Bow Wow Beach!

Yesterday We took Willie to Bow Wow Beach, and had a great time! Much to my surprise Willie actually jumped into the lake, and then quickly swam back out, but he really seemed to enjoy the water. And if you haven't read my other posts....Willie hates water! Not only did Willie get to experience swimming, but he also did some great socializing. He made friends with a pup named Lily. Lily was following Willie everywhere he went! Lily's owner was very excited to see Lily making friends with another pup. She told me that Lily usually does not like other dogs, and was happy that her pup had finally made a friend!

Unfortunately we did encounter a few roudy dogs. At one point three dogs had Willie pinned on his back, and seemed to be out for blood. Kevin had to go in and push the other dogs off of Willie while their owners were just standing back yelling at their pups to not do that. One of them kept yelling "get off of that dog" Sadly not one of them came over to remove their dog off of Willie. Fortunately Willie did not get hurt and/or agress back, but it could have become an all out brawl had Willie decided to fight. After Willie escaped he ran off and hid under a park bench, and was whimpering. I really gave the other owners a good scowl before heading over to where Willie was hiding out. Only one of the other owners came over to apologize. I am really hoping this experience does not cause Willie to fear other big dogs in the future. After all of that Willie wanted to run around the whole lake one more time, and then we headed out!

The only downfall....we had one wet and stinky dog!

After Bow Wow Beach we headed over to Kevin's Dads house for a Father's Day cookout. We had a good time! Willie did get over tired, and after a few hours was ready to go home. All in all it was a great day, and we will definitely have to go back to Bow Wow Beach again before the Summer ends!

On another note Willie went to the Groomer's this morning, and did great! The girl said that he was only nervous while getting bathed (again fear of the water), but did great with the clipping of the nails, and also with the trimming of the fur! I was so proud :) After all of the excitement Willie is one pooped out pup, and will probably sleep till tomorrow!

Walking Tactics!

I had given up on the blogging, because I had so many changes in life the blog sort of took a backseat, but fortunately all has settled (somewhat), and I am back to blogging! I am sure all of my 2 followers are absolutely thrilled! Let's jump right back into the saddle.....

The Walk

For the past year Willie and I have walked every day at least twice a day, sometimes three times per day. Rain, snow, wind, cold etc did not stop me from taking my pup out for a stroll. It has helped Willie and I build an excellent bond, and has also kept him fit, and not so crazy when it's time to relax.

Many of my neighbors have confessed that they just do not want to bring their pooches out because they are either, pullers, aggressive towards other dogs, or just crazy all together.

On that note I just want to say to all the doggy moms and dads out there....a dog needs to get out of the house, and needs to be walked on a daily basis. It helps build there confidence, and also helps to socialize them by exposing them to many different situations. Just remember your first time out may not be perfect but there are trainings that can help your dog behave properly when out for a walk, and remember it all starts before you even walk out the door.

I will give you some pointers based on what worked for me and willie. Keep in mind each dog is different, and you may need to switch up the training to suit you and your dogs needs.

Pointer number one:

Before even attempting to leave the house your dog should have learned all of the basic commands including "leave it" I firmly believe the "leave it" command should be added to the basic list of commands that every dog should be taught. This command will come in handy when there is an object on the ground that your pup wants to pick up and eat, but it may be dangerous for him to do so. The catch is you must see the object before your pup focuses in on it, and assuming you've taught him the command at home; you would state "leave it!", and hopefully he/she listens and just walks right on by said object!

Pointer number two:

Now that we've established the importance of basic commands we can move on to getting that pup out and about. First and foremost is to make sure your pup is calm and in a sitting position before stepping out of the house. Remember patience is the key. Once you've gotten the leash on and you are standing by the door "wait" for your pup to sit his bottom down and settle. This could take a minute if he has already learned this, or it could take 10 minutes if he's a newbie. This is where that sit command comes in handy. You can tell your pup to sit (only once), and then wait for him to sit. Once he is sitting take the time to get out the door in a calm manner. This will make your walk much easier. By using the "wait" command get your pup to sit calmly until you are able to open the door without him bolting. At which point you can release him/her from the sit position with an "ok", or whatever word you choose. This again can be modified depending on your dog. And always remember to be positive, and even reward with a treat to reinforce the good behavior.

Pointer number three:

Now that you've made it out of the house the goal is to keep fido from dragging you down the sidewalk. The minute your pup pulls say "Ooops', or "Uh-Oh" and turn around in the other direction walk for five paces, and then turn around the other way, and continue on. Repeat the above steps until your pup is walking like a champ. (If your dog is food motivated the training might go a little quicker with some sort of treat, and or lots of praise, or even a ball to carry with him. Anything that reinforces the good walking!) Keep in mind your first week out may only get you a couple houses down, but don't give up. And remember to make it fun.

The above pointer will take months to master, but do not get discouraged because in no time you will have a pup that is walking tall next to you.

