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Socializing at
Starbucks |
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This was originally posted on Cathy Marley's BreedersList. |
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I have discovered a wonderful location to help socialize
a puppy! I don't know if it would be good for an entire litter, but for
just one puppy it works pretty good.
Starbucks.
Grab a table pull up a chair, open up a container of
previously prepared doggie treats, and get ready for puppy socialization
volunteers. Everybody wants to give a little treat to a cute puppy and
pet it.
Today was the first time Sophie and I ventured out in
town. I tried the front yard approach that Cathy uses, but the only
passerby I got was my neighbor who drove over from her property. Living
rurally, one doesn't get kids and people walking by. We don't have
sidewalks. We don't even have paved streets. And it's not safe to walk
dogs down the dirt roads because drivers are crazy and fly down the road
at 75 mph.
So off to town it was.
Sophie was a big hit, in a low-key way. We sat off to the
side and I talked with some people I knew. Sophie started feeling
pretty relaxed because after awhile she assumed the "froggy" position.
We're going to start stopping by Starbucks a few times a
week. It seems to be the business foot traffic place around, besides
Wal-Mart. But Starbucks has a covered patio and a misting system, so it
is a nice place to sit and watch the people. A steady stream of people,
I might say.
But I think Sophie is going to be a problem. She is
demanding that she be give her own Starbucks mug to drink water out of,
and she also would like a Strawberry Cream drink for a refreshing change
from doggie treats. Next think I know she is going to be requesting
designer doggles because DJ's are just too macho for a foo-foo puppy
girl like Sophie. But if she says she wants to go raid Gucci's closet,
I think we're in big trouble!
But seriously, I was very pleased with how comfortable
Sophie was after just hanging out for an hour. And this was an unplanned
visit. Next time I'll have my regular treats, a towel for Sophie to lay
on, etc. Yes, I did have water for her this morning as I had a small
bottle in the truck for me.
A large truck drove right by where we were sitting by the
drive-thru lane. It made some loud and unexpected noise. Sophie did
not cower nor try to hide. She bravely stood up and barked at the
truck!!!
When Sophie shows up at Nationals, don't be surprised if
she approaches you and wants a drink of your coffee and a treat!
Judy
This morning was pretty nice and I was up at my usual
go-to-work time, so after a while I decided to drive to town with Sophie
and park ourselves at a table at Starbucks. I prepared her normal
training treats, grabbed a bottle of water and a dish for it for Sophie,
and off we went!
Luckily the patio section still had available tables.
Starbucks did not allow Sophie inside while I ordered a Frappacino (yum yum),
so I had to rig her up to our table and asked the nice man at the next table
to keep an eye on her for me. I was able to keep visual control of her from
inside Starbucks as well, so I felt pretty comfortable leaving her outside.
Sophie was still on leash while we were seated. Lots of folks
were coming and going and were happy to give Sophie a treat and pet her.
Then, a friend happened by and asked Sophie and I to join them at another
table on the other side, so we relocated.
Sophie was very interested in her surroundings. Her tail was
still down, but she was not skittish at all. I took her off the leash and let
her wander within the confines of the iron gated patio. The other patrons,
who had previously greeted and treated Sophie, also kept an eye out for
Sophie so that she did not wander outside of the patio.
There was a young girl at one of the tables, and Sophie had her
eye on her. So I gave the little girl the OK sign and she was calling Sophie
over to her. Suddenly, Sophie's tail was over her back!!! I was so excited.
Then a new customer walked between Sophie and the little girl and the tail
went back down. But it was a start!
We stayed for about 90 minutes, and Sophie appeared to be very
happy and investigated all of the smells around the patio. Two other dogs
came by and Sophie was able to talk to them and was happy about that. No tail
up, but she was meeting and greeting.
Sophie is feeling much more comfortable at Starbucks. New
people each visit, but she is not running from people or cowering. I feel she
is getting a little more confidence, but I do not have unrealistic
expectations of her. When it is time, she will have her tail up.
It is still way too hot to walk her around the little shopping
centers right now. The asphalt and concrete would burn her little pads, and
I'm not going to carry her around to get socialized. I don't think that is
allowed in the conformation ring, is it? Handler carried Apso? But she is
just too precious to have her itsy bitsy feet touch the ground. Yeah, right.
Not in MY doggie world.
Starbuck gets a 2 thumbs up for me, once again!!!
And the Caramel Frappacino with extra caramel and with
whipcream wasn't too bad, either. Sigh. What a yummy treat. I think Sophie
wanted some. Nope, ain't happening, sweetie pie.
Judy
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