Dog-Day Thursdays

I hardly had time to nurse my cold yesterday.  It turned out to be a school day.

Yup.  When the students Quigley, Ruby, Lucy,  Meggie, Jessie and Foster all met each other for the first time, there was a little growling, some tail wagging, and a whole lot of curiosity.

Actually, Foster and his cousins Meggie and Jessie (Australian Cattle Dog/Red Heeler sisters) had met before, but they hadn't seen each other for at least a week.  

It was, indeed,  a happy reunion for my sisters' two girls and my pup but not nearly the rambunctious roll-arounds they're accustomed to enjoying.

Focus time ruled the first day of puppy school. 

Actually, "doggie obedience school" may be a more appropriate term.  After all, Quigley and Ruby are full-grown and around 2 years of age.

Lucy---she belongs to our longtime friend Mitzi---is 15 weeks.  

I've never heard nor seen her breed before---Wire-haired Griffon---a German/Dutch hunting dog, well adapted to thick brush or water because of its coat.

Ruby came from Canada with her owners.  

She's a lovely reddish retriever-type pound dog.  Ruby took on a different character than her usual endearing sweet self when instructor Glenna asked her owner Leanne to practice heeling on the leash. 

For the first few rounds, Ruby jumped on Leanne, inflicting gentle but enthusiastic love bites. 

"I don't know this dog," Leanne finally said.  

Ruby settled down, though, and was "focusing" by the time her round of practice ended. 

I'm sure by now instructor Glenna may have been informed that Jessie is a "she," rather than a "he."  

My sister Laurie volunteered Jessie as possibly the best candidate for demonstration because of her tendency to get distracted.

Jessie filled the bill for a few moments but quickly caught on to heeling and walking along side her human----to which she was frequently rewarded with praise by the instructor, "Good boy.  Good boy."  

Let's hope she hasn't developed an identity complex after this first day of school. 

Meanwhile, Foster tried to pay attention to the instructor, but that great big Burmese Mountain Dog Quigley next door was blocking off his girl friends and threatening to friendly up to Foster's owner.

Foster has become very protective of me. 

By the way, Quigley and Foster have almost identical tri-color coats, but they're definitely the "big" and the "little" of muts. 

Anyway, throughout last night's class, Quigley listened to a lot of miniature growling from that tiny pipsqueak to his right. 

But the big happy dog seemed to take it all in his stride.

This is Quigley's second stint at "doggie obedience" school cuz Quigley likes people (our instructor said that's a bit unusual for his breed which is generally a little stand-offish). 

Quigley's owner says she wants her pup to learn to quit jumping on people. 

I think every owner in the group shares her desires. 

It was a fun session with a great group of owners and dogs.  

We'll be going to "doggie obedience" school for the next five Thursdays, and I'm sure there will be more good stories to share.

A few years ago, Barbara and I have studied "doggie obedience" under Glenna with other best friends, and we know is an excellent teacher. 

By the way, her Poe (born on Halloween) is a Pit Bull of the kindest kind.  He's one of her five dogs which will show up each time for demonstrations.  

Should be a fun session, and maybe when it's over all of our best 4-legged friends will have a new appreciation for the word "focus" and a whole lot of their own new best friends.