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Puppy Goes Hiking

    This entry is part 17 of 25 in the series Service Dog Training

    Just a fun post of a day out with Mindy!

    We went hiking at Turkey Run State Park. Mindy wore her Gentle Leader, which we don’t generally use but which she’s supposed to be desensitized to, just in case it’s ever needed in the future. I figured the best way to desensitize her is to put it on just before something really fascinating and fun, so this is her second walk/hike with it. She’s already used to it, because who can fuss about a (properly-fitted) Gentle Leader when we’ve got a whole woods to explore?

    Puppy Training on a FitPAWS Donut

      This entry is part 16 of 25 in the series Service Dog Training

      So apparently I forgot to publish this blog post — sorry!

      Set the Wayback Machine for a few months ago, when Mindy was small enough to use this size FitPAWS Donut. The weather was too bad (sub-zero Fahrenheit) for puppies to play outdoors for long, and this was not only a great energy burn, but an important skill development for a dog expected to handle lots of surfaces and challenges in her career.

      Toronto Training – a service dog in training hits the road

        This entry is part 15 of 25 in the series Service Dog Training
        English: Panorama of Toronto. Français : Image...
        Panorama of Toronto. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

        So I just made a short trip to Toronto with Mindy the Guide Dogs for the Blind puppy, and she was amazing. So if you don’t want to hear puppy bragging, you might want to move on — but if you want to hear about new challenges and how we met them (and how we used previous training to better handle these new situations), keep reading.

        black puppy lying beside hiking boots and a stuffed dragon toy

        Shoe Carnage, Impulse Control, and Redirection

          For four months, Mindy ignored shoes in our house. I thought it was because I was carefully observing and reinforcing choice of her own toys, but actually it was because she was saving up all her shoe-chewing to unleash at once as she turned six months old.

          “A Walk in the Park” Is Supposed to Mean “Easy” – When Aggression Isn’t Funny

            0529141318bYesterday Mindy and I met some friends at the park for a picnic lunch. I debated and then decided to make it a rare “non-working” outing for Mindy, so she wasn’t in her vest and was free to sniff around and be a puppy. (She gets plenty of puppy time at home, remember, but everyone can take a vacation once in a while!)

            Another dog was with us, too, who has spent years recovering from severe fear aggression. She’s remarkably functional now — no one could guess, looking at her, how fearful and reactive she used to be — and she was really enjoying her day, too. Mindy and I respected her space, sitting at the opposite end of the picnic table, but everything was absolutely fine.

            Until we started walking.

            guinea fowl

            Practicing Recalls

              This entry is part 14 of 25 in the series Service Dog Training

              I’ve been traveling a lot lately, which has distracted me from the blog. But some of those travels are going to provide fun new blog posts, so in the long run it’s been worth it.

              But now that I’m home, it’s more obvious that Mindy’s starting to mature, in that way when puppies are no longer quite so dependent on us for every little asset and therefore feel more comfortable to venture out on their own for more and longer periods of time. Or, as clients more typically phrase it when they call me, “she doesn’t want to come when I call.”

              guinea fowlTo be perfectly fair to Mindy, my yard has gotten a lot more interesting. I’ve acquired a small flock of guinea fowl to combat the local ticks, and they were just turned loose this week. They’re still clinging near the house, and they are FASCINATING to a young retriever.

              black lab puppy lying down and chewing on dried beef trachea chew

              Mindy is proud.

                This entry is part 13 of 25 in the series Service Dog Training
                black lab puppy lying down and chewing on dried beef trachea chew
                “…delicious trachea chew….”

                So Mindy’s unlocked a new achievement — she can now jump on our (taller than usual) bed. As she’s not allowed on the bed, this has resulted in repeated escorts to the floor.

                Today, however, when we went out to the car, I didn’t pick her up. As I was putting in our gear, she jumped into the car and went into her crate. I treated, and away we went to the dealership for an oil change.

                As we were leaving, I took Mindy to the back of the car. She looked at me, and I invited her to jump in.

                Proudest moment today. Mindy got to put herself in the car, like a big dog. She was smug for whole minutes afterward.

                black lab puppy seated at edge of cliff, looking over river gorge

                Clicker Expo and After

                  This entry is part 12 of 25 in the series Service Dog Training

                  What a week! Mindy and I traveled to Clicker Expo in Norfolk, Virginia, and because I didn’t want to fly her, we drove. It wasn’t a bad drive, about 12 hours, and I broke it up into two days with a bit of hiking each way.

                  “Not a Real Service Dog”

                  On the way down, we had our first access trouble ever, when Mindy and I were ejected from a hotel after we were checked in due to her not being a “real service dog.”

                  Resisting Temptation

                    This entry is part 11 of 25 in the series Service Dog Training
                    honey-drizzled Brie, prosciutto, and crackers
                    Honey-drizzled Brie, prosciutto, and crackers. Yum.

                    So the puppy and I had a night out last week to the New Day Meadery, a local mead and cider room. (I drink very little, maybe a glass every couple of months, but I find their libations very tasty.) Their tasting room also offers specialty foods, and I ordered a honey-drizzled Brie and prosciutto platter along with my mead. Only problem is, their tasting room is pretty hip, with ultra-low tables to serve the lounging couches. And Brie and prosciutto are pretty attractive to a 15-week old puppy (or any dog, let’s be honest).

                    An Easy Pill to Swallow, Training to Take Pills the Easy Way, Part 3

                      This entry is part 3 of 4 in the series An Easy Pill to Swallow

                      It’s been a while since I mentioned this, but this is a skill which we often wish our dogs had, but rarely teach them before we need it. Mindy had to learn it early, when a urinary tract infection required antibiotics.

                      So here’s a short video of Mindy taking her undisguised pill on cue — and not only taking the undisguised pill, but leaving a fun puzzle toy full of kibble to do so.