Flyball Murph....Part Two

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

Today Murph and I started Intermediate Flyball.  For some strange reason he was one of the dogs that they decided to move into the next level.  Remember me telling you about the Boxer and how her Mom said that she would never expect a Doodle to be in Flyball....well the Boxer will not be moving on.  When I asked the Instructor why she said....that dog was not cut out for this sport.  Woo Hoo!

So it was pretty much the afternoon from He$% for me with Murph.  We got there a little early and the dogs from the Beginning Class were just leaving.  Murphy reacted to each and every dog as they passed us in the waiting room.  Remember there are no correction collars allowed...so I just had Murph on a slip lead.  There was barking, lunging, and even a few growls.....of course there was.  Okay, so those dogs were out and the dogs in Murph's class started to arrive (two Labs and two Border Collies).  Here we go again, Murph reacted to each and every one.

Then we go into the Flyball "room", and the games begin.  Now that it's Intermediate the dogs run together.  So there is an Instructor on one end of the lane and another Instructor on the opposite end of a different lane (no barriers between) and they let the dogs go at the same time.  I have to run beside Murph's lane encouraging him to run as fast as he can.  Well half way through the run Murph figures out that there's another dog running right toward him.  I'll bet you can guess what he did.  You're right, he crossed right over and chased the other dog barking and lunging.  Well of course that ruined the run for both dogs....I'm sure the owners were really pleased with that.  It took three times before he gave that up, but by the end he had stopped, although he always let out a quick bark as they passed.

Then there was the really special moment for me when he nipped the Instructor...oh yes he did.  I had him by the flat collar and passed him off to her.  She would hold him for a minute as I started to run down the lane.  As soon as I passed the collar and started to run he turned around and nipped her...I guess he didn't want me to leave him.  I was so embarrassed.  She gave him the correction of a lifetime and he really looked sorry and ashamed.  Of course he did.  The interesting thing was that it didn't even phase her.  She said he's learning and this was just one of the many lessons. I heard the other Instructor say to her...."Do you think it was separation anxiety"?  She said "I don't care what the  he*& it was, he's not getting away with it". 

At that point I was convinced he would be formally expelled from Flyball class.  Not the case.  When he's actually "doing his thing" he is awesome at it.  Today he was so fast, and he hits that box and grabs the ball, does his turn and is running as fast as he can back to me.  I love watching him.  He is beautiful and amazing....and I think that's why both Instructors really want him to continue.

The class is 90 minutes and with only five dogs now it's fast.  Murph and I are running for most of that time....except when he's barking and lunging.  He has an incredible prey drive so whenever another dog ran (which was all the time) he would react.  I'm guessing there were at least 50 serious reactions today.  My hands are all "rope burns" from the slip lead.  I finally gave that up and just held him by the flat collar.

So at the end of the class I asked the two Instructors if they thought this was just not the right fit for Murph because of his reactiveness.  The both said they thought it was perfect, and that he would get a lot more out of it than learning Flyball.  They both believe that there would be no better way to condition him to dealing with other dogs in the most stressful of circumstances.  They think that both he and I will continue to gain confidence as a team and that he will ultimately figure out that there is nothing to fear from other dogs and he has nothing to gain by his "bully responses".  I hope they're right.  I'm as committed as ever...but my hands and back hurt.  No classes for three weeks because the Instructor is in tournaments with her own dogs.  More to come.....

[Adina P]

If Murphy WANTED to hurt the other dogs, I'm sure he could have.  But he didn't so that is pretty cool :-)

Glad the trainers are so good about things!

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

That's a great point Adina, and something that helps me a lot.  He apparently just wants to chase and intimidate them, but not actually hurt them.  Someday though that is going to get him into a dangerous situation....some dog will decide not to put up with it.  The trainers are great.

[F, Calla & Luca]

Ah Jane, I don't know how you do it but good for you. The instructors sound terrific. Maybe wearing some gloves next time would help a little.

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

Good idea about the gloves, F.  I may switch him to a harness and see if that helps.

[Connie & Kramer]

Wow, this sounds like a lot of fun.  I can't wait to hear how Murph progresses.  Thank you for sharing your experiences with us novice doodle moms.

[Pat and Traveler]

Wow, Jane!  I'm so impressed!  You and Murph are quite a team.  Sounds like he could be a flyball star!  Maybe you could get a video of his runs--would sure love to see that!