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Week Three: Lessons included “come.” Hoshi sits and few feet away then comes and sits at my feet facing me. Introduced “heel” taking a few steps then Hoshi sits at my side.
Week Four: Lessons included recall using long-lead. Practiced “stay.” Hoshi would stay until I came up to him and gave him a treat. “Heel” with me abruptly walking backwards then stopping–I would call Hoshi and have him turn around and sit at my feet facing me.
I’m glad Hoshi’s class is air conditioned. I was worrying about taking class during summer. This week we practiced “come” with both of us facing each other. We also practiced “heel” taking few steps then stopping.
I have been training Hoshi in the hopes of keeping him off the road. This is in case he should ever get loose again. We have been practicing our sit stays at the curb of the street using a 15′ lead. I leave him at the curb and walk across the street. Hoshi does real well with that. I’m also using sit stays on at the borders of our property. I’m hoping he gets the idea that a our front yard has boundaries he should not cross. I’m also using off-leash sit stays in the front yard in a controlled setting with correction. I want him to learn being off leash in the front yard is serious business–he’s not allowed in the front yard off leash–this is just in case he gets loose.
It not all about restrictions. I’m also teaching Hoshi fetch. My goal is Hoshi will fetch his leash whenever he wants to go out the front door. It’s a slow go teaching him fetch. I’m using a training dumbbell except he can’t figure out the concept to retrieve it. The most I can do is reward him for putting the dumbbell in his mouth. I’ll try using a ball next time–that might be more fun for him.
Hoshi started his Fun-damentals of Obedience & Rally today. I made the mistake of not feeding him breakfast right before we left so he was begging and whining for treats throughout the class making him less than cooperative. I kept giving him treats just to keep him quiet. So far we didn’t cover anything new. We did sit, down, stand, stay, heel, about turn, left and right finishes, fronts and figure 8s. There were a lot more people in this class (8 I think). The instructors were completely opposite. One was a military type shouting commands the other soft spoken. I think it’s good having a variety of instructors with different teaching styles. They say we could work on a Companion Dog (CD) title if we are judged in 3 shows with passing scores. I don’t know if I’m up to showing. I’ll think about it.
I’m taking advantage of our local club’s proximity to home. I signed Hoshi up for another class. I’d like to reinforce some of the skills Hoshi has learned so far. Gina, Hoshi has received much praise for his pleasant demeanor and cuteness! They are surprised how sociable he is for a cocker spaniel. 😕
I gave Hoshi a haircut this week really trimming back his legs. They look choppy. We were pleased with his face and topknot. I think I shaved too much of butt because it doesn’t match the longer hair on his legs. I tried blending it–learn as you go. I’ll take pictures when I have a chance. It took me all afternoon to finish his trim. I think it well go much faster once I get the hang of it plus his hair won’t be so tangled. I’m getting the hang of using the table arm and loops. Hoshi HATES having his face trimmed–It’s a wrestling match every time!
I was wondering if Hoshi would ever pee like big dog. Yup! Now he’s marking (inside too) like he’s discovered a new toy. He does it whenever he’s excited so I’m going to work on confining him and remedial house training.
