# We're trying for our bh today!!



## Shaina (Apr 2, 2011)

Little v is 15 months, 3 days old and were in San Diego getting ready to try for our bh. I'm nervous but hopeful well do ok! Two hours away, wish us luck! 

If you have any last minute advice Id love to hear it!

Ill let you know how it goes


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## Wolfgeist (Dec 4, 2010)

Good luck, and remember to have fun!


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## elisabeth_00117 (May 17, 2009)

OMG! SO excited for you!

I remember when she was just a baby! OMG! 

Good luck, just relax and have fun out there!!!


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## TrickyShepherd (Aug 15, 2011)

Good Luck!!! Have fun!


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## lhczth (Apr 5, 2000)

How did it go?


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## Shaina (Apr 2, 2011)

We passed! It was an interesting trial but I am so proud  you only get one first bh and I'm glad it ended well! I'm on my phone but I'll update when I get back to Arizona tomorrow evening.


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## TrickyShepherd (Aug 15, 2011)

Shaina said:


> We passed! It was an interesting trial but I am so proud  you only get one first bh and I'm glad it ended well! I'm on my phone but I'll update when I get back to Arizona tomorrow evening.


Yay! Congrats!


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## elisabeth_00117 (May 17, 2009)

AWESOME job!

Congrats!


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## Andaka (Jun 29, 2003)

Congratulations!


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## wolfstraum (May 2, 2003)

Congratulations!

Lee


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## Loneforce (Feb 12, 2012)

:congratulations:


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## lhczth (Apr 5, 2000)

Congratulations!


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## mycobraracr (Dec 4, 2011)

Congrats!


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## codmaster (Aug 5, 2009)

Good job!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## 1sttimeforgsd (Jul 29, 2010)

Congratulations!


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## Dooney's Mom (May 10, 2011)

Wow congrats!!!! I hope to go for ours in the fall!! more details please when you get home :congratulations:


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## GatorDog (Aug 17, 2011)

Congrats!


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## cindy_s (Jun 14, 2009)

:congratulations:


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## Wolfgeist (Dec 4, 2010)

Congrats on your BH!


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## TrickyShepherd (Aug 15, 2011)

Dooney's Mom said:


> Wow congrats!!!! I hope to go for ours in the fall!! more details please when you get home :congratulations:


Us too! So nervous about that. :crazy:


If you have any tips, or suggestions, or anything... please do share!! 

Congrats again!!


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## Shaina (Apr 2, 2011)

Jeeze, I didn't do a very good job at updating anyone! I have been so exhausted.

Anyway, I got the video and I'll share. The last bit is the judges critique but you can't really hear anything, so ignore that. I had to give her one good pop on our first turn as she was dozing off. You can hear people asking after the other dog broke if my dog was in heat - no, she wasn't.

Versailles BH Routine - YouTube

I was very nervous, had a hard time counting my steps, didn't know when to reward her, etc.. so she was definitely a bit dull. But not too bad for a state we don't live on, and on a different field.. plus she was only 3 days past 15 months


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## christinaekenn (Jan 10, 2011)

Good job! And great handling of the rushing dog. I had to grimace at the "in heat" comment...really? I can't believe they asked that LOL.

BTW- Is that Carla Griffith judging?


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## Shaina (Apr 2, 2011)

Thank you! I've worked in dog daycare and the like, so I'm pretty experienced at separating dogs. The dog that broke was a very sweet dog and I'm sure that they would have been fine, but I didn't want to get DQ'd if a dog fight broke out.

It is Carla Griffith. Honestly, she was incredibly lax with the BH's and I definitely wanted to see a bit more for my first trial.. but that happens, I guess.


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## christinaekenn (Jan 10, 2011)

I personally like Carla as a judge. She is very strict when it comes to large trials or actual IPO routines. The BH is very much a behavior aptitude test and I think she recognizes and takes this into consideration. I think a lot of judges are the same for the BH at club trials. Truthfully, I think a judge like that is far more encouraging to new people continuing in the sport. The BH is simply a pass or fail and many many judges do not score it the same as an IPO obedience routine. I have seen her fail BH dogs in the past that were not under control or showed poor temperament for continuing on in the sport. JMO.


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## Shaina (Apr 2, 2011)

Just based on my one experience, but I'd rather not post my negative views on a public board. That being said, she was a nice lady and seemed to be knowledgable.

