Dogs Are Smart

When it comes to my dogs I love to talk about them, brag about them, and let people know how smart they are.

Bruce (Newfoundland Dog) when he was a puppy

Maggie Magz (Newfoundland Dog) as a puppy

When we first got Maggie Magz I couldn't believe how easy it was to train her. We'd have a little treat for her in hand, hold it over her head and she'd instantly sit. 

Housebreaking took a little more time but still all in all it was quite easy. With both Maggie and Bruce I trained them the exact same way. Once an hour on the hour I'd either take them for a short walk or into the back yard to do their business. Twenty minutes after they'd have a meal out we'd go. As they got a little older I would increase it from an hour to an hour and a half. For the first two months  I would cut off their water around 7 pm at night. This really helped with nighttime accidents.

Bruce has always been a happy go lucky dog.

Maggie caught on one day that if she went to the back door and hit the doorknob with her nose it would make a rattling sound and if one of us were nearby we'd let her out. She does the same thing when she wants back into the house.

The amount of words dogs can understand has always amazed me. The other day my husband tried something with Maggie.and he was pretty astounded by it. He had a piece of a hot dog in his hand and of course Maggie wanted it. He said to her, "If you want this look at the fridge." She looked at the fridge. He continued doing this telling her to look at where the heat comes from, at the window, at the door, and then look at Mom. Seems like a lot of work for one measly piece of a hot dog but she did it and enjoyed her reward.

Magz at a year old

Bruce at a year old

One night Maggie and I were at obedience training and after class I asked the trainer/groomer if she could give me some tips on how to trim the fur on Maggie's paws. We went back to the grooming room and Gail showed me how to trim one paw then told me to take her home and do the other three. When we got home Maggie promptly headed to the kitchen, jumped onto the table, laid down and spread her paws out as if to say, Okay I'm ready now .... trim up the rest. At the time I wanted to chastise her for being on the table until I realized why she'd jumped up there.  

Maggie wanting her paws trimmed, outside this time.

These are my two Wonderful Pets. I can't imagine life without them. 


"If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went." Will Rogers


This post is for Wonderful Wednesday. If you'd like to join in on the fun and link up, head over to Pictimilitude, which is hosted by Cyndi Calhoun.