Proof of (good) citizenship

Bailey has been registered with France and has her own passport already, but yesterday we received another certificate for her — the Canine Good Citizen Certificate. Bailey had taken and passed the test before we left the states. I can confidently state that her good citizen skills have improved during her time here. Initially I was very hesitant and cautious about taking her to the dog park, but she has proven herself to not only a good canine citizen, but also Most Fun Dog. 

A lot of the dogs who come into the dog park don't seem to know how to play. Bailey tries with every one of them but backs off if they aren't interested. The other day we hit upon a good play group and she led five or six of them in a chase around the park. The other owners seemed very happy to see their dogs run and play. A lot of the dogs that come there are puppies and she's good with them too. She still meets new dogs with her hackles up, which I'm not crazy about, but we are seeing less of that and a faster transition into play mode. Yesterday a woman was there with her pup, a five month old long-haired Weimaraner. Bailey got her dog to play and she remarked about what a nice dog Bailey was. That made my day.

Not all of the fun dogs come into the dog park. There is a big open field near the dog park and many folks just let their dogs play there, often off leash. I'm not prepared to go off leash with her but I bought a 20 meter long line and I tried her out there with that attached to a harness. There were no dogs around at that time but she enjoyed being off leash in the open space and rolling in the grass.

Like any proud parents we put her certificate on the mantle over the fireplace.