Another snowy day?? Oh MY!

So, what's a "dog person" to do? More trick training!! Roscoe knows a ton of tricks. One of the benefits to tricks is no matter how BAD he can be if he does a trick he will make people smile. It never fails! What is fun is that by performing the trick he can defuse a tense situation. I use tricks when I am waiting in line at the in gate to run an agility course. All the competitors are tense and anxious, but they watch Roscoe "REV YER Engines!!" (he kicks out his back legs repeatedly and it is SO cute!!!) and everyone relaxes and takes a few breaths! Or, someone might approach and I have to blurt out my usual....."He is NOT friendly", but then I have him wave or roll over or back up or kick out his back feet and that person who just moments before tensed up, now relaxes and smiles. It helps in SO many ways.

Our favorite winter past time on these snowy days is to train MORE tricks!! I searched Youtube for some fun ideas I had not tried and found this one http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-2LdFoHEck&feature=channel_page and this one http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xaJXkbdOIzY&feature=channel Both show how to teach these tricks, so I got started right away with the hind leg book trick instructions. Roscoe picked it up in no time, but I had no doubt he would. He is used to his kick trick, so he already has hind end awareness. I then brought out Spur and tried it with him. It took Spur a little longer and more of a struggle to figure it out, but we have a start. Funny how some dogs are not really that aware of their hind legs. I remember thinking when Spur was a puppy how his back legs just seemed to follow, not that his mind was setting them where they should go, but that they just follow along by default. He is much more coordinated now, but still this hind leg lift trick wasn't as easy for him as it was for Roscoe.