Woofs & Whinnies Workshop

What a neat morning! It started with a quick trail hike in the Marin Municipal Watershed District. Had my Gentle Leader on but not attached, as it takes my energy level down a notch, and we had just passed by horse stables. At the trail signs we opted for the uphill, as we were to be exercised, before the Marin Humane Society Woofs & Whinnies class.
A beautiful morning. Sun filtering through a thick canopy of branches and leaves. Our hike was just behind the class meeting point, at the Marin Stables. Once our Woofs & Whinnies class started, we took another walk along these peaceful trails.
This class was to have us furries, become used to being around or passing horses and having our hoomans understand more about these beautiful animals as well. The photo below is mid-class...after meeting some new pals, and learning a lot about horses. I am watching Dixie, and so curious...is she a big doggie? I was confused at first. It was recomended to wear our Gentle Leaders, just in case some of us had some natural instincts kick in. Not all the participants had them on. As you can see, mom couldn't find one that matched my furs! I'm ok with this blue one.

During our log circle, I met some new pals. His dad was matching with the Whitefish, Montana Bulldog Saloon shirt!

We listened to some very important facts about horses.

Learning about their vision points and moving objects...

Many of our local trails allow us furries, as well as horses, so we were glad to participate in this class! We sat next to Sydney. Mom was holding out some squishy cheese, and had Sydney's attention!

On our other side was Autumn. She and I have been in a number of the Humane Society Classes together. Always nice to see familiar faces. She was keen on eyeballing squirrels in the trees above.

And then......Dixie came out!! Wow! Didn't know what to expect. That's Dixie passing calmly behind our seated group. Trish King is in the middle there. She's the director of behavior and training at the MHS, and coordinated our class for today.

While Dixie did laps around our group, we were to keep attention on our hoomans... There were some furries that let out barks and that made me nervous. My ears were back during this part, but mom worked on luring me to her attention with a stash of hot dogs and cheese...

Us woofies took our turn walking around Dixie.

I was doing pretty good at that point. Snacking on mom's nummy treats, checking things out, taking it all in.

We had a chance to walk around and follow pretty Dixie.

And, then there were TWO! Youza! Yet, by this time, many of us were feeling more comfortable and were quietly observing.

Class went by so quickly, and I did great! We love these classes and hope to take more. Guess what I did upon returning home!!!??? :) You know. Happy mid-week pals!