Organised by: Tampereen Seudun Koirakerho r.y.
First lesson, 14 August 2001
Every dog made a "getting to know each other" -tour in order to be
able to sniff and meet the new dog friends. This way they would not have to
spend the entire lesson wanting to greet the other dogs. Roope was very good
with this, he did not start any fights himself and even the instructor
complimented us:
What a social Russell male :-) The instructor approached each dog in turn and
looked at their teeth. We had to zigzag between other dogs and the task was to
keep your dog interested in you (and in the treats in your pocket). Roope, as a
social dog, was also interested in other dogs and humans. But we were pretty
good on the second round. We showed how well the dog sat and lay down. That went
well, even though it is disgusting to lay down on an asphalt.
And in the end the dog had to stay put when the owner walked away and then
called the dog to her or him. Roope was very good, he stayed in his place and
came to me enthusiastically when I called him. It was surprising how many things
we did on this first lesson. We are very eager to go there again.
Secon lesson, 21 August 2001
This lesson was started by the instructor's tour of the dogs: the instructor
came to greet the dog which was sitting at the owner's feet. The dog was
supposed to wait there and not to go meet the instructor. Our second try was
better. Then the dog was told to sit back at your feet, and then we started
training the dog to follow. This was not our best skill, and we have this as an
assignment for the next time. Roope must sit at my side, then follow for a while,
and again sit down... I hope we will learn this. We practised on "stay"
while laying down. Roope will stay where he is told to stay, if he can sit. He
does not stay laying down. We must practise this as well. The second lesson went
by quickly. We are still eager to come back again!
Third lesson, 28 August 2001
This lesson began again with the instructor coming greet the dogs and look at
their teeth. The dog was again supposed to wait and not to go meet the
instructor...again, the second try went better. It was a small wonder Roope
stayed put like that. We practised following and all kinds of turns. This became
our next homework. It just does not work, there are too many nice friends and
nice smells. We also practised coming back. The dog was supposed to stay in
place and the owner would then call them back to them or to their side.
Again, Roope ran to me enthusiastically, and came to my side. He just sits a bit
badly. We must practise that as well. This time laying down went well. I do not
have to point to the ground with my hand anymore. And the lesson ended with
practises on following and turning. Again, we want to come back here :-)
Fourth lesson, 4 September 2001
The instructor greeted the dogs again and looked at their teeth. This is very
good practice for shows. We again zigzagged between other dogs. Your dog had to
be more interested in you than in the other dogs. We also practised staying, and
coming back. Roope comes to me quite nicely, goes around me and sits at my side.
We practised stopping from movement, which went well. Then there were all kinds
of following tasks. The last one consisted of a track which was full of
interesting items which the dog could not touch. We practiced "going
forward". There was a treat on top of a flower-pot and the dog was told to
go forward.
Roope thought this was a nice new game. In the end we had a playful relay. The
dog and the owner had to take a short piece of rope to the next. It was really
fun, too bad it started to rain in the end.
Fifth lesson, 11 September 2001
The weather did not favour us. Just before the lesson started it started to
dribble, but luckily it did not turn into a major rainshower. This time we began
by zigzagging next to cups full of treats. Roope was interested in the smells on
the ground and the cups with meatballs but he did not take them! The second
round went okay again. We practised following with turns and running. We had
some problems, this just does not work for us. We also practised "remote"
commands: sit, stay, lay down. The ground was wet and Roope does not like that,
so this did not go very well. But we managed to do something. In the end we left
the dog sitting in place and walked away, then calling the dog to us. This goes
well even without the leash!
Sixth lesson, 18 September 2001
We began with some jumps. The fence looked a little strange in the first jump,
but Roope jumped it. The second time he jumped real high. This fence was about
20 cm. The next came the fetch practice. Roope had his beloved squeaking
strawberry (which does not squeak anymore) with him. I threw the toy as far as
I could and Roope ran enthusiastically to get it and brought it to me. He
dropped it near me (he does not do this at home, he just holds on, and if I say
"drop it", he hears "DO NOT drop it"). Well, he carried the
strawberry and brought it near enough. Then we practised staying. This time
Roope did stay laying down and waited patiently until I freed him. We even got
compliments :-) Then we practised following and he had to stay standing when we
moved. Following is getting easier. In the end of this lesson we tried to jump
without the leash. Guess what Roope did? Ran to the nearest dog, of course. We
then jumped with the leash.
Seventh lesson, 25 September 2001
We began with jumps. The fence was now about 30 cm. Roope cleared it well and
very enthusiastically. I had to calm him down with the follow exercise. Then we
again practised following, with turns and running. It goes well if I have treats.
Then we practised without the leash. For a while it went well, but then Roope
noticed that he was free and decided to go meet the other dogs. He was a bit
crossed when I went to get him back. In the end we tried the come to side
exercise. Roope excelled himself. A Tibet spaniel was running around free and
still Roope stayed in place and came to my side when called :-) This obedience
training is fun and it Roope seems to like it.
Eight lesson, 2 October 2001
This lesson was plagued by bad weather. There were only five participants
besides the instructor and the instructor's dogs. It did not rain, but the wind
was hard and the ground wet. The dandy Roope did not want to sit. The instructor
greeted the dogs and looked at their teeth. This went really well!
Following without the leash... well, more like sniffing around freely here and
there. It just did not work, because of the weather or something else. It went
better with the leash. Roope also comes back when called. Finally we practised
zigzagging between the legs. Roope really liked this one!
Ninth lesson, 9 October 2001
We started the lesson with a zigzag tour between cups with treats. Only a couple
of times Roope did get interested of the treats. We told the dogs to lay down
and walked away. We waited a while and went back to the dog. This went
brilliantly.
Following without the leash... well, this time it went well. And stopping from
movement is getting easier. We ended the lesson with the come back exercise. And
of course (the lesson had otherwise gone beautifully) Roope ran to a friend to
play. The weather was okay, and we really got intensive training because there
were only three enthusiastic students!
Tenth lesson, 16 October 2001 We completed all the moves from the basic class. First, the instructor approached the dogs and looked at their teeth. We told the dog to lay down and he had to stay there for two minutes. Roope stayed in place quite well, until the dog next to him came to greet him. Then, following with and without the leash. There was some wonderful smell on the ground and Roope did not follow. Nor did he lay down on the asphalt. This was the last lesson of our obedience training course.