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Training Wins, Tug Toys, and a Not-So-Fun Discovery

Milestone

Churro has officially learned the difference between dirty and clean dishes – it might be temporary, but he didn’t climb into the clean dishwasher this week! And yay for attention from his non-furry brothers.

Young man with golden retreivers

Kicking off the week with a gentle tug session using a “donkey tail” toy I made for them. I braided four pieces of sherpa-type fleece and knotted the ends - such an easy, fun, and versatile toy! It’s mildly stretchy and floppy, there are no stuffing “snowstorms” in the family room, and there are no squeakers to surgically remove. Woohoo!


On Training… Giving It to You Straight

We’re not the perfect team - I make TONS of mistakes with my timing and techniques - but we’re making progress! This week, we worked on impulse control:


  • The “slow treats” game (though they were pretty rapid-fire, lol), where Churro had to keep his face still and resist moving toward the reward.

  • Waiting to retrieve food off the ground until I gave the go-ahead.

  • Practicing patience and not “demanding” food from my hands.


All of this sets the groundwork for not rushing the bowl at feeding time. (And maybe - just maybe - he’ll generalize it to making good choices like not chasing rabbits and the like, but we’ll see about that! 🤣) Right now, his impulse control is measured in nanoseconds, but I’m confident that with practice, we’ll stretch that time.


We also focused on proofing his skills - loose-leash walking (a pipe dream for us!), sit, down, and touch - in a “weird” location: Home Depot. He handled the automatic doors, shopping carts, and people like a champ. He even calmly watched an (extremely well-behaved) off-leash dog, showing zero impulse to go meet her. Heavily rewarded for that neutral behavior!


This is what sometimes happens when I ask Queso to “place” before training Churro - Churro joins him on the bed. 🥰

Golden retrievers on dog bed

For Queso, the robot vacuum is old hat, but Churro was (mostly) undisturbed by its roving. He did get up when it got too close but simply moved to another part of the room to resume his rest. Progress!


More proof of Queso wanting his crate back - different days, same story. LOL. I’m just waiting for the day they both sneak in there together.

Golden retriever in crate
Golden retriever in crate, with a puppy outside crate

One morning after breakfast training, I was catching up on my phone when I noticed Churro pouncing around seemingly at random. It took me a second to realize he was chasing a prism of light reflecting off my iPhone, just like a cat. 😻 So I grabbed a mirror (larger than ideal, but it worked) and set about recording the behavior.


Photo Challenge

This week’s prompt was “something old.” So naturally, Churro was served lunch in an antique dresser. 😁 I love blending old and new!

Golden retriever in antique dresser

And the behind the scenes of how it was created.

Behind the scenes of a dog photo session

If you’ve been following along, you know how gentle Queso has been with Churro. But he is JONESING for some full-on, pell-mell running and tag. He’s really tempering himself, but sometimes, a little energy bursts out. When that happens, Churro gets a little nervous and hides in “home base” between my legs until the moment passes.


Followed by… gentle play.


Followed by… some much-deserved alone time for Queso.

Dog carrying a log walking int he snow

Followed by… a brotherly nap. 💤

Two goldens snoozing

First Family Walk

We took our first family walk this week! Queso is still not great on a leash (tugging more than I’d like, 🙄), but we went for it anyway. There were (very brief!) moments of easy synchronicity. 🙌🏻


Since the yard is still covered in snow, the puppy pool is not an option, so we improvised for water exposure. We added a few inches of water to the tub and invited Churro to splash around. I can’t say he was a fan, lol, but he tolerated it. He definitely enjoyed the post-“swim” toweling off, though. 😉 I imagine that when we get him to a real body of water, he’ll do just fine - like all our other Goldens have.


The Not-So-Fun Discovery

Churro gets carsick. 😭 This makes exposure outings a bit more challenging since we have to drive to most of them. We’d rather he not start a session feeling unwell since that wouldn’t be a very positive experience. We’re hopeful he’ll outgrow it, but in the meantime, we’ll look for ways to minimize it and/or expose him to things within walking distance of home.


And finally… as a reward to me for all my hard work this week - a glass of GSM from my favorite winery, Crux. 🍷

Cruz wine bottle and glass

Ginger Wick Photography is an award winning dog photographer specializing in creating beautiful custom artwork of dogs & their people. Based in Parker, CO serving the Denver area.

6 comments

6 Comments


Amanda E.
Feb 10

I'm sorry to hear about the car sickness - I wish I had some good ideas for you. My dog was sooooo nervous in the car for the first 8 months or so, despite the fact that 99% of the places we went to were fun (visiting his friends, etc.). He eventually outgrew it. I hope Churro does as well!

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Ginger Wick
19 hours ago
Replying to

Oh gosh Amanda eight months seems like a very long time! 😅 I hope Churro’s on the fast track to overcome it. LOL.

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Amy T
Feb 07

I am enjoying following along on Churro's adventures! Hope he grows out of the car sickness so you can do more adventures together 😀

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Ginger Wick
19 hours ago
Replying to

Thanks Amy! I’m hopeful he’ll grow out of it, but if not, we’ll just have to figure out!

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Winnie
Feb 03

Ginger, read up on laser lights and dogs. It's not recommended.

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Replying to

Interesting, because of the sudden changes in direction or because the light source is bad for their eyes? I’ve never actually used a laser pointer with a dog before, but I imagine the mirror might have the same problem depending on what it is. That’s the one and only time we’ve played that way, so we’re probably in the clear, but I appreciate the info.

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©2025 by Ginger Wick Photography

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