Don't Over Think It

   T-minus 1 month until Tee Creek and after having found out last week that I got into all 4 cattle runs it seems that all I can think about is what might happen. I have crawled in to bed every night and played out possible scenarios until I fall asleep, which I am almost certain places me pretty close to the edge of obsessed ;-). Perhaps the most laughable thing about this is that I have trialed there before, know the cattle (somewhat), and it's course A all weekend long! In my mind though I figure that if I go over it enough when push comes to shove I will have an answer. I have pictured everything, from where I will stand once I open the take pen gate, down to which side of the chute will work better for sending Diva deep into the corner coming out of the second panel to set up for the center. I feel like I may soon need to make myself a T-shirt that says, "Keep Calm And Trust Your Dog". Diva has got this, I know she has. She is a much better cattle dog than she was a year ago and we are a much better team. We have trialed on some pretty challenging stock and learned some of the tricks of trialing from those with more experience. I shouldn't be concerned at all but the nervous excitement of finishing her WTCH has me twitchy.

    With the summer weather in full effect we have had very few chances to get out and work. High heat and oppressive humidity don't make for much fun. We worked sheep last Wednesday at Hog Dog but sessions were short and far between to save the dogs and the stock. I focused on more inside flank work with Diva and straight walk ups. There isn't much to report that I haven't written about before. She continues to be much better to the away side as far as inside flanks go and needs reminding the first couple of sends to keep moving regardless of what I do. I suspect that this will be a work in progress for us for sometime. I have a picture in my head of what I want it to look like and suffice it to say that it isn't there just yet ;-).

   In other news we have started back to agility training as well. On Friday we had our first private lesson to work on actually training the running A frame. Diva has needed some remedial contact training for a while and I need some serious attitude adjustments. I have been getting so serious about Q'ing that I am taking the fun out of agility and putting a lot of pressure on Diva. Just scowling at her is enough to flatten out her performance all together and at the last trial we attended I was grouchy with her all day. My main goal is to go out there and run fast, trust my dog, and have fun. In looking back at videos and pictures of me when I am working Diva I rarely ever smile. I am not sure why this is but my guess is that it has something to do with concentrating. Diva is very tuned into me and she is sensitive to pressure so I need to fix this problem quickly. A smile and a little praise in the middle of working go a long way with her and so I am reminded of something my Grandmother always told me. "You get more with honey than you do with vinegar." Good call Grandma! It works with dogs and husbands ;-).