Tonight for the first time I managed to train both of them at the same time - without disasterous results. The first time I tried that I ended up with two dogs half-listening, then getting impatient and frustrated and jumping all over me. Not exactly what I wanted. (I preface commands with their name, and first they didn’t realize the difference.) Today was much better. I put Zeeke in a down-stay while I worked with “touch” and “down” with Zoe (what we’re doing in class). She did really well, though she’s still not positive what “down” means - but she’s downing on her own without guidance from me half the time. (My hand is still in her collar at this point to enforce/guide.) Zeeke did try getting up a few times, but after the first time he’d go back into position without me having to move towards him (me just correcting with “eh” ). The only problem I had was with the word “okay” - Zeeke figured I meant him! (And I have no idea how to differentiate that. I’ll have to ask the trainer.) Zoe’s “touch” is pretty good now, she knows what I mean when I ask it. She seems to enjoy doing it, too, treats or no treats.

At class yesterday Zoe was a bit spacey. Usually she’s the one laying calmly while the other dogs act up - yesterday it was the opposite. The big doors were open through the class, and she spent pretty much the entire time we were inside panicking about the noises and trying to look outside. *sigh* During her stays she wouldn’t look at me at all, she was too nervous. She finally settled at the end of class. She did pretty well with walking. She wasn’t pulling, except when I walked directly towards the truck. She was lagging behind me sometimes though, and the instructor suggested I use “touch” to bring her even with me.

Yesterday afternoon I went outside in the sun with all the grooming tools and gave her a good groom. Surprizingly, I got extremely little fur off of her, and what little I got was from the undercoat in her shorts. The fur on her shorts is so long, like Oreo’s - it must be 5 or 6 inches long. It’s crazy! Her tail too, for that matter.

I started practicing sit-stays with Zoe randomly. Before she gets anything, she has to stay - and hold it. So now every evening for dinner I put their dishes down and tell them to “stay.” I stand back and wait 5 seconds while they stare at me. Then I say “Okay” and they both dive in. Also when letting them out of their crates it’s the same thing. This is big for Zoe, since she’s a spazzy freak when we go to let her out, she can’t calm herself down. I think the stay is helping her do that. So I wait a few short seconds (don’t want to push it too far yet), then release and they both run out. Yay for obedient dogs.

Well yesterday was a disaster. Just after I’d mentioned on some forums about Zoe constantly whining to go out, she had an accident of the poop variety. Ew. Yuck. Then, after dinner I took her out, she peed, got distracted by dogs and owner walking down the street. Five minutes later inside, she pooped again. I think I was pretty ready to throw in the towel at that point… but man, did it reek. So I spent a good part of the day scrubbing and spraying and mopping. Ugh. After that she pooped (outside), then again in the middle of the night. I don’t know what was up with her stomach. Today has gone much more smoothly, but her bathroom break sure did smell aweful. Yuck.

Zoe did so well tonight! I’m so proud of her. After last week I was really feeling like it was going to be a long process, but this is only the second class and she made tons of progress. We were almost a half hour early, so we were let into the training building alone. I let Zoe sniff around the entire room, ran back and forth with her (to try to get her mind off *where she was*), then we picked a seat and sat while the others arrived.

The first to arrive was a young, very friendly lab. I let Zoe sniff noses and say hi - she’s good with other dogs, she’s very submissive but not afraid. The people she’s less sure of, but I think she’s most scared of the general movement and sounds and activity around her. It overwhelms her. So she was looking a little out of sorts while everyone came in and sat down and the class started, but she settled down again.

She spent a good part of the class just laying beside my chair. She wouldn’t stay in front of my chair, and I wouldn’t let her hide behind it, so she just sat beside me and then just lay down. Actually it was pretty funny, she didn’t really want to turn around to face the same way I was, so she sat facing the corner, with her back to the room. LOL I don’t know what that was about. Her body language was much more relaxed than it was last week, though. When she layed down she kicked her back legs out to the side and wasn’t so tense. She was panting with her mouth open.

And, she took treats! I decided to use cut-up hot dogs, she seemed to show the same amount of interest in that as the cheese, and I rather like my cheese myself. So she was taking treats the whole way through class, and eating them. I was so surprized. At the end of class everyone practiced sit, down, and stand with gentle collar pressure and using the treats to lure them into position (to teach them), and Zoe was even able to practice with me. She doesn’t need to be lured into a sit at all, she does need to be lured into a down still (she doesn’t know the word yet, she only knows the hand signal), and she really resisted being lured into a stand. She kept shuffling her butt up to stay in a sit. I think she’s a bit confused on that front. We also practiced a sit/stay with me standing right in front of her and rewarding as she sat there, and waiting for a release. She did well with that - though I was having a bit of a problem keeping her attention on me instead of warily looking around the room at everyone else, but I know that level of distraction is pretty high for her right now.

