Getting a Feel for School

Monday I took Her Royal Highness (HRH) Berkeley into to school for her official meeting with the Headmaster. She had a quick meeting with him when we brought her home at 9 weeks, but she was groggy and didn't really know what was going on. This time, she had on her puppy coat (she looks slightly like a parade float in it, but moves majestically as royalty should) and I was eager to point out her easy execution of the sit command.

We entered his office and of course the first request was:

"Is the coat coming off?" And, I don't know about you, but when the Headmaster wants something, you do it. Plus, when HRH sits and gives you her you will love me stare as see below, you do what they want.



With the coat off, she became touchable (everyone at school has been pretty good, with some notable exceptions, about sticking to the no touch or acknowledge rule when she has her coat on, the kids are especially good at it). So, the Headmaster made his feelings for her known.


Later, we visited the Director of Communications to drop off her 6-week portrait in case there might be a need to use it to announce her in any of the school newsletters. We also found out that the bookstore only stocked school spirit dog shirts in small sizes. Imagine that. As if HRH would attend a pep rally in an inappropriate outfit. That will be soon corrected!

Lastly, after rounds, we walked past the library doors, where inexplicably, HRH went over to them and sat down. Almost as if to say, "Back to work."

It will be a good year.

Princess Pees-a-lot

Her Royal Highness Berkeley often goes out to the backyard to contemplate the zen of being. I've caught her on more than one occasion trying to eat the water lilies. Fred has even stopped her and had a frog pop out of her mouth, so our little Queen of all she surveys is actively searching for prince charming it seems (or warning him off! Don't try for any kisses here, buster. I will eat you with a spoon.).

Who knows the mind of royalty? Not I, evidently. Take yesterday, for example. I live in constant fear of a pee-saster. Yes, I said it. I can handle tile and linolium floors. It's the carpeted venues that freak me out. That's when I look at little Miss Tiny Bladder and think, oh my. She will do anything.

She's pretty good when we tell her to busy busy and yet, there is that unreasonable fear that the nap under the table will result in a pee-saster on our way out the door of the restaurant. Is she slowing down to sniff or something else, something more pee-worthy? That's when our blood speeds up a little bit, the heart beats a few times faster. Is my face flushed?

Did you know that Best Buy is COMPLETELY CARPETED? Did you also know that there are 100s of Best Buy employees stationed at nearly every other aisle!? And if you bring a really cute little 12-week old guide dog puppy into their store THEY WILL ALL STARE AT YOU LIKE YOU ARE CHOCOLATE?

It's true. Like chocolate. So I walked HRH very carefully, and even though Jennifer the trainer says to keep our eyes up, I couldn't help but be on the lookout out for the pee squat. It was CARPET! A puppy raiser told me she had been able to catch her pup's poo as it came out (now that is so OMG incredible I can't even conceive it!) yesterday at a department store. That wouldn't work with a pee-saster. So I had one eye on HRH, one eye on the Best Buy spies and one eye out for Fred who had disappeared and left me to wander the carpeted aisles. I figured I was safe if she was laying down. She had never actually peed while laying down. That I knew of anyway.



"Fred! Did you find the air conditioner?" Evidently, our old airconditioner was screaming in agony in the guest house and we had never heard it. Time for a new air conditioner.

"Yes." Fred is a man of few words. "Great. I'll see you at the car."

Evidently, royalty don't have pee-sasters. At least not at Best Buy with 100s of employees looking on.

A Big Day

By Fred.
Yesterday was a very big day for the little girl. We started with lunch at Panera, her first indoor restaurant with a carpet that wanted to be pee'd upon but she resisted. Here's Cheryl and Berkeley being cocky on the sidewalk outside, trying to see who is cuter than whom--I try to weasel out of making any judgements like that.


Then it was on to Lowes for some shopping. More gawking from the shoppers with the same comments: I can't pet her, can I?, they ask. (Uh, No.) Pretty good walking for her first time in a busy store, right? To be honest, I cut off the end of the video (it got a little ugly).


Then on to Costco, where she did just as well, even with the crazy kids going in all directions and carts piled high with massive slabs of meat.

So far she's doing really well on the leash. We have a zero-tolerance policy against hard pulling--she just can't seem to remember it for very long. She does like to get out front and lead the way, which is nice.

And today we had a nice walk through the neighborhood. Until today, she's had no interest in walking away from the house, so I would carry her far down the sidewalk and we'd walk back. But today she was glad to go exploring in all directions. Something new every day...

HRH Visits the Common Folk and Rides a Trolley

Last Thursday was our monthly local meeting and it involved a ride on the Jolley Trolley and a trip down the Clearwater Beach Boardwalk to Coneheads Ice Cream (located in the Red Roof Inn on Clearwater Beach. They are big supporter of SEGD, so please support them! Plus their ice cream rocks!).

As we gathered near the trolley stop the first trolley came screaming by, saw the huge group of us with our dogs, never slowed down, and took the left curve with what I thought was an amazing amount of luck considering that physics should have had him on two wheels and screeching! We debated as to whether we should wait for another trolley and experience the same rudeness or walk to Coneheads and take a trolley back. We decided to explore the pier a bit and try another trolley.

The wooden pier was in and of itself quite an experience and Berkeley didn't at first find it to her liking. I wasn't sure if it was the smell of fish, the birds, or the weird planking that made her nervous, but you can see by the photo that she had her tail tucked and was taking things very cautiously.



