After Tasha's bath and brush, we headed out to the front yard for our training session. Since her structured walk is pretty much perfect, we kept it short and sweet to leave more time for other work. We practiced "stay", which prompted me to work on "gentle" since Tasha got a little bit too excited for the treats when I released her from her "stay". We practiced "gentle" which Tasha really enjoyed since it meant getting lots of treats! She gets so excited for her rewards, but the more we practice, the better she gets. I held a treat in my closed fist and held it up to Tasha so that she wouldn't have anything to grab right away. I slowly opened my hand and allowed her to take the treat from my palm.
Working with Hudson was a lot of fun. He has tons of positive puppy energy but was motivated enough by some delicious treats to practice some of his basic commands. Because he breaks the command right away, as soon as he gets his reward, I introduced a release word "break" to teach him to wait until he is released before moving away. We also started some place training and he jumped on the cot enthusiastically and was starting to get the idea of staying there, especially with lots of treats. Outside I attached him to our long line and allowed him to explore and then worked on his recall. He did amazing as long as he wasn't too distracted. I wanted to experiment with some different toys as alternate rewards to treats - he definitely seemed to appreciate the "go sniff" reward - but he got way too excited by the toys and I realized he needs to learn how to let go of the toys first! We will practice that in a less distracting environment tomorrow. All in all it was a great first day.
Boris is progressing beautifully. We are working at lessening the frequency of his treats and substituting some other life rewards, which he seems to appreciate almost as much. We worked in the lounge for his basics and some extended place training and the hallway and doorways for his heel work. Once we got outside and I put him on the long line, he was excellent for his recall as well. Well done, Boris!!
Extra Attention:
Gracie was in a lounging mood when we went out front to hang out together. I, of course, brought out some toys and lots of treats. Gracie sniffed at the toys, considering if she'd like to play with one, but then decided she'd rather just hang out in the grass. Gracie had a playful group time with her friends earlier and so now it was a perfect time to relax. I did some quick basic commands with Gracie (mostly as an excuse to give her treats) and then we settled down in the shade where I gave her some back scratches. Gracie got up every now and then to follow her nose around the edge of the building and in the grass, but happily came back to sit with me after.
Hudson has had an action-packed first day of his stay! After his group time and his training session, it was my turn to take him out for some one-on-one time. Regardless of the playing and work he did earlier in the day, Hudson was still super excited to come out front with me. I offered him a frisbee but it was the rope toy that caught his attention. We played a game of tug until he lost his grip on the rope. I used this as an opportunity to work on "drop it". I started to throw the rope like a game of fetch and ask him to "drop it" for some treats. Eventually he stopped catching the rope at all and came directly for the treats; what a smart cookie! We finished off by hanging out while I gave him a belly rub.
Groups:
Percy went to go racing off into the yard when he noticed the group surrounding Kimi. Not wanting to miss out on anything interesting, he decided to go and join them. It wasn’t long before Percy was off racing once more. He took up a position where he could see if anyone started to run so he wouldn’t miss out on any fun. When nothing was happening too quickly, Percy made his way over to the grassy section to do some exploring. When Magic, Kimi, and Boris started to play in the tunnel Percy went racing over not wanting to miss any of the fun. When the wrestling started Percy was more than happy to add his voice as the commentary. When the group started to race around the yard Percy was so exited to have someone to chase. It wasn’t long before he needed to cool off and headed for the pool.
Spencer was probably the only one who was completely fascinated by Kimi when the group first headed out for group. He popped by to see what was going on then headed out to do some exploring. Spencer only took a break from his exploring when he noticed Kimi playing in the tunnel with Magic. He watched them for a couple of minutes then went to go and see what was happening at the pool. Boris had vacated just before he arrived so Spencer was quite happy to have the pool to himself. After getting his feet wet, Spencer went trotting back to see what was going on by the tunnel now. The huskies started to have a big wrestling session. Spencer wasn’t quite sure how to participate, but he seemed to enjoy bouncing around them. Spencer needed a bit of a break and so headed off to continue his exploring. After a little while, Spencer headed over to join Percy by the pool.
