Sampling foliage.
Viktor has officially outgrown his puppy harness. We went from an extra small up to a medium. I’ll have to write about the harness separately – the Ruffwear Front Range Harness. The part around his neck never actually ended up fitting well – the strap around his body was too tight, but even at that point the neck was too loose. I probably should get him his own collar soon.
Last week we went to a statewide 4-H event. This meant his first all-day car crating. We had to get out the shade cover but didn’t need the fans. He saw a lot of new people and dogs as well as exciting things like a very smooth floor and microphones making screeching noises. On the way home we stopped at a place of elementary school field trips – Roscoe Village – a small town somewhat set up as a living history type place. Viktor really liked all the shops and peeked through the doorway at each one. He also thought it was a type of trip where you taste/sample all the plant life – I had to keep him away from the ornamental gardens. We saw lots of people outdoors, interesting stairs to climb, and lots of signs about the UKC beagle hunting championship that was happening nearby that weekend.
Canal boat.
We’ve done some more puppy class and agility class. He’s learning to be a demo dog in class- sometimes he gets impatient in his crate and barks, but each class the amount of barking is decreasing.
He’s made many trips to the park, the pet store, and in town. We went to the obedience club when Griffin did a match. He had his first haircut to get rid of his fuzzy toes and we’ve had some great nail trims. He gets a lot of compliments/teasing about how silly his hair is. He will probably always have short hair on his body although he will probably have longer feathering than Griffin and maybe even Blaze. his short, tight coat is great and will be much more like Blaze’s than Griffins.
Informal Training: He’s just so great! We’re mostly just maintaining what we have. Relax in your crate at home. Relax on your bed at home. Walk nicely out in public. Chew your items and not wood.
Formal Training: Heeling. Retrieves. We got a…reminder… in class that his stays really need some training. He’s doing a tiny bit of agility work when he is a demo dog in some beginning level agility classes (2-3 times a week!). We are doing a lot of focus/play/interaction in different environments. He’s now old enough to be a little distracted by the environment. He alternates between wanting to stare at everything else and seeming oblivious to everything going on around him.
He still wants to sleep on my lap.
He’s almost done with puppy class (now aged out if you count in weeks – but by ‘months’ he won’t be 6 months until May 13th!). We don’t have a good option for sneaking into a manners class so we just really have to work on his crating and let him spend more time being a demo dog. I’ll be really happy when we can get to the point where I can alternate between Viktor and Griffin in a class. We can do that with simple training at home – and have started it at the facility – but I can’t add in “teaching a class” to that yet.
I’m teaching a lot of young puppies right now, in group class and private lessons – and I’m wishing I had taken more video and photos before – and I know I should be now! We replaced our camera this week after the last one went swimming in the mop bucket (thanks Blaze), I just need to use it.
What’s next: More out of town traveling and stays (first time in a hotel), more car crating, meeting some new friends, and I’m not sure what else will happen on our adventure. We’ll be finishing our online class soon and needing to decide our next formal learning opportunities.