Spirit Joy

sometimes you just have to let them have fun.
I'm learning that in herding- I always try to get Cran to do what I told him which isn't always the right thing and the trainer tells me that he was right and then he runs around the sheep and as long as he keeps his distance and doesn't dive in on the sheep, she says to let him have a little fun. it'll make him more willing to work when we come back........
I think that works in agility too:yes:
 
Well, since Spirit has really been struggling lately with her enthusiasm and desire to do agility, we took a long break, and I was honestly really questioning whether she was ever going to want to do agility again. As much as I love it, if she doesn't want to do it, I'm not going to force her. It's supposed to be fun, and if she's not having fun we won't do it.

Tonight we did a 30 minute private lesson just so she could do some short fun sequences without any pressure. And she looked GREAT! She was enthusiastic, she ran, and she did the teeter with absolutely no hesitation. She looked like herself again. Her agility trainer had assured me that Spirit would work through this and be fine, but in the back of my mind I didn't believe her. Tonight, for the first time, I believed that Spirit WILL bounce back and return to the ring, having fun. I am so relieved and right now, I don't care how long it takes, or how slowly we have to go. Just to see her actually running, with her hair flowing in the breeze, was the greatest feeling ever!!!!! I am so happy :-)
 
Cara Sandler said:
Well, since Spirit has really been struggling lately with her enthusiasm and desire to do agility, we took a long break, and I was honestly really questioning whether she was ever going to want to do agility again. As much as I love it, if she doesn't want to do it, I'm not going to force her. It's supposed to be fun, and if she's not having fun we won't do it.

Tonight we did a 30 minute private lesson just so she could do some short fun sequences without any pressure. And she looked GREAT! She was enthusiastic, she ran, and she did the teeter with absolutely no hesitation. She looked like herself again. Her agility trainer had assured me that Spirit would work through this and be fine, but in the back of my mind I didn't believe her. Tonight, for the first time, I believed that Spirit WILL bounce back and return to the ring, having fun. I am so relieved and right now, I don't care how long it takes, or how slowly we have to go. Just to see her actually running, with her hair flowing in the breeze, was the greatest feeling ever!!!!! I am so happy :)
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So happy to hear this, Cara.
 
Today I sent Spirit to agility camp with her regular trainer. I asked her to just work on Spirit having fun. Apparently Spirit had a blast, was motivated to work, and performed well (though she didn't ask her to do anything complicated or physically hard, since we're just working on having fun right now). I am so relieved that she's bouncing back from whatever was upsetting her!
 
I have her entered in a trial in 3 weeks - the weekend of September 23rd, but I haven't decided yet if we're actually going to do it. The last thing I want to do is rush her comeback and throw all this time off away.
 
Cara Sandler said:
I have her entered in a trial in 3 weeks - the weekend of September 23rd, but I haven't decided yet if we're actually going to do it. The last thing I want to do is rush her comeback and throw all this time off away.
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I hear you. Does she like FAST? That might be less stressful for her and a much shorter day.
 
We always do FAST when it's offered. She's really good at it, and I love it too.

I decided I'm going to skip the September trial. There's a trial the third week of October that's local, so we're going to wait for that one. That will give Spirit more time to bounce back, and since it's local we'll be coming home every night. Plus it's outdoors, and Spirit seems to prefer the outdoor venues. I think that's the perfect scenario for her comeback.
 
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Cara Sandler said:
We always do FAST when it's offered. She's really good at it, and I love it too.

I decided I'm going to skip the September trial. There's a trial the third week of October that's local, so we're going to wait for that one. That will give Spirit more time to bounce back, and since it's local we'll be coming home every night. Plus it's outdoors, and Spirit seems to prefer the outdoor venues. I think that's the perfect scenario for her comeback.
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sounds like a great plan- nothing like sleeping in your own bed:winkgrin:
 
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