First Day of School

Today was Sturm’s first day of obedience classes.  We got there early and walked around in the area they have reserved for that, letting him follow the scents of other dogs and ensuring he didn’t have to go to the bathroom.  He was filled with energy.

We headed inside as eight o’cock rolled around and found a seat at the back of the room.  I liked the place – there were structures used in agility courses stacked on the sides, a soft yet firm floor to walk on, ribbons all along the wall, operable water faucets with bowls filled with water nearby, and a corner dedicated to selling some dog related items.  The place felt both welcoming and practical.  I was also excited to see that Meg, who introduced me to It’s PAWSible was going to be the lead instructor.

Class started like any first, small class in school – each of the seven or so people announced their name, their dog’s name, and gave a brief story about how they met.  It was cool to hear all the stories and I was glad to see that most of the folks had adopted dogs from various shelters.  I was also excited because Sturm was the second biggest dog there, next to a full-grown two year old German Shepherd names Rico.  While we were going around the circle Beth, the owner of It’s PAWSible, went around and gave us each treat bags and sample treats.

After everyone was introduced Meg began our lesson.  Mostly what we did tonight was name recognition and teaching our dogs some basic things such as sit and to look at us for instructions.  Sturm was excellent with name recognition and got a lot of the smaller lessons very quickly.  I was impressed with his skills, and as both Meg and Beth made their separate ways around the facility complimenting and offering pointers to each pair, they too noticed his aptitude.

We didn’t go too deep into the various lessons tonight, but Meg taught us to simply led the dogs with treats, which helped to lay some of the critical ground work.  She advised us to not use any words at this point – that would come later – and to be sure to reward the dogs for desired behavior.

And then just like that, class was over.  We were there for an hour, but it seemed like minutes.  Sturm and I headed home, both us filled with new knowledge and at least me eager to start using some of it.  I think I picked the right place to take him, and I am also unbelievably excited to see that he is not only a quick learner, but also a smart learner, and to have this ability recognized by two official dog trainers.  This is going to be a great experience for the both of us.