Chapter 6: Teegan the Superdog
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A hush falls over the crowd. Into the ring bursts Teegan, an elegant standard poodle, his apricot-coloured coat trimmed and shaped to perfection. He prances from foot to foot while he waits for his owner, Morgan Jarvis of Bowmanville. The whistle blows and she looks at Teegan. "Let's go!" she says and they begin.
It's the Superdog Show, and it's jam-packed with excitement, for the spectators and handlers, but especially for the dogs performing. Responding to Morgan's hand signals and voice commands, Teegan leaps over jumps and across hurdles, blasts through tunnels and scrambles over the A-frame. He rounds a corner and there, he faces a jump most dogs and probably a few horses would balk at. It's made up of two end pieces with poles stacked across them. In competition, small dogs jump the fewest poles, perhaps one or two. Large dogs jump proportionately higher hurdles. Teegan has already mastered the highest jumps in the standard agility trials; now he's going for the record. Ten poles balance on the end pieces. The slightest jostle will knock them off.
He approaches the jump straight on and full speed. He gathers his hind-quarters to prepare for the spring, stretches out to an impossible length, curves his front paws over the topmost pole, arches is back, tucks his hind legs in and glides over the pole with a hair's-breadth to spare. He lands smoothly, springing back up and on to the next obstacle. The crowd explodes in applause, and Teegan knows they're finished. He jumps up to kiss the woman he loves; the pair is wild with success and drunk with applause. Then the announcement comes from master of ceremonies, Herb Williams. Teegan has just jumped an astounding ten bars, free and clear, his best jump to date! The applause is deafening, and Teegan eats it up. It takes training and conditioning to build up such an accomplished canine athlete. Many such dogs are carefully bred for generations, well-nourished from the moment of conception and prepared from birth and even only a few of these carefully nurtured contenders will achieve greatness. For dogs without the benefit of such early care, it's almost impossible to become a Superdog. Right? Wrong! Teegan is a star today, but when Morgan first met him, he was just under a year of age, malnourished, unkempt and frail. The owner was serving time in prison, and sent the puppy to stay with his parents, where he spent most of his time in a too-small dog crate. After a few months, the parents decided instead to board the boisterous young dog at a local Toronto-area kennel, where Morgan worked as a groomer. "Teegan's caregivers were no longer able to take care of him," she explains. "Uneducated about dogs, especially standard poodles, they didn't know that standards grew any larger than their own personal miniature poodle." When they dropped him off at the kennel, his back was hunched over and he was so stiff he could barely move. In every way, this dog was a mess. "He was very hand shy, as if he'd been hit in the past," says Morgan. "He was extremely fearful of any new situation." When meeting other dogs he would growl and hide. He trusted no one, especially men. He was neither crate-trained, nor house-trained. His coat was filthy and matted from head to tail. Dried mucous caked his eyes. His ears were infected and full of hair.
He needed a makeover, and Morgan saw to it that he got one. First, he was thoroughly bathed and his entire coat was shaved off, a task that took several people the better part of a day. "I don't think Teegan had been groomed since he was purchased at the pet store," says Morgan. His eyes were swabbed. His ears were plucked, cleaned and medicated. His nails were trimmed. By the end of it, poor Teegan was trembling with exhaustion, but he looked like a new dog.
Teegan's diet was changed and he was placed in a large run, where he could finally stretch his legs and work off some of his energy. With proper nutrition and exercise, his health started to improve and as it did, his personality began showing through. Something about him appealed to Morgan. He was young; perhaps with a bit of care, he could overcome his rough start. She began to take him outside on her lunch breaks and play ball with him. Slowly, Teegan began to trust Morgan and the two developed a bond. "Teegan's caregivers paid for three months care at the kennel," says Morgan. "After the three months, they decided to sign him over to me."
