Time to get back to "work" from our summer holiday! We have enjoyed a whole summer of freedom with the whole family without any big plans; we have been swimming, training agility, taking bike trips and long walks in the forest. For my part all the training has been a bit different than normal as I was diagnosed with a stress fracture in my left femur in the beginning of summer. All the running is still forbidden for a few weeks so it's a good thing that I can still do yoga, some strength training, take bike rides and swim. My personal goal for this summer was to learn to prioritize a good nights sleep and I have to say I have done a pretty good job with that. It will be interesting to see how I manage to continue with my sleeping routine when our new every day life starts in a few weeks, but I will do my best! I can see the big difference it makes on so many levels.
I will write more about this subject later, but I want to start with some dog things first. My first text during the spring about controlling our dogs got very good feedback and as I have a lot to say about the subject, here's some more on that!
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Our favourite place this summer: Dog beach!
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We have a pack of five dogs and very often we go around with at least three of them at the time. In other words we have to control a pack of dogs most of the time. In my first blog post about control I wrote about some basic rules that we have and how those rules help us to have an "easy" life with our pack. But that's just the outcome of loads of work. In order to control five dogs at the time we must first be able to control them individually. That's because our pack of five dogs consists of five individuals, five really different dogs, who all have their strengths and weaknesses. When we go around with all five dogs the situation easily goes literally to controlling the PACK. Don't get me wrong, when I say "controlling" I don't mean constant negative "no-no-no-don't do that-now wait there!-no-no-no!!!" -speech and correcting dogs' behavior all the time, but to be honest there's no room for individual exceptions.
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| Behind the scenes. Swimming with this gang means that you have to tolerate some chaos... |
If we always go around with a pack (or at least a pair) of dogs it is easy to slip into seeing all our dogs just as a member of our pack. But here comes the important part: how they are in the pack is not how they are as an individual. One big responsibility as an owner of many dogs is that we are able to see all our dogs as individuals, know their weaknesses and especially their strengths and that we have a good relationship with all of them separately. And that's why I can't highlight enough the meaning of one-on-one time with each dog separately.
For us the meaning of one on one -time is that we spend time with our dog individually, have fun and enjoy ourselves WITHOUT DOING ANYTHING SPECIAL. This can mean a trip to the city, a walk in the forest or going to aunt's birthday party, but most important thing is that the dog gets to feel that she or he is the special one in that moment. That it's us two spending quality time together. Of course you can do some tricks at the town square or you can play with your dog by a football field if that's just for fun, but if you are there mainly to train, leave it to your next training session.
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| I picked up raspberries, Amo blueberries. My berries are in the bucket, Amo's in her stomach. |
Then someone says: "But I go to many competitions and training with just one dog so we get loads of quality time together!" Or do you? For us this individual one on one -time never means training or competitions. That's because then there's always those expectations and therefore possibilities for disappointment (even if you say otherwise, they are still there). And most importantly, if your one-on-one -time means going to training or competition with just one dog, that means that during his "own" time with you this dog always has to be something more than just your companion.
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You have two special girls, especially when you are eating waffles, right?
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One-on-one time is something people often do with their young puppies but when the socialization phase is over people tend to end that. There's no time etc. But the starting point for a working pack is to have working individuals. And to have working individuals you need to have a good relationship with each of them. And not just as sport dogs but also as companions. When they are just being a dog. Your best friend. <3
