This week’s class was at a new dog park that’s pretty far north. Due to the holiday, the group was likely small, but we stayed away. That particular dog park isn’t one of Lilly’s best
locations. We often end up working outside the pen on a somewhat busy perimeter path. And, it’s a pretty long drive to simply stand on the sidelines and play Look Puppies, where Lilly gets rewarded
for calmly being near and watching dogs (some of whom are wild). …
It was a busy weekend. We had a training date with Betsy and Pitsch. We met and went for a walk with a neighbor and her new puppy, and we ventured to our Sunday class with Gigi, despite
the threat of snow. …
It’s a miracle. For the first time in what feels like forever, it did NOT snow on a Sunday. So, Lilly and I went to our group pet obedience class with Gigi. Maybe it was the sunshine.
Maybe it was the squirrels in the trees. But, we had a great day. I mean GREAT! …
Recently, I received a plea for help from a colleague with a dog dilemma. Just a week before her daughter’s wedding, the groom’s mother suggested putting down the couple’s disobedient
dog. A trainer had been called, and after meeting said dog, supported the idea of his death. Shake your head with me, kids, because the story gets more absurd. …
Three words: It snowed AGAIN. That means no class AGAIN. Lilly and I feel cooped up this winter. It’s driving us both batty. So, I have just a couple things to report. …
Noise of the modern world is akin to second-hand cigarette smoke. It poses a danger to us and our dogs, according to
the authors of “Through a Dog’s Ear: How to Use Sound to Improve the Health and Behavior of Your Canine Companion.” Just released March 1, the book makes the argument that many of the behavior
problems we now see in dogs (and possibly some health ones too) come from the stress of noise in their world. The collaboration between a psychoacoustics experts (Joshua Leeds), a veterinary
neurologist (Susan Wagner, DVM, MS, DACVIM), and a concert pianist (Lisa Spector, …
Lilly had another training date with Pitsch last Saturday. She did well playing and doing flatwork with him nearby. She might have even been a tad less bossy than last time. Maybe it
helped that they were playing with his frisbee and not her ball. Things were going so well, in fact, we decided to try a little agility on our home course. Bad idea. …
I originally pitched and sold this magazine article about 18 months ago. The idea sold right away. I researched and wrote it. I even got paid (quite well, actually), but it never ever
got published by the big-name magazine that bought it. So, I recently asked for and got my copyright back. Now, I could try to sell it somewhere else and maybe I will, but for now, all of you will
have to be my audience for a piece on the growth of new agility handlers 40 and 50+. I even wrote different versions of the story, using quotes …
It snowed a LOT on Sunday, so we did not go to class. Maybe it’s the long winter. Maybe it’s because Tom was traveling last week, so I had a whole week of single puppy-mom-hood. But,
truth be told, I’m a bit stuck. …
Lilly and I had our first training date this weekend with another team using Leslie McDevitt’s “Control Unleashed” book as a training strategy. Here’s how it went. …
