Thanks for your input Julie. I was beginning to think I had asked a stupid question....hell, maybe I have but then I've never let that get in the way of finding anything out before!
The weather was VERY hot over the week between Christmas & New Year but mellowed last week just in time for my parents to visit! Nothing worse than driving all the way from Melbourne only to sit under the A/C all day because it's too hot to do anything else!
Thankfully, that was not the case.
On the subject of line out/line back, I can certainly see why a good line out is necessary. And I agree, it is a control issue for some dogs. In the past, I've had dogs try to 'cheat' (esp. water entries) and this has almost inevitably landed them in strife. These days I approach training for these things quite differently. Like you, I sometimes wonder how much my young dog Jock actually 'knows' is right and how much of it is just in his nature. As for the fingers crossed thing, I think I know exactly what you mean!
And I think I'll be experiencing it first-hand at Shepparton - yes, I'll be there!
From a purely personal perpective, a good line back is something I happen to value highly. BUT how much deviation in line back (if any) is acceptable? When (if ever) is it OK to have a less-than-perfect line back?
A two bird cast in such a way that only a dog taking
precisely the same 'honest' route back will benefit from the sight it gets is one example I can think where it would be critical to have perfect line back (Prue knows what I'm referring to!
) But then I am not suggesting for one moment that deliberately cheating water/cover on the return is acceptable.
I am simply wondering how much judges penalise less than perfect returns. For example, if a dog takes a direct angle entry en route to a bird into water but shaves the bank on the return trip, would most/any judges penalise that dog and if so, where on the score sheet are the marks deducted? How much effort do I need to put into getting nothing less than 100% perfect line back - possibly at the expense of some style, eagerness and action on the return! Not what I want.....
Am I making any sense????
Teresa Parkinson