Doggy School

Riley went to obedience class yesterday for her first class. We signed up at PetSmart for these classes because she needs a little bit of training. It's not that she's a bad puppy, she just needs to learn that she can't always get her way (which is a lot my fault). We arrived about 20 minutes early and once the trainer saw that we were there for the class, she immediately had us walking Riley around the training rink. She said "a tired puppy is a good puppy". So basically I guess dogs listen better once the hyperness is out of them (hmmm...sounds like kids!). So after walking for 15 minutes, she was definitely tired. Riley started to learn that if she pulls as we are walking she's not going to go where she wants to go. If she pulled, we had to turn around for 3 steps and the turn back around and continue on our walk. By the end of the 15 minutes, she was staying mostly on my left side, not pulling as much, and would stop when I stopped. Big improvement over how she normally walks.

Once class started, she was pretty good. A few of the other dogs were barking a lot and the trainer slammed two metal bowls together and shouted "uh uh" to make them quiet down. This scared Riley, but nothing scared her more than when the trainer pulled out the can with the pennies in it. Riley absolutely hates that (hence the fact we have one at home and have since she was a baby). When the dogs would start to bark, the trainer shook the can and yelled "quiet". It was never directed at Riley, but let me tell you, all she had to do was hear it once and she was under mine and Richie's legs!

She did learn some other tricks though at class (after being scared). We were taught how to use a clicker and pair it was a treat (which eventually will be taken away). She learned the look command and has transferred it to home as well. I think she is going to be a quick learner! So far so good.