Practicing Bed with Distractions

For the last four months Mariko has been spending her days under my desk at work and has been very good. The ultimate goal for this incredible bundle of fur is for her to be able to stay in a command (bed/down/etc.) with a high level of distraction. She has been doing very well for her age.

To start practicing with more distractions, her bed is no longer under my desk and hidden. She is now spending her day out in the office, near the door.

Practicing "Bed"

There isn't a lot of foot traffic outside the office door, however, this will provide her some additional practice of bed/stay with distractions.

So far she is doing pretty well, we just need to get her to understand that when someone walks in the door she doesn't need to grab a toy for her mouth and start wagging her tail for a pet (yes, according to Mariko, everyone comes into the office to see her and if she has something in her mouth then they just "might" play with her, ha ha).

It's a touch life.

Yes, adding distractions will pay off in the end :-)

Memorial Day Hike

Our weekend was VERY cold and rainy, except for Memorial Day, which was a little cold but we saw a lot of sunshine. Sunday was the coldest and rainiest, so we decided it was a great day for PJs, movies and naps. Even the dogs got in on the action:

Ginger and Mariko Lounging

Monday morning we woke up to sunshine and antsy dogs:

Mariko had to be outside in the sunshine.

Since the dogs had been confined to the house all weekend, we decided to take a hike up Green Canyon yesterday afternoon. It was the perfect temperature and just what the dogs needed.

Joe with Mariko and Bailey up Green Canyon.

I'm really anxious to get some warm weather so we can do more of this!

Mariko's First Trip to the Roof

We took Kyle to the roof of the White Owl for his birthday lunch. Mariko went with us, which was a great experience for her. There is a narrow, dark flight of stairs that leads to a door which opens to more stairs (metal with open back), then onto the open deck with lots of smells (BBQ cooking hamburgers and bratwursts). She hesitated on the second set of stairs and then ran right up them. Coming down the stairs took a little coaxing, but once she decided it was inevitable, she went right down them.

After our afternoon outing the girls decided Mariko needed a little pampering:

It turned out to be a pretty good day..

Trip to the Fire Department

Last Thursday Lucy and Mariko took a trip to the fire station downtown Logan to see our favorite fireman!

Both dogs were able to experience a lot of different surfaces, men in uniform, stairs of different types; they even went out on the roof of the fire station. Both Lucy and Mariko were able to experience trucks coming and going while they stood in the bay. We even had them jump up into the ambulance to show them that were capable of making that big of a jump into an enclosed space.

 
In the ambulance.

Mariko and Bryan

Mariko being the "official" fire dog.

Lucy and Mariko with Bryan

We had a great time . . . and the dogs absolutely loved Bryan, in fact, Lucy just couldn't hold back :-)

We chose to wait on siren and lights until the puppies were a little older (which means we get to go back). What a great adventure for both the two- and four-legged creatures!

Pouty Girl

I couldn't go without posting "Miss Pouty" on her first day back to work after a long weekend of fun with the kids, as well as, lots of playing outside in this wonderful weather we are having:

I absolutely refuse to tell her that I feel "exactly" the same way today!

Another Busy Week

Well, we had another busy week at our house. There was a dog show and agility trials at the Fairgrounds on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday that I worked all three days; therefore, Mariko was at home practicing how to be in the kennel during the day and not at work (only dogs entered in the shows were allowed to enter the Fairgrounds).

On Saturday, after the competition, I ran home, changed clothes and grabbed Mariko to head out for our daughter's dance review. Since Mariko had been kenneled for the day, we decided she could experience a dance review first hand.

Laying under my legs.

The floor was slanted and smooth concrete and Mariko kept sliding underneath the seat in front of her, which was funny to watch, but it was hard to get her out from underneath without hurting her (especially when you're laughing).

She soon decided that the best place to be was in the "sweet spot" between the seats:

 

Sleeping through the dance recital.

She did very well, even with a lot of "little people" running around.

Yesterday Mariko took her first trip to Sam's club. It was during the middle of the day on a weekday, so we decided there wouldn't be a mass crowd of people, and we were right. She was on her best behavior, sitting when we would stop to shop, didn't put her head down to sniff the floor and ignored all of the little crumbs that were dropped on the floor near the bakery area. She's pretty amazing when we go into a new environment for the first time, she act's like she has been doing this forever. Now if we could just get the three "D's" with stay proficient, I will be feeling pretty good about our progress. Yes, she is still a puppy, but so amazing.

Last night we were downstairs helping Kyle get his new computer up and running. While I was working on the computer, Mariko decided she really liked watching the basketball game with Kyle (yes, and she still thinks she is a lap dog):

Hanging out, watching the game.

We also got our family pictures back this last week. Katie had a very long talk with Mariko and told her that since she was in all of the pictures, she couldn't leave us now. After Katie left, Mariko and I had to review why she is such a "good dog" and how she will be an awesome companion whereever she ends up.

Our extended family!

We are back to work today after having a four day weekend. She wasn't quite sure she was ready to be under the desk this morning, but after a little walk outside she settled right back into the routine and is being the "good dog" we know and love.

We will hopefully get some puppy play time in with Lucy this week and work more with the "bed" command, especially from a distance.

Mariko, you are such an amazing dog!

Trip to Home Depot

Mariko and Lucy took a field trip to Home Depot to experience different noises and surfaces. They both did great.

Lucy and Mariko watching their handlers.

Again, watching their handlers (and the treats!)

Sitting on a wobbly cart - Mariko didn't want to lie down.

Mariko

For two very energetic, young puppies that were asked to work together and not play, they did a very good job (even though they secretly REALLY wanted to be playing with each other).

Life Has Been Crazy

WOW, these last two weeks have just flown by and Mariko continues to grow. She is doing very well, learning bed from a distance (of course she does this much better at night so that she can go to her bed instead of her kennel). The other night Karlee went for a short run and took Mariko with her. This was the end result of the "bed" command:

She must like sleeping with her head on the floor. This is how I found her with Ginger last night:

And then when Ginger decided it was too crowded on the bed, this was the end result:

Can you say Scoobie Doo?

We took a trip to Bear Lake on Monday. She loves the water (I will post videos later):

She prefers being in the sun, as opposed to the shade. I'm glad we took the kennels so that we could get her some cool shade for a while.

Next time we will remember to take her Doggles:

As you can see, she thinks she is pretty cool!