Sorry people, my life is busier than I think. Everyone who knows me is rolling their eyes at that comment. You are all thinking - uh ya, dumbass, WE all know this.
My week has been hectic and it will just continue to get worse as the weeks pass. I will make an effort to try to get to my writing on a timely basis.
On that note . . . Back to my 9 km last Saturday . . . which was originally planned as a 6ish km run for Blue and I . . .
Little D and I made arrangements to meet outside my house at 10 a.m. So I took Blue for a quick walk first hoping to work out some of his kinks and give me my walking warm up that I love to get in. Then we met D and headed off down the trail in the opposite direction towards the high school.
A few hundred metres down that trail I saw a couple dogs off leash up ahead. I told D to go ahead and I'd catch up because I knew Blue would stop. We stopped for a few seconds. The lady was apologizing about the dog being off leash "he got out of the house and I can't catch him". I stood still with Blue for an extra minute hoping to lure the other dog so it's owner could grab him. She didn't get him and I continued on my way.
Blue had a few squirrel lunges but for the most part was well behaved. In fact, this entire run was so uneventful that I wondered silently what was going on?? We finished off the trail and headed up onto the sidewalk. People, cars, squirrels, dogs . . . not much was bothering him. The odd pull at a squirrel or stopping for a minute for people but that was it. Hmmmm . . . . I was really enjoying this run and it seemed Blue was too!
We ended up back on a trail in a section we had never run before. Really nice and woody - wouldn't know you were in the city! I love it when I hit trails like that - makes my runs even better. Had a few intense hills but no problem. :-)
Before we knew it we were on the trail back towards my house. Heading towards the same area with the loose dog . . . and looky there! STILL LOOSE! It was about 1/2 an hour later. The lady is still loitering on the path with her dog running around her. I am thinking WHAT!?? How can you not have gotten your dog yet? So once again D keeps going and I stop. I asked the lady - didn't you bring treats out? "Oh yes," she says, "but I've already used them all." I'm thinking "How did you give the dog treats and not grab him by the scruff of his neck" (btw no collar on the dog - its in her hand). So I ask her if I can try with my treats (just kibble - all natural). She says yes. So I pull out a handful of treats, tell her to get ready and tell Blue to sit. Her dog is hovering around and I make sure he's watching when I give Blue a couple of the treats. The dog comes over and now both he and Blue are sniffing at my closed hand trying to get treats as I let one out at a time. She finally gets ahold of him. I wait for her to get the collar on him and say "See Ya". Really?? really? I just shake my head at things like that.
So off I go to catch up to Little D. I'm feeling really good at this point and Blue seems to be fine and enjoying himself so we continue with D instead of stopping. We drop her off at a point about a kilometre away and she continues the rest of her run home. Blue and I stopped and walked our way back home. Nice cool down walk. Beautiful run. Beautiful weather. Beautiful run.
I am hopeful.
Friday, April 29, 2011
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Speedwork and Nine Kms
This week was a pretty eventful week. Wasn't exactly how I thought it would go.
Tuesday a.m. Blue and I did a regular little run. Our 3 km walk route only we ran it instead. I have no stories - it was uneventful.
"Little D" and I made plans to run together both Thursday night and Saturday a.m. (Little D - wink, wink - remember Nigel! This was a nickname given to D last year during our marathon training clinic.)
Thursday night being our regular "speedwork" night at the track after work. Saturday would be a "long run" - really long for her and not so much for me. Little D is training for a half marathon. I am not - I am running for "fun". So I asked D if I could bring Blue along for our long run. She gladly agreed. I reminded her that he was doing a lot of stopping and starting and if it was a problem, we wouldn't take him next time.
Anyway . . . along comes Thursday . . . D has to cancel or make it later. Later wasn't really good for me so I told her to go during the day without me and we wouldn't get together this time. So while sitting at work pondering what to do, I realize that I can just go home, get the dog and do the speedwork at the high school track nearby. Then we will both benefit. So off we go. It's early . . . 5:30 p.m. I know we are going to meet quite a few people along the paths at this time but whatever . . . Blue needs to learn to adjust.
