Friday, August 13, 2010

Escalators

Different schools may have different policies when it comes to escalators, I'm not sure.  At GDTx, puppy raisers don't take dogs on moving escalators.  Alfie used to try to go on them when he was little, and I had to stop him!

Alfie at 9 weeks old is just a dark bundle of fluff in a blue jacket, straining with tail wagging toward the escalator; you can see my hand on the leash holding him back
Looks fun, let's go!

  Still, there are times when the escalators are stopped and you can use them like stairs.  We were at the mall with puppy raising supervisor Larry last week and the escalators were stopped, so he had us work them.  Here's what Alfie thought at first:

Alfie & I at the bottom of the stationary escalator; I'm looking down at him and he's hanging back cautiously, just barely peeking around my leg at it
Um...now that I'm older and wiser...that thing looks dangerous!

Charissa was with us, so we had her walk up the escalator first, followed by Larry.  When Alfie saw they were getting on okay, he was willing to try.  His face looked tense and his tail was down, but he gave it a brave effort despite the odd footing.  All the praise and attention he got for it must have made it worthwhile though, because the second time around he went on with much less reluctance.  By the third time, his head and tail were high again and he seemed quite pleased with himself.  He's a showoff and shameless attention seeker -- when he learns new stuff he seems proud and wants you to make a fuss.  That can be good or bad, depending on the situation...on this day, I just thought it was funny!

at the top of the escalator, looking down, you see Alfie and me climbing up; although his attention is focused on the steps his tail is high and wagging
Here's how it's done, folks!

4 comments:

Katrin said...

Good boy Alfie! Pretty soon he'll be a pro at escalators. James always thought they were fun.

Clive said...

Service dogs from Irish Guide Dogs are not allowed on moving escalators certainly! Never tried Clive on one that was stopped though!

Well done Alfie!

Lisa and pups said...

We're not supposed to do moving escalators either - but stopped ones like that one are A-OK! Way to go Alfie! Such a quick learner!

Ruby's Raiser said...

Yup, no escalators for our dogs, but in a mall, I'll put Ruby in a sit next to them to become accustomed to the strange movement.

Even I get weirded out walking up and down the stopped ones. Great job, Alfie!