White Dog Lessons

Well, my Mom's been pretty busy with work lately, but now things have finally settled down and those lazy dog days of summer are finally here!  My favorite thing to do in the evenings if I'm not doing therapy visits is to putter around the shady back yard and find just the right place to lay and enjoy the breeze.  My Mom and my friends are all around me and the grass is so cool.  Sometimes I nibble on a salad while I'm there. 

Mom is back to teaching me new things now that she's got some free time.  We always do all the tricks I already know like sit and down and all that.  Spin is my favorite 'cause it's the easiest one for me to do!  I don't really see the point in shaking hands.  That's something that humans do, not dogs.  But Mom keeps tapping my elbow and then lifting my leg, shaking it up and down and giving me a treat.  I eat the treat, of course, but it all seems like a waste of time to me! 

I amaze my Mom by stepping through a hula hoop held off the ground a couple inches.  Usually I get all the way through, but sometimes I step the front legs through and then forget the back ones are still on the other side.  But she is always so happy and gives me treats, so I do it just to amuse her.  She thinks one day I may surprise her and do a little hop through ... but I will keep her waiting awhile for that one! 

I still like to play in my tunnels, and now Mom is teaching me some new tricks which are really fun.  I'm learning to lay over flat on my side and then to roll over on my back in both directions.  At first I was afraid, but now I know I am not falling and I will get treats at the end.  It's kind of fun!  And I am learning to crawl to reach that goodie.  Mom makes me work on down stay too, and sometimes I get confused and will try to crawl when I am supposed to be staying. 

Mom has it in her head that I would look really cute if I learned to sit up and beg.  But that's another one - I just don't get it!  I can stretch my nose really high and I can almost reach that treat, but it keeps moving just another fraction of an inch so I can't quite get it.  Mom helps me lift my front legs, but I think she is going to pick me up, so I move to help her, but then I just fall over.  I wonder if she'll just stop trying.

Mom has been fostering again for sheltie rescue, so I've had some new foster brothers and sisters around lately.  At first, I got worried.  I thought maybe she was going to keep the new dogs and send me away.  I started making messes on the floor to tell Mom how I felt.  Well, Mom would clean up the messes, but then she would tell me how SHE felt.  Oops!  She was not happy.  She told me I was not going anywhere and that I needed to help to show the new dogs how to keep the house clean and dry.  So now I try my best to show them the right place to go in the yard. 

Here are some funny pictures of me doing french fry k9 nosework!  My instructor would be proud!  I knew exactly where Mom put the bag and pointed right to it.  Mom got the message and hid a french fry for me to find in the empty bag!  Finders Keepers ... losers ... well, that's Grace watching politely as I grab my prize!!