Boy, have I been busy today. Mom is always complaining about how hard it is to own your own business, but I have to work, too. I'm in the business of being cute. It's true. Look at my picture. I am a therapy dog, which means that I go to hospitals, group homes, senior centers and libraries to make people happy.
Every dog approaches this task a little differently. Some do cute tricks. Some are very energetic. Some just lie in your lap. I'm cute. I don't do tricks (except shake). I'm just well-behaved, soft and cute. And people love me. I have a knack for knowing who needs to be cheered up, and I sit by that person the most.
We all got to this job the same way -- a lot of training! You have to pass a lot of tests that show you listen well and have the right temperament. I had to do a 30-second stay, walk nicely on a leash (my kryptonite!), be nice to another dog and be cheery while a bunch of people pet me and grab my tail and stuff. This is easy for me because I love to be the center of attention. Not every dog can do it. My brother Muggsy and sister Fenway would hate it!
Today, I went to a group home that will remain nameless just to hang out and cheer everyone up by shaking their hands and giving them kisses. One girl was afraid so I left her alone. Most kids want to give me treats, and I'm a big fan of that. I'll do whatever they want, even if they want me to do something dumb, like try to catch or balance the treat on my nose (whoever thought that up needs to balance their dinner on their nose and catch it in the air, if you ask me.) One girl and one boy really liked me a lot. We watched TV and talked about their dogs. I liked meeting them a lot. They were watching a show that scared the girl, and I ran to her side to make sure she was OK. She said I was cute. But we all knew that!
I have been a therapy dog for three years, and I really like it. My mom can train you how to do it if you are interested too. She offers classes and private lessons, and she's a Canine Good Citizen evaluator. That's one of the tests. She can tell you if you pass. I will be there too, just to see if you are nice to dogs! If you are interested, call her at 866-PWSTIV1 or email her at melinda@pawspartners.com.
See you guys later! Love, Chubbs
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Introductions
Hi, we're Muggsy(I'm the black and white one with the cool ears), Chubbs (I'm the one who looks like a Rottweiler with too much hair) and Fenway (I'm the cute, little yellow one), and we live with Melinda Weaver, owner of Pawsitive Partners. She's had her business for two years, but before that she worked for another trainer who had decades of experience doing positive training. What's that? Well, it means that she teaches us what her expectations are before we get in trouble for anything, which is really good for us because it's easy to understand.
For example, if she wanted to teach us to sit, she wouldn't yell "sit" at us before we even knew what it meant! We don't speak English (this is a fancy blog translator tool we're using). She wouldn't jerk us into position, which hurts our neck. She would use a treat to lure us into the position, then say the word and then reward us. In no time, we are doing sits everywhere because it earns us praise and pets and sometimes a treatie (that's our favorite English word!).
You might notice that we're on the furniture in our picture. We're allowed there. Our mom doesn't believe that she has to make us sleep on the floor, go out the doors after her and eat after she has eaten. She just believes that we have to follow the rules she sets. It doesn't matter what the rules are around your house as long as you're consistent. Don't let your dogs on the furniture when you're alone and expect them to understand they aren't supposed to be there when company comes. Teach them to get down when they're told. That's our rule. We also walk nicely on leash and go to our crates when we feel too rowdy. We respect those rules and listen to Mom without her turning us on our back and staring at us, which really doesn't teach us anything at all.
We hope you will continue to read our blog and find out why this works for us -- and how it will work for you! If you have any questions, be sure to ask us. We're nothing if not knowledgable! Happy reading.
Love, Muggsy, Chubbs and Fenway
For example, if she wanted to teach us to sit, she wouldn't yell "sit" at us before we even knew what it meant! We don't speak English (this is a fancy blog translator tool we're using). She wouldn't jerk us into position, which hurts our neck. She would use a treat to lure us into the position, then say the word and then reward us. In no time, we are doing sits everywhere because it earns us praise and pets and sometimes a treatie (that's our favorite English word!).
You might notice that we're on the furniture in our picture. We're allowed there. Our mom doesn't believe that she has to make us sleep on the floor, go out the doors after her and eat after she has eaten. She just believes that we have to follow the rules she sets. It doesn't matter what the rules are around your house as long as you're consistent. Don't let your dogs on the furniture when you're alone and expect them to understand they aren't supposed to be there when company comes. Teach them to get down when they're told. That's our rule. We also walk nicely on leash and go to our crates when we feel too rowdy. We respect those rules and listen to Mom without her turning us on our back and staring at us, which really doesn't teach us anything at all.
We hope you will continue to read our blog and find out why this works for us -- and how it will work for you! If you have any questions, be sure to ask us. We're nothing if not knowledgable! Happy reading.
Love, Muggsy, Chubbs and Fenway
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