We meet up with a few "off leash" dogs in a little clearing about 200 metres from our house. That's fine. We stop and play for a couple minutes and then head off. We meet up with a couple people and dogs but it's the squirrels that seem to be capturing his attention.
There are quite a few out there. Running around, jumping branches, fences. Once again I tell Blue "NO, leave it, leave it." Blue whines at me and pulls the other way. Good boy I tell him. We continue and we eventually make it to the track. WELL . . . what I see is not what I want to run in! The track is mostly lakes - not puddles but lakes! and there are mounds of dirt and grass all over. I'm not sure if they are going to fill this in or why all that dirt and grass is there. Doesn't really matter anyway because there is no way I am running on that track!
So I decide that I will just do hill training instead. Similar function in the end - Building leg strength. So we continue for a few minutes to the "hill". We end up doing 4 repeats - AWESOME! I'm proud of myself and proud of Blue. He actually did really well with me on the hills. He seemed to "like" them. It's probably the extra exertion he liked! So off we go home. This is where the trouble starts . . .
We meet up with two dogs along the way. Blue seems a little more strung out than usual after running past them. To make matters worse there are a lot of squirrels. They are driving him crazy - think about Bob Murray and the groundhog in Caddy Shack . . . Blue is trying to run after all of them. Doesn't really matter what I am saying at this point - he's yanking my arm off! We get 1/2 km from home when up ahead are two older ladies and their three little fluffy dogs. Ok no problem. I try to talk Blue through it to keep running . . . Nope, he drops. Heavily. Not moving. He's waiting for the other dogs to get into range. I look up at the ladies - they aren't walking they are CRAWLING!! Oh no, this is going to take forever! They take a few steps, pause, take a few more steps, pause. OMG I think I'm going to die. I feel like picking Blue up in my arms and walking past them that way! I wait patiently - YES I'm saying patiently. Finally they make it close . . . well I guess the build up was more than Blue could handle - he LOSES IT! SNAPS! Barks like a crazy dog, lunging, not listening to me at all. I struggle with him on the ground trying to keep him from jumping. The ladies look at us in shock. I'm a terrible owner and Blue is a vicious dog. Yup, I'm sure I heard them say that. I kknow that's what they were thinking.
So I pick Blue up - he continues to bark! What!! He always goes calm when you pick him up?? I get away from the ladies and their foofoo dogs and put him down. I am SO mad and frustrated. That seemed to come out of the blue (no pun intended). I just never expected that! So I walk instead. We are done and I am not running the rest of the way home. I walk him, in the heel position, the rest of the way home. I don't let him roam at all. I am seething from that episode. I feel bad but so frustrated! lol.
All I can think is . . . running is supposed to relieve my stress NOT PRODUCE IT!! What a day!
Well . . . that post was WAAAYYYY longer than I thought so I'll have to leave the "Nine Kms" part of this for another post.
Tuesday a.m. Blue and I did a regular little run. Our 3 km walk route only we ran it instead. I have no stories - it was uneventful.
"Little D" and I made plans to run together both Thursday night and Saturday a.m. (Little D - wink, wink - remember Nigel! This was a nickname given to D last year during our marathon training clinic.)
Thursday night being our regular "speedwork" night at the track after work. Saturday would be a "long run" - really long for her and not so much for me. Little D is training for a half marathon. I am not - I am running for "fun". So I asked D if I could bring Blue along for our long run. She gladly agreed. I reminded her that he was doing a lot of stopping and starting and if it was a problem, we wouldn't take him next time.
Anyway . . . along comes Thursday . . . D has to cancel or make it later. Later wasn't really good for me so I told her to go during the day without me and we wouldn't get together this time. So while sitting at work pondering what to do, I realize that I can just go home, get the dog and do the speedwork at the high school track nearby. Then we will both benefit. So off we go. It's early . . . 5:30 p.m. I know we are going to meet quite a few people along the paths at this time but whatever . . . Blue needs to learn to adjust.
