Leo went to his first puppy class tonight! It's a great class as it turns out. Starts with 10 minutes of playtime, then some exercises, then play time, then exercises, then play, etc. So the puppies don't get tired, and do get to interact, which is of course why I take him--he already knows the basics of sit, down, his name, etc.
And what a bold little man he was! His tail was straight up in the air, and he went up to each person to visit, and played with all the dogs, but he played best with the older, larger puppies. Actually, he had to have three "time outs" for playing too rough with some of the shy puppies (including a tiny JRT), but the time out was great for him too, because the trainer's assistant just picked him up and held him and fed him treats for not squirming and trying to get away, and since he has issues with being restrained (esp. by strangers) this was actually really useful for him. Everyone was interested in him, and a few people guess his breed as Akita, which at least is a reasonable guess.
Turns out the trainer is one I worked with years and years ago when my GSD was biting people, and she remembered me, and I told her how my GSD's problems had been solved very quickly with a thyroid supplement. She also has Akitas, so has some knowledge of AAs at least. I think it will be a good class! And its a clicker class, which I didn't know when I started it (it's just a class I signed up for at the Humane society because a local behavioralist recommended it as a positive reinforcement class) so I was delighted to discover I knew the trainer and approved of the class structure.
Yay!
And Leo had played before and after with his border terrier friend, and now, he is exhausted! Maybe he'll sleep past 5:30. But I doubt it!
I'll try to get some new pics up of him soon. He has grown, and is now taller than his border terrier friend.
Neat! I am envious of everyone's training classes. There are like, two places here, and both use the leash-pop-then-praise crud. Honestly, I tried it once on Conker, and he just gave me this look like "WTF girl, that made no sense whatsoever." and went back to being mischievous. I'm hoping to find one soon though, I am doing more research in the area (expanding it by about 50 miles in any given direction) so I might find something. Conker doesn't really need a "training" class, but he could use some work with his stranger/inside a building issues. It's gone nowhere positive for months.
I love you, Leo! and I enjoy reading about his adventures and friends (truman!) Your class sounds perfect- the stars lined right up on that one. you are doing a great job with your Kid Kai! I just want to pick him up...
Wow he is growing so fast! Awesome schedule they have the pups on....so great you were able to get a nice class, it makes all the difference in both dog getting the most out of development and speaking personally, as owner finding it rewarding too. : ) Have fun.
He's pretty bold, though he is afraid of adult dogs, and if he hears them barking, he will try to bolt. I mean, he's not afraid of OUR adult dogs, even growly Oskar, but strange dogs barking scare him.
But his growth rate is funny. Oskar seemed to grow all of a piece, and never really had an awkward phase, except for a one ear up one ear down thing (and that was mostly cute). Leo doesn't look awkward (yet) but last week I noticed his legs got longer, and this week his body got longer--it is very evident when I carry him. It's funny!
Also, I walk him on a harness, but since he's getting bigger, I've walking him to the fenced off part of the yard where I let him go to the bathroom and also play if I can't watch him the whole time. So I walked him out there yesterday with leash attached to his collar, rather than putting the harness on, and realized, oops! He's never been walked with the lead on the collar and he was like "what is this? What is happening? what is pulling at my neck?" I plan to keep walking him with a harness, but I guess it's not a bad idea to accustom him to the occasional leash with collar thing too, as that is so commonly done. I'd not even thought about the fact, though, that he'd be surprised by that since we'd never done it! Silly me!
And so far Oskar/Leo interactions are still supervised and very very short. Two problem encounters: the day Leo decided to bite Oskar's penis, and then the next day, when he thought it might be fun to hang from those Akita lips. Neither went over well with Oskar. Lots of growling and snarling, so back in the crate with Leo and lots of deep sighs and offended looks from Oskar. Mostly, though, he just ignores the puppy.
I was out of town for a week and came home to discover that my little pup is a big boy! He's getting in his adult coat (which my husband calls "man fur") and his face is longer, and he's bigger! He sleeps outside of his crate now, and he's able to run around in the big yard now too! (not just the puppy yard). His tail has gotten thick and bushy, too! He's such a handsome little guy!
But the biggest news? He and Oskar are now best buds. We've pretty much had them separated but in the same room (Leo in the Oskar's big crate) since we got Leo and Oskar has not been patient with him overall. But he's gotten used to him, and while I was gone my husband got them together and now they're great friends! Yay!
here's a video he shot of them playing. It's pretty long, but the opening has them playing tug together, and there's a fun "stalk, pounce, run" exchange with Leo running like a madman which begins around 2:54 or so. Bel makes a couple of cameo appearances too.
Oskar is doing well. We know he is easily tired and can be in pain sometimes, but we're just letting him play in the yard and have very short walks on his harness, and he seems ok overall. he's pretty happy now that he's friends with Leo.
