Friday Play Days

Fridays are a bit different at daycare. They involve playing with Hrothgar! Hrothgar is a great dane puppy, huge, gorgeous, but an absolute sweetheart.

And here I thought Oak was getting big!

Our Second Class

We went to our second training class on tuesday. Oak had plenty of exercise(it was a Barkley day, then we played with Ranger, then we walked and played with Hudson) but he was still very hyper. He did absolutely horrible on the heeling section. He was bouncing around, jumping up, tried to steal the trainer's treats :), and didn't listen at all. More practice is obviously needed, for me and him! The rest of the night went well. He was more focused on me, stayed when he was supposed to and did pretty good on the figure 8 at the end of the class(first time we tried it). I think he's doing quite well and I'm happy with his progress so far. Unfortunately, he is still better at home then he is at class! Practice, practice, practice.
More news, Oak will have a new friend to grow up with. My daughter Mandy is getting a new golden puppy this sunday. He was born on Nov. 29, so he is about 5 mos younger then Oak. His name is Treeverwood's Chrysolite, Lite for short. I'm sure they'll be best buddies in no time.

Pictures!!

I remembered to bring the camera today. Yeah! Oak and Hudson had another great walk this afternoon. I got some great shots. Have a look.

This next one is of Hudson climbing every snow bank. No easy walk on the road for him, he thought plowing through 5 ft. snow banks was a better plan!

Puppy Play

We have a client whose new puppy doesn't like to go for walks, so today Oak and I met Hudson and his walker to see if he might enjoy walking better with another puppy for company. It worked perfectly! Hudson loved chasing after Oak. They walked, they ran, they played. I even brought my camera to take pictures. There were alot of photo opportunities. Lots of great shots. Unfortunately, I forgot to put the memory card back in my camera and I couldn't take any pictures at all!!! We are meeting them again tommorrow, so I'll be sure to take may camera again, with the card!

Snow Play

So we are supposed to practice twice a day for 10 minutes. Well, we've been practicing once a day for 10 minutes. That's a start, right. :) He was starting to get bored after the 10 minutes, so I can see why you're supposed to keep it short and sweet. Also always end on a high note. That way he feels good, he enjoyed it, and he got treats. Let's do it again! Puppies have to enjoy what they are doing, or they will loose interest. I think will try some practicing at the dog park. We did this when he was going to puppy classes(the whole 2 he went to!) and he did really well. Lots of distractions there!


Today when we took Ranger to the park at lunch, we decided it would be fun to make a snowman. The snow was really packy and easy to roll, but boy was it heavy! I was rolling the snow, Ranger was crashing into it and trying to eat the snow, and Oak was just ignoring the whole process! We had a great time! They really love playing in the snow.

Obedient or Not So Very Much :)

Well, class last night was defintely fun, very entertaining, and a learning experience for me. My puppy who does everything wonderful at home where there are no distractions, tries to listen to what every other owner is saying to their dog and not to what I am saying! He didn't do too bad for the first class, but we really have to work on his focus. At home his eyes don't leave my face, at class, there are too many other facinating things to check out! He did do an absolutely wonderful recall though. The trainer called him from the other side of the room, I let go of his leash, and he went running straight to her as fast as his legs would take him. He also came running back to me when I called. His enthusiasim is so cute to watch.
Once again, we found out he is just to beautiful! Everyone thought he was the most beautiful GIRL they've ever seen. My handsome boy is going to get a complex :)

Back to Class

Tonight is the first step on the road to my perfect, obedient, wonderful dog :) We are going to our first Novice class at 6:30pm. We have been practicing (a bit) and I think Oak is coming along quite nicely already. In fact, last night he made me very proud. Dishwashers are great! Puppies are great! Dishwashers and puppies together, not so great (unless you like your 60 lb puppy climbing onto the dishwasher door to clean off the plates!). So last night we tried something new. I put Oak in a down stay while I unloaded and reloaded the dishwasher. This was the first time we had tried this, and I thought he did really well. He did attempt to get up twice, but considering the job took about 10 minutes to complete, I was still very proud of him. Even my hubby thought Oak did a good job.
My plan, assuming I practice with Oak on a daily basis, is to enter him in obedience trials and get his Companion Dog before he turns one. Fingers crossed, that I keep the practice up! I'll let you all know tomorrow how well we did.

Today was also Barkley day at daycare :) Barkley is Oak's best friend and they play together constantly when they are together. Then Oak comes home and sleeps for 2 days :)