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Trial Day Routine Part 1: General Routine:
The day before I leave for a trial I pack everything in our trial bag. Most of time, I never empty the trial bag, but replace what was use and put it in the van. This includes toys, bowls, coats, treats, brush, cover sheets for the crates and water in the van.
I always arrive the day before or very early to set up crates and chairs in a place that is removed from the action.
I bring breakfast and usually eat while driving.
I try to feed the dogs but on trial morning my dogs are to excited to eat so they don’t. Even special delicious breakfast will not be eaten. I do try to get them to eat some extra cheese or other treats frequently during the day.
Both my dogs and I drink plenty of water during the day.
During a down time on the trial day, we will take a walk outside to escape the trial atmosphere. Sometimes we will go outside and throw a bumper so they can just relax.Part 2: Our specific pre-run routine
Before taking the boys into the trial site, we take a walk so they can stretch their legs and relieve themselves.
Once inside I make sure their crate are comfortable and have water readily available. Then I cover them with a sheet so they can rest.
When I pick up the courses, I memorize them prior to the walk so I can get an idea of where I might need crosses. I can’t finalize my plan until I can actually walk the course. My plan consists of several different ways to run the course. I view the plan on what will work best for the dog I am running and leans toward their strengths. I usually have a backup plan particularly on those tricky parts of the course just in case I can’t get where I need to be or things don’t go correctly.
Warm ups most of the time is walking the dogs for an extended length of time. A friend’s dog had a Psosas injury and the rehab vet suggested the best warm up/cool down is walking the dog for approximately 10-15 minutes. The only time we use the practice jump is after our walking and I practice some of the difficult skills that may be needed on the course. We always warm up with treats/toys and I praise profusely as it continue to build the dogs confidence.
I watch most of the runs but I like to watch a team who runs similar to how I do. That way I have an idea of where something might go wrong and I can be prepared. About 4 or 5 teams before our turn, we move closer to the ring. I do a mental review of the course sequentially, then I review it again placing my crosses and verbals where they are needed. I guess this is my way of visualization which I need more to work more.
Working on the dog’s mental warm up is something I really need. Normally I ask for a right/left, sits and downs. But I don’t think this is enough. Depending on who is ringside with me, I am usually trying to calm down Rolex. Psychic I need to keep his nose off of the ground. So their mental warm up is different. Prior to entering the ring I connect strongly with my dog. One relaxing technique that a vet told me about is stroking the dog from the top of their head to their tail set as this has a calming effect. When entering the ring, I ask the dog to sit and wait as I enter the ring first. I head directly to our set up mark, ask for a sit while I remove his collar, if we have a tunnel first I mark the tunnel and tell the dog to stay as I move to where I want to be to start our run. While leaving my dog I always talk with the dog as I feel this keeps our communication going.
After our run we celebrate and take a walk while I mentally review our run. After the dog has been rewarded and cooled down I put them back in the crate. As soon as I can I like to review our video looking for things we did well and things that I need to set up and work next week.
