Training in the Park

Kristi finally remembered to take a camera to the park, this morning. We have two prominent goals, right now. First, get Chardonnay to down-stay with distractions and secondly, to get Zinfandel to jump-on any surface other than the floorboard of a vehicle. I have been hoping that with Chardonnay leading the way, Zinfandel would get it. Also, Chardonnay is a great heeler and I'm hoping that Zinfandel will heel better when she hears all the praise Chardonnay gets. Chardonnay gets the benefit of seeing Zinfandel do a quick sit or quick down and with that she gets lots of happy praise, (and some kibble, once in awhile), very quickly. Also, Zinfandel does a nice auto-sit at curbs so Chardonnay can learn from her. It's great having sisters to work together.

Down-stays in the cool grass after walking to the park.

On top of the picnic table after a successful jump-on, (it took a piece of kibble).

The table is metal and painted, so it's very slippery and has quarter sized holes on the top.

Chardonnay says, "So been here done this, come on!" Zinfandel says, "Am I ok? What happens next?"

Chardonnay, "I'm just gonna take a nap." Zinfandel, "O.k., so nothing awful has happened, yet."

Chardonnay jumped on the first three round steps then does a down-stay.

Chardonnay to Zinfandel, "How much longer do you think this training session will last?"

Accidentally took this while working "off"...

"Hey sis, you did it! No kibble, just followed me, good job!"

"Thanks, sis, now can you please do a down-stay so we can go home?"

Pretty girls.

A heeling we will go, a heeling we will go, hi-ho a heeling we will go.

Tired Puppies

This morning Kristi attempted to take both girls on a walk and down to the park for some training. The walk went much better than expected. The training session was short as the two girls couldn't stay focused for too long, while competing with each other. Chardonnay did great on the playground surfaces and jump-on. Zinfandel wasn't so sure about jumping on stuff that seemed too human. She does great jump-on into the car, but everything else seems foreign to her. I was hoping that with Chardonnay showing her it's ok she'd go for it, but I guess we'll need to work on that after Char-Char is back home in KC. Unfortunately, Kristi forgot the camera, again! We did do some training this afternoon, with one girl in the crate while the other worked. They did really well and were much more focused. They seem to be a bit tired this afternoon, as this video shows.

Zinfandel Invites Chardonnay to the Cabin

We took the girls to the cabin this past weekend. We are currently under contract and hope to have it sold by mid-September (please, please, please). So, we needed to get up there and start packing and hauling stuff out of there. Zinfandel loves the cabin, mostly because it's like vacation for her. Very little training and lots of running off-leash. Chardonnay wasn't so sure about the running around off-leash. But as soon as she figured out that if she kept between the humans and Zinfandel, she'd not get lost, she had a blast. We're back in Aurora and this morning Kristi took Chardonnay to the park for some training time. They have a kiddie playground and we practiced a lot of jump on and offs as well as walking on different surface types. (No photos, Kristi forgot the camera!)

Waiting for dinner!

Resting after all that running outside.

Welcoming Lee Home

Chardonnay and Lee Bond

The girls play tug.

A good nap after playing on the golf course.

Since there's not room for two to down&under Kristi's desk this is how they do it.

Bringing It Upstairs

Chardonnay in front with a green bone and Zinfandel in second place with a fire hose.

Learning the New House Rules

Zinfandel tells Chardonnay how it works in this house......

"Don't worry we don't have to pick them all up, I've trained the humans in this house to do it for us!"

Introducing Chardonnay

Chardonnay is Zinfandel's much younger sister. Zinfandel was "A" puppy and Chardonnay was "J" puppy. They get along really well and love to play and play and play. They are very different puppies, both in looks and personalities. Chardonnay is a sweet puppy and we are glad to have her for a few weeks. Once Kristi gets the hang of handling two and can add the camera she'll post more photos.