We meet up with a few "off leash" dogs in a little clearing about 200 metres from our house. That's fine. We stop and play for a couple minutes and then head off. We meet up with a couple people and dogs but it's the squirrels that seem to be capturing his attention.
There are quite a few out there. Running around, jumping branches, fences. Once again I tell Blue "NO, leave it, leave it." Blue whines at me and pulls the other way. Good boy I tell him. We continue and we eventually make it to the track. WELL . . . what I see is not what I want to run in! The track is mostly lakes - not puddles but lakes! and there are mounds of dirt and grass all over. I'm not sure if they are going to fill this in or why all that dirt and grass is there. Doesn't really matter anyway because there is no way I am running on that track!
So I decide that I will just do hill training instead. Similar function in the end - Building leg strength. So we continue for a few minutes to the "hill". We end up doing 4 repeats - AWESOME! I'm proud of myself and proud of Blue. He actually did really well with me on the hills. He seemed to "like" them. It's probably the extra exertion he liked! So off we go home. This is where the trouble starts . . .
We meet up with two dogs along the way. Blue seems a little more strung out than usual after running past them. To make matters worse there are a lot of squirrels. They are driving him crazy - think about Bob Murray and the groundhog in Caddy Shack . . . Blue is trying to run after all of them. Doesn't really matter what I am saying at this point - he's yanking my arm off! We get 1/2 km from home when up ahead are two older ladies and their three little fluffy dogs. Ok no problem. I try to talk Blue through it to keep running . . . Nope, he drops. Heavily. Not moving. He's waiting for the other dogs to get into range. I look up at the ladies - they aren't walking they are CRAWLING!! Oh no, this is going to take forever! They take a few steps, pause, take a few more steps, pause. OMG I think I'm going to die. I feel like picking Blue up in my arms and walking past them that way! I wait patiently - YES I'm saying patiently. Finally they make it close . . . well I guess the build up was more than Blue could handle - he LOSES IT! SNAPS! Barks like a crazy dog, lunging, not listening to me at all. I struggle with him on the ground trying to keep him from jumping. The ladies look at us in shock. I'm a terrible owner and Blue is a vicious dog. Yup, I'm sure I heard them say that. I kknow that's what they were thinking.
So I pick Blue up - he continues to bark! What!! He always goes calm when you pick him up?? I get away from the ladies and their foofoo dogs and put him down. I am SO mad and frustrated. That seemed to come out of the blue (no pun intended). I just never expected that! So I walk instead. We are done and I am not running the rest of the way home. I walk him, in the heel position, the rest of the way home. I don't let him roam at all. I am seething from that episode. I feel bad but so frustrated! lol.
All I can think is . . . running is supposed to relieve my stress NOT PRODUCE IT!! What a day!
Well . . . that post was WAAAYYYY longer than I thought so I'll have to leave the "Nine Kms" part of this for another post.
Monday, April 18, 2011
What a novel idea!
Saturday morning . . . woke up in the wee hours of the morning as I do. I had limited time so needed to decide what to do . . . Run Blue now or wait until Sunday. I wanted to run now . . . he hadn't had a good run for a few days and I think I had neglected even my long walks in the past 2 days. And we were going to be out all day and night and I always like to give him extra time out when we do that. But my bed was warm and cozy. It was yucky out . . . raining and grey . . . blaaaahhhhh. So I laid there, listening to both sides of my brain telling me different things.
I checked the hourly weather forecast . . . no end in sight to the rain but it was warmish. That's a positive point. I'd get a run in, another positive point. Blue would get his run, positive again. Nobody would be out walking in the rain, another positive! So many positives and no real negatives. How could I not go. And all I kept thinking was - nobody would be out there!! How exciting! I had to decide right now because I was on the verge of not having enough time to run, eat, shower and get out of the house. So I decided YES! Jumped out of bed and got myself and Blue ready and off we went.
