Coyote – DSA,TDI,PDX,CGC,ATTS
Coyote was born on Jan. 27, 2000. He was my first “all-positive” trained dog and he LOVED shaping more than any dog I know. He loved solving the “puzzle” almost more than he loved the reward! He taught me SO much because he was game to try any activity and made teaching him new things so much fun that it was addicting.
He was my constant companion at Dog Scout Camps for a number of years and earned over 50 badges for things like Backpacking, Biking, Agility, Rally, Manners, Boating Safety, Tracking, Search and Rescue, Flyball, Freestyle Obedience, Community Service and obedience without wearing my collar and lead! He and I did a LOT of backpacking and trail walking and he earned the second level Pack Dog Title (PDX- Pack Dog Excellent). Which means he carried a loaded pack for 100 miles! But not all at once 🙂 He was also a Canine Good Citizen, passed a Therapy Dog test and passed the ATTS Temperament Test.
In 2007 I noticed he was bumping into things and I had his eyes checked. He developed PRA (Progressive Retinal Atrophy) and eventually went completely blind. but unless you really watched, it was hard to tell because he was SO good at navigating! He would even still run across the yard.
Videos I took of some of his training sessions continue to educate people about dog training to this day! He definitely took a piece of my heart when he passed and I’m glad my husband was home with him when something, likely hemagiosarcoma, suddenly took his life. It also took a big piece of my heart and Coyote is greatly missed.
What I wrote right after he passed:
Coyote 1/27/00 – 1/25/14
God has gained himself one hell of a great dog and a huge piece of my heart.
While I was out of town getting a new title on Dazzle, Coyote passed away in my husband’s arms. We’re not sure exactly what happened, but it was only a matter of a few hours from the first serious symptoms until he was gone. So thankfully it was quick and seemed to be fairly painless from my husband’s description. Our guess is some sort of rupture or cancer or ??. But at this point, the cause isn’t really important. I don’t think there was anything we could have done in those last few hours. And he was so damn stoic that if he had any pain prior, we didn’t have any sign of it.
While I wish I had been here with him, my husband didn’t have him cremated before I got a chance to say goodbye and he looked like he was peacefully sleeping. And I’m glad he didn’t tell me last night. I would have driven home on bad roads, in the dark, bawling my eyes out and it wouldn’t have changed a thing. So it was much safer to wait till I got home. And I’m thankful not to have had to witness the end, or have him euth. So given that he had to die (as we all do) this was not a bad thing for me but I’m very sorry that my husband had to go through it alone though.
Coyote was one amazing dog and the first dog that I trained with only reward-based training. We learned a LOT together and he was smarter than I could imagine possible. He LOVED the shaping game and would work at figuring out a puzzle for nearly an hour (the longest it took him to figure something out, but I’m sure he would have kept going!). But it was very rare that it took him that long. He was instrumental in getting many people to give clicker training a try by doing a demo of it’s power of communication. I would have the person pick something for him to interact with in the area in a way they specified (put his head on the seat of a chair for example) and with only the use of the clicker and a few treats I could get him to do it! No verbal or body language cues needed. And the person was sold on giving it a shot even though I was sure to explain that Coyote was at a very advanced level and didn’t start out being able to do what he just demonstrated.
He attended many Dog Scout camps with me and earned over 40 badges in everything from search and rescue and messenger dog to painting and community service. You’d be hard pressed to find a dog that enjoyed taking money from donors and putting it in a bucket! He was able to collect an average of $100 per hour and sometimes worked 3 or 4 hours straight! And if the person wasn’t careful, he would skip the waiting time and just try to get their entire wallet or purse!
He earned his UPD backpacking title and loved going on hikes with me (back when I was able to do so). He loved learning go to ground and agility and going for long kayak rides with breaks for swimming. He earned first and third place in the skyhoundz disc dog competitions we entered and would fetch the frisbee in the yard for hours. He was an excellent mouser and spent many hours keeping our yard mole free. Lure coursing and steeplechase were more of his favorite activities.
He had one hell of a “dash”- an active and enriched life and knew love for all of his 14 years and won’t be forgotten by those he met. Tomorrow he can celebrate his birthday with any activities he chooses while playing with Hunter, Buster and Bear. I’m going to do my best to just remember all the good stuff and not dwell on the fact that he’s no longer going to greet me at the door whenever I come home or at the gate that separated him from Dazzle with a full body wiggle and going between me and the fridge in case I forgot where the treats (carrots) were located. Rest in peace Cody man and may you have as much fun as a dog can possibly have until we meet again.
Waiting At The Bridge 