The boys at a Saturday show-n-go

Today the boys and I were out of the house by 6:30 am and made our way to Cedar Rapids for an obedience show-n-go.  Now you must know that I am NOT a morning person, so getting out of bed early on one of the only days I'm "allowed" to sleep in is a big deal.  I figure, though, that since I just posted about Ziggy needing to go to new places I should heave myself out of bed and go.

It was a great morning, and even worth getting up early and driving a long way.  Here's how it went:

Ziggy

My goal for Ziggy was to have him be comfortable and have fun in a place we've never been before!

What we did:

• Hung around outside of our crate for about an hour total -- this helped him get used to the environment, meet new people, and relax
• Before we went in for our run Ziggy and I played games - wrestling and running through my legs.  I looked like a fool, I'm sure, but he seemed to enjoy it and it got him wagging and playing
• In the ring, I had his breakfast in his "supper" bowl sitting on a chair. I didn't have any food on me.  At various points in our heeling pattern, I would tell him how great he was and we'd run back to the bowl for a jackpot.
• All heeling was on lead and Z seemed pretty happy 
• I ran to all new positions between exercises - especially the set-ups for recalls.  What fun!  I get to chase mom around the ring!
• We were off leash for stand for exam - and Z was really good and didn't seem too worried.
• Our recalls were great - he ran back to me quickly on both of them (I had him run through my legs on the first one).  The second one was more formal - he was quick, his front was straight, and the finish was quick and straight!
• Stays were great, too.  I went back to him to reward once during the sit and twice during the down.  He didn't look worried, and stayed in place very well.

Relaxing between our run and group stays.  

I thought I'd get some pics.

One of the workers thought she'd help by making a hissing noise to get Z's ears up.

What came next?  ROO! ROO! ROO! ROO!

("WARNING MOM!  That woman's making strange noises!")

To "fix it" we went up to the strange hissing woman and had her pet us and give us some steak.

Z watching a really high drive golden do its run.

Hopefully he's taking notes on how to have drive in the ring.

Rip

My intention with Rip was for him to meet people and dogs, and play in the ring (rings with judges are fun!).

What did we do?

• Met every human at the trial.  He was a popular puppy.  I warned them that he is shy and calm. (NOT).  
• He got lots of compliments on his cuteness, energy, and boldness.  Performance people don't mind a cheeky wild puppy.
• We also met the puppy-friendly dogs.  Rip particularly loved one of the goldens.
• We played and hung out outside of the ring.
• When hanging out, Rip got a stream of treats/kibble when other dogs went by.  I wanted him to connect mom=food=look at her  --  instead of other dog=pounce it!
• In the ring we did a very basic heeling pattern interspersed with lots of tug toy and mom-interactive play.  Again, I looked like a fool, but I want Rip to think inside the ring is FUN!
• We also had the judge do a sit-for-exam from both sides.
• Rip came out of the ring thinking rings are fun and judges who follow us around are nice, too.
• A successful outing for a pup!

 Look how cute I am...

Any more treats for me, mom?