All in all in was a very progressive night. I’m starting to think that Zoe might make it out of this in much better shape than I anticipated. I was very proud of her, sitting calmly beside me. She whined once or twice (because she wanted to just get out of the building), but other than that she’s so quiet, just sitting or laying there. Huge difference from the barking, wiggling, jumping labs all around us.

This week I haven’t been working with Zoe as much as I should have, but I’ve still made time to practice with her. The practice is as much for me as it is for her! Saying “yes” instead of “good” is just not coming too easily to me… I wonder if I should just stick with “good,” since the dogs already know it. Oops is easier, though not easy - I’m so used to saying “ehhh” when they step out of line. But the oops makes sense in teaching them, especially Zoe, so I’ll keep pressing on.

I still haven’t found a food that makes her crazy though, other than dinner. So far I’ve tried soft bought treats, cheese, and popcorn chicken. She likes all of them well enough, cheese the best, but I’m not sure if it’s enough. Cheese is definitely the one she’ll swallow fastest though - the others she tends to drop first to check out what else you have, then eat it. (She does that with everything - only dog I know who is more interested in what else is going on than a cookie!) It was so much easier with Oreo, she loved everything you offered her - except veggies, she wasn’t keen on veggies. Never did try green beans though!

I’m afraid we aren’t doing a very good job of curbing Zeeke’s barking. I’m considering just blocking the windows somehow - it does work for me to get up and get in front of him and put him a down, but I have to do it about every five minutes when he’s wound up. It’s just not practical 90% of the time. But regardless, he does listen which is a relief. This morning he was a little bit wound up over the cat, so we used the opportunity to practice our down-stay on the dog bed. (Which to him is “go lay down.” ) I had to correct him a couple times (with “ehhh!” ), and once I had to get up and physically bring him back to the bed (the cat jumped into the living room, that was beyond his level of distraction!). He watched me intently the whole time (waiting waiting waiting for that release signal) and I didn’t hold him too long in the stay, I don’t want to push my luck. But he does well. I’m still pretty floored at the progress he’s made in the last two years. He’s really maturing.

So yesterday was Zoe’s first obedience lesson. It wasn’t so much a lesson on obedience as it was a Terrible Horrible Trauma, in her book. If she could have said something to me afterwards, it would have been, “Why did you put me through that?” I said afterwards because I doubt she could have spoken during.

So we walked into the building, Zoe slinking along beside and behind me. There were other dogs already in there - big, happy, flamboyant labs. It did not help Zoe’s attitude at all. While I waited to hand over my paperwork and check, I glanced down at Zoe to find little piles of poop all around her. Whoops. Got a little too scared there. The instructor’s assistant cleaned it all up. After I got the paperwork taken care of I sat down with Zoe.

Let me explain something about this class set-up. There are ten chairs spaced around the room, each one sitting in a “box” on the floor - black tape marking a square. The dog is to be kept inside that box at all times during the class, except when directed otherwise. The isntructor explained it is for two reasons: one, it is to make a point to the dogs that they do not control the room. It is manipulating their behavior to show that the instructors are in charge, the dogs are not. Of course some dogs spent the entire first lesson trying to worm out of their box or barking to invite the next dog over to join them, but there were ways of dealing with that as well. The second reason given for the boxes was to make shy dogs (like Zoe) feel safe. After a while they realize that no other dog will come barging across the room at them. That is their box, their space. This whole concept of personal space is one of the reasons I chose this particular training center for us - it is extremely important for Zoe that she have her own space and not get freaked out by other dogs or people.

So in any case Zoe spent the first half of the class trying to hide behind my [metal folding] chair. The instructor then got us to place our dogs between our legs (I had to use my feet to block her from scooting underneath my chair) and showed us some relaxation massage techniques. For the dogs. So I spent the rest of the class massaging Zoe and trying to get her to relax.

Nearing the end of the class the other dogs were being shown sit, down and stand. I sort of did them with Zoe, but as I told one of the instructors, I’m not really there to teach Zoe her commands - it’s probably better that I do that at home anyways. Zoe’s in class for socialization. So really the most important thing for her is not pushing her any further out of her comfort zone than she has to be. The instructors were careful not to approach her directly, not to get to close to her, not to appear a threat to her in any way. They tossed a few little treats on the floor for her, but she didn’t eat them - she was too tense to consider eating anything.

One of the remarks the instructor made was that her jaw was really really tight, clamped shut. She said if we could just get her mouth open and tongue out during the class that it would be a really great achievement. Well Zoe did lick me a few times, but she never did start panting or anything. Hopefully next class.

Our homework this week is to work on teaching her sit/down/stand, two of which she knows reasonably well already, and to find a stinky, soft food to use as a treat that makes her go crazy. I haven’t found it yet. I have soft dog treats to use at home, but they’re really not interesting enough for class. (In Zoe’s case, it’s really REALLY not interesting enough. No food is!)

