"Leo's Adventure Up the Schuylkill Expressway"
OK, so we didn't actually get any pictures during the actual drive. But once we go to our destination, Megan snapped a few.
Showing posts with label off site. Show all posts
Showing posts with label off site. Show all posts
Friday, March 19, 2010
Monday, February 15, 2010
Central Bark!
Leo spent another Sunday at Central Bark. This time, his buddy Carl was there! Check out some of the pictures that Carl's Pen Pal took of the two dogs at http://shelterdogbmod.blogspot.com.
Here are some pics that Leo's other Pen Pal, Megan, took:
Out in the yard:
Look out! Comin' through!
Going over the agility A-frame:
Enjoying a bully stick on the way home.
Here are some pics that Leo's other Pen Pal, Megan, took:
Out in the yard:
Look out! Comin' through!
Going over the agility A-frame:
Enjoying a bully stick on the way home.
Monday, February 1, 2010
Leo's Best Day EVER!
Yesterday, Leo had what was probably the best day EVER in his short life. Megan and I picked him and took him to Central Bark Doggie Day Care.
Central Bark has 3 enclosed play areas, as well as an enclosed training area. Christina brought along Mario, and Erin brought along Val.
As soon as we got into our "area" (the training room), Leo was itching to get out of his Easy Walk harness. As soon as he was out, he TOOK OFF RUNNING. And ran. And ran. And ran. And took a break. And ran. And ran.
(Sorry for the blurry pictures. Leo is really FAST! Did I mention he'd probably make a great flyball dog?)
He ran for nearly two straight hours.
He also discovered the agility tunnel, and went through it on his own. Then, we tossed some treats through the tire, and he jumped right through — no confidence issues with this boy! It did take a bit of coaxing to get him over the A-frame—after all, it is a big, scary piece of equipment!
He and Mario raced up and down the fence, and for what I think was the first time, I heard Leo bark. I'm not even sure he knew he was doing it!
Leo's video #1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-FJp5H5dxlw
Leo's video #2: >http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMyR0CjajyA
Central Bark has 3 enclosed play areas, as well as an enclosed training area. Christina brought along Mario, and Erin brought along Val.
As soon as we got into our "area" (the training room), Leo was itching to get out of his Easy Walk harness. As soon as he was out, he TOOK OFF RUNNING. And ran. And ran. And ran. And took a break. And ran. And ran.
(Sorry for the blurry pictures. Leo is really FAST! Did I mention he'd probably make a great flyball dog?)
He ran for nearly two straight hours.
He also discovered the agility tunnel, and went through it on his own. Then, we tossed some treats through the tire, and he jumped right through — no confidence issues with this boy! It did take a bit of coaxing to get him over the A-frame—after all, it is a big, scary piece of equipment!
He and Mario raced up and down the fence, and for what I think was the first time, I heard Leo bark. I'm not even sure he knew he was doing it!
Leo's video #1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-FJp5H5dxlw
Leo's video #2: >http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMyR0CjajyA
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Thursday, 1/28/2010
Megan and I met at ACCT for Leo's next lesson: wearing an Easy Walk Harness, pictured below.
The purpose of the Easy Walk Harness is similar to that of a Gentle Leader. It clips in the front, so that if the dog pulls, it is simply turned around (clipping it on the dog's back defeats the purpose and actually gives the dog MORE leverage to pull).
However, because it is not worn around the muzzle, it is easier for the dog to adjust to wearing it.
I bought the Large for Leo, although it is just slightly too big. Megan has a Medium/Large (available only online) at home, and will bring it in for Leo to wear.
After fitting the harness on Leo, we decided to do a dog-meet, in anticipation of a regular play-date with another Pen Pal named Carl (here's Carl's blog: http://shelterdogbmod.blogspot.com).
The meet went very well -- even though Leo attempted several times to hump Carl, Carl did not seem to mind, and Leo didn't seem to mind when Carl tried to give it back. The two played very roughly, but did seem to wear each other significantly.
Afterwards, Carl went back to his kennel, and we began a review of things Leo knows (sit and down), and things we've been working on (touch and stay). Carl's Pen Pal, Dave, also showed us how to teach "Follow," in which Leo follows a downward-pointing finger in a figure 6, from facing you, to almost behind you, to a heel position.
Tomorrow (Sunday, 1/31/2010) will be a fun day for Leo. We are attempting another off-site trip, to Central Bark Doggie Day Care. They have graciously offered to open their doors to ACCT Pen Pals for some off-leash (indoor!) fun!
The purpose of the Easy Walk Harness is similar to that of a Gentle Leader. It clips in the front, so that if the dog pulls, it is simply turned around (clipping it on the dog's back defeats the purpose and actually gives the dog MORE leverage to pull).
However, because it is not worn around the muzzle, it is easier for the dog to adjust to wearing it.
