Considering Donna had a pretty dull time the later part of our visit to III Cafe, we decided to stop by the Bishan Dog Run which was on the way home.
We haven’t been inside for quite some time since Donna had gotten fearful of the place the last couple of times she was chased by dogs there. Subsequently, I did take her to the park so that we practice staying calm while walking past the fenced-in doggy area. She did not appear averse to entering that day, so we thought we’d try bringing her in and hanging around the area where there were less dogs… except that three dogs immediately lopped towards our area to check her out.
While Donna did not jump for joy, she was not as fearful as she was previously as well. What she did was to duck under the park bench when she got uncomfortable with the attention and then make exploratory forays from there. In, out, in, out until she was comfortable with her new friends.
I didn’t start taking any pictures until later when I was assured that she was having fun with the other dogs.
If this brown dog had some spots, he would look like Scooby-doo! :P Looking at this picture, I think I start to get why Ruby’s human thinks that Ruby’s black coat looks too dense in colour. Donna’s black coat does stand out but does not look as nice as the brown dog’s softer tones against the surroundings.
Checking out the white dog who preferred the fence to them. :P
Is that a border collie? I’m not good at identifying breeds. Still that’s a lot of hair!!
We limited her to 15 minutes of play time in the dog run so that we could leave on a very positive note for her. She was so dog-tired, she didn’t even blink an eyelid at the close up shot at home. :P
If you are interested, Dr Sophia Yin has a great poster on Dog Park Etiquette that can be downloaded for free as well as tips how to train a dog to prevent him from being part of any unhappy situation that may escalate in a dog park in the dog park. Southslope.org has a nice Dog Park Etiquette Poster with lots of useful tips for adults and for parents with children on how we can help make the dog park an enjoyable place for all humans and dogs and also what to do, if a fight breaks out.
Kuruk
Donna, doggie parks are lots of fun! Woooowooooo, Ku
weliveinaflat
They are! Donna just needs some time to get used to them, and we need to visit at time slots when the dog walker doesn’t come with her high energy dogs that rush in! :)
manicivy
LOVE Donna’s little play bow, glad she had a better experience this time!
weliveinaflat
Yup that playbow was more tempered than if she were in an environment she was more comfortable with. But it was all good. Thank you for taking the time to visit and comment! :D Have a great day and weekend ahead! :)
Dogs N Pawz
Good for Donna! Glad it was a better experience this time!
weliveinaflat
Me too! I appreciate your kind thoughts and hope you have a great weekend ahead!! :)
1st World Dog
That is so cool Donna. Loved that you had the safety of the bench and then ventured from there and that your owners were very clever to keep it short and make sure you left on a positive note. Paws up to them!
Probably just as mentally exhausted from such a big adventure as physically…. that is how my mum wears me out some of the time… makes me do things to think rather than just run around. It is just, sometimes more, tiring.
Enjoy the zzzzz
weliveinaflat
Well the last times we were here she camped out on the park bench but since it was already taken by that pair of legs, she could only hide under it instead. Haha! But yes, quite glad she has a hiding place, and we did our homework and read that it is best to limit the time when she is unsure, and that to set her up for success by leaving it on a good note. ;) A tad obsessive with the reading I suppose… at times. :P Thank you for taking the time to write your thoughts of encouragement!! :D and hope you are having a great day! :)
rubytheblacklabrador
Donna looks like she enjoyed herself – being confident in sniffing other dogs bottoms is great!
weliveinaflat
She was wary at first, but it was good that she could come out of the park bench after a while :) and yes sniff bottoms!! Haha! Hope you are having a good day :)
Sonel
Awww..that is so sweet! Great shots Mrs. P! I can see Donna had a fantastic time and yes, that is a Border Collie. :) She really enjoyed herself. Thanks for sharing this lovely post hon. :D *big hugs*
weliveinaflat
Ah thanks for confirming the Border Collie :) It was good to see her having some fun with other dogs! Thank you for stopping by :) *big hugs back :D*
Sonel
Oh, they are the most playful and such friendly dogs for sure. We had one years ago and when he died I cried for months. They are very clever as well. He would be a great friend for Donna. :D
*hugs*
weliveinaflat
You border collie must have been such a sweetheart Sonel! :D Have to say the border collie wasn’t too interested in Donna, but that’s fine since she had a brown dog badgering to play with her :)
Sonel
Pffft! The silly BC! ;) He doesn’t know what he missed with our cute Donna. That brown dog was so cute. I bet she enjoyed the attention very much. :D
2browndawgs
Looks like Donna had a blast. We avoid dog parks. You just never know how people will be with their dogs around here. Luckily we have places we can take our dogs to exercise that don’t involve other dogs.
weliveinaflat
What you said is very true, not just for over there but over here as well, I think. We’re slowly learning that the mornings are not a good time to venture there because the dogwalker comes with scary dogs that rush in, and the dogs in general just seem more boisterous. The crowd seems more mellow later in the afternoon, perhaps they had a chance to work off some steam already. Then again, always worth it to listen to our dog and see if she has any objections going in or no, and also to keep to the empty corners as far away from the entrance as possible (less chance of getting shocked by dogs rushing in). Truth to tell, sometimes I get lazy taking her there, its a 1/2hr walk there and a 1/2hr walk back, assuming she doesn’t stop to smell the grass!
kuujinbo
Nice to hear Donna is socializing with other dogs much better now. :)
weliveinaflat
Hear! Hear! I agree! I appreciate your supportive-ness :)