Fetch!!

Getting Somewhere

My doggy charge is starting to bring the tennis ball back to me. He will always run after it, but then leave it when he finds it. Now, I've been saying, "Odie, bring the ball." When he does, I reward him with a treat and a "Good boy!!"

After about 10 good fetches and returns today, he lost interest, but that's OK. He really does have a short attention span. My farrier's Border Collie will fetch for hours, but that kind of work and absolute concentration is what he is bred for. Not sure about a Viszla but as a hunting dog, scents and other interesting distractions along the way do seem to steer him off course. By the end of the week, I will have conquered the basics of "bring the ball back," at least. It is kind of fun. I had a cat that fetched--did it on his own--but as we all know, training cats is not an easy task, so having a dog to play with is kind of fun.

I bet I could teach Chance some tricks. Tucker would be a good candidate too, but Chance has far more interest in wanting to be around humans who do not have treats than Tuck does. And he is really inclined to pick things up to carry them off or play with them out of a natural inquisitiveness and play instinct. Maybe if I take some time, I can teach him a few clever tricks.

All that aside, I was up early enough to lunge Tucker again. Today, I put him over a little jump at about 1'6" just to keep it interesting. Most of the time simply put in an elevated trot stride--which was fine, as jumping quietly is very important. But when I did set him at it at a canter, he jumped really nicely. Again, quietly, economically and, on his own, off his hind end.

Need I say more? Nicely done, Tucker.

And the heat is back on the rise, with more humidity and, thunderstorms on the way...again.

The alarm guy is coming to see what's wrong with my system since that big lightning strike. The monitoring company is still getting information from the panel, but we are also getting an error message. That'll be great. He'll get it all fixed and then another storm will roll in and undo all the repairs. *sigh*

Foxy was back last night. I guess my yard is part of its regular hunting route. I tried a few more pictures but they are no better even though I took my time. I think the double pane windows and the screens really interfere with good pictures. When I opened the window to shoot just through the screen, Foxy took off, so that didn't work.

It's just fun watching him. He is so alert and sharp to every little thing. It always fascinates me just to watch animal behavior.

Got my schedule for school next year. Freshmen, Sophomores, Juniors, and Seniors this time, so my slight one year break from being overwhelmed is over. However, the senior class is not English, but rather computers. IF any kids are assigned to it, the class is likely to be small. I can use them to write for the school paper, so that my be an option. We'll just have to wait and see.
I'm not particularly looking forward to it.

However, the Juniors are required to study performing arts for about half the year, so that is right up my alley. And, all the classes are college/prep honors courses, so that's good too.

I just have to grin and bear it.