Day 21

Hops has been with us for three weeks now, wow, time sure flies! He has put on 3lbs in that time putting him at just over 11lbs now. The behaviors he can now do are; it’s your choice (with tossing food on the ground and moving food away in an open hand), hand targeting, heeling with pushes, pulls, front and rear crosses on the flat, release on a verbal cue, sit, down and stand, name response, recall (with no or minor distractions only), will calmly allow handing, will offer to go into his crate, will offer to remain in the crate while the door is opening, can remain in a sit as the back door is opening, downs as soon as he gets on the agility table, rides quietly in the car, potties on leash, potties quickly when we take him out, sleeps through the night, can sleep through dogs barking and teeters banging, knows birch and boxes, can roll over, wow! Words I think he knows are release, Hops, come, touch, sit, down, leave it and hurry (potty word).

Hops started his day with a playtime with Rice then I did shaping with him putting his head through a harness, through his agility leash and through a cape and putting his nose through a head collar nose loop. He did great and was offering to put his head/ nose through all of them though I could tell this was not a favorite exercise. We then did some body handling then pushups. He is offering a sit from a down about 2/3 of the time now and is staying in a stand easier. Good puppy!

I had a private lesson at work today and afterwards I did some of the Fun and Fit curriculum with Hops and he did great! We did heeling with pushes, pulls and pace changes, we did pushes around a chair, I had him walking on a plank and through a ladder, walking from stool to stool to stool (5 in a row), all easy for him! He did great with lining up in heel on either side of me and was even able to line up away from a cookie distraction on the floor. Zen cookie was easy for him and he did great with tween and all the stretches. We played crate games too, and not only is he offering to go right back in after I release him out but he can stay in with the door open while I take a couple of steps away! Boy this puppy is smart! We then ran around doing recalls until he was tired. And my plan worked, he is now sound asleep!

For his dinner Hops did nosework and blew Jeremiah and I away. He clearly knows birch and loves the sight of boxes already. So far he is easy to read as when he gets into odor and never left an odor container (though I was close so I could reward him quickly). He even downed some of the time before I got there. When we did interior searches he was clearly searching for the odor and worked to source every time. Too bad he has to be six months old to enter an ORT!

This puppy is something else. Jeremiah asked him to come when he was on the opposite side of the coffee table and Hops attempted to come right over the table! It will not be too long and a crazy antic like that might work!

Jeremiah wanted to introduce Hops to the treadmill tonight and he took to it faster than Rice or Dillon did. What a brave and food motivated puppy he is!