Well, Hello There!

This is Alfie's not-so-subtle communication method:  The Look.  It's his way of telling me that I've been at the computer long enough...and wouldn't it be a great time to go outside?...play ball?...go tracking?...do some obedience work?

With great patience and persistence, your human can be trained

to do amazing things!

Sous Chef

Hi again blog friends -- Alfie's World has been quiet lately as I've been investing time and emotional energy in other areas.  Some big decisions have been brewing and we're excited for that.  But in the meantime, who keeps me grounded, makes sure I laugh several times each day...oh yeah, and makes sure I get my exercise?

I'm considering the title 'personal assistant'...

Alfie may no longer be a service dog, but that doesn't keep him from helping me out with many important things.  Sometimes I admit they are only important to him (such as alerting me that Hey!  Look!  The neighbor's dog is out AGAIN!); sometimes, though, he does help out in ways that are actually important to me.  He is a very alert and curious boy and not much gets past him.

One very minor inconvenience in our new home is the old electric stove...I'm still trying to get used to its quirky performance and miss some of the conveniences of the newer model I used to have in Texas.  I'll turn the oven on to bake something and keep having to go back to check it...it doesn't have a little beeper to let you know when it's up to temperature, and the guesswork can get frustrating.

That's where Alfie comes in -- twice now, he's actually come and alerted me when the oven was up to temperature.  Apparently he hears the little click when the heating element switches off.  Then he rushes over, gets my attention, and dashes back to the stove to show me what's going on.  Of course he got lots of praise and a nice treat for that -- I can use all the kitchen help I can get, so I want to reinforce the cool new trick he's teaching himself!

Last night, I'd made us a yummy casserole (shepherd's pie with lots of mashed potatoes...mmm...), set the timer, and popped it in the oven.  With a long time to wait while it baked, I went upstairs to work on the computer.  Alfie was napping on the rug near my feet.  Long before the timer was set to go off, though, he sprang up suddenly with a grrrUFF! and, making sure I was coming after him, raced down to the kitchen.  I opened the oven door to find that the gravy in the casserole dish had just boiled over.  Yikes!  I think Alfie must have woken up when he heard the first drops sizzling on the bottom of the stove.  Needless to say, I was glad he heard it when he did, saving me what could've been a very nasty cleanup job!

All in a day's work.  PS -- Can I have some??

The Great Big (Crazy?) Idea

Like most Great Big and Quite Possibly Crazy Ideas, this one has a story behind it. 

Rewind to the end of last year, just after we'd moved and before I had any hint of what would happen with Alfie.  My brother Paul and his family went to Florida over the holidays to visit family, and asked if I'd care for their menagerie -- border collie Jamie, mini dachsund Hickory, an assortment of cats, and a hamster called Reepicheep (who doesn't really enter into the story, but what a cute name!) 

Jamie -- seen here, as usual, with a ball!

Everything was going great until New Year's Eve.  When it came time to feed the dogs their supper Hickory came trotting up happily but...no Jamie!  The gate wasn't open and nothing was obviously wrong, so it was hard to figure out what had happened.  The girls and I searched and called...first around the house, then widening the circle, on foot, to the neighborhood. 

Of course I was immediately overcome with guilt.  HOW could I have left her outside that afternoon? (Never mind that it was a pretty, sunny day; she had water, a cozy shed with bedding for shelter, and her buddy Hickory; and it was normal for her to spend an afternoon outside even when her family was home!)  We called friends and neighbors, but no leads.  I was forced to call Paul and give him the bad news...then we resumed our search, in the car, in the dark (I know it sounds crazy, but I was desperate!)  The sun having set, it was well below freezing by this time but we crawled through the neighborhoods with windows down, calling til we were hoarse and, at last, had to give it up for the night. 

After settling the other animals in I turned to leave for home -- and was pretty sure I heard something!  A whine, a bark?  It was very brief -- from the neighbors' yard?  The neighbors weren't home so I hoisted myself up and peered over their fence with a flashlight.  Nothing.  Frustrated, I turned to go again...and again, just as I was leaving, I definitely heard something.  More looking, STILL nothing.  But this time I was sure of what I heard -- it was definitely Jamie, and very close by.  Disregarding the frozen mud, I flopped down on my belly and squirmed up to a hole leading under the back deck.  Eureka!  Sure enough, she was there, as far back as she could possibly get.  We'd actually been passing within inches of her for hours without knowing it! When she saw me she flopped her tail halfheartedly, but nothing...and I do mean NOTHING...could induce her to come, despite the fact that she's normally very loving and friendly. 

