Winter Break Update #2: Kaline and Chief go to Pier 39

Last Thursday, Sonja and I met up in the City to take Chief and Kaline to Pier 39 (among a few other destinations). Our boys were absolutely awesome and we had a great time.

Kaline and I took Caltrain into San Francisco. I wore this big blue jacket with a ton of pockets so I didn't have to carry a bag for him. My little paperback even fit in the pocket so I'd have something to read on the train, woohoo. We were lucky to find a pair of empty seats so Kaline had plenty of room to lie down.

Kaline on the way to the City.

On the train, he showed that he is really beginning to understand the concept of working/not working. The girl in front of us turned around and just started petting him. Normally that's Kaline's cue to be all wiggly and over-social. But he just lay there, didn't really respond to her, and looked up at me! I was very pleased with his response so I only rewarded him, didn't tell the girl off or anything. Later she turned around and stroked his feet, which I thought was odd but he gave the same reaction, or lack thereof. So hurrah.

We met Sonja and Chief at Philz, a coffee shop she likes, then set off for a leisurely stroll to catch the historic F Line to Pier 39. I took off Kaline's vest so he could pee and say hi to the various friendly, calm, off leash dogs who came over. Sonja knows them so I wasn't worried about it, and of course Kaline was glad to say hi and make new friends. It sucked I couldn't take him off leash but there was no fencing and we were right next to the Embarcadero. Chief got to run a bit.

Kaline still pulled, but not nearly as much as the last time we went to the City. That was a relief. I rewarded him for loose leash and for check-ins, which were pretty frequent (score).

The F Line was definitely a challenge for me, just because it is so crowded. Like a moving sardine can. There was barely standing room. However, aside from the crowding, it was a really positive experience.

As soon as Sonja and I got on with the dogs, people got up from the disabled seating so we could sit. I let Kaline get on and go ahead of me, so he could kinda poke people out of the way with his nose and general Doberman-ness. As soon as I sat down, Kaline did a lap-up and stayed there until we were almost at our stop. Two nice tourists blocked for him, after Sonja asked, so that no one would step on him. And when this couple with two little kids got on, the tram conductor called out, “Make sure you keep him”—one had made a beeline for us—“away from the dogs! He can't touch them!” Sonja and I looked at each other with happy surprise and made sure to thank him on our way out.

Pier 39 was also crowded but there was much more space. We had a grand time. Near the bungee jump, we had the boys do a harder version of the stay exercise from IKEA. We left Kaline and Chief mid-walkway and let the waves of people flow around them. Kaline couldn't have cared less about the people, he just wanted to watch the birds and maybe kill a pigeon.

Next stop was Le Beastro, a pet accessories shop that has various items featuring natural-eared Dobermans. (Crazy, I know!) I got a pretty keychain.

Browsing at Le Beastro.

Then we headed to the sea lions, where I fully expected Kaline to get all aroused and end up barking. Well, he was very interested, definitely, but he had no trouble working on watch, touch, etc. I was so happy about that!

I need a hug!

After the pier we went to the Musée Mechanique, which is this warehouse type building next to all the Fisherman's Wharf restaurants. It's full of all this fascinating antique arcade stuff (not just games, but moving dioramas and such). There was this huge creepy mannequin thing called Laffing Sal, which has scared the shit out of many a dog with its demonic cackle. When it turned on, Kaline gave it a stare for a long moment, then got over it. Chief was totally fine, he's done this before. Kay was super about walking slowly through all the games and displays.

The boys with Laffing Sal after she quieted.

 He and Chief even did a stay practically inside a player piano!

Kaline, Chief, and the player piano. I love those things!

For dinner we went to In N Out. The boys were exhausted and curled up together under the table. They were so cute. We hung out there for a long time, till Hendrik came to pick us up.

Sleepy boys at In N Out.

He got me to the train station with perfect timing, and Kaline conked out for the whole ride home.

On the way home.

Kaline and Chief in the City

Yesterday I ended up with a totally free afternoon, so Kaline and I went to meet Chief and Sonja in San Francisco. I cut it a little close, whoops. I drove like a bit of a maniac to get to the nearby train station in time to catch our 2:44 train into the city. Kaline and I had to run (well, as much as I can with my awkward self) to get a ticket before the train pulled in. I aggravated my already very grumpy ankle, but other than that, great, GREAT outing.

Kaline on Caltrain.

