This morning didn’t start out all that well.  For reasons I won’t bore you with, I was in a foul mood when I got up.  Today was the Red Sox make-up  game from the rain out in May; and I had plans to walk the dogs early and throw together a meal in the crock pot before heading out.

Autumn has shoved Summer out early this year so the air was clear and crisp, the field wet with dew and our breath hung in the sweet Autumn air.  I started in the field attempting to engage the dogs in a game of fetch in hopes of completing K-9 Kamp’s week two challenge.  The dogs had other ideas so we headed off into the woods. 

I had carrots and cheese in my bag and Delilah was returning every time I called and even checking back when I didn’t.  I made the mistake of letting her off the leash.  If your unclear about dogs and mistakes, check out Pamela’s explanation over at Something Wagging This Way Comes.

We got to the hinky area where Delilah likes to take off and Sampson saw a chipmunk or squirrel and started off into the woods to chase it and Delilah followed and kept right on going.

I called her and she kept running, I called Sampson and he and I turned around and ran in the other direction.  I was so upset with myself and with Delilah that I cried.  I cried the entire time I walked through the woods, into the field and back up the main path.  I stopped to call and whistle for Delilah, I thought I heard the tinkle of her collar and I waited.  Eventually I heard her crashing through the woods and she finally caught up to us.  I gave her a treat (because she did come back to me) but then I clipped her on the leash and we went home.

I am so frustrated with her right now and I don’t know what to do.  I’ve been working with her on sitting at the edge of the kitchen while we are working in there and she still keeps getting up!  Sampson just sits or lies where he is supposed to and I make sure to give him treats as he waits,  she Just. Doesn’t. Get. It.  Finally I shouted “Don’t move!” And she didn’t.

I give up.  I don’t know what to do anymore.  Anybody want a chocolate lab?

I'm really not THAT much trouble.

Delilah love food.

I mean Delilah really LOVES food.  If I rang a bell every time I fed her, she would become the classic Pavlov’s dog and salivate on command.

Take last night for instance, I was sitting on the bed eating cheese and crackers while I wrote this blog.  Sampson was stretched out next to me on the bed and Delilah was sitting on the floor beside the bed.  Every few minutes, I would take a piece of cheese and break a couple of tiny pieces off and feed it to the dogs.

The very thought of getting that tiny piece of cheese, made Delilah salivate.

I can stare her down...

Delilah becomes so crazed when food is around, that she almost can’t focus on the task at hand.    When I started clicker training, she was so obsessed with the hand holding the food that she wouldn’t even look at my other hand.  I sent a question to a blogger who does clicker training and asked what she would suggest for a dog that gets so excited with the food that she can’t focus.  The trainer suggested using food that wasn’t quite so exciting.  I didn’t have the heart to write back and tell her I was using green beans. 🙂

I’ve been working really hard with Delilah to sit while I am preparing her meals; but all bets are off once I pick the dish up to bring it over to her.

When Hubby takes the garbage out, he walks over to the sink and opens the cabinet door; Sampson walks over to the outside door because he gets to go outside.  Delilah walks over to the cabinet and looks for anything she might scarf out of the garbage.

If I really sit and think about it; I get really sad because I can only imagine what kind of life Delilah had before coming to live with us.  It breaks my heart to think that she might have gone without food for a long time or that she had to pick through garbage to eat.

So really, I have to laugh at her silly antics around food, because if I didn’t I would surely cry.

Ooops, Delilah wants her snack.  Gotta go.