The Big Ragu

“Wow, he’s a good boy; he walks without pulling.”  “Does he have Mastiff in him?” How do you keep a dog in an apt?  I have a Great Dane but I have a house in Greenwich.”  “Oh My God he sits just like a bulldog!”

These were the different comments I got yesterday as I walking Carmine.  I always have him Sit and Stay at corners so it invites comments.

I’m happy to say that he has been walking nicely, and reading Jolanta’s advice in this week’s Ask the Trainer section makes me realize I’m doing something right! When Carmine gets stubborn, I turn and go in the other direction and the boy is happy to just follow. Although I’m not taking it for granted because he does regress sometimes.

I also realized that when he does a “lay down,” I have to keep people away from him; the attention he gets keeps him on the ground and not walking.  For some stupid reason, people’s reaction is to laugh when they see him lie down although I’m not sure what is humorous about it. And I notice he does it if there’s a mass of people around. If I do wait it out too long, it attracts too much attention so I sometimes turn to him and say “Get up!”……and he does. Not sure what that’s about but it is what it is and it works.

So I’m hopeful that Carmine’s lay-downs are becoming a thing of the past. Even my dog walker said he’s been having great walks so we shall see.  My fingers are crossed.

Here’s a funny incident that I thought you’d enjoy:  The other day we were walking home from daycare and Carmine squatted in the middle of the street. What can you do? When a dog has to go, it has to go. So I blocked him with my body so any cars turning onto that street would see me and not hit him. I waved two cars around us. When he was done and I was about to pick up his poop, a Mercedes started to turn onto the street and although I waved him on, the driver ignored me.

So guess what happened? His back tire ran right across the fresh poop causing me to laugh out loud!  I tried to warn him but he couldn’t be bothered.

I guess he saved me a bag for the next pick-up.  I just hope he doesn’t live in a house with a garage, LOL.

I bet you have a funny poop story! Please share it with me here.