Worthy is 19 months old now, and continues to progress. Excited barking is something I'm working with him diligently on in public, since he's big and black and people can't be expected to know why he's barking! It's a Poodle thing to bark, so we're working on a strong instinct. And we're winning!
Yesterday he barked in excitement at a couple of kids on our walk, but he did stop quickly. What thrilled me was that as we walked up the driveway to home, there were two mourning doves walking on the grass very close. That's the kind of thing he barks at--he likes to see them fly up! But he didn't bark at all! Yay, Worthy!
Today he goes for grooming. We've worked with his groomer and I've studied a Poodle grooming book, and I think we've come up with a good style for him. She scissors his face instead of clippering it, leaving a moustache and beard. Those really depict his sense of humor!
His legs are longish, and she does NOT clipper the feet, just trims between the pads but NOT between the toes (ouch--that has to hurt!).
She uses a comb over the grinding tool blade for most of his body, so that the only areas fairly closely cut are the tummy and below the tail. The rest of him has some fur, and he looks great!
The last time she groomed him, a month ago, was the first time he was not tired or stressed afterward. He just behaved normally for the rest of the day. That has never happened before!
But this is just a much easier session for him. We do his ears at home, we keep him clean and combed, we do his toenails. Without the tight clippering, he looks very cool! And it seems the whole process is much more comfortable for him, too.
It takes me longer to comb him daily, but that is good for us both. Since Poodle fur never stops growing, including in the ears, it is a constant process. His ears are staying healthy with the care we give them, too. Sadly, both his littermates have been removed from assistance dog work because of ear infection problems. We have a great veterinarian, and we work dilligently on those ears!
I also wash under his eyes with warm water every morning, and clean his private parts with apple cidar vinegar rubbed on vigorously with paper towel. That is necessary, too! It is no lie that Standard Poodles require probably more grooming than any other breed. Yikes!
I talked to the Director of A New Leash on Life, Barbara Lewis, who placed Worthy with me and is helping with training. She said she is working with a Yellow Lab who is a month older than Worthy, and just not quite mature enough yet to take over his job as assistance dog to the partner she is training him for. That made me feel good, because that's what I see in Worthy. He's doing great. He's just, very understandably at 19 months, not quite mature yet.
Things are going great!
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Kathy Diamond Davis, author, "Therapy Dogs: Training Your Dog to Reach Others," 2nd edition, and the free Canine Behavior Series articles at http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=SRC&S=1&SourceID=47
