There are many good reasons to train a dog... but these are my top 5:
1. He enjoys it. There is joy on his face when we are working together one-on-one. He thrives on the recognition and reward associated with achieving. It builds his confidence.
2. Combining physical exercise with mental stimulation is the absolute best way to tire the little guy out... good for him and us!
3. A trained dog is a safer dog. He is less likely to have a run-in with traffic, steal and eat something toxic, have a violent interaction with another dog.
4. If we ever want to find a willing pet-sitter, then a potty-trained, gentle, responsive pup is going to give us more options.
5. Taking Teddy with us on travels and adventures, hikes and visits to other people's homes is 100% dependent on him being trained.
So with all this in mind, we decided the best way to get on the same page with cues and commands for Teddy, to achieve consistency and make it easiest for Teddy to learn, was to enroll him in Beginner Puppy Training Class at Petsmart.
He did 6 classes. There was just one other puppy in class with us - Trout. Teddy and Trout spent the first 10 minutes of every class "greeting" each other. IE Wrestling, chasing and mouthing each other. When that was done we got an overview of the class from trainer, Leslie and practiced the lessons together. Each class ended with another round of puppy playtime!
Chaos? Yep. Lots of chaos. For every ying there is a yang. Teddy did all his homework and practice during the week and he was an A Student at home. However, just 30 seconds inside of Petsmart and you'd think he was completely untrained! Ha! I guess the distraction, excitement and new environment has this effect on pups.
*Except that Leslie could make him perform on cue, so it's also fair to assume that Mark and I had a lot to learn and were also subject to distraction.
Last Friday, Teddy graduated beginner puppy class... How adorable is that?!
We celebrated this little milestone by taking the wee muppet to a trail near Boulder and giving him 5 minutes of "off-leash" time in which we practiced recalling him and, of course, the "leave it" command. On leash, he practiced sitting and waiting as other hikers, sticky kids and happy dogs approached. Impulse control is still a work in process, but I'd say we made measurable progress this weekend!
If you too are interested in training classes at Petsmart, then perhaps this little summary of the 6 week class we did has value to you:
Week 1: Marking
Focus - rewarding for eye contact
Hand Targeting - nose to palm for reward
Sit - you know the drill
Week 2: Establishing trust
Loose leash walk - learning to move forward and backwards again beside you
Lets go - from sit to walk, in the direction you are facing
This way - changing direction to avoid something, not in the direction you are facing
Come when called
Emergency recall
Week 5: Expanding foundation behaviors
Sit - using just verbal or just hand signals
Down - from the sit position
Shake - from the sit position
Come then sit
Week 6: Having more fun!
Come when called, from a long line
Puppy push-ups - sit-down-sit-down-sit!!
And for those of you who might think Teddy (or any pup) now has the skills to just go forth and be perfect, I'd be the first to say that is unrealistic and unfair.
We work on "lessons" every day in the house and try to incorporate them into walks around the neighborhood, trails and at play dates, but he's a baby still. He has the skills, but lacks the impulse control and motivation to get it right all the time. That's life...
... And that's why, when I found his Certificate of Achievement chewed up in the back yard today, I just chuckled about the complete irony and put the soggy pieces in the trash!
We are indeed enrolled for the intermediate class in a few weeks.
Patience is a virtue - that I can't boast about having.
For 7.5 weeks, I've been counting the days, the hours, until we get to meet the puppies and their family.
We've watched eyes opening, first eye contact, the transition to puppy-mash food, running, playing, potty training and a final vet check.
Want to see how they've grown?
Check it out... Lola's puppies are just 4 days older than Lucys but they are little chunkers!
9 lucy puppies: 1 Lola puppy
And today we were finally on the road to Pocatello, ID. The weather was iffy and because icing conditions existed, we decided yesterday to drive instead of fly. (Pilot friends understand the hazards of icing in flight, more than most.)
It's a nine hour drive each way but Marks prayers were answered when my orthodontic appointment to install a metal "appliance" happened to occur yesterday afternoon, rendering me not entirely speechless, but definitely less chatty... with a speech impediment to boot.
We planned a 5am departure and backed out of the driveway at 4:59am. (Not uncommon for us and perhaps one of the things that connects us so well!)
It was cold, dark and the roads were not busy. Heading west from Fort Collins was where we first encountered the intermittent snow and crappy visibility.
Breakfast was a quick affair in Laramie and we hit the road again. Daylight makes a huge difference in this weather.
Just before 1pm we stopped for fuel and began our lunch picnic in the car... while driving.
And shortly after that, we arrived in Idaho. We'd been driving about 7.5 hours. 100 miles to go!
The snow and freezing rain stopped 20 mins from our destination and then we saw Idaho beauty, for real. Oh my!
Safe and sound in Pocatello at our cozy Airbnb apartment - door to door from Boulder in 9 1/2 hours.
Our first puppy meeting is in ONE HOUR!!!! Be still my beating heart!
Note: This is what you don't want on your airplane... or it falls out of the sky!
Some days are for driving rather than flying. 😀