Some people shook their heads at Morgan. She knew dogs, and had several at home already. She was an experienced groomer, and an excellent trainer. But Teegan's early neglect and total lack of socialization could prove an insurmountable barrier to his becoming a loving and responsive companion. He was still thin, his eyes were droopy and his coat was in horrible condition. But the dietary improvements were beginning to have an effect and his muscle tone was improving too, thanks to daily runs in the park with his new pack. His physical health was improving, but would his behaviour ever improve?
Morgan, who was in the early stages of setting up her own kennel, ignored it all and set to working with this latest rescue dog of hers. Since 1990, she'd been part of the Superdog team, one of North America's premier live entertainment events, as popular as the Harlem Globetrotters or the Ice Capades but with dogs! The show's producers helped her facility get off the ground and today Superdog Central, Inc. is an award winning training, grooming and boarding kennel in Bowmanville. It was a busy season.
"Teegan started going to Superdog shows with me and my other dogs within a month of him living with me," Morgan says. "He was very under-socialized, and was afraid of noises and other dogs." The shows, the first of which was held at the Pacific National Exhibition in Vancouver in 1978, are intense, highly-choreographed theatrical productions in which immaculately-trained dogs execute precision movements. They run obstacle courses, leap over jumps and through tunnels, all set to catchy music. Audiences rave, handlers get to show off their brilliant pooches and the performing dogs simply love it. Teegan, however, was not impressed.
Each new noise terrified him. At every new place they visited, Teegan cowered and shook at the end of the leash. He startled and shied away when people motioned to pet him. "It took over a year to get Teegan in shape," Morgan says. At first, it was enough just to acquaint Teegan with the big, wide world around him. Morgan used clicker-training, the same method of operant conditioning used by trainers of marine mammals. She taught Teegan that after each "click" of the device, he would get a treat. This allowed her to be very precise in rewarding his behaviour. Each time he entered a new building, she clicked and gave him a treat. Every time he allowed a new person to pat him, click and treat again. "I also conditioned him with food or a toy reward when he handled situations such as loud noises, crowds, or other animals, well," she adds.
A year later, Teegan was living proof that the past can be overcome. From the wreckage of neglect, he emerged confident, capable and gorgeous. Gorgeous enough, in fact, that he's become a model! He's appeared on the front page of The Washington Post, has been in a cellular telephone commercial and posed for the photos in chapter two of the popular book *Teach Yourself Visually* by Maran Graphics & Wiley Publishing, which discusses positive reinforcement dog training.
But it's his intelligence and athleticism that have brought him true fame. An article and photo showcasing Teegan's ability was carried by the Iam's magazine Your Dog in December, 2002 entitled *Iams Wonderful World of Dogs.* The Superdog show was a highlight of the prestigious American Kennel Club/Eukanuba American Dog Classic, held outdoors by the T.D. Waterhouse Centre. "His ability to run fast and jump high, set his career in the Superdog Show," says Morgan. "I guess you could say he was discovered because of the show." Teegan is currently racing in the North American Flyball Association with the multi-breed flyball team Time Bandits, who are currently in second place for the 2005 Season. "Teegan's racing time is 4.6 seconds," boasts Morgan, "making him the fastest standard poodle in North America." He recently received his Disc Dog title with the Canadian Disc Dog Association, as well. This dog loves his work and it shows!
Viewers can even catch these dogs on ESPN, and soon, at local movie theatres, because a new feature film is in the works, with a whole new line-up of stars, including Teegan! "Teegan plays a Superdog team member in *Daniel and the SuperDogs* a feature length film to be released in February 2005," says Morgan. This movie is the heart-warming story of Daniel, an 11-year-old boy who struggles with abandonment issues. Daniel finds solace among his friends and in training his dog for the SuperDogs show which is coming to town. Teegan may not know he's famous, but his story serves as hope to everyone everywhere who wonders if they can overcome a difficult start. His bright eyes and wagging tail tell the story: "Yes. Go for it!"
Copyright © 2005 by Roxanne Willems Snopek