Edit: I guess I was taught to train for and expect the obedience in a BH as I would for my IPO1. Since you can move onto your 1 after, I feel you should be judged the same as a 1. I knew it was more lenient, but not as lax as I experienced. Nothing against her, I just like to be judged a bit tougher after all the months of training for my first trial.


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## robk (Jun 16, 2011)

Shaina said:


> Just based on my one experience, but I'd rather not post my negative views on a public board. That being said, she was a nice lady and seemed to be knowledgable.
> 
> Edit: I guess I was taught to train for and expect the obedience in a BH as I would for my IPO1. Since you can move onto your 1 after, I feel you should be judged the same as a 1. I knew it was more lenient, but not as lax as I experienced. Nothing against her, I just like to be judged a bit tougher after all the months of training for my first trial.


Well I hope that the judge is lenient on Ruger and I when we do our BH in October. This is our first trial and I am sure I will be a basket full of nerves. 

Congrats again on your accomplishment! On to IPO1!!!


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## holland (Jan 11, 2009)

I think most judges understand that people who are doing their BHs for the first are nervous and they try to be encouraging-A BH is not a 1-It might help you prepare for the 1-but its not a one


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## Shaina (Apr 2, 2011)

I understand that - but a dog that is given multiple commands during the exercise, doesn't complete many of the exercises without being physically manipulated to do so, and breaks the long down.. is that a passing BH? I am going off the knowledge of seeing people fail with much more done correctly than that. 

I was a nervebag too - like I said, missed counting steps, didn't know when I could do rewards, etc.. and I do like that they are lenient on that kind of thing. But I still feel like the dog should actually complete more than half of the exercises in order to pass.

Anyway, it was still a good experience. I started out with an "old school" schutzhund trainer, so I tend to take things a bit more seriously than I should  It's supposed to be fun after all!


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## christinaekenn (Jan 10, 2011)

I also train for my BH as I would any other level. But in the end, the BH is strictly a behavior test! I wasn't there to see what was passed for a BH or not but I have seen Carla and other judges fail dogs because of poor temperament or a complete lack of control on the dogs. But passed others if the dog and handler were actually trying and completing the exercises and the dogs were stable. If all judges at club trials judged a behavior test the same as a 1, we would have very few newcomers to the sport IMO. In all the club trials I have seen, it generally takes a lot to fail the behavior test. The same as most club trials are more generous in their scoring of the IPO routines as well. Club trials are still not even judged the same way the larger trials are judged and IMO, this is not necessarily a bad thing. If they were, we would not be encouraging the newcomers to the sport. Which, in my opinion, keep any sport going.


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## christinaekenn (Jan 10, 2011)

Dang I hit enter too fast. I wanted to add, the BH is a great experience for anyone and IMO should be taken more as a self evaluation for those that are serious about continuing in the sport. More important than a judge's pass or fail. It is an excellent experience because the new environment, nerves, etc of a trial, even for just a BH, affect a lot of things with handler and dog teams. So now you have video and can look back at all the things you want/need to work on for your IPO1. The judges score doesn't matter in that! In the end, everyone has their own level of perfection they wish to achieve. Such as, I did not do my about turns correctly in my BH but I still passed. Although I know personally this is something I must fix along with slight forging and moving my arms more naturally when I am under stress  You don't need a judge to tell you what you need to fix. That is determined by the individual and their own expectations. It sounds like it was a fun time and you look like you enjoyed being on the field with your dog. Focus on that and not who else passed or did not pass! Leave the politics for the big events


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## Shaina (Apr 2, 2011)

I understand. I went out with a girl in my club that failed her BH because her dog wasn't fully paying attention to her and was lagging a bit, and got up during his long down and made a circle and then layed back down. I've seen others fail because their dogs have gotten up and starting eating the grass, etc. I had witnessed a few BH's before mine and just saw judging like you would expect from the 1 - which is why I had the misconception I suppose. I knew temperament played a big role, but I thought that's what the traffic test was for (which we didn't do, btw - simply downed our dog in a group of people and then called them to us, and that was the whole test).

I want everybody to pass, and I would have genuinely felt bad for those who didn't - but I always chalk my own failures up as a learning experience and expect those to happen in a sport as pass or fail as schutzhund.


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## Packen (Sep 14, 2008)

Excellent work, big congrats


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