Demons and their affect on getting gambles and not forgetting how to swim back across the river.

Usually after we go practice at Heart Dog Agility on my day off, I take the dogs somewhere nice. They are deserving. Maybe a forest walk. Maybe to the swimming hole. Maybe sometimes the far away tooth doc's office in San Jose so we can all have quality car togetherness time and listen to a radio show about the Prophets of the New Apostolic Reformation in the car. We learned a lot about demons.


Me and Otterpop had a great practice. She was in a Can-Do-No-Wrong mood, and I practiced a whole list of hard gamble sequences with her. Could Do No Wrong! Clearly not possesed by demons. Or afflicted. I pronounce Otterpop unafflicted! We also practiced her dogwalk contact, which has been a bit flakey. Could Do No Wrong No Demons Amen! And some tight turns after all that gamble stuff, and also some running through obstacles close to me, sneaky stuff like you might do in snookers. We practiced a lot. She needed a good swim afterwards.

Unless it's the demons that could be demonizing her into getting these gambles? The dark arts at work?


Gustavo practiced a lot of foundation skills from basic agility training class for untrained dogs day 1. Like stay in your crate until released even if someone else is playing with the frisbee. And if you miss a weavepole entrance don't run away into the forest due to the trauma of it. When we went to the swimming hole afterwards, he had to wear his forest running leash because. Just because.

With Gustavo, life is sometimes 3 steps forward, 6 steps back. I don't think this is caused by demon affliction or brain ammonia. Gustavo is who he is. We work on everything, all the time.

Sometimes, Gustavo follows Otterpop across the river to get the stick, and follows her back. Sometimes he swims somewhere crazy all by himself. Sometimes he follows Otterpop across the river, and he can't remember how to swim back.

So we wait for him. In the past, we have waited a long time.

A very long time because he has forgotten he knows how to swim. This is not fun for any of us.


If he has had a day with only enough listening skills to do 3 agility obstacles in a row, even though only days before he could do challenging international masters level courses without skipping a beat, then if we go to the swim hole on that day, he wears his rope.

This makes all of us happy. This is how it goes. I bought him some special $12 vegan dog bones made from quinoa and anti-oxidant blueberries. He wouldn't touch them, so the other dogs got to eat his. I am still pretty sure he has no demons though.