Jade - 26th February 2013

Picked Jade, a possible Mastiff cross, up from Balwyn in the afternoon and took her for a walk in an enclosed park.

We let Jade off-leash and are in the process of teaching her recall at the Dendy Park. She adored everyone she saw and got lots of pats and rubs from the people at the park. She was polite to other dogs, even when she was a little unsure at times. She ran around a little bit with other dogs that were chasing a ball.

Jade was tired at the end of the two hours amd is sleeping soundly under my computer chair.

Max - 5 February 2013

Today we took Max to his new home!   :)

Max - 29 January 2013

Max had a lovely long weekend, spending time at the beach and park. He is getting better at following the pack and not wondering off by himself too much. When he does wonder off, he now looks around to find us. He is also getting 'sit' very well!


He is very good with other dogs. He may be a little bit too 'sniffy' but he is never bad with another dog. We have had a couple of dogs try and mount him and he moved away from them instead of engaging. Today a little terrier came up and was nipping at his legs. Max tried to sniff it and walked off when he couldn't. All his friends came up to see and stop the terrier from being nippy towards Max.

Max was not too polite at the weekend barbeques. He loved the one with the teenagers; he went and stood in the middle of a group of girls who patted and cooed at him. However he was over exuberant at the family gathering. He was bumping into people and jumping up at nanny! He wouldn't be left outside and kept banging on the glass door. We had to crate him up so that he would calm down. We will have to keep up his training so that he will be a well behaved dog in the future.

Max - 23 January 2013

Had a fun day at the beach. Max played nicely with the bigger dogs at the beach. He instantly connected with a German Shepard and they jumped around  in the water together and bumped each other. Max got out of his depth and was a little worried but he managed to swim back to shore. We think it might be his first swim ever! He tried to chase a young Staghound cross but was a little slow. We can see that he is getting fitter everyday and is less tired at the end of play sessions.

 As much as he likes the water and sprinklers, Max is not as enthusiastic as some of our other dogs when being hosed off!

Max - 19 January 2013

First time taking Max to the beach after his stiches have healed. He spent a lot of time scooping up sea water in his mouth! He sits for treats as well, after a bit of reminding. He follows nicely and comes when called.

We get Max to sit before putting his dinner down. He is getting it very nicely. Next step is "wait" before eating when the bowl is on the ground.
Our dog sits to eat, but being a Tenterfield she is close enough to the ground. Max tried to sit and eat but it got too uncomfortable so he lay down instead!

Max - 16 January 2013

Max is learning to walk on a lead. He is much better at it at the end of the day or at night, after a whole days excerise. Lead walking first thing in the morning is not Max's favourite activity. He would rather walk where he wants. We have a couple of older dogs to teach him to walk on a lead. Max has not learnt to stay on one side of the handler. He also bumps into the other dogs as he walks. We have to teach him how to walk in a straight line.

Max - 15 January 2013

We are teaching Max not to throw himself at the door, be it front door or van door, as soon as it is open. He uses his weight to try and push his way past. We are teaching him to sit in front of the door. He does not stay sitting for long. 'Wait' is another command we are trying to teach Max. He waits for a little while, a few seconds, but tries to lunge out as soon as he is done waiting. He does not wait for the release. He tends to get better at waiting the later in the day (the more tired he is).

We are trying to get Max's stamina and muscle tone up. He does tend to only potter around the park and is panting more by the end of the first walk, eventhough he does less exercise than the rest of the dogs. Today we had Max running with the pack, if only for a little while.

Max is definately looking fitter and slimmer!