I feel has nothing to do with actual titles, it is just me trying to get the type of performance I am looking for with my dog. I want a happy, beautiful working dog and that is what I am constantly working and striving for.


----------



## Titan1 (Jan 19, 2010)

I'm sure if I owned a Sunfire or Tanbark golden, I'd be dealing with the rush to keep up with the littermates....[/QUOTE]

Mighty is my 1st official Sunfire dog even though Titan is out of the Sunfire lines..ask me what I have been doing with my puppy.. does he know sit....nope...does he know anything besides how much I love him....nope.. do I care......nope.. I have had the HIT and HC's.I also know his littermates are all going to performance homes..do I care..NOPE!
He is a baby and we are working on manners,housebreaking ect...
I don't care if we ever show and if we do, how well we do. What I care about is....He will be happy, well adjusted, and loved. He will have a home with me the rest of his life and the rest is on me.. not on him..he will have fun playing whatever it is that brings us both joy, He will be in condition and have everything he needs and everything will come in time. Before Titan I never dreamed we would ever come this far and I am not fanatical about training..never was.. it is about the journey and it has been a wonderful amazing ride..
Sharon I can't think of a luckier thing than being one of your kids. They are well loved,exercised and get all they need from you! Do not ever doubt that!


----------



## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

beautiful post Michelle.


----------



## AmberSunrise (Apr 1, 2009)

Thanks all - I do truly love my dogs and spending time with them. 

They are in excellent condition, beautifully mannered pets, they love working and going around different places, they love playing and snuggling and are game to try anything new. I guess I want it all.

And I want to continue being blessed with them, whether we get HITs or not....


----------



## my4goldens (Jan 21, 2009)

I think this all the time. I never did everything I had planned with my dogs. All, except maybe Rusty, his structure and health got in the way, had tremendous potential to do far more than we ever did in dog sports. And now I have my Tuggie dog, I have tons of plans but who knows what we will end up doing. But I don't think the dogs care one way or another, and truthfully, I don't either. Life, health, family, lots of things get in the way of training and showing. And when I look at my dogs, I've learned not to think about what might have been, but what is right now. And all that is important to them and to me is that they are loved, cared for, cherished and we spend time together, and whether it is in the ring, in the field or in the back yard doesn't matter one way or the other. I think about the two I lost last year, and what is most important to me are the memories we made, not any ribbons or titles we didn't get.


----------



## BayBeams (Jan 3, 2010)

My dogs don't get to run through lakes and streams and aren't stellar performers but I love their silly antics, their wagging tails and the bond that we share.
I understand your guilt...sometimes I feel that I should do more but I know my pups have a loving home that considers their well being as a top priority.
At the moment they are sleeping at my feet, waiting until my work day is done so we can spend some one to one time together...


----------



## goldensrbest (Dec 20, 2007)

Honestly, until,i became a member on here, i was content with being a good dog mom, but i see so many of you doing all kinds of things with your dogs, i feel i may not be good enough, i love them, spend time with them, i do feed the best i feel for them, play with them, walk them, but my training lacks, i was happier in the old days before computers, i love it here, but i does concern me that i don't do what alot of you do,with your dogs.


----------



## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

Titan1 said:


> He will have a home with me the rest of his life


I think this is wonderful. 

Sometimes there are people who put their own "career" first, and push and pressure these dogs to get titles fast and furious. So these dogs never really get a chance to enjoy a normal puppyhood. And they must not be bonding with these dogs if they can give them up when they don't turn out the way they hoped? I can't comprehend this mentality. It's not something I would do, even knowing that keeping a dog would mean putting my interests aside for ten years or whatever. 

Now... I still do think one of the best things I ever did with Jacks was working on foundation the instant he came home. And the reason why is it is easier to teach "watch" or come-with-flash or play retrieves while they still are really into only you. With his brother we waited, and there were a lot more corrections and luring involved teaching the same foundation work to an older (past 12 weeks) puppy who had learned the deaf ears and spinning head trick.

I'm sure you are still working on watch, retrieves, and comes with Mighty, right?


----------



## GoldenCamper (Dec 21, 2009)

Sunrise said:


> ...sometimes feel they don't deserve the dogs they have?


Sometimes it has crossed my mind. Not with my first girl, she was a pro companion animal and I bestowed many awards upon her for such myself 

My boy could have been a great hunting dog and would have done very well in agility I'm sure.

Fiona I think would just be smokin' in the obedience ring. Bet she could knock off all those letters like nothing.

All I know is my dogs are very happy and well exercised. To me I know I have done good by them. They have all claimed their championships in my book.


----------



## Titan1 (Jan 19, 2010)

Megora said:


> I think this is wonderful.
> 
> I'm sure you are still working on watch, retrieves, and comes with Mighty, right?


