Written by owner/handler Andrea Kyllarova
We met through an ad in the newspaper. Surrounded by an eight week old litter of blonde, fluffy Golden Retriever puppies--all of them so cute--I could not decide which one to pick. Finally, I just grabbed the closest male puppy. It’s not the typical way to find your performance or show prospect. But all I wanted was a pet. I named him Jakki. And our journey together began.
Our first experience with obedience was at PetSmart. Jakki loved it. He picked up on everything so quickly and was very motivated by food. We had a lot of fun and I wanted to do more. Then I heard about agility and signed up for a class at Sandra Edson’s Aerial Aces Agility. Sandra told me that Jakki needed more obedience training and suggested we take a class at the Nashville Dog Training Club (NDTC).
It was at NDTC where I met for the first time my friend June Johnston. After passing CGC, we signed up for more obedience classes. In spring 2002 I went to watch my first obedience trial. I looked on in awe at the dogs in Open class and I knew I would be some day in that ring. We got more and more involved and by fall 2002 we were training for obedience, agility, and tracking.
In obedience, the most challenging exercise for me was heeling. I had a hard time walking in a straight line. The about turn always threw me off balance and I thought it was so boring. I did not like it and most of the time it was the last exercise I practiced with Jakki. At that time I met Perry Webb. It was Perry who changed my attitude toward heeling. I loved his soft touch with dogs and ways of motivating and understanding dog and handler. This was how I wanted to train Jakki. We became smoother, more understanding of each other’s movement, and more in sync.
I was so eager to finally start showing. In January 2003 Jakki was entered in his first AKC agility trial. We provided lots of entertainment for the spectators. He was convinced that the ring crew had treats and was offering sits and downs to them and to the judge in an attempt to get nourishment. He qualified on one run only during that trial. And that blue ribbon still hangs from my car’s rearview mirror, faded and deteriorated after several years of exposure to the sun, but still a reminder of the thrill of that first ribbon and the comedy of the other runs.
In February 2003 we got certified for tracking by Jane Kline; she told me how wonderful Jakki was and how atrocious my handling was. Jakki passed his TD test on April 6, 2003 on his first attempt. That was our first AKC title.
Our first time in the obedience ring was in July 2003. We were doing great until the last few seconds of sit stays; Jakki lay down. As I was leaving the ring, the judge told me, “What a way to lose first place!” We earned CD in the next three straight shows with two first places.
Meanwhile we were also running in agility and with time we became a better team. I felt we could achieve MX and MXJ. MACH at that time was still just a dream.
As we started training for Open I was advised to use training methods that made me feel uncomfortable. I wanted a relationship built on trust and respect. How could I achieve this if my training techniques used unnecessary force and disrespectful means? I wanted to go in the ring with a happy and willing partner. I always used a lot of food and games--tugging with his leash, jumping up to celebrate completion, etc-.-to keep him motivated. For the most part, I tried to keep our training sessions short. Jakki has a moderate level of energy, so long sessions and unnecessary repetitions were counterproductive. I also learned how to utilize my voice. As we became a better team, I knew how to praise him, how to take his mind off of a previous mistake, and how to get him up or calm him down. I never felt comfortable with hands-on corrections--they are always my last choice. Most of the time verbal corrections were all I needed to communicate to Jakki to either stop what he was doing or that he was wrong.
We flew through Open class in three straight shows and earned CDX in November 2004. While still showing in Open we started training for Utility. It was so exciting for both of us to start learning signals, scent discrimination, and go-outs. And it put new energy in our training. Our first Utility leg was earned at GRCA National Specialty in September 2005 with a score of 196; we placed first in a class of more than thirty dogs. I was ecstatic! But I had a lesson to learn. Utility legs did not come so easily.
In February 2006, we finished MACH. Two weeks after earning his MACH, Jakki finished his UD. We were ready to enter UDX class. In our debut in Utility B we won the class and earned our first 6 OTCH points. I thought that was easy! How little I knew. I never seriously considered pursuing OTCH before, but now I started thinking about it. Could we possibly achieve it?
