What’s a Koodle?
When my son said he wanted a puppy,
we agreed … on the proviso that he looked after
it and trained it at obedience school. I had seen advertising
in The Courier that there was an obedience club locally.
We weren’t fussy about the breed so we began looking
around for a smallish dog (our fences aren’t very
high and we live on a busy road) not too fluffy or feminine-looking,
not too much maintenance and reasonably intelligent
for a teenaged boy to train.
We
saw an advertisement for poodle/koolie cross pups, “suit
obedience/agility”. I had never heard of agility
– or a koolie – but we went to have a look.
Naturally Hayden fell in love immediately
with the smallest puppy in the litter, she had a little
white tip on her tail and white on her chest. The mother
was there and she is not a large dog, the father is
a miniature poodle so I thought the puppy wouldn’t
grow too big. (She hasn’t but what I didn’t
know then is that poodles jump very well and koolies
are a cattle dog known for working all day.)
Sooty immediately
climbed out of her newly built puppy-safe enclosure
proving that despite her size she could climb and was
agile and an excellent jumper, she also figured out
how to open the front gate. By then she was family so
we had to build new fences and gates to keep her safe.
She has also educated us inside the house – apparently
poodles sleep on the furniture, not the floor.
Hayden and Sooty attended puppy pre-school.
Sooty graduated as class clown – while the other
puppies socialised she was running around the outside
barricade in an excitable state at astonishing speed.
Hayden trained Sooty for a year, attending obedience
and tricks. They graduated quickly from Puppy Class
to Class 1. Class 2 took a little longer, Sooty would
not stand still for examination. Then Hayden went away
for a school term in year 9 so I took over the training.
By then Sooty was doing agility as well and loving it.
Class 1 and 2 we achieved
quickly. I found her quick to pick up on what was required
but it is difficult to maintain her attention and interest.
Sooty always seemed to think that the dogs on the other
side of the oval were having more fun than us …
and that any instructor, dog or person who approached
wanted to play with her.
Hayden
returned home and resumed the training then got his
first job at a service station – Sunday mornings.
So once again I was out there on the oval, rain, hail,
sleet, shine and that bloody Vic Park wind. It took
a lot of work but nobody was more surprised than me
when Sooty finally stood still for examination and graduated
to Class 3.
We worked so hard
from there, everything was gradual and for about six
months apparently we were used as an example to others
of how to call your dog back when it takes off. It is
still a problem for us but persistence, assistance from
the instructors and stoic patience from other trainers
and we are getting there. Sooty just wants to play –
with anything that moves – but that can be a hazard
to other people or dogs who are working. More than once
we have gone home in disgrace.
We competed in our
first NADAC agility trial last October, I didn’t
enjoy it much; Sooty ran off and was naughty, getting
over-excited and running in circles around jumps instead
of over them. I ran every course with my heart in my
throat but she surprised me with what she did do well
and maybe with persistence (and if I can relax a little)
we might have more fun next time.
(Warning! This article contains references to middle
aged women dancing …)
Sooty
gets on really well with another dog, Katie. Now Ellen
and I have become friends and meet up occasionally to
practice and walk ‘our girls’ in the bush.
Recently in tricks class we have been working on dog
‘dancing’. I find moving to music a fun
way to train but it is challenging for me to remember
three minutes of a dance routine and fit in dog tricks
as well! The classes are fun and we usually have a laugh.
(What happens in a room full of free-range dogs when
you get down on the floor to become a human obstacle?
How do you teach your dog line dance and rock’n’roll?)
Dog training is taking up most of my spare time but
Sooty benefits and a bonus is that I have lost a lot
of weight and I am getting fitter and faster with all
the agility and dancing we are doing. I still dream
that we might one day compete in an obedience trial
… but in the meantime we are having fun.
If
you have seen Sooty doing tricks or agility you might
think she is clever and well trained but it still surprises
me that she is (mostly) doing what I ask her to do,
and that she is still with me – not taking off
somewhere. We are getting there one day at a time and
we have become mates.
I would like to thank the volunteer
instructors, they give so much of their time and experience
to us for free. Everyone has been encouraging when so
many times I have been ready to hang up the training
collar. If you are having difficulties with your training,
ask an instructor or another handler. You might not
always agree with their advice but they have been there,
done that, and are always willing to help.
Meanwhile, next time we decide we need a family dog
I might put in a bit more research on breed temperament!
For now Sooty is doing a good job educating me and helping
me get fit. Interestingly, three other dogs out of the
five of Sooty’s litter are doing very well at
agility and Sooty is … well … working on
it.
oooOOOooo
