Orangeous Dailies

The lesson behind this entry is : All dogs are smart. Dogs that are really obedient at home, the ones that dutifully fetch your newspapers every morning, or perhaps ranked as one of the top 10 smartest dog breeds online, may fail an obedience test. The other kind of dog tears your house upside down, bites the trainer and tops the class during the test. All dogs are smart in their own way.

A week ago, on the 22nd of June, it was the 10th lesson of obedience training novice class. For the past 10 weeks we’ve been waking up early every Sunday, making the long trips up from Outram to Pasir Ris.

Carlos and Gabbie sitting down.

It was a very important day for us and the dogs. It was exam day. I got wasted the night before and was still feeling very nauseous. Even my breath stank of alcohol. I was absolutely in no shape to lead Carlos and Michelle was getting increasingly nervous by the moment.

Nevermind. If they pass, good. If they don’t pass, then its still ok, Dad told us in the car. Right Carlos? He gave Carlos a pat on the head.

Carlos was being a real fucking prick for the past few lessons. He got increasingly agitated during training. And the whole class watched in disbelief as he bit the trainer TWICE, and got hung in the air for 10 seconds by the pinch collar. He ended up crying in pain. He didn’t follow commands and was totally distracted by i-dont-really-know-what. The trainer told us that we needed to get our act together with a lot of training.

And so, on the morning of the exam, lots were drawn. The test was conducted a distance away, in a training shed. One dog at a time. Two judges present, one giving instructions, one taking down the score. All the rest of the dogs and their owners were to remain in the waiting area, until their names were called.

So we took turns warming up the dogs with a little bit of practice.

Practising while waiting for our turn.

Gabbie was the first to go. Michelle came back with a smile. Things are totally different on the testing grounds, Gabbie followed my instructions, she said. That was a real morale boost for me. Looks like there’s a small chance of them passing this test. I brought Carlos towards the testing grounds when his name was called. Halfway though, I made him sit and I told him to behave and follow all my instructions. I remembered telling him to give his best shot. His stared at me with his mouth open. With that, we walked to the starting line.

Carlos never behaved this way before, not even during his daily training sessions. He gave an amazing performance the moment we were given the go ahead. He followed closely, sticking to my left, constantly lifting his head up to look at me. I told him to lie, he went down. I told him to stand, and he stood really still while the judges examined him. I made him stay, walked 20 metres away, yelled for him to come, and he came, stopped in front of me and sat! One wave and heel command, Carlos sprung up, walked round behind me, and sat on my left, waiting for the next command. All these steps were done with and without the leash. I had never felt so proud of him before. Even the judges were happy.

Carlos and Gabbie’s scoresheet.

The results were released a short while later. Gabbie got 3rd place with 185/200 points. Carlos and another toy poodle shared the 1st place with 189/200 points. The whole class applauded in disbelief that Carlos and Gabbie, the two troublesome dogs, could actually do that well.

Carlos and Gabbie’s certificates.

Graduation photo. Check out their little hats!

And the best photo…

Obedience Training Novice Class Graduation Photo

And so, the two dogs still continue with their usual lifestyle at home. Gabbie still pisses on the floor, and Carlos continues to steal clothing from our rooms. But they are definitely more tame when they’re outside.

Photo Album : http://www.flickr.com/photos/sukianto/sets/72157605038511434/