Shelley and her 12-week old Siberian Husky puppy Ki-Ki were just walking in the building. Going anywhere on a leash was normally an adventure for little Ki-Ki. He had learned in his short 12 week life that meeting new friends brought happy times and often there was a goodie involved to boot!
He had visited the veterinarian where the staff and clinicians had all "oohed and aahhed" over him and gave him a tasty treat. He quickly learned to look forward to their strolls around the neighborhood where Shelley would stop and chat with their friends in the community. Ki-Ki maintained his best behavior on these outings. He knew that if he stood quietly while the friendly stranger was petting him, Shelley would pass to that person a goodie to hand down to the hopeful little pup.
Tuesday nights signalled their weekly conformation training class where he delighted in sampling a veritable smorgasbord of snacks from others attending. Thus this youngster strained at the end of his leash as they approached the assembly of people and pups.
Apologizing to the group for being late Shelley did not notice the change in her puppy's demeanor. For as everyone sat down they deposited their respective squirming canine baby on the floor around the astonished little Ki-Ki. An excited little yap escaped his mouth. One thing for sure, Ki-Ki thought, these were not Siberians!
A feisty black and tan Rottweiler next to him was mouthing his owner's knuckles. A spunky Cairn Terrier was leaping up and down trying to return to the security of the lap that she just left. Growling playfully, a Golden Retriever pulled on his owner's shoelace. A pile of white Maltese fluff named Cricket danced on her hind legs, waving her paws in the air. And a boxer named Charlotte was making eyes at him waggling her whole body in an invitation to romp.
Before he could become further acquainted Shelley scooped Ki-Ki up to concentrate on what the instructor was saying. She had a hard time hearing anything as a man sitting near her talked over their instructors words. No matter what the instructor said the man contradicted it since of, course, he knew more.
He seemed to be an expert on everything. He bragged about the number of champions in his dogs pedigree. He bragged about this show and that show that each parent had won. He boasted how much money he had paid for his puppy and how perfect it was. And he even blustered that his puppy was surely the smartest in the group before they had even begun the first exercise. "Haven't you seen that new book," he asked Shelley. "I thought that everyone had read it. My breed is one of the smartest there is," he declared knowingly.
"It's time for pass the puppy", the instructor interrupted. "Remember, there is no passing or failing on any of these exercises. The purpose of them is to show you what type of puppy you may have - whether he is bold or submissive, dominant, assertive or acquiescent. Knowing such things will help you train your puppy more appropriately. Now let's get started."
Everyone sat cross-legged in a circle. Each person passed his puppy to the left to be caressed and stroked by the stranger next door. "See how my boy is doing, the man said as he prodded Shelley in the ribs." All the puppies endured the unfamiliar attention well.
"What happy, outgoing puppies we have here in this group," the instructor approved. "Did everyone remember to bring a bag of treats. Good! Let's all give our puppy a reward for a job well done," she urged.
Ki-Ki's fuzzy little ears pricked up. He attentively watched as each owner reached behind him or her on the floor to pull or a treat from their purse or tote bag beneath the chair. Oh boy oh boy, he realized excitedly. Here's a roomful of people that came today just to give him treats!
"Now let's play the out-of-sight recall, the instructor suggested. "Let's have each handler go in this other room. Don't turn on the light but crouch down low with the door cracked open. I will hold your puppy. You call your puppy. The puppy will have to go past all the other puppies on the way to you," she explained.
Ki-Ki was the third one to be called. All of the other people in the class sat in 2 rows facing each other to form an aisle. Shelley handed Ki-Ki to the instructor. Ki-Ki proceeded to thoroughly wash the kindly woman's face with his little pink tongue while Shelley crept off to the darkened room. After the instructor lowered Ki-Ki to the floor Shelley called "Ki-Ki come", clapping her hands. Ki-Ki trotted in a straight line past the bouncing Cairn terrier, Maltese and others to seek out the origin of the well known voice.
The little Cairn was next but when released showed more interest in playing with Charlotte the Boxer than in seeking out his owner. Chuckling, the Cairn's owner finally returned to the group and retrieved his frolicsome youngster. "You may need to work on an attention exercise a little more with this one when we start to train for obedience," the instructor prophesied, tousling the Cairn's brindle fur.
Two other pups each stopped enroute but finally sought out their owners and the man who acted like the expert on everything was last. "Now watch this, he ordered." He handed his puppy to the instructor walked into the other room and called. The bright youngster galloped across the way to his owner yipping excitedly all the way.
"Now for the group play session, the instructor smiled. At the end of each class we will turn all the puppies loose to play with each other or with one of the toys from this basket. She overturned an oversized laundry basket spilling out assorted stuffed animals, chewies and other canine delights.
In unison the class unsnapped their leashes and giggled at the antics that followed. The Maltese played tag around the basket with the Cairn. The Rotweiler was more interested in finding just the right chewie. The Boxer wrestled roly-poly with the Golden Retriever and Ki-Ki decided to play with all.
"All right," the instructor interrupted, "get a treat ready and call your pup. As soon as he comes give him the treat but then let him resume playing immediately. This way he learns that the fun doesn't stop just because you called."
Some pups came sooner than others. "You see how much faster my puppy came than yours," the man said smugly. "My puppy can really figure things out." The man pulled out a treat from beneath his chair and proceeded to offer Shelley some training advice.
Shelley smiled, as she gave Ki-Ki a treat and released him to continue his play. She agreed with the man that the his puppy surely had a bright future in obedience competition and he should be really proud. Just then Shelley counted noses. There was the Maltese and Cairn racing in circles. The Boxer and Rottweiler wrestled on the floor. The Golden Retriever was perfecting his Recall but Ki-Ki, her Siberian Husky, was missing from the group of puppies at play.
Startled Shelley glanced at the door to the outside to check that it was still closed. She was just about to ask for help when a rustling noise caught her attention. There, beneath the last chair in the circle was a very pudgy little Ki-Ki - buried up to his white-tipped tail in the man's tote bag.
Hurriedly, Shelley got down on all fours to look beneath the other chairs. Each purse or bag was overturned with a only a small pile of crumbs left where formerly had been a bag of treats. "Ki-Ki, you little rascal," she admonished her overstuffed youngster after she had apologized to her classmates. "You may not appear to some to be the most intelligent pup in that class but in my opinion you are too smart for my own good!"