**Keep in mind that every dog is different and may require extra training techniques to deal with leash grabbing, inattention to you, barking at other dogs in the neighborhood, etc....

Willie was relentless with the leash grabbing. He still attempts to snag on to it, but with a quick "enough" he does drop it pretty quickly. I've found that this usually means he is bored, and is looking for some sort of entertainment. I usually bring along a stick, or some other toy that Willie can carry for the rest of our walk. This seems to work. I will say that Willie has not perfected the walk, but he is getting there. I am sure by the time July roles around he will be walking like a pro!

**If your pup is anything like crazy Willie ( I firmly believe he has dog ADD), patience is the key. Terriers love to chase little furry things, they love to run, jump, and such. It might help to play a little in the house or perhaps in the yard before you attempt to walk your little monsters. This way they may be a little tuckered out, and hopefully more attentive while walking. I find with Willie that keeping his attention on me is still very hard. I've been working with the "look" command quite a bit lately, and that has helped a little bit, but I know that with Willie's attention span my daily trainings will probably take a little longer than others, but I am not going to give up!

Remember: Patience, patience, and more patience!

Puppy Play Time!

Willie is now 5 months old (as of today!), and he is still full of energy, and spunk. I quickly learned that Willie needs at least 3 walks per day! Now I'm sure every puppy is different, but Willie is far from being an A+ walker. Somedays are better than others! First thing to do is get that pesky leash on! Willie still fights me when I try to put on the leash, and the only thing that works is giving him a treat first, and then putting on the leash. I don't know when this will change, but I'm sure in due time :) On this mornings walk we left the house at 6:30. I make sure to always walk the same route otherwise I have a feeling we will be gone for hours, and unfortunately I do have to get to work! The walk started out great, Willie picked up his stick (he will carry it for most of the walk!), and off we went. Now our route isn't very long...If I were to walk it by myself it would probably take 8 minutes or so with Willie it can take up to 1/2 hour! We got about halfway, and Willie started the sniffin....he lost all interest in the stick he had been carrying, and began to sniff almost every leaf that was laying on the sidewalk. This lasted the rest of our walk. We finally got back home at 7:09, and that was only because there was a thunderstorm coming. I personally do not know how to change this behavior. A treat will work temporarily, but I do not just want to give him 10 treats to get him to walk around the block! I try to act excited, and say "Come On Boy!", throwing the stick works, but it only gets Willie to where the stick lands, and then he's back to sniffing the leaves. I will admit that I have let him just sniff around on the weekends, hoping this will curb his interest a little, and that short walk took us 1 hour. I am not sure what else to do, and switching up the route has not helped at all! I'm sure this will change with age, but for now I am just trying to be patient!

When we aren't walking Willie is in constant play, and i've tried the time out in the pen hoping he may fall asleep; which he never does, but the pen has come in handy, and Willie doesn't make a fuss when we put him in it! The pen is actually an excersise pen that Kevin and I picked up at Pet Supplies Plus for like $30. It's approx 4x6, and can be folded down to any size that you want. It has been perfect for when Willie starts to Nip hard we can give him a quick time out..(no longer than 5-10 minutes), and it does stop the nipping for about an hour, but I am sure in time it will help stop the nipping all together! Willie has also put himself in there for timeout! hehe! The pen can also be used as a gate! It was just a great buy! I would recommed every puppy owner have one :)

When it's nice out I love to let Willie play outside....the down fall was our backyard is not fenced, so the next best thing is a tie-out! Kevin actually made one out of rope, and some clips! One end ties around a tree and the other end clips onto Willies harness, and voila...Willie loves it! He loves to run after the frisbee, roll around on the ball, and chew on sticks, and the greatest thing is that I am not constantly holding onto his leash! And unlike going on a walk Willie seems to get more tuckered out and is usually ready to come back in after about 15 minutes or so! We haven't had any temper tantrums after playing outside on the tie-out, but we have had many temper tantrums when it's time to go back inside after a walk!

Just keep in mind that a puppy requires lots of attention and play time....I'm sure you know this, but be sure to have chewies, bones, and lots of toys to keep your puppy pre-occupied! Most of your free time is spent walking, playing, and training! You will have me time when your puppy takes a 20 minute nap! Don't just stick your puppy in his crate because you want some time to yourself! Kevin has been awesome we do take turns taking Willie out, and he will even play with him in the evenings when I have to get the coffee ready, and the dishes done! But if you are single then you will have to work out a schedule! Just know what time each day your pup naps, and be ready to get those everyday tasks done while the pup is napping! Willie tends to nap (based on Sat. and Sun), at 10:30, 1:30, 4:00, and then again at 7, and he will then go to sleep around 11pm. The naps last anywhere from a 1/2 hour to 2 hours! And on the weekends that is the time to get cleaning done, and catch up on our shows that we DVR'd! Puppies will not be puppies forever, and I can already tell that I will probably miss these puppy days, but I know that I still have quite some time left to enjoy it! :)