Teddy was so excited to be back and that it was time for group. He went racing out the door and immediately started circling waiting for someone to start running. Everyone was very focused on saying their hellos, so Teddy went trotting off to do a little bit of exploring. It wasn’t long before Teddy got his wish. All the huskies plus Percy started to race around the yard and play on the tunnel. Teddy was so happy to just race around them. The group was soon racing around the yard. Teddy couldn’t circle them at this point, but he seemed pretty happy to be able to race around with them.
Tasha and Boris were so excited it was their turn for group they practically launched themselves out the door. Boris went racing off across the yard wondering what was going on. Tasha took her time and paused to sniff anything that caught her attention. When everyone started to gather around Kimi, they went running over not wanting to miss anything. Tasha was quick to head back out to continue her explorations. Boris was determined to give Kimi a very thorough once over and was the last to leave her. After leaving Kimi Boris set out to do a little exploring. It wasn’t long before he was racing around the yard with Magic. Boris then spotted the pool. He ditched Magic and took a flying leap into the pool. Tasha went trotting past where Magic and Kimi were playing in the tunnel. She checked on them then continued on her way to another part of the yard to explore. Boris left the pool and went racing over to see about joining Magic and Kimi. It wasn’t long before they were joined by Percy, Spencer, Teddy, and even Tasha. The huskies were soon having a big wrestling match while the others tried to figure out how to join in. The wrestling soon gave way into everyone racing around the yard at top speeds. Tasha wasn’t quite into the racing as so waited in strategic spots so she could pounce on Boris or Justice. After all the racing Boris needed to cool off and went running for the pool. He wasn’t the only one and soon there were a bunch piled in.
Kimi found herself as the centre of attention as soon as she got out the door. All the other dogs circled her checking her over and seeing how she was doing. Once everyone had dispersed Kimi headed out to do some exploring around the yard. Pretty soon the huskies started to race around the yard and wrestling. Kimi not wanting to miss out on the fun went charging over to join in. She and Magic ended up splitting off to go and have some fun in the tunnel. This soon caught the eyes of Spencer and Percy who went racing over to join in. It wasn’t long before Teddy, Boris, Tasha, and Justice all came running over to join in. Soon all the huskies were having a grand old time wrestling and playing in that special husky way. Eventually the wrestling turned into Kimi and friends tearing around the yard barely avoiding crashing into my knees.
Tinkerbell didn’t waste any time in putting her nose to the ground and setting off in search of anything that may have changed since she was last here. She went all around the main yard before deciding to make her way out to the far yard to join the rest of the group. As Tinkerbell wandered around the yard she was stopped by Charlotte who was wondering how she was doing and what she was up to. After Charlotte continued on her way, Tinkerbell went right back to exploring though it wasn’t long until her focus was captured by something on the other side of the fence. Once she was satisfied she then went to see what antics the others were up to. Tinkerbell then met up with Kyah. The two of them spent some time checking each other over. Tinkerbell left Kyah to go and watch Maya’s fun in the pool. Leaving Maya to her fun Tinkerbell headed off to do some more exploring. Her exploring was interrupted when Bella made her way over to see if Tinkerbell might want to play.
Bella and Jake went running further into the yard after saying a quick hello to me. Jake was quick to venture out to the far yard, but he was soon back to try and see about getting Kyah to play with him. While Jake and had left the far yard, Bella made her way out to the far yard to do some exploring. Jake convinced Kyah to come to the far yard. Once they got out there Jake found himself being checked over by Charlotte and Maya. When he’d been thoroughly looked over Jake took off running hoping they’d chase him. He was in luck and soon they were racing around the yard. Bella not wanting to get run over decided to retreat back to the main yard and continued her explorations there. Jake took a break from playing with Maya and Charlotte to tag along with Kyah as she explored around the yard. He was quickly bored and started to ask Kyah to play. After bouncing around for a while Jake wanted to cool off and made his way over to Bella, who was hanging out in the shade. Bella feeling much cooler now headed back into the sunshine to continue her exploring. Jake decided to tag along with her. There attention was soon captured by Charlotte who was now on top of the picnic table. Jake then spotted me near by and came wiggling his way over for some pets. Bella not wanting to miss out on the loving came and squeezed herself between Jake and I. She was really rather happy to be getting lots of pets and butt scratches. Jake and Bella were then feeling all frisky and went racing off together. Bella left her brother to go and see about maybe getting Tinkerbell to play. They bounced around a little but soon Bella headed off to do some more exploring.
