I’m not sure this counts as a real training update, but Lilly learned to wear a sweater this week. I’m not big on dressing dogs up, but the seriously frigid temps here this week dictated otherwise.
It turns out that it worked a bit like those fancy dog anxiety wraps. Lilly seemed pretty happy and pretty mellow in her sweater. She looks
cute too. …
Wow! What a roller coaster of a week this has been. Suffice it to say that all emotional extremes have now be exhausted, which is indeed exhausting. So, I only
have a couple little training notes to share about our CLEAN UP trick work.
Somehow, I’d forgotten that Lilly needs more mental work in the winter than at other times. It has been quite cold, and I have been quite busy, so she needs time to think …
On another remarkably warm Sunday afternoon, we again made time for class. While Lilly did not stay calm from start to finish, she bounced back better than she
would have in the past from seeing lots of new dogs and from firecrackers. Yes, firecrackers in @#$@ November. Still, I ended up with a fat lip, after Lilly decided to jump her jitters out when
I wasn’t looking. Rather than face photos that reveal Lilly’s mood by ear position …
I took Lilly to class for the first time in seven weeks on Sunday. She did great, even though we did not know the majority of dogs and many of them were young and somewhat wild. She did snark at one dog whose self-control is still under construction, but that’s no surprise. This pup was straining at the end of the leash, hopping around and looking right at Lilly. …
In response to last week’s Training Update, my professional writer and dog-loving friend Kerri Fivecoat-Campbell (who blogs about living large in a little house) asked for some background on why exactly I would work so hard and continue to put so much effort into training Lilly. Here is my best attempt at answering that question, which is bigger than I suspect Kerri ever imagined. …
Thanks to the earlier Lilly and Lulu and trick progress videos and updates this week, let’s instead circle back to our behavior consult from a few months back and check our progress against goals and the second phase behavior modification plan that builds upon work we started with Lilly way in summer of 2008. Our saga, of course, predates even that original consult by several years, but here is a recap of our current training orders from our certified applied animal behaviorist. …
To compensate for concentration gaps lately, I really should keep notes on what I want to report each Friday. So often, the good ideas get lost in the hubbub of the week. What on earth did I want to share? Hmmm … This is all I can remember.
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I spoke too soon in last week’s Coping With Changes post. While working on the basement, Tom felt water dripping on his head. It turned out our dishwasher was leaking a LOT in its final death throes. So, in addition to changes upstairs and changes downstairs which Lilly seemed to handle well, my sensitive border collie girl had to deal with disruption in the kitchen too. And, it freaked her out. …
PERSONAL AD: Fearful, occasionally snarky 5yo, F, BC seeks suitable dog friends for play dates. Must take well to clumsy, sometimes grumpy, and often bossy attempts at social engagement. …
Last Sunday’s class posed many challenges for Lilly. We worked alongside (at a distance, of course) several big, young dogs Lilly doesn’t know. On this weird, foggy day, Lilly went into a mild-shutdown funk the minute we moved into the shady park. You’ll see in these photos the worry, in contrast to the smiling face you’ve seen lately. …
