The eight weeks of Toby's first obedience class flew by. Leave it, sit, stay. Come, down, drop it. Walk. No pull. Those were the eight commands we learned those eight weeks. Although this beginner class wasn't a puppy class, Mr. Dean occasionally walked over to quietly tell me, "Now for Toby..." and then there would be a modification, always to my  relief. For example, if an adult dog should "stay" for 3 minutes, perhaps 30 seconds, or 15, was good enough for the puppy.

At our last lesson every dog showed improvement in both behavior and obedience. Shy collie Lily was still shy but walked the gauntlet of other dogs more willingly. Maybe it was my imagination, but I thought her owner seemed more proud of her and more confident himself.

 Jax, the dog with canine ADHD, revealed his innate intelligence by learning all 8 commands. His owner was so calm and loving. No doubt life at home had improved for them both now that Jax understood how to please her.  Golden Glory was perfection on every command. Her intelligence and breeding really showed. She smiled for the entire hour.

Toby was a blur of motion.

Big Ralph showed the biggest change - visually as well as behaviorally. One week he showed up with an all-over summer clip and it looked like he was the winner of Biggest Loser! I swear, he'd lost 50 pounds in a week - but it was all black and brown fur. In terms of obedience Ralph no longer lunged at other dogs. Best of all his "parents" beamed with pride as they told us how the neighbors had been complimenting them on having such a well-behaved dog.

Little Mikey was still nervous as ever. Without a doubt though his "stay" and "down" were more solid. Fluffy cotton ball Bonnie did well too. She still liked to yap about it though, like a teenager who complains about taking out the trash all the way to the curb.

Mr. Dean congratulated us all. He announced that he didn't believe in certificates. "When your dog is out for a walk or at PetSmart and behaves beautifully, that's your certificate. That is how everyone will know you've graduated from obedience class." We would soon have that kind of validation for Toby.

Next post: houseguests