Who’s a good boy? Apparently I am! Lately I’ve been surprising even myself with how well I remember my commands without cues from Chuck Billy. You may recall a few years ago Chuck Billy signed up Mom and Dad for a refresher training class. Well to be honest, I think that refresher was for me, because I wasn’t exactly taking my responsibility of loose leash walking Mom and Dad serious. In fact, I was kind of a class clown. Alright, the teacher ended up nicknaming me, “Slappy McHappy,” because of my goofy approach to commands. However, after Chuck Billy’s passing it occurred to me if I’m going to take Mom and Dad out in public, I’m responsible for them and I need to get these skills right!
It all began weeks ago on a beach walk. Dad realized I was walking at a perfect heel beside him. Despite the thunderous surf making it difficult to hear, and all the other distractions that come with a beach walk, I was still very much focused on him. Dad didn’t even have treats! Chuck Billy being better at heel, and more attentive in general, Dad at first credited this walk to me being more clingy without him.
But then we went to a completely different beach a week or so later, one that we haven’t been to in years, and sure enough I was once again demonstrating good loose leash walking. So good in fact that a fellow walker, without a dog, stopped to compliment how well behaved I am! That rarely happens! Sure folks notice how cute I am, and stop to pet me, but it is rare someone compliments my manners. Intrigued, Dad dropped the leash and started walking to see what I would do. Sure enough, remembering my training and all the tricks I fell for back then, I ignored the temptation to wander off, and kept my eye on Dad. I was so happy, I even started prancing at a heel!
Wanting to test me further, the following day we went to a different beach, and Dad had me doing sit/stays, down/stays, and the even the nearly impossible for me stand/stay, as he and Mom walked farther and farther away. In the past I would use down/stays as an opportunity to army crawl over to investigate an interesting shell. Or would get bored during sit/stays, and eventually walk away. And forget stand/stay! In the past that was a perfect time to practice my dance moves. Yet this time was very different. I could hear Chuck Billy whispering in my ear, “wait for it…” So I waited. Even when a jogger with an off-leash dog ran past me!
Still not believing his eyes, Dad tried my recall command. I even heard him say, “cue up the Benny Hill theme song, Yakety Sax!” But did I run like a fool when he gave that command? Nope I rocketed to his side, even remembering most of the time to sit on his left side. Which is impressive because I don’t always know my right from my left, but I knew his! Alright so a few times I sat in front of him. But still I got the recall part correct, so we both called that a win, because no one could be as perfect as Chuck Billy. Time and time again Dad would give me a command, and I responded appropriately! I even showed that I could be responsible for Mom on walks, by repeating the same training with her.
Still not fully believing what was happening, while we were at the Scarborough Marsh on Sunday, Dad thought he’d try again with distractions. In the past, people, dogs, bikes, water, etc., would pique my interest, and I’d have to be reminded by Chuck Billy to focus on the task at hand. So I have to admit, when Dad tried a couple sit/stays and recalls, I even surprised myself with how good I behaved. Alright, so in the photo below, it looks like no one is on the trail. That’s because Mom put her camera away anytime someone was close, in nervous anticipation that she’d have to chase after me, or worst yet fish me out of the marsh. But I proved her wrong! I did exactly as I was told, which I must say surprised even me.
Is everything perfect? No, I still have some work to do. In the Scarborough parking lot I forgot the up command and refused to get back in the car, much to the amusement of onlookers. Can you blame me? I was having a great time and didn’t want to go home. Speaking of great time, too much of a good thing can also get boring, and make me ignore my training. During that day on the beach after proving time and time again that I could do it correctly, I eventually got tired of listening to Dad, and did a happy dance in circles around Mom instead. She looked bored too though, and we do make great dance partners! But overall when it comes to remembering my commands when out in public, I surprised everyone, even myself!
