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A new challenge
In
July 2004 Kat Nicholl graduated from university, and left Northern Ireland to emigrate to the Netherlands and live with her Dutch partner. Perhaps the hardest
thing to leave was her Border collie Meg, but unfortunately due to co-ownership she couldn’t
take the dog with her. It was very difficult to not have a dog for companionship or to train
and compete with, so she found a dog training school in the city where she lives that trains a
wide range of dog sports including agility.
Now that I live here I have become a
fully integrated Dutchie - at least that’s the plan if I’m not exiled by the immigration
service as I appear to have been branded as an 'illegal alien!'
Teaching
At the dog school, which is called Quiraing Hondenschool and owned by Annette Helder,
I have been giving agility lessons and basic puppy behaviour lessons. Of course, speaking
double Dutch is a bit of a problem and most of my lessons consist of 'Englified Dutch,' but the
dogs seem to get the idea even if their owners don’t.
Some of the names of the agility
equipment are weird and wonderful, too. The dogwalk, for example, translates to catwalk. Of
course, you have the standard Border collies, but it is also lovely to see a wider variety of
other breeds including some true Dutch breeds like the Dutch shepherd or the Schapendoes. Try
pronounce that when you have had a few to drink... Shhkapenduz or something like that.
Within the next few weeks I am going
to start instructing English style competitive Obedience at the school, which should prove to
be interesting when I’m learning the names of the different exercises in Dutch. As long as I
don’t say any swear words by mistake then that’s fine!
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Training
As well as having classes to teach, I have also been loaned another Border
Collie which is owned by Annette’s Mum to train. This particular bitch is called Caelidh
- the collie not Annette’s Mum - and has just turned five years old. If ever a dog could
be different to my wonderful calm Meg, then Caelidh is. Caelidh has challenge written all
over, but we seem to have clicked rather well and after the first nip on my heel, she
seems to now actually hold some respect for me, although that could also come from the
titbits.
I am training her for both
Obedience and Agility. We are both learning from each other it would seem. I use her as a
guinea pig to test out my Dutch commands and she uses me to bounce her energy off. Her
agility needs rather a lot of work, and she seems to think that the concept of contacts
is a silly idea and prefers to launch herself from a distance well clear of the contact.
Caelidh also loves to hear her
own voice although she is quickly beginning to understand what the English 'shut
up' means. When I ran Meg, I think Meg barked once on a course, and I was so shocked that
I stopped and looked at her. How on earth do all you folk with barking collies put up
with them?! Okay, so that’s the agility.
Obedience I am pleased to
report is going much better. Considering I only started obedience training with Cael in
the middle of September, she is showing so much potential as an Obedience dog. She is
hooked on heelwork, which of course is a great asset for both her and me! Perhaps in a
few months we will be entering our first competition together. How weird to go back to
Pre-beginners!
Anyhow watch this space and who
knows Caelidh may be destined for greater heights in the show ring other than launching
herself from the top of the A-frame. |
About the
author...
Kat Nicholl started doing obedience and agility in 1997 at the age of 16 with
her co-owned Border Collie Meg (Megan Pride of Plandail O.W.) Learning from each other, they
went from pre-beginners in Obedience and from Starters in agility to achieve the heights of
working championship classes in both obedience and agility together.
Meg is a dog in a million, and she
has taught Kat all that she knows and taken her to places that she could only dream off. Crufts
2004 was especially very memorable as they represented N. Ireland in the Obedience world cup and
were placed third overall which was more than they had hoped to achieve. That day Meg
looked at the thousands of people seated around the main ring and was overwhelmed just like her
handler. They reassured each other and again Meg tried her best. She fuelled Kat's passion for
behaviour and through being more involved in the canine scene, she changed from doing a
Veterinary nursing course to doing Zoology.
Kat graduated in July 2004 from
Queens University of Belfast with a BSc. Honours degree in Zoology majoring in canine
behaviour. Her thesis involved studying social behaviour in groups of Border collies and will
be published next year.
She now lives in the Netherlands with
her boyfriend Sander and is running her own canine behaviour and training business. She loves
living here but enjoys getting back to N. Ireland every few months to see her dog, family
and friends - all in that order!
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