C and I took Poppy to our first class today. It was your standard click, treat, watch me, kind of stuff but useful and a good opportunity for socialization for the pooch. The instructor was great, not the stereotypical uber-trainer I've encountered before. There was, of course, that one "pooch parent" who felt the need to "share" his advice with everyone else in the room about how to train their dogs... all while his dog goosed everyone in the room. He gave me a brief (until I excused myself for Poppy to go out for a phantom pee) lecture about how he had to show his wife's Shih Tzu who was boss by establishing his dominance. Direct quote "He thought he was boss until I rolled the sucker!" Wow, dude, you were able to physically overpower an 8-lb. dog? How do your briefs contain such a package?
I get his point about not letting the dog be the boss but seriously, Poppy has trust issues, not dominance issues. Instead of letting it annoy me, I kept thinking about "Best in Show" - if you've seen it, you're smirking right now. If not, get to watchin'!
It's a rainy Saturday and I have a runny nose. I think there's a spot on the couch with my name on it. Big decision of the afternoon: Earl Grey, Good Earth, or Darjeeling? I wonder if I have the energy to make some scones...
Earl Grey with a shot of whiskey, squirt of honey and a squeeze of lemon. I'm suffering from the sniffles as well. Darn cold/allergy season.
ReplyDeleteWe're going to put Putty in classes too. Unfortunately, I think we might be dealing with dominance and insecurity. He definitely clings to me and is showing who's who with the kids. I get it and I respect it and I don't blame him. Where are you taking your lessons?
Sheesh... dominance and insecurity... how many struggles in all of our lives can be attributed to the same thing?
ReplyDeleteWe're taking lessons at Canine Learning Center. So far, I'm impressed with how upbeat the instructor is even in light of Poppy's obvious nervousness. Other places I've gone previously want nothing to do with dogs that aren't going to compete in obedience.
Thanks for the Earl Grey recipe - I'll have to try that one. Sadly, everyone appears to be going down for the count this evening. I think I might need to "muster" in the morning to take care of everyone else.
Good luck with Putty. I'm sure all will be fine.