The Simaceks from Oxford to Bloomington: Mad Skillz

So far, it seems like Rewley has learned a few simple commands/actions. The best is that he sits by the doggy gate in the kitchen when he needs to be let out. Whew! And he is becoming a real champ at "go potty", so that's fantastic. He's also got the "sit" command down fairly reliably, as long as he's not distracted by a bug, bird, piece of grass, mulch, cigarette butt, etc. It's the same with walking with us on the leash when we say "let's go", "heel", and "stop". When we've got his attention, he's great. He likes to prance when he's doing something we're happy about, or when he grabs something like a branch and trots off with it. Cute stuff.

The hardest part so far is getting him to calm down at night. Last night before bed he wanted to be let out what seemed like 10 times. We think it's because it's been so hot and humid during the day that he's not thrilled about being outside until it cools off at night. And then the party starts. It gets frustrating because he's so easily distracted and it seems like our neighbors all like to go for night drives between 9PM and 2AM, meaning doors opening and closing, engines starting, brakelights flashing, etc... all things that Rewley loves to watch and wait for.

But, once he comes in and gets in his crate, he goes right to sleep without a peep. We have to keep reminding ourselves that although he's making a lot of progress with basic training, he's still a puppy with a super short attention span.

Today's Anne's last day with us. She seems to have really enjoyed playing with Rewley, which is awesome because we can't go out too much with all the puppy care!

Here's Anne discovering that Rewley really thinks he's a lap dog. We think he's grown already; we had to loosen his collar yesterday!