An epiphany - ignore the oncoming dogs!

I have been a good dog and have made great strides in my manners. Well, first, I am getting to be very good on leash these days. I walk smartly next to my Ma with my head up, occasionally checking in with her to see if I'm doing OK. I really try not to pull, although, I'm not perfect. It helps that she walks briskly. I've also learned to slow down when walking stairs - when I hear the words "hold up" it means I have to stop or hesitate so she doesn't fall. Why she doesn't just get on four feet for better balance is beyond me. But the biggest aha moment for me was that I'm to ignore all dogs that are not of interest to my Ma. I just figured I'm supposed to greet them ALL, but NO - if my Ma keeps walking without looking at them, I'm to do the same. OK - I'm not perfect in that department either, but I'm getting pretty good. Getting my nose bitten by those little rats on leashes has helped me learn that lesson! Of course, there are a lot of dogs I know in the neighborhood and I feel I ought to give them a snarfle since they are acquaintances, but if my Ma ignores them, I try my best to do the same. Best of all, for my Ma, I'm good at the recall. When I hear her calling COOOOOOME - it's hard to resist. I don't like to be left behind and miss all the fun although I do range pretty far on the beach. The best part is that my good behavior seems to be leading to more frequent and longer walks, not mention those jaunts on the beach where I get to run FREE!!

Anyway, I have been a good dog and yesterday, I went to Home Depot with Ma and Pa. I wouldn't exactly call it fun. I had to sit still while they looked at blinds. I had to ignore two obnoxious rat like dogs in a shopping cart that yapped at me. I had to ride the elevator (I refused to get on the escalator.) And, worst of all, I wasn't allowed to break open a bag of chicken manure in the garden dept- oh, how I yearned to roll in it! I had to make do with rubbing my face against the bag.

Pa transplanting some succulents.

The humans have created a nice little garden for us to pee in.

I got real tired despite just hanging out and a short walk so I checked into snooze early. Good thing, since this morning, I got to go to Ocean Beach.

I got to hang with some of my buddies. Here's Keto sizing up Sjobahn's muzzle.

I got to show off my digging skills.

I played face off with Roy.

Roy can put on the afterburners when he wants to.

The tide was low so we got to walk below the Cliff House all the way to the Sutro Bath ruins.

I'm spending the day overseeing more home improvement projects which involves chewing on the Kong and barking at passerbys. Ta ta!