Are you ready?

Ellen Oertel and her Golden “Dewey” have been tracking all summer. Mary Ann alerted me to lots of video on her blog…so I checked in. Since then, we’ve been working together virtually almost every day.

Here’s what they looked like in December: https://youtu.be/0exd7h7uZuQ?feature=shared

That’s not great tracking (I can say that now). Mary Ann and I took Ellen’s long line away (she doesn’t yet have it back). We played with track design, so the track—not Ellen, not her tracklayer—taught Dewey what to do. And, did I mention we put her back on a 6’ lead? One more time, 6 foot lead.

I strongly encourage you to follow Ellen and Dewey—their progress is amazing. Today’s video showed them working out a challenge around a bush. Ellen’s handling was superb—she was fluidly working WITH Dewey, allowing him to work out the problem. Compare today to last December!

Awesome work you two. And to all of our students…short lines, staying close—it’s critical. You become a good handler by handling smoothly up close! 20-40 feet is easy when you can fluently handle 6 feet of line.

Patience—in training the dog, setting the foundation, and training the handler—for the win!

Please go check out their blog! Dewey is the upside down Golden.