19.05.15

morning walk:
Rita
Osita
Ernie
Maggie
Stella
Bosha
Linda
Roxy
(8)

I took this group for a walk between the land bridges. Stella was on a leash the whole way; Ernie started out on one but I let him off early and switched to Roxy, since there are a lot of salt workers around right now. It turns out we didn't see any but you never know and she needs work around other people... she doesn't mind the leash and had a good time. Everyone was really good and had a great time.
GRADE: A

morning beach jaunt:
Rufus
Cookie
(2)

Tortuga sign: ~2k. Rufus was so worked up we just had to get him out somehow, and since he can always use some one-on-one time a little jaunt up the beach seemed like the thing; it was already getting too hot out for anything but the beach anyway. Instead of taking the usual route through the monte I just turned north from our gate and tried to get down to the beach without drawing too much heat from the dogs at home; Roni dealt with them very quickly and it went smoothly. Once on the beach Cookie hewed to Rufus most adorably; once I let them off their leashes (just past the HoJo) she basically worshiped him non-stop when they were running. Cookie is without doubt a water dog and swam like a nut, even more than Rufus. She's still a bit unsure of what to do with waves but she's game and already strong in the water once past them. We ran and swam without pausing all the way to the tortuga sign. Cookie showed the slightest hint of dancing away from me when I wanted to put her back on the leash so I made a point of catching her and putting her back on right away; I don't want her developing any bad habits and she's already entering her assertive/contrarian phase. She doesn't mind the leash at all; she totally gets it and runs alongside me like a champ. This was a good experience for everyone; sometimes you just have to take fewer dogs.
GRADE: A