Thursday, December 18, 2008
Tennis Anyone?
During the winter months, when it gets dark so terribly early, we sometimes take the pugs to the tennis courts and let them run around. I know this a clear violation of the rules posted outside the court, but we make sure the pugs are on their best behavior and make sure we leave the courts in no worse shape then when we arrived (and of course we never take them there when anyone is playing tennis).
The boys have been going to the tennis courts ever since they were pups. When we lived in Maryland, we did not have a fenced yard and the tennis courts in our neighborhood were never used by anyone. So we started taking the pugs there to do some training. Since the courts are fenced, we could let the boys off their leash and we would practice their come and stay commands. When working on the come command, each one of use would stand at one end of the court and we would call the boys back and forth. Not only did it help them learn the command, but it also helped them burn off some of that puppy energy. For stay, we would tell the boys to stay at one point on the court and then walk around until we let them break their stay.
Now we pretty much just use the tennis courts for the pugs to run around. They like to play chase around the net. It is really just a bigger version of the game of chase they play around the sofa at home!
Debbie
12/18/2008
I used to take Ellie to our multi-sport court at the bottom of the hill - it’s used for five-a-side, tennis, basketball etc. I was training her to follow me and not the other way around (she was only six months old!) now she is fab and walks off her lead (only in the morning when there is no traffic). We go twice a week to dog training - once for obedience and the other for socialising and agility. She is just amazing and flies around the course, very proud mum I am!