Just over a week ago my mom and I attended another obedience trial. We had a very fun and successful day! In my recent post, Dog show fun!, I told you about the two classes that we competed in. Well, my mom had entered us in those same two classes again in this show.

In my Beginner Novice B class, I remembered to sit every time my mom stopped. I kind of forgot that part in the last couple of shows so my mom was happy that I remembered this time. We got a score of 196 ½ and 1st place!

In Rally Novice B I did everything my mom asked me to do but she made a mistake on one of the signs so we lost 10 points. She was a little upset with herself for doing that but I told her not to worry. The most important part was that we had fun and we qualified. She did agree with me! 

You might wonder why we would be competing in the same classes again. Well, I am here to tell you that there is a very good reason why! In my other dog show post, I had told you about how there were many different types of classes, each with specific requirements, that a dog and handler can compete in. You have to start at the lower level classes and earn a title at each level before advancing to the next one.

To earn a title you need to get three qualifying scores under at least two different judges. When you qualify you get a leg toward your title. You need three legs to get your title! In our last show when we qualified it gave us our second leg for each class. So going into this most recent show we needed to qualify again so that we could finish our titles. Since we qualified in both classes it gave me two new titles! I got my BN (Beginner Novice) and RN (Rally Novice) titles.

In some of my posts, I have told you that over the past several months my mom has experienced some progression with her disability and an overall decrease in her strength and endurance. This has made it a little more challenging for her to do some of the things she really enjoys like going to dog shows. 

But, like my mom always seems to do, she readjusted and found ways to still do what she loves. Years ago she traveled with friends to shows far away. They went for the weekend so that they could do two or three shows at a time. Now she is physically able to only do local shows that are not too far from home. And only one show at a time.   

My mom and I attended three different shows. They were spread out over the span of several months. We went to one in April and the next one in September and this most recent one in November.  We had three different judges for each of our two classes. This was extra special because we had the opportunity to meet and show under six judges! Each of our judges was kind, encouraging, and awesome!

As you know my name is Buffy. But I also have a fancy name! When registering a dog with the AKC or other registering organization the owner can choose a special name for their dog. This sometimes will include the kennel name from where the dog came from and sometimes there will be a theme for the litter that helps determine the chosen name. Other times the owner will just create a name that they like or that has some significant meaning to them.

When my mom was registering me with the American Kennel Club (AKC) she used “CCI” because I came from Canine Companions for Independence. And “Buffy” because that is my name. And “Assisting Me” because that is what I do for my mom! So my registered name is CCI Buffy Assisting Me.

When a dog earns titles from the AKC or another venue the initials of the corresponding titles can be added to the registered name. For performance events, the titles are added after the name. I have seven titles from AKC and one title from WCRL which is World Cynosport Rally Limited.

Some titles are listed individually while others show the highest title completed in that category. In these instances, it is known that if the higher title is listed the previous titles were earned because they were required before advancing to the next level. 

My registered name with all of my titles is: CCI Buffy Assisting Me BN, RN, CGC, TKP, RL1

My titles from the AKC are:

• BN – Beginner Novice
• RN – Rally Novice
• CGC – Canine Good Citizen
• TKP – Trick Dog Performer
  • TKN – Trick Dog Novice
  • TKI – Trick Dog Intermediate
  • TKA – Trick Dog Advanced

My title from the World Cynosport Rally is:

• RL1 – Rally Level 1

My mom and I have had lots of fun training and working toward these titles. It has been a lot of hard work but worth every bit of the time and effort we have invested. We have had many cherished memories created along the way! 

In my post, Dog show fun!, I showed you a video from our Rally Novice B class. This time my mom wanted to share with you the run from our Beginner Novice B class. So you can see the differences between the two classes. I hope you enjoy!