Maya and Rocky were pretty happy that it was time for their group. They headed out side with the others. Maya took off racing further into the yard. Rocky found the sunny patch close to the door and sat down. He seemed content to hang out there and sunbathe while watching his sister. Maya did some exploring around the main yard before making her way out to the far yard. She met up with Charlotte and with in seconds the two of them were tearing around the yard. Charlotte soon became distracted by Jake and headed over to see what he was up to. Maya not wanting to miss out on anything tagged along. Charlotte then went to go and do a little exploring, but Jake and Kyah went racing off so Charlotte joined in. The running stopped, shortly after Maya found herself being play bowed to by Charlotte. The two of them were soon wrestling and having a lot of fun. The wrestling turned into racing around the yard at top speeds. Maya and Charlotte eventually needed to cool off and made their way into the shade. Maya then headed over and hopped into the pool while Charlotte stood on the side and watched her. Once they were feeling refreshed they were back to tearing around the far yard. It wasn’t long before they were back by the pool having a drink. I left them to their fun and went to check on Rocky. I found him practically melted into the gravel. Rocky seemed quite happy with his sunbathing and in no particular hurry to move. Maya left Charlotte to go and check on her brother. She didn’t stick around long and was soon back with her friend. Rocky waited until after Maya had left before he started to roll around on the ground really enjoying himself now.
Fitz made his way out to the yard with the rest of his group. He was quick to put his nose to the ground and set off in search of something exciting. Fitz’s nose led him over to Mombo. He spent some time hanging out with him checking out whatever was so interesting in the grass. Fitz left Mombo and headed off to check out more of the yard. He was stopped when Cascabella went over to say hi and see what he was up to. Fitz said his hellos then continued on his way. After exploring in more of the grass of the main yard, he finally headed out to the far yard. Fitz’s nose was practically glued to the ground as he went around the yard. Eventually he had seen all he wanted to of the yards and decided it was time to do a little more socializing. Fitz went trotting over to Caiden, who was hanging out in the pool. Next Fitz made his way over to me for some pets. We were joined by Cascabella shortly after. Fitz ended up leaving us to make his way back to Caiden to see about possibly playing.
It is such a pleasure to have Maggie with us for a while. She was so excited to get here this morning and head right out for her walk. She trotted along the trail with a new friend, Riley. Maggie was much more focused on all the smells along the path than the other dog. In the yard it took Maggie a little while to settle in. She was so busy exploring and sniffing the entire yard that she forgot to say hello to the other dogs, and to me. Once she sniffed the entire perimeter of the yard and checked out all the rocks and holes, she wagged her way over to me. She was very quick to nuzzle her fluffy head between my legs. As I began to pet her she slowly slinked down to the ground where she rolled on her back asking for belly rubs. Of course she got what she wanted, and thoroughly enjoyed some good belly pats in the sunshine. Later on she went on to say hello to the other dogs. Her group mates were very busy playing, so she slowly trotted after them keeping an eye on their every move. When Gracie started goofing around in the tunnel Maggie took interest in it as well. She slowly made her way into the tunnel then peered back at me. She hung out in the middle of the tunnel for a bit while her friends raced in circles around the tunnel waiting for her to exit. She made her way out with a big smile on her face and then came back to my side looking for some more attention.
