A Profile of Marty Stewart and his dog Titan
Tell us about your dog. Where did he come from?
Titan is 8 years old, I adopted him at 8 months. He and his littermates as well as the parents belonged to a drug dealer who was arrested. The drug dealer turned them over to rescue since he was going to jail. I was part of the rescue that took them. When we got the litter the pups were 3 months old (there were 8 of them). We also got and placed both parents. Titan stays in touch with some of the litter and his mom thru Facebook.
How did you end up adopting him?
I was trying to place him in a performance home, but he had the issue where his bones in his front legs grew at different rates and required expensive surgery to correct. I did the surgery and the year rehab he needed so by that time we had bonded and I kept him.
How did you get involved in agility with your dog?
I was already competing in agility with 2 other rescue corgis and Titan was very active and was a good fit for agility.
Did you find that agility helped to improve any behaviors your dog had before you started? How did you feel it helped your relationship?
Titan is a pretty good dog, not any issues or behaviors that needed improving. Doing agility though has helped our bond. He tends to be very serious so running agility with him gets him to lighten up a bit. He loves going to class to train as he is very social. I think he loves seeing everyone as much as he does the training.
What’s something about your dog’s personality that you find unique/endearing/special?
We call Titan the MIT pup of the pack. He is very serious, too smart for his own good and expects you to run the course perfectly. He will let you know when you are late on a front cross or too much pressure on a rear cross.
What USDAA events have you competed in with your dog?
Titan started competing in USDAA in 2014 when the jump heights changed. He stands at 13″ so I didn’t want him jumping 16″. He qualified and went to Nationals that year and is qualified and going this year.
What would say to people who are considering adopting a dog who might want to do agility some day?
I think agility is a great way for people to bond with their rescues. It provides structure and time together as a team. I think it helps with the overall health of the dog.