I'm actually really excited to start private lessons with a new trainer tomorrow, as she runs Cockers
I find it interesting that I've never been on the receiving end of "Must Run BC", because I do hear from a lot of people that they are told that, even locally. I wandered into agility with an 18 month old Mountain Cur rescue who spent some classes hidden under a table while I ran the trainer's dog instead. She turned out just fine
We have one local trainer who runs strictly BC (which in itself doesn't bother me; if it is what you love to live with and own, you should certainly have them). My issue is with the flipping through dogs. "This one is too soft". "This one doesn't have enough drive". If you are a regular competitor and that is your thing - I guess go with it. I think you suck, but whatever. If you are a professional trainer? I think you are useless. Because people like me are going to come to you with dogs that are soft, that have distraction issues, that have no drive, and you need to have answers. "Well I had one like that and I got rid of it" isn't going to fly with most owners. Meg was so soft she would crawl out of the agility ring on her belly and refuse to re-enter if she imagined a correction; Gusto will glue himself to a spot on the dirt that smells good and keep sniffing. Neither one of them is leaving, so I want help learning to work with them, not the name of your breeder.
The "big names" (relative for all of us, I'm sure) who fawn all over every dog and get creative trying to work out solutions and cheer on our little successes thrill me. There are such wonderful people out there being incredibly successful. I agree that most of the stupid snippy stuff I see is from the big fish in the little ponds. It must be rough to go through life being so bloody insecure with yourself.
To paraphrase Beanie, the winner is the person who goes home at night with the dog they love beyond all reason. If it takes you an extra year or two or ten to reach the level you want to reach, who cares? Those little snippy people. If you never get there but have a wonderful, educational, inspiring time with your dog, those are also the only people who are going to care. Meg's huge championship ribbon hangs on the wall in my room, and I smile every time I look at it. I smile just as big when I watch my 9 year old dog bound happily through the woods, or rest her chin on my leg when we are laying in bed, or when she wiggles herself into a blur because I'M HOLDING A COOKIE AND SHE WOULD LIKE THE COOKIE NOW PLEASE. Agility is my obsession and is a blast, but only because of my partners. I can't imagine wanting to share the journey with anyone but Meg and Gusto.