My First Clinic

After attending a few lessons with Alice, Spike was learning to go around the sheep and showed moments of brilliance. Those moments were few and far between in retrospect. I heard about a sheep herding trial in Milton through Spike’s foster mom and we agreed to meet there. We watched a few runs and we both had a few choice comments on the lack of obedience in these dogs, as if lie down was merely a suggestion. I'm sure everyone who comes into this sport from an obedience type of background always thinks the same thing. I will write later about the whole 'lie down' thing. Anyway, at that trial, I heard about a training clinic and decided that getting lessons from someone else would be a fun thing to do. I signed up and a few days later we were off to our lesson.

As I sat there with Spike held firmly in hand, I watched several dogs actually herding sheep. There was no barking, very little biting; no one seemed to be running trying to catch his or her dog. It all seemed so controlled and mannerly. Like that dog I had seen so many years ago. As time passed, I started to make note of the size of the field. This was the field that the trial had been held on, and was considerably larger than the field at Alice’s. I started to question my own sanity, I already knew that my dog was insane, but before I could second-guess my decision it was my turn.

Spike lived up to all that he was. Chasing sheep all over hell’s half acre. I don’t know if that field is only a half-acre, but it certainly was hell for me. The sordid details of that day have forever been locked in that part of my mind that is only reachable through hypnosis or exorcism, and those details shall remain locked away there forever. I DO recall that there were many people there who, together with their dogs, tidied up the relative carnage. I also recall meeting Carol that day. She relayed to me how she and her dog Piper, the one that was lying quietly by her side without a leash, had started exactly that way. Knowing Carol a bit better now than I did then, I strongly suspect Piper was never quite that bad and, ever the ambassador, Carol was simply trying to help me feel less discouraged.