Much like life, the best laid plans do change. We had originally planned to pick Piper up this coming Saturday but because of my upcoming travel schedule and the lack of available daylight before and after work for training we have decided to leave Piper at Parkdale for an additional 3-4 weeks. Not an easy decision, difficult even writing it, but I think it is the best based on all the contributing factors. In addition, Piper has been making great strides in her training and if I were to get her this weekend the reality would be that we would only get 2 significant training sessions in per week on the weekends. All my other work would simply be in the garage or on our walks in the dark, neither of which would accomplish much in terms of us reaching our goal. Do we miss her, hell yes we do, but in the long run this will allow us our best chance of completing for either a HRC Seasoned title or an AKC Senior title by the end of summer. I also plan to get out to Parkdale on a more regular basis to work with Piper and Butch so ensure we have a seamless transition in our training. I can tell you from my visits that there is no issue with her forgetting me. The old cliche of “absence makes the heart grow fonder” would definitely hold true in our case. I have nearly been mauled to death by dog kisses on every visit. So with that, I’ll sign off with a bit of sadness related to the extension and a bunch of excitement for her return. We are well on our way to achieving our goal of a performance gun dog and with a little luck along the way I’m thinking that the 2012-13 hunting season will be one to remember! Not only should Piper be performing at a high level in the field but I have every expectation that she will be an incredible companion around the house.
Change of Plans…….
January 24, 2012 by Mark Reilly and Piper
Oh… too bad! It’s so hard when they’re away. But I am glad to read about the progress.
I know what you mean about training at home — we work on the weekends either at a park or with our training group, or in the living room and walks after dark. Not optimal.
Patrice
The Cooper Project http://patricedodd.wordpress.com/
Thanks for the support! Difficult to leave her there but for the next few weeks I think it is best. Once I have light I can and will train most every evening or before work. My two kids make great bumper throwers!