Saturday, March 21, 2015

Day 1: Getting to Know You

It was a pleasure to meet you and Sage today! Thank you for bringing her, and taking the time to stay with her for a little while before driving home again. I think that helped her settle in more easily.

When you left she looked longingly for you for a few minutes.
Oh where and oh where have my people gone ...
But then I suggested we go for a walk, and she perked up a little.
I am a good dog. But I still miss my people.
 As we got going, as I had hoped, Sage lost herself in exploring. Sniffing does wonderful things for an unsure dog!

First we went to the garden... 



Next, we headed to the barn - home of many pack rats over the years, so plenty of extra interesting smells there! 
I smell a rat!
There! I know there is a rat's nest right in there! (She's right, there is!)
OK. That was pretty cool. Now what?
We walked down the driveway, stopping do some off-leash exploring in one of the fenced yards.

Next we went further on down the driveway towards the river. [Sage is wearing a 30' long line made of rubber-coated rope - it is great for simulating being off-leash, and allows freedom with security.]
I think I am getting happy!
We went to the swimming hole, where Helms Creek flows into the Yachats River.  Sage was thoughtful at first.
Hmmm. That's a lot of wet.
And then something caught her attention and to my amazement she began trying to cross the creek. It is shallow but quite fast flowing and I thought she would be scared. But she seemed to get excited by the moving water and apparently just had to check out something on the other side.
Why did the Labradoodle cross the creek?
To get to a rock on the other side
But it was a bit scary.
Ooooffff. And too wet.
Undaunted, she decided to try an easier crossing.


Much easier.

Now where's that rock I was after? Is it this one?
Found it!
I was impressed by Sage's curiosity, courage, intelligence, and problem solving ability. Really cool to watch!

Next we went onto the bridge over the river and played hunting games. I had already tried giving Sage a few different treats, and the one she liked best was dried lamb lung. I brought some with me to use for training if and when she was ready.

Yes please, I would really like some lamb lung!
Lamb lung. Were you going to give me some lamb lung? More please!
Now that she was more relaxed and I had something she really wanted, we could begin to play some training games. We started to play the Tiny Come Game - this is a very simple game where I back up or run a few paces, calling Come! in a happy voice - and reward her for coming to me. The idea here is to associate the sound "Come!" with moving towards me and getting something she really wants as a result.    

Back at the house, Sage explored the meadow.

We found an old toy in the grass and I tempted Sage with it till I got her excited and in the mood for playing.

By this time Sage seemed pretty cheery!
I love exploring!
 The Pioneer phone engineer came to fix the phone. Sage was very polite with him. And while he was working on the phone, we played the Tiny Come Game with toys instead of treats as rewards. Sage was so happy and excited she got the zoomies!
Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!
Let's play!


See, I'm really an angel in a dog suit!
And a speed demon too!
 Next we played some "Find It" games with treats in the grass - this is also in preparation for "Come" training. A hunting game is an even better reward for coming than just a treat by itself. We started out very easy and will build this up so it is really fun for her, and a magnificent reward for harder recalls from really interesting smells.
Find it, Sage!
Yep. Found it!
We also tried her out in the crate in the car, also using hunting games to build her confidence and make it more fun. First we tried it with the door open.
Like. Sort of.
Do not like much. But OK.
I'd like to get out now please. 
We kept this introduction really short, and moved on to toys - I wanted to see which ones she really likes so I can use them as rewards in training. Also, playing is a good way to make friends!

Chase it toy 
Like.
Fun!
 Remote controlled tarantula....
You gotta be kidding me!
Hah! I knew that wasn't a real one.
 Real fur mouse...
Like! A lot!
Snake...
Hmmmmm.
OK, but not my fave.
Squirrel ball...
Oh YES! Now THAT's what  I like! I seriously LIKE THAT SQUIRREL!
We played some simple recall games with toy play as rewards. Sage got really happy about this and zoomed back and forth all over the yard. Playing with her favorite Squirrel was the best reward of all.
Is it a bird, is it a plane? No, it's a squirrel!
Sage was happy to bring the squirrel back to me as well.

How about another round of Squirrel Fetch?
After all that fun and new stuff, Sage was ready for a good nap. She is snoozing as I blog. She seems to have adjusted very well. She is not showing any signs of anxiety - no panting or restlessness,  able to eat and play and snuggle. She's a really sweet girl, but you know that of course!

Dreaming of you!


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