To make a long story short, Operation:  Free Jamie took a good deal of that night and much of the next day as well. 

At first I tried digging/crawling my way under the deck, but all I got was...

...muddy!

With Paul's permission, we finally tore up some of the deck, reached in and pulled her out.  She seemed disoriented at first, and it took her a while to warm up, eat, and return to her normal self. 

Gently pulling her out, with hot dogs for encouragement.

Success!  We warmed her up with towels heated in the dryer.

Fortunately there were no lasting ill effects, except to the deck!  My best guess is that something (possibly some early New Year's fireworks?) scared her into that hiding place, and she suffered some sort of panic attack.  She was quite literally unable to move -- physically OK, but immobilized.  Still, all's well that ends well and I'm happy to say she's quite a normal girl again!

But the one thought that kept recurring to me that day was:  Oh, if only I'd had Alfie there, I would've known she was under that deck much sooner!  Maybe I'm dreaming, but with Alf's flair for finding things, I'm pretty sure he could've alerted me to her presence somehow and we could've gotten Jamie out a lot sooner -- saving us hours of useless searching around the neighborhood, and her a night of dangerous exposure to the cold. 

OK, back to the present!  Since adopting Alfie as a permanent part of the family, I've wondered what our next project should be.  Some have suggested therapy work -- but although I'd enjoy it, I'm not entirely sure Alfie would enjoy it that much.  He does love people, but he's much more of an "up-and-doing" kind of dog. 

I'll admit that ever since helping start diabetic alert dog Dakota on his scent training a couple years ago, I've been fascinated by scent and the teamwork between dog and handler in any kind of scent-related work.  I've been reading all I can, and just enjoying learning about it, at the same time idly mulling over Alfie and what we might enjoy pursuing together.

After the Jamie incident, though, I found myself noticing lost-pet fliers everywhere and thinking:  This happens to people all the time, and most of the stories probably don't end as well as ours did.  Then the two thoughts kind of merged:  What if I could train Alfie in scent work/trailing and we could work together to help locate people's missing pets?

My research indicates that training a dog to any level of competence in this area would take time and effort:  likely at least a year of focused work would be necessary.  Am I up for that?  At first I thought of joining a local tracking class but come to find out, competition tracking is a completely different activity than the air-scenting that I would need Alfie to learn for search work.  So we're sort of on our own, yikes!!  Then to complicate the issue further -- I have found that although there are a few reputable "pet trackers" or "pet detectives" out there...there are also many who seem to be using it as a way to scam distraught pet owners out of a few bucks.  Hmmm, not something I want to be associated with in any way!  So, as you can imagine, my feelings went back and forth. 

But it's hard to get the idea out of my mind.  I love, love, love the idea of helping people!  It's far more interesting to me to do something like this than to simply take on a dog sport for fun -- just the way I'm wired I guess.  And secondly, what do we have to lose?  At the very least, Alfie and I will have enjoyed a new type of training discipline together.  I feel like I want to give it an honest effort -- at the same time giving myself permission to quit and change my mind if it doesn't work out for some reason.  I'd love your feedback, especially any of you who have experience in scent work of some type.  Tips, resources, experiences? 

At the moment we're still in limbo, waiting on our Austin house to sell and (hopefully) relocating to a place of our own soon here in Springfield.  So for now Alfie and I are playing a lot of scent games, and doing some short "runaways."  But as things settle down I plan to start him on more serious work and we'll keep you posted as to whether he seems to be a good candidate or not.  In the meantime, happy trails and wagging tails!

Kissin' Cousins

Yesterday, the girls got to have cousin Lauren over for the day -- much to Alfie's delight!  Lauren's super sweet and really enjoys dogs.  In fact, she shares an interest in dog training -- she's training her own dogs at home as part of a science project!  Charissa showed her the new commands she's been teaching Alfie, and Lauren enjoyed practicing them with him.  He did really well for her!  They spent most of the afternoon just hanging out in the spring sunshine, laughing and talking and playing with the dog.  What could be better?