We've learned to not coddle this behavior but to power on and be matter of fact about things. So we continued down the dock. Fortuitously, we ran into a very nice boat captain (and I am sorry to say, I didn't catch his name) who kindly let ALL OF US get on and off his boat. Talk about a real interesting experience. Berkeley wasn't big enough to do the jump onto the boat, but once we got on the boat I let her explore.



She wandered around and then sat under the benches and took a breather. I think she was wondering if this was one of those ill fated 3-hour cruises! 8-) But soon enough another trolley happened by and this time a very jolley man was driving it and he was quite happy to take the lot of us to Coneheads.



Berkeley got on without too many problems and fell asleep at Fred's feet for the rest of the trip to ice cream. Then we walked back to our car with Princess and Stephanie, making it a royal walk of sorts. 8-)

The next day, we took HRH Berkeley out for an official outing, since she had had her 12 week shots and could be about in public now. We started at Panera, where she was a dream in line, sitting and laying down as necessary.



Then we moved to Lowe's. I was really pleased that within one day she went from a fully tucked tail to one that was only turned down a bit at something new. She did pull away a bit from Fred, but other than that, there was no tail tucking. She walked beautifully on the leash as well.



All in all, HRH made a grand outing in society.

One Step at a Time

Admittedly, our little HRH Berkeley bears only a slight resemblance to the Warrior Queen Boudicca in the painting above by John Opie. I think it is mostly in the fierce eyes and wicked mouth.

None of those were in attendance in her next photo where she chose to ignore the stairs with disdain. "Really? You want me to walk up and down the stairs? How could you?"


It was a weird phenomenom. She ran up and down the two steps on the deck outside with no problem, but seemed to be afraid of the set of four and the really long set of stairs in the house. With Bingo, I think we took the stairs too fast, so I wanted to work with her slowly on them,especially as she showed signs of trepidation.

The last few nights I would walk her over to the steps and in a casual voice say, "How about these steps?" She gave me some funny looks and wouldn't come near them for a couple of nights. But the tail did wag. The last two nights, she came near the steps and I was able to interest her in them enough that she put her paws up on the first step. Then she looked down, realized where she was and freaked out and jumped off the steps.

"Today," I thought. "Today she will make it up some steps."

I planned my attack. I went to get a toy as a reward and then positioned HRH. At first she did the disdainful sleeping thing. Then it was like Boudicca came down and possessed her. She lit up and barked at me. (I was holding the toy and asking her to come get it and it was out of reach at the top of the stairs. So unfair!)

"Britons Unite! We will conquer these stairs, show this crazy woman and then get that toy to shut her up and make her stop annoying me."



With that, she proceeded to methodically climb the stairs. She didn't do it in a rush, like Bingo. She did it with thoughts of falling backwards, so she went slowly and carefully. Very methodically. Almost easily, one might say.



At the top she turned around and sat and I gave her the toy. I detected a small smirk but that could have been the toy hitching up her jowls, right? She didn't play me. Not me. She's a puppy.

She's not Boudicca. Not really...

HRH Goes to the Vet

Her Royal Highness Berkeley had her first vet appointment last week at Animal Hospital of Northwood with Dr. Woodman, who is also a puppy raiser. We were the only ones in the waiting room when we arrived, but soon enough a couple of other dogs came in with their owners. It was such a new experience to have someone say, "You have such a good puppy!" HRH was sitting and observing the new arrivals with a bit of a glacial, haughty air. Distant, but interested. The tail was slightly wagging, but no indication that a lunge was imminent.

What a difference!

We went into the examining room and met with the nursing staff, who were very sweet. In addition, I was offered something to drink (that was super nice!) while I waited (which wasn't very long at all) for Dr. Woodman. HRH needed a flu booster shot.

I think HRH won over the Dr. with her puppy cuteness, but that may be just my desire to do her bidding. Dr. Woodman and his staff won me over. I'm so glad we switched vets to his office. We definitely felt better taken care of and the service was more attentive and prompt. Plus, Dr. Woodman is a fellow puppy raiser, and how can you not like that. We'll be switching our chocolate lab Willow over into his care as well.

Daddy's Girl

Some of you might remember the posts we did about dog beds. We bought these ginormous dog beds from Orvis. They were so big that full sized Bingo AND Willow could sleep on them. We have one of them downstairs in the TV room and one upstairs in our bedroom.

Berkeley found the one downstairs pretty quickly, the first week actually. She had been pretty good on her potty training, so we didn't pay much attention until she squatted.

"ACK! She's peeing on the bed!"

"No! Berkeley! Quick, take her outside."

Rats, that's when you have to shake yourself. Get in puppy mode. Tiny bladder mode. If you let her out an hour ago, chances are, she has to go again. Every nap, take her out again. Having an older dogs lures you into complacency. Big bladders, longer times between pee breaks. Peeing on the bed, however, big no-no. We have to undo the covers, then wash them, then undo the covering of the bedding and clean that and search to see if there is leakage. All in all, a big process. Needless to say, it happened once more, before we said, "No more bed until she is 100% potty trained!"

So imagine my surprise when I am at a conference session and I get a text message with a photo showing HRH (her royal highness) Berkeley on the bed a mere few days after we had enacted our No Bed Policy.

"Why?" I text back thinking succinctness will also imply other emotions.

"She ran and got in it and I am weak."

Ah. Houston, we have a problem. 8-)