Since it was wet, we just did a quick walk to the path and started to run right away. I wanted to warm up quickly so I wasn't cold once the rain soaked through me. Not 400 metres into our run I am happily in my bubble (heehee) thinking about how great this run will be with nobody out!
Boy was I wrong! But you all knew that didn't you . . . Dog people are a crazy bunch!
So we round the little bend and there is the first dog and his owner. As I watch them coming towards us I realize he is holding something in his other hand . . . you'll never guess what! An UMBRELLA!!!
Who knew!?? Wow . . . rain . . . umbrella. I was astounded. How could I not have ever thought of that? Uhhmm, I think because I'm a CAR person. House, car, work, car, house. Maybe a store in between. I have to give myself a little bit of a break - we did get Blue in December and until now rain hasn't really been a factor. But I digress, yes, walking a dog in the rain you could totally take an umbrella. Note to self - next time take the umbrella. Novel idea.
So we stop to say hi! to the black lab and then continue on our way. We ended up meeting up with 3 more people and dogs. Blue would go low, starting his signature crouch and I'd tug the leash a bit and say "Come on Blue, let's go, run, come on run!"
We made it through the next two dogs like that. We were having a good run. It was really nice and warm. I though wow, this is going good. We hit our turn around point and started back the way we came from. Wham! The wind hit me. Ahhh yes, no wonder it was so nice. The wind had been on my back aha!! But even that was no big deal. It was the initial shock of the wind on me but it wasn't too strong. We were still enjoying ourselves.
About half way home, we met up with the next dog. Blue started to go down into his crouch and I told him to keep running. We took a few more steps and I thought - so glad this is working out, he's actually listening. Big smile. Then all of sudden I was at the end of leash being jerked backwards! Blue had stopped dead into his crouch on the ground solid as a rock! The lady coming towards us laughed out loud! It must have looked pretty funny. So we stopped to say hello and have a little chat about stubborn dogs and crazy dog people out in the rain.
Off we went home. Pretty uneventful after that. Didn't meet up with anyone else. Run was about 25 mins. And a good 25 mins. I'm happy again. :-) Yummy hot coffee waiting at home for me - Thanks Kev!
I'm getting excited for future runs . . . I want to go longer. 5 km soon. It either has to be on the weekend or I have to get up and out of bed earlier. Although I realized it will take me just as long to walk my little 2.5 km or run 5 km, so it doesn't need to be too much earlier. What it will take is more self motiviation to get up out of bed to RUN rather than walk. Definitely have some mental work to do . . .
I checked the hourly weather forecast . . . no end in sight to the rain but it was warmish. That's a positive point. I'd get a run in, another positive point. Blue would get his run, positive again. Nobody would be out walking in the rain, another positive! So many positives and no real negatives. How could I not go. And all I kept thinking was - nobody would be out there!! How exciting! I had to decide right now because I was on the verge of not having enough time to run, eat, shower and get out of the house. So I decided YES! Jumped out of bed and got myself and Blue ready and off we went.
Since it was wet, we just did a quick walk to the path and started to run right away. I wanted to warm up quickly so I wasn't cold once the rain soaked through me. Not 400 metres into our run I am happily in my bubble (heehee) thinking about how great this run will be with nobody out!
Boy was I wrong! But you all knew that didn't you . . . Dog people are a crazy bunch!
So we round the little bend and there is the first dog and his owner. As I watch them coming towards us I realize he is holding something in his other hand . . . you'll never guess what! An UMBRELLA!!!
Who knew!?? Wow . . . rain . . . umbrella. I was astounded. How could I not have ever thought of that? Uhhmm, I think because I'm a CAR person. House, car, work, car, house. Maybe a store in between. I have to give myself a little bit of a break - we did get Blue in December and until now rain hasn't really been a factor. But I digress, yes, walking a dog in the rain you could totally take an umbrella. Note to self - next time take the umbrella. Novel idea.
