Day 308 - Torpedo

gromit ears

We've remembered an obvious strategy for managing Robin and his occasionally boisterous behaviour...drain his energy!

Of course, it's the first question any dog trainer will ask - how often do you walk him?  And the first step in resolving many behavioural issues, the old maxim being, a tired dog is a good dog...

This doesn't specifically mean that it's good for your dog to be tired (although for your sake, it probably is)...but rather, that when tired, he will be good - better behaved, more compliant and amenable...

So yesterday whilst out walking, I ran 50yds down the lane whilst Anna waited with Robin...then she released him and I called him.  It was as though she'd launched a torpedo as he charged towards me, straight as a die, low and very, very fast. 

We ran him between us two or three times (until the treats we were motivating him with ran out), and it seemed he'd needed the release of some pent up energy.

This morning we got up late, and he was still dozing in his bed.  He was mellow and submissive and really quite lovely, seeming to have lost the slightly wound up edge that he'd had for a couple of days.

So we took him for another run, this time with more treats and longer distances...but he ran out of steam and/or interest very quickly, and was not so much of a torpedo, so it doesn't seem that he has massive reserves. 

We will try to give him an opportunity to release his energy every two or three days, and see whether this helps to keep him mellow and friendly. 

Having said that, we went to a Halloween do tonight, where he snatched a sandwich out of a child's hand!  We were mortified, and whilst there was no harm done, it seems that he is a food thief!

We're going to have to come up with one strategy around avoiding snatching opportunities, and another around removing or redirecting the compulsion to snatch.

On the bright side, there were pumpkins!

fire within

It is a little early for Halloween, I grant you - I don't get it either...but the pumpkin lamps were cool!

In completely other news, you remember the dead mole from last week?  Well it seems that something decided that the most appropriate thing to do with his corpse would be to poo on it!

insult to injury

This looks like the work (for work, read poo) of a badger, and there are clear signs of badger activity within metres of the dead vole, including a badger latrine...but why the badger should feel the need to dump one on the mole is a mystery.

At least, it's a mystery to me - the badger appears to have had clear intent - this is not a random act. 

Also, notice the number of leaves in this photo, compared to the original photo of exactly a week ago...

Despite the unseasonable warmth (20C this afternoon), Autumn is settling in...

:-)