Novice cell shaping up in Maitland!

[Ted McEniery]

Hello retrieving community! Having been perusing this site for about the last twelve months, it's about time I made a contribution. One of the strains I have noted through quite a few postings has been the need for more beginers/novices or generally new people to the sport. Well I'm one of them. I stumbled across the sport by attending a GSP show in Sydney, there finding out about the GSP retrieving trial over the back of the blue mountains. We made the trip out for a look and thought that this activity would suit a hyped up GSP very well. I was inspired by the level of control displayed by the top performers in the novice event (one of whom was the garolous Peter Betteridge) and was maybe more inspired by the poor showing by the GSPs and also the lack of numbers of said breed at their own retrieving trial! Anyway I though my hound at the time would relish the challenge. Unfortunately the poor dog did not survive the loving care and attention he recieved whilst being kennelled over last Christmas whilst I was in Melbourne. Anyway that is another story.
So, January 2004, a new pup. A quite sturdy Kazia dog from Windsor in Sydney's west whose temperment has turned out to be quite excellent in my humble opinion. ie I like my dog, which always helps.

Brief note, refering to one of the Tawtons comments on Mr Wolters book the importance of starting a pup at 7 weeks of age. Having had two pups in relatively quick succession, (the first died at eighteen months of age), I found a huge difference in the bonding process between the first, being collected at eight weeks old, and the second at eleven weeks. It took months longer to achieve the same level of attachment from the new dog, and some of the things, like a "pavlovian like response" on recall just have not come as easily.

Anyway, I digress! The training cell.

I attended a training day earlier in the year and came away with my brain full, wishing I had had a video camera to record the gems of wisdom that were already escaping the tendrills of my mind.

Next, we came on mass from Maitland to the open day in August. The people that went came away impressed and enthusiastic, and a few who couldn't make it were also envious. This time we went armed with a video so those who missed coming could be inspired also.

We are attached to the Maitland Dog Obedience Club, and I must say I have been a little suprised at the fervour with which the retrieving activities have been taken up. After obedience classes on a Sunday it has been common place to see three persons strung out across the oval throwing medium, short, then long simple marks, with people rotating through giving their dogs six retrieves each. At present we have two GSPs, at least two labs(note lower case, obviously not as important), a goldy and two Novoscotian Duck tolling retrievers, with some wiemeraner owners also starting to show som interest.

Anyway I guess the point of this post was to thank and encourage the organisers of the training days and to say that your efforts are not being made in vain. How many of these keen recruits proceed through a training regime and turn into viable competitors remains to be seen, but I personally feel quite lucky to have entered the sport at a time when such great resources are availiable. See you at the next training day.

[Prue Winkfield]

Great to see another GSP owner here - good luck Ted! Perhaps we will see you at our Easter trial one day - lots of people come from all over but as you have already realised not many GSPs!

[Kirsty Blair]

Hi Ted,

Welcome! It is fantastic to hear that the open day had such a positive impact. It makes a huge difference to motivation levels (of both dog and handler!) if you have a group of keen trainers who help one another. I'm looking forward to seeing Team Maitland at a trial soon

Kirsty

P.S. Yes "labs" definitely deserve the lower case but GOLDIES always deserve capitals