Green water--that outside water dish is a continual problem. Gets algae in it even though we keep cleaning it out every couple of days. Anyone have any tips for taking care of that? I mean, they mostly drink inside anyway, but they need outside water too, and I can't seem to keep that dish algae free for some reason.
We have buckets and stainless steel bowls, the buckets get algae problems and the bowls do not. I think it has to do with how rough or smooth the surface of the metal is - whether or not there's anything for the algae to grow on. Buckets kept in the shade have less issues, of course.
For an outside water source have you considered a lickable spigot? We're switching to them as soon as we can get the plumbing done. http://www.gundogsupply.com/-l100-.html is an example.
This is so cool! I like seeing Oskar play. He's a very handsome guy. And Leo is just way too cute. Heh, manfur... that's the best.
Algae, from my experience, loves rough surfaces. One of Conker's water bowls will just gunk up in a day, while the other takes a week. The easily-gunked one has scratches all over the inside surface. The other one is very smooth. I have to wash that one out every couple days anyways, since the rabbit uses it and he tends to kick grass into it which helps speed the process. Sunlight helps too, so I try to keep all water dishes in the shade.
@sunyata I'm the same way, gotta pull out the fluffies! I'd like to let Conker's coat fall out naturally, but... the fluffies... they drive me nuts! I just HAVE to pull them out when I see them.
Glad they're best buds! They're both so adorable, & I can't believe how big Oscar has gotten! I remember he & Wraith were the same size for a little while ~
When I used to have big plastic water barrels for the horse, I was told to put a little vinegar in the water. It never eliminated the algae completely but it made a huge difference.
Oh, I'll try a little vinegar. ACV is good for them anyway!
Yeah, my best friend said she wants to pluck Oskar's coat too. I should invite her over
Oskar is pretty good with the smaller dogs. But we do have to watch him as he is a resource guarder. He bit Bel today in a scuffle over a toy. (Actually the vet said it looked more like he was grabbing her but not using his teeth too much, and she pulled away--more scrape than puncture). But he did hurt her. So we have to watch him. It's a bit easier with leo who doesn't push it if they squabble over things, but Bel of course, is a Shiba, and doesn't back down.
More Leo news: took him to the puppy socialization the Humane Society here offers. It's just an hour of (supervised) puppy play, and I thought, if dog parks were this well supervised, they would be ok (there were about 4 humane society puppy minders there as well as dog owners, and they also bring in adoptable pups who have gone through all their health checks.
anyway, Leo had fun, and was happy to see a puppy he knows from class. (I was too--it's another big pup who plays rough, which matches Leo play style). However, he spent the first 10 minutes checking out the perimeter fence: is there a way out? (No Leo--it's double fenced!) Then he discovered that all the very alluring agility equipment was behind a barrier. He spent awhile checking out the barrier, and just as I suspected, within 5 minutes he'd found a way into the agility area where he roamed around and investigaged til I retrieved him. Brought him back in the puppy play area and he explored the tunnel they had out for the pups. He went through it several times! (At a leisurely pace, but he went through!)
I think his next class will be the agility class for pups--he's clearly super interested!
He's also rather agile around here. As in he climbed up a bookcase to get to the window sill (he'd been eyeing a candle up there for several days). He didn't just climb the bookcase (he's not THAT agile!) but jumped up from a planter, to book case, to window sill, and yes, got the candle, which he ate. I learned several things: one, if I see him paying attention to a particular item, I should move it, because he WILL figure out how to get it. Two, nothing can be high enough for him not to get something he wants. And three: yeah, the little wild man can climb!
He's also lightened up in color considerably (the people from his class noticed!) so his coloring is a lot like Ayu's. He's a handsome little man! And yes, testicles seem to have descended for real--at least one is kind of visible.
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And what a bold little man he was! His tail was straight up in the air, and he went up to each person to visit, and played with all the dogs, but he played best with the older, larger puppies. Actually, he had to have three "time outs" for playing too rough with some of the shy puppies (including a tiny JRT), but the time out was great for him too, because the trainer's assistant just picked him up and held him and fed him treats for not squirming and trying to get away, and since he has issues with being restrained (esp. by strangers) this was actually really useful for him. Everyone was interested in him, and a few people guess his breed as Akita, which at least is a reasonable guess.
Turns out the trainer is one I worked with years and years ago when my GSD was biting people, and she remembered me, and I told her how my GSD's problems had been solved very quickly with a thyroid supplement. She also has Akitas, so has some knowledge of AAs at least. I think it will be a good class! And its a clicker class, which I didn't know when I started it (it's just a class I signed up for at the Humane society because a local behavioralist recommended it as a positive reinforcement class) so I was delighted to discover I knew the trainer and approved of the class structure.
Yay!
And Leo had played before and after with his border terrier friend, and now, he is exhausted! Maybe he'll sleep past 5:30. But I doubt it!
I'll try to get some new pics up of him soon. He has grown, and is now taller than his border terrier friend.
