Scary smart
Scary smart. I call Tristan that at least once a day. He continues to absolutely astound me. We have our daily routines. In the morning, Tristan goes out and then starts his routine of coming in to check on me then running back out. Next it’s running in to grab something and then madly dashing back out with his trophy - usually a shoe or underwear or other article of clothing. The funny thing is that he only does this in the morning. He can be in and out during the rest of the day but the stealing only goes on first thing in the morning.
In the evening, Tristan will come get me to play ball with him. His routine is to sit politely behind me when I’m working on the computer. I feel “the stare”. This is much better than the tug on the sleeve or clamping onto my arm which I have worked hard to stop. Between these two methods is the dropping the ball routine. He comes into the office with his ball and drops it in my lap or into a desk drawer. More later on the many variations of the drop the ball routine. Suffice it to say that it’s used very effectively when he wants to get into something he’s not supposed to be in. He drops his ball in and then gives me his “Hey, I’m just getting my ball here” look when reprimanded.
Tonight he pulled a new routine on me. Recently I’ve been playing a new game with him. He doesn’t usually play with his orange fetch ball during the day so I put it up. It’s an industrial strength rubber ball that cost $12. I know there are already two more buried someplace in the backyard so I don’t want him taking it outside and losing it there. I hide it in the kitchen and then have Tristan sit/stay in the living room while I get the ball. I hold both hands behind my back and tell Tristan to guess which hand. He lunges (nicely) for one hand behind my back and of course I show him it’s empty and then he goes for the other. It’s silly and I think Tristan indulges me on this game.
Tonight Tristan came to get me while I was at the computer in my office. He was pretty insistent and led me to the doorway of the kitchen. Normally he either goes to the backdoor if he wants to go out or into the living room if he wants to play ball. This evening he planted himself outside the kitchen doorway and just stared at me very intently and expectantly. Finally I asked him what he wanted and he did his lunge toward my back on one side and then on the other side. It was clear he wanted me to get his orange ball and to play our game. It’s so spooky when he does things like this. It’s one thing for me to see how fast he learns when I’m teaching him a trick. It’s quite another thing to see him take it to a different level.
Tristan is such a communicator. Sometimes I think he wonders what’s wrong with me. He’ll be making a fuss and it’s really clear what he wants. I may, however, not want to reinforce him so I’ll ignore the behavior. I’m sure he’s phoning his mom late at night saying, “I love P but, boy, can she be clueless”.
In the evening, Tristan will come get me to play ball with him. His routine is to sit politely behind me when I’m working on the computer. I feel “the stare”. This is much better than the tug on the sleeve or clamping onto my arm which I have worked hard to stop. Between these two methods is the dropping the ball routine. He comes into the office with his ball and drops it in my lap or into a desk drawer. More later on the many variations of the drop the ball routine. Suffice it to say that it’s used very effectively when he wants to get into something he’s not supposed to be in. He drops his ball in and then gives me his “Hey, I’m just getting my ball here” look when reprimanded.
Tonight he pulled a new routine on me. Recently I’ve been playing a new game with him. He doesn’t usually play with his orange fetch ball during the day so I put it up. It’s an industrial strength rubber ball that cost $12. I know there are already two more buried someplace in the backyard so I don’t want him taking it outside and losing it there. I hide it in the kitchen and then have Tristan sit/stay in the living room while I get the ball. I hold both hands behind my back and tell Tristan to guess which hand. He lunges (nicely) for one hand behind my back and of course I show him it’s empty and then he goes for the other. It’s silly and I think Tristan indulges me on this game.
Tonight Tristan came to get me while I was at the computer in my office. He was pretty insistent and led me to the doorway of the kitchen. Normally he either goes to the backdoor if he wants to go out or into the living room if he wants to play ball. This evening he planted himself outside the kitchen doorway and just stared at me very intently and expectantly. Finally I asked him what he wanted and he did his lunge toward my back on one side and then on the other side. It was clear he wanted me to get his orange ball and to play our game. It’s so spooky when he does things like this. It’s one thing for me to see how fast he learns when I’m teaching him a trick. It’s quite another thing to see him take it to a different level.
Tristan is such a communicator. Sometimes I think he wonders what’s wrong with me. He’ll be making a fuss and it’s really clear what he wants. I may, however, not want to reinforce him so I’ll ignore the behavior. I’m sure he’s phoning his mom late at night saying, “I love P but, boy, can she be clueless”.
posted by fpa at 6:08 PM
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