The Busy Puppy

As you can see from the photos Don has grown a lot this month! He just moved up to a large size jacket. He is now more than 6 months and will turn 7 months on December 7. He is gradually getting friendlier, but no less stubborn. That's just the kind of dog he is :D I've posted lots of pictures about Don- at home and on outings. To begin with, the one above shows Don at a stopping point on our walk. It was a very clear morning and we could see the bay down below. I don't like waking up early, and am by no means a morning person, but I enjoy walking Don earlier in the day when everything is quiet and its cold (my favorite weather). (This doesn't happen very often as I usually can't pry myself out of bed on weekend mornings).

Our walks usually consist of a one hour loop around the neighborhood. Don's biggest issue is distractions, and with the help of the food protocol our walks are running a little more smoothly. Don has been on the food protocol for months now, but is still very distracted by people and dogs. 

While he no longer tries to charge at passerby's, they capture his attention. After getting a "nice" and food for looking back at me, he is learning to stay focused. 

Hopefully we will work through this as he is otherwise well behaved on outings/ walks. His confidence in all situations is incredible. Just the other day, we were walking on a sidewalk-less stretch near a highway, which didn't phase him one bit.

We usually pass the fire station on our walk. Don enjoys watching the firefighters clean trucks and practice drills. Definitely a great socializing spot to have close by! We often practice walking over grates as Don is not a big fan of them. 

Don practicing his sit stay on a bridge. A family of deer caught his attention (though you can't see them in the photo). He is quite the handsome boy :) This is near the church my family and I go to. Don went to church last night and was great- he slept through the majority of it. He also went to his first play this past weekend, which was two hours (long for Don). It was a youth production at our local theater and was excellent. After Don realized that I wouldn't let him eat the spilled popcorn, he drifted off and stayed that way for most of the production. Afterwards, he "did his business" on command in the cement parking lot. I was very happy to see that he had gotten used to cement-relieving!

Don posing near the marsh. Normally there are lots of people and dogs here, but there weren't today. I took advantage of the solitude and snapped some pictures!

Many sights and sounds captured his attention

Don in the kitchen. He got a new blue dragline for corrections inside the house. I am currently trying to break a couple of bad house behaviors (stealing items from various places) and needed a more durable 20 ft line after Don chewed the first two. I ended up getting two nylon leashes and clipping them together. It works quite well.
Don waking up from his morning nap in the sun. He always keeps one foot tucked under his body when resting. 

Fast asleep after his walk. He is actually sleeping on a sofa cushion (which he LOVES) from a sofa that we got rid of a long time ago. My dad recently picked up a dog bed from Costco that I had wanted. It turned out to have a cedar stuffing and smell. Don did not like the smell one bit and wouldn't set a foot on his new bed. So now we're back to the sofa cushion :) 

The rest are just random photos of Don from the past two weeks. Enjoy!

Sleepy boy.

Don says HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

He gives thanks for his Dental Dino Nylabone, his Kong, and stray socks :)

And most importantly, his FOOD!