Leader of the Pack

Coco was wonderful on the hike this morning.  She comes right to me when I call her, even with distractions like other dogs.  On the occasions when she's hesitant to come, I squat down to her level while I call her and she comes running over to lick my face.  I played hide-and-seek with her by letting her get a little ahead of me on the trail and then ducking behind a nearby rock.  When she noticed I wasn't there anymore she would pause (I heard her tags stop jangling) and just wait there, then I would call her or give a soft whistle or rustle around a bit, and she'd come running back looking for me.  Sometimes she would run right past me without noticing, sometimes she'd come around the rock straight to me.  When she found me she was ecstatic, and she hopped up to nose and lick me all over while she got lots of praise and a treat.

Marley, Rucksack, and Coco all played with each other alot at the park today.  All three of them get along great.  Coco also found some Boston Terriers about her size to play with.  Rucksack and I played plenty of fetch.  Marley found lots of dogs to play with, as usual.  At one point, a Lab mix started harassing Coco a bit too much and Marley came right over, hip checked him, and drew his attention into a chase and away from Coco.  A short while later, the same dog came over to pick on Coco again and Marley was right there to draw his attention away.  It was sweet how she was looking out for her little packmate.  Her energy was a much better match for the Lab, and Rucksack joined in their high-speed chase.