Osprey
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 3694
Registered: 5-23-2004
Location: Baja Ca. Sur
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Smart Baja Dogs
Baja Dog Tricks
Maybe I?ve watched too many Field Trials For Dogs programs on the tube. Maybe I obsessed about my first dog, Sparky, catching mullet in the lagoon.
For lots of reasons, I have always thought dogs possess more intelligence than humans give them credit for.
If positive reinforcement is an effective way to teach dogs it is also the reason I feel strongly about dog intelligence; many of the dogs I?ve owned
have demonstrated extra-animal reason, nearly human cognition, volition.
Hunting dogs, Trail Series Dogs, Sight-Impaired Companion Dogs show us the extremes of their abilities only when challenged by
handlers/owners/instructors to do the unexpected, to push the envelope, to be more than canines.
I won?t go into the Lassie syndrome stuff now but I will press my position by listing some of the extra-canine abilities I have been able to develop,
enlarge upon with my dog Storm.
I think Storm has some Brittany in him. A little larger than a Brittany. I got him (he got me) at the beach ? he had been abandoned and was in sad
shape. He was covered with ugly sores; just skin and bones. He?s six years old now. I?m 67 years old, no longer a pup. I?m still able to move
about and I?m still active enough to be a good companion and teacher.
Since our very first days it has been my joy to try to teach him things people would find unthinkable for dogs. You?ll find some surprises, as I did,
in his successes and his failures.
Cooking. He seems to undercook meat and fish, overcook vegetables. He will not steam at all. When boiling water for potatoes, pasta, etc. from
time to time I catch him using water from the toilet.
Poker. He knows the numbers, the colors, the suits, the nuances of the game but when he gets a very good hand he cannot control his tail.
Pranks. The microwave is shot. His $400 shock collar, when I retrieved it from the bottom of the pool, is toast.
Bartending. He simply cannot distinguish the difference between an olive and an onion. I?m a martini man and I cannot abide this error. Scold I
must. Sufficiently chided he placed a proper olive in the drink, added a tiny paper cutout (from one of my favorite travel maps) of the state of
Vermont. It is to laugh. He mistakes Vermont for Vermouth. To his credit I learned that Vermont has recently been declared a national disaster zone
because of severe drought.
When he?s on the beach while I?m swimming he often crashes out to save me as though I were drowning. To be fair, when I swim, I do look like I?m
drowning. My wife describes my breaststroke as my Deathstroke.
Although I never taught him to do this, when hunting with my pals at Los Mochis, he not only retrieves my ducks, after the hunt he brings in all my
decoys. He leaves the decoys of my hunting pals alone. I suspect he does that just to show up the other dogs in the blind.
When we have parties, gatherings in the house, should there be a vapor, an offensive odor I need only point a finger at the dog. He has been
trained to hang his head, take the blame, let the real offender off the hook. The training sessions necessary to achieve this singular act of
obedience were painful for both of us, sometimes strained our relationship but in the end, brought us even closer together.
I?ve had lots of dogs. Some died of natural causes, some by accident. Storm may be the only dog to outlive me. For the last two years or so
(beginning on my 65th birthday) I have begun deep-frying his dog food.
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Bruce R Leech
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6796
Registered: 9-20-2004
Location: Ensenada formerly Mulege
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Mood: A lot cooler than Mulege
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I want one of those dogs.
Bruce R Leech
Ensenada
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postman
Newbie
Posts: 20
Registered: 1-26-2005
Location: West Virginia
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I had a Brittney that would hold point on snakes. he would get bitten on his nose a couple of times a year. Head would swell up like a basketball.
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Bob H
Elite Nomad
Posts: 5867
Registered: 8-19-2003
Location: San Diego
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Talking Dog!
A guy is driving around and he sees a sign in front of a house:
"Talking Dog For Sale."
He rings the bell, and the owner tells him the dog is in the backyard.
The guy goes into the backyard and sees a Labrador Retriever sitting there.
"You talk?" he asks the dog.
Yep," the Lab replies.
So, what's your story?"
The Lab looks up and says, "Well, I discovered that I could talk when I was pretty young, and I wanted to help the government; so I told the CIA about
my gift, and in no time at all they had me jetting from country to country, sitting in rooms with spies and world leaders, because no one figured a
dog would be eavesdropping. I was one of their most valuable spies for eight years running."
"But the jetting around really tired me out, and I knew I wasn't getting any younger so I wanted to settle down. I signed up for a job at the airport
to do some undercover security work, mostly wandering near suspicious characters and listening in. I uncovered some incredible dealings and was
awarded a batch of medals. Then I met a pretty female Lab, had a mess of puppies, and now I'm just retired."
The guy is amazed. He goes back in and asks the owner what he wants for the dog.
"Ten dollars," the guy says,
"This dog is amazing. Why on earth are you selling him so cheap?"
"Because he's a liar. He didn't do any of that s**t."
The SAME boiling water that softens the potato hardens the egg. It's about what you are made of NOT the circumstance.
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bajajudy
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6886
Registered: 10-4-2004
Location: San Jose del Cabo,BCS
Member Is Offline
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Bruce R Leech
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6796
Registered: 9-20-2004
Location: Ensenada formerly Mulege
Member Is Offline
Mood: A lot cooler than Mulege
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Bob H good story I'm still laughing.
Bruce R Leech
Ensenada
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Barry A.
Select Nomad
Posts: 10007
Registered: 11-30-2003
Location: Redding, Northern CA
Member Is Offline
Mood: optimistic
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Osprey
Great story, Osprey!!!! You have a unique sense of humor, in the best way!! I salute your writing ability, and your willingness to share it.
Your "piece" on Cabo was very thought provoking and enjoyable, and sadly true, though there still are places in the Los Cabos where you can avoid this
phenomena, as others have pointed out.
We always stay in "Old Cancun" when down that way in the Yucatan. It is so much more fun, in our opinion, than the glitzy and expensive (and phony)
islands.
Chetumal, in western Quintana Roo (Yucatan Pen.) is another favorite place of ours, as is Merida, Valladolid, and Campeche, all in the Yucatan Pen..
Keep up the good work. Barry
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