The More Things Change...

A little over a week has passed since Alfie came home.  One change you'll notice -- his cute haircut.

I left about an inch of curly brown fur to ward off the spring chill, but overall, I think he feels better, and looks neater.  He's certainly easier to brush!

But in most ways, Alfie's exactly the same as I remembered him. He still loves attention and petting more than anything.  He loves people...

New friends, awesome!

...and people seem to love him!  

Just like I remember from his guide-dog-in-training days, Alfie loves to learn new things.  One difference is what he's learning!  As a service dog, Alfie wasn't allowed to do "tricks"...however, now that he's our dog, Charissa is enjoying teaching him fun and cute little things.  So far she's got him to "shake hands," "spin," "roll over," "back up" and "bow."  It seems like every time I turn around, Alfie's doing something new for her!

Look what I can do, Mom!

Another thing is still the same, too:  Alfie retains his ability to surprise me!  Last week we had guests over at Sunday lunch and, wondering where my nephew was, I asked Alfie to "find John."  I wasn't actually expecting him to do it  -- after all he'd just met John the day before, and I didn't think he'd remember him by name.  He did, though -- trotting straight over to John, nosing him, and then giving me a pointed look to make sure I noticed!  When we all laughed, my sister-in-law asked what happened, and could Alfie please do it again?  All 9 people gathered around to watch -- and to be honest, I didn't know if it wasn't just a fluke!  So I had Alfie sit, "watch me," then I told him again to "find John"...Alfie literally pranced into the living room (show off that he is), threaded his way through all the other people and around all the furniture, going straight to John and giving him a definite nudge.  When spontaneous cheers broke out at this little achievement, you'd have thought Alfie had won the doggy lottery or something!  For an attention-loving guy like him, that was better than all the liver in the world -- he smiled, twirled, wagged and was ever so pleased with himself.  Funny boy!

Take Time

Dogs are great for reminding us:  Take time out.  Go for a walk.  We'd all been working hard Friday and needed a break.  I thought that since Alfie's just here a couple more days -- and our family's only here in Texas for a couple more weeks -- we needed to get out and enjoy meandering around the capitol building one last time!

Find the seat, good dog!

As usual -- it was gusty.

Funny little story:  We waited in line quite a while to get in, due to the new security measures and metal detectors.  I thought going through a metal detector would be a great new experience for Alfie!  I asked the officer if he wanted us to go through separately, or together.  He said together -- and that if the detector went off, we'd just have to get "wanded" by another officer.  We went through together and Alfie was fine despite the LOUD beeping when --yes-- we set it off.  I obediently went over to get "wanded."  The lady there said (no kidding):  "Oh, you don't have to come here unless you set it off.  Did you set it off?"  Seemed to be on the honor system!  I was oh so tempted to say no and avoid the hassle, but of course I'm too honest.  She used her metal-detecting wand on Alfie and that DID make him jump -- it seemed a very threatening gesture, plus it beeped too (collar and tags).  She shrugged and said, "go ahead," and off we went.  I guess we just don't look that suspicious, hehe!

We worked lots and lots and LOTS of stairs.  Then we found elevators...and bathrooms.  With bathrooms on so many floors, the capitol is a great training location.  I did my best not to give him any hints so that he could practice finding and decision-making on his own.  Fun!  

Loved this big live oak...

...and the peaceful, manicured grounds.

Couldn't resist this shot!  Plus, a chance to practice down/stay in the presence of pigeons and passersby.

And to close, another thing I'll remember about Alf:  when in the car, he's usually good about curling up in the passenger-side floorboard.  But the moment I turn the AC on "outside air"...he's up and resting his chin like this, drinking in the smells.  There's just enough space for him to stand comfortably between the seats.  He can't see much but I don't think that matters -- he can smell it ALL!

Good Thinking

I LOVE to work!

