The Dog Show Disaster!
The training was going well, and our weekly sessions at the dog classes were starting to show. Ellie was a little star, Come, Sit, Down,Wait, over the jumps, through the blocks.
She loved the lot and waited in keen anticipation for her term to perform each task. In fact it was going so well, she was often called out to demonstrate to the other dogs and would perform each feat with a wagging tail and total enthusiasm.
I like to think it was enthusiasm for the feat performed, although I do have a nagging doubt that it could have been for the anticipated treat and words of praise that followed. But whatever it was we were happily advancing through the course and very proud to show her off.
So when the children asked if we could enter the local village dog show, we were happy to sign up. The children wanted to prove what she could do, so they entered the relevant class with them as the Leaders and we waited for the day to arrive. – mistake number one!
I have to say, it was at this stage I did have slight reservations, as she is a very social dog and loves every man, woman, child and dog she comes into contact with and likes to meet and greet in her own inimitable and rather intrusive way.
But I pushed these thoughts aside as I rather confidently imagined Ellie performing to perfection. I smiled with pride at the thought of a bright red rosette on her collar and dreamed of the children standing proud as she portrayed the very image of a finely tuned dog trained to perfection yet still retaining all her personality and mischief.
Crash back to earth!
This is Ellie…….
Well, the morning of the show dawned with wind, rain and heavy grey skies, but we were not to be daunted. An air of excitement and anticipation ran through the house as Ellie had one last practise in the garden, through the tunnel, round the canes, walking to heel, sit, wait – she was PERFECT!
Perfect, that is, until we arrived at the show ground, well village green to be accurate. The sight of all those doggie friends just waiting to see her was too much and once out of the car Ellie dragged my son from one canine to another; he, in turn, was bounced from one person to another as skid marks were engraved into the mud and a trail of laughter followed his route as his arms were stretched to snapping point.
A quick re-group and pep talk, a few deep breaths, my husbands stifled smirks (I think he had a vision of what was to come!) and then we were on.
We stepped back into the audience as the children moved forward with Ellie. We had seen Churchill and Toga refuse the tunnel, Storm crash into the jump and Beatrice wander around the course, foot perfect, but taking 5 minutes longer than anyone else.
I held my breath as they set off. Good Girl! Ellie weaved beautifully around the canes, her tail wagging and her nose in the air, sniffing. She was still sniff, sniffing when suddenly, with a huge spring, she jumped off course and up to a spectator enjoying a hot dog.
She then absolutely refused to budge, sitting with her paw up begging , her eyes pleading for a morsal, as the audience collapsed into laughter. No amount of pulling was going to move her, until at last, the final mouthful of hot dog disappeared and she was back on course.
But that was as good as it got, she then proceeded to wee by the jump, run half way through the tunnel and then back again – 3 times, meet and greet a few more people en-route and finally, when the whole show had disintegrated into a raucous mass of hilarity, she spotted another dog and raced into the distance, my daughter in hot pursuit. It was a disaster! But oh, it was so funny, we had tears pouring down our faces when she finally trotted back to us oblivious to the chaos she had caused.
Needless to say, there was no proud moment on the rostrum or red rosette to cherish, but we had enjoyed Ellie at her best, being a mischievous and inquisitive little puppy.
She loved the attention that followed that afternoon, as everyone stopped to pet and talk to her. She was a mini celebrity for a few hours, but just for all the wrong reasons.
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