Day 3 Second Visit -- Retreat Indoors

Well, our nice weather couldn't last forever. And while Sia doesn't seem to mind playing and working in the rain, I'm not so thrilled about spending a whole lot of time outside while all the wet stuff falls. So, we retreated indoors for a lot of our training and play time.

One of the things I like to do with dogs on rainy days (also works well for dogs who are on restricted activity due to an injury or surgery) is to play with puzzles with them. There are all sorts of awesome puzzles that make dogs think and problem solve to get treats. It's fun for the dogs and thinking helps them burn some energy too. It also gives us a chance to practice a few things in the process, like sitting and waiting for me to place the puzzle on the floor. This is teaching her self control and helps with some of the demanding behavior that can come along with adolescence.

There are different kinds of puzzles, most of which can be changed up to make them harder for the dog. She has to figure out how to move pieces around in order to find the hidden treats.

This is a popular game amoungst the dogs, as you can probably tell by Sia's audience.

And after we are all done, there are puzzle pieces all over the floor. What a perfect opportunity for Sia to work on picking up her toys.

Not only does she have to use her paws and her mouth to figure out how to pick up the pieces, but we are also working on drop. She has to return the puzzle piece to me before getting a treat. She's so enthusiastic about this that I kept tossing the puzzle pieces back on the floor so she could do it again. Wouldn't it be great if we could get kids to be this enthusiastic about picking up their toys?

As with any day, we have a little bit of crate time so she can have some down time and I can work on training notes. She's doing great about going into her kennel and does so with great enthusiasm but she is yodelling a little bit once I close the kennel door. Tomorrow I'm going to try stuffing a Kong with some of her food and refreezing it so she has something to work on while in the kennel. Hopefully that will create a more peaceful downtime for her.