Had to laugh during today's walk when I noticed Alfie was paying better attention to our work than I was!  We were working at a new location (Sports Authority) and came to the section where they had row upon neatly arranged row of bikes for sale.  Great place to practice turns and "watch me."  So we were working our way through this rubber-tire-smelling maze and Alfie was doing great when I asked him to turn left into the next row.  He snorted loudly and refused, giving me one of his...well...looks.  I thought he was just being stubborn and repeated my command.  He refused again, this time sitting down rather decisively to emphasize his point.  That's when I actually took the trouble to look down that aisle...to see that way down the opposite end of that row, someone had pulled one of the bikes out into the aisle and it effectively blocked the path.  Since the aisles were so narrow (no room to turn around), I'd have either had to roll the bike out of the way, or we'd have both had to back out the way we came.  I had to laugh out loud at myself for missing that...and was pretty happy with Mr. Alf for avoiding the obstacle!

I can't say that all Alfie's mental activity is quite that commendable, though.  One of the things I worry about is his poor tolerance for boredom.  I was down with some type of virus for a couple of days and was treated to such attention-getting pranks as this...

Heh heh, look who's got your Chips Ahoy now!

He didn't actually try to chew the can of cookies open or anything, he just wanted to flaunt it at me so I'd notice and play with him.  Not exactly what you want when you're in bed snuffling and sniffing...sigh!  So for the next day or so Charissa gave him some extra backyard training sessions, and we made sure he was stocked with chew toys to keep him busy.  That seemed to work pretty well.

So yeah, ups and downs...but overall I think he's coming along!

In the GREAT NEWS category for GDTx...their 1st ever brood, yellow lab Poppy, gave birth this morning to a fantastic litter of 8 gorgeous puppies.  5 girls and 3 boys, the "A" litter is getting the GDTx breeding program off to a great start!

Nothing Escapes Them

Our dogs are so tuned in to us, it seems...sometimes I think Alfie almost knows more about me than I do about him!  Any of you ever get this feeling from your dog?

Yes, I can read your mind:  "Going to buy the dog a bone!" 

This seems to be true of everyone in our family. He always seems to know where we're going to go and what we're going to do.  Today Charissa wanted to practice whistle recall with him (he needs to have solid recall with both the Come command and the whistle).  Now, mind you, she didn't tell him this, though it goes without saying that he was watching her.  She went to get his whistle off the rack and it wasn't there.  So she asked me where it was, and I told her to look in my car.  Off she goes into the garage, rummaging around unsuccessfully...when Alfie pops in behind her, bumps her with his nose til she finally looks at him....and after getting her attention he noses the seatback, where my lanyard (whistle attached) was sort of squeezed in the crack under the headrest.  I REALLY hope his future owner can put this personality of his to good use! Dogs are so fun!

"Come!"

Charissa was practicing Alfie on his recall today...her pictures were so funny, I had to share!

C'mon, there's a treat for that...right?

Downtown Again

Sorry, no action shots today, so here's a random cute Alfie picture for you!

Alphini and I spent the morning working in downtown Austin today. It's neat to see him starting to grow up a bit, acting responsibly, and doing much of his curb work without needing constant reminders.  There was a lot of construction going on downtown today...the stench of hot tar combined with deafening machinery for a nasty sensory overload.  I don't think he liked it, but he was calm, and actually seemed curious about what the workers were doing.  We practiced a bunch of finds and got to work on "overs" and "ins" as we negotiated signs propped up in the middle of the sidewalk.  His crowd work was pretty good today, and he didn't do anything really wrong although we had an embarrassing moment when he sat on a candy wrapper and it stuck to his rear end!  I had to help him get it off, poor guy.  As we worked back to my car we approached a coffee shop where we've stopped before.  I told him to find a seat, thinking he'd get me the bench on the sidewalk.  Instead he wanted to take me to a seat inside the coffee shop!  Maybe he thought the air conditioning in there would be nice, I don't know.  Of course I made him go back and take me to the nearest seat instead (like he's supposed to).  He's still a bit too assertive about thinking he gets an equal vote in where we go! 

But though I tend to focus on all the little areas that could use improvement, I'm actually starting to see that my little pup is growing into a nice dog.  Of course that strikes me the most when we're out around other (pet) dogs, like the other day at the dog park.  Alfie was playing and socializing, when some of the dogs started to chase a squirrel.  He's never been allowed to chase anything, so I don't think he quite understood what the excitement was about, but all the same I called him to me and he came right over.  I praised him, and off he went again.  Then later he picked something up in his mouth and I asked him to drop it, which he did immediately.  A lady who was watching nearby just gave me this amazed look and said, "Wow, my dog would NEVER do that!"  The dog park is the only place I seem able to go "anonymously" so I didn't let on about Alf's secret identity as a guide dog and the countless hours of work I've put into making sure he will do just that!  I also have a healthy awareness that we're far from perfect...sigh...but wow, it's nice when you can see some of that effort start to pay off!

