February started off a little sad as Poblano lost his house canine companion. We had to put our 12-year-old boxer, Zara, to sleep. Poblano was looking for a whole lot more attention from me after this point. However, I think he recovered pretty quickly because he had his little people friends ( my grandkids) to keep him excited and interested. They spent a lot of good times together, whether it was at home or a day at the beach. The sunshine was happening but still cold outside. It still made for fun for playing in the sand. Poblano was able to keep focused on suntanning and a little digging in the sand while the children played and people walked by Crescent beach. Really good distraction practicing, and he was so successful.
Actually, Poblano has really improved with his dog distraction too. He meets weekly with a new bunch of PADS puppies, and we practice walking beside each other, settling down in the car, not picking up kibble on the ground, not picking up toys and high-value treats (purposely set out to tempt him).
I’m very proud of how Poblano is improving monthly.
He loves going to school and is consistently quiet in his kennel. However, he doesn’t seem to like church, or maybe he just likes singing songs so much. He needs to practice settling down and being quiet when he’s in other new environments, where he doesn’t get a kennel to be in. That’s the biggest challenge he has these days. You will find pictures of a handsome Poblano enjoying nature, time with Zara before she passed away and some beach time with my grandkids. Till next month….
Submitted by: Sheila