Kai had such an amazing day today. She met Hudson, a young labradoodle who brought out her inner puppy. Hudson was very keen to play with absolutely anyone who would give him the time of day and Kai was the one who gave him exactly what he wanted. It took her a moment to realize that he really wanted to play. She play bowed back, then the games began. Hudson did some very fast zoomies around her and then she zoomed after him. They instantly began zipping around the yard at very fast speeds. Kai can really fly! She was on his tail the entire time with her ears flapping in the wind. She loved chasing, wrestling, and boxing with Hudson. She played with this young guy for quite some time. When she finally stopped to catch her breathe she came over to my side, asking for her favourite thing; pets and cuddles. I was glad to give her some good scratches behind the ears and she was kind to thank me with a big smooch. She was pooped from all the playing so when it was time to come back inside she headed straight for her kennel where she took a nice nap on the cold tile.
Hudson is a hoot!! This boy sure knows how to get the party started. He loved his morning walk with Duke, a bloodhound. These two were half walking half playing. They got very tangled up romping around with one another as we tried to walk along the trail. When we were passing by our neighbors Hudson noticed they were unloading wood from a trailer, which was making a noise. Every time the wood hit the metal his ears perked up and his head turned. This distracted him from Duke for a while and he motored along the trail for the remainder of the walk. In the yard today I had so much fun watching Hudson. He is such a quirky, goofy, young dog that is so energetic and playful filled with a ton of positive energy. He instantly went dashing throughout the yard saying a happy hello to every dog in his group. His bum was wagging and he was leaping around from dog to dog looking for someone to play with. Farley was the first dog to give in to him, and they slowly wrestled for a bit before Kai got involved. When Kai got involved these three began zooming around the yard like they had fire under their bum. They were running so fast it was hard to snap it on camera. Hudson was the leader of the group for the entire chase. He would run around the most complicated paths, going around rocks and through tunnels as well as around fences. It was almost as if he was trying to lose his two friends chasing him. After numerous fast laps around the yard Hudson noticed that the water in the pool was filling up. He leaped in and began splashing around like a kid at a water park. He then lay down in the water and started dunking his whole head under the water trying to get as wet as possible. When I showed him the hose he dunked his whole face under it, then kindly shook off all over me. He then went leaping out of the pool and began zooming around with his friends all over again. His shenanigans continued until it was time to come inside, where he headed for his kennel and received some yummy treats then took a nap.
Gracie is such a sweet girl. I can never get enough of her loving personality. If I have a minute to myself I always find myself in her kennel, using her bed as a comfy seat. She loves cuddling up with me on her bed, accepting lots of pats and cuddles while resting her head on my lap. Every time I show her her snake she gets so excited, as if she’s never seen it before. She will snatch it away from me and begin dancing in circles while holding it in her mouth and squeaking it over and over. Gracie is so happy to head out in the yard with her friends come group time. Today she spent the first portion of group time sniffing the yard, checking out all the new smells. When she noticed me kneeling down cuddling one of her group mates, she came wiggling over and squeezed her way under my arm. She was very excited to receive some good scratches and kindly offered me a big wet kiss on the face in return. After this I brought Gracie over to the dogs in her group that were playing around. She was very excited to see the action and began jogging behind them. She briefly got in on their chase, and then headed straight for the tunnel hoping one of her friends would follow. She was hilarious in the tunnel today. She would run in and bark looking for someone to chase her, and then hover about in the middle of the tunnel. When one of her friends would finally gain the confidence to go in after her she would give them a little grumble. If they backed out she would wine, as if she were sad to see them go. Finally Hudson dashed in after her and the two of them began romping around in the middle of the tunnel causing the whole thing to shake back and forth. Gracie came out with her ears back and her tail wagging, very excited to have just participated in such a fun game. She spent the remainder of playtime following Hudson around, watching all his crazy games.
Tsavo and Cai had another wonderful day here. They started their morning off with a good walk around the trail. These two do a great job at sticking to the path and motoring full speed ahead. They make the walk go by very fast. When it was time to head out in the yard both Tsavo and Cai were very excited to see that their pals Max and Sadie were in the yard with them. Cai was very quick to meet up with Max and start leaping all over him. Max loves this game, and was very happy to play back. They started wresting and boxing. Cai would pin Max to the ground then Max would roll Cai off of him and leap on top of him. Tsavo soon joined in on the antics and Sadie wasn’t far behind. IT wasn’t long before Tsavo, Cai, Max and Sadie were all zipping and zooming full speed around the yard. A couple of times the leader of the chase would trip and fall causing the whole gang to bundle up in a ball and start a big wrestling match. Once I got the pools filling, Tsavo left the group to head over to the hose where she gulped up some fresh water. Cai then came to my side and rubbed his face against my leg and got some nice pets.
