Gary Garner

Yesterday, Xena and I entered the Yorkshire Working & Service Dog Competition. It was made up of police, security and protection/working dog enthusiasts from Yorkshire and other counties. It was a formal event as such, so all competitors were required to wear black trousers, white shirt and black tie.

It was quite a small turn out of competitors this year, with only 11 eventually taking part. Several pulled out at the last minute with injuries and other commitments.

The handlers/dogs were of an excellent standard and included the current Service Dog National Champion.

I thought it best to have a couple of sips of whisky before going on the field First off was the obedience round. Heelwork on and off lead. Recalls, retrievals, bark on command from distance, running down stays etc etc. We did very well and this was an area which I was most concerned about previously.

Next up was the agility round. This is normally a strong point for Xena, but we dropped some easy points, by making silly mistakes. It was my fault mainly, not setting her up right etc. But hey, ho, we live and learn.

Then the manwork/protection side. Running criminal. Running criminal with gun. Then standing criminal with stick. She dealt with them all with 100% commitment. Full bites. No hesitations. She had to receive a couple of OUT/AUS commands - but the adrenalin was high, for both of us. The final exercise was the emergency stop. Where she's running towards a fleeing criminal, and I have to stop and recall her. A very difficult exercise to complete, especially with a high drive dog. She left my side like a rocket, ears down, thundering down the field. When given the nod by the steward, I shouted the command to return and ..... he ears raised, she slowed, and turned and ran straight back to me for the finish in front and then heel around back to the side. I couldn't have been happier

At the end of the competition - some 6 hours since we had started the scores were announced. Our first competition, with her age at only 14.5 months - we came 3rd !!!!!!!!

The winner was Scott Boardman, who together with his Mali called Gwenny did excellent.

It was a fantastic day, and the weather improved in the afternoon to top it off

Here's some pictures of the day to enjoy;

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