Socialization Class
Sometimes on Fridays Faith and I go to socialization classes in Roanoke, which consist of between ten and thirty dogs romping in one room. Some people think it's dumb that I take my poodle to a dog playgroup, but these "classes" are really great for Faith because she was distracted by something shiny when God was giving out the rulebook for polite canine interaction. Her problem isn't aggression--she loves other dogs. In fact, she gets so excited and happy about meeting another dog that it can cause serious problems. Imagine someone who, upon an introduction to a new person, doesn't politely shake that person's hand and murmur a greeting but instead shrieks their delight at making his acquaintance and throws their arms around him. That might be the human equivalent for what Faith does to other dogs. Faith loves other dogs, and she's convinced that other dogs love her, but they are often put off when Faith joyfully pounces on them. One of the dogs on her flyball team, a little Cairn named Tamber, hates Faith with a passion for this very reason.
We've been going to the playgroups for a few months now, and there has been a marked improvement in her behavior. Tonight she was a bit of a pill, though. Faith has energy and joie de vivre coming out of her ears, and she's always ready to play. She's not above trying to make another dog play, either, even if that dog would rather cower under his owner's chair. As a result, she got sprayed a couple of times by the woman who runs the socialization classes. This punishment did not seem to bother her unduly, and as the hour went on, she settled down. We played fetch for a little, which is a good exercise for her since it requires her to maintain her focus and drive in the midst of a pack of dogs. Toward the end, two little boys stole Faith's ball and started tossing it between themselves. Poor Faith ran back and forth between them like the monkey in the middle.
After the playgroup was over, we went to Petsmart for a bit of training. She's always immaculately well-behaved after her playgroup, so I like to show her off. We worked on basic rally exercises in preparation for our first trial next weekend, and also some more advanced exercises, like backwards heeling. Her newest trick is simple but cute--she'll touch my nose with her nose when I say "kiss."
I don't have any pictures of the socialization class, but here's a picture of Faith playing with her favorite dog in the world, Joey. Joey is Kristen's whippet puppy and is one of the few dogs I've seen who can match Faith bounce for bounce.
Slavering poodle fangs, oh my!
We've been going to the playgroups for a few months now, and there has been a marked improvement in her behavior. Tonight she was a bit of a pill, though. Faith has energy and joie de vivre coming out of her ears, and she's always ready to play. She's not above trying to make another dog play, either, even if that dog would rather cower under his owner's chair. As a result, she got sprayed a couple of times by the woman who runs the socialization classes. This punishment did not seem to bother her unduly, and as the hour went on, she settled down. We played fetch for a little, which is a good exercise for her since it requires her to maintain her focus and drive in the midst of a pack of dogs. Toward the end, two little boys stole Faith's ball and started tossing it between themselves. Poor Faith ran back and forth between them like the monkey in the middle.
After the playgroup was over, we went to Petsmart for a bit of training. She's always immaculately well-behaved after her playgroup, so I like to show her off. We worked on basic rally exercises in preparation for our first trial next weekend, and also some more advanced exercises, like backwards heeling. Her newest trick is simple but cute--she'll touch my nose with her nose when I say "kiss."
I don't have any pictures of the socialization class, but here's a picture of Faith playing with her favorite dog in the world, Joey. Joey is Kristen's whippet puppy and is one of the few dogs I've seen who can match Faith bounce for bounce.
Slavering poodle fangs, oh my!