A Kella Update

When we found out that a sweet little human would be joining our family in March of next year, one of our first thoughts went to Kella. As much as we loved Kella, she was a naughty one and I was feeling uneasy about the idea of bringing a precious baby home to a booger puppy. Jay and I knew Kella was a good dog with great potential, we all just needed a little direction. At first we weren't quick to hire a trainer because of the cost. But we put it into perspective and figured that Kella will [hopefully] be around for ten years or so and we would rather invest a little money now to have an enjoyable ten years with her. So Jay and I hired a trainer named Kevin.

Kevin has been coming to our home once a week since July. In the last two months we have seen definite changes in Kella's behavior. Currently she knows and responds to the following commands: come, sit, down, stay, wait, leave it, drop it, and look.
She play bites wayy less, jumps a little less, and is a total champ on the leash. 

During a morning walk at the park about a month ago we ran into a one year old golden retriever, Gracie, and her owner, Connie. Kella and Gracie were a perfect match for each other. Since their first encounter Connie and I have gotten the pups together almost daily for doggie play dates. When they play, they play so hard it puts Kella out for the whole day and I LOVE it. 

Kella picked up the ever so naughty habit of digging.

 Kella loves to rest her paw on my foot. Each time she does it, I melt and instantly forgive her for every naughty thing she's ever done.

Kella has a severe fear of the stairs. She has never attempted to come down into the basement, and we have decided to not encourage it. We love her, but sometimes it's nice to have our space. 

Kella's a keeper. She's been a bit more work and required a lot more patience than I anticipated. But as we've been patient and diligent in training, it's been truly rewarding. There is still progress to be made, and some growing up to do on Kella's part, but we are thrilled with the outcome of our efforts. We plan to continue training with Kevin until Kella is solid. And we feel confident that Kella will indeed be solid by the time we bring our little one home in March.