Gaudeamis Igitur

Tonight was graduation at Narnia. They didn't attempt a formal procession of the candidates, but all the puppies got diplomas and their humans got to have the pups demonstrate a trick or a command their dog has mastered. Dieter did his "give paw" routine and received heartfelt applause.

The humans get "Bonus Bones"--slips of paper handed out for doing homework assignments and for asking pithy questions during class. On the last day of class, they hold a drawing, and one lucky dog gets a new toy. The instructor was gathering all the Bonus Bones, and as she was taking ours, Dieter reached up, grabbed the bag with all the slips of paper, yanked it out of her hand, and tried to eat the slips of paper. I noted that we are still working on Dieter's grabby-ness and that it is obviously still a work in progress. Dieter's Bonus Bone didn't get picked; the Husky won and got a cool rope toy.

Before the bestowing of the diplomas, we started to work on "stay." To make the puppies focus on the stay command, the instructors wore them out with romping and cavorting. Then they set up a variety of obstacles and new objects for the puppies to try out for the first time. Dieter went through a nylon tunnel (it was a little scary at first--claustrophobic, like an MRI machine), jumped over a hurdle, walked through a hula hoop, and went down a slide (the slide took a little getting used to, but turned out to be ok). Dieter thought all of this was fun, but not as much fun as knocking his partners in crime--Turner, Chance, and Rocky--head over heels.

We start the second part of puppy Kindergarten next week. Dieter hopes his old pals will be there. And who knows, maybe there'll be another kid that's more his size. 

Romping and cavorting.

Dieter leaps over the Rottie and the Dobe,
while the Husky gets ready to pounce