Ironically, article discrimination was a challenge for my tracking dog. The problem was too little confidence due to my previous training mistakes. Jakki was repeatedly checking the pile of articles; he was so worried about bringing a wrong one back. Many times he did. I tried different ways to boost his confidence. What worked best for us, if he brought a wrong article, was me taking it and then sending him back to find the right one. I did not use any correction--not even a verbal one.
The signal exercise was another way we NQ’d. I used games to teach Jakki to keep his attention on me. I would walk away from him, and then I would turn around at random times to face him and throw a treat to him. This seemed to improve Jakki’s attention but he still sometimes missed a signal. I needed to shift the responsibility from me to him. So if he missed a signal when training, I would walk to him with my arm holding the signal and give him a gentle collar correction. After training this way for a couple of weeks, he rarely missed a signal.
In 2006 June and I started to track together. June is a tracking enthusiast and I learned so much from her. June strongly encouraged me to enter a TDX test. She knew Jakki and I were ready and could do it. In November 2006 we entered a TDX test in Alabama and we passed.
It was at that time June told me about VCCH. I did not have any serious intention to work on VST. And OTCH? With only four UDX legs and nine OTCH points, it was just a dream. But June believed Jakki and I could achieve it.
In obedience, we were showing in Utility and Open and we were struggling with UDX legs. The pressure of competition and showing in two classes now took its toll. At times it seemed to be impossible to qualify in both classes. We started year 2007 by getting our fifth UDX leg. But we had not made any progress earning OTCH points. We had been stuck with nine points for a little while now. There were times when great runs were followed by bad ones, and these times made me wonder if we should just quit. I was trying so hard but we were going nowhere. But I could not quit. We got to 8 UDX legs. We were so close. I needed to relax and have fun in the ring again. After a little break, in one weekend we finished his UDX and won a large Open class. He had now earned 71 OTCH points. Needing twenty nine more, the OTCH dream became a goal. Jakki finished his OTCH on June 21, 2008.
Now with MACH and OTCH, VCCH seemed like an achievable goal. I decided to fully concentrate on tracking. The beginning of our VST training was frustrating. Our problem was that I could not convince Jakki that the track could go on a non-vegetated surface. I learned a valuable lesson about why to expose your tracking dog early to all surfaces. It took me months of practice to convince him that it was possible for the track to go on non-veg. A combination of using food and spraying water on the non-veg portions of the track taught him to track on non-veg. Leaving multiple articles on the non-veg surfaces and rewarding each find helped, too. By February 2009 we failed 6 tests. I was ready to quit once again. It seemed to me the VST was impossible to pass. But several people, particularly June, constantly encouraged me to continue. June was so sure that Jakki could do it that she even offered to handle him at tests. Jakki passed the VST on his lucky 7th test February 15, 2009 at TANA’s tracking test in Huntsville, AL.
Many people knowingly or unknowingly helped and inspired me. June was the first one who could see our potential and believed we could earn the VCCH. She never let me quit. My boyfriend Bradley Ford spent many weekends going with us to dog shows. He learned how to lay tracks and became excellent tracklayer. He not only shared our success but also was always there for us in the tough times. Sandra Edson, Wanda Gunter, Jo Anne Bachorowski, Angela Still, Debbie Cutter, Heike Stroup (Passion For Gold Golden Retrievers) and many more provided guidance and support. We would never have achieved so much without their help. Over the years we have attended seminars and workshops--a week at Terri Arnold’s obedience camp, another week at Ed Presnall’s VST workshop. I can’t thank Lynn Weinberg (Hideaway Golden Retrievers) enough for all her help with Utility.
On our journey, we were never one of the most impressive obedience teams, we were never the fastest agility team, and we were never the best tracking team. But looking into Jakki’s eyes I know we are a great team--a team whose heart and soul was put into their relationship.
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