Photo Shoot and an Update :)

Yesterday I took Elsie for a 2 mile walk run... and I have to admit I was a little irritated. I need to not loss my patients with Elsie. After all she is only 6 months old (almost) which is kind of weird. She is so tiny for being almost half a year old. I also took a bunch of photos of Elsie yesterday. They are all on our front lawn or porch.

Heel:

I still have to work on heel with Elsie to a certain extent. A lot of the time she is a very good dog and walks on a loose leash. If she pulls ahead, she will normally come back to me to a certain extent if she walks past me and I stop. She needs a little work with heel when walking past a dog. Next door there is a dog named Jack. She often has a little fit about trying to reach him and will bark and pull on the leash. Why? I am not sure. Shereally has had not bad experiences with dogs. Poimein, Skia, and her do not have huge issues with each other. With Bijou, a poodle, is just her play mate and she has not problem with her. It is almost like when she is on a leash and out of the house, she goes crazy. She is often the same with people. In the house she often befriends people a lot easier, where out on a walk she will almost refuse to keep walking.

I am also teaching her to stay on the deck while I work out front. She does it very well sometimes.

She did very, very well with 200 plus people at a CAP event last Saturday. She heeled extraordinarily well that day.

She also has been staying in the car sometimes while I shop or explore areas. She has decided not to like going in the brown kennel ( her new and smaller one).

Elsie's Photo shoot:

~Western Belle

Stuff

We have been in the "city" for over a week now. Elsie has adjusted very well to life down here. We have walked a lot down here and she has different reactions to different things. With dogs or people she is either aggressive or frightened (typically of the people).

Choke Chain

Elsie, like when she is brushed and when she gets her toenails clipped, doesn't really like the choke chain. One trainer suggest that you don't use a pinch collar (which has added spikes, our German Shepherds do best with these) as this can cause a Border Collie to avoid training sessions. Elsie is like that with the choke chain.

First point: Create a positive influence. Making this a unpleasant thing doesn't help. Elsie needs now to be trained that the choke chain means you get rewards.

How to do this: The choke chain is only on when she can be promptly rewarded with something. At meal times she wears it and on sessions with some of her favorite dog food. I just jingle the chain around or let it alone for a few minutes. I also make her put it one by making her put her head through it to get treats.

Bath Time

Second bath. Elsie and Poimien were playing outside... she was rolling in the dirt. (As far as playing, I don't know how playful Poimien is actually). So she locked outside, and then I gave her a bath. The new house's bathroom is a lot smaller. It is nice because the water adjusts well and I can change the temp. pretty easily. I use some kind of natural oatmeal mix on her. It works real well and doesn't bother her skin.

I place a towel in the bottom of the tub, so she is more secure. I don't fill the bath tub full of water. It just has a little in the bottom. I wet Elsie's back with a cup full of water, cup at a time. Once she is damp enough, I put about a tablespoon of soap on my hands and rub it on her back. I soap and wet most of her body (definetly excluding her head and ears.) Once she is soaped up enough, I rinse her off with the cup again. Just make sure all the soap is rinsed out. Then I dry her off. Elsie does not take very long to dry. I left the collar of until the next morning.

Crate Training

Elsie has done so super in the kennel lately. She seems to have resigned to being left in the kennel. She still is excited to be let out, though.

I also took a few photos of Elsie. She is much bigger now.

~Western Belle