Wednesday May 4th, 2016

Groups

-->

Max was a ball of energy this morning and his vibes rubbed off on Sadie, making her a very excited pup as well. Once they joined their group outside, Max and Sadie both took off to the further yard where they kept their noses to the grass to explore and sniff around. Max got distracted very easily by the others as they were running around by the door. Boris was even more excited than Max on the yard today. Max stopped what he was doing and quickly ran over to join in with Boris, Tasha and Magic. He tried to jump up on them as they were wrestling so he would be the center of attention. They were very focused, though so Max chased behind them as they played around the yard. Sadie was wandering around the grass nearby, occasionally looking out at Max playing. When she was all done exploring, Sadie decided to go run over and join everyone. Once she walked over there, Max backed away and started to play with Sadie one on one. They began to play a game of tag where they ran from one end of the yard to the other as fast as they could. When they caught up to each other they would wrestle quickly until either could escape and then they would continue running.
 

Tasha and Boris had so much energy this morning as they walked in the door! They were bouncing around just waiting to go back and see everyone. Luckily for them it was time for their walk when they got here and they headed outside with Alyssa right away. During their group time, Boris was being so playful right from the start whereas Tasha wanted to do her own thing before she got involved or socialized with any of the dogs. She walked over to the grass yard and began to scope it out. She loves to hold her head up and sniff the air for any scents. Boris, on the other hand, started to play right away. He and Magic were inseparable the entire time. He followed her wherever she went and they didn’t stop wrestling or chasing each other until it was time to go back inside. I tried to get them to follow me to the grass yard to play but they stuck by the door. Eventually Tasha was finished roaming around and ran up to Boris and Magic to join in. She kept on jumping up on Boris’ back as he was on top of Magic, then she would run around them in circles to wait until they ran again so she could chase them.
 

Cooper C. had such a fun day today with Maya. They both love to play and are very social with the other dogs, that is, only if they are also playful. Cooper had his eye on someone right from the beginning and didn’t leave his side the entire time he was outside. Cooper chased his new friend wherever he went and got all the others to join in as well. When Maya was done doing her business over by Rocky she ran over to join Cooper C. and the others on the grass where they started up a big game of chase. They were all so excited and ran as fast as they could until they caught up to each other then they would start to wrestle. Wrestling was Cooper’s favorite part; he would do anything to hop up on a dog and roll around. Maya was fine with just playing tag. When they others started to wrestle she would stand around them and run in circles. When she got tired of all the play she made her way back to the door where she visited Rocky.
Rocky and Flora were the calmer dogs in their group today. Rocky always likes to take it easy and relax by himself by the door whereas Flora likes to socialize a bit before she goes to join Rocky and relax on the step. When Flora got outside she made her way over to me and walked beside me into the further yard. She was looking straight up at me the entire time with a face that screamed, “Pet me!” I knelt down with her once we got to the grass and gave her lots of cuddles before she went to go say hi to the other dogs that were playing. She joined in for a little bit and ran around them as they were wrestling. She liked to bark at whoever was being too rough as if she was the referee. When they started to chase each other again she ran back to the gravel where she wandered around for a bit before making her way to Rocky. Rocky explored a little bit today when he first got outside. He likes to sniff along the fence where the rocks are and the long grass. He doesn’t wander too far though. He walked right back to the door and sat there as Flora came to keep him company. They stayed there together and watched in the distance the other pups playing.
Lexi and Penny are both always so excited to go outside that they have to be the first ones out the door. When I let them out of their kennel they run around the hall as fast as they can before jumping up on the door to go out. Once they get outside they run all the way to the end of the yard and start to explore. Lexi always holds back and waits for me to come join her while Penny heads straight out and just wants to run around and sniff whatever she can find on the ground. Lexi ran up to me in the yard and started to hop up on my legs for me to hold her. I scooped her up and pet her and her bun came undone and her hair was all messy! I got her a new elatic and tied it back up so that she could see again. Lexi sat on my lap politely as I pet her and Penny ran over with what looked to be a piece of a tennis ball that got her all excited. She whipped it around before running off again to look for more toys to play with. Later on she found a big orange Frisbee that she was pawing at and trying to pick up with her mouth. It was the same size as she is so no wonder she was having difficulties! Never the less this mighty little girl managed to pick it up with my help and ran around the yard once to show it off before it fell back on the ground.
 

Apple and Sky are such sweet and gentle dogs, this morning on their walk Apple was a little eager to go and was walking ahead of me trying to reach the dogs ahead while Sky was a little slower off the start. I bounced along with him a little bit which put a hop in his step. During their groups today they both kept it calm and wandered around separately in the yard. Apple loved to walk along the rocks to smell them; she also loved to eat the grass that was sticking through the fence. Every time I called her over to me she would walk right back there after. Sky didn’t stay in one spot like his sister, instead he walked around the whole yard to explore, and he even peeked his head in the agility tunnel to see what was inside of it. While I was kneeling down and taking photos of the dogs, Sky walked right up to me and started to brush his face on mine, asking for cuddles. As I started petting him he began to wiggle his body with excitement. When I stopped petting him you could tell he wanted more and he started to howl at me so I sat down again and pet him again.
 