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!

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:

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!

Here's how it's done, folks!

Day at the Museum

Over the weekend we enjoyed a delightful time with family...Tim's cousin Kristin and her husband Greg happened to be visiting on business all the way from Manhattan!  Fortunately their schedule permitted some time with us, so we decided to stop by the Texas State History Museum -- an Austin icon and, just as important, a place where you can walk around and visit in air conditioned comfort.  In this 100+ degree summer heat that's a must!  Naturally, I hoped Alfie would be on his best behavior...maybe even show off a little of the great work he's been doing lately.  But it was not to be!

Alfie got his own admission sticker -- how cool is that?

You see, the evening before, Kristin and Greg had come by our house for dessert and gotten acquainted with Alphini.  Naturally he loved them both, but for some reason he went kinda nuts over Greg.  He adored Greg!  The feeling was mutual, and they were best buds for the evening.  Then when the next day came along and we met them at the museum, Alfie lost all focus.  He didn't actually do anything outright bad, like bark or jump or lick...he still obeyed (most) commands (eventually)...but his concentration was completely shot.  He panted excitedly and pulled like crazy...and Alfie NEVER pulls!  As we worked our way through the exhibits, I was kept constantly advised of Greg's location by which way Alfie's nose was pointing.  Alfie may think he's a big dog, but I was reminded that 10 months is still very much adolescent territory! 

Can you spot Alfie?

A nice "sit."  One of the few things he was doing well.

Still, he didn't cause any major disruptions and all in all I think it was an extremely valuable experience for him.  Greg did a great job of ignoring Alfie, which was just what he needed!  I did have an interesting moment when one of the docents approached me and kindly warned me to be very careful, as the footing throughout the exhibits was uneven (it was uneven, with many different surfaces, and even artifacts embedded in the floor!)  It wasn't until she walked off that I realized what had happened and asked Kristin, "Oh -- did she think I was blind?"  It's always an odd feeling when that happens...

I was pleasantly surprised at Alfie's behavior in the theater.  They've got a little 20-minute Texas history show complete with all sorts of special effects:  billowing smoke for the war scenes, thunder that shakes the seats and strobe lightning effects throughout the seating area, talking figures, seats that "pop" (to simulate a rattlesnake strike -- yikes!)...not to mention water misters that spray all over the audience as Galveston gets ripped apart by a hurricane.  Alfie was fascinated by it all.  He sat erect at my side watching and sniffing with intense interest but no real signs of alarm.  I guess he figured that as long as we were enjoying it, he might as well enjoy it too!

We rounded out the day with a trip to Amy's ice cream...ahhh.  By this time, Alf was too pooped to do anything but lie on the cool floor and pant.  He even ignored dropped spoons and bare toes walking past...good dog!

His reward?  Taking off the jacket for a last goodbye hug from Kristin and Greg.  Thanks for all the fun, guys!

Back to the Post Office

Who's afraid of the Post Office?

Well, after my last two trips to the post office , I was rather dreading having to return.  But today I needed to pick up a parcel and ship something, so there was nothing for it but to take a deep breath and face my fears.  After all, I hadn't done anything wrong!

We started off at an office supply store to purchase a box, which gave me a chance to practice some obedience, finds, and straight-line work with Alfie.  He did a good job of listening and working through the store, even in fairly crowded conditions.  We've been working on his distraction around children, and today he did well -- interested in them, but still able to focus.  I paid for the box and we worked our way back out to the car, where I realized that I was short on tape as well.  Rats!  Oh well, all the more practice for Alfie. 

Back we go to the store, find the door, right, left, right again, guide around the display in the middle of the aisle, GOOD BOY!  OK, down/stay while I look for tape and answer questions from a clerk...nice job Alf!  Up-sit, let's go, find the counter, steady, watch me, GOOD boy for not licking that little kid right in front of you, sit, down, wait while I pay.  Time to go now, but first answer more questions from the nice lady behind us, then find the door, and out we go to the curb.  GOOD BOY for that automatic sit at the curb, let's go!  GOOD dog for indicating the step up, LEAVE that grackle alone, find the "bus" (my car), good dog for sitting, get in the bus, treats for the good dog.  I think Alfie was hoping I'd forget something else so we could do it all a third time, but thankfully that wasn't necessary.

