Daytime temperatures in January were mild, hovering around zero to 5 Celcius, with not much snow either, which suited us just fine since we were living between two houses and had to shovel both driveways. We finally finished moving into our new house this month. Kiyoko hasn’t minded bouncing between two houses since we got her in November. She had 2 kennels, 2 dog beds, and a variety of toys at both houses and learned the art of Better Go at two different home locations at once. She just never knew which house she would be sleeping in on any given night. She did well, considering she is so young; sleeping quietly in her kennel at night and practicing appropriate house manners during the day.
We went out for dinner for my birthday with family to The Edge Restaurant, overlooking the city lights of Vernon at the Signature Golf Course at The Rise Resort. We enjoyed a delicious dinner in a gorgeous, high-ceiling setting while Kiyoko napped at our feet. She had a break halfway through and went outside to visit the two duelling bears at the entrance.
The month was filled with our usual weekly activities, such as indoor PADS classes, reading with the kids at a local elementary school, Wing Nite Wednesday, and Friday’s stop at the local brewery, followed by take-out pizza and a movie. She’s getting used to our regular routines and is calm and well-behaved wherever we go. Once a week, we try to get out for a bit longer hikes with some nice views of the lakes and mountains. Sometimes, we are accompanied by her older doggie friend Norma whom she gets along well with.
She visited the vet for her 16-week shots and got a clean bill of health, weighing in at 28 pounds.
Learning is always progressive for this young group of apprentices at weekly PADS classes. We are always adding to our skills. For instance, when perching on the perch pots, Kiyoko is starting to move her back feet around the pot, learning hind-end awareness. When playing Yours & Mine, we’ve added opening our hand and waiting for eye contact, before saying yes and giving the reward. Long leash recall is also a progressive learning tool and can get changed up. Older pups don’t even require a long leash, but Kiyoko is not at that point yet. Other skills that were practiced were a controlled tug of war with a toy, body handling by the trainer, and Dress where we practiced putting the cape on by luring the pup’s head through the opening with a treat. The goal is for the pup to offer putting their head through the opening.
During our last PADS class this month, we had a fun obstacle course around the room with a different activity at each station: Go In, Kennel, Bed, Sit, walk on 2 different surfaces, Perch, Jump On (if you were big enough), Down beside a unicorn stuffy, and walk past 2 other dogs. Brian said he was pleased with how well this young group of puppies did. Good for us!
One week, while reading with the kids, I noticed Kiyoko had picked up something off the floor. I told her to DROP IT, and she immediately spat out a pill! I was so happy that she listened to me because the repercussions may not have been good. She’s also doing well at practicing her loose leash walking down the hallway with the students, as you can see in the picture.
On our monthly Kelowna visit to the chiropractor, she was well-behaved as she sat very still next to my husband while 2 children kept bounding up to her, giggling and reaching out to Kiyoko to let her sniff their hand. On the way home, we stopped at COSTCO to shop, where she met her namesake, Kyoko, at the checkout. What a coincidence!
It was a busy and productive month for a four-month-old pup, who still needs her sleep, even though it may be in a laundry basket!
Submitted by: Chris Buitinga
