the goose loves her puppy in a box

Well the blog has been rather void of anything new and interesting lately, and for that I appologize. But there's some good posts coming up, especially now that all of our furniture is in our new place and we'll be doing some serious organization/design work.

But in the meantime, some happy news and cute photos to keep you interested. Bentley has been in training classes with Wonder Puppy, a terrific training organization in NW Portland. He's now completed all three courses - Good Puppy, Great Puppy, and Wonder Puppy! He's passed all courses, and even graduated from Great Puppy with Honors! Did you know that puppies could pass with honors? I didn't. If only that came with a monetary prize, like free food or something. That little hound eats a LOT.

The first class, Good Puppy, includes the AKC S.T.A.R. Test at the end, which is a mini-version of the Canine Good Citizen test. The last class, Wonder Puppy, preps the dogs for the Canine Good Citizen Test, which is part of the AKC Training Program. From their website,

Started in 1989, the CGC Program is designed to reward dogs who have good manners at home and in the community. The Canine Good Citizen Program is a two-part program that stresses responsible pet ownership for owners and basic good manners for dogs. All dogs who pass the 10-step CGC test may receive a certificate from the American Kennel Club.

We're happy to report that Bentley passed the test!

We weren't sure if he could do it - he's quite headstrong and can be rather vocal too (at least we know he's a real Beagle, then!). But he passed with almost flying colors. There are definitely things he can work on still, but we're happy with his accomplishment!

So to celebrate his smartness, we'll show off a few pictures of how silly and dumb he is. This is his temporary toybox, which recently turned into a fort-chewtoy-den-playground-bed.

Snuggly pup.

Mmm, lunchtime. Mom and Dad NEVER feed me.

RAWR.

Bents, we're proud of you! Keep up the good work, our little Star Pup! And stop waking up at 6:00am and barking until you're freed from your gigantic kennel bed. It's annoying.