Do you have one-on-one time with your dog?

Daisy playing Chess

This past weekend my friend Emily posted a picture of her and her dog, Lilly, on a special outing together. It was their girls day out.

It brought back a lot of happy memories of my outings with Daisy. Back when I was a pet sitter, she used to ride with me on some of my pet visits. I would also take her on special outings to get some ice cream (that’s probably how she got to be 75 lbs back then!). I would buy one ice cream cone for me and one for her. Then, we would go sit in a park and watch the world go by as we enjoyed our cones and each others company.

Seeing Emily’s picture reminded me how long it has been since we’ve done something like that. Now that I have three dogs, it can be hard to get that one-on-one time with any one of them. But last night I had the opportunity to enjoy some one-on-one time with each of my dogs and it felt really good, especially with Daisy.

Since it was so cold out, I decided to switch things up a bit and bring out our doggie puzzle from Trixie and let each of the dogs have their own chance to play with it. The game is called Chess and it comes with 4 yellow cups and a board with sliding squares. Under the squares are little holes in which you can place treats. The squares also have holes in them so you can place treats in them and cover them with the cups. It requires a dog to really use their brain to figure out how to get to the treats.

I decided Daisy would be first. I set up a baby gate so Jasper and Cupcake were on one side and Daisy and I on the other. Then, I placed the game (loaded with tiny pieces of pork) on the floor. Daisy was very nervous at first, not having really played with the puzzle much before, but she was also very intrigued by the smells coming from it.  Since she was nervous about what to do, I sat down on the floor near her. I placed the game in front of her, but she still seemed unsure, so I showed her some of the hidden pieces of pork and then covered them up again.

She tentatively reached out with her nose to smell one yellow cup. Then she nudged it a little. The cup started to topple over. She jumped. She went back again and nudged the cup aside and grabbed the piece of meat. It took time, but eventually, with my encouragement and revealing the treats to her from time to time, she eventually started to figure it out. And with each successive find, she became more confident.

It was so rewarding to sit next to her and work the puzzle together. We worked as a team and had so much fun in doing so.

Cupcake is a pro at Chess

After each round, we would just sit there and hang out, I would give her belly rubs and kisses, and she would give me nose bumps and pleading looks for more of the same. It was a very special evening. I can’t remember how many times we did this, but I think it was at least five. I think she loved our time together as much as she loved getting the treats

Afterwards, Jasper and Cupcake got their special time alone with me and we did the same thing. They seemed to enjoy it just as much as Daisy.

Having this special time together with each of my dogs makes me think that I need to do this kind of thing more often. Maybe each dog should have their special day.

What do you think? Do you have special days with your dog? If you have more than one dog, do you take time out to spend it with just one dog at a time? I would love to hear what you have to say.

Jasper loves Chess

My dog has “shiny penny” syndrome

For anyone who has read my blog for any period of time, you now know that my Sheltie, Jasper, has an obsession with two things: sticks and balls. If we are at the dog park he will demand I throw a stick for him over and over and over again. At home, it’s his tennis ball he wants thrown or kicked or tossed – many, many, many times.

But there is also something else Jasper has an obsession with – things that move. This includes people, dogs, bikes, skateboarders, bunnies, ducks, etc.  He can be in the middle of bringing his ball back to me when he spots someone walking by the house and has to run to the fence to bark at them. He can also be barking at someone walking by and I can say “I’m gonna get your ball!” and he will run to get his ball. I like to call it the “shiny penny” syndrome or ADD.

Sometimes I laugh at how easily he can be distracted but most of the time I wonder how I can get him to be more focused. We have worked together on a wide variety of training areas, but this is one area we have yet to master. I wonder if any of you have or have had a dog that is easily distracted and what you do about it in your own home.

Do you have a dog easily distracted or who suffers from the “shiny penny” syndrome? How do you work through it? Or, how have you mastered it with your dog? I would love any ideas you have to help me with this issue.

Chasing my ball

Is that someone walking by?

Playing ball

Is that the neighbor coming outside?

Playing ball (again)

 

 

 

 

Black & White Sunday #21 – Just Chillin’

My thanks to our hosts for this blog hop You Did What With Your Weiner, My Life in Blog Years and Dachshund Nola.

Unfortunately, WordPress.com doesn’t allow Java script so I can’t provide a direct link to the linky, but you can join here.

Black & White Sunday #17 – A nose and a ball

My thanks to our hosts for this blog hop You Did What With Your Weiner, My Life in Blog Years and Dachshund Nola.

Unfortunately, WordPress.com doesn’t allow Java script so I can’t provide a direct link to the linky, but you can join here.

A dog and his ball (in pictures)

For those of you who read my blog, or follow me on Facebook, you know that there are two loves in my dog Jasper’s life – sticks and balls. He has an extreme obsession with them and is relentless in letting me know it. Today, I thought I would share Jasper’s ball obsession… in pictures.

Jasper loves his ball (this applies to any ball, but most especially the one he has at that moment).

He loves chasing his ball…

Catching his ball….

Waiting for you to throw his ball…

Staring at his ball…

Holding his ball…

And, pleading with you to throw his ball just ONE MORE TIME…

Black & White Sunday #7

My thanks to our hosts for this blog hop You Did What With Your Weiner, My Life in Blog Years and Dachshund Nola.

Unfortunately, WordPress.com doesn’t allow Java script so I can’t provide a direct link to the linky, but you can join here.

The many poses of Jasper (a.k.a. Trouble)

I think I’ve got a sickness. I can’t stop taking pictures of Jasper as he chases and catches his ball. I keep trying to catch that one shot of him flipping through the air, but so far no luck. So instead, I thought I would share some of his many poses. Who knew an iPhone could capture such great shots?

Here’s a Jaws shot for you Jeanie!

The intensity of a dog like Jasper

I am just going to come right out and say it. I have never had a dog as intense as my Sheltie, Jasper.

He’s always looking for some new thing he can do, and he’s persistent and tenacious in his pursuit of it. He loves to herd almost everything he sees (people, dogs, sheep, etc.).

He also loves to play ball and he will play continuously until you make him stop, and then try to get you to play some more. (This is the dog who dropped a ball on my foot for an hour while I was on a conference call.)

He chases anyone who runs at the dog park and has even started associating running clothes with running and will herd those people too (even when they are just walking).

When he was a puppy, there are times when I thought I would go crazy. He was SO busy!

So when moments like these come along? I sigh and smile.

Overcoming Fear: Jasper’s Quest for his Ball

One of the things I love most about dogs is their sense of discovery. Everything in their world is new and unique and interesting.

But sometimes, things can also be fearful and then a dog just might need a little encouragement to take that extra step or explore a little further. I love watching them overcome that fear and step outside their comfort zone and move beyond it to wonder and/or excitement.

Last night, while out on our hike trough the woods, Jasper came across a dilemma that he didn’t quite know how to handle. Get the ball? Or, don’t get the ball? That was the question.

Jasper loves water, but only water he can stand in. He can swim if he needs to, he just prefers not to if he can avoid it. So, when his ball rolled down the hill and into the water, he had a dilemma. Jump into water that might be deeper than he was comfortable with? Or, stay on land and watch as it floated away.

It took a lot of pacing and hemming and hawing (and a lot of encouragement from me), but he finally took that leap to get the ball. I was so proud of him for overcoming his fear.

Victory!

Jasper’s Weekend in Pictures

This is what Jasper did this weekend. What did your dog do?