Lexidog All Lab Playdate

Today was the Lexidog All Lab playdate and Karren and I attended with Annalynn and Ardella. After a ridiculously long drive via instructions from MapQuest (I have issues with Mapquest), we arrived in Lake Oswego about half an hour late. However, as we arrived there was a light yellow Lab walking across with street pulling her owners toward us and I realized it was Lani (who used to be known as Avani). So, the sisters had a reunion.

Lexidog was crowded today and there were a lot of dogs and people. Predictably, Ardella was a little freaked out. We put Ardella and Lani on the other side of the fence together so they could greet without being stressed out by other dogs, and then added Annalynn. Annalynn and Lani wanted to play on the floor, so Ardella and I went to a secluded fenced-in area where she could adjust to the large number of dogs. We added another dog named Catalina (I think) who was also a little unnerved by the all the new dogs. Eventually we were joined by Annalynn and Lani and their raisers. So of course we did what everyone does when littermates get together, we took pictures.

We attempted to get them to sit together:



and these were our most successful attempts:





I think we were more interested in picture taking than the girls were.



Eventually Ardella ventured out on her own onto the big floor and initiated some contact with dogs. Mostly she stayed on the periphery and discovered that if she stood between two people who were talking, she could remain safe from dogs who were more boisterous and assertive. Lani left around this time and Annalynn began to search out Ardella for play and they began to play chase together a little bit. It has always been a thrill to have had littermates in close proximity and I'm amazed how they remember one another even though they are often separated for long periods of time.

Finally, Ardella discovered the activity that will make her come out of her shell - food! She discovered the treat jar and then a couple of other dogs did too. Kim had 5 dogs at the treat jar, so she decided to have them sit and give out treats (duck and potato kibble).



I think it's pretty amazing to get 5 Labs to sit and wait.



So did the other dogs - they kept coming over to get treats:



And all the raisers kept coming over to take pictures. We decided to make them line up for a picture. We all had food, of course:



It was a miracle! Ardella is the only one lying down - she thought she was supposed to behave like she was playing the "Wait" game. (Enlarge the picture - I don't think the medium size will fit on this page).

It was fun to talk to other Lab owners, a large majority of the people there had career changed dogs from GDB. It was fun to catch up with people still in clubs and raising and to hear how their puppies were coming along. It was fun to meet people, too. I can't wait for the next play date!

Ardella had class this afternoon and did well on stay and heel up. Stand was new and she kind of shut down and we ended early. We'll practice for next week and hope she's not as as overstimulated since she won't have had as exciting a morning as she had today.