Introducing Frankie

It’s not really like that although it’s been a lot of years since we’ve had a puppy in the house. I’d forgotten how fast they can move from here to there. Frankie, our new SitStay dog, is a real joy. She’s only run off with my right boot once, my left boot once, Kent’s leather belt one time, and a toilet paper roll was stolen when someone was otherwise occupied.

She’s eleven weeks old now, we got her when she was eight weeks old. She’s a rescued Black Lab Border Collie mix. And yes, we knew when we brought her home that she was going to be a high energy fire cracker.

Frankie is a little doll and fits in great at our house. She joins the youngest of our original four SitStay Dogs: Belgians Dancer (13 1/2 years old) and Tilli (12 1/2 years old). What a bundle of energy. She’s already practicing her agility, she gets on top of everything. She’s not afraid of anything, not even DC the cat who plays a very sneaky game of catch me if you think you can. It’s hilarious. DC gets Frankie to chase her, then DC does this incredible somersault roll and springs straight back up into the air, landing on her feet and off they go again. Frankie is a little Ninja herself, moving from here to there quicker than the eye can track her, so she recovers quickly and the chase is on again. Over and over, the cat does the somersault move and Frankie beats her to the next turn. They love the game.

What a little sweetheart. Frankie is quick to learn and easy to love. I’ve been clicker training with her and we have to laugh out loud when she figures it out. I was training her to do a fast and quick, perfectly tucked down from a standing position. I lured her with a treat and clicked each time she was in the down. Then I said “Down” without the luring treat and waited. She looked at me, then she looked at Kent. She looked up at the ceiling, looked at the floor, and turned her head to the side just a little bit. Then all of a sudden she tilted her head, the light came on for her, she looked back at me and threw herself onto the floor into a perfect down. Click, treat. Brilliant.

She’s learning bite inhibition quickly. Those little needle teeth are not for biting humans. We use positive training only, it works quickly and it’s fun for everybody.

Frankie knows sit, stay, down, “let’s eat”, “Frankie, that’s mine”, “Frankie, that’s not yours”, and “Frankie, that’s my shoe.” And she has a perfect recall, that’s a wonderful thing! We are so grateful to have her. Now we just have to remember everything that puppies do so we can get there before she does. It’s been a long time since we’ve had a baby in the house. We’re having a good time and so far, we’ve saved our shoes before she leaves the room at a high and happy gallop.

If you’re looking for a new dog, please check out our newly revamped rescue site. It’s a good place to start looking for your next new friend. It’s called SitStay’s Dog Rescue Directory.

I’ll be writing in this blog about Frankie’s antics and growing up at SitStay, her training, how she interacts with the other dogs, and whether or not she finally gets our shoes. Training tips, life with the SitStay Dogs, my personal opinions about dogs and other stuff, too. I can be controversial at times and side with me or against me, I tend to get the conversation started. I think everyone should have an opinion about something and the smartest of us have learned to change our minds when it’s proven that we’re wrong. It’s happened to me, too, I learn something every day. Read it, write to me when you have an opposing view or when you agree with me. Or when you just need some help. I don’t know everything about anything but I know something about just about everything, and I like when I can help. Most of all, I love living with dogs and sharing that with you.