I bought the Large for Leo, although it is just slightly too big. Megan has a Medium/Large (available only online) at home, and will bring it in for Leo to wear.
After fitting the harness on Leo, we decided to do a dog-meet, in anticipation of a regular play-date with another Pen Pal named Carl (here's Carl's blog: http://shelterdogbmod.blogspot.com).
The meet went very well -- even though Leo attempted several times to hump Carl, Carl did not seem to mind, and Leo didn't seem to mind when Carl tried to give it back. The two played very roughly, but did seem to wear each other significantly.
Afterwards, Carl went back to his kennel, and we began a review of things Leo knows (sit and down), and things we've been working on (touch and stay). Carl's Pen Pal, Dave, also showed us how to teach "Follow," in which Leo follows a downward-pointing finger in a figure 6, from facing you, to almost behind you, to a heel position.
Tomorrow (Sunday, 1/31/2010) will be a fun day for Leo. We are attempting another off-site trip, to Central Bark Doggie Day Care. They have graciously offered to open their doors to ACCT Pen Pals for some off-leash (indoor!) fun!
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Sorry!
I apologize for not updating sooner.
On Wednesday, the most active Pen Pal volunteers gathered at ACCT to share ideas about training and marketing of our Pen Pals. Erin shared with us some great news -- Natalie OK'ed a generous offer by Portia of Central Bark Doggie Day Care to allow us to bring our Pen Pals on Sundays to run off-leash in their enclosed (indoor!) dog runs! Thank you, Portia!
On Saturday, Megan and I met at ACCT at 8:45, and attempted to ambush Leo with a Gentle Leader head collar. This is a dog wearing a Gentle Leader:
As you can see, a dog can still hold a ball, eat food, and take a drink. It is NOT a muzzle. It gives the owner control over the dog's head, which in turn, gives the owner control over the dog's body.
Unfortunately, most dogs do not immediately adjust to wearing this type of collar, because they are not used to having something around their nose. It usually takes time to get the dog to adjust to it, using positive reinforcement for walking nicely, without trying to paw it off.
Leo HATED it. He shook his head so vigorously trying to get it off. We managed to get from the shelter into my car for a ride down to Kelly Drive. However, in the car, he did get the loop off of his nose.
Once at Kelly Drive, we decided to leave the Gentle Leader off. He was shaking so much, we thought his shaking would be more of a turn-off for potential adopters than his energetic pulling on my regular leash.
We met John down there, and introduced him to Leo. John can't have dogs in his apartment, but he did sign up to be a volunteer for the PSPCA/ACCT!
Due to time constraints, Leo's journey to Kelly Drive didn't last too long, and didn't even put a dent in his energy level. We're hoping to take him to Central Bark on Sunday, January 31st, where he can RUN RUN RUN!
Also, because of a shortage of "Adopt Me" vests at ACCT, Megan ordered one on her own from Dog Booties. When we went down to Kelly Drive, nobody knew that he was available for adoption.
On Wednesday, the most active Pen Pal volunteers gathered at ACCT to share ideas about training and marketing of our Pen Pals. Erin shared with us some great news -- Natalie OK'ed a generous offer by Portia of Central Bark Doggie Day Care to allow us to bring our Pen Pals on Sundays to run off-leash in their enclosed (indoor!) dog runs! Thank you, Portia!
On Saturday, Megan and I met at ACCT at 8:45, and attempted to ambush Leo with a Gentle Leader head collar. This is a dog wearing a Gentle Leader:
As you can see, a dog can still hold a ball, eat food, and take a drink. It is NOT a muzzle. It gives the owner control over the dog's head, which in turn, gives the owner control over the dog's body.
Unfortunately, most dogs do not immediately adjust to wearing this type of collar, because they are not used to having something around their nose. It usually takes time to get the dog to adjust to it, using positive reinforcement for walking nicely, without trying to paw it off.
Leo HATED it. He shook his head so vigorously trying to get it off. We managed to get from the shelter into my car for a ride down to Kelly Drive. However, in the car, he did get the loop off of his nose.
Once at Kelly Drive, we decided to leave the Gentle Leader off. He was shaking so much, we thought his shaking would be more of a turn-off for potential adopters than his energetic pulling on my regular leash.
We met John down there, and introduced him to Leo. John can't have dogs in his apartment, but he did sign up to be a volunteer for the PSPCA/ACCT!
Due to time constraints, Leo's journey to Kelly Drive didn't last too long, and didn't even put a dent in his energy level. We're hoping to take him to Central Bark on Sunday, January 31st, where he can RUN RUN RUN!
Also, because of a shortage of "Adopt Me" vests at ACCT, Megan ordered one on her own from Dog Booties. When we went down to Kelly Drive, nobody knew that he was available for adoption.
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