A Scary Brush
May 6, 2009
Dear Diary,
Tonight was a normal class night. Because we missed the last class and had to do the makeup class, Mom didn’t get the message to bring a brush with us. I saw that other Moms had brushes with them, but I didn’t understand why. Well, the first exercise was “Appearance and Grooming”. I thought that I’d be great at this one. I mean Mom does keep me groomed nicely, and appearance – well, I don’t want to boast, but a lot of people tell me that I’m pretty cute.
I guess that “cute” isn’t what this test is about. This exercise means that someone other than Mom had to come up to me with a brush, then brush my back and head. Then look in my ears and lift each paw. Normally, I don’t think I would have minded, but remember – Mom had not brought my own brush. So the person used some other dog’s brush. And when I smelled that brush – man – I thought “what if the owner of this brush gets mad about me using it?!” It smelled like a BIG dog- probably mean. I didn’t want to get brushed with that brush. The other dog would know it was me. SCARY!!
You just can't be too careful.
Signed, Tucker (your blog host)
To read more about me go to The Sensible Dog.
PS Canine Good Citizen Test 3: Appearance and Grooming
This practical test demonstrates that the dog will welcome being groomed and examined and will permit someone, such as a veterinarian, groomer or friend of the owner, to do so. It also demonstrates the owner’s care, concern and sense of responsibility. The evaluator inspects the dog to determine if it is clean and groomed. The dog must appear to be in healthy condition (i.e., proper weight, clean, healthy and alert). The handler should supply the comb or brush commonly used on the dog. The evaluator then softly combs or brushes the dog, and in a natural manner, lightly examines the ears and gently picks up each front foot. It is not necessary for the dog to hold a specific position during the examination, and the handler may talk to the dog, praise it and give encouragement throughout.
