Labor day holidays are all over and I’m happy that we made the most out of them. We were hiking, strolling around Ljubljana, spending time in nature, visited Trieste one sunny afternoon – and our tawny tail came along for the most part. He still seems tired of all the activities, napping here on the sofa beside me. We don’t take him everywhere we go and usualy consider whether he’ll get anything out of it … But in many occasions he joins us and always has a great time, being curious and lively as he is.
Taking your dog to the city is fun!
Sure, it really is fun – but it requires at least some training. Walking on loose leash might be the first thing to think about working on. It’s not as easy as it seems. It certainly depends on dog’s nature and energy level but in our case, our vizsla’s energy would make city walks a big struggle without some training. We actually still train walking on lose leash quite often and it really pays off. Working on commands like “sit” and “stay” might come handy too. Even more so on coffe dates and lunch breaks, when you’ll expect from your dog to lay down and wait for you to finish that Aperol Spritz. A simple tip here is to go and drain off some of your dogs energy before going to the city – makes sense and really works.
Another thing to talk about is of course the socialisation. Lack of socialisation can result in a puppy that becomes fearful as he grows up. But I’m not refering to getting your dog used to the company of other dogs here. When socialising your dog, consider introducing him to many different new things, enviroments, people, sounds – not just new dogs – and always provide a positive experience. With Oto we simply exposed him to new things every day, feeding wonderful treats at the same time to make each interaction a happy one. I wasn’t scared to take him to the busy train station, walk by noisy streets and even took him to crowded city center in the festive December. It’s paying off. He doesn’t mind for the cars, bikes and people rushing … So today, it’s fairly easy taking him to the city with me – which I do gladly!
Always by our sides, always full of silly ideas.