Issy and Mocha were very keen to get into the staff room today and find their usual spots. Mocha was quick to get under the table and take a quick pre-walk nap. Issy did approximately 50 circles before finally sitting down, what a lady. When it was time for their walk Mocha began chatting until I finally had them both hooked up and out the door. Mocha stopped to roll in the fresh cut hay numerous times throughout the walk. Issy took the pauses as a good opportunity to pounce on patches of fresh cut hay, checking for mice and other field guests. In the yard today, Mocha and Issy swaped rolls. Today Issy hung out by the door, basking in the sun. Mocha was very interested in all the smells in the grassy yard and spent her whole group time with her nose to the ground exploring the yard.
Max and Sadie were very pleased to see their pals Tsavo and Cai in the yard today. Max really loves Cai, and will do anything with him. Cai got the games started by jumping all over Max. Max did a good job rolling around with him and keeping things at a calm play level. After a while Max leaped up and zipped across the yard to get a chase going. Sadie was the first one to dart towards him and stay right on his heels as he motored across the yard. Max lept on the picnic table and began dancing in circles on top. Sadie lost interested and began digging, while Cai stuck on Max’s tail and hopped on the picnic table with him. The table didn’t quite have room for both these big boys, so they did some slow motion wrestling with Max on top and Cai on the ground. Out of nowhere Sadie zoomed past Max and Cai and got another chase started. This group dashed around the yard at full speeds until I got the hose out and offered them some water. Sadie waited for the pool to full, Max on the other hand stuck his whole mouth around the hose practically inhaling the water.
It was wonderful to see Caesar and Monte come through the front doors this morning. It feels like it’s been forever since I’ve last seen these boys. I was keen to get out in the yard with them and see who would be the playful one today. It seems like each day they’re here, one is more playful than the other, while the other enjoys all the human attention as possible. Today Monte was the bouncy one. He was quick to meet up with Dougie and begin prancing around the yard. These two loved to run full speed across the yard and then quickly stop in their tracks and box. Dougie would zoom through the tunnel, which always caught Monte off guard. Monte would stop while Dougie zoomed through. Dougie would exit on the far side and Monte would continue to stare at the side that Dougie entered. It took numerous laps through the tunnel for Monte to understand that Dougie was going in one end, and out the other. After this, Monte would always beat Dougie to the opposite side and Dougie would pounce on Monte as he darted out of the tunnel. These two kept one another very busy while I kept one hand on Caesar for almost the entire group. Caesar started off by sniffing the yard and kindly saying hello to all his group mates. He then made his way to me where he nudged my hand with his head, literally asking for pets. He was very pleased to have my undivided attention for quite some time while the rest of the group occupied themselves. These brothers are so lovely, I’m happy they’re back!
Dougie had his first day without his husky pack. He was very happy to be out in the yard with some new dogs. He spent the first portion of groups saying hello and getting to know everyone. He liked meeting Glory the bloodhound, who is a very sweet girl. He followed her around for a while and then moved on to check out the other dogs. When he met up with Monte in the yard, it was an instant hit. These two have very similar personalities, which made a wonderful play pair. Dougie would leap on Monte, then dart across the yard looking for a chase. He loves to weave around any obstacle in the yard, and thoroughly enjoys zipping through the tunnel. His friend Monte wasn’t too sure how the tunnel worked at first, but figured it out by the end of playgroup. Dougie loved being the leader during their playing, showing him around the yard and teaching him new things. After a good session of running and playing Dougie made his way to the pool where he hung out with another new friend Max. These two splashed around in the water together. When I pulled the hose out of the pool and showed them the flowing water, Dougie leaped out of the pool and ran away. Max on the other hand began chomping at the flowing water. What silly boys. Dougie was quick to find Monte again and these two carried on with their silly games until it was time to head inside.
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