I'm hoping to find one soon though, I am doing more research in the area (expanding it by about 50 miles in any given direction) so I might find something. Conker doesn't really need a "training" class, but he could use some work with his stranger/inside a building issues. It's gone nowhere positive for months.
Here are some pics of the little wildman!
With Bel:
With Oskar's old pool:
naptime:
I love the silly Kai sleeping positions!
----
Snf
He is quite adorable!
But his growth rate is funny. Oskar seemed to grow all of a piece, and never really had an awkward phase, except for a one ear up one ear down thing (and that was mostly cute). Leo doesn't look awkward (yet) but last week I noticed his legs got longer, and this week his body got longer--it is very evident when I carry him. It's funny!
Also, I walk him on a harness, but since he's getting bigger, I've walking him to the fenced off part of the yard where I let him go to the bathroom and also play if I can't watch him the whole time. So I walked him out there yesterday with leash attached to his collar, rather than putting the harness on, and realized, oops! He's never been walked with the lead on the collar and he was like "what is this? What is happening? what is pulling at my neck?" I plan to keep walking him with a harness, but I guess it's not a bad idea to accustom him to the occasional leash with collar thing too, as that is so commonly done. I'd not even thought about the fact, though, that he'd be surprised by that since we'd never done it! Silly me!
And so far Oskar/Leo interactions are still supervised and very very short. Two problem encounters: the day Leo decided to bite Oskar's penis, and then the next day, when he thought it might be fun to hang from those Akita lips. Neither went over well with Oskar. Lots of growling and snarling, so back in the crate with Leo and lots of deep sighs and offended looks from Oskar. Mostly, though, he just ignores the puppy.
But the biggest news? He and Oskar are now best buds. We've pretty much had them separated but in the same room (Leo in the Oskar's big crate) since we got Leo and Oskar has not been patient with him overall. But he's gotten used to him, and while I was gone my husband got them together and now they're great friends! Yay!
here's a video he shot of them playing. It's pretty long, but the opening has them playing tug together, and there's a fun "stalk, pounce, run" exchange with Leo running like a madman which begins around 2:54 or so. Bel makes a couple of cameo appearances too.
It's here:
Green water--that outside water dish is a continual problem. Gets algae in it even though we keep cleaning it out every couple of days. Anyone have any tips for taking care of that? I mean, they mostly drink inside anyway, but they need outside water too, and I can't seem to keep that dish algae free for some reason.
It's true, Leo DOES look like Ayu!
For an outside water source have you considered a lickable spigot? We're switching to them as soon as we can get the plumbing done. http://www.gundogsupply.com/-l100-.html is an example.
Is it bad that I just want to sit next to Oskar and pluck out all his undercoat? Hehe.
They play so nice together, and Oskar is VERY good about where he steps... It's a lot of fun to watch.
----
Heh, manfur... that's the best.
Algae, from my experience, loves rough surfaces. One of Conker's water bowls will just gunk up in a day, while the other takes a week. The easily-gunked one has scratches all over the inside surface. The other one is very smooth. I have to wash that one out every couple days anyways, since the rabbit uses it and he tends to kick grass into it which helps speed the process. Sunlight helps too, so I try to keep all water dishes in the shade.
@sunyata I'm the same way, gotta pull out the fluffies! I'd like to let Conker's coat fall out naturally, but... the fluffies... they drive me nuts! I just HAVE to pull them out when I see them.
Yeah, my best friend said she wants to pluck Oskar's coat too. I should invite her over
Oskar is pretty good with the smaller dogs. But we do have to watch him as he is a resource guarder. He bit Bel today in a scuffle over a toy. (Actually the vet said it looked more like he was grabbing her but not using his teeth too much, and she pulled away--more scrape than puncture). But he did hurt her. So we have to watch him. It's a bit easier with leo who doesn't push it if they squabble over things, but Bel of course, is a Shiba, and doesn't back down.
anyway, Leo had fun, and was happy to see a puppy he knows from class. (I was too--it's another big pup who plays rough, which matches Leo play style). However, he spent the first 10 minutes checking out the perimeter fence: is there a way out? (No Leo--it's double fenced!) Then he discovered that all the very alluring agility equipment was behind a barrier. He spent awhile checking out the barrier, and just as I suspected, within 5 minutes he'd found a way into the agility area where he roamed around and investigaged til I retrieved him. Brought him back in the puppy play area and he explored the tunnel they had out for the pups. He went through it several times! (At a leisurely pace, but he went through!)
I think his next class will be the agility class for pups--he's clearly super interested!
He's also rather agile around here. As in he climbed up a bookcase to get to the window sill (he'd been eyeing a candle up there for several days). He didn't just climb the bookcase (he's not THAT agile!) but jumped up from a planter, to book case, to window sill, and yes, got the candle, which he ate.
He's also lightened up in color considerably (the people from his class noticed!) so his coloring is a lot like Ayu's. He's a handsome little man! And yes, testicles seem to have descended for real--at least one is kind of visible.
Pics:
wet boy with Bel: