Dog Park Etiquette

Dog Park Etiquette

We took the dogs to the dog park today.  It was the first time Rusty had ever been.  She is our 9 year old Queensland Cross.  Buster and I have been many times.  This park was no stranger to us. Buster can be aggressive.  He can also have fun.  There are things that influence his behavior.  I am not claiming to be a dog behavior specialist, but I see actions by others at the dog park and I wonder if there isn't a better way.  

At the entrance to the dog park there is a space provided with two gates - one to the outside world and one to the dog park.  I've always thought of this place as the "Changing Room".  Take the leash off here and get ready to play.  Most dogs are aggressive to others dogs if there is a fence between them.  Once we enter we do not hang around the entrance.  Buster and I don't want to start the adventure by facing off a dog on the other side of the fence.  Today there were several dog owners who, once they entered the park, just hung around the gate.  Sure, I suppose my dog should be social enough to tolerate this, but he is not.

Buster and I got in the park and moved away from the gate quickly.  We kept moving as is our practice and Buster carried on with the fun.  The fence around the dog park is chain link.  It is bordered on one side by a people park.  Standing on the other side of the fence was a man with his unleashed puppy.  The puppy was bouncing around playfully.  He would have loved to come in and play, but the man and dog stayed outside.  Buster saw the dog bouncing around on the other side of the fence and got excited.  The energy escalated and, as much as I tried to get Buster moving, he was captivated by the puppy through the fence.  Their energy brought an inquisitive German Shepard who thought he was in charge and he and Buster got into it.  

Buster has an overdrive gear and when he is in it, it takes awhile for him to calm down.  I grabbed him from fighting with the Shepard and we went to the corner of the park.  It was quiet and Buster got his mind back.  After about 10 minutes my wife suggested I put on Buster's Gentle leader and walk him around.  I'm not a big fan of having a dog on a lead inside a leash-free zone, but I thought it would keep Buster in check.  The leader has somewhat of a muzzle effect.  

We left the park for the truck where I kept the Leader but when we tried to return one man had parked his ass and Rhodesian Ridgeback at one gate and two gals were busy with Golden Retrievers chatting away at the other.   Needless to say, it was just easier to leave.  Rusty wasn't having much fun in the park by herself.  Unaccustomed to other dogs her focus was on us outside the park.  We had a nice walk in the neighborhood and then headed home.

Buster the Ranch Dog

We had an opportunity to head north with the horses over the Memorial day weekend.  We were part of a meet-up group of horsemen and women.  We got to take our dogs.  The one rule was they were not allowed in the houses, but everything else was okay.

Riding on the Bar SZ Ranch

How did Buster do?  Well, for the most part, not bad.  When we went on trail rides he came along.  He is a very good trail dog.  He wanders around and explores, but he keeps an I on us.  I was a little worried he would find a snake.  We did see one over the weekend.  I think it was a gopher snake.

Around the ranch when we were trying to visit, he was a bit of a pain.  He has no manners and a very good nose for food.  Turned loose he would hunt for food.

He got along with the other dogs there as long as he was off leash.  Some people had their dog on a leash.  If Buster approached and they pulled back on their leash, Buster would immediately show aggression.  Same dog, off leash, they would smell each other, and go off chase each other.

Buster was exposed to goats wandering around the property.  The goats would get some of the fruit rinds and peels left form the meals.  One morning I took them out to the goats, Buster trailing along.  I dropped the fruit, Buster stuck his nose in to grab a bite and the goat head butted him.  He jumped back and looked up to me as if to ask, "Is that legal?"

Buster slept in his kennel in the back of the truck.  He was quiet all night.  When I was off cleaning horse pens he would wander around the ranch house occasionally checking in, but mostly playing with the other dogs.  When I would give him a whistle, he would turn and look at me.  If I had a leash or lead rope in my hand, he turned and ran in the other direction.  The little turd knew when I was going to tie him up.  "Not while I'm having fun you're not!"

Monday and Tuesday morning were the most fun for all of us.  Most of the other dogs had left and I was relaxing a bit more.  We had a couple of nice rides and Buster got to relax off-leash with some of the dogs around the ranch house.

Busy Busy Buster

Busy Busy Buster

I realize it's been quite sometime since our last update.  I've had quite a busy schedule.  And, one thing I've learned about trying to take your dog everywhere with you - it's takes almost twice as long to do everything.

Going to the store:  Walk Buster to the truck after making sure he doesn't need a potty break.  In the parking lot, putting him in the back of the truck. Shopping.  Come back to the truck, place Buster in the back.  At home, Buster gets out first, then...well you get the idea.

Size - Growing Boy

Buster is over 60 lbs now.  His appetite has stabilized at 2 cups of Blue Buffalo in the morning and 2 cups in the evening.  He is much taller than Rusty as you can see in the picture.  He still loves horse manure judging from the luscious green color of his poops.

Exercise

According to the Nike tracking app on my phone we walk over 35 miles each month.  We are already over that for April.  I don't keep track of every step we take either. Buster tolerates walking, but I don't think he is a big fan.  He generally is looking all over the place, which brings us to...

Training

Buster has a sit and a down.  His heel is whatever he may feel like.  As long as he doesn't pull me around, I kind of tolerate that.  Oh, and he can pull!  This is much different from other dogs I've owned.  I usually wouldn't tolerate such insubordination.  I've realized over the last couple of months however that Buster just needs constant reinforcement.  Trying to force him into a regimental training program just isn't going to work.  For the most part he wants to be a good dog, it's just that sometimes he has too much puppy energy juice flowing through him and it carries him right away.

We've done a little dock diving.  He loves going in the water, but he has yet to consistently "jump" in.  I think this would be a great sport for him.  We will continue to work on this and see if he can get the hang of it.

Socialization

We've been to the dog parks in and around Bakersfield over the last couple of weeks.  One had a lot of dog traffic, one only had a little, and the third had no one else around.  Buster is not quite sure what to make of the other dogs.  We'll keep working on this too.

The people downtown know him well.  People see us on almost a daily basis.  They've seen Buster grow up.  I had to start asking people to make Buster sit before they touch him.  Most do, some don't.  It was getting to the point where if Buster saw someone he thought he recognized he would just pull me over to them.  We've managed to get this behavior under control.

Buster is great on the trail with the horses.  He follows along well and has good stamina.  At our usual restaurant stop, he rests quietly while we enjoy a meal or conversation.  We still buy him a burger before heading back to the stables.  Most definitely his favorite part.

I do get concerned about his lack of concern for the horses.  I'm not sure how to make him understand that all horses aren't as friendly as ours.  This might be something he will learn the hard way.  I took him over to a friend's house to help her with her horse training.  She had a little mule there too.  The mule put Buster in his place.

Buster Brown the Clown

He still makes us laugh on a daily basis.  He is totally uninhibited and truly a free spirit.  He has learned to deal with the cats.  He still sleeps in his crate until 6:15.  He can go 90 miles per hour or be a couch potato.

He is still hard on Rusty.  Rusty is a tough old girl and refuses to back down.  Buster will steal Rusty's rubber ball and run circles around her until she pretends to give up.  She looks disinterested, he drops the ball, THEN she steals it back. 

Riding on the River

Buster is better on the lead with the horse
than he is with me walking on the ground.

Buster is a little more than 5 months old now.  He has done exceptionally well off lead and we feel comfortable riding along the river with him.  There are a few places we have to cross traffic and I have a 15' line I attach to his collar.  Buster is not the most attentive when his nose picks up one thing and his ears hear me calling his name.  While we continue to work on this, I think this might just be a personality trait he may never out grow.

The Kern doesn't have a lot of water running this time of year.  We did find one place he could take a swim and cool off.  The temperature was in the mid-70's and he was getting hot.  We took the horses in first, then I hear this big "BLOP" behind me.  Buster must have jumped in!  When I looked back, he was completely under water.  His head came bobbing back to the surface and he swam right past us.  Then he swam to the horse.  I really didn't want him pawing at the horse in the water, so we turned around and headed for shore.  Buster was close behind with what looked like a big smile on his face.

Buster was not sure who to keep an eye on!

We rode out to Ethel's and had the usual.  Buster got a plain bun with his patty.  On the way back we were able to cross at a different place and got a picture or two with the cheap pocket camera.  Buster was having a good time splashing around.

We ran into a few other riders with dogs on the trail.  Buster handled every thing fairly well.  He really just wants to play.  It's nice because all the other dogs are quite used to this and they are very good at teaching Buster the correct social protocol.

Buster sleeps incredibly well after these outings.  Not only did he sleep well Sunday night, but he took some time Monday catching up on some zzz's.  The boy knows how to have fun!

A Day(s) on the Beach

The Five Day Weekend 

We have had quite the week with Buster being exposed to a whole host of new experiences and environments.  And, we discovered traveling with a dog can be quite a chore.

Last Thursday we were invited to Ojai Valley Cowboy School to do a remote podcast for our show, The Whoa Podcast about Horses and Horsemanship.  We knew it would be a long day.  Our choices: leave Buster alone in the yard or locked in his crate.  There is just too much trouble he can get into if left alone to roam free for ten hours.  We opted to take him with us.

Buster is a wonderful traveler.  Once in the truck he curls up and goes to sleep.  The trip to Ojai is about two hours.  He slept the whole way.  The Cowboy School is a ranch and all ranches have dogs.  I let Buster out and he soon discovered he was not "Top" anything.  Ranae and I took this as a good thing.  The other dogs played and showed him a good time.  And, when he got too rambunctious, they put him in his place.  I did have to crate him for a time while I rode.  We couldn't have him chasing the horse around and that's just what he would have done.  I offered him the opportunity to be tied to the outside of the arena, but he chose to bark and left me no choice.

Once the riding events were over we let him out and he was a good dog.  I was worried about the food - there were hamburgers and hot dogs on the grill.  We kept a watchful eye on him because he would have definitely helped himself to some goodies.

He slept most of the way home and on Friday we headed off again for a weekend in San Diego. Wonderfully, the trip down was great. Buster slept for about three hours until we got to the town of Norco.  We found a place to eat with a patio, walked around a bit, and then finished the ninety minute trip to our hotel.  La Quinta Inns does not charge for pets.  I was a little concerned when they were only rated two stars on the website, but our room was clean, breakfast was good, and we were pleasantly surprised.  We had two crates with us, the travel crate and the sleeping crate.  We move the sleeping crate to the room and kept the travel crate to contain Buster when we went to a restaurant that didn't accommodate dogs.

We visited my brothers staying at an RV park.  Buster was well rested and eager to check things out.  People were excited to meet him and he fed off that excitement. We were recommended a few dog parks and told of a dog beach.  We could not wait to give it a try.  

Two dogs playing chase and roll.

Saturday morning we found Dusty Roads Dog Park.  I've never been to a dog park.  Buster had never been to a dog park.  It was time to let nature take its course and see what happened.  

All the years I've owned dogs I had never observed this type of behavior.  Plenty of times I had seen dogs interact on-lead or loose out in the open.  This was a self-contained dog play area.  The dogs who regularly come here, come specifically to play.  New dogs are greeted, it seemed to me, with a very stern eye that conveyed the notion, "You will have fun...or else".  

Buster was greeted with a couple of dogs in his face and was a little intimidated at first.  There were far too many good smells for him to comprehend.  He interacted with a few of the dogs and played a game or two of chase.  He discovered on his own that one does not just take any dog's ball without a good romp and a run.  He played with dogs bigger than he and some of the smaller ones too (although there was a separate penned area for the dogs under 20 lbs.)  He kept me in eyesight and if I wandered too far off, he would come over and check in with me.

Dog Beach San Diego

Once I knew he was good in the fenced area we set out to see what delights the dog beach held for us. We found we had parked about half a mile away.  Ranae and I enjoy walking and this was the fun part for us. 

This was an amazing place!  There were dogs everywhere! Some dogs wanted in the water, some did not.  Buster was not too sure what to think at first.  Again, the smells were overwhelming, but there were dogs, there were balls and Frisbees being thrown, and there were waves to dodge.

Buster did an excellent job of balancing having fun and keeping track of where we were.  It was hard to even take pictures of him because every time I squatted to get a "dog level" shot he would come running to me.

Finally, he went tearing through the waves with a new-found friend.  He got a real kick out of splashing water around.  He's too new to the game to come back to us before shaking the water off, but I'm sure if given time and opportunity, he would pick this up in a heartbeat.

It was wonderful seeing him run.  The boy does know how to have a good time.  We went to another dog park the following day.  I have to hand it to San Diego.  They know how to treat their dogs.  In all the time we spent around the loose dogs - around three hours I would guess - there was not one fight incident.  There were pit bulls and Rottweilers and some other intimidating breeds, but nothing ever escalated passed a bit of barking.

Surf's Up!

On Sunday while grocery shopping we ran across a pet store.  Knowing we could take Buster inside we decided to do a bit of window shopping.  As luck would have it, there was a scale inside.  Buster is up to 42 lbs.  Oh, and I should mention that he was off his feed on the trip.  He usually scarfs down about 5 cups of food a day.  Friday he had three, Saturday I don't think he ate 2 1/2 cups.  And, with his appetite off schedule, his poops were too.  He woke me up at five in the morning for a walkabout.  We had a talk.  I tried to convey that this was a vacation and the goal was to sleep in.  After a day at the dog beach I think he finally got the hang of it.  I'm not sure what was going on.  His appetite is back to normal now that he's home.

Working on the "HEEL"

I've been thinking about the "HEEL" lately.  It's got me confused so it's no surprise that Buster is confused.  A couple of things to set up this post.  Most importantly is the habit Buster had for his first four months.  He would be inside and we would take him outside as part of his housebreaking training.  At work, he would be inside for a couple of hours and I knew he needed a bathroom break. I would take him outside on the leash.  We would go to one of several designated spots and I would give the command "POTTY" and he would go.  I insisted he walk on the left, but I didn't give him the "HEEL" command.  We were working on housebreaking, not heeling.

Now he has much better bladder control.  After a couple of hours I'm sure he needs a comfort break, it's just not as urgent.  I've been somewhat ambivalent about giving him the "HEEL" command as we exit the building because I've been using it as a bathroom break.  I think I have to change that.  Buster needs a more clearly defined concept of the command.

Another mistake I noticed I was making was during the heel.  If Buster lagged behind, I would encourage him to catch up by saying "C'mon" instead of  reiterating the command.  If he is going to learn what the heel is supposed to be, it's only going to happen if I clearly define the command.

Today I took him out and allowed myself two words, "HEEL" and "POTTY".  I tried to use his name before "HEEL" because I remember reading that you should call his name before a command that requires movement.  If he stopped to smell, I gave the command "POTTY" a five count, if he did not go he got "Buster, HEEL" and we moved on.  I caught myself using "C'mon" a couple of times, but overall he did a much better job of keeping up.

Looking ahead, the next problem I'll need to solve is lunging forward.  If he sees someone or something ahead, he just throws himself at it.  Right now I'm giving him the "HEEL" command once again and we'll see how this works out.

Half way through the day today I loaded the Nike running app on my phone.  We recorded two miles.  Like I said that was about half.

There's No Place for Frustration in Puppy Training...

...But Shit Happens

This would not be a very valuable training puppy blog if it were all champagne bubbles and caviar dreams.  Today was just a roller coaster day as Buster did some things fantastically and then drove me absolutely batty with the inexplicable.

I had an early appointment with a guest on the East Coast.  I was up at 5 am, got everyone fed and even had time to play with everyone a little. Buster and I headed for the office. We arrived early enough for a walk and insure that Buster had the opportunity to take care of business.  He happily availed himself of the opportunity.  Back at the office he was a little noisy as we conducted a recorded interview, but five minutes in he was sound asleep in the corner of my office.

Afterward we went for a brief walk and I got another 90 minutes of work completed before he was up.  We had a walk planned for noon. It was 11:15.  Okay, let's just walk.  We walked for 45 minutes and met my wife for lunch.

Buster is interacting with most people in a much more positive way.  He met up with several people who see us walking and stop to say 'hi'.  I have not quite figured out what makes him leery of a person.  There were a couple of people we ran into that he just did not want to approach.  One group had five people in it with a women squealing to say hello.  Buster seem confused, but tolerant.  When the waiter quietly and calmly brought our food out to the patio, Buster barked at him.  There just doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to his reactions.

The afternoon was spent editing.  We got back at 1:30 and Buster slept until 3:45.  But, then he was up.  He paced from room to room, grabbing this toy then that.  He tried chewing on a the file cabinet, then the chair leg, then got tangled in an electrical cord.  I got the message.  My day was over.  I packed and we headed home.

The power was out when we got home but I had a few chores I needed to get done outside while Buster and Rusty burned off some energy.  I was getting my stuff done when I look in the direction of one of our mulberry trees.  There was Buster digging a hole in a spot I had caught him digging a few days ago.  I had filled the whole with dog poop thinking that might discourage him.  No such luck.

I grabbed his leash, lead him over to the hole.  I pounded the hole with my fist while yelling "NO, NO, NO".  I had done this same procedure the first time he dug here.  I let him loose and he looked remorseful for about 30 seconds then bounded off to play with Rusty.  I felt that I had caught him in the act and let him know I disapproved, so what he did afterward was out of my control. I refilled the hole with dirt and smoothed it over.

Twenty minutes later Buster is back at the same spot digging.  Well, this time I lost my cool.  I hooked the leash on him again and this time we hustled over to the hole.  I made him lower his head as I pounded the ground (I don't believe in striking the dog, just the object of his obsession).  After three good whacks of the ground, I scooped him up and put him in his kennel for a time out that lasted 20 minutes.

Somehow I think this digging thing is going to be a big problem for him.

Training Update

I have to keep reminding myself he is just a puppy.  Buster is not even 5 months old, but weighed in at 38.5 lbs yesterday.  By all appearances he is a dog.  Mentally, he is still a puppy.

When we work on training, we have to do it in very short sessions.  The biggest challenges we have is trying to calculate his "up" time and "down" so I can some things done. There is a life outside of caring for him, if you know what I mean. If I'm working outside, he's pretty good. If I have some office work to do, he can be a real pain in the ass if he feels we should be doing something else.

Walking and heeling are greatly improved in many aspects.  It is so cute to see him come to a sit when I stop for a light.  For the most part he walks on the left.

Many times when we meet up with Ranae for lunch he would be surprised and excited to see her.  Initially we would let him run up and greet her.  One of the things that's cute when he's a puppy.  Then, because he was wary of strangers, I would give people who wanted to pet him, a treat to pass along to him.  Now, if he sees someone on the street, he wants to run up to them and say "hi".  I have to figure out how to get him to the middle ground - somewhere between not wary of strangers and not wanting to check their pockets for Snausages.

He is good at "down".   His recall, with distraction is spotty, but when it works, it's great.  We are working on stay.  Feeding time is so much easier.  About a week ago I started placing him on a down-stay while I prepare the bowls.  Now he stays in the down while all the ever-tempting cat food bowls are filled.  It helped him learn the concept of "stay".  The cats are much more relaxed with this arrangement too.  He still gets his bowl outside and eats outside the presence of the cats.

We are using the clicker training method and it seems to be a useful way to capture his attention.

And, he is finally starting to retrieve a few objects.  There still is a lot of work to go here, but there are signs he is picking up the concept.  It will be nice to play retrieve with him to burn off some of his excess energy.

He's the EveryReady Bunny

Christmas week can be hard on a puppy who can not be trusted to be alone.  Visiting with family and friends on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day meant the Buster had some extended time in his crate.  Early last week I moved him to a larger crate and he does have considerably more room.  I think he is much more comfortable.

To counter solitary confinement, Buster has had a week of long walk/trots.  On Christmas Eve there was a charity fun walk/run and Buster got to experience it...all of it.  From waking up at 5 am to be in line by 6, to having other dogs and people in line while we stood there for an hour.  Then, the walk with people big and small, walking and running, and even skating and cycling.  We also had Rusty with us and she acted as the perfect example.  Afterwards there was the hour in the crate in the truck as we enjoyed breakfast with the family.

On Saturday we wanted to ride the similar route we took a few weeks ago when Buster rode on the back of my horse.  This time he would be required to stay on the ground the whole way.  Puppies are incredibly resilient and Buster is no exception.  He followed along with the horses for the 2.75 miles to Ethel's Old Corral restaurant.  When we got to a traffic area, I placed Buster on a twelve foot lead and he heeled pretty darn good.

We bought him a burger patty at Ethel's and he thought that was quite yummy.  They put onions on our chicken sandwich and I set them on Buster's plate.  Yep, you guessed it, he ate them.  Raw onions.  The guy is a machine.

The trip back was a little slower, but he followed along perfectly and when we made it back to the stables I put him on the lead once again.  They were having an event in the main arena and there were horses, people and dogs everywhere.  Buster, Ranae and I walked around calmly through the whole thing.  Oh, and my horse was a champ too.  She didn't seem to mind having a thirty pound puppy around her feet.

Then, this morning I broke the mountain bike out again and headed for Hart Park.  It was cold at 8 am and I wasn't sure how many people/bikes would be out there.  I chose a little harder hill to climb.  We took off and Buster was on the long leash as we had a couple of streets to cross.  I think he is a right-handed dog.  He really prefers to be on the right.  Heeling protocol says he has to stay on the left, so that's where I put him.  He figured it out and we made our way to the first climb.  I took off the long line and away we went.

We did a total of about five miles over the span of an hour.  He just keeps going and going.  We encountered a couple of bikes and a few hikers.  Each time Buster would run up to them barking.  I would announce he was a puppy and the people were fine.  With each passing encounter the barks dwindled in number and intensity.  I'm not sure if this was because he was getting used to them or just to tired to care.

Monday we get back into our regular work routine.  He'll get some rest before the New Year and who knows what kind of adventures await him.

Out in the Wild

There's no guarantee that once off the leash a dog is going to stick around...for most breeds.  Buster seems to have a keen sense of both Ranae and I and, at least at four months of age, I am fairly confident he won't run off by himself.  Still, we have a lot invested in the little guy and he is a dog.

I've been wanting to get out my mountain bike after several years of letting it collect dust.  We have a very nice area to ride and it is being encroached upon.  I wanted to get in a few more rides before it got swallowed up.

It was a bit cold and gray clouds posed a mild threat of rain as we headed off.  The area we were going was at the higher end of town and I thought things would clear up.  Just the opposite was true.  Fog had socked in the foothills and visibility was about a quarter of a mile. It had been so long since I had been out here, and so much had changed, I was having a tough time finding a place to park.

Finally we found a spot.  I pulled my bike out and let Buster run around the truck for a bit.  I offered him some water before climbing in the pedals.  I started the odometer on the bike.

We were off.  My plan was to jog Buster for a mile or so looping back to the truck.  Then I would put him back in his crate and head off to explore some of my old haunts.  Buster was right by my side at first.  He was jogging along at a nice easy pace.  It felt good to be out there again getting some exercise.

The fog slowly burned off as Buster went from one side of the bike to another. I swear sometimes he has this look on his face that says, "What the hell is wrong with you?  Do you know how many interesting smells we just passed up?"  Occasionally he would try to bite at my pant leg to try and slow me down.  He is a herding dog after all.

We did our mile plus loop.  Once back at the truck he got some water and wandered around before in the crate he went.

My ride went on for another 45 minutes or so and when I got back we did some hiking near the truck to get some photos.  Buster has a healthy curiosity.  Thankfully he has a good recall.

We even worked on some retrievals.  I smeared one of the training treats on a stick and threw it about twenty feet.  It was real easy for him to find.  He doesn't always bring it all the way back to me.  I'm going to have to work with him on that.  After a couple of times though, he was off to catch up on some of those incredible smells he missed while running beside the bike.

We thought he might be a little more tired after exerting himself, but I think he has a high gear for sleeping too.  By the end of the night, Buster was the least tired of us all.

This Boy Can Eat

The other day after breakfast Buster looked hungry.  I had given him the usual cup and a 1/4  or so.  I thought I would dump another cup of food in his bowl and whatever he did not clean up, I would put back in his food bin.  He is a magician.  Presto Change-O the bowl was as clean as the day I bought it!  This week Buster weighed in at 32.5 lbs.  He has tripled his weight in the 60 days I've had him!

