Tuesday 25 January 2011

Freewrite on the dog

We have started to freewrite again, and now that my little girl is able to write a bit more herself, I am taking the opportunity to do some myself. My son says my work is 'very freewrite-ish.' I find it a helpful way of thinking, getting it all down and not worrying about how it sounds. I often find that answers are there, if I take the time to pin down the worries and stop them fluttering around my head. It's not necessarily good writing, it's not clean and polished, and it can sound something like this:

I am not sure what to write about. How do I feel about Coco? At the moment I am finding her quite difficult. She seems particularly 'mischievous' and 'into things' a the moment and it feels as if she is 'naughty'. She keeps taking stuff off the table and peeing on the carpet and I worry that she needs more exercise and she is bored. I really want her to get her Bronze award because I want her to be obedient and to run safely with me. OK, so what is it I want? What do I want her to do? I want her to obey commands like 'leave' so I feel in control of her and around people and things, that she is safe and comfortable to have around people and things, and homes and stuff, I want her to be safe in the park, to behave nicely around other people and dogs and to come back when she is called. I want her to walk and run nicely by my side so she can run safely with me and get enough exercise. I like the ideas of an award but I more want help and advice on how to train her better and I don't feel that I am getting that at puppy class. What advice/help did I get this week: shorter lead, consistent walks, less is more? Questions: how do I motivate her without treats? How do I deal with undesirable behaviour? How do I judge too much and too little exercise? I am worried about her being bored and therefore unhappy and difficult.

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