Boggie and Penny 4/21/11

Today was an utter fail walking to Boggie's. I was almost there when I realized I was walking there in my slippers! I wasn't about to go back, so I got Boggie, who was playful, and Penny, who was wagging her stubby tail really hard, and went on a walk in my fuzzy slippers. I passed by the house and changed into my flip-flops. We went by our friends' house and while Penny was pooping, Boggie peed on her leg! I have no idea why. Maybe he just missed or something. They were good on the walk, although I tripped on Penny a lot. I do that frequently. We walked for an hour then came back. Would Penny's owner like me to teach her any tricks?

Boggie, Penny and Hope 4/20/11

Hope the Walker Hound (I keep calling her Lucy) was at Boggie's today. She is the cleaning lady's teenage-ish puppy. Penny did not seen to want to walk today. She pulled backwards a little on our walk. Boggie pulled forward a little. Hope was great, but he got distracted some. I walked Boggie an Penny on one side, my left, and Hope on the other side, my right. We walked for about half an hour before they were tired and hot. They were awesome! It must have been so funny to see a thirteen-year-old girl walking three giant dogs who stayed by her side! Anyways, bye, Boggie! ^.^

Boggie and Penny 4/8/11

Penny was happy to see me today. Her little stump tail wagged! Today I decided to use Boggie's nose to trigger him out of his fixation. We walked for half an hour and Penny's allergies fired up. Then when we came back I turned on my music to relax me and I got out my special dollar tree treats and takins the flashlight across the room. Then I took the smelly treats and called the dogs. Whenever they came I gave them a treat. Boggie stayed near me so I had him do some tricks like a training session like the flashlight wasn't even there. Boggie seemed much calmer because Penny was there and I had him lie on his side. He did pretty well and he trembled a little when we were done but that's normal. He did well. It was a good day. Bye, Boggie!

Boggie and Penny 4/11/11

I made a new discovery! A valuable lesson if you will. Penny is usually skittish around me, but today she was actually a little enthusiastic to see me! The thing is, I usually look her straight in the eye when I first come in through the door, but that's not very good. There is a very reasonable rule about how to greet a dog. It's called "no touch, no sound, no eye contact." It means don't touch the dog, don't talk to the dog, and don't look at the dog. Pretend it's not there. That way, the dog won't feel intimidated, and will come up and smell you if it wants to get to know you.
Anyways, I walked in and was saying 'let's go outside' to Boggie when Penny jumped off the couch. I hadn't even known she was there! She was very energetic and did not make me call her to go outside. The con of her being friendly was that she pulled more. =\ Oh, well, she was great anyways! Boggie was his usual calm self, but he gets even calmer and happier when Penny is there. We got our neighborhood friend and walked for an hour. Penny and Boggie were very good at waiting at their house. They sat there during the whole thing even with a dog barking. I had them face away from the house and sit, not looking at the dog so to not look as though they were intruding. The dog, a malti-poo named Buddy, came up and sniffed their behinds, and Penny, having a reputation for not being very friendly, looked a little uncomfortable, but she sat and let him sniff her. Boggie was nice and said hello politely. They were both tired and Boggie was very hot when we went back. I brought my friend inside for a minute to show her around a little, because she's going to be walking Boggie sometimes. Penny seemed much more comfortable around me. Bye, Boggie and Penny!

Boggie and Penny 3/14/11

Today Penny came over for a play-date with Boggie. She responds much quicker than he does but is much more dominant. Boggie was hyper because of it. He was very good on our walk, as was Penny. I took off two stones from Boggie's hurdle and convinced Penny to jump over it. She understood quickly but doesn't seem like a natural jumper like Boggie is. They are bestest friends! =] They like to sit on the chair with me.

Boggie and Penny 2/17/11

Bark! Bark! was the welcome I received when I biked to Boggie's today. When I walked inside, Boggie stretched and frolicked over to the door. Penny was a little hesitant like always. When we came inside, I thought I'd do a little pack leader exercise in the School for Dogs. I told them to lay down, then I rolled them on their sides and pet their stomachs. Wolves in the wild dominate other wolves by rolling them on their sides to expose their stomachs. Boggie let me willingly, but Penny still wanted to be leader, so I gently but firmly put her on her side and pet her stomach, pushing her head down a little. After I did that, she jumped up and wiggled her behind as if to play. Sure enough, I batted at her paws and she bowed playfully. We started walking and I dropped their leashes. I had to remind Penny what to do then, but she was not slow. She was slow last time because she was hesitant of following me. This time, when I ran down the hill, she ran too, although she was still a little hesitant. We walked over to the little clearing with many interesting smells. I think I will name it... Smelly Place. I led them over, and Boggie kept smelling and getting distracted. I called them and ran over to the other side, expecting them to follow. Penny did, but Boggie was smelling, so I walked over and "bit him" with my fingers on the rump. They were very good at following on the street, it was just the smells that distracted Boggie. On the way, I made Penny submit again, which made her playful. Then we ran home and I played with them until I had to leave. I love walking them. They are so sweet and obedient.