He is now getting 2 cups in the morning, a cup and a half for lunch, and a cup and a half for dinner.  He is sleeping through the night and wakes up when we do around 6 am.  We will go out and feed the horses and then he gets to eat.  He's got about half an hour of wrestling with Rusty before he needs a nap.  That allows me to shower and shave without worrying what he might get into.  Then it's off to work.

Yesterday I put him in the back seat of the truck.  I think he prefers me being the chauffeur.  He generally sits up and looks out the window for awhile before curling up on his towel.  This morning he asked that I pull his truck around and take him to Petsmart to refill our quickly dwindling food supplies.  We met up with Belle, a pit/shepard mix, shopping in the same aisle.  After a few pleasantries they both thought they should be able to play.  I must teach Buster the importance of his "inside voice" because I got a boisterous rebellion after informing him the store aisles were no place to romp around. He let me know that he had never been talked to in this manner from a chauffeur and that if I continued I would be forced to seek employment elsewhere.

He headed over the the cat food aisle to look for dropped morsels of kibble while I picked out some delicious flavors for the fellas at home.  When he was ready, I once again pulled his truck around and gently lifted him to throne in the rear.  (Now I understand why people get Pomeranians)

Clicker Training

Using the Clicker

Buster can wear me sometimes. I find it happening most on the weekends when we are at home. There is so much more to get into, Rusty to wrestle with, cats to chase, and horse poop to eat.  I catch myself saying only negative things to him: "NO", "STOP IT!", "OFF", "QUIT".  It's not very enjoyable and it's not good for one's psykie (sp).

At the office things are different because if he gets up, I take him for a walk and we are moving. While as we were headed for one of our walks out of the building I ran into a guy and we started talking. He used clicker training. I had tried the clicker with Max, but never quite got the hang of it. When I got home I checked out a few videos on YouTube (http://youtu.be/omZt5Eu8nfE).

I think it is called operant training.  You use the clicker to quickly acknowledge the positive behavior and then follow it up with a reward.  Dogs can do things so quickly that the more immediate you can give them a response, the more quickly the dog will learn.  Some people have used the analogy that when you "Click" the clicker think of it like the shutter of a camera and you are taking a picture of the behavior you want to reinforce.

It seems you have to learn a few things before moving forward, but I thought I had a clicker around the house somewhere.  After digging around in the den, I finally found it and it still worked.  I started by "loading" it, which is just clicking and giving a treat.  Teaching Buster that the clicker sound means a treat is coming soon.

We've just been working on it for a short time, but I can tell you that it has given some relief to all the negative commands.  I get to run the clicker and reward it with some food.  I've still got to learn more about it, but I think we'll give it a go for the next couple of weeks and see what we can accomplish.

The Crate Escape

Crate Training

Sometimes it is too much.  Sometimes he is crazy.  It's as simple as that.  He is a dog after all.  And, while realizing that he can't help it, sometimes I'm just not in the mood to put up with it.  The safety net:  The Crate Escape.

Today was rainy.  I had some audio editing to finish up.  I like editing, but it's tedious.  Buster is a good distraction requiring a break every 90 minutes or so...Unless I just need another twenty minutes to be done and HE can't wait.  

That's what happened to day.  I took a break and gave him a walk.  It was wet and we could not go far.  I brought him back to the office and played ball with him.  Then played rope.  Then did a little training.  He was still antsy as, what's the saying, "a long tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs".

I managed to get the last few minutes of work done - barely - between him pulling down my coat, nibbling on the cabinet, chair and three-hole punch.  I kept him occupied while I shut the computers down, packed up my stuff for the weekend and got ready to leave.

Maybe it's the weather that makes him crazy, maybe it's just the time of day.  He has been heeling decently most of the week, but with my arms full of camera and briefcase, trying to negotiate the puddles he was all over the place.  Heaven forbid a stick or leaf go un-sniffed.  Once in the truck - boom - out like a light. 

At home he is in the able paws of Rusty.  She is ready to play.  She doesn't like it when he grabs hold of her tail, but other than that they wear each other out.  You can see his tenacity when they are playing.

Then there is the crate.  Generally we just use it at night, but during  pleas of temporary insanity, we use it for time outs.  Sometimes he barks for awhile when we put him in there, but the result so far has been the same - Ranae, Rusty, the cats, and I feel this wonderful sense of calm.  When he gets too crazy it's Cool Hand Luke time.  I think it was Dub Taylor in the movie who I mimic by saying, "We're gonna get your mind right.  You bark once and it's 15 minutes in the hole.  You chase a cat and it's an hour."  He never says in there as long as the warden orders. He always gets out for good behavior.  Buster has never seen the movie.  We'll have to rent it for him one day.  Maybe it will help my impersonation.  Maybe it'll just help him get his mind right,

Twenty Nine Forever

We know it's impossible for him to stay twenty nine forever in either age or weight.  Buster is tipping the scales at 29 lbs as he continues to grow.  He can be the most regal looking dog at times and then two seconds later he is a complete goofball.  He can go from sleeping peacefully - as he is doing now - to holy terror, teasing Rusty and chasing cats.

