10.08.2010

Warning: Photo Heavy Post But No Shots of Knitting!

A few kind readers have asked for more pictures of our "little" guy.
When we first got him he had never really done anything other than play with his litter mates and be viewed by potential owners.  He didn't know how to do every day things like walk down stairs or calmly watch traffic going by. He'd never been in a car or a boat or been in the woods but all that changed in a big hurry when we took him straight to our water access cottage after picking him up at the breeders out in the country north east of Toronto.

We spend many hours a week in our ski boat while Number One Son does what he loves to do at the cottage... Wake Skate, Water Ski, Wake Board and "Ski" Bare Foot. In the shot below he's wake skating only wearing running shoes on a board covered in the same grip tape they use on skate boards.
Of course Hudson needed to learn how to behave in the boat that kind of situation. For example to know to sit still and well braced (as in the shot below) in preparation for the moment the boat lurches forward to pull the skier up out of the water. (Pulling speed for slalom skiing is about 36 mph and the boat goes from zero to that in a few seconds!) This shot shows Hudson's Parti Poodle colouring - it runs pretty symetrically down his back and then down the back of each leg.
He also had to learn not to jump around while the skier is up...
He also discovered ways to entertain himself. (Biting the wake waves is a particular favourite but only in the first few minutes of the ride - after that he doesn't bother with it again until the beginning of the next outing.)By the way he was always on a leash so as not to fall overboard!
Here's another favourite pass time he found...chewing on the end of the ski rope.  He spent hours in this position. I'm worried he won't be able to fit in that spot by next year!
Of course on occasion he would also just relax and enjoy the view as he's doing in the photo below. I think you can really see how he matured as the weeks went by if you look at this shot versus the one at the top of the post...
He also found a favourite spot to sleep (If the water conditions are favourable, these "runs" as we call them, often last more than an hour!) Can you see him there sound asleep under the steering wheel?
I like the look on his face in the shot below - he looks as if he's saying "do you believe this kid? Look how high the moon is and he still wants to keep going!...
In the end Hudson was very comfortable and knew the "drill" to the point of being quite easy to have along for the ride.That boat is now in storage and after this weekend the whole place will be closed for the season and all the boats out of the water for the winter. I think he'll miss it - as we all will until next spring when we start all over again!

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving! (Ours is earlier than American Thanksgiving because our shorter northern growing season means we have an earlier harvest for which to be thankful.)

Thanks for dropping by!

8 comments:

Anna said...

Very cute dog, and I'm not usually a poodle fan so he must be cute!

When I was young we had an Irish Setter who was a few years older than me and when he was a puppy my parents had a VW camper van where he would sleep between the front seats. When he was grown up we got another camper and he assumed that he would be able to sleep between the seats as he'd done it before, and promptly got stuck!

Laurie said...

Happy Thanksgiving!!

It doesn't surprise me that your pup adjusted so well. Poodles are among the most intelligent breeds, I think right after the #1 brainy dog, the border collie. Love the pictures - he seems to be having a great time!

Acorn to Oak said...

He is so adorable and such a great dog! I'm envious of how calm he can be...especially, at such a young age! Our Airedale is almost five and still as active and busy as a puppy. We keep waiting for her to calm down but we're starting to think that may never happen. lol

Aline said...

I love the shot of him making the wake-face! What a beautiful cream colour too! Lucky girl!
Lots to be thankful for, enjoy. Ali xx

CarolMM said...

Happy Thanksgiving back to you and your family!
And thanks for sharing your photos/tales of Hudson. He's truly a beautiful dog.

Lorraine said...

Dogs are a hoot.

Thanks for that last paragraph- I never did find out why our Thanksgiving was earlier.

Rue said...

He's a keeper! it sounds like you've had a fabulous summer getting to know Hudson. What fun!

How is he settling in to city life?

Julia said...

he's a lovely poodle,is he from Cantope? My 2 year old, Bella, is from Cantope, but she's nowhere near as calm as Hudson. He's a beauty. Shouldn't he have a doggy life jacket on though? Then again, I insist on locking the car doors with both poodles in the car, even if I'm only in a store for a couple of minutes.