Okay, now I know you're probably thinking "well, Shay, you did just buy a working bred GSD and you have been working with a GSD breeder/watching Schutzhund for like a year now..." but just go along with me for a minute here.
When I think of schutzhund, I think it looks fun and I enjoy it, but I don't see ME doing it. When I think agility, I love it and I want to do it. That said, I've done agility before and have never done schutzhund before.
At this point, Simi is turning 6 months this month and we haven't been out for training at all. And I'm starting to feel like I missed the most important months. Training is an hour away, early on Saturday mornings, which are fine in the fall and winter months (minus weather) but in the summer months, I'm usually at a trial. The train with the local club it's a $100 annual fee for a years worth of training (usually 3 days a week, though I can only really make one or two). That said, I also have to join the GSSCC which appears to be a $115 fee this year, $100 every year after that. So $200 a year to train. That doesn't seem bad, really... but I also have no desire, as of right now, to ever compete in Schutzhund, and all I can think of is that that's almost 2 agility classes worth of money.
So I really don't know what to do. There's a bit of pressure from her breeder/the trainer at the club for me to do the sport and I think a lot of that comes from Simi having been her second pick of the litter (she kept her first pick), and so I want to do it because her breeder really helped me a lot over the more than I year I've been working with and talking to her, and she was really helpful in my getting Simi... So I want to do it for her, so to speak, but I really have very little desire for Simi and I to ever do it... So I just don't know...
Maybe this is mostly a rant? But thoughts, helpful suggestions, comments, any of that would be nice.
When I think of schutzhund, I think it looks fun and I enjoy it, but I don't see ME doing it. When I think agility, I love it and I want to do it. That said, I've done agility before and have never done schutzhund before.
At this point, Simi is turning 6 months this month and we haven't been out for training at all. And I'm starting to feel like I missed the most important months. Training is an hour away, early on Saturday mornings, which are fine in the fall and winter months (minus weather) but in the summer months, I'm usually at a trial. The train with the local club it's a $100 annual fee for a years worth of training (usually 3 days a week, though I can only really make one or two). That said, I also have to join the GSSCC which appears to be a $115 fee this year, $100 every year after that. So $200 a year to train. That doesn't seem bad, really... but I also have no desire, as of right now, to ever compete in Schutzhund, and all I can think of is that that's almost 2 agility classes worth of money.
So I really don't know what to do. There's a bit of pressure from her breeder/the trainer at the club for me to do the sport and I think a lot of that comes from Simi having been her second pick of the litter (she kept her first pick), and so I want to do it because her breeder really helped me a lot over the more than I year I've been working with and talking to her, and she was really helpful in my getting Simi... So I want to do it for her, so to speak, but I really have very little desire for Simi and I to ever do it... So I just don't know...
Maybe this is mostly a rant? But thoughts, helpful suggestions, comments, any of that would be nice.