Still Growing
I'm so glad we decided to do obedience classes while he was still smaller! If we hadn't, so many things would now be physically impossible.
How would I give him a bath if he didn't choose to submit? As it is, he doesn't love it, but he walks into the bathroom on his own, waits for me to remove his collar, and then slowly lifts each foot into the water. When he is done being washed, again he holds still and waits while I close the shower curtain and tell him to shake. Then I hear the loud flapping of his ears as he gives himself a big body shivver. When I open the curtain he slowly steps back out of the tub onto the layers of towels I've laid out for him. He lies down and allows me to rub him down with towels. Then we move to the other room where he lets me brush him out completely. What a great dog!
He still has things he needs to work on but he is also making progress. Public events are pretty routine by now. If we sit down in rows of seats he knows we will be there a while. He gets comfortable on the floor and falls asleep. We have to find seats that have plenty of room underneath or else sit near a wide empty spot because he no longer fits next to our feet in narrow rows. He has heard bluegrass, jazz, classical, and choral music as well as numerous sermons and speeches. He seems to not have a preference. He knows we will stand and sit and stand and sit and that no longer causes him any anxiety. He wakes up when it is time to leave.
He prefers to not stay home.
When I pull on my shoes, he is attentive and at my side as I get ready to leave. He is quicker at obedience at those moments than at any other time. He almost gleefully waits for commands.
Things we need to work on...
longer stays
obeying commands from a distance
keeping a loose lead without the pinch collar when we go for a walk
lying down when guests arrive and waiting for an invitation to greet
Things I love...
He is affectionate in such quiet gentle ways. First thing in the morning he comes to each of us for a greeting. He places his head in my lap and leans in for a long neck and shoulder massage. If I'm sitting on the floor he lays his head on my shoulder and waits to be hugged.
He is pretty calm and laid back. It is rare that he gets overly excited. Most of the time he is calmly attentive and enjoys the contact people want to give him.
He is calm even with play. Sometimes he will come up to me and drop a tennis ball in my lap. Then he just waits for me to throw it. He will chase it and bring it back 3-4 times and then he's ready to lie down again.
His run is so big and ungainly. It is easiest to see that he is still a puppy when he runs because everything about him is on the edge of coordination. He runs as though he hasn't adjusted to the size he has achieved, his huge feet landing all splayed out, his speed taking him farther than he intends to go and then causing him to slide past his target.
I love the way people light up and respond to him when he shows up.
Comments