Fifteen seconds
Fifteen seconds out of an hour of puppy training was about all the cooperation Mum got from Pebbles yesterday. She hadn’t wanted to listen on Monday so Mum was concerned that the signs weren’t good. And she was right to worry. Pebbles loved seeing the other dogs. She adored all the people. It was half terms so there were some children there and Pebbles made friends with them all. What she wouldn’t do was any of the things that Mum asked her to do. To be fair, that’s why all the kids loved her. By the end they all knew her name and knew she was the naughty puppy. She had quite a fan club. Mum was not a member of the club!
The treats
Part of the problem was the treats. It’s all well and good finding Boony Bits are popular, but it seems they also dry out and then aren’t nearly so nice. Mum has to have a rethink on the training treat front.
On the bright side, Pebbles achieved one sit and stay for five seconds and one recall. It’s a start, but there’s a lot of room for improvement. As the trainer said, it was clear that Pebbles understood, she just chose to do other things.
Favourite toy
Pebbles’ current favourite toy is an empty plastic bottle. It’s so funny. Weeks ago when Mum tried to give her one to play with she found it scary and didn’t want it. Now she thinks it’s better than cow, sloth, and ball put together. The only thing she likes more than playing with the bottle is digging holes and she even tried doing that in the field at dog training.
Off to kennels
So now we’re off to kennels, but I think I’ve convinced Mum that it won’t help matters to leave me with Pebbles. We’re still not getting along and I’m not handling it well. None of this is Pebbles fault. Even I can see that. She is just being an exuberant puppy. I, on the other paw, am being the epitome of the grumpy old dog. I’ve got it down to a fine art.
Love and woofs
Wilma
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