With that nice warmup, we headed to the Post Office.  Leash in my left hand and giant box in my right, I walked in and joined the line. It was very busy, with clerks at each of the four stations.  As I entered, four heads snapped up...turned in my direction...and just as I cringed for the worst they all went back to work without a peep.  One of the clerks even smiled at me!  I could scarcely believe it. They were not only polite, but downright friendly...such a pleasant surprise.  It made me wonder if they had received some kind of memo about ADA law since my previous visit!  The clerk who helped me got to chatting about Alfie, and I mentioned being questioned about him before.  He said he could tell he was a service dog with his jacket, and was very welcome, but did remark that they've "had some problems lately with people bringing in their pets."   All in all, things ended on a very good note.

All's well that ends well.

Rough Day

It's been a long time since a business has tried to deny us access.  Today, to make up for it, we were challenged twice in one day...at the same place!

We were at the post office getting ready to mail a package and as we waited in line, a postal employee came out and announced loudly:  "Miss, you'll have to take your dog outside."  I politely pointed out that he was a guide dog in training, and the guy just sort of went back to wherever he came from, not bothering to reply.  I went on with my business and the folks at the counter were courteous as usual...after all, Alfie was in his work uniform and I've been taking various pups in training to the post office for a long time now! 

As it turned out, we had to go back again later on in the afternoon.  This time a different man told me firmly that dogs were not allowed inside.  Again keeping my tone polite and cheerful as possible (despite the knot in my stomach -- I hate confrontation!), I pointed out that he was a guide dog in training.  The postal employee replied, "Well, are you blind?"  I responded that no, I wasn't blind, but I was his trainer and then offered to show him my ID badge and a copy of the Texas state law which grants access to service dogs in training (it's actually printed on the reverse of my badge and boy, was I happy I had it!)  Again, he just sort of grunted and went on with his business, never answering me.  Sigh!!  I was allowed to stay, but I admit it gave me an unpleasant feeling.

As I waited, though, a nice gentleman in front of me in line turned around and gave me an explanation for what was happening.  He said that he'd been in the post office last week when a man brought in a dog and claimed it to be his service dog.  Some kind of incident ensued, and the customer said the dog's handler wound up angry and cursing everyone, making a huge scene. It probably didn't help that the dog in question was a large pit bull...I really wasn't sure if the dog was behaving badly, or just his master!  At any rate, it has my local post office turned against me.  Rats!

That really made me sad, and illustrates how the poor behavior of one dog and/or its handler can have such a negative effect on those of us who have a legitimate reason for bringing a well-behaved service dog (working or training!) into a public area.  It's such an important part of a puppy's training to get used to all kinds of surroundings and all kinds of people, and this is something you can only do (in my opinion, and the opinion of our school) by working the dog in public environments.  At the same time, it's a huge responsibility not only to train the dog, but to make sure it is well-behaved and not an annoyance to people in public...a responsibility I take seriously! 

 How did Alfie take all this?  He behaved perfectly, following every command.  But I could tell he felt my tension.  He scarcely took his eyes off me.  After all that, we ended the day on an "up" note with a trip to the library, which is like visiting the Alfie Fan Club.  Hooray for friendly faces!

Expect the Unexpected

I've gotta be prepared for anything these days!

Strange things have been happening to us on our walks lately.  Yesterday I was at Hobby Lobby and as I got my card out to pay I put Alphini into a down/stay and dropped the leash, pretty confident he'd just take a snooze til I was done.  As I waited for my receipt, a lady walked by, distractedly talking on her cell...with a flexilead attached to a little dog who was, shall we say, "flexiwalking" about 6-10 feet from her (yes, inside the store)!!  Alfie saw this too, and was at least as surprised as I was.  He picked up his head, looked at them, then looked at me, with "??" written all over his face!  What a good boy, he never got up or anything despite it all.

