April 29, 2007

My Puppy Raiser, Marianne, has taken me to a special Canine Companions for Independence class twice a month or so since I arrived in Denver 16 months ago. Some classes have been ordinary drills, to the point where I thought to myself, "If she tells me 'Sit' one more time I'm gonna bark." Others have been commands with games and races.

My favorite game was Tic Tac Toe. Amy, our trainer, made a grid on the floor. We pups were divided into two teams, and the puppy raisers took turns putting the pup into a sit-stay or down-stay on a square. Apparently there was some strategy involved, because the puppy raisers were very picky about exactly which square was chosen each time. I just wanted the one that smelled the best, but no such luck.

It was hard for me because I wasn't supposed to move, or sniff the floor, or say "Hello!" to the puppy in the next square, and I had to stay still for a really long time. I lost because my tail went over the line. Stupid tail. It has a mind of its own. It knocks stuff off the coffee table all the time.

My favorite race was the scavenger hunt at Petco, where the puppy raisers had a list of items to find and put in the shopping buggy, while keeping us pups under control and giving us specific commands. Marianne and I ran really fast around the store, I did all the commands just right, and we won the race! Marianne gave me a big hug and told me how clever I was.

Other classes have been just plain weird. Once we went to a fire station and had to walk all around the trucks while they were running, and climb in and out of an ambulance, and do an "under" underneath a stretcher that bounced up and down. Yow!

Then Amy made us "sit-stay" while the sirens blasted. Even though it was painfully loud for our sensitive ears, none of us broke our sit-stay or howled (that's for sissies, anyhow.) After that, a fireman came out in a really peculiar, bulky outfit that smelled smoky, and he made strange noises because he was breathing through a hose. He was kind of scary, but since he gave us each a cookie, we decided he was OK. A tad overdressed, but a nice guy.

Our class last week was the strangest yet. We went to a big room that had long walkways called "lanes" that we weren't allowed to explore. The puppy raisers all put on funny-looking shoes that smelled odd and they made us lie down and stay still. So far, not too different from regular outings.

But then we were all stunned when the puppy raisers started heaving big, heavy balls down the lanes at some white things they called "pins." Sometimes all the pins fell down, but not very often, so the puppy raisers would heave the balls at them again. We all wanted to chase the balls down the lane and push the pins over, but the puppy raisers wouldn't let us. "ASSISTANCE DOGS," we said. "We can help you with this! It's right up our alley (snicker)!" but the puppy raisers made us lie down and stay still. I bet Marianne's score would have been a lot higher if she'd let me help. HA.

Saturday we had our last advanced class at Cherry Creek Mall. Amy made us take a test to see if we knew our commands. I forgot to do the "automatic sit" a couple of times, but I did everything else really well, and Marianne said she was proud of me.

I'd been staying with another puppy raiser family for a few days, so I was surprised when Marianne showed up with my new little brother, Parker, at class. Another dog, Sprocket, had told me to "Wake up and smell the kibble, Bud!" and he was right. I knew Parker was coming to be the next CCI puppy for Marianne, but I hadn't really understood that he'd live with us.

He's pretty cute, but I'm GORGEOUS, so I'm not jealous. He has really sharp teeth so I'm trying to stay out of his range and get him to chew on a toy instead of me. Marianne does the same thing! He barks at the cats, and growls at toys, and is generally goofy. I'm sure I was much more dignified as a puppy.

I go to CCI college in Oceanside, California in a couple of weeks. More on that next week.

Oh, and check out my Pet Pals at the Colorado Humane Society. Lots of great dogs and cats that need a loving, forever home. C'mon, what are you waiting for?

Chow for now!

Hudson