Initial Training II

Sammi and Ella staked-out

At 16-weeks Sammi and Ella are coming along nicely. Most recently, both pups have been introduced to the stakeout. Initially they didn't care too much for the stake and chain, and its restraint; they pulled at it, bit it, flopped-around trying to get away from it, whimpered, cried, and made a big fuss. After they settled-down a bit, I fed them, and their view of the stakeout changed a bit. I've had them on stakeout four times, each time with six to eight other dogs; the two pups in the middle, with the older dogs on each side. I think the company of other dogs is good when making this transition from "puppy freedom" to a world of more obedience.
Both are still outfitted with their fixed checkcords and have been introduced to the full-size version with which I've begun their initial work on the "here" command. Both pups new what "here" means before their introduction to the checkcord, but now I'm starting to enforce the command, making sure that they come to me whenever I call them.