Our Little Graduate

Jasper "graduated" from his obedience class last Friday night! Here he is with his certificate:


All three of us learned a lot from the course, and Alex will keep working with Jasper while I'm away, though it will probably be a little while before we are able to take another formal course. The options for future classes include Canine Good Citizen, though that testing involves some interactions with strangers that might be too stressful for Jasper, and also Agility (leaping obstacles, going through tunnels, weaving through poles, and so on), which I think would really build his confidence and looks like lots of fun for dog and handler! The instructor brought a tunnel last week to practice with, and Alex and I were shocked that Jasper actually went through it. Once. After a lot of coaxing (and you can see the big trail of treats). He did sort of freak out in the middle and come bolting out the other end, though. Here he is on his way in:



So, though there might be more complex classes in our future, for now we'll just focus on the basics that we learned during this first course, especially "Stay," loose-leash walking, and "leave it."

Jasper also got a toy for completing the course. He is clearly meant to be a New England dog, as he seemed particularly interested in this lobster, so that's the one we brought home. So now it lives with him under the coffee table, and Jasper occasionally mouths gently at it. (It is a squeaky toy, but Jasper doesn't chew it hard enough to make it squeak.)




I am off to Arizona this afternoon, so Alex will be updating the blog from the home front, and once I get internet access (on Tuesday, I hope), I will be able to post occasionally about my surgery rotation. Please keep your fingers crossed for interesting cases and kind surgeons!