You Call That Clean?!

So...I was doing laundry today, which for me means hanging lots of things to dry (I've had too many clothes shrink in the drier!)  That's when I noticed Alfie paying an unusual amount of attention to some jeans of mine.  He laid his chin affectionately on them while they were waiting to be hung up...I walked over to get a hanger, came back, and he'd stuck his whole head (up to the collar) inside one pants leg!  Ummm...I just took them out of the washer, but if Alfie's that interested, something's gotta be wrong!  Okay, okay, let's see what it is.

Finders keepers!  Mmm!

Er...yeah.  Soggy kibble!  I'm normally a treat pouch kind of person and now I know why...  Has this happened to any of you before?  Any other dogs turned personal laundry assistant?

There's A Treat For That

Ever seen those commercials selling apps?  That's what comes to my mind whenever Alfie does something really good.  He just looks at me with this proud, expectant expression:  "Hey -- there's a treat for that!" 

He doesn't get a treat every time.  He'll almost jump over the moon just for "Good dog!" in that happy "high voice."  But every so often, and when he's done something especially good, I'll give him a dog treat.  We had a couple of those moments today.  One's pictured below...Charissa spotted the animal crackers on the store floor so we set him up to practice "leave it."  I gave him the command pre-emptively and he did great.

I'm leaving it...leaving it...leaving it...

Yay!  There was a treat for that.

I guess I lowered my guard after that, because at the end of the aisle we unexpectedly met up with more animal crackers...he scarfed one...aaack!  DEFINITELY no treat.  Bad dog!  Bad raiser for not noticing it before he did!  So it was go back and rework so he'd get it right.  Sigh.

A few minutes later he was standing at my side, I was distracted doing some price shopping, and he got "surprise-attacked" from behind by a little 2nd or 3rd-grade kid.  Alfie flicked his ear to acknowledge the hit-and-run petting on his rump...all the time keeping his position, eyes locked on me as if to make sure I noticed his self-control.  Wow, it actually surprised me that he didn't try to lick the boy's face!  You're right, Alfie, there's a treat for that!

Double, Double, Toil & Trouble...

To paraphrase one of my favorite authors:  By the pricking of my thumbs, something stinky this way comes!

Smells like a witch's brew to me...but to Petey it's heavenly.

So, to explain...I was talking to supervisor Michelle about how Petey's been basically a great dog, but then from time to time something startles him into barking.  And with his size comes a BIG SCARY BARK...not good in public!  So we're doing a lot of stuff to help him realize that the world is really okay, I've got things under control, and basically there's no need for him to worry.  But as Michelle explained, I need some extreme high-value treats in my pocket to save for those moments...something to get his attention back onto me from whatever it is he's concerned about.  To me, that means one thing:  LIVER.  At just $1/lb locally, it's much cheaper than prepared dog treats.  The drawback is that you actually have to cook the stuff yourself...bleah. 

It's pretty easy...just rinse it off, boil it, cut it into bite size pieces, and dry it out in a slow oven.  Warning to readers:  if you do this, a)Your whole house will smell like liver; and b)Your dog will love you forever (of course he does already!)

The outcome?  It seems to be working!  We went on 3 walks today and Petey got many compliments in stores on how well-behaved he was.  I'm sure it also helps that he's getting used to working with me...but the liver sure doesn't hurt anything!

No, Petey, driving the car will not earn you extra liver...