Hello everyone, PADS Donner II here to report on my first September ever!!
My friend, PADS Blanco, was going back to school this month, so we did some settling practice to prepare him for human university. Even though I’m not going to human school buildings, I’ve been told that settling is an essential skill for me to learn. Sometimes, everything is just so exciting, so I’m working on lying down, resting my chin on the floor, and trusting that I’m not missing out. We practiced this a lot at the library, a restaurant, some coffee shops (one outside with a bunch of strangers’ dogs), and at home.
My home life consists of lots of toys and sleep. As I’ve gotten bigger, I’ve got more places I’m allowed to go in the house. Despite having options, often, my toys and bones wind up stacked near whichever chair my handler was most recently in. We do a lot of training at home before I try anything outside or in public. In September, some of my focuses were: loose-leash walking, collar and leash-guided sits and downs with duration, bed, body handling for tooth exams, nail clipping, lying down and standing up, stand duration, car cues, threshold cues, etc etc. So much to learn!! I’ve been learning everything without words, but as I get older, they’ve been adding more words!
Another highlight of September was continuing to work on my off-leash manners. We practiced with just me and my raiser, and also with my buddies PADS Blanco and Taj. The people say that every time we bound through the forest, not only do we improve our recall, but also our strength and confidence. But really, I just think it’s fun, and there are so many things to smell.
Lastly, this month it rained a lot at the end, so I got to try out this raincoat for the first time. I didn’t mind it, but I especially appreciated having a dry back.
Looking forward to more friends, food, and fun next month!
Submitted by: Fiona Mak
