Leader of the Pack

The Adventure Pack

Since some of the pups haven't been totally trustworthy off leash lately, I've been mostly keeping them on leash for the hikes the last few weeks to hopefully get them back into the habit of sticking closer together and being more attentive.  Wesley is generally very good about that, so he spent the hike off leash to serve as an example for his packmates.  Coco, Rucksack, and Benny stayed on leash while we hiked and they got to sniff out plenty of interesting spots along the trails.  About halfway through the hike, when we turned around and started the return leg, I noticed that Rucksack was walking behind me instead of pulling ahead as he had been earlier.  I took the opportunity to give him a chance to display his good manners and let him off leash.  He went off into the brush nearby to relieve himself and then I called him back.  He picked up a stick, trotted back over to me and his packmates, dropped the stick at my feet, and looked up at me.  He was great!  I let him stay off leash for a while longer and tested him by calling him back to me frequently.  He was doing great and I put him back on leash to make sure we ended on a positive note.  I'll be testing all the pack members more in the coming weeks and hopefully they'll all prove that they're back to their reliable, well-behaved selves.

The Play Pack

Benny found a couple different playmates at the park and had a great time gnawing at thier necks and getting jumped on.  Coco joined in the mix with Benny and one of his playmates, and the other dog took them both for a good run.  Brady was in an interesting mood today - he met a Beagle named Stella who he followed around for a while and tried to mount a few times, and he also air-humped in front of a big dog who was lying down.  It's good to see him interested in other dogs at the park but he was just a little too interested today.