So much for good intentions. All the bones are out in the snow somewhere in the dog yard. Glutton for punishment, I got a new tea bag (strawberry this time). It was in my hand so he was eager to touch it. Did 5 of those. Then I sat on the coffee table and put it beside me. No problem, we did 8 touches with it on either side of me on the coffee table. He knows the job and is looking for it. Then we did 8 on the floor, to the left, right, and between my feet. No problem. He’s got that.
Then I did one to my right, and then hid it behind the leg of the table on that side. No problem!
So I put him in the bathroom, hid it in the same place, and let him out. He went right back out where we’d been working, caught the scent, and found it (spit out the tea bag, there’s a dear). EE HAH!
Put him in the bathroom again. Hid it behind a different leg. He came out of the bathroom looking for it, ears up, trotting, aiming for the previous location. He’s got it! When he didn’t find it where he expected it to be, he cruised a neat little circle, caught the scent, and found it (please don’t eat the tea bag, sugar).
Then we did another 10 in increasingly difficult places and he literally is searching the whole room. He’s easy to read. It’s exciting to see exactly where the scent snatches him by the nose. Most hides were on the floor, but one was in a cardboard box on the stairs and another was under a cushion on a wicker chair. No problem. I think it’s time to go buy some dollar store salt and pepper shakers to protect the tea bag. The last hunt my hand was down his throat before I managed to grab it (seriously, pumpkin, do NOT eat the tea bag!).
So great start to the day!
Then we did a little work on retrieving with no reportable progress, worked on Kamal’s duration Hand Touches and Food Follows for heeling, did some stretches on the PawPods, and called it a day.