The good part about not being employed is that I get to take the Katie dog to school on Monday nights.  We missed last week because I had to work, and I was scheduled to work tonight and next Monday night too.  Good thing I got layed off!  Because missing even one week has turned Katie into a squirrel.  Really.

She was extremely excited to be going to school, running out to the car and standing on her hind legs to get lifted into the back.  She pulled as usual, eager to get into the building once we arrived.  But inside she shut down almost immediately.  I cooked fresh chicken that morning, and had little chunks of it in her treat bag on my hip.  I gave her a taste before class started, so she’d know what she was working for and she spit it out.  Great.  That’s the first sign she’s not going to pay much attention to me.

There were 12 dogs this week.  Three Shelties, a few German Shepards, a totally deaf dog that sort of looked like the dog for Target, some Goldens, a Border Collie and I can’t remember the rest.  Katie got totally freaked out doing healing around the ring, running to keep up with the dogs in front of us, and never ever looking at me, so she was always surprised when we turned and went the other way, or slowed down, or sped up.  And certainly had no clue when we were going to stop.  Sit when we stopped?  Oh no, not going to happen.  Chicken?  Who likes chicken?  Not Katie for sure; makes her feel sort of ill.  Apparently.

We did long recalls.  Both times she sat while I walked away but ran to me immediately after I turned around, long before the instructor told me to call my dog.  And both times she ran right past me, did a victory lap around me and than wandered.  She never does this!  I’m going to have to tell them I need to go back to her rather than call her for the next couple of weeks.  And probably not go so far away from her either, until she gets used to the building and the class and feels better about being away from me.  After the second long recall she asked to be picked up she was so scared.  I didn’t….pick her up that is.

She was weird for 45 to 50 minutes of the class, spooked and distracted.  It wasn’t till we were doing returns, pretty much on our own and I moved away from the others that she settled down.  “Front did you say Mom?”  OHHHH FRONT!  Well OK!.  HEY!!! You have CHICKEN?!!  Why didn’t you SAY SO!.  Watch me sit and look expectantly at you!  Watch me strut my stuff and look at you adoringly!”   And then we did stand for exam, which she rarely ever does correctly.  And she stood right there when I asked, waited her turn and let the instructor come up and PET HER WITHOUT MOVING! And then the instructor and I stood there and talked and Katie still didn’t move!  Way to go Katie!  You redeemed yourself!

So.  Tomorrow we go back to the park.  But maybe we have to go somewhere else, somewhere she’s less comfortable, to practice tomorrow.  Wednesday is a fun match, where we can go and pretend we’re at an obedience trial.  It’s in the same scary building.  I guess I’ll see how she is tomorrow.  Or..today, since it’s almost morning here.  She’s having no trouble sleeping.  Me?  I’m still kind of weirded out myself about not having a job.  Guess we’ll both have to learn to adjust!