Daycare May 8th

Whew!

Today is madness at the Paw. Thirty dogs graced our presence, the majority of which are under 25 lbs. The lounge became such a crazy house by 9:30 am we had to open it into the small room and expand the space for the little pups to run (and wrestle, jump, zoom, and all the other activities little puppies love). Everyone is getting along fabulously with a few sectioning off into happy couples. Charlie (MaltiPoo) and Pumpkin (Papillon) have been in love since the day the met last week and today is no different. They are inseparable, chewing on each others necks, mouthing at each others faces, and taking turns asking the other if they can "Smell What the Rock is Cooking!?" before they slam together into a mass of playful paws and fur.

Domino (Papillon) and Prince Pikachu (Shih Tzu) have also become quite ... "attached", shall we say, to each other (they've been participating in Hump Fest 2008 for two days now). We can't be surprised being that they have so much in common. They both have a tag along little sister, they are both participating in our Board and Train program for house training issues, and they both have long beautiful hair that they are very proud of but dont mind getting dirty. Maybe its their many similarities that has them so enamored. I can just hear them now "You are so awesome Pika!" "No, you are so awesome Dom!" This back and forth will go on until one or both fall off the couch accidentally.

Finally there is Mikayla (mini Schnauzer) and Olive(IG) who arent so much of a couple as they are a tag team named The Ruff Riders. They start their rounds by cornering a dog and barking (hence "Ruff") directly into their face "We are the Ruff Riders and dont you forget it!" Then they split, each taking a different room and challenging a dog to a duel. For Mikayla this means the usual wrestling match but for Olive this means a licking contest... ie whoever stops licking the other first, loses! Needless to say Olive is this duels undefeated champion. After each game, the two reunite to celebrate their wins, pushing and nipping each other in the process (along the same lines as the congratulatory head bumps and arm punches seen between teammates after a winning football game). Their excitement is quickly shared before they head out again for their next victims.

Duke comes to the Metropawlitan/Collared Scholar Training Camp!

Duke has been a regular at doggy daycare since October 2007. Many of you may have seen him high atop the risers, looking over all of the dogs with girlfriend MJ. He has been a great addition to the Metropawlitan gang and we are grateful to have him.

Recently, Duke's mom approached us with some issues she had been having with Duke. It seemed Duke was lacking in confidence and had some obedience issues she wanted to work on. She opted for our in kennel program so she could ensure he received the best possible care, with round the clock training, consistency and supervision at his favorite place...doggy daycare!

When Duke entered our program, he wore a no pull harness, on which he still managed to drag his mom around town! He had issues with bolting right into the street and not coming when called and his mom was concerned for his safety. He knew some basic commands that he tended to only perform for treats but when he was outside on a walk, forget about it.

Enter our trainers....

While in our program, Duke learned his basic commands all over again. We started with the basics - the sit command. We taught him to sit every where! Outside, inside, even in the daycare room! Then onto the down commands. By the end of the program, Duke walked on a loose leash in the heel position, automatically sitting every time his handler stopped. He learned that he was not to enter the street until told it was ok. He learned to stay, no matter what was going on, and he learned to come when called....reliably.

Check out this video of Duke showing off his stuff!



Duke was a great student and we really enjoyed having him. He was eager to learn and really wanted to please. Just having boundaries increased his confidence by leaps and bounds!

* Just a note on Duke's training. Many of the training videos you see on the net are using what we call "gimmicks" to get dogs to perform. Many of the videos showing off long distance stays use remote electronic collars. We at the Collared Scholar do not rely on gimmicks. Duke was trained on a flat leather collar with lots of love, praise, affection and consistency. Treats were only used as a reward for the come command.

Daycare May 6th

Today's blog is a dedication to the sweet, the loyal, the adorable, the loving, and the drastically under appreciated pit bull. In my line of work, I come in contact with a number of breeds and I love them all. I love the Danes for their clumsiness, I love the Viszlas for their beauty, I love the Labs for their innocence, I love the Dobermans for their grace, I love the Chihuahuas for their strength of character, the list goes on and on. But no breed has come close to effecting me as deeply as the pit bull. They have the ability to connect with their owners in a way only a soul mate could. They understand human emotions better than most men (ha ha) and live their lives paying back those that care for them with unconditional love and support. They wear their heart on their sleeve and just beg you to take it, to keep it safe. In fact, one look into a pitty's eyes and you can see every moment of importance in their lives. You can see the joy they experienced on their first day to the dog park, the excitement they felt when they got their first Kong filled with peanut butter, and the thrill they got when they started to train and understand what words meant. Sadly, with a rescue, here is also where you would find every time they'd been frightened, every time they'd suffered pain, or any time they'd given love that wasnt returned. The specific circumstances may have been long forgotten but the feelings they evoked never gone. I think that is what its really all about. Feelings. The capacity to feel what we do in the same way we do, the ability to relate and to adjust to every mood. Maybe they were bred to fight and maybe they are more susceptible to behavioral issues but along with that came this unbelievable, absolutely human, ability to feel. That is what I love about the pit bull... and that is why I will never live my life without them.



RIP Lumber Jack... we''ll miss you.