Walking the Dawg - Maturity Begins to Take Effect

My neighbor Tim and his trusty companion Maddy were determined to do me in, or then again, maybe not. Early in November we were completing our morning walk. Actually, we were 50 feet from turning into our driveway, and Tim and Maddy were on the other side of the road. Because I didn’t think it was a good time for doggie play, I had JayDee Sit. But like the bullet from a gun, JayDee suddenly lunged to play with her friend. Not barking, not aggressing, pure joyful play. I pulled her back, she lunged, I pulled, she lunged, I pulled. Poor Tim watched both dog and handler, both totally out of control. It wasn’t pretty, no it wasn't. I literally put JayDee on the ground at which point Tim said he had to get ready for work and walked away. I was depressed all day, replaying the joint misbehavior in my mind. I determined that next time I would walk away from the stimulus and remove JayDee 10 or 15 feet and then turn towards the stimulus. I seriously considered getting a prong collar but postponed anything that serious for the time being. I had previously purchased a nylon, flat, snap-around collar from Handcraftcollars.com, and that evening, I set it up so that it behaved as a training (choke) collar instead of a fixed-length collar. The next morning I tried out the choke collar with the “Leave It” command. A few corrections and JayDee got the message without any undue handler abuse; she didn’t even sniff the ground – the best walk we ever had.

On our walk that evening, “the Barkers”, the two dogs on chains, were out and this time JayDee and I walked and stopped with Automatic Sits until we got close, and then we made right hand turns, moving away and then U-turns to approach and right hand turns to move down the street. JayDee was a class act all the way, and I wasn’t too shabby either. The choke collar capacity worked better than I had expected, and it wasn’t harsh or brutal at all. On the other hand, I wouldn’t have mentioned it to anyone at the positive reinforcement only venues! I didn't want to get thrown out of their club!

We had also been working on the Sit/Stay. At first I would stand in place and gradually increased the time up to 30 seconds. Then I started to move in front, trying always to step forward with my right foot. Keeping the time away short at first and then gradually lengthening it. JayDee was pretty self contained and this wasn’t particularly difficult.

To augment my being visible to oncoming traffic, I bought a Hunter’s Orange vest. It was highly visible, providing there was enough daylight. After several weeks I decided that something that had reflective strips would be more advantageous so I went to a sporting goods store and purchased a joggers vest. It not only had Hi-vis reflective tape, but also had a bank of LED flashing lights. I became a highly visible target. Now the motorists would have no excuse for missing me! In short order, I discovered that there was a significant problem with the design of this particular vest. Because it was a slip over the head design, I found that the head opening was a bit snug, especially when wearing winter gear. So, back to the store I went, and I exchanged the vest for Hi-vis reflective leg/arm bands. No flashing lights, but I still had my hand held light when lighting conditions dictated that I needed it.

The Sunday just before Thanksgiving was a beautifully crisp Fall day and Pam suggested we take JayDee to Rider Park for a hike. Thomas Rider had been an extremely successful local businessman who bequeathed almost 1,000 acres of mountain top property to The Divine Providence Foundation for the leisure enjoyment of the local population. I was introduced to Rider Park in 1994 by a mountain biking buddy. At the time, after a 30 year hiatus, I had taken up bicycling again. This time around I had purchased a mountain bike, but I did not know that there were trails available locally so my riding was restricted to the country roads near and then farther away from my house. My biking friend road his mountain bike to scope out trails that would be good for cross-country skiing, and he would cross country ski to scope out trails that would be good for mountain biking. Fortunately for me, my biking buddy took me under his wing and showed me many trails, including miles of hiking/biking/skiing trails at Rider Park.

Rider Park borders both private property and Pennsylvania State Forest land which extended for thousands of acres. During those early mountain biking years I got involved with trail development and trail maintenance, both in Rider Park and in the adjacent State Forest. Definitely a labor of love. In recent years, due to time constraints, my biking has been restricted to road rides, so that my visits to Rider Park have been few and far between. Hiking with Pam and JayDee proved to be a treat, although JayDee proved to be a bit of a handful. The sights and scents of the forest were irresistible to her. I was hopeful, however, that as JayDee matured, her self-restraint would increase!

In the December, 2008 issue of Reader’s Digest, Joe Kita had an article titled “Hello Everybody” and under the heading “Respect begets respect”, he related that when he ran or bicycled he waved to passing motorists. I started to do the same and Joe was right, not only do some motorists actually wave back, but most began to give JayDee and me a wider berth. Imagine what they would do if JayDee gave them a Hi Five!

I am a very early riser and complete my various early morning activities efficiently. About 6:15, I would bundle up and go back upstairs to get JayDee. JayDee is totally self-contained and she does not move a muscle until I open the door of her crate. I knell down on one knee, unlatch and open the door. At that point she sits and waits until I invite her out. Shana Bana would get so excited in anticipation of freedom, that the entire crate would shake and rattle. Not JayDee. One thing that really tickles me, is that she come out, sits in front of me and points her nose straight up into the air, and then I comb her neck with my fingers. She must really enjoy it, I certainly do! Then I snap on her leash and we quietly exit the room, leaving Pam content in Slumberville!

One weekend morning, the temperatures were slightly above freezing and the road surface was shiny from a thin coat of water, the previous snow having melted off the road. The shoulders of the road were crystallized ice. By the time we finished our trek, JayDee’s underbelly was soaked and dark brown, just like a car! I was amazed at how much moisture she was able to kick up on herself. Does anyone sell mud flaps for dogs? When we got home we went out back to play Frisbee and the wetness froze as JayDee gamboled over the snow. What to do, what to do? I headed for the stall shower, towels at the ready. With the water temperature pleasantly warm, and the hand-held shower head in hand, I rinsed off her legs, paws, and underbelly. She smiled in response, totally cooperative. What a dawg! The bottom of the shower stall looked like the floor of a self service, coin operated, car wash. After a doggie shake, shake, shake, I invited her out of the shower and requested a “Down” onto the towels and patted her off. Clean as new.

There is more to our Walking the Dawg saga, but for now, there are “other fish to fry”. 
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Start at the very first post.