Boggie and Penny 2/16/11

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtp0enBTlyA - Pack Walk

Today was a nice day. It wasn't cold, but it wasn't warm. If you were cold, you were going to stay cold. If you were warm, you were going to stay warm. Boggie and Penny enjoyed the weather. Boggie was excited today and he officially knows say hi. I am now going to teach him to bow. Not today though. Today is just a review in the school for dogs. =] Our walk was wonderful! I let go of their leashes for the first time that Penny was here. At first, she didn't know what to do, so I kept calling her. Near the end she walked by me. It wasn't a normal walk where they walk by me just without the leash, it was a walk were they choose to either walk beside me or behind me. Half of the time they were beside and half of the time they were behind. Boggie saw Wilson, a little dominant Yorkie who belongs to the people I babysit for, out walking. He stared, but he looked away like a good boy because I jerked hard. The dog whisperer, Cesar Millan, tells people to match the ferocity of their pets when correcting them. Boggie also stayed calm, although doubtful, when a dog behind a fence growled and barked at us. Anyways, they became distracted a lot so I kept calling them and making hand signals. They had a great walk, though. They were really calm when they came home and I recorded their tricks, except for Boggie's roll over trick. It was a good day for the doggie school. Bye!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T9w0PbaQ67s - Boggie's Tricks: Part One

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j2rnyovSTf8 - Boggie's Tricks: Part Two

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-HvpZT5c4E - Penny's Tricks

Boggie and Penny 2/15/11

Today I wanted to see if I could get them to stop barking as I was walking up, so I stood and didn't move forward unless they weren't barking. It took a little bit, but I did it. They were pretty good. I knocked on the door and let them bark then. Hey did well on their walk. They both heeled perfectly and calmly on their leash. Boggie saw a dog and wouldn't look away so I grabbed his head with my knees and hands and forced him to look away. After a little bit, he was content to walk next to me. When Penny came back I put my fingers next to her head and kept them there for her to get used to hands around her head. She is so good! She let's me grab her ears, her paws, her tail, and licks me when I ask her to. Boggie is such an affectionate boy! He has gotten much better about dogs. When he sees them, he stares, which is rude, but he gets better soon. We played around outside and then I left. Whenever I leave, I say: "bye, Boggie", so he knows that when I say that then I'm leaving. They were great!

Boggie and Penny 2/14/11

Happy Valentine's Day! The weather is perfect for a day outside and walking Boggie! We walked a little bit to our friend's house to see if they could walk with us. They were busy, so Boggie and Penny watched us play basketball for a little while we waited. They were happy in the shade and I think Penny is not afraid of the basketball anymore! She was afraid when basketballs kept hitting the garage door near her so I made her air while I bounced the basketball around her and put it against her face. I think she is okay now. We walked back after a little bit and the dogs were so glad to be home. It was a very mentally draining walk. Boggie now knows say hi and is very good at it. It is also taking less time for him to settle down. I didn't take any pictures. Bye!

Boggie and Penny 2/7/11

Today the dogs were perfect! I had to come and leave early because I had to babysit. Boggie and Penny smelled before I even came close. They barked and barked. When I came in, they went potty, then Boggie said hi and we went walking.

It was very pretty outside and birds were singing and people were outside so I held the leash. They were great, and I met someone out walking and showed her Boggie's new trick, but he was distracted. "Hey!" Boggie says, "she smelled like flowers! It was distracting!" They met two dogs when we were walking back, and Penny growled and lunged at the shih tzu, but I jerked her back and she stopped. "In my defense," she says, "that Mayzie growled first. I was just defending myself." Then we came back and watched the news about Egypt rebelling. I tried to get Boggie to jump the hurdle without a treat, but he didn't understand and kept barking. Oh, well. I will try again later. After that we left.

Boggie & Penny 2/1/11 (4:30)

I came back today at 4:30 and took Boggie for a walk. Penny was there, so I took her for a walk also. They were good, but I kept the leashes strong because there were many people and cars around. When we passed by people playing basketball, Penny was nervous, so I had her sit close to them and watched them in silence so Penny could soak up my calm and get over her fear. She was not shivering when we walked away, so that's good. When we came back, I fed them. Boggie ate his before Penny, but I did not let him eat hers. She ate all of her food! Then I let them outside and Boggie pooed. It seemed Penny was constipated, though. Then I spent some time with the dogs and left.

Boggie and Penny 1/27/11

Hullo there! Today at noon I walked down the street to walk Boggie, a chocolate lab. It is my "job" to walk him, but honestly I would do it for free! Anyways, Boggie's friend, a vizsla named Penny was there to greet me with enthusiastic barks. I let them outside to go potty, deciding to not have Boggie jump the make-shift hurdle that day. When they had finished their business, I took them inside to put on their leashes. Recently, I think starting Monday, I have been putting a choke chain high up on their neck so I could control their head instead of just their neck. I have also been talking less, because the pack leader doesn't talk when walking. They have been reacting positively, obeying me without much (emphasis on "much") hesitation. Also, when walking them like this after a half-hearted stare-down with Penny, I hardly ever tug on the leash. I would walk them leashless if I was not afraid a car would hit them. Penny was perfect, but Boggie had one flaw: he saw a dog off leash sniffing around. He wouldn't take his eyes off him, so before the situation could escalate, I tugged on his leash. After a couple tries of getting him to look away and only half succeeding, I decided to give up and walk away. Boggie looked back, but a few sharp pulls and he was walking contentedly beside me, calm and relaxed. When we came back, I took out treats and made them wait for them, but when I gave them the release command, Boggie ate his AND Penny's treat! I tried to get it out of his mouth, but he had swallowed it already, so I gave Penny a treat and then invited her to sit on the couch with me while I half read Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, half watched Mickey Mouse Club House. After a while of Boggie looking sad at my feet, I told Penny to get down and let Boggie up with me. Then it was time to go, so they went potty once more and then I left.