Shopping and Dogs

SUMMARY: Dogs like going places but they're limited.

Last night, when I went to pick up my purse at the ice cream shop, I took the dogs with me. They were, as always, thrilled to be somewhere new. I couldn't take them into the shop (dogs+food=big no-no legally), so I shortened their leashes, hitched them to a rain spout outside the shop, told them to Down, and left them there.

(In our world, Sit or Down mean "don't get up until you're released.")

I could see them through the glass storefront, so everything was fine.

They were very excellent girls, even though we don't proof longer sits or downs much at all.

When I returned and released them, several people made comments about what nice dogs they were. One guy said he has a "mini-Border Collie" (25 lbs), rescued from a puppy mill, whom they exercise enthusiastically every day. Good for him!

I think that well-behaved dogs--particularly those who can do a down stay in a public area!--are a good way to keep the public in favor of allowing dogs in other public places. I'm just glad that no one walked by with another dog.

Today I dashed over to the other mall to return the wallet I'd bought, and really couldn't take the dogs with me. There is a boutique dog store there, and I see people in that shop with their dogs, big and small, on occasion, but I wanted to get some lunch and do a little grocery shopping, so they stayed home.

But this group of people was shopping at Old Navy with their dog, so I asked them to pose for a photo, which they gladly did, and very organized about it, too. And such a well-behaved dog!

There was quite a supply of interesting hats that I could consider adding to my collection.

Mario brothers hat, complete with moustache!

Hand-knit animal hats! You could get just about any type of animal, any color! (These are just the ones in the front window.) But I didn't want to pay $20 for a hat that will go in the attic and be worn only once in a blue moon. $5 at a garage sale, you bet I would!

I checked out the Halloween costumes at Tarzhay ("Target"), 30% off. Quite a few dog costumes, but nothing that cried out "Boost" or "Tika" (although the bunch of grapes was cute). I bought one silly hat. Photo will eventually appear in facebook, in a month or two probably.

But who needs costumes when you can buy high-heeled hiking boots in an actual regular store? I could be ready for more hikes with the dogs AND be a plate of fashion as well!

Remington Learns Tricks and Obedience

SUMMARY: He's mostly a good boy.

Backfill: Oct 22, 2007
Remington's training is going great. If you'da aksed me on Saturday, I'd have moaned and beaten my head on the nearest concrete block. Consistent, you know?

He's pretty good on basic stuff in the driveway when it's just me & him. (Add Jim or other friends and it goes to heck.) So I decided that he needs more distractions to practice with.

There's an AnJan Pet Supply about a 5-minute walk from here, so last week I started taking him down to their parking lot every day. Lots of distractions! Of course, to him, someone driving by is a Major Totally Awesome Once-In-A-Lifetime Opportunity to See Something Really Interesting. Let alone people opening and closing car doors and walking by in the distance.

Other dogs are yet another level higher in Fascination Quotient.

Thursday, Friday, and Saturday it was like he'd never been on a leash before and as though "Sit" had suddenly been translated to Swahili. Or maybe Martian. I was very discouraged.

We took a break from going there on Sunday, and this morning when we went, he was a *sweetheart*!

We've been learning tricks gradually, too; he learned "Shake" in about 2 shakes. Easiest thing I've EVER taught a dog! He loves it-- "Gee, all I have to do is lift my foot, which I'd probably do anyway, and I get FOOD! Good deal!"--as opposed to having to actually WORK for goodies in things like balancing the goodie on the nose, crawling across the floor, or begging--all of which he's making progress on but is still a bit wimpy at. (Actually goodie-on-the-nose showed great improvement over the weekend--finally!--we've been working on it for 2 months!)

Anyway, I'm still doing a lot more than we've covered in class, but it's great to have Pam's experience and suggestions for things that are giving us trouble.

SHE thinks Remington learns things REALLY QUICKLY--that's because he is on his absolutely best behavior (now) in class so that he can impress the Babes. Little does she know what devils possess him after we leave--