Janie did not go to work with Chad this week, because he was in New York, and she's not ready to fly just yet. Poor Janie was stuck at home with boring Mom (me) and the hissy kitties. Plus it rained two days this week. I've been trying to think up indoor activities such as tug-of-war and wrestling. We spend lots of time outside when it's dry enough.
I'm learning that Janie knows lots of cool commands and games. She totally knows:
sit
shake
her name
stay (when she's not too distracted)
go potty outside
If I pat my leg twice she knows that she needs to come with me, which is super-helpful when we go out for a midnight potty break, because I don't want to yell out her name to get her inside. She'll fetch her tennis ball and bring it back about three times before she decides she'd rather chew on the ball than give it back. We're working on the command "release" to have her give the ball back. Janie is learning "wait for it" when it comes to accepting a treat or a toy. She's always very gentle, but a bit clumsy.
Janie has been training me too. She'll take a piece of carrot for a treat once a day, but if I try this healthy treat option a second time in a day, it just sits on the floor uneaten. Janie sleeps in her crate through the night, and waits for me to come get her in the morning without barking or whining. Instead, she shakes her tags every few minutes when she's ready to get up and out, and that jingle-jangle noise makes me get out of bed. She knows that if she rests her head on my leg and looks super-sad, I put away the book/computer/project and pet her tummy. She lets me know she needs go out to potty by putting her two front feet on my knee or by giving a little bark and gesturing to the door with her head. My treats come in the form of happy prancing, tail-wagging and sweet, happy sighs from Janie.
