DOG OF THE MONTH

June/July 2007

Brittany: Friend, companion and adopted relative of Bill Berner
	A Golden Retriever with the unlikely name of another breed sometimes adds confusion at the starting gate but that’s the name she came with and I kept it that way. Brittany is just a month shy of nine years old and has been with me for all but the first nine months of her life. She is a rescue but not from dire circumstances. She actually had a very good start in life but her original owner recognized that Brittany's activity level required more than she could provide due to her own physical limitations. In Brittany's best interest, she asked that rescue find her a home that would provide the time and activity that she needed. It wasn't long after I started looking for a home for her that Brittany told me that she thought I could do the job and that she really wanted to stay with me. I agreed and our partnership began. I was then competing in agility with Nifty, my first and very skilled Golden Retriever who ran at the highest levels of each venue in which we competed. I never thought I would have another agility dog as good. Nifty would
compensate for my handling errors and made agility look easy. When we faulted, it was because of something that I had caused her to do. When in doubt, she would look for my direction. Brittany is equally skilled but quite another handling matter. She is very fast and very smart. She also competes now at the highest levels in each of the venues. She is also happy to look to me for direction but if I hesitate she will make up her own mind and the course becomes hers. It is necessary to think ahead of her and be a much more precise and skilled handler to keep up with her skills. And she thoroughly enjoys the run; jumping and wiggling and reveling in the hugs and praise when done. Brittany is a happy spirit and enjoys life to the fullest. She loves hikes in the woods, loves to swim, and likes nothing better than to retrieve bumpers at a mountain lake. I can't take a break from throwing the bumpers because she will then dig a hole in the sand and bury the bumper. When day is done she likes nothing better (next to eating) than to rest and snuggle with Dad.

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