| Re: The leaps from Novice to Open and from Open to Utility
The other question that needs to be asked is how old is the dog? A youngster may fly through Nov/Open but then get to Utility and just not have the mental fortitude to deal with it (or burned out on that fast trip through Nov/Open). We see this frequently in Agility (dogs who are young and just can't handle Excellent, or are a tad crispy when they get there and need time off).
I know that I found with Froli that as she got to be about 3.5-4, she was really hitting her stride in terms of learning, handling new situations and dealing with whatever bizarre things cropped up at any given trial (be it my nerves, or some oddity on the site).
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Gretchen Caldwell
"I request permission to join the Validity Committee." - Dwight |