Recently in cowboy Category

Back from vacation. I was going to take Tess & Cowboy sheepherding, but it was too hot. Maybe next time.

But we did cross paths with a local dog photographer, Deirdre Holmes, who visited the dog park last week and was taking random shots of the dogs there that day. She managed to get one of the best photos of Cowboy I've seen (he hates having his picture taken). I guess that's what makes her a professional. She took some cute shots of Rocket, too, and Tess as well. They can be seen on Deirdre's gallery page:

Photo by Deirdre Holmes

Wow. Woo-hoo!

Next week is graduation. And Cowboy came in last in the game "How many commands does your dog know" in class today. We got us some work to do this week. 

Since it was hotter than blazes at San Pedro's small, off-leash dog park over this past weekend, I decided to drive Tess and Cowboy about 15 miles northwest to visit the much larger (and, weatherwise, much, much cooler) Redondo Beach Dog Park. (Not complaining, just sayin')

Cowboy has been keeping his distance from me since I started spraying him for a hot spot that had cropped up by Saturday morning. He hates being sprayed. This only confirms to him that I am up to no good and he has taken to running in the other direction whenever I call him. He clearly has "trust" issues. He is shown here slinking away & making his escape from me when I called to him at the park. Note that he's giving me what is known around my house now as "THE LOOK":

 

He seemed to like this other person he found at the dog park a lot, though.  I suspect he would have happily gone home with her.

 

 

As for Tess, she couldn't get enough of herding those pesky little dogs on the other side of the divider fence. She's such a border collie. Here's the girl in focused action below, showing 'em all how it's done:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So Cowboy's 2nd obedience class went a bit better than his first day of class where he froze and virtually refused to do anything.

We actually got a good 30 minutes of attention from him this past Saturday. And I must give credit to two of our readers, Pat and Josh's sister, who recommended treats to try (Wellness Wellbites and the dried liver -- though I didn't bake my own). Both held Cowboy's attention quite well, thanks for the suggestions.

(And I didn't get to try Sanpedrodogs' Pawr bars yet.)

Hardest for him is the lie down position, although he did lie down (bored) at one point. The trainer thought he did that on command and pointed him out as an outstanding class member. (I smiled, took a bow. Mum's the word.)

Treat, please? 

OK, so I've actually had Cowboy, my border collie/Australian shepherd mix for more than a year and a half now. But we've never gone through training classes.

Shortly after I'd adopted him from Border Collies in Need, my resident dog, Ellie (14 years old) was diagnosed with lymphoma. Needless to say, that became the focus for the next month or so as I tried to keep Ellie comfortable in her waning days.

After losing her, there was the usual mourning period, but I did let BC's in Need know that I'd be interested in adopting a female at some point. Little did I know they'd find almost the perfect fit just weeks later. A little sooner than I'd anticipated, but Tess did seem like such a good fit so home she came.

So then I had 2 essentially new dogs at almost the same time. They fast became inseparable. Tess immediately had a couple medical issues -- a bout of accute pancreatitis that landed her in the animal ER for a few days, followed by a broken toe that kept her in casts for the next few months, so that occupied all my attention for the first months.  

Training would just have to wait.

But they were both such good dogs, really, that there didn't seem to be an urgency for the classes. I've gone through the drill before with other dogs, so I knew enough about the basics to keep things managable.

But now, life has settled down and I decided to take them through (one at a time) Barbara Millman's dog obedience classes at Kritter Korral in Harbor City. I chose him to go first because I actually think we need more one-on-one bonding time together. Tess is so outgoing that it's hard to keep her out of the way when I'm trying to give Cowboy some attention at home or at the park.

Cowboy already sits well on command at home, he's very motivated by treats and food. But he generally lacks confidence and can be a "quietly" nervous dog. He's fearful of having his picture taken, he's fearful of lots of odd things.

So on the first day of class, he was easily outshined by Betty and Barney and all the other

dogs in class. Cowboy's response to it all: Passive resistance.

Meaning, he stood there, tail down, ears back, with a very worried look on his face. He literally stood frozen in place for most of the entire hour-long class.

"Cowboy, SIT," I said in a firm but happy voice, treat held over his nose.

Nothing.

"Cowboy, LIE DOWN."

No response. No movement. No nothing.

"He looks anxious," Barbara concluded. "Bring some 'high-end' treats next time."

So we'll go back this weekend to see if we can't get a little more enthusiasm and cooperation (or at least some movement?) going.

Any advice on the best treats to use for motivation? (We tried cheese and moist dog bits, but he really showed no interest even though he hadn't been fed yet that day).

Cowboy (or "Cowwws" as I sometimes call him) seems intent on being the class Conscientious Objector. Who knows, maybe he really is standing on principle.

Wonder if there's a class ribbon for that?  

 

Cowboy found a new pal at the dog park today, Logan, a border collie-Australian shepherd mix (just like Cowboy), who was visiting from Oklahoma where he lives on a ranch. Cowboy's on the left (and the top), below.

I was online at home this morning shortly after 9 a.m. when this email titled "gray and white border collie loose" came across my inbox:

 

Barbara is a neighbor of mine from a couple blocks away, she and her husband, Jim, have worked in dog and cat rescue for several years. At first I thought, Nah, Cowboy & Tess have been in the backyard all morning as usual (I'd just seen Tess inside the house briefly a few minutes earlier).

But something told me to double check. When I got out to the backyard, I found the side gate standing wide open and no Cowboy or Tess. The latch must have not caught well last night when I closed it from the outside and perhaps the strong winds were enough to blow it open.

Both Barbara and I went driving through the neighborhood separately. Nothing. You know that sinking feeling, like where could they have gone? I called several people in the neighborhood, asking them to just be on the look out. I stopped others on the street and in a local park, asking if they'd see the dogs. No one had.

But after about 30-45 minutes, I came across them about a block away from my house. They appeared to be having a grand time, but thankfully jumped into my car (Cowboy a little reluctantly and after a couple false passes at the open back door; he was having so much fun out there, after all). Barbara later told me she'd found someone who had seen the dogs and indicated that Tess ("the little one") started to come to them when called but held back because Cowboy wouldn't come. She seemingly didn't want to leave his side.

They both have tags with my phone # and are licensed and microchipped. But still, so much can happen to them when they're out like that.

So a special thanks to Barbara for alerting me. And, of course, to God to whom I regularly pray anyway, but did so especially fervently while looking for Cowboy and Tess! Whew.

One night last week I came across a box of cake mix in my cabinet. On an impulse, I decided to bake a cake, something I rarely do.