Life on the Leash

I’m really fussy about driving these days (oh, do I hate traffic), so I have to decline a number of potential clients due to geography. The shorter my commute, the happier I am.

When my new client told me that he lives in “Funkytown” I was happy because I live in Funkytown too. Easy drive! The day before I was due to meet with him I took a closer look at his address. Not only do we both live in Funkytown, he lives just one street over from me! I could walk to his house. Nice.

I thought my morning couldn’t get any better, and then I met his dogs.

There’s 11-month old Taylor the the dobe:

And 11-month old Lola the Chocolate Lab (yes, she’s tiny for a lab):

Loved these dogs! They were clever, and silly, and sponge-like. They seemed to say, “Learning? Hells yeah!”

I haven’t worked with a dobe in ages and I’d forgotten how they look at you and think. Like, Taylor was trying to get into my brain and figure out what I wanted.

Lola took a more traditional approach to training. “You gots food. I wants food.”

Sibling kitty came out for a visit after the lesson:

She can hang with the big boys – love it!

I think I’m going to enjoy having a neighbor-client, although I’ll have a lot of ’splaining to do if they ever run in to Sumner during a walk …

Although my DIY photo session worked for a time, it wasn’t going to cut it for some of the stuff that’s coming down the pike (plus seeing Zeke makes me sad), so I had a professional Tyra-style photo shoot two weeks ago.

So. Much. Fun.

I lucked into finding the most amazing photographer, Tim Coburn. He does all sorts of high end fashion-y shoots around DC, so I worried that a session with a nervous boxer would throw him. Pshaw – hardly!

The session started off with hair and make-up … James transformed me from bare-faced dog trainer to a more polished, shiny haired, spot-free version of myself. He was a magician. Sum managed to “relax” on the ground next to my chair as James worked on me (and worked, and worked), probably waiting for someone to come take his temperature or shove something in his eye.

Sum was all, “Huh?” once the shoot began. He stood close to me and looked everywhere but at the camera, so James stepped in to be the official dog jester; he squeaked toys, whistled, clapped and finally resorted to throwing garbage bags in the air to get Sum to look directly a the camera. The first 25 photos have me in a squinty-eyed guffaw because James was excellent at his job.

Tim was so enthusiastic and encouraging during the shoot. Every move I made, from shifting my hands to tilting my head, got a “Great! Love it! Great!” It was my ANTM moment, and I ate it up. Yes, I was smiling with my eyes.

We tried a few shots with Sumner elevated on a big box. He wasn’t feeling it:

The D&G sunglasses weren’t working for him either:

(That’s James on the right. I didn’t get any pics of Tim because he was behind the cam the whole time.)

I can’t say enough about the experience … these two are amazing. Plus, I’ve seen the proofs and I love them. (You’ll get to see their work in my new “about” photo, which is coming soon …)

The best part? By the end of the shoot Sum was chilled out enough to lay down on the floor with his head between his pawsies. He found his signature “look”!

Enter cuteness:

No, that’s not Winnie, it’s Mack, Storm’s new brother!

I owe their person a big apology, because I basically blew off Storm’s final lesson and took 10,000 pictures of New Baby Puppy instead. We’d be talking about potty training and I’d be all, “Uh, uh, ok, what you need to do is … OH MY GOD! Look at Mack’s pawsies!”

Storm wasn’t too happy with my Mack-centric attitude either. She likes her little bro, but these pictures seem to suggest that she’s not used to sharing the training spotlight:

“Yeah, he’s cute, but I’m smart, and you’re here to train me, lady! Let’s get on with it!”

Of course I took the obligatory Flat Cat pics.

And new Busy Bee pics? Check.

(I ain’t lying – dogs dig ‘em!)

Storm is going to grow into her role as big sis, although based on Mack’s moxie, I think she’s got her work cut out for her!

Remember those new “addictive” toys I mentioned? There heeerrrreee.

The owner of the company that makes them, Mustafa, told me that his sister made the very first toy as a gift for her nephew. When they saw Mustafa’s toddler son and dog fighting over who got to play with the toy, they knew they’d found a new market. Now the entire line is handmade by family and friends in Turkey.

The best part about these toys? The squeaker! It’s huge and loud and durable. But then again, maybe dogs love the overall texture … they’re really mushy. Mustafa sent Sumner a special gift with my initial order … it’s bright pink and looks very girlie, but he rolls with it:

(I’m not carrying this big ball yet … gotta move some merch before I invest in more inventory!)

