We Borrowed an Ojo
Ajax’s brother Ojo belongs to my sister’s family, and we visit them regularly in Boston. For the next several weeks, though, Ojo’s with us. Since I have this summer off (no work, no Master’s classes), I offered to take him on tons of walks and to get to some classes with him.
So, this summer, I’m essentially the head counselor at Dog Camp.
Ojo has taken to the frequent swimming like, well, a water retriever. This is from one of his first swims with us, and he still hasn’t gotten the hang of keeping his front paws underwater. The result is that classic photo of a Golden pup splashing himself in the face instead of making forward progress.
He quickly got better and better, since it wasn’t his first time swimming, and pretty soon he was keeping up with Jax and Comet, who often co-retrieve sticks.
We hit a couple of locations over a couple of days. We hit our new river spot, the salt marsh, and the quarry trail. This Black-crowned Night-Heron was perched quietly above a stream. I’m not sure why he was out, even though it was the middle of the day, but he’s a striking bird nonetheless.
This summer, I’m drilling all three dogs on recall, stays, and giving attention, the three crucial skills of the woods dog. Sticking your face in streambed mud is an optional elective at which Ojo excels.