It's A Berner-ful Life: Productive Day

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Saturday, April 17, 2010

Productive Day

It was a beautiful spring day today. The snow is mostly all melted from the big dump that we had on Wednesday. Bosley and I went to the park to practice carting. We started with some off-leash heeling and a stand-stay. Both went well, even with the distractions of other dogs nearby. I then got out the cart, put Bosley in a stand stay with the cart and harness about 20 feet behind him (like it would be in a draft test). He moved when I left to get the harness. I put him back, harnessed him then went back and got the cart. He hitched without moving at all - good boy! The rest of the carting session was great. His halts were very good and his slow was good too (we sometimes have trouble with that). I was really impressed with his "gee" and "haw". We have been working these commands lots without the cart but I wasn't sure how much he would generalize them. He is stronger with the "gee" (right) command, but by the end of our session you could really see the "haw" (left) light bulb come on. I was very happy with how Bosley worked today.

I finally got Maggie out to do some tracking today. I wanted to do 3 small tracks with her, but I didn't take enough treats so we only did 2 small tracks. I am using the footstep method AKA "The Hansel and Gretel" method. On the first track, I had to point out the treats for about half the track and then she actively started sniffing for them. I had a glove at the end with a big pile of treats on it. The second track, I only pointed out the first treat and she started searching for the rest. She didn't always search in the right direction, but I just let her try to figure it out, I would just hold her leash so she couldn't move too far off the track. I think that in a couple more sessions she should have the "game" figured out and I can start spacing out the treats more and making the tracks longer.

As well as doing some fun training with the dogs, I also got some much needed housework done and even fit in a little afternoon nap. A productive day indeed.

1 comment:

LindsayApril 17, 2010 at 9:23 PM
The carting sounds fun! You should post some video of it.:)
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An Extraordinary Dog For Extraordinary People

"The Bernese Mountain Dog is different from most other dogs in many respects. Take his size, for example. Everything about a fully grown Bernese is big and strong, massive and mighty; his body, his paws, his teeth , his tongue, his tail,his emotions, his responses, his will, his good, and when they exist, not-so-good habits. Anyone who wants to adopt a Berner needs to think large. A Berner cannot be carried to the vet's in a basket; a struggling Berner cannot be pulled along on a leash; a fully-grown Bernese cannot be forced into a down position by the use of a hand-or even two. A Berner cannot be bathed in a sink, scooped up with an arm, or lifted across a puddle. A Berner slurps water with a bigger tongue from a bigger bowl (and thus slobbers more water on his folks); his coat takes longer to brush; he must go for longer walks. A Berner's paw leaves bigger , deeper, muddier tracks in the house, in flowerbeds, in the car, and on clothes; he shakes off more water upon entering the house after a hike in the rain; his tail wags with greater strength at a higher lever; he barks less frequently, but louder. A Berner bounces more merrily, mourns more deeply, sulks more sadly, resists more strongly, clings more closely, and loves more intensely. A Berner Sennenhund requires more than the little finger. He needs the whole hand, no both hands; no, still not enough. A Berner needs the total person."

---excerpt from"The Bernese Mountain Dog A Dog of Destiny" by Bernd Guenter.