Training and Frisbee Life

Last week I had to try something different, give Pandora something new in an effort to further our training.

This week is a small recap of how it’s going.

The Training is “eh”

Sad, but true. Some training weeks will be like this, just “eh.” Nothing great, nothing terrible, just there.

Unfortunately, we now have a new “thing.” We have to carry Pandora to the car. I could understand this if we were taking her to the vet. I could even understand it if I was loading her for a three-hour drive. But no. We have to do this to take her to the trails. She loves the trails. Why wouldn’t she be excited to hop in and get there? I’m befuddled.

When I say she loves the trails, I mean she LOVES the trails. The freedom of being off leash, bounding around, sniffing everything in site and her favorite water hole.

The best part about the training is that when we are on the trails I have, twice now, successfully gotten her into a “sit and wait” when we come across other people. Will it always be that way from here on out? Probably not. I don’t want to be negative, but I also don’t want to get my hopes up and them have them stomped on and drooled on.

Pandora has Combined Two Favorite Activities into One Glorious Activity

If you’ve read any other post, you know that Pandora’s currency is her frisbee. That is the one thing I can use to get her to do almost anything. Almost because, you know what I’m going to say, she still won’t walk near vehicles. And when I say near, I mean no sidewalks, no trails where she can hear the vehicles.

Anyway, her frisbee is the Big Thing. Up until last week, I couldn’t get her to go after that frisbee at dog parks or at human parks. She was too nervous. So, of course, I figured I’d bring it on a trail hike.

The first day, she’d go get it, but she wasn’t running all out for the frisbee like usual. But then we got to her favorite watering hole. Which has a creek running through it and some moss-covered trees lying across it. And I decided to toss her the frisbee while she was pouncing around in the water.

BAM! One throw and she was in love. Total love. She couldn’t get enough of the frisbee fetching in the water, hopping, bounding, splashing. Little Miss, was thrilled. So thrilled, she didn’t want to go when I told her it was time to go. She has never given me grief about leaving the watering hole. She might get a wild hair and dash through it one more time, but she’s never refused to leave. Until then. That day, she was not okay with leaving.

I took her back again over the weekend and we did the frisbee and water hole visit. And again, she was not done. I think I’m going to be taking her to Deep Lake for a picnic and water frisbee fun. Of course, that will be when the weather gets a bit warmer for her. It took a turn Sunday and got quite nippy.

A Lesson Learned

Bring more than one frisbee. If you take your dog out on trails with only one toy, rest assured that at some point it’s going to land in an unsafe or unreachable area. Have a backup.

On our first hike with the frisbee I threw it shortly after we left the water hole and darned if that thing didn’t go off a small precipice. Pandora attempted to go after it (eep!).

What’s your dog’s favorite toy?