Agility class number one!

Today was Maddie's first agility class! She is in the introductory class (obviously) and the classes are in this big grassy field off Centerville Road. The classes are every Monday at 7 pm, and since it's dark, they have a huge spotlight illuminating all the little obstacles. Add to that equation six or seven other dogs and a twenty minute drive, and you have the perfect recipe for a truly remarkable Maddie Meltdown. And she didn't disappoint. As soon as we got there, she started barking and flipping out. I kind of knew this would happen though - lots of stimuli everywhere. I'm not in denial about Maddie. Well, maybe I am a little bit, but Gavin isn't. The other people in the group were really nice though and didn't seem to care. We really thought we were going to get kicked out for a few minutes there. Of course the other dogs were well behaved. It always happens that way.

The first trick we tried was the hurdle. It's just a little gate that the babies jump over. They set the bar pretty low on this first time out, and I thought Maddie would be all over this one, since she loves to jump, as we all know. She was distracted, though, and didn't care about the treats we were offering. She kept looking for Daddy, who was over by the car with Sugarbear, who we had brought because we didn't want her to feel left out.

Anyway, I had to jump over the little hurdle with her to finally get her to do it. I was the only parent who had to do this, mind you. I think she'll do better next time when she's not looking for Sugarbear - we will have to leave her at home for these next few sessions, just until Maddie gets used to being out there. They are not used to being separated. Here's a picture of what a dog is supposed to do with the hurdle. Notice this dog's owner is nowhere in the picture. We'll get there eventually.

The second trick we tried was the tunnel. This was another trial, but a lot of the other dogs had issues with this one too, so I felt a little better about that. The first time, I tried it alone and Maddie was not going for it AT ALL. She loves to burrow under the covers, but I guess the cold, dark, polyurethane tunnel is not quite as inviting. The second time, the instructor had Gavin get on the far side and call Maddie through. I stayed on the near side to help Maddie stick her face in, basically. Anyway, she did it! She ran through the tunnel to Gavin and we were so proud! I mean I was literally jumping up and down for joy. All the other dog parents clapped and cheered for us because they knew we were trying so hard. It was a beautiful moment. Then she did it two more times!! They didn't even have to shorten the tunnel for her. Gavin said she looked so scared running to him, with her little ears back flat against her head, but she did it! She's so brave. Here is a picture of the tunnel.

So next week we will do these obstacles again, and then learn one or two more. We are going to do some exercises we learned with Maddie in the meantime to get her to focus on us more amidst distractions. This isn't going to be easy, but I really think she is going to do ok with this, with time. She's so smart, she just needs more discipline. Keep your fingers crossed for us!! Goooo Maddie!