We are walking, walking a lot.  He is not too bad at the heel except he has the puppy mentality. We'll be walking down the sidewalk and he telegraphs through the leash, "WAIT!!  Wait! Look at this.  WE gotta check this out." at every leaf, piece of trash, cigarette butt and even dark spot in the path.  But he does it with such enthusiasm, that hey, quite often I DO have to check it out.

His sense of smell is incredible.  I tried some training the other night with a few training treats in my sweatshirt pouch.  We were working on retrieval.  I had one of his rope toys and I was trying to get him to "Take It".  He grabbed at it on command, I rewarded him the first time with praise.  The second time I rewarded him with the training treat.  "Whaaaat?!  Where did that come from?  Here? Here? Oh, right here.  There are more right there.  I want those.  Gimmee one.  C'mon.  I know they are there.  Wanna play hide-and-seek?  Good I'm in!"

I tried to continue and we were able to get one or two more retrievals, but that was it.  His focus was gone.

I've noticed he is getting more social with strangers. Some people just don't know how to approach a dog, especially a weary one.  Actually, I'm not sure how much I would have taken it into consideration before owning a dog like Buster.  Some people will bark at him or whistle.  I'm sure he would not mind those noises, I just think he has to get to know you first.

One thing I have noticed about people that approach him that I find fascinating: some people don't even acknowledge me.  It is almost as if they are approaching a stray dog on the streets.  I'll even offer up a "Good Morning" and they will talk to Buster, but I'm invisible.  There are not a lot of those people and I like having fun with them by trying to see if I can say anything that will make them realize I'm there.  

"Buster is training for Afghanistan.  Before he smells you I need to know 'What nationality are you?'"

"Have you ever seen a reverse albino Chocolate Lab?"

He definitely remembers places.  We walk by the Sequoia Sandwich shop where Melissa works.  Melissa knew Max and she was one of the first people Buster met.  He was leery, she was patient.  On the third visit, I gave Melissa a Milkbone to give to Buster.  Later, we sat outside and had lunch.  Buster got to sit under the table and find the multitude of fallen morsels left by unsuspecting patrons.

This morning we were about a quarter block away when Buster's tail started whirling like a helicopter rotor.  "What is it Buster?"  He was staring straight at the sandwich shop and started pulling me along.  He knew there was some good petting, great smells, and maybe, just maybe, something good to eat right there on the corner.

He Is Growing, Not Grown

Judging His Juice

Buster has an amazing amount of energy at times.  It's difficult to tell at times just how much he has left in the tank.  Sometimes it takes a little reminder that he still is not even 6 months old yet.  So, when we take him out with the horses and he is full of piss and vinegar, we think he can go forever.  When we started the trail ride he was doing great.  About 20 minutes in, we realized we were going to wear him completely out.  We were meeting up with friends at a lunch spot, so Ranae helped me get him in the saddle and Jessie and I carried him for about 15 minutes.  

After the break, he went for another 15-20 minutes on the ground before we hit a high traffic area.  He was happy to get back in the saddle and we met up with our friends.  They were kind enough to drive him back to the trailer and we rode the horses back.  

He was glad to see us and he slept well that night.

I found the above video in one of my folders.  I seem to have them everywhere.  This one cracks me up because he is looking around for a cat to chase.

Long Days Together

Ah, the life of a working dog.  Thanksgiving was a bit tough on the Bustmeister.  While we spent time with family across town he was crated.  It was longer than he was used to, but he can not be trusted on his own, so we were left with no other options.  To make it up to him, we spent all day Friday together.

We've been needing a new(er) truck for quite some time now.  One that had a little muscle to pull our two-horse trailer on the longer trips we can now take with the horses.  I am not crazy about car shopping.  I thought we would go look at a couple of models and then come home and go riding.  We took Buster along.  We left at 9 am and got home around 7 pm with a new truck.  Buster was a pretty good boy sleeping in the dealer's office as we went through all the rig-a-ma-roll of the process.  He was also a great source of stress release during those long periods they keep you waiting.

So he had a day spent in the crate, followed by a day of getting dragged around looking at trucks, and we still felt he needed more.

Today, we took the new truck on a shakedown cruise with the horses and Buster came along.  It was his first "official" tag-a-long on a ride.  Again, he did great!  It was unusually warm - almost 80 degrees!  We were in an open part of the trail near the Kern River.  Buster followed along with us as we rode down the trail.  There were a couple of egrets.  I don't even think he saw them.  He was too busy keeping an eye on us.  We did not ride very far.  His tongue was hanging out.  We went back to the trailer for a short break, then went the other direction for a bit.  He looks like he is going to be a great trail dog.