So we stop to say hi! to the black lab and then continue on our way. We ended up meeting up with 3 more people and dogs. Blue would go low, starting his signature crouch and I'd tug the leash a bit and say "Come on Blue, let's go, run, come on run!"
We made it through the next two dogs like that. We were having a good run. It was really nice and warm. I though wow, this is going good. We hit our turn around point and started back the way we came from. Wham! The wind hit me. Ahhh yes, no wonder it was so nice. The wind had been on my back aha!! But even that was no big deal. It was the initial shock of the wind on me but it wasn't too strong. We were still enjoying ourselves.
About half way home, we met up with the next dog. Blue started to go down into his crouch and I told him to keep running. We took a few more steps and I thought - so glad this is working out, he's actually listening. Big smile. Then all of sudden I was at the end of leash being jerked backwards! Blue had stopped dead into his crouch on the ground solid as a rock! The lady coming towards us laughed out loud! It must have looked pretty funny. So we stopped to say hello and have a little chat about stubborn dogs and crazy dog people out in the rain.
Off we went home. Pretty uneventful after that. Didn't meet up with anyone else. Run was about 25 mins. And a good 25 mins. I'm happy again. :-) Yummy hot coffee waiting at home for me - Thanks Kev!
I'm getting excited for future runs . . . I want to go longer. 5 km soon. It either has to be on the weekend or I have to get up and out of bed earlier. Although I realized it will take me just as long to walk my little 2.5 km or run 5 km, so it doesn't need to be too much earlier. What it will take is more self motiviation to get up out of bed to RUN rather than walk. Definitely have some mental work to do . . .
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Run #2 and 3
Run #2: Saturday Blue and I went to the dog park. He ran and ran and ran for 1-1/2 hours with the other dogs. That was the best time we've had out at a dog park. His face looked like he was smiling. It was so cute. I wish Kevin had been there to take pics.
Sunday a.m. we had originally scheduled a walk with Chris and dogs but that fell through so I was good to do run #2 with Blue. I had hoped that Sunday's dog park run would have tired him out enough to be somewhat calm but as I've read (and experienced) over and over . . . Border Collies have tons of energy!
So. . . . I'm happy to report that Blue did run. He ran with me at a nice pace. I was hoping for another nice run but my expectations were low lol. Good thing too. We went at about 10 a.m. Slightly drizzling I hoped not many people would be out. Ends up there was more than I expected . . . Ahh . . . . he barked and lept at a few people and dogs. He also tried to chase two squirrels. I'm "pleased" to know that he's back to normal! Really it's just because there are so few people out at 6:00 - 6:30 a.m. when I would normally go.
We just did a short run - 3 kms. I go down our normal walking route thinking that he would not have to stop and sniff as much as a new route. He does still sniff but is happy to keep running when I tell him to. But we still have a people / dog problem. Hmmm . . . .
And Run #3 was this morning, 3.5 kms. Disappointing but ok - waaaayyy too many people out. 6:15 a.m. and there were 4 sets of dogs and their owners . . . You know what's funny - I have to wonder where all these people were all winter in the freezing cold weather and snow when I was walking Blue at the same time everyday! I think - "wow, what did those poor dogs do then?".
This morning we started out with two bunnies in the grass. "Leave it, leave it" I say to Blue. He pulls and whines. "No, leave it". He does but gives me another little whine and pulls to the other side of the pathway, almost like he's trying to get away from the temptation. The bunnies run under the trees.
200 metres down, I see the "angry man" and his Jack Russell Terrier. I say "Good Morning" to this man every time I see him. He always responds a few seconds later, like he has to think about it, "morning". He's so gruff I can't tell if he's angry or that's just his voice. He barely finishes his salutation when the Jack Russel and Blue start barking at each other like they want to kill each other!! What is up with this! It happens every time. I figured if the two dogs could sniff each other this wouldn't happen anymore. BUT that isn't happening with this dude. He boogies past like we are not worthy of walking on his path and he just needs to get away. It's the same every time I see him.
