Winter Blunderland

If only I could give and take my own WAIT command. Winter is here, however temporarily. We’ve had snow every day for what seems like a week. Somehow I can’t just leave her when I go skate skiing, my winter passion.

I knew there would be chaos. But that didn’t keep it from being chaos.

First, Cedar alternated biting my skis and poles in rapid enough succession that I couldn’t get my skis on before she wrapped the leash around my legs a couple of times. I laughed, and got us untangled and underway, with her leashed and off to my left. And then it was mad ski tip biting. I used the poles for some gentle and not so gentle “aversives” and we actually got underway. Until… another dog.

Ears off, leash tangled, pups flying in circles, and eventually one or both hit me hard enough from behind that my pole would have impaled an overflying bird. I didn’t laugh so much that time.

Ran into friend Merry who suggested I unleash her. There was hardly anyone on the trail. We had a good two minutes of YES!, unfettered striding by me, happy galloping with only a few attempted ski bites by Cedar. Cut to tiny dog on leash, Cedar’s ears in lockdown mode, and a long five minutes to restrain Cedar against a railroad tie with my poles, while the nice man gave me palliatives like “Well, she’s young” and “She sure is a good looking girl, at least.”

So, my young, good-looking ski companion and I have a lot to learn. Any successful teacher will tell you the secret to their success is learning how to learn from their students. Although I may let my “good teacher” aspirations expire with my teaching certificate, I think I could do well to match Cedar’s growth curve with waiting.

It makes all the sense in the world to wait until she can heel on command, and until she physically matures before we make skiing a regular thing.

Would you look at that snow, though?

Checks the ski trail report…