Dog Days of Summer

After graduating from puppy class, Benny has had lots of free time this summer. He's flushed a rat out of a bush and he's kept busy in other ways too. He's perfected his digging skills and has also developed a special talent for sliting open stuffed animals to remove the stuffing and squeekers. He likes to eat the stuffing as if it were cotton candy. My long fingers really come in handy as I reach down his throat to retrieve hunks of stuffing. We've made frequent trips to the local pet stores searching for safe things to keep that little mouth busy. A friend gave me an antler and it has proven to be a great chew toy. Benny has barely dented it after many happy hours of chewing.

Benny also comes to work with me where he plays with his friend Daffodil, a golden retriever who is almost the same age. He loves his morning walk and I've found that if we've done at least 2 miles, Benny is willing to rest for a good part of the morning after we're home. I get a chance to get lots done and everyone is happy !

Graduation!

Benny and I have been lax about new postings because we've been so busy working on training. On Monday night, Benny graduated from his puppy class. He did such a good job and was always a joy to bring to class. We had some very difficult dogs in the class. Some were aggressive, several barked constantly, and some were just guilty of having terrible handlers. Right after we got our certificates, one of the dogs got loose from her owner and headed straight for Benny in full attack mode. I quickly reeled in his leash, she caught her dog, and Benny just brushed her off and came to me with a big tail wag. He can sit, down, sort of heel, stand for examination, go through a tunnel, sit while being petted (with help), go over a jump and come to me. His biggest problem now and I'm sure in future classes, will be to keep focused on what he's doing. Benny loves to sniff the floor so I have to work constantly on keeping his head up off the ground. The rest of August is vacation month but in September it will be back to school for Mr. Benny.