Daily Dog Walk

I usually walk dogs by myself while Wes is working. It gives me something to do. Sometimes we walk dogs together on the weekends, but our weekends are usually filled up with volunteer stuff. Plus, Wes is sometimes at work more than he is at home, so he needs to rest at home. Today though, we walked Bella, Shiloh, Tango, and Topher all together before he went to work. We bought leash splitter/divider things from Petsmart to make walking two dogs at once easier. I love them! Tango and Topher do really well together. Bella and Shiloh have yet to master loose leash walking, so they make being on the same leash together a bit difficult. I definitely get a muscle workout when walking them together! If I ever want to accomplish them learning anything, I have to walk them separate. Together, they are BS Adventures! All fun!



Tango is skinny enough to fit into Bella and Shiloh's harness from when we first got them as two month old little puppies! I can't believe that at 11 months old, she can fit into it. The vet says she is a good weight. I think she is a little skinny for a cattle dog. She was 28 pounds when we adopted her. She is now 32 pounds.

Tango likes to pull some, but when attached to Topher, she does really well. Tango is also a bit skittish, but with every walk I take her on with Topher, she is less and less skittish. Topher is really teaching her how to take life in stride.



Topher is my soul-mate of a dog. I have never had a dog who reads me so well. I have never had a dog so attached to me, so in tune with me, or who looks to me for everything. He is a great partner for training puppies.



Wes walked Bella and Shiloh today. He walked behind me and Bella was not happy! Bella is my dog that I have to work hardest with. She is a great dog and is very smart. She learns quick, but she is a thinker and wants to do things her way. She is very headstrong. She wants to be in charge. I need to dedicate more time solo with Bella. Shiloh just goes with the flow. She is happy and content in her own little world.



Bella and Shiloh are going to make great therapy dogs. I read an e-mail recently from a trainer friend who mentioned that temperament is more important than skill level for a therapy dog. Bella and Shiloh maybe in their terrible toddler stage at just almost nine months old, but they love people! They are definitely labs in that aspect.



As you can see, they are now bigger than Topher. They are no longer my little puppies. They are big girls!

After our walk, I took time to do some commands with them and hand feed them their breakfast. Hand feeding my dogs is one way I keep them in check. It lets them know that I am in charge and that they have to look to me for their needs. They don't always get hand fed, but they do always have to do some sort of command before being handed their bowls of food.








Wes and I are going to start taking one puppy and one trained dog up to the stores to walk around and get them exposed to more things. I am excited to see how they progress over the next few weeks.

Peace. Love. Rescue.