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Bonnie-Jane, Canine Consultant & Adventurer
To my fellow canines . . .it’s March. Brrrrr! Luckily, I have my fur coat to keep me warm on our morning walks. Lots of snow for Rock and Cyndy to snowshoe and for me to hone my tracking skills. The wildlife leave lots of hoof and paw prints along our path that are easy for me to follow and my nose works pretty good too! There are many tracks from our elusive deer population. Although I have never personally met one, I would know them for sure because of their scent. I have met those pesky red squirrels whose tracks are everywhere. Well maybe not quite met them. You see, they like to watch me from the base of a tree while I’m following their tracks towards them. As soon as I get close and spy them, they zip up the tree to the safety of a branch. From this vantage point, they chatter and tease me while I circle the tree. I keep telling them that I just want someone to play with, but I guess they’re not buying it. Sometimes I come across tracks that look like mine. Rock tells me that they’re coyote tracks and that I should not follow them. We also have mice tracks and they are fun to follow because they go in and out of the snow. I follow them across the top of the snow with my nose and when they disappear under the snow, so does my head. What great fun!
In my last column I mentioned that Rock enrolled us in “Basic Obedience” classes. Our first class went well - I think. There are seven other dogs in the class and it is mighty distracting. But you know, I have to give Rock and Cyndy credit. They sat still and listened very well. Now if any of my fellow canines are planning to go to classes with your humans, the most important thing to remember is to keep them interested in what we are doing. We accomplish this by providing “rewards” or ”treats” such as sitting, staying or coming to them when they ask us to. These treats get them very excited and they are much easier to work with. I enjoy doggy school and Rock is doing very well. In addition to sit, stay and come, we have learned that if I sit or lay in one place Rock can walk all around me, walk away and come back and step over me several times. And not once step on ME! Pretty good eh.
Well friends, enjoy the winter, have fun with your humans and play safe.
Check out my videos on you-tube. Visit our website at www. curiousguide.ca to view these fun little vids.
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