Let the guilt begin

Where does the guilt begin?

It turns out that Roc may be reluctant to jump, run, fetch, etc. in the obedience ring because he's either injured or has something wrong in his shoulders.

Whenever we're asked about training or behavioral problems with a dog, the first piece of advice we give is to have the dog checked by a veterinarian to see if there's a physical cause for the issue. So, after struggling with Roc's worsening performance in obedience, I finally took my own advice.

I suppose that late is better than never, but I felt sooooooooooo bad when Dr. Janice was checking him out today and he started trembling when she touched his shoulders. I try to avoid guilt whenever possible, but I think I deserve some of it today.

Tomorrow I'll be taking him in for x-rays and we'll start figuring out what's going on with the little dude. I know that he loves training and working with me, so it's going to be a rude shock if his obedience career is over. I know there are only a couple of jumps, but I can't justify making him do them if he'll be in pain every time.

And I feel guilty about hoping it's an injury - because in my twisted little brain I'm thinking that an injury could heal, in time, and let us play obedience again. And if not? We'll deal. He'll always be my dog. And, as I said after every non-qualifying stint in the ring, I still get to take him home with me.