Then today, we were off to pick up some items at Target and as we headed toward the counter to pay, 2 kids somewhere in the 5-7 age bracket careened around the corner, racing full tilt toward us.  The little boy wasn't even looking up, but down at a toy in his hands...before I had time to think "where's your mother" we'd collided, while his sister screamed at the sight of Alfie and dashed to the other side!  Now that was a real test, even for a well-trained dog, let me tell you!  But this is where not only training, but also Alfie's good temperament, came to the rescue:  his typical response to the odd, unexpected, or even frightening things that pop up on walks is a great one -- he stands still and just sort of watches, taking it in and I suppose, trying to figure it out!  That's just how he's always been, and I love it.  Pretty soon Mom and Grandma had shown up with effusive apologies...phew! 

After that came an episode I'd rather not go into, but suffice it to say I found it odd to encounter what seemed to be an entire bag of Doritos spilled on the floor of the bathroom stall at the library!  Hmmm...talk about a training challenge...

Then at the store this afternoon I had a rather unusual exchange with my checker, who wondered (in a sincerely concerned voice) why I talked to my daughter as if she were a dog (you know, giving little commands, kissy noises, etc.)...only to find that, really, I was talking to my dog...oh dear!  It's been quite a day. 

The good news is that with all the strangeness going on, Alfie's been a real trooper.  Larry from GDTx came to visit and do a short walk with us and was very pleased with his progress...hooray!

On that note, let's walk into the sunset...

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

...We're talking about Alfie's respect for Katharine, which needed a little shoring up.  He's always tested her more than the rest of the family, possibly because she's the youngest and he thinks he might just get away with it!  We started off earlier by putting her in charge of his meals (including the obedience routine he does before each meal).  This helped him tune in to her, but I could tell more work would be good.  So Michelle decided to have us meet her at the mall for a training walk...only this time, Katharine would be walking Mr. Alphini!  As Katharine put it, "I feel like an underage driver!"

Although Katharine's pretty familiar with the whole puppy-walking drill, it's different to be the one actually holding the leash.  Michelle gave her a few helpful tips and they were off.  I mainly bit my tongue (the urge to shout out random things to your puppy like, "No, leave it, in, steady, watch me!" are surprisingly deeply ingrained)...and avoided making eye contact with him.  Katharine needed to be in charge, and Alfie needed to get his information from her.  At first he kept glancing over his shoulder at me, like, "Hellooo back there, help me, is this OKAY?!" ...but with Michelle's coaching, Katharine coaxed his attention back to her.  They did surprisingly well! 

Hmm, think she'll let me cruise over and check out the food court?

And below, 5 seconds of gripping action footage!  Grab your popcorn!

You could tell they were both tense, not in an antagonistic way, but just because they were unused to communicating on this level.   We walked and walked...at one point, to give them a break, I took over the leash and they both got a little breather.  There was a train in the mall -- first time we'd seen that!

Alfie:  Are trains allowed in here?

Train guy:  Are dogs allowed in here?

Katharine worked Alfie some more...taking a break and putting him in a down every so often.  It was very cool for me to see Alfie do so well with her...following her commands, "checking in" with her, and wagging that tail like crazy when she praised him.

Aaahh, a well-earned break.

At the end of one full tour around the mall, Alfie was more exhausted than if he'd walked several miles with me.  Such a good mental workout for him!  Katharine is committed to ongoing obedience mini-sessions with him outside the home, which should help keep him tuned in to her.  Relationships are always better the more you work on them, don't you think?

Katharine's pretty fun!

Experimenting

Alfie's always been the type to experiment.  I'm not talking chemistry sets or anything; it's just that from time to time he'll try some new mischief on for size and see where it gets him.  As a friend said about kids, "They're just runnin' it up the flagpole and seein' if anyone salutes."  Alfie reminds me of my days teaching elementary and junior high school.  He's like that smart kid who can get all his work done in 5 minutes, then spend the rest of the time engineering a spitwad factory or something.

Just testing the system!

Our latest test has had to do with his jacket.  Although Alfie loves the walks that go with the jacket, he's never been a big fan of the uniform itself.  Just lately, though, he's been utterly refusing to come get it put on before walks.  If I set it in the car to be put on at the training location, he won't get in.  Let me hasten to add, he's not AFRAID of it (I've seen puppies who are, but believe me, he's not).  His goal is to get me to chase him around with it while he dashes about laughing...well, dogs don't laugh but if he could this would be the time...thus accomplishing his twin dreams of being the center of attention and being in charge.  Not quite what I have in mind though!