The Flat Cat is still making friends … here’s Blackberry enjoying it:

And Zoey:

And my former client from way back when, Scout:

(Got a pic of your pooch enjoying a Flat Cat? Send it in and I’ll post it!)

Oh, the new color?

Purple, baby!

The howlidays are on the way … check out the LOTL store for some unique, dog-tested-trainer-approved presents for your best friend!

Commercial complete. We now return you to your regularly scheduled blog.

I got to hang out with a different kind of animal today:

My friend and former client Eliza graciously allowed me to try out some clicker training on her horse, Sugar. Keep in mind that I know zilch about horses.

Sugar lives in a beautiful open field:

… and we thought it would be cool to teach her to come trotting to the edge of the field when Eliza called. Easy, right?

“I got this,” I thought to myself. “Cake walk!”  I came armed with novel goodies like raisins and crackers (which I probably should have put in my pocket instead of the telltale crinkly bag.)

We started off strong … I wasn’t looking for a full-on run in my direction or anything, just a general interest in walking towards me, which I clicked to mark and then rewarded once Sugar reached me.

After several slow but encouraging repetitions, I put some distance between us and started adding the word “here” as she approached me.

Watch out world, I’m a horse trainer now!

Yeah, no.

I made the mistake of walking towards the edge of the field and Sugar was done with me. Why, there was grass to eat! Delicious grass! You are invisible to me, strange person with strange foods! I gave Sugar a few more click/treats for showing any interest in me (like a glance in my direction) and we called it a day.

A fan club gathered near the edge of the pen to watch me as I floundered:

I think they were making fun of me:

We then took a stroll around the field and said hello to everyone. My crinkly bag attracted a lot of attention until Eliza wisely put it under her coat.

Eliza pointed out this sleepy sweetie as we were leaving:

I’ve never seen a “downed” horse so I had to get a closer look. (Yes, it took incredible willpower not to run over, rub her belly and curl up next to her.)

She stirred, checked me out and then went right back to sleep.

Marshall the farrier was hard at work back at the barn.

He gave me a quick lesson on how to pick up a horse’s foot. (Stand facing the horse’s rear end, point your toes away from the horse so they don’t get stepped on, slide your hand down the inside of the leg and down to the foot, say “tsk tsk” and then grasp the tip of the toe. It worked – I did it!)

During the drive home I reflected on my lack of progress with Sugar. It was a shock to the system to discover that I couldn’t rely on the same training tricks I use with dogs. (Yeah, I know: “Duh.”) Sugar didn’t have a driving need to be close to me, so that was a strike against me. She could saunter over to the grass and treat herself if she desired, so my nifty treats didn’t have much allure. I wasn’t even sure how to hold my body as I worked with her – I kept reflexively crouching down as she walked towards me, which is what I always do with my canine students. As a trainer I was lost, but it was fun. It really made me think about the training process … Brain. In. Overdrive.

Today would have been Zeke’s 10th birthday. On Thursday it’ll be a month since we lost him.

I’ve been comforted by so many of you … many thanks for the cards and e-mails. I’m lucky because I’m surrounded by people who truly understand the impact of losing a dog. It helps.

My nieces sent me handmade condolence cards that both touched me and cracked me up. Payton’s card features a lab-like Zeke in downpour. The sun is peeking from behind a cloud, and the inscription says, “Happy Days Zeke.”

I like it … it can be interpreted in a number of ways. I choose to focus on that sliver of sun.

Caroline’s card is dark and funny and creepy all at the same time.

It shows a dead dog (tongue lolling) next to a tombstone that says “Dog.” I’m a few steps away, crying and gesturing towards said dog. There’s a thought bubble above my head with a milkshake and a smiley face in it, and the word “frappe” above it. When asked to describe what the card means, Caroline said that I’m crying because Zeke is dead, but I’ll feel happier if I think of getting a frappe (a milkshake) in Nantucket. (Our evening walks into town to get a frappe are a vacation ritual that must resonate with her more than I’d realized. Caroline is six and she already understands the healing power of ice cream.)

We still miss our little man so, so much. But it’s strange … Sum has “inherited” some of Zeke’s habits, as if Zeke is channeling through him. Sumner is now doing the Zeke dance when he’s happy, which is a Lipizzaner-like lifting of his paws over and over again. He never used to do that, and it makes me smile every time I see it.