Adventures in Obedience
Remember when I said my 'kid' would be the worst one in the bunch? Remember when I said I was dreading even going since I knew I'd be embarassed. Remember when I said, 'I'll look at this positively - at least I'll get lots of one-on-one'?
Yeah, well after 9 years of DemonDoggery, I was nowhere near prepared for the sheer humiliation Dante put me through.
The dog literally did not stop barking for 1.5 HOURS. Not inside, not outside, not inside again. Yes, I was that parent in the movie theater with the screaming kid.
Under normal circumstances, I would've beat the shit out of him corrected him sternly but I let the uncertainty of the situation get the better of me and therefore resorted clamping my dog's mouth shut with both hands after the first 15 minutes.
He was so bad that the other dogs were afraid to come near him! He even ended up goading one husky into aggression - and would have been attacked had the owners not been prepared.
The people next to me even felt the need to tell me about their previous dog they ended up sedating to stop the barking. And then proceded to give me the name of their vet as well as the drug. (My response, 'oh thank you'. My real response: you people are f'ing nuts - you got a Great Pyr and didn't want to deal with barking!? Have you met the breed?)
Paula addressed it when we came back inside. I think mainly for the benefit of the class at large - the majority of which have beautifully behaved Labradors and Australian Shepherds, even the Huskies were better than my fecking dog. HUSKIES!!! She described how Akitas are all about the fight ("bring it on") so normal (read: non-electronic) methods don't tend to work on them. I'm going to try a squirt bottle full of mace vinegar & water next week. After that, I'll probably gladly hand over another $100 just to zap the crap out of my loudmouth*.
Who also, by the way, coated our entire half of the room - including other people! - with a Pigpin-esque dusting of Akita fluff.
Yeah, these next two months should be super fun.
Although J did come over last night to help me Etch-A-Sketch the bad memory. I don't think he quite believed me earlier in the day when I said I'd probably need a drink (or 18) after class but in the 20 minutes I was home before he arrived, I was 2.5 porters ahead.
Note to self: stock up on vodka before next Wednesday
Fucking dog.
*I love the furball, I really do but damn - haven't I paid my dues with 9 years of The DemonDog!?
Yeah, well after 9 years of DemonDoggery, I was nowhere near prepared for the sheer humiliation Dante put me through.
The dog literally did not stop barking for 1.5 HOURS. Not inside, not outside, not inside again. Yes, I was that parent in the movie theater with the screaming kid.
Under normal circumstances, I would've beat the shit out of him corrected him sternly but I let the uncertainty of the situation get the better of me and therefore resorted clamping my dog's mouth shut with both hands after the first 15 minutes.
He was so bad that the other dogs were afraid to come near him! He even ended up goading one husky into aggression - and would have been attacked had the owners not been prepared.
The people next to me even felt the need to tell me about their previous dog they ended up sedating to stop the barking. And then proceded to give me the name of their vet as well as the drug. (My response, 'oh thank you'. My real response: you people are f'ing nuts - you got a Great Pyr and didn't want to deal with barking!? Have you met the breed?)
Paula addressed it when we came back inside. I think mainly for the benefit of the class at large - the majority of which have beautifully behaved Labradors and Australian Shepherds, even the Huskies were better than my fecking dog. HUSKIES!!! She described how Akitas are all about the fight ("bring it on") so normal (read: non-electronic) methods don't tend to work on them. I'm going to try a squirt bottle full of mace vinegar & water next week. After that, I'll probably gladly hand over another $100 just to zap the crap out of my loudmouth*.
Who also, by the way, coated our entire half of the room - including other people! - with a Pigpin-esque dusting of Akita fluff.
Yeah, these next two months should be super fun.
Although J did come over last night to help me Etch-A-Sketch the bad memory. I don't think he quite believed me earlier in the day when I said I'd probably need a drink (or 18) after class but in the 20 minutes I was home before he arrived, I was 2.5 porters ahead.
Note to self: stock up on vodka before next Wednesday
Fucking dog.
*I love the furball, I really do but damn - haven't I paid my dues with 9 years of The DemonDog!?