Ricochet’s great escape still has me feeling panicked whenever I think about it. I feel like I am back in the same boat. Having a wonderful, sweet, friendly dog…that is impulsive and doesn’t listen. It makes me think about how providing Waffles with more training could have saved his life. I can’t go back, as much as I wish I could, and I refuse to play the blame game; however, there is truth to the statement that Waffles’ fate could have been different if he had more training. I wish I had worked consistently on listening, house manners, impulse control, and recall so that he would have known not to rush the door whenever he saw something exciting.
I can’t change what happened to Waffles, but I can change how I respond to these behaviors with Ricochet. I have the chance to do things differently. Waffles was a beloved family member. He did everything with us, went everywhere, and there isn’t a day that goes by that we don’t think about him and miss him. Yet still, we treated training like more of a fun hobby rather than a true commitment and responsibility. Waffles knew some really cute tricks and some basic obedience, but we never dug deeper. We never practiced training in distraction, moving beyond the basics, or teaching him to always look to us for direction.
So today, August 9, 2021, I am making a commitment. I am committing to spending 45 minutes per day (it can be broken up throughout the day) training Ricochet for one year (I know it has to be longer than one year but I am type A and LOVE projects and deadlines). I want to enjoy our time together and form a great bond. I want to become a team with him. I want to have fun and try new things. Also, more than anything, I want to make sure that Ricochet knows how to stay safe.
The Heralding Hound 