Does obedience have a future?

I would have said yes before they included obedience at Westminster.
Not everyone saw the competition but there was much needed exposure just by offering it there:yes:

and you can excel at obedience and agility at the same time- if you saw the Terv competing in both there:pop
 
it was exciting that obedience was welcomed to Westminister, that it was well attended and drew a spectating crowd!

It did not get any of the glamourous television coverage though, I don't think. It was available as a streaming download and that has improved as the last two (?) NOI (National Obedience Invitational) was streamed live too!

So yeah, maybe it isn't lost, just going through transition and change. The sport is like 40 years old now... and doesn't attract the following like agility or barn hunt or even nosework is.

I predict that obedience will soften and evolve and freestyle heeling and tricks will become the "new obedience"
 
2GoodDogs said:
it was exciting that obedience was welcomed to Westminister, that it was well attended and drew a spectating crowd!

It did not get any of the glamourous television coverage though, I don't think. It was available as a streaming download and that has improved as the last two (?) NOI (National Obedience Invitational) was streamed live too!

So yeah, maybe it isn't lost, just going through transition and change. The sport is like 40 years old now... and doesn't attract the following like agility or barn hunt or even nosework is.

I predict that obedience will soften and evolve and freestyle heeling and tricks will become the "new obedience"
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that is very likely:yes:

the general public doesn't have the appreciation of what it took to get there and get your dog to do all those boring things. sure agility takes just as much training and work but it's fast moving and exciting and more motivating.
so take those 3+ years of training- 30-60 sec in the agility ring and 5-6 minutes not counting stays for obedience.
I understand the desire to maintain the obedience tradition but I think that stays (in all classes that have them) really hold back obedience becoming popular. certainly it's not tv friendly to film a dog in a sit for 3 minutes.....:pop
 
but its always what impresses the spectators the most! It is probably the most alien thing to the family who can't imagine their dog sitting still and staying put, especially when there are other dogs on each side and then the handlers walk away and out of sight???

Group stays are so unpopular, and I'm glad we now have opportunities to earn obedience titles - even a P-UDX and P-OTCH without them! Seriously, if I had a dog with stay issues (anything from being a tiny toy breed, to a dog who just couldn't maintain a 3 minute sit due to structure or temperament) I would go the P route.

AKC has done a good job throwing bones to the fancy adding all the optional titles that if they don't have a class your dog can do, then they will likely add another. And all that has to be good for the bottom line. I earned all the "optional" titles available to Justus' tag line, at a cost of... $70-$75 each, not counting the NQ's... The RAE alone was about $450...

So I really don't know what I'm feeling. I guess I'm becoming a curmudgeon. :( That's what's really killing the sport, the curmudgens...
 
There are a couple of points against obedience - it's not diverse and it's not always that exciting. The same can be said of the breed ring- how many people only tune in for BIS at Westminster?

But I think the lack of diversity is a problem that is not getting the attention it needs. At least in my area you really don't see POC and often there's only one or two other handlers in Gen X and Y. Yes, there's the Jr division but then there's a gap once they age out. The exciting/entertaining factor is being addressed by that freestyle at Westminster but how do you attract diversity?

Being televised has helped other sports- EPSN now occasionally shows dock and disc dog championships, agility is getting more visibility, etc but those are visually exciting. Obedience and rally are more staid.

*edite* The preferred track seems to reflect the attraction some people have to Cynosport rally. Something recommended to us by other Sheltie folks while chatting about Olive and her nervousness (the Preferred Novice has the BN walk around, we've finally perfected that!)
 
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2GoodDogs said:
but its always what impresses the spectators the most! It is probably the most alien thing to the family who can't imagine their dog sitting still and staying put, especially when there are other dogs on each side and then the handlers walk away and out of sight???

Group stays are so unpopular, and I'm glad we now have opportunities to earn obedience titles - even a P-UDX and P-OTCH without them! Seriously, if I had a dog with stay issues (anything from being a tiny toy breed, to a dog who just couldn't maintain a 3 minute sit due to structure or temperament) I would go the P route.

AKC has done a good job throwing bones to the fancy adding all the optional titles that if they don't have a class your dog can do, then they will likely add another. And all that has to be good for the bottom line. I earned all the "optional" titles available to Justus' tag line, at a cost of... $70-$75 each, not counting the NQ's... The RAE alone was about $450...

So I really don't know what I'm feeling. I guess I'm becoming a curmudgeon. :( That's what's really killing the sport, the curmudgens...
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yeah- we'll be working on optional titling for a while- one more leg to get our BNs. I think they both also have a P-novice leg too. but they can do the sit/down while I walk around the ring.. just not stay in one place while I stand motionless in front of them........
Cran is now absolutely positive that he should be doing something, anything while I stand in front of him.... gotta start all over again with stays now:gaah
 
I'm kind of an outsider looking in - I did obedience in 4-H and some AKC when I was 10-17 years old. I was working with my mother's dogs, who were not really interested in "obeying" me, so the whole thing was kind of painful. But if I wanted to compete in 4-H, I had to do obedience - so.

Conformation and agility were way more fun, because I didn't have to be absolutely precise (and because I've always been way better at handling than at training! You can handle a less-trained dog through an agility course; you can't handle your way through the Novice exercises).

Now I'm 30 and I have dog of my own. I'm "the mom" and my dog is interested in what I have to say! She learns quickly and she loves to please. She's a very soft dog and the speed and "bang" of agility are too much for her... but she heels with terrific enthusiasm and recalls like she's been shot out of a cannon. Oh, and we figured out the dumbell in less than a week. How cool is that?!

I don't know if we'll ever actually trial, because she is so shy, but I am having a blast teaching her the exercises and helping her get more and more precise. We are working and moving forward together, and she'll be ready when she's ready. In the meantime, I've gained a new appreciation for Obedience, and it's something I want to do with future dogs, too.

Agility has speed and obstacles, and it's easy for the audience to identify a great run. What's more, the dogs (the successful ones, at least) are happy. They broadcast joy!

On the other hand, there's a bit of a shadow on Obedience - the choke-chain, the ear-pinch, the absolutely serious face. The dogs do not always broadcast joy. Their handlers don't always, either.

But Obedience can be so much fun, for dogs and humans both! And I do think that even a layman can see that the exercises are only accomplished through lots of hard work and training - I mean, the average pet dog on the street can't walk on a loose leash, much less heel in position and with attention.

I think what turns people off is that "serious", un-fun feeling that surrounds the sport. Rally is one step towards dispelling those ghosts, but there's no reason why Obedience should die out. The key, I think, is in embracing the same sense of joyful teamwork - happiness in working together - that is growing in other aspects of dog sports.

But I'm a total newbie! This is just what I see, as I'm looking in.
 
Thank you Tofu pup, you and Denise have put hope in my heart! And, I'm going to grin and smile all the way through our next trial!
 
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