That Off Leash Life

Hey Tribe,

Guess who is enjoying life off leash?

This 7 month old pup!

This beauty too, of course.

After basic re-call training and many outings of letting Rex drag a long line around in the field and having him reliably return to my call or e-collar beep, I finally felt slightly confident enough to unclip the leash and have him run free.  

Freedom!

I'll be honest, it was scary.  What would he do?  He’d know he was off line.  Would he stop listening to me?  Would he run into the woods and I’d never see him again?  He would be in charge of his own path.

He was awesome.

  

Fly was awesome.

They were so happy to run together.

We visited the old log schoolhouse and Fly showed Rex all the best nooks and places squirrels are known to scamper and how to pose on the chairs.

There was also a good amount of training; I don’t think training ever stops.  I’m teaching the dogs the “with me” command, where I start walking in a certain direction or stop moving as they proceed ahead and then I say “with me” and they are supposed to move in my direction.  It isn’t a full “come” command: I don’t want them right near my body, just be in my vicinity.  They’ve caught on really well and we worked on this skill as we explored the woods.

Checking out some fox scat.

I’m also not letting Rex go out as far from me as Fly does.  I regret letting her be comfortable being 300+ yards away from me and I want Rex to learn to stay closer to me.  So, when he’d get 50ish yards away, I’d say “Rex, with me” and he’d circle back closer to me.  Good boy.

Don't feel bad for him, being close means more treats!

We returned home as a happy trio and I am eager for another off leash woodland wander.  To not be afraid of losing a dog because it won’t recall is indescribably enjoyable.  It’s freeing to not have a leash getting tangled around my hands, legs, and trees.  For a couple of Karelians who want to run and sniff and play, that off leash life is so, so sweet.