It was Kaline's first time on Caltrain, and he was quite a star. I was, naturally, way stressed when we finally got on the train. There were no open double-seaters downstairs, so we went up top which has single seats in a narrow line. Very little space for Kaline to curl up by my feet, but to his credit, he managed very adorably—after spending about five minutes leaning into my chest to make me nice and calm again. He'd stay curled up on the floor for about ten minutes, and then he'd slowly get up in my lap (except for his back feet) for some snuggles, and then he'd slide back down and curl up again. It was a most delightful little cycle. He enjoyed looking out the window when he was up in my lap.

We got to the station in San Francisco and easily found Sonja and Kaline's best buddy. Chief immediately flopped onto his back when he saw Kaline, and Kaline sniffed him all over and gave him a huge paw in the face. Apparently this is an affectionate gesture, because Kaline does it to dogs he likes, but he really does not understand how large his feet are and how getting one of them in the face might not be the most fun thing for another dog, especially a wee guy like Chief. Of course, Chief forgave him instantly and they played anytime we gave them the opportunity. Kaline was like, "Damn, man, you've shrunk! What happened?" Kaline is so much bigger than the last time they saw each other.

Kaline and Chief start a play session.

SMUSH! I love you Chief!

All the traffic, crowds and noise of the city really didn't seem to bother Kaline at all. It definitely interested/distracted him, of course, but he didn't ever seem apprehensive or scared. We walked over to a coffee shop and I held the pups while Sonja got a drink. Chief chirped like a little bird. We walked over to the ballpark (where I tried not to look at all the World Series stuff—gaaaah) and Chief got to romp about showing off his excellent recall and his very impressive leave it. Kaline pulled on me basically the entire time we were in the city, but other than that he was pretty good. We worked on attention, as always! We need to go to the city more, haha.

Kaline gets his coat put on outside the pet shop. It wasn't that cold, but I was sick of carrying it, haha.

We went over to Sonja's favorite pet shop, where the dogs got treats and got fussed over. Then we walked along the piers. We came across a fire station, and Sonja asked the guys if our dogs could come say hi to them. It's always great for them to meet emergency responders and learn that they are friends, because service dogs have a much higher chance, obviously, of coming into contact with emergency responders in a stressful situation. The boys did just fine, and Sonja got pictures of us in front of the fire truck and the fire boat. Yes, I said fire boat. Don't you love San Francisco? The firemen said that we can come back when the boys are older and they'll dress up in all their "scary" gear for them. Woohoo! They were so nice.

Me, Kaline and Chief with the firemen (Sonja likes being in pictures even less than I do ... plus she had the camera ...)

Fire boat!

 A bit further along we went into a pier that had a bunch of little shops. Lots of people, lots of food smells. We had the boys do long-distance sit- and down-stays, which were pretty great, and then got a passing man to try and distract them by calling their names and doing drive-by pets. Then we made our way all the way through.

Down-stay in the market.

We went a bit further along, then crossed to the other side and walked along this apartment complex, which was walled in on two sides for a corridor and had lots of grassy lawns. Chief got to run about off-leash and had great fun zooming in to tangle with Kaline (on leash) and then zooming away. Kay and I have worked on the recall, but not enough for me to feel okay letting him off in the city. I'm pretty sure he'd stay close but I don't want to take the chance. We made our wandering way to the Muni station on Embarcadero. We had to go down a big flight of stairs and then Sonja got me a ticket. It was kind of hilarious—we went to the first machine, it wouldn't work, and we looked up to see a big sign reading "Out of Order." Next machine. Wouldn't work, looked up to see a sign reading "No single tickets." Third time was the charm. And then we were pretty inept trying to get my ticket to scan in the machine (Sonja has a permanent pass). We're very silly but at least we can get big laughs at our own expense!

Both boys were excellent in the station. It was loud, but not as loud as the BART station one level down. Kaline just plopped down next to me to wait; we even practiced grounding on the platform, with all those people around. He was great on the train too—he has excellent balance from standing so much in the back of Trumbull (even though I encourage him to lie down) and did some grounding (for real) on the train.

Me and Kaline in the Muni station.

Sonja and Chief in the station—Chief was so tired. Cutie pie.

Grounding practice on the platform.

Me and the pups on the Muni train.

Grounding on Muni.

We took Caltrain home, and Kaline basically passed out on the floor until we were almost at our stop. I was so proud of him!

On Caltrain, headed home.

And after we got home, he had dinner and went up to go sleep in his crate. Junebug came along to dinner. A most relaxing finish to the day.

Perfect girl passed out in Thaiphoon.