Casper and William kept to themselves mostly during their morning group time. They were both sleeping on their beds when I walked over to open their kennel but when they saw me they jumped right up and waited for me to open the door. They both got so excited and started to wiggle their bodies as they were running around me in circles I gave them a quick pet before they wandered out into the further yard. They both wandered around and explored; Casper stayed in the grass yard while William walked back by the door on the gravel to see what he could find there. While I was petting Sky, Casper saw and stopped what he was doing and ran over to me for cuddles too. After I pet him he didn’t leave my side and followed me wherever I went. Even William joined in and started following me as well, all they wanted were my cuddles!

Hudson found himself being thoroughly checked over by Kai and Finnigan when the group first entered the yard. Maverick went racing over to see what was going on and too see if maybe he could get Finnigan to play with him. Unfortunately for him Hudson had quickly decided that Finnigan was to be his playmate and that was that. Maverick didn’t mind, though and continued on his way around the yard. Shyla, who had been off doing some exploring, spotted Hudson and Finnigan having fun and headed over to check it out. She followed them around for a little while, but eventually decided to head off and do her own thing once more. Kai was also watching their antics. She and Shyla then went off to do some exploring in the rocks together. Maverick, curious as to what they were checking out, went trotting over to join them. When Kai had seen enough she made her way over to me for some pets and attention. After she had had enough loving, Kai wandered off to do some more exploring. Maverick was next to come over wanting some attention. He just came and leaned against my legs till I pet him. Hudson and Finnigan continued to play. After a little while Kai started to feel a little more rambunctious and was soon bouncing around with Cooper.

The next group was made up of three flavours of lab plus an extra helping of yellow. Everyone set out to the agility yard where they all branched out to check out different parts of the yard. Oakley did a really quick look around then came running over to my side wanting love and attention. Fez was enjoying checking out anything that caught his attention. Rolo, who very much wanted to play with Fez, then joined him. Bella stood watching them before she decided to head on over and say hello to Fez. With that done she set off to do some exploring in the grass over by the building. Fez, still feeling social, then made his way over to see Oakley. Ranger had spent some time checking out the rocks, he then moved on to the grassy parts, before finally making it over to the little bit of residual mud we have. He was then quite happy to much away at the roots for the next little while. When Ranger had had his fill he headed off to explore a bit closer to the others. Oakley headed back over to my side more some more loving. She then left me to go and check out Brenyn. The two of them then went and joined Ranger and Fez over by the little enclosure in the yard, which is full of greenery. Bella decided to do her own thing and headed off to exploring in the rocks along the fence. When she'd seen enough of them she went to check out a hole. Fez left the others to do another lap around the yard. Rolo, who was soon trying to get him to play, joined him. Bella not wanting to miss out went trotting over to see about joining in.

The next group ended up being a very fun group to watch. It started out with Kaos and Shenzi heading out to do some exploring. Zak went to trot out further into the yard when Glory and Brokk who both wanted to check him over very thoroughly stopped him. Kaos was soon finished exploring and start to run around the yard. She then noticed Glory and Brokk entranced by Zak and had to go over to check him out herself. Shenzi soon followed. After giving Zak a once over Kaos and Shenzi took off running for the far yard. Once there they split up to do a little exploring. Zak managed to escape Glory and Brokk and joined the others in the far yard. He then met up with Merida. Zak decided he'd rather like to play with her and set about doing just that, although she decided she wanted to keep wandering the yard. Luckily for him Glory and Brokk found him once more and were more than happy to play with him. Well Brokk was, Glory ended up going off to play with Kaos. Shenzi decided she'd join Zak and Brokk's fun.

Training: 

Boris and Tasha are back and as brilliant as ever! I started with Boris, who is continuing to work on his heel with us. Well, he certainly hasn’t missed a beat. His sitting at doorways is like second nature to him. We continued down the hall and out the front to go for a structured walk. He walked by my side with little to no reminders to stay in a “heel”. I decided to go along the walking trail since this is a good area for distractions with all the exciting smells, and he was a good boy as usual. He continued watching me as we walked along and sitting as soon as I stopped. As we headed back inside I let him have a good sniff on a relaxed leash. He was happy to get back to the kennel with Tasha. It was Tasha turn up next and she sure was she excited. I thought we would have some fun and put her on our super long leash out front. Tasha wasn’t too sure what to think at first, but once she realized all the freedom she had to run around she thought it was great fun. I practiced her recall while she was off sniffing and she always came running right away. Then we spent some time just running around while she chased me for treats. As always she showed off her fantastic “sits” and “downs”.

Next up for training was Miss Sadie. Sadie doesn’t have a lot of experience with me doing her training so we spent some time just getting treats and lots of praise. I attached her to the long line up front and let her sniff around for a while. Once she seemed like she had enough time to relax, I started her recall training. She was very responsive at first, coming as soon as I called with only a small reminder. She was a little disconnected from me so after a few recalls I let her sniff around with me and gave her lots of praise. We did a few doggie push ups going from a sit to down and back to a sit. She wasn’t too convinced at first, but she quickly got the hang of them.

Max was the last of the day. He came out of his kennel quietly and sat down in the hall while I put his collar and leash on. He started to get a little excited so I waited patiently for him to relax again before we headed outside. Susan and I worked on his recall and he did fantastic! He was bang on coming every time I called, even if he had found something really awesome to smell or getting attention from Susan. We ended our session with a nice structured walk down the trail and a good sniff on our way back inside.