Then we hit the corner where two beautiful huskies live . . . they are not in the backyard. "Whew!" I think to myself, "Lucked out there". Just as we are passing the house - the huskies fly out the backdoor and Blue whines and wants to go back. I keep running - he keeps turning around to look.
This is basically how the rest of our run goes. Except I got tired of holding Blue back and avoiding dogs so when I saw a dog I'd head in the other direction lol. Ended up taking sidewalks instead of the path for a 1/4 of the run, then jumping on the path for the last bit home. Phew, I'm tired just remembering it!
This is going to be more work than I expected. I might have to start going earlier . . . 6 a.m.? 5:30 a.m.? How early will be "early enough"?? Good lord, I'll end up having to go to bed at 8 p.m. just to get up in the morning to run the dog! THAT wasn't really part of my plan . . .
Sunday a.m. we had originally scheduled a walk with Chris and dogs but that fell through so I was good to do run #2 with Blue. I had hoped that Sunday's dog park run would have tired him out enough to be somewhat calm but as I've read (and experienced) over and over . . . Border Collies have tons of energy!
So. . . . I'm happy to report that Blue did run. He ran with me at a nice pace. I was hoping for another nice run but my expectations were low lol. Good thing too. We went at about 10 a.m. Slightly drizzling I hoped not many people would be out. Ends up there was more than I expected . . . Ahh . . . . he barked and lept at a few people and dogs. He also tried to chase two squirrels. I'm "pleased" to know that he's back to normal! Really it's just because there are so few people out at 6:00 - 6:30 a.m. when I would normally go.
We just did a short run - 3 kms. I go down our normal walking route thinking that he would not have to stop and sniff as much as a new route. He does still sniff but is happy to keep running when I tell him to. But we still have a people / dog problem. Hmmm . . . .
And Run #3 was this morning, 3.5 kms. Disappointing but ok - waaaayyy too many people out. 6:15 a.m. and there were 4 sets of dogs and their owners . . . You know what's funny - I have to wonder where all these people were all winter in the freezing cold weather and snow when I was walking Blue at the same time everyday! I think - "wow, what did those poor dogs do then?".
This morning we started out with two bunnies in the grass. "Leave it, leave it" I say to Blue. He pulls and whines. "No, leave it". He does but gives me another little whine and pulls to the other side of the pathway, almost like he's trying to get away from the temptation. The bunnies run under the trees.
200 metres down, I see the "angry man" and his Jack Russell Terrier. I say "Good Morning" to this man every time I see him. He always responds a few seconds later, like he has to think about it, "morning". He's so gruff I can't tell if he's angry or that's just his voice. He barely finishes his salutation when the Jack Russel and Blue start barking at each other like they want to kill each other!! What is up with this! It happens every time. I figured if the two dogs could sniff each other this wouldn't happen anymore. BUT that isn't happening with this dude. He boogies past like we are not worthy of walking on his path and he just needs to get away. It's the same every time I see him.
Then we hit the corner where two beautiful huskies live . . . they are not in the backyard. "Whew!" I think to myself, "Lucked out there". Just as we are passing the house - the huskies fly out the backdoor and Blue whines and wants to go back. I keep running - he keeps turning around to look.
This is basically how the rest of our run goes. Except I got tired of holding Blue back and avoiding dogs so when I saw a dog I'd head in the other direction lol. Ended up taking sidewalks instead of the path for a 1/4 of the run, then jumping on the path for the last bit home. Phew, I'm tired just remembering it!
This is going to be more work than I expected. I might have to start going earlier . . . 6 a.m.? 5:30 a.m.? How early will be "early enough"?? Good lord, I'll end up having to go to bed at 8 p.m. just to get up in the morning to run the dog! THAT wasn't really part of my plan . . .
Friday, April 8, 2011
DAY ONE
My first run with Blue was AWESOME!