What I am working on right now....Seriously.. getting to the front door to potty, to try to get him to be somewhat quiet while I am getting food together in the morning. Sleeping all night in his crate... I have rolled the ball a few times... and when I can make Titan mind me.. the puppy will go get it and bring it in the general vacinity..Titan and are trying to teach him to lick instead of bite.. he does pretty good but then tries to lick Titan instead of me..rofl..cute but he is getting I think.. trying to get him to stop eating all the grass in the front yard..oh and trying to stop the excavation to China via my flower bed..When I get time on Tuesday night I will post the video of him up in the chair..he got into it himself and proceeded to tell me off...rofl.. right before he fell off and made mommy make sure he was okay......watching me is a pipe dream at this point and is maybe if I have any treat.. and then he can't sit still unless the treat is right up by his mouth.. so that will be later...I am afraid to take him back to class... he barked almost the entire night..rofl.. so nope not working on anything but manners and trying not to let him hurt anything while that happens..and you know what.....no matter what happens he is my boy now and will have everything he needs.. including a more stubborn mommy!

PS and getting him to respond to his name....lol!


----------



## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

some wonderful posts here. Great thread, Sharon.


----------



## Stretchdrive (Mar 12, 2011)

Sharon, 

Here is how I feel about showing.


I had always wanted to get a high score with my dogs, and hopefully get a HIT someday. I had so many 197, or 197.5 that I had a goal of a 198. Then last fall I got a 198.5, and thought wow, that wasn't that great of a feeling, so I though maybe I needed a 199. Along came December, and I got a 199, I felt good when I got that 199, but realized that it wasn't as great of a feeling as I had hoped. As I waited around until the end of the day that day to see who got HIT, I realized that I really didn't care if I ever got the HIT. Sure I wanted to do well, but since the other things were not fulfilling as I had thought I realized that them things really didn't matter to me. So I decided to give up obedience for a while, and possibly forever while I figured things out. After all my favorite shows were the ones I had with my boy Rivet, and all the goofy things he did that ate up the points. What I figured out when i quit obedience, and started training agility was that I show for that goofy smile your dog gives you when it is returning on a recall, the crazy tail wagging that makes their butt crooked, the confidence they have when they start to do a finish before you tell them to ect. I realized that it is all about having fun with my dog, and the rest of it is just someones opinion.


----------



## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

Titan1 said:


> What I am working on right now....Seriously.. getting to the front door to potty, to try to get him to be somewhat quiet while I am getting food together in the morning. Sleeping all night in his crate... I have rolled the ball a few times... and when I can make Titan mind me.. the puppy will go get it and bring it in the general vacinity..Titan and are trying to teach him to lick instead of bite.. he does pretty good but then tries to lick Titan instead of me..rofl..cute but he is getting I think.. trying to get him to stop eating all the grass in the front yard..oh and trying to stop the excavation to China via my flower bed..When I get time on Tuesday night I will post the video of him up in the chair..he got into it himself and proceeded to tell me off...rofl.. right before he fell off and made mommy make sure he was okay......watching me is a pipe dream at this point and is maybe if I have any treat.. and then he can't sit still unless the treat is right up by his mouth.. so that will be later...I am afraid to take him back to class... he barked almost the entire night..rofl.. so nope not working on anything but manners and trying not to let him hurt anything while that happens..and you know what.....no matter what happens he is my boy now and will have everything he needs.. including a more stubborn mommy!
> 
> PS and getting him to respond to his name....lol!


OMG. Sounds like he's a busy handful.  Maybe I need to keep this in mind while I still have my rose-colored glasses on thanks to Jacks being such a sweetmeats. With the exception of me wearing bruises on the backs of my legs for the first two years, I don't remember anything bad.... :smooch:

Was Titan like that?


----------



## vcm5 (Apr 20, 2011)

This thread is so wonderful to read. You guys have some lucky lucky dogs!


----------



## Titan1 (Jan 19, 2010)

Megora said:


> OMG. Sounds like he's a busy handful.  Maybe I need to keep this in mind while I still have my rose-colored glasses on thanks to Jacks being such a sweetmeats. With the exception of me wearing bruises on the backs of my legs for the first two years, I don't remember anything bad.... :smooch:
> 
> Was Titan like that?


Nope not at all .....but yet similar in other ways.. I see glimpses of brillance in Midas too.. I just have to figure him out and he has to figure me out..we will get there .. wherever "there" may be..I should be in for the ride for sure..


----------



## Sally's Mom (Sep 20, 2010)

For me, it is all about having fun with my dogs. My Laney was an Expo granddaughter from a Gaylans line bitch. She was an amazing worker and with my inept training attained her UD. However, her aptitude was in ball sports...any kind of ball sports. If I was gardening, it was tennis ball chasing. If it was my younger son, it was lacrosse ball fielding... My current six excell in leather couch sleeping....


----------



## Loisiana (Jul 29, 2009)

Titan1 said:


> Nope not at all .....but yet similar in other ways.. I see glimpses of brillance in Midas too.. I just have to figure him out and he has to figure me out..we will get there .. wherever "there" may be..I should be in for the ride for sure..


There were times when Flip was a baby that I wondered what I'd gotten myself into. Times I thought this dog was going to be too independent to ever make it into an obedience ring. There was a month or so when he was at the "teenage" stage that I quit training completely - he was being too difficult and it was making me frustrated, and I don't train while frustrated. I started daydreaming about picking out my next puppy, and going for a pup out of an "easier" breeding. 

Now my boy is almost three and OMG I can't imagine having or wanting to work with anything but exactly what I have. I wouldn't change a thing about him, he may not be perfect but I've realized he is perfect for me.


----------

