Three and Half Down, One to Go

Last night was our last class before we begin Big Dog in three weeks. Belle and I have completed Perfect Puppy, Awesome Adolescent, Working Wonders and Almost Big Dog. I don't think the last one is a usual part of the curriculum but we are waiting for the class just younger than ours to catch up. Of that batch of eight puppies, only two remain and it makes sense to combine our classes.

The Monday Night time will end for us also. Some of us are moving to Tuesday nights, some of us to Thursday Morning. The transition will be another way for us to practice with change.

To celebrate our awesome dogs, we brought both human and dog treats to class last night. We had a chance to chat and a chance for the dogs to practice their long drop/stays while we ate. Bev (Rally) shared a great story of the first basketball game she went to with Rally. Rally, like most of the Monday Night dogs, loves balls. Any size will do - it just needs to be round. When Bev got to the game she realized her tickets were right under the basket. Sure enough, it wasn't too long in to the game before a ball came their way. Rally was ecstatic. She tried to catch it, corral it, dribble it and was having all sorts of fun with it until the ref came and took it away. The fans in the stands were having as good a time watching Rally as they were watching the game.

All of us have similar stories of the fun we've had with our Monday Night dogs in the last year. If you or someone you know is thinking about being a foster home but is afraid of having to give up their dog, think instead of the two plus years of wonderful times that you wouldn't get to experience because of your fear. Or the joy of watching your dog, the dog you trained and loved and cleaned up after, bring all your effort, care and time with them as they make a tremendous change in another's life. Can you really give up that opportunity?