Sunday 18 March 2012

Dog training in the sunshine

The heavy rain continued overnight but today has been warm and sunny again.  While Roger watched the Grand Prix, I took Chico out wearing his new muzzle and we practiced some of the exercises suggested by Karen, the dog trainer.  He’s a fast learner and soon got used to wearing the muzzle.  It’s strange the reactions we got from walkers and dog walkers.  Families with children assumed he was wearing the muzzle because he bites (which he doesn’t) and gave us a wide berth, but dog walkers took no notice at all.  It isn’t easy trying to walk and train a dog who is scared of other dogs, especially when so many people walk their dogs off the lead and don’t/won’t call their dogs away when they rush up towards him wanting to socialise.  I had to ask 2 people to please call their dogs away but the response was the same “but my dog’s friendly and just wants to play”.  Yes, well my dog isn’t friendly and doesn’t want to play! Yet……. So please, all you dog owners out there, spare a thought for those of us with problem dogs and if you see a dog on the lead and wearing a muzzle call your dog back and give us a chance, we’re working on the problem.

Later on we went for a walk down through Tan Y Cut Woods. The woodland banks are carpeted with wild garlic at the moment and I picked some to use in tonight’s dinner.

click on the photo to read the blurb

wild garlic

graffiti hidden in the middle of the wood

We did a circular walk through the underpass under the canal and up the hill to Froncysyllte village.  It’s not far from the canal and there’s a post office, fish & chip shop and Indian take-away.  We re-joined the canal at the lift bridge and walked back to the boat in the spring sunshine. The only thing that could have made it better would have been if we’d found an ice-cream van on the way.

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