I was expecting the worst. Walking with Blue some times is a chore. A little background on Blue . . . he is a one year old Border Collie. Yes people, a Border Collie, not part husky, not part terrier, or whatever else you think he is. He is a Split faced, tri-coloured, smooth coated Border Collie. Yes he has one blue eye. No that's not only a husky thing . . . but I digress. Because he is still a "puppy" he is curious - we stop to sniff a lot. When we aren't stopped, we are pulling on the leash to get to the next thing to sniff. Because he is a Border Collie, he is a working dog, a herding dog. He likes to herd things . . . He is extremely focused when he wants to be. If he is in herd mode (or as we say at home - play mode) he will stay focused on his item forever. If we are playing with a ball and he sends it back to you and waits for you to throw it - he will stay in position until you do - it could be 5 minutes later . . . he hasn't moved. When he's out and about on our walks and people and dogs come up towards you he will go down on the ground and NOT MOVE until the thing he is watching is about 4 ft away . . . and bang! He's off the ground and at them in a flash! He's actually just playing but the people don't know that.
Sooo the point of that was to say - walks sometimes are a little much, so running I wasn't sure what would happen. I sort of expected the running to make all of the above worse. Or at least him stopping every 30 seconds to sniff . . . or jumping up at me because he's so excited . . . or biting the leash . . . or chasing birds, squirrels, rabbits, dogs in yards . . .
As it turns out - he was an absolute angel. So much so, that it scared me. All I could think was "Uh oh, the next one is going to be SO BAD I know it!" lol
So while we are running, I'm trying desperately to figure out why this is going so well?? Two changes have been made:
1) the obvious - we are running and he loves it
2) he's in a harness and the leash is attached on the top of his back to the harness not his neck collar
I decide that both are correct. I decide to check with his original owner who had him for his first 8 months . . . yes, she always walked him in the harness. Her husband walked with leash and collar. Bingo - he was raised in the harness! Nice and calm he was. He was also happily running along with me.
I am in my glory. First day and we had success!
P.S. We did not meet up with a single person or dog . . . it was 6:15 a.m. . . .
I was expecting the worst. Walking with Blue some times is a chore. A little background on Blue . . . he is a one year old Border Collie. Yes people, a Border Collie, not part husky, not part terrier, or whatever else you think he is. He is a Split faced, tri-coloured, smooth coated Border Collie. Yes he has one blue eye. No that's not only a husky thing . . . but I digress. Because he is still a "puppy" he is curious - we stop to sniff a lot. When we aren't stopped, we are pulling on the leash to get to the next thing to sniff. Because he is a Border Collie, he is a working dog, a herding dog. He likes to herd things . . . He is extremely focused when he wants to be. If he is in herd mode (or as we say at home - play mode) he will stay focused on his item forever. If we are playing with a ball and he sends it back to you and waits for you to throw it - he will stay in position until you do - it could be 5 minutes later . . . he hasn't moved. When he's out and about on our walks and people and dogs come up towards you he will go down on the ground and NOT MOVE until the thing he is watching is about 4 ft away . . . and bang! He's off the ground and at them in a flash! He's actually just playing but the people don't know that.
Sooo the point of that was to say - walks sometimes are a little much, so running I wasn't sure what would happen. I sort of expected the running to make all of the above worse. Or at least him stopping every 30 seconds to sniff . . . or jumping up at me because he's so excited . . . or biting the leash . . . or chasing birds, squirrels, rabbits, dogs in yards . . .
As it turns out - he was an absolute angel. So much so, that it scared me. All I could think was "Uh oh, the next one is going to be SO BAD I know it!" lol
So while we are running, I'm trying desperately to figure out why this is going so well?? Two changes have been made:
1) the obvious - we are running and he loves it
2) he's in a harness and the leash is attached on the top of his back to the harness not his neck collar
I decide that both are correct. I decide to check with his original owner who had him for his first 8 months . . . yes, she always walked him in the harness. Her husband walked with leash and collar. Bingo - he was raised in the harness! Nice and calm he was. He was also happily running along with me.
I am in my glory. First day and we had success!
P.S. We did not meet up with a single person or dog . . . it was 6:15 a.m. . . .
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