Meet Up

Skip, Liza, Cody, and a head I don't recognize!

Sunday marked the first outdoor rat terrier meet up - no foolin!! This has been a long time coming and on this beautiful Easter Weekend the dogs and their humans were out in force. Cody had missed out on previous rattie meetups because they were in a small indoor space and I wanted Cody to have room to move away if he needed.

Several New Rattitude volunteers loving on personal and foster dogs.

We started out with a 1/2 mile walk up to the park, sharing that walk with another New Rattitude volunteer and her two personal ratties. Cody was eager to take in the smells and all the sights, and did great as we manuevered through a tight space full of people, kids, and dogs.

Just a small slice of how many people were there.

I didn't know how Cody would do at the dog park and wanted to approach it with caution and deliberation. We first walked outside the dog park along the fence and let him meet some pups through the fence. This worked for us because Cody greeted all of them with interested and a wagging tail, but was also risky since some dogs can have barrier-aggression and may charge, snarl, or try to fight through the fence. It was less risky than tossing Cody in without testing the waters first though. I kept a careful eye on the dogs on the other side with a hand resting on my treat pouch, ready to call Cody away at the first sign of a snark from the other dog.

Personal dogs Tripp and Nina, and foster girl Moon.

Cody was perfect walking outside the dog park corral, and even tolerated a couple clueless owners allowing their rude dogs to try and get in his face. I did what I could to keep him besides me with my body between him and the other dogs, but no matter our best intentions owners holding flexi leashes with a choking, gasping dog 15' away will always be a risk to be managed as best we can.

Cody's language and interest had told me on thing - Lets Do This, Foster Mom!!

Moon, Cody, Skip, and Tripp.

We kept to the edges of the corral, on leash, for about five minutes. Most of the time you never want to have a dog on leash at a dog park and it was again a calculated risk - some dogs can be reactive on leash but fine off leash. Off-leash though I risked Cody trotting off and either putting himself or getting put into a situation where he felt uncomfortable and started growling, possibly starting a scuffle. As with working outside the fence and risking some barrier-aggression, this was a calculated risk.

Tripp finding some smelly!

Cody did beautifully, ignoring the other dogs mostly and sniffing the edges. I unhooked his leash and he became just another dog at the dog park! I followed him around, not directing or encouraging him, but merely being in place to intervene before a negative interaction occurred. Soon though, Cody showed me that he's a big boy and didn't need his foster mom following him around!