Clean Run - February 2020 - 5

Can You Handle It?
By Brenna Fender

Recently I attended an agility trial and my Border Collie
and I NQ'd every run. One or two were "almosts," but the
majority of the fails were of epic proportions. I left feeling
discouraged. I was, once again, not the handler my dog
needed me to be.
When I was new to agility in
the mid-90s, there were many
times I felt like I was letting my
dog down. I'd imagine that if he
had a better handler and a better trainer, he could reach his
potential and be a serious agility contender. I was holding him
back; you know that feeling?
It took me several years to determine that I wasn't holding
him back from his shot at greatness because people weren't lining up to take my dog and make
him into some agility wizard.
And, even if there were (did
I mention there weren't?), he wouldn't have wanted to go
with them anyway. He loved me, and I loved him to the
moon and back. He was my heart dog, and no amount of
less-than-ideal handling was going to change that.
It's only been in the last of her seven years that I realized that
my current competitive dog, the BC mentioned above, is my
second heart dog. And despite my additional twenty-plus
years of handling experience, I am still able to imagine my
dog being a world team rock star with a better handler. But,
once again, I know there's not a line of handlers waiting for
my girl. And, even if there was, I'd beat them off with a stick!
So, she's stuck with me as I teeter between the desire for
more success and a realistic outlook. I do not start my trial
days with the concentration and confidence of a top handler. I arrive at trials a little flustered after all it took to leave
my house and kids safe and accounted for that day. My focus is interrupted, and I am rarely well-rested. These are

not ideal circumstances for being the best possible handler.
And yet, that is what I expect myself to be.
I bet some of you find yourselves in similar positions. Life
often gets in the way of agility. Unless you make agility your
top priority, you have probably also gone to train or trial
under-slept, with the wrong
food to fuel you, with divided
focus, and without all the skills
you need to be successful. It's
easy to beat yourself up over it
and feel like you've failed your
dog, who always tries so hard
and brings his A-game.
So, what are we going to do
about this? Well, this month,
Sandy Rogers addresses being
the handler you want to be in
her series on the three hats of
agility. Sandy's got some excellent ideas for those of us who
need a little (or a lot) of help.
Check out her article and see which of her practical and
quick solutions you can put to work for you.
We have lots of other useful articles this month to help you
get more prepared for trials through good training. But I'd
also like to add that you should give the handler part of
your team at least some of the same breaks that you offer
your dogs. As handlers, we often get frustrated with ourselves for not being fast enough, having crummy timing,
and so on, but generally, we go in the ring and do the best
we can with the resources we have at that moment. So, just
as we praise our dogs for that kind of effort, we should also
praise ourselves.
Be kind to yourself, and have a great month!

Brenna Fender

Brenna Fender is a freelance writer and editor who works for Clean Run. She lives in Florida with her husband, two children, a Papillon (Spark), a Beagle (Wrigley), a
Border Collie (Tessa), her daughter's Chihuahua (Chase), and a variety of other creatures. Tessa has agility titles, UpDog Challenge disc achievements, and a Trick Dog
Champion Title. Over the years, Brenna's dogs have been titled in conformation, agility, Junior Hunter, Junior Courser, rally, obedience, and Canine Good Citizen. Brenna
can be reached at brennafender@gmail.com and you can visit her website at brennafender.com.
February 20 | Clean Run

http://www.brennafender.com

Clean Run - February 2020

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