Well today was less successful. We took both dogs out to run and play, I let Zoe off-leash in the backyard. She was highballing it around the yard. I got the feeling she had to poop, as she ran into the woods… but she was so focused on sniffing and finding a good spot that she was wandering further and further away. Now of course I don’t blame her for not knowing where the yard boundaries are because there are NO markers (for that matter, I don’t know where they are either!), but she wasn’t listening to me when I called her. Den finally went back there with Zeeke and she came barelling out for another run around. But I guess we’re going to have to go back on-leash for a while until she learns to mind, even when there is a really interesting smell. I haven’t been doing a good enough job of training lately.

On the good news side, we got email from the training center that a place has been saved for us for the thursday night class, and it starts this week! Unfortunately it’s with a different trainer than the one we saw (the one we saw was the main owner of the center), and I hope that doesn’t cause problems. It shouldn’t.

I’m starting to like this early-morning ritual with Zoe, running around outside with her in the backyard. She LOVES to run. There’s a large patch in the middle of the backyard of ice/snow still, so she has to be careful not to slip on it, but it’s still so much fun. She’s doing super-well about listening to my guidance, turning around when I call her back and such. A few times she’s wandered close to the neighbor’s yards, but she turns back and doesn’t go further when I call.

Today I ran back and forth, calling her name every time she zoomed past me. She’d turn around and chase me again. Back and forth, back and forth. It’s great! Gets her a lot of exercise - and me some too, lol!

I’m just so proud of her. I can’t wait til I get to start her on agility, I think she’ll like it.

This early AM (5 in the morning, to be exact) I was still unable to sleep - and of course this means Zoe is antsy. She gets up every time I creep out of the bedroom, and then she has to pee. Every time. Even if it’s just been half an hour. That last time I took her out at 5am she was hyper with a capital H. Running circles around me. So I let her off the leash. She took off like a bat out of hell for the back yard - ran straight to Zeeke’s potty spot in the woods, then stood there staring at me. I’m not sure if she was waiting for me to follow, or if she was just checking to see if I was still watching, either way she just stood there staring at me for a long time. Then she sniffed the entire area. After a few minutes I crouched down and called her name. She came flying back towards me, around through the side-yard and up the hill to me. She actually ran past me, but I said “come” and she trotted over to me. I stroked her head and said what a good girl she was… then said “okay” and let her run off again to expend some of that pent-up energy. It was awesome to see her run like that. She really needs it once in a while, you know? There’s only so much on-leash exercise she can get. The second time I called her name, she did come to me with some encouragement, but when I so much as twitched (to get up to take a half-step closer to her) she was off and running again. She was just too hyper to sit still. (My fault, I haven’t taught her to come-sit formally.) Then she got all distracted with some scents on a branch in the backyard, I had problems getting her attention. I didn’t really want to be yelling at 5am, and I don’t yell “come” when I can’t enforce it, so instead I stomped my feet and walked in the other direction. She came flying. Straight up the steps (missing a few on the way) to the front door.

So not a totally successful off-leash outing, I definitely need to actually practice her sitting and staying under distraction (she is SUCH a wiggle-worm, we have problems getting her to sit still for more than a split-second on a good day). But she stayed within the bounds and listened pretty well. With Zoe I feel like it’s not a matter of commanding or instructing… but in learning together, working together. Isn’t that odd? She doesn’t always behave perfectly according to my rules, but I find it very easy to adapt and behave in such a way that she understands better. It’s hard to explain.

Fence soon! Yay! I’m sooo excited about letting both dogs loose together. Poor Zeeke never gets any off-leash time at all, because he’s so not trustworthy. And despite the huge benefit a good run would do him, the risks far far outweigh it.

Zoe is just such a wonderful companion. She eagerly and happily goes along with whatever I am doing, whatever my mood is. When I run around she plays with me; when I sit and work she lays at my feet.

Tonight, middle of the night, I am unable to sleep and she of course couldn’t let me leave the bedroom without her. Zoe is now awake and eager to play with the cat (who is of course hyper). But then she wants back in the bedroom, where Zeeke is, so she stands at the bedroom door and whines. I call her to me, she comes. It is easy to get her to lay down on the blanket on the floor - she doesn’t know what “go lay down” means, but she follows my hand. Praise makes her happy. A bone to chew occupies her. She relaxes and pulls the bone across her paws to better chew it. She’s content, as am I.

She doesn’t stay that way for too long, however - the cat distracts her, enticing her to get up and try to play. She ends up going back to the bedroom door. I call her back and direct her back to the blanket. The third time she lays down on her own.

It is so easy to teach her. She is so willing and eager to please… and so joyful in everything she does. It’s hard not to feel that life is wonderful, around her.

The cat has been taunting her more today, biting at her neck as always. Just now I found him laying on his back, front paws splayed wide, batting at Zoe’s head above him. He just layed there, twisting around and swatting playfully. After a little while of that he lunged up and grabbed her neck, then ran off. I don’t think either of them know quite what to make of each other.