Michelle and I talked recently about the situation and we implemented a few changes to the routine which have helped somewhat, such as feeding him in the jacket and taking it with us all the time when we go outside, not just before walks (keeping him guessing!) More obedience sessions and the maturing process in general have resulted in very nice home behavior overall.  But he hasn't totally given up on his anti-jacket schemes. 

So Friday, after coming in from doing his business he noticed me getting everything out for a walk...my ID badge, some dog treats, keys, etc.  Before I could even reach for the jacket he'd dashed off, tail high, with this look of "Catch me if you can!"  I wasn't even chasing him but he was clearly taunting, dodging this way and that.  I just kept getting ready, since previously ignoring these antics has brought him around.  Not this time.  I told him to get in the bus and he trotted cheerfully to the garage...only to veer off at the last minute, the rascal!  But in the garage he was easy to catch, and I just walked up calmly without a word, grabbed his collar, marched him to his crate and locked him in.  A few moments later I was driving off...yes, WITHOUT him...to the accompaniment of outraged barking.

He did not bargain on getting LEFT!

While Alfie's perfectly fine about being left home alone in his crate when there's no expectation of a walk, he KNOWS the difference between that and what had just happened.  Normally he gets left with a kong or something to chew, and maybe I'll leave the radio on.  He never gets worked up about it.  But when I get his gear ready, he's amped up and ready to go!  My hope was that since I know he wants to work and actually it's the highlight of his whole day, perhaps leaving him behind would get through to him.  As usual, this great idea came not from me but Michelle...ah, the joy of having tech support for puppies!!

The results surprised me!  I had to drop Katharine off at church, just a 5-minute drive from home, so I was back in about 10 minutes.  I decided to give him another chance.  Without any fanfare I walked up to his crate and was met with the most submissive-looking face I believe I've seen Alfie wear.  All I had to do was open the door and say the word...he was so relieved to come.  Wagging and subdued, he seemed to realize he was going to have to play by my rules if he wanted to come along at all.  A few moments later he was calmly seated in the car, leash and jacket in place.  Ah...that's better!   

Didn't see that coming!

After putting me through all that, it's only fair to add that Alfie went on to do one of his best walks ever for me!  He truly enjoys his work and it's so fun to watch him thinking through little obstacles and "problems".  Admittedly, I've got perfectionist leanings and a strong tendency to "tell" him what to do so he "gets it right." Lately, though,  I've been trying to dial that back (again, thanks to Michelle!) and let him figure things out on his own -- making his own decisions and learning from them.  If he messes up, no big deal, we just go back and rework it.  He doesn't mess up the same thing twice in a row, I've noticed that! 

Halfway?

Well, it was just about 7 months ago, on the day after Thanksgiving 2009, that this little character entered our lives...and has been keeping us busy ever since!

Remember what a cute puppy I was?

Since then, Alfie's grown into that leash and collar a bit...

Look how much bigger I am!

...and, we hope, he's also growing into the role he'll eventually fill as a guide.

Need help crossing the street? 

Now, add 7 more months, and we'll be looking at January 2011...and guess who's scheduled to head in for his assessment?

 

Ummm...who?

If all goes as planned, Alfie will join a group of 5 others (including buddies Petey, Bob, and Celia) somewhere around the beginning of 2011.  They will be evaluated in many areas, both to make sure they're ready for Advanced Training and to give GDTx the information they will need to make appropriate client/dog matches.  After the assessment, the dogs will either go directly to Advanced Training, return to their raisers for a few months until an opening is available, or possibly even wait until the next assessment in certain situations.  Of course, though I don't even want to think about it, there's also the possibility that puppies could be released from the program if it's determined that their temperament or health is not ultimately suited for guide work.  However, I anticipate good things from all the puppies I know!!!

So we're somewhere around halfway!  The second half, in my mind, is actually the most fun.  Of course there are always challenges and I know enough to expect the unexpected.  But basically, by now you've got a nice, social, well-behaved dog who's house trained and reliable anywhere you might like to take him.  For the time that remains, you get to polish his skills, smooth down rough areas...and enjoy him.  Time flies way too fast!

Lovin' life as a guide dog in training!