New classes are starting this week at the dog school Katie and I have been attending.  I noticed there was an agility class, and as I’m not working I thought it would be fun to go.  Then I saw a rally class starting, and reluctantly decided to enroll Katie in that instead.  I was a bit nervous about taking her into a building she was already agitated about, then introducing her again to equipment that has frightened her in the past.  Plus she’s not that focused yet.  So, though I think agility would be more fun, I think rally is a better match for her where she is right now.  I think we’ll be able to gain our rally novice title if we focus.   Well, if I focus and she just follows along.  You get to talk to them in rally which is very different from obedience, so we’ll start there.

There were only about 7 dogs total in class today.  The instructor uses the first half hour to train on obedience skills, heeling, stand and stay, sits and downs, recall, all the typical obedience stuff.  Katie did really well with this smaller class, though the instructor threw in a few rally moves that I didn’t recognize.  It’s obvious all the other dogs and people have been doing rally for awhile and have been in this class together for awhile; they were a cohesive group… and then there was Katie and me.  But the instructor was very helpful, kept an eye on me, and when I was standing still trying to figure out what she was asking for she’d explain it to me.

The second half of the class we each got to go through a rally course that she had set up.  She walked it with me before we all tried it so that she could answer any questions I had about any particular station.  I got to watch two or three people go through the course before we tried it.  She had mixed in novice, advanced and excellent stations in the course, and Katie did them all pretty well.  I don’t know which ones were which.

Tonight after supper Katie and I practiced moving downs, something we hadn’t tried before.  Katie is getting better at it.  I’m still awkward.  But if Katie keeps practicing with me I’ll get better.  I think.