April 08, 2003
4:30 p.m.
Even with the snow on the ground, we've managed to do some training in the park. Dusty's 'sit-stays' are really solid now. It's exciting to see her making this kind of progress!
The other day, I had Dusty in a 'stay' right outside my front door (this is indoors - I live in a basement apt). After a few minutes of struggling out of jacket and boots, I turned around and looked for her. She was still there, waiting for me to release her from the 'stay.' Wow~!
We went to the park twice today. She love running around in the snow, even if she doesn't like sitting in it. I asked her to do some 'sit-stays' anyway (I wasn't so cruel as to ask for a 'down-stay'). Sitting with her bum in the cold snow is good practice for ignoring distractions. She also held a 'stay' while pedestrians walked by within a few feet of her. This feels like progress!
Also, I've been working on recall ('come'), 'leave it!' and 'drop it!' She totally gets 'drop it!' now. When I issue the command, she literally spits out the dead thing (usually bark or leaves or pinecones) that she's chewing on. Obviously, the treat has to be a better prospect than whatever is in her mouth or this doesn't work.
The weather seems to be clearing up a bit. Tomorrow, we're supposed to have sunshine and much warmer temperatures. Now, we get to watch all the snow melt *again* and go through the park-as-quagmire process all over again.