Mostly Wordless Wednesday

Hilly sitting in front of Sheep Creek. She was a good, little camper.

A Hilly Update

Whenever I see that sort of sentence as an email header from Mary I always know it's bad news. I don't know why I'm going with it seeing as this really isn't bad news. It really is just an update.

Hilly is an amazing camper (and if you're a facebook friend you know she's a good dancer too!). The only thing that would have made Hilly a better camper is if she didn't' chase the chipmunks and squirrels and run after every dog that passed the campsite. But we're really working on that and she's made great strides (leaps really) in her dog issues. Good thing she doesn't have a bird issue like her half-sister Freya (I really hate comparing her to Freya, but they're really a whole lot alike that it's hard not to sometimes) because there were quite a few Blue Jays that thought our campsite was their campsite too (ok, I know it's their home, but you know what I'm trying to get at). Other than the small mammal and dog thing she was brilliant. She totally loved the freedom of the flexi leash and didn't take *too much* advantage of it. I have so many pictures that I don't know which to post. I figure I'll do a camping post sometime next week once I get all the pictures sorted.

Now, the real problem with Hilly is her inconsistency. Some days she's golden (well, I say golden but what I mean is there is minimal whining and no leaping towards the other dog) when she's around other dogs and some days she's an absolute train wreck (yesterday morning she was more than golden, this morning was more like a four train pile up). She's also pretty inconsistent about her alert barking and there is no way for me to set her up because it's only sometimes when some dog (no consistency in the specific dog, breed, or size) is outside and she's inside. The problem with this inconsistency is that I still don't know her relieving schedule. All you other puppy raisers and Guide Dog Users know how important good relieving is, but I just can't figure her out. Well, she's gotten it into her labby mind that she can poop (sorry for those of you with sensitive ears, but it's a big subject in puppy raising) whenever she wants to. Well, at least, in the afternoon I take her out to relieve before playing with Rosie outside and there's no sign of poop. As soon as she's off leash she goes. This is a big "no no" in terms of Guide behaviour. Guides need to have at least a hint of a relieving schedule and they need to go when given the opportunity...not when they feel like it (if they could go whenever we'd have a bunch of Guides in harnesses pooping all over the street).

Now, my club may be a little...OCD is the nicest way to put it, about relieving behaviours. This may be because we've had quite a few bad relievers in the recent past or it might be because Mary drills it into our heads that good relieving habits make good guide dogs (not always true, but it does help in the formal training process.) So, because I've learned from Mary, Hilly is now on a strict "No outside play without poop until I (and she) learn her pooping schedule" protocol.

That's all from Hilly's end.

Camping: Part 2 (Pictures)

OK! Pictures are here! They aren't in any real order, but there are a lot of them. Just bear with me. :) First some pictures of the campsite.

This was our itty bity, two person tent. Yes, we fit two people and two dogs in this little tent.
A really pretty view of the river we were camped by.

Another pretty picture. You can't really tell but right before we got there there was a lightening fire and since there was a controlled burn due anyway they decided to monitor the burn, but still let it burn. My asthma went crazy.

And now I believe it is time for some pictures of Arwen. Arwen was a little crazy the first night. She didn't really like sleeping in the tent. She wasn't used to having people walk through her bedroom in the middle of the night. She calmed down quite a bit, but then my mom left to yell at some teenagers who were talking at the top of their lungs by our campsite. My mom can be...annoyed when her sleep is disturbed. So after she got up Arwen was up and wouldn't settle. But the second night Arwen did so well. She slept at my mom's feet and my head and just slept. We need to take her camping more often because I think she really enjoyed it.

Me and Arwen the second day. I don't look that bad even though I'm all dirty and oily. :)
I like this picture of me better. The last one was better of Arwen.

While she got used to the campsite she was on a tie down. She did not appreciate being treated like one of those puppies.

I think Arwen really enjoyed herself.
She's such a pretty girl.
Look! She's got on happy ears and everything. I was worried that she would be too nervous to have fun, but she loved every minute (minus the first night in the tent) of it.
I think Arwen is the most gorgeous Golden ever! But I'm a little bias.
OK, so this one wins for my favourite picture of Arwen...EVER. It's hilarious. Can you see her wonky face?

Arwen liked playing in the River.
Look how happy she is.
See? So happy. At one point she went over to the river and laid down in the water. It was so cute!
Here's Arwen on the way back. I decided that I couldn't have Rocco at my feet again because he kept popping up and down like a jack-in-the-box. So we smushed both dogs in the back.

I think Arwen is so cute.

And now some of Rocco and me and Arwen probably.

Why is Rocco always licking me?
This is my profile picture now on facebook.
I like this picture of us.
There are a lot of pictures like this.
Another one. It took a while to get a good one.
Rocco, Arwen, and me in front of a little stream we found.
Another one. I don't know why I have so many of the same picture.

My two babies.
I don't think Rocco is too happy about all these pictures.
Them in the river.

They really liked the river.I didn't let them go out too far because the current was pretty strong.

But they found a way to have fun.

I love this picture. Rocco still tries to get under Arwen.

My good puppies!
They really liked this camping thing.
I love how Rocco looks so dejected.

Rocco played with his Jollyball all weekend.
It's like we never left home.

I like this picture of his paw.

Aww...

I let Rocco have a bit of freedom while camping. He loved being able to sniff everything.
He loved the river and loved being able to get in and out on his own.

The most interesting thing about the river. Not the fact that he got to swim but that he could drink this water too! I swear he was really excited about that.
Can you see how sandy and wet he is? Oh they were sooooo dirty when I got them home.
Does he look tired to anyone else?

I really like this picture of him. I think it's my favourite.

Or this one is my favourite. I can't decide.
My pretty boy in the small tent.

He's so cute!
OK, maybe this one is my favourite.

I just can't get over how handsome he is.

So cute!

I love how he gets his serious face on when the puppy jacket is on.

He really loved this water.

He loved the freedom of the flexi leash.
He was so far ahead the entire time.

I think that Rocco really enjoyed his vacation away from Guide Trianing. We still did a little work with dog distraction and obedience training, but not that much. I think camping is a wonderful thing for the guide dog puppies. It works so much with not picking up stuff off the ground. He did get a few things, but not much. Dirt in a dog's mouth is just a part of camping I suppose. But his poop looks great which is a great relief! Now he's off at the vet's office getting snipped. Poor boy. He also didn't throw up this morning which is also a great relief because he didn't have breakfast today! YAY!