George’s first tournament was just for warm-ups. He was on the line-up, to fill in officially if other dogs became tired or injured. During his warm-ups on the first day --- he ran “zoomies.” I was really frustrated. All of this work, and now he looses his little whippet brain. He did a few good clean runs during warm-up, so there was a glimmer of hope.
Then, as the tournament was cleaning up, the judge for the day came up to me, with his hand extended to shake mine. He said “I have to congratulate you. You have a three-to-four-second dog on your hands.” “Yea, I’ve heard that before! Haha!” I replied laughing, “have you seen him running around the arena like a crazy dog?” The judge proceeded to tell me that he sees something in George. “If you can get a whippet to really enjoy flyball, you have something special.” The judge also told my team captain as he walked by that “George will own the team soon.” I thought – yea, right. But, at least he was being encouraging.
In George’s first real tournament, my team let him run during warm-up times to get started. The first few warm-ups, he did the
Then, as the tournament was cleaning up, the judge for the day came up to me, with his hand extended to shake mine. He said “I have to congratulate you. You have a three-
In George’s first real tournament, my team let him run during warm-
“zoomies” through the arena. – yet again. But, after he got his focus, he was running clean!
Then, the captain told me to run George in one heat of one race, just for that day. It was his chance. It had been 2.5 years of training in flyball, and all I had ever run were other people’s dogs. Now, this was the time for George to shine. And, he did just that. I was so excited, I had tears in my eyes when he finished his one heat flawlessly. George was leaping into the air out of happiness, with a big grin on his face. Little did I know, that even with the terrible pass (I waited for the other dog to go by before letting George go), the team earned a time so fast, they each earned 25 points, which
Then, the captain told me to run George in one heat of one race, just for that day. It was his chance. It had been 2.5 years of training in flyball, and all I had ever run were other people’s dogs. Now, this was the time for George to shine. And, he did just that. I was so excited, I had tears in my eyes when he finished his one heat flawlessly. George was leaping into the air out of happiness, with a big grin on his face. Little did I know, that even with the terrible pass (I waited for the other dog to go by before letting George go), the team earned a time so fast, they each earned 25 points, which
The judge told my team captain as he walked by that “George will own the team soon.”
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meant a flyball title for George (FD)!!!!
The following day, they let George run in one full race (all four heats). In just this one race, George accumulated enough points with the team to earn another title, flyball dog excellent (FDX).
Best of all, George ran his leg in 4.9 seconds, with no real running start. He can only get better.
I guess I have a four-second dog after all.
Moral of the story – don’t give up. Do what you enjoy, and things will fall into place when it’s the right time. Training a whippet in flyball can be one of the most rewarding experiences, because they can really make you work for it. Don’t be discouraged out of the gate. Give it time and a lot of patience, and it will pay off.
Shawn Rudd
The following day, they let George run in one full race (all four heats). In just this one race, George accumulated enough points with the team to earn another title, flyball dog excellent (FDX).
Best of all, George ran his leg in 4.9 seconds, with no real running start. He can only get better.
I guess I have a four-
Moral of the story – don’t give up. Do what you enjoy, and things will fall into place when it’s the right time. Training a whippet in flyball can be one of the most rewarding experiences, because they can really make you work for it. Don’t be discouraged out of the gate. Give it time and a lot of patience, and it will pay off.
Shawn Rudd
