We Joined the Military - Part One

It must have been the perpetual soreness I had all over my body; or perhaps it was the black circles forming under my eyes; or possibly the scowls I was receiving from other dog owners.  Or more likely than all of those reasons… it was that ONE incident when all I could do was helplessly scream as another dog came after Koda with such force that he broke his rope, ferociously jumped on top of her growling and snarling with every evil intention known to dog!

  

Whatever it was, I’d had enough!  I was tired of being afraid of the dog parks, tired of crossing the street every time another dog was approaching and frankly tired of being muscled along on our walks.

  

So, I completed the paperwork, paid the fee and signed us up for ... OBEDIENCE SCHOOL.

  

At the “human only” orientation, I read (and signed) an agreement.  Item No. 3 states that if your dog shows “unprovoked aggressive behavior toward the other dogs” it is your responsibility and if not corrected could be grounds for expulsion.  (Great, I thought, expelled from beginner level obedience school.)  I tried to discuss the issue with the instructor, but she replied sternly, “Your dog is YOUR responsibility.” 

  

After I had some time to ponder her answer, I realized I had been hoping for something more along the lines of “Don’t worry, we’ll teach you how to handle your dog so that she won’t attack and kill other dogs.”

  

Sitting in the orientation, I started to get the feeling that I was the one in obedience school.  The instructor slapped her hand with a leash as she emphatically stated: “You will spend TWENTY minutes EVERY day practicing with your dog... and we KNOW who has not been practicing.  You will use a leash like THIS.  The right side is the WRONG side for heel.  You will NOT be late.  You will clean up if you dog does his business.  We will not chatter after class… class is done when class is done.  I have never met a dumb dog…it’s always the trainer.”  (Etc.) 

Completely intimidated, I went home determined not to be humiliated the following week!

... to be continued...