Wrong side of poles

[twright3]

My new greyhound, Tulip, came off the track March 1 and joined me March 21. She's adapting well. Being new to walks in suburban settings, a few times she has gone on the "wrong" side of a utility pole, street sign pole and so on.

This reminded me of an amazing thing about my prior greyhound, Lily. I got her when she was six and, amazingly, she lasted to over 15. In all those years she went on the wrong side of something about six times including barely visible stay cables. This wasn't because she stayed next to me. In fact she would go on the other side of things like beach trash can and benches where she knew I could easily guide the leash over the objects. Let's see, 9 years, 2 walks a day, that's over 6,500 walks. There must have been at least 20 opportunities to go on the wrong side per walk. That over 130,000 chances to screw up. That's an error rate under 0.0005. Amazing!

Tom in San Diego

Edited June 29, 2020 by twright3
typo

[macoduck]

Tom, I can only suggest shortening Tulip's leash. She may need just a little more guidance than sniffing wherever she wants.

[MerseyGrey]

Are you sure Tulip is on the wrong side of the pole? Maybe it’s you...

[Time4ANap]

6 minutes ago, MerseyGrey said:

Are you sure Tulip is on the wrong side of the pole? Maybe it’s you...

This is what I was thinking too.  the right side of the pole is the one where the smells are better. 

Seriously though, each of our dogs has learned the command "this way" and will usually follow our lead if they are heading the wrong way around a tree or sign post. 

Edited June 29, 2020 by Time4ANap

[twright3]

I wasn't seeking advice about Tulip who is still quite new to suburbia as much as I was marveling Lily's skill.

I loved the Albert Einstein style response because after all the wrong side IS relative. And the suggestion of saying, "This side" seems like a good idea. I started with Tulip on the short leash but she's enjoying the long lease so much more I'll put up with a few tiny problems.

[HeyRunDog]

Tulip dark side of greyhound walking is you taking. Tulip trained you soon shall be.

[EllenEveBaz]

I've marveled at this, too, over the years.  I have guessed it is part of how their brains are so wired to be visual because of their hunting, that they are also excellent visual puzzle-solvers in other aspects of life.  In this case, they can recognize the possible upcoming problem and take steps (literally) to avoid it before it happens.  Or, as we say in human cognitive therapy lingo, they are excellent anticipatory problem-solvers. 

Milo is a lurcher, and I think he's more scent-oriented than most purebred greyhounds.   He doesn't seem to have this right-side-of-the-pole mentality, and he makes things worse by always having his head down to sniff, thus tangling the leash up in his legs, poles, trees, etc., more often.*  Unfortunately, he is now paired with Jeter, who of all my purebred greyhounds has the poorest performance in avoiding leash entanglements.  Other people who have walked with Jeter remark on how good he is at that compared with the non-greys they are used to, but for me it's much more of a chore now to walk around the neighborhood than it was with previous greyhounds.

twright3 -- I like your bouquet of greyhound names.

 

*Milo is better visually than most greyhounds in some instances.  For example, he can assess just how wide a space he needs to get through a partial barrier, and fly through it confidently whereas accompanying greyhounds won't even attempt it.   

[twright3]

Milo's ability to judge spaces reminds me of a funny trait Lily had. The French door to the patio would be open to a width of 2 to 2.5 feet and Lily would stand there for a long time cautiously studying it carefully. "Lily," I would cry, "you're 5 inches wide! You can make it!" Tulip, on the other hand, is like Milo. It just shows they are all individuals, which is part of the challenge and the joy of having a greyhound. (I always feel reluctant to use the term "owner" with regard to my greyhound. I'm in several car clubs and Lily went to enough car club meets that when she passed away one friend referred to the loss of my "copilot", a term that I liked a lot.)