Training Day

By

St. Bridget

Week 1: Introductions

Danny nervously approached the training area. Bullet hadn't been around other dogs much, or any animal except Steve's cat Ninja, really, and Danny wasn't sure how he'd react. He counted five other dogs—a Boston terrier, a Bulldog, a chihuahua, a dachshund, and some sort of shaggy, black-and-white herding dog. Bullet was the biggest. That was good.

Tail wagging happily, Bullet bounded up to the chihuahua, and Danny breathed a sigh of relief. This was going to work out. His relief was short-lived. The chihuahua took one look at Bullet and started barking. Surprised, Bullet backed away and cowered behind Danny. Danny sighed. This was going to be a long eight weeks.

Week 2: Take It Or Leave It

"Okay," the instructor, a tall, perky, island native said, "this exercise is called 'Take it or leave it'. I want you to take two treats. Place one on the floor in front of your dog, and keep the other in your hand. Point at the treat on the floor and say 'Leave it'. When your dog obeys, give him the treat in your hand and say 'Take it'."

Danny placed the treat on the floor as instructed. Bullet immediately darted out his head and swallowed it. Danny took another treat and placed it on the floor, saying "Leave it" firmly before he'd even removed his hand. Same result. Bullet nearly got Danny's fingers in his eagerness.

The instructor came over. "Try putting it further away," she suggested.

Danny obeyed. "Leave it," he said. This time Bullet waited a whole 10 seconds before grabbing the treat. Danny sighed. At this rate, all he was going to get out of this exercise was a fat dog.

Week 3: Sits and Downs

"Bullet, sit," Danny said firmly. Bullet looked at Danny and wagged his tail. "Sit," Danny insisted. Bullet's tail wagged harder.

The instructor came over. "Get behind him and gently push down on his behind," she said.

Danny did as she instructed. Bullet wouldn't budge. "A little harder," the instructor said.

Eventually, with a lot of pushing, Danny got Bullet to sit. He immediately popped up again. "Try again," the instructor said.

Danny gave the sit command. This time, Bullet obediently sat, then immediately lay down. "That's okay, down's next," the instructor said. "Try sit again."

"Bullet, sit!" Wonder of wonders, Bullet sat. "Good boy," Danny praised. Bullet stood up again. Danny groaned.

"Don't worry," the instructor said, "he did what you asked. You didn't ask him to stay. That's next week."

Danny could hardly wait. Not.

Week 4: Stay

Danny put Bullet in a sit (much harder than it sounds—Danny swore it took him five minutes—Bullet still hadn't quite mastered the previous week's lesson). He backed away three paces. Bullet followed.

"Try again," the instructor said. Danny was really starting to hate her eternal cheerfulness.

"Bullet, sit." Success. Whew. "Bullet, stay." Three steps. Bullet stood up.

"Correct him," the instructor said.

"Nuh-unh," Danny said, sounding like a game show buzzer. Bullet immediately started quivering. "Sit." The quivering got harder, and Bullet started whimpering.

"Was he abused?" the instructor asked.

"Yeah," Danny said. "We found his previous owner beating him."

"That's not an uncommon reaction for abused dogs. Just be gentle with him."

Danny knelt in front of Bullet and put his arms around him. "Hey, hey, it's okay, buddy. You didn't do anything wrong. I just need you to listen to me, okay?" Bullet wagged his tail and licked Danny's face.

"Now try it," the instructor said.

Danny put Bullet back into a sit and backed away. As before, Bullet got up to follow him. "Nuh-unh," Danny said, much softer this time. Bullet started trembling again. As Danny went to comfort him, he had a funny feeling he was being played.

Week 5: Come

"I think we need to master 'Stay' first."

Week 6: Loose Lead Walking

"The point of this exercise is not a perfect heel," the instructor explained. "You just want your dog to walk next to you without getting too far ahead or behind. So I want you to give a gentle tug on the leash and say 'Let's go', then give gentle corrections if the dog lags or pulls ahead. Go ahead and try it."

Danny tugged Bullet's lead. "Let's go, buddy." Bullet obediently trotted beside Danny, pausing for a brief sniff here and there, but generally not deviating from Danny's side. Finally, something Bullet was good at.

Week 7: Wait

"Okay," the instructor said, "I want you to put your dog in a sit at the door of the training area, draw a line through the air with your hand, and say 'Wait', then go out the door. The point of this exercise is just to not let the dog cross the line. It's okay if he stands up, lies down, or whatever."

Danny positioned Bullet at the door and waved his hand. "Wait." Then he walked through the door. Bullet didn't follow, but he looked mournfully after Danny, then started whimpering, getting louder and louder. "Shh, it's okay," the instructor said. "He's coming back." Bullet got up and wandered over to her to be petted.

"He didn't cross the line," Danny pointed out.

Week 8: Graduation

Steve, Chin, Kono, Lou, and Grace all turned out to watch Bullet graduate. First, though, they had a 'final exam' where the instructor put them all through their paces.

"What happens if he doesn't pass?" Grace asked anxiously.

"He'll pass," Danny said. He was trying to sound confident, but it sounded more like a prayer.

Bullet sailed through the exam with flying colors, even winning the contest for longest down and getting a huge doggy biscuit as a reward. Danny was grateful they didn't do "Take it or leave it"-Bullet was still a little ragged on that one. Grace and the team clapped as the instructor placed a mortarboard on Bullet's head and snapped a picture. That was going on his fridge right next to Grace's school picture.

"We got Bullet something," Steve said. He presented bullet with a large, meaty bone. Bullet woofed excitedly.

"Go on, buddy, dig in," Danny said. "You earned it."