In this Corner

Teddy Bear alert! Beyond cute, right? 15-week old Harry is a Samoyed, and on this day he was a wet Samoyed. Our first lesson was on a miserable, rainy morning, and his normally fluffy fur was sporting some frizz. He still looked perfectly adorable to me. Harry has a house “Mom”, Mei Mei the 10-year old mix, who enjoys his youthful exuberance. After our lesson was over, Mei Mei joined us for some fun and games with Harry – an exhibition match, if you will. (Though I think that she was more interested in possibility of getting some treats from me!) Harry was the instigator. Barking, nipping, mounting … he did it all in order to get Mei Mei away from my treat bag and into the game. He did lots of barking. And lots of dominance-moves. (The “head over shoulders” move Harry is exhibiting is, in this case, a playful attempt to assert control.) Finally Mei Mei said, “Enough! I’m done!” And Harry, being the sweet well-adjusted dog that he is, said, “Ok. You’re the boss.”