Just a Baby!

This is a pic of his puppy graduation! He is only five months old in this pic!

So, Tiesto behaves so well that I realized today that I have forgotten that he is only 7 months old! Thank God the Ballards reminded me as during socialization I have asked him to stay focused on me the entire time! At his tender age, the primary mission is to make life fun and to socialize him to everything! Silly me! He had become so confident and was so willing to do everything I asked him that I kept pushing him instead of letting him be a baby! What I mean by that is, while we were in PetSmart or on a brief walk(very brief as he is a big growing boy) I wanted him to always focus on me and walk nicely, not to sniff or meander! No wonder he was starting to get frustrated with our outings. Thankfully, Anna and James gently reminded me that he was still a baby and I have to make sure he is still having fun!

So again, I called them after I had a chance to mull over the implications of Tiesto still being a baby! I have him signed up for intermediate classes at the end of this month and didn’t want to frustrate him. She told me the following:

Working Tiesto at Petsmart is the only time he has to focus on me. Remember that he is a dog and the entire time he is free in your home and car that is freedom to him.

Amazing! So I am only asking him to work while I am in an establishment that allows dogs. That really put it in perspective for me and allowed me to relax a little. She went on to suggest that I have him work on the way into the store. Then allow him to sniff around and check things out and relax until he starts getting wiry then to pull him aside and asking him to work until he is focused again. That was an eye opener! Once again their immense knowledge of Corsos has helped me in my efforts to raise Tiesto!

Memory of An Elephant

I’m always calling or emailing or texting the Ballards to tell them how amazing Tiesto is and how much I love him! How well behaved he is and on and on and on. So I always get excited about the opportunity to show them how good he is doing. Hilariously, this never happens. Every time he sees any of the Ballards and/or their Corsos the gig is up and he goes puppy crazy! It doesn’t matter if he is in his prong collar or not, his Gentle Leader or not. I’m pretty sure I could have him in a doggy straight jacket, if there is such a thing, and he would still go crazy for them. So today I gave up on ever showing them how amazing he is in real life. I am instead going to have my husband video him on my Flip in all his glory and then I can show them the video!

If anyone ever asks you how good a Corso’s memory is, tell them it is like an elephant, they never forget!

Corsos can do what you ask and so can kids. :0)

It always amazes me how much we limit people and animals in our life. We say about ourselves,


“Oh, I could never do that . . .” what ever that is and then we add the excuse,

“because I am too old, because I am too skinny, fat, ugly, tall, silly . . .” whatever we feel is the excuse. One of the things I’ve heard people say about pets is, I don’t want one because they hinder your ability to travel and do things. I would have to say that objectively I agree with you in as much as I agree with the person(which I used to be one of) that says, I would never want children, they hinder your ability to travel and see things.

So to the group who doesn’t want a dog because they are inconvenient, I whole heartedly agree, for some people they are inconvenient but they can do what ever it is you ask of them, if you work at it. To those who feel the same about kids, ditto. However, I’ve had the pleasure of a change of heart . . .

As you know I’ve done two things in the past month, I started using a Gentle Leader on Tiesto and we took another wild road trip of 2200 miles. Tiesto had already been on one road trip that was over 3000. At this time I would like to point out to both groups that my pup and my baby were with me for all of it and we had a blast.

Tiesto did great with the Gentle Leader and I will use this when I am in class at Petsmart because they don’t allow prong collars. The reason for this is that many people do not take the time to learn how to use them properly and then misuse them out of ignorance and/or laziness. There have been many horrible stories and pictures floating around the media. To avoid this, they don’t allow them. However, the Ballards have been in Corsos for 10 years and thank God that they share their knowledge! They taught me the proper use of a prong collar. They explained how it would help Tiesto and I have a better working relationship because he would really be learning the stuff I was having him do. I can tell you that once again they proved themselves geniuses! Tiesto is in his prong collar only when I am actively working with him on his obedience. (I am hoping to get his Canine Good Citizen) He understands as soon as it is on that he is working, it is only on when there is a lead attached and so he is beginning to associate the lead with work time and focusing on me wonderfully. I am very excited about being able to dispense with it entirely in the future. As James explained to me, T is going to weigh 150 pounds and Joshua is a mere 26 pounds, I have them both with me all the time, it is imperative that Tiesto responds immediately to me. Tiesto has already begun doing that!

So between the prong collar and the Gentle Leader his training is coming along beautifully and he is the coolest. While we were in New York, he stayed at his first kennel and did a fab job! Then he rode on a paddle boat with me and a big swing and he loved both. He loved the free access to the wild water in the lake, he is hilarious! Give him a bucket of tap water and a bucket of rain/lake water and he’ll stick his face in the rain/lake bucket every time! He had to get used to people walking past his cage all the time and he had to get used to different and strange people in the house all the time. He really settled in and did a great job!

He is a thinker. He kept getting in trouble for getting in my Mother-in-law’s trash can. So he decided that he would just try to take off with it and have a look in side. My 90 pound pup running through the kitchen with a 40 gallon trash can dangling from his teeth was a sight to behold. So that was put to a halt and he seemed to understand from that point that no matter the location of the trash can, he wasn’t allowed into it.

Another thing that has occurred is that while most of the time Tiesto comes to a screeching halt when he thinks he is going to run into his little BIG brother, Joshua, there have been some bumps. Nothing serious but reminded me that I really need to drive home the point that a baby is a baby and a dog is a dog and an adult should always have a watchful eye on both, no matter the breed but ESPECIALLY when the size is so great!

Also, watching the little one! Joshua has decided to try to see if he can kick and punch Tiesto. These efforts are met with consequences, however, if someone saw my son’s perfectly cute and adorable face they might be tempted to not believe that he would, in fact, make such attempts. I have seen it with my own two eyes! So, to add to the watch the dog, watch the kiddie-wink too!

Another thing to note is your children will get attached to your puppy no matter their age(unless they are an infant then maybe not). When we had to leave Tiesto at the kennel, Joshua screamed and screamed until I could distract him long enough to take his mind off of it. I think next time he will understand that we are going to get him back. Joshua and Tiesto had a huge party when they were reunited! Tough to imagine, an 18 month old 26 pound baby boy and a 100ish pound puppy giving kisses and hugs. It was a sight to behold.

Finally, to those who find dogs inconvenient. Tiesto is a GREAT travel buddy. He keeps us safe and he rides along so patiently and then hangs out with us where ever we are. To those who find kids inconvenient, Joshua is a great travel buddy, he laughs and tells me stories and sings to me! He provides a reason for me to stop and rest and laugh some more. Both of them rise to meet my expectations and are just happy that we are all together. Essentially, I don’t know how I ever road tripped without them!

Tiesto starts his intermediate training the end of this month so stay tuned!