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Authors: Piper J. Drake
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commands. He just doesn’t care enough to execute immediately.”
She frowned. The delay in behavior might not be a big deal in the civilian world. Some regular owners might not even think twice about the delay even if it became a habit. But…he could be testing her. “The delay isn’t acceptable for military work.”
David shook his head, no hint of whether he’d been leading her to saying so or not. Just responding. “Not at all. But then, at his age, he might not be redeployed at this point. It really depends on how well he comes through this.”
So cold. Matter of fact. She kind of hated David a little bit for the way he casually talked about Atlas like that. As if it was all about practicality and not about an injured soul.
Her heart ached for Atlas. Part of her wanted to cut him slack, let him have the leeway in his training to ensure he’d be allowed to retire and enjoy life here. But Atlas was a working dog. He might not be happy no longer working. It had to be up to him. Find his balance again and working might be what he lived for.
“You do basic obedience with every dog here, right?” Seemed as if she’d seen the other trainers working with various dogs. Both Alex Rojas and Brandon Forte had been out with various dogs all morning.
“We make sure every working dog here trains for thirty minutes in obedience every day. Then they spend time in their specialization.” Still brisk and all business, David pointed toward the kennels. “Any puppies Rojas breeds are also taught basic obedience as a package deal with the buyers. We use the time in the basic obedience classes to confirm the new owners are a good fit for our dogs.”
Good practice, assessing the owners to be sure they could handle the dogs they were purchasing. The trainers were less likely to lose track of a puppy somebody might decide to abandon. Too many people purchased a dog, invested in training, then dropped it in a shelter rather than admit to the breeder they’d decided they didn’t want the dog anymore.
Perhaps she was reading too much into his tone. He was being practical but maybe he wasn’t uncaring. She realized she was biased because of her dealings with her stepfather, looking for callousness in David. But David had been very generous with answering questions. Especially considering she’d turned him down earlier, he could’ve taken a completely different tack. She appreciated his willingness to really work with her.
“How many of your puppies go to private homes?” She’d thought they specialized in working dogs.
David studied Atlas. “Not every dog is suited for military or K9 work. We start assessing temperament right away and do our best to find good homes for the puppies not suited for working. They start training early and we watch them for the right combination of prey drive, aggression, intelligence…all of the traits necessary for them to be successful.”
“And those same traits make them difficult home pets.” High aggression and intelligence made for destroyed homes when those same dogs became agitated in a high-density neighborhood or got bored while owners were away at work or even on short errands. It was amazing what level of destruction a single dog could do in the wrong environment.
David’s grin drew an answering grin from her. It was ridiculous how much of a difference his expression made from his previous attitude and how happy she was for them to be on the same page when it came to training. She’d butted heads with other trainers in the past and the experience had been frustrating. She’d really thought he would be another one of those when she’d first met him. This—and seeing him with Atlas—was proving her wrong in the best of ways.
It’d been the right decision not to go out to dinner with him. This level of professionalism was something much better, even if he was also one of the most distractingly attractive men she’d ever worked with.
“Well, I might not have the
She frowned. The delay in behavior might not be a big deal in the civilian world. Some regular owners might not even think twice about the delay even if it became a habit. But…he could be testing her. “The delay isn’t acceptable for military work.”
David shook his head, no hint of whether he’d been leading her to saying so or not. Just responding. “Not at all. But then, at his age, he might not be redeployed at this point. It really depends on how well he comes through this.”
So cold. Matter of fact. She kind of hated David a little bit for the way he casually talked about Atlas like that. As if it was all about practicality and not about an injured soul.
Her heart ached for Atlas. Part of her wanted to cut him slack, let him have the leeway in his training to ensure he’d be allowed to retire and enjoy life here. But Atlas was a working dog. He might not be happy no longer working. It had to be up to him. Find his balance again and working might be what he lived for.
“You do basic obedience with every dog here, right?” Seemed as if she’d seen the other trainers working with various dogs. Both Alex Rojas and Brandon Forte had been out with various dogs all morning.
“We make sure every working dog here trains for thirty minutes in obedience every day. Then they spend time in their specialization.” Still brisk and all business, David pointed toward the kennels. “Any puppies Rojas breeds are also taught basic obedience as a package deal with the buyers. We use the time in the basic obedience classes to confirm the new owners are a good fit for our dogs.”
Good practice, assessing the owners to be sure they could handle the dogs they were purchasing. The trainers were less likely to lose track of a puppy somebody might decide to abandon. Too many people purchased a dog, invested in training, then dropped it in a shelter rather than admit to the breeder they’d decided they didn’t want the dog anymore.
Perhaps she was reading too much into his tone. He was being practical but maybe he wasn’t uncaring. She realized she was biased because of her dealings with her stepfather, looking for callousness in David. But David had been very generous with answering questions. Especially considering she’d turned him down earlier, he could’ve taken a completely different tack. She appreciated his willingness to really work with her.
“How many of your puppies go to private homes?” She’d thought they specialized in working dogs.
David studied Atlas. “Not every dog is suited for military or K9 work. We start assessing temperament right away and do our best to find good homes for the puppies not suited for working. They start training early and we watch them for the right combination of prey drive, aggression, intelligence…all of the traits necessary for them to be successful.”
“And those same traits make them difficult home pets.” High aggression and intelligence made for destroyed homes when those same dogs became agitated in a high-density neighborhood or got bored while owners were away at work or even on short errands. It was amazing what level of destruction a single dog could do in the wrong environment.
David’s grin drew an answering grin from her. It was ridiculous how much of a difference his expression made from his previous attitude and how happy she was for them to be on the same page when it came to training. She’d butted heads with other trainers in the past and the experience had been frustrating. She’d really thought he would be another one of those when she’d first met him. This—and seeing him with Atlas—was proving her wrong in the best of ways.
It’d been the right decision not to go out to dinner with him. This level of professionalism was something much better, even if he was also one of the most distractingly attractive men she’d ever worked with.
“Well, I might not have the
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