The big new thing in our household: fences.
A week or two ago Elizabeth and I completed the construction of an extra section of fencing for our yard, to give Josie a better sense of delineation. This was done as a reinforcement for the Invisible Fence we had installed in May, and have been waiting until now to train her to. This constitutes a wire that traces the perimeter of our garden, and works with a collar that sets off (first) and audible signal and (second) an electric shock when she gets close enough.
We figured we'd never have fencing high enough to prevent a 90-pound shepherd from jumping over (or for that matter, even a dog). So the i-fence was the way to go. And training so far, after a week, has been going very well. We're at the stage now where we test her by throwing balls for her to chase, or having people come for her to run and greet -- and she's pretty well figured out not to approach the fence area. This has been allowing us a lot more free play in the garden, with no leashes attached.
The kids' play with her has risen astronomically, both inside and out. Inside, they've taken to tying her by leash to a rolling office chair, and getting them to pull them around, to everyone's delight. Outside, it's ball stuff. Great fun. And we'd just begun to lament that we hadn't had a more puppy-like experience with the kids, Josie being so big and everything. Well all that looks fine now. They romp.
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