Can a performance dog also be a good "pet"?

[Piper's mom]

My advice to someone looking to get into obedience, go to the obedience trials and look for a mentor. Ask around about who trains where. Once you have your eye on domeone, go visit their classes and see if that's who you want to start with. As you grow and learn, it is natural to outgrow one mentor and move on to another. Enjoy the journey, the dogs and people you meet might become very good companions.

Excellent advice, i didn't go to obedience trials before we started obedience but I have been to some since and most people who do obedience are very helpful. Also managed to find a great trainer (wish I'd known of her before) who really cares about the dogs she trains.
To me Piper is my pet that I do obedience with, if I don't make it fun for him to learn then what's in it for him? He sleeps on my bed, gets lots of treats, has free run of the house when I'm at work and lots of play time when I'm home. I also consider obedience my hobby (in a way), we have a great time and meet lots of interesting super nice people. Enjoy your dog as a pet and train them in obedience but have fun and your dog will have fun and perform better!