Silly me, I thought that if I showed
my new purebred American Eskimo Dog in the conformation ring that I would have a
well behaved dog. “They look so well behaved on TV, how hard could it be?” I
later found out it wasn’t at all hard getting my dogs ready for the conformation
ring. The obedience ring on the other hand took a little more time, effort and
patience. In doing so though, I havevery intelligent dogs who have to follow the
house rules, just like the rest of the family.
I hadn’t owned a dog in
eight years and thought if I had another
dog like Nikishka, it would be my last
dog. Looking back on our days with our
beloved husky mix, we did everything
wrong. She took leadership of the pack,
because we didn’t. She showed dominating
behavior, rarely did as she was told,
and was the Houdini of fence jumpers.
All I knew is that I didn’t want to
repeat history.
Starting obedience with
our eskies at a young age has been the
best lesson for us all. We started them
out in puppy kindergarten for
socialization and just to get the swing
of things. I chose
Paws-Abilities in Tukwilla,
Washington because their training
facility had both obedience and handling
classes. I knew we wanted to eventually
show her in the confirmation ring, so
this seemed like a good match. I felt so
relieved with the progress that Star
made in that first puppy kindergarten
class that I have continued to work with
her in obedience over the years.
Siku
has also started in obedience classes at
Paws-Abilities and both enjoy Rally,
Obedience and Focus classes.
Star goes over the Jump in Rally
O.
Sitting at Front
Healing off lead for the Spiral
Right in Rally O.
I firmly believe ALL dog
owners should go through some basic
obedience classes with their dogs. Many
people think their dogs are being
trained, but in reality it is the owner
who is being trained in how to work with
the dog. With a weekly class and a
little time and effort each day for
practice, not only can you train your
dog commands such as leave it, sit,
stay, down, come, and even heeling off
leash, but you can build a trusting
relationship between you and your dog. A
well behaved dog is a happy dog because
they know their place in the pack. They
know their limits and boundaries.
Obedience events test the level of
training of a dog by performing a series
of exercises at the command of their
handler. There are different levels of
obedience competition ranging from
simple commands to more difficult scent
discriminations and retrievals over
jumps.
I have found working with
my dogs in obedience to be a rewarding
part of our everyday lives because of
the relationship that has built between
us. They are eager to please me and
truly love working in obedience. They
get a little goofy when I get the
training collars and leads out, the
“Eskie Smile” beams and tails and rear
ends start wiggling.
