Dagger and Viktor

Dagger and Viktor are two other relatively new club members. I'm sorry the picture isn't better because they are both absolutely gorgeous. Dagger is the big black beautiful bruiser and Viktor is our social butterfly. He's about four months old, so cute and everyone is his new best friend.

Dagger reads blogs too! Check out his comments under the pretty in pink entry. Hard to believe what powerful, masculine dogs Dagger and Tristan are since Jodi, his owner, and I both treat our babies as, well, great big babies.

Today's training included a lesson on motivational training for the dumbbell retrieve. It's fascinating to learn techniques to increase the dog's interest: lots of running backwards to entice the dog to come with the dumbbell; also, very, very slightly pushing the dumbbell to encourage the dog to want to push and present it back. This is done for only three or four minutes and then the dumbbell is put up for the next session. It's a long several month process but the goal is a deeply imprinted and reliable retrieve.