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First Tricks Class a Success!

We graduated our first tricks class at Canine Kindergarten last Saturday. It was great - I had 3 incredible dogs kissing, spinning, rolling over, targeting, waving, settling, bowing, and crawling. From left to right, Dolce, Buddy & Little Dude. We're going to run a new tricks class this Saturday - I can't wait to see the new group of dogs doing all of it!

Thanks to Kim for all her creative ideas and tricks!

Maggie and Lucy

This is Kristen, Kell, Maggie & Lucy. Awesome little dogs! Maggie's adorable - a mix of Corgi, Jack Russell and who knows what. Unfortunately, Maggie's not had the easiest life - she ended up at the shelter. Lucky for her, Kristen & Kell adopted her and provided her with a much better life. She's smart and eager, and lots of fun to work with.

Lucy is a cutie too. She's sassy and intelligent, and loyal to her owners. Through Kristen's and Kell's dedication, Maggie & Lucy learned how to get along better and are now living life a bit more peacefully. They seemed to really enjoy training, and were dream clients!

Blood on the Training Floor!

Last night I had class at Petco. See this guy? Adorable, right? His name is Titan and he's a whole lot bigger now. Still a great dog - a pit/American Bulldog mix.

Then there's Shea. Shea is monstrously big. A 6-month-old German Shepherd who already weighs 70 pounds. Goofball, uncoordinated and still a silly puppy.

At the end of class I had Titan and Shea play. They were great - having a ball. I was explaining to their owners what to look for in good play and the two dogs were displaying every part of fun playing. Play-bowing, taking turns with other, staying nice and flexible and general good play. I watched them for a bit to make sure all was good, but as they started to have more and more fun and wear each other out, I turned away to talk to another student about her dog.

As I'm talking to student #3, I all of sudden notice blood. Tons of it. Quentin-Tarantino amounts spraying over the floor and shelves of Petco. UHOH!

I freaked and turned back to the playing dogs, expecting something ugly, even though I didn't hear anything that sounded like fighting, or even a minor squeal.

Turns out Titan had bit his tongue. Didn't even know that he had done that and still ready to play! The blood was tremendous - because he was panting so hard from playing and wriggling around, it was flying all over the place.

All ended well. Both dogs were tired and happy. The owners, luckily, weren't too freaked out. Titan didn't even know there was anything wrong. WHEW!

Canine Good Citizen Testing and Graduation

On Saturday, I testing my advanced class for their Canine Good Citizenship. Three out of four passed, which I was happy about. The three who made it were Little Dude (pit), Hilda (German Shepherd), and Georgina (bulldog), as you can see in the picture. Little Dude I was especially proud of - he took my intermediate and advanced classes and has really come a long way. He was a rescue when Stephanie and family adopted him, and seems to have had a lot of turmoil in his life. But now he listens so well! You can see how much he adores Steph and really enjoys training with her. I love pit bull success stories!

Halloween in NYC

This is a great time of year for dogs. The air cools down, the walks are beautiful for the people so they get more of them. I took Indiana to the East Village's Tompkins Park Halloween festival in NYC this Sunday. Indi went in Rambo gear - camo jacket, bloody hack knife. He was a really good boy - and it was CHAOS. The run was packed with people and dressed up dogs (I don't even think he recognized where he was because it looked so different). There was plenty of media, reporters and video cameras walking around. People went ALL OUT for their dogs costumes, and even the costumes for themselves. Some of the sightings: a drag-queen bulldog. An Elvis-ified Chihuahua, complete with float and dancing hula girls. A vampiric Husky, dripping with fake blood. A bo-peep little fluffy. A horrific looking spider-pug. Tons of devils. If you haven't been to the Tompkins Park festival, go next year - incredibly entertaining.

More Halloween Pics!