Dog training, voting and being silly...

Today was our second puppy class...Mom was going to take pictures but she forgot the camera. We are working on "shaping." What does that mean? Well, something about shaping my behavior before I have a name for the action. I have to have the action 80% down and then Mom and Dad give it a name so that when they say it I know what action goes with the name. Dad said I did really well in class. Liz even used me for a demonstration and she couldn't get me to do the action she wanted wrong. She was going to show the correction, but I kept doing it right. Everyone was laughing, but I don't think they were laughing at me, but at Liz cuz I wouldn't misbehave.

The mean sheperd was there again. She scares me and everyone else there. Mom says she understands why she is there. I think she needs some private training before she comes in. Mom says she needs socialization and the correct correction. Mom says that she gets too focused on another dog before her owner corrects her. Mom says that if anyone can get her to function without attacking it is Liz. When we were leaving class Liz was bringing in her own pack members to work with the sheperd. Mom said she hopes it helps and works.

We worked on loose leash training - Liz had Dad running all over the place with me. Liz said, "keep turning around Michael. It may take you an hour to get to your destination, but keep turning around until Hugh puts his head where you want it." I guess I finally got it because we got to the truck and my crate and I got to take a nap! Whew! We also worked on "watch me," "easy," "heel" and "come." Mom says that I don't know that is what we worked on - yet. Liz said that the whole class was doing really well. She said we were the brightest - she said with two labs, a border collie, two poodles, a pom and a sheperd that we were a pretty smart bunch and weren't giving her to much anxiety. That's good.

Well, Mom says that the voting for the local calendar ends tonight at midnight. She told me to give a BIG thank you to everyone that voted every day and even if you just voted once she wanted me to make sure that I said that was really cool and thank you! Mom said we will find out in the Thanksgiving paper who makes it into the calendar and we will let you know. Pretty sure that the yellow lab that had a picture in will win the cover. Mom said she would be very pleased just for me to make one of the 12. Me too! Mom said that she is sure that Kissty, Kissty would be very happy not to get a status update with a request that she vote every day! Mom said she is pretty sure that she drove some of her friends crazy with the request. I say that a Mom's gotta do what a Mom's gotta do!

The picture for this blog post is the silly part. Mom has been working on laundry. When she would go into the big bedroom me, Miss Moose and Marcus would all hop up onto the bed like it was bedtime - well, except Moose knows she doesn't sleep on the bed because she is too big - Mom says that she is hopeful. Anyway, we all got up there and each of us curled up looking at her like well, are you getting in bed? She thought it was really funny that we were all ready for bed soooo soon. I am just plain tuckered out. I worked hard today. Marcus he will sleep anywhere Mom is and Miss Moose is always on Mom's heels no matter what she is doing. It seemed like the right thing to do...we did get kicked out.

I am Hugh