First week home

Happy New Year everyone! So I picked up Bailey on Monday and he was clean and poofy. My trainer was definitely a bit sad to see him go. When we got home I brought Bailey into my bedroom and showed him his new bed and toys. I knew that he would be a little nervous his first day/night with me. So I didn't want to work on any tasks I just wanted to let him get use to his new home in his own way. That night he was pretty restless and paced my room, not knowing exactly what he was supposed to do. So that night I pretty much got no sleep.
  Tuesday was also a chill day and Bailey seemed to be a bit more comfortable. I took Bailey on his first walk in his new neighborhood and he really seemed to enjoy it. We also went to Starbucks and Bailey was "on duty". He did great! Later  that day I received Bailey's new crate. This crate is a bit different than your normal metal box. Because I knew I would not need a big crate set up in my room 24/7  I decided to buy a collapsible one. The one I got is very similar to a camping tent and is tall enough for him to stand in. So I thought "Great I'll be able to get some sleep tonight". Oh how wrong I was. That night I put Bailey in his new crate and he began pacing within it. So instead of hearing clicking toenails on my wood floor I heard swishing and crinkling noises as Baileys paws moved over the nylon tent material. So I just let him back out. He actually did really good and settled into his bed for the rest of the night.
  On Wednesday we had a big day! One of my friends from the online SD community was visiting L.A. and we went to meet up with her. I took Bailey to his first metro station to meet up with my friend and her SD Max. Bailey did awesome and ignored a little dog he saw and the loud trains flying by. When he saw Max he barked and was a little apprehensive. But after a few minutes he warmed up and wanted to play. Max definitely wanted to play too.
  So we took the boys to a large picnic area in Griffith Park. My plan was to put Bailey on a twenty foot leash and let him play with Max. But Bailey had other ideas. We got to the park and took off their SD gear. Boy were they excited. As we were walking out onto the lawn area Bailey and Max were jumping around one another and the snap on Bailey's new collar (first day wearing it by the way) came undone. Bailey took off happily running full speed away from us. I was a bit nervous but luckily the park was almost completely empty so I didn't have to worry about cars, kids and other dogs.
  He zoomed by us with a big smile on his face a couple of times before he finally stopped and sat down. We put his collar back on and walked a little further on the field. Then it happened again and I knew that he had a defective collar. So we put the collar on one more time and I just decided since the boys were having so much fun and we were in such a secluded area that I would let him play off leash. Boy were they happy. It was so awesome to see them playing and chasing each other around the park.I could tell Bailey definitely needed to blow off some energy. Surprisingly Bailey was very cool with my Max's mom. Usually he's a bit shy. But he let her pet him and took treats from her. I think seeing Max interact with her helped Bailey to quickly figure out she was a friend. Bailey definitely slept like a rock that night. Yay!!!
  On Thursday I took Bailey to Petsmart (guess what for) and Old Navy. He did great! Of course being in Petsmart surrounded by other animal lovers Bailey got tons of attention. But he was "on duty" and did really well ignoring all of the people and other dogs. At Old Navy he did fabulous. But was kinda freaked out for a moment when he saw the headless mannequins. Those things kind of freak me out too. I have decided to alter my "no-petting" policy. I think that because I have been so strict about it that he now gets a little nervous when people come up to him. I want to show him that there is nothing to worry about. So right now I am going to let select strangers pet him. I think I have nothing to worry about concerning him soliciting attention so I don't think that will be a problem. He slept very well last night.
   Today we started up with his task training again. I brought him into my bedroom and my aide asked him to "get the light". At first he kept hitting the doorknob and trying to push it up. (the knob is right next to the light switch). It was pretty cute. But soon he realized the knob wasn't moving and he turned on the light many times. We then did hide and seek, and he did pretty good. He's much more comfortable here now. All in all a very good first week.