Well...we got SOAKED while we practiced tracking today, but Buddy found us right away- so it was completely worth it! What a great dog!!! We are so happy with him.
We're already seeing little positive changes in Jonathan. It's amazing to watch him! Today he was very verbal. He tried to repeat everything he heard. He is getting more and more comfortable with Buddy. The only issue we're having with the two of them is that Buddy loves to play and Jonathan can get easily overwhelmed. They both want the ball! :) We bought a 12 pack of tennis balls today just so we MIGHT have enough to go around! LOL!
At the end of a track, when the dog finds the child, we praise the dog like crazy. He gets the best reward saved for this 'game' because we want it to be a highly motivated activity that he wants to do. Most dogs get a handfull of hot dogs as their reward...Buddy gets to play with his tennis ball! It's more fun for him than treats. This is great since Jonathan's favorite thing to do is throw balls.
Here are some pictures of today. We were able to go to Applebees with Jonathan, and he sat through the whole meal. Huge progress! He wanted to sit on my lap at the training center for a lot of the afternoon session. It was sweet until it was my turn to work with Buddy in front of the whole class...and Jonathan needed to be riding piggy back on me! Oh well...I went with it, and Buddy worked like a pro. He loves attention and is becoming the class clown.
Stay tuned for more soon!
Heather
1 comment:
It's good to see you smiling and snuggling and to hear such a good report. I continue to pray that Buddy will be all you need him to be and that Jonathan will really enjoy him. Love "ya'll"
Eric
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