What a gorgeous August we had! The temperatures dropped to a comfortable level, and there weren’t any smokey skies due to wildfires. So, we made the most of it by hiking mountain trails, van camping, hanging out in the evening at various music festivals, dining out and then we wrapped up the summer by attending the Salmon Arm Fair.
We met a dog at Home Hardware one day that rode in the sidecar of his owner’s motorcycle. He looked quite distinguished with his goggles on.
We went to a couple of PADS puppy classes this month. The first was outdoors at a Kelowna park where a PADS service dog, Tonka, joined us to practice dog distraction. He walked past us various times while the dogs sat, and then the trainer added a rolling ball too. The pups maintained their sits quite nicely. Then we practised walking using a long line, one by one, as the others maintained their sits. After class, Finna went to the Okanagan Eye Care Center to have her eyes checked.
At our second PADS class, indoors, we practised eye contact and duration while standing in front of our pups. We desensitized them to a moving toy and practised body handling with another handler touching our pups.
Finna met up with the released PADS pup Jax a couple of times this month. One time, it was a leisurely, loose-leash walk together in a residential neighbourhood of Vernon. The second time was a walk around the quaint downtown area of Salmon Arm and a stop for lunch at the Shuswap Pie Company. Jax is so calm and has been a great mentor for my pup Finna. It was nice to spend some time with him before he got adopted.
Finna had a productive meet-up with 4-month-old PADS puppy Tzar, who hadn’t had a playdate yet. We controlled their greeting and play activities so that they would not get too excited. It was a very successful encounter for both pups.
We went to Sun Peaks with our kids for biking and overnight camping in the woods. We took Finna and our grandpup Jeff for a very long walk with our grandson in his wagon while our kids mountain biked at the bike trails on the ski hill.
We ended the summer with a visit to the Salmon Arm Fair. So many smells, so many people and noises! The highlight was watching the Motocross Freestyle Show, where motorcycle riders launched themselves off a ramp and into the air while doing tricks. Finna watched with interest as they flew through the air and landed on the adjacent ramp. Next came the Super Dogs Show. Finna intently watched with perked ears as the dogs did tricks, ran races and generally showed off their talents.
And last but not least, Finna encountered a great big toad on one of our trail walks. She was on leash, so I held her back so she would not get too close. She was interested, but wisely left him be. Can you spot him in the picture?
Submitted by: Chris Buitinga
