[Liesje]

I wouldn't worry about it too much then. I mean, everyone does it for fun, right? If your dog makes progress, I don't see why you wouldn't want to title because it feels really good to achieve that, but it doesn't mean you're trying to win or make it to nationals. The reason I say this is because I have seen a lot of people excuse their dog's lack of progress (because the handler is not doing anything, not because the dog is bad) on the fact that they are "only doing it for fun" and that can be frustrating for a club that is genuinely trying to help someone and their dog make progress. If you and the dog don't make progress, then I don't see how it could be fun. Every club I've trained with and visited has had a huge range of membership experience and trial level, and every person I've trained with has adjusted their goals as they go along. Very few people have some sort of trial schedule in place before they even get started. Each time I insist I'm committed to doing something, there is something external that gets in the way (like illness, buying a house, etc) whereas the times I've trialed it was a spur of the moment decision like 2 hours before the entries close or on a dare, lol. I don't like trialing but I like when my dog gets the nod he deserves for his hard work and progress in spite of my novice-ness!