Session Four

So concludes Session Four of dog obedience training with Scarlett at Lollypop Farm.
Session One was dogless; and Session Two I was pleasantly surprised I had a dog who seemed to want to please me.
Session Three was a crash; the dog seemed tuned out.
Yesterday (Session Four; Sunday, October 26, 2008) was supposed to be “Come when called.”
Uh yeah; with an Irish Setter? Get real!
“Show me what she’ll do,” said the instructress.
I let the dog walk far out in front of me.
“Now; call out your dog’s name, and tell her to come.”
I hardly ever call her by name, but:
“Scarlett, come!”
Screech. Dog turns, looks directly at me, and comes to my side.
Holy mackerel!
I try it again. Let dog out in front of me; she’s trying to visit another dog.
“Scarlett, come!”
Screech. Dog turns, comes to my side and sits.
Try it another time.
Screech. Dog again sits at my side.
Next trick: “down;” a position uncomfortable to a dog — all legs folded; down on belly.
Success; Linda has been training this at home.
Okay, now down by hand signal.
Raise arm way over head, reaching for the sky.
VIOLA! The dog drops.
My impression was someone else must have taught her this.
Okay; try it again — no words.
BAM! Again the dog drops.

The idea was to get there early enough to hike the old Rochester, Syracuse & Eastern right-of-way.
Not early enough, so we hiked through “Animal Farm” instead.
Lollypop has fenced off pastures to keep horses, goats, etc.
We threaded a trail between pens; Lollypop has everything; horses, goats, sheep, pigs, etc.
Scarlett was in ecstasy; nasal overload — lotsa fresh steaming piles.
Especially intriguing were the emus. (I’ve made that a link; everyone.)
We also passed a “waddle-pool” — I of course thought of Waddle, PA on Bald Eagle Mountain.
It was full of ducks and geese and swans. “HONK-HONK-HONK-HONK! Everybody into the pool! Blood-crazed red carnivore nearby. Alarums-alarums!”
“I could get that!” YANK-LURCH!
Rochester, Syracuse & Eastern waited until after class.
“Yippee!” Lotsa squirrels and chipmunks. BOINK!

“Scarlett” is our current dog; a rescue Irish-Setter. She’s four-plus, and is our sixth Irish-Setter.

Lollypop Farm is the Rochester area Humane Society and animal-shelter. (It offers courses in dog obedience training.)

“Linda” is my wife of 40+ years.

The “Rochester, Syracuse & Eastern” is a long-abandoned interurban railroad east of Rochester that skirts Lollypop. —“Interurban” in that it was a special railroad designed to move passengers in outlying areas. It used self-propelled cars often powered electrically via overhead trolley-wire, but usually the cars were bigger than regular city trolley-cars. —The Rochester, Syracuse & Eastern was more than the ordinary interurban line, since it was double-track. Most interurbans were single-track. The RS&E could run much faster, but it never went beyond Syracuse. It’s right-of-way (grade) was made into a hiking trail.

To get to Altoona, PA (the location of Horseshoe Curve) I drive over “Bald Eagle Mountain.” Nearby is the small village of “Waddle;” the cause of jokes. A sign tells us to “waddle” there. (Horseshoe Curve, west of Altoona, PA, is by far the BEST railfan spot I have ever been to. Horseshoe Curve is a national historic site. It was a trick used by the Pennsylvania Railroad to get over the Allegheny mountains without steep grades. Horseshoe Curve was opened in 1854, and is still in use. [I am a railfan, have been since I was a child, and have been to Horseshoe Curve hundreds of times.])