Tomorrow it's back out to the river for a ride with the nephews.  We will likely be leading the horses as the kids ride, so he won't get so worn out.  We'll see what happens.

Checked his weight today and he was 24 1/2 pounds before dinner.

Improving Our Social Skills

That's not the royal "Our". That actually means both of our social skills.  Both Buster's and mine.  When you travel with a puppy, people stop and engage.  And they should.  Puppies are happiness.  They are not puppies for very long.  I say spread the happiness while you can.

Most people want to ask about my puppy so they can tell me about their dog.  I love that too.  Hearing about their dog.  The stories they tell.  Just the fact that they have a story right there, ready to go, usually tells you they are good people.  And, when they tell you about their dog, you can see the smile and joy on their faces.  Then the best part happens.  They take that smile and joy and pet my dog.  Cha. Ching.  The big payoff.

The look on Buster's face is priceless.  He is wondering what he did to deserve the affection cascading around him.  He still is a bit on the weary side of most people at first.  But, it's fun to see him warm up to people, learn to trust, and get patted on the head.

As for me, I just need to make sure to add some time to everything I do.  When people stop us, I want to be able for both of us to take it allllll in.

Buster on a Down

We are just looking for the concept here.  I used a few treats.  Buster is very food motivated.  I wonder if that came from having 10 brothers and sisters.  Either way we are calling this a SUCCESS!

Training in Earnest

Training in Earnest

Well, it's time to really start working on our training.  We've had Buster for a month now.  He is growing incredibly fast.  With that growth comes independence and he is trying to exert it. His attention span is about as long as it takes a hummingbird to flap his wings.  He has selective hearing.  He is getting stronger.

He has the basic Sit understood although if there is ANY distraction at all, that's out the window.  If there is a scary noise or something going on nearby, that's also a reason to bolt.

We've been working on the Stay and if there is a bowl of food in front of him, he is pretty good.  If any of the above referenced conditions are present, poof he's gone.

The Down has been a challenge.  When he sits the first thing he wants to do is scratch his collar, so I have no attention.  Then, when I offer the command and get no response, if place him in the down position.  Just the act of touching him makes him forget what we were doing.  I started using the step-on-the-leash technique I saw championed at Petsmart.  We'll see if it helps.

Monday night Ranae was out playing tennis.  She had text-ed me she was on her way home.  I put Buster outside to greet her which he did admirably.  When she let him in, like Paul Revere, he thought it was his duty to alert me.  He dashed through the kitchen into the living room.  At full speed he leaped to the coffee table, slide a bit, then hopped and crashed next to me on the sofa.  I wanted to laugh so hard, but this was not a behavior we want to encourage.  It broke my heart to give him a big "NO" and set him back on the floor.  The thing I'm learning about Catahoulas though, is that's not going to stop him.

Oops, forgot to put his weight down. He officially doubled his weight in four weeks. He now weighs in at 23 lbs.  

Older, Longer, Full of Juice

As I sit here writing this Rusty has chosen to stay outside for a little peace and quiet.  Buster's "switch" is on. Excuse the typos as one eye has to remain on him. Friday he got his final puppy shot and we felt safe to take out to larger, more public places.  Buster is getting long and lanky as he is reaching the three-month mark.  

We went to a horse show/Cowboy Christmas event yesterday. It was here in town, but it was an all day thing. We left here with the horses and trailer around 8:30 am and got home around 5:30....excuse me he has lost his toy under the chair, be right back. Okay, he chased his ball down the hallway and brought it back several times. Between me and Rusty maybe his is winding down. Nope.

Back to Sunday...we walked him around the crowd and he got to meet a lot of people. There were also horses everywhere. He did really well. He doesn't seem like he'll be the dog that goes bouncing up to people, but maybe.  He took everything in and I think he liked being out and about. 

When we had to ride our horses, Buster stayed in his crate quietly. The only time he was a handful was when I was in the arena and Ranae was trying to take pictures. She said he was figetting and whining - he's a Papa's boy for sure. 

The last couple of mornings he has slept until five. We go out and share a pee in the dark and he goes back in the crate if I want another little snooze (some mornings I just get up and start the chores).  The feeding goes like this:  Buster has to sit while I prepare everyone's bowls - cats and dogs.  Then, I take Buster's bowl outside.  I rush inside and, cue Mission Impossible music here, distribute all the other bowls as quickly as possible. The mission, should the cats choose to accept it, is to finish in about four and a half minutes. Buster is up to over a cup three times a day and he is quick about it. 

Buster taking a boot break

Once the cats are finished bowls have to be picked up because Buster really likes cat food and will go bouncing around the kitchen trying to reach every bowl he can smell. Then it is about an hour of outside while I feed the horses and muck stalls. He and Rusty usually romp around for a bit until nap time. 

When it's time to go to work he just lays there. I have to put his collar on and entice him to the truck for the ride to work. He's like I was as a lazy teenager. Once there he'll get a bit more rest before our mid-morning walk.