#willowsmuttlife

But, Willow and I have been working her indication (down) at distance on my scent (ft a pair of my gloves). She's pretty instant with her down in general so we've been working further and further away. She had a really hard time today - she was going past them, sniffing but not indicating, giving half confused sits and yelling at me. So I thought maybe the distance was too much, we'll do one or two more and take a break. Upon our break, I realized I was not using my black gloves, but my brother's black gloves - identical in appearance but different enough in scent to confuse the heck outta poor Willow.

She can go for a gentle walk for about 15 minutes before she gets sore and starts limping so we've been having quiet days, much to her chagrin. She so desperately wants to frolic and play, but she's on strict vet orders to rest until her stitches are out.

I've been trick training and puzzle gaming endlessly with her, and all she wants to do is wrestle. Today I set some very difficult nosework games in the house and I think it was enough to finally wear her out. Looking forwards to being able to walk, run, ski and play again though.

Little autumn morning hike with my girl to see the larches! I'm so lucky live and be able to access such a beautiful area with little fuss.

A day belated but happiest of birthdays to my golden girl who is now 9 years old (looking a little damp from her bath since rolling in mud puddles is a messy affair).

It makes my heart hurt to realize how much older she's getting. She'll be 8 next month and the grey around her muzzle is really becoming noticeable. She's slowed down as well - not a lot, but she's aging, and I wish I could just freeze her in time and have her by my side forever. I cherish these adventures we get to have together even more than I used to.

Willow and I took a very early season hike yesterday, accompanied by my mum! Absolutely beautiful views, and Willow was such a good girl re reactivity. There were so many opportunities/situations where historically she would have reacted that she did not! Off leash/out of control dogs approaching us on leash (as all dogs supposed to be where we were), on leash dogs lunging and barking at us, climbers with large backpacks and loud trad gear, and so many strangers were all met with indifference!

My proudest moment was after mum fell over when her ice crampons got stuck between two little rocks (she's okay, thankfully), and some people rushed over to help, Willow didn't acknowledge them at all! It was a very high stress situation where someone she felt protective over was upset and injured, and people she didn't know were coming at us quickly. Historically she would have lunged and barked, or at the very least raised her hackles and growled. We moved a metre or so away from them and mum, but she was unconcerned by their presence!