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Post by Fiera Ferella on Jan 21, 2020 8:58:07 GMT -6
There was a sense of calmness in the air now that the pair of them had finished training 'come'. Pauline's intense energy appeared to have calmed down a bit to a more manageable base level. Instead of running around anywhere she could see, she had gone back to her usual muted sniffing and investigation of what was under the snow, gently scraping at it with a single white paw. She was muted, but not exhausted. That was fine by Fiera- she wanted to teach a trick that required a lot more holding still, anyway. If she did show signs of being genuinely tired though, the trainer would happily take a break, but she wanted to try and get through as much training today as possible. She was sure Pauline didn't want to come back out in this cold weather as much as she did, she thought as another chilly breeze swept by.
Fiera 6 Pauline 3.1/3.1 Stay 1
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Jan 21, 2020 14:43:56 GMT -6
The trick she wanted to teach was 'stay' of course- a bog standard addition to any pet owner's list of obedience tricks. Pauline seemed to be in a good mood for it, so now was as good a time as any to get started with it. Fiera rustled around in the training back she always had with her, and got out a leash. Pauline would want to follow her at first after all, and while it made Fiera sad to watch her pets strain to come after her, this was the easiest way to get them to stay put against their will. It didn't take much effort for the humanish to clip it to the houluh's collar, docile as she was right now. She gave Pauline a reassuring pat before tying it to a branch that still jutted out from the long dead stump she had been sitting on. Then, she took out a treat.
Fiera 7 Pauline 3.2/3.2 Stay 2
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Jan 21, 2020 17:58:04 GMT -6
Pauline was instantly at attention, straining at the tied down lead for the tasty tidbit. Well, at least she wouldn't have to get her attention. "Pauline, stay." Fiera said, holding up her other hand. Pauline yipped quietly, still staring dead at the treat. There was no doubt in Fiera's mind that if she wasn't tied down, that treat would be down her gullet in a flash. Instead though, Fiera kept backing away, seemingly not paying attention to Pauline, but occasionally reiterating "Stay... stay." in a calm tone of voice. She let it go on like that for a bit less than a minute before she figured that Pauline couldn't take much more of this, and returned to her pet's side. The houluh's tail wagged madly when she realized that she wasn't being ignored anymore, and Fiera could hear her sniffing nose from there. "Good girl, Pauline! Good stay!" She cooed gently.
Fiera 8 Pauline 3.3/6.3 Stay 3
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Jan 21, 2020 20:29:20 GMT -6
She happily fed the houluh pup her treat, letting the pup lick it off of her palm. "Atta girl." She chuckled, and then reached for Pauline's collar, gently unclasping the leash. Now that she had the basic idea, perhaps they could make it work without the physical restraints. She gave Pauline one last pat and stood up, sticking her hand back in her pocket. Pauline looked at her eagerly, but she didn't pull anything out. "Pauline, stay." She said, starting to back away. Pauline went to take a step forward, but Fiera held her hand up again. "Stay!" She said, and the pup put her foot back down. They kept going like that, with Pauline almost stepping forward and Fiera ordering her to stop. She never directly disobeyed the order, but it was clear that she didn't QUITE have it down yet. After about 20 feet, Fiera stopped. "Good girl, Pauline!"
Fiera 9 Pauline 3.4/6.4 Stay 4
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Jan 21, 2020 20:35:17 GMT -6
She pulled out the treat, and Pauline yipped happily. "That's it, come!" She said, and even though the lead had been unclipped, it was only now that Pauline seemed like she was set free. She bolted toward Fiera, and the humanish happily dropped the treat for her. The better Pauline performed a trick, the more Fiera praised her for it, and now was no exception, rubbing down the houluh's head and shoulders as she chewed. Once Pauline looked like she was finished though, Fiera decided to give her one more test. "Ok Pauline... stay." She ordered, holding up a hand, and then turned around and walked away, not even looking over her shoulder. She could hear Pauline shifting in the snow, but couldn't hear her coming closer. Finally, once she reached the stump again, she turned around. Sure enough, Pauline was still waiting for her. "Good girl!" She called from across the field, and Fiera could see her tail wave- it would appear that Fiera's praise was all the reward she needed.
Fiera 10 Pauline 4.0/8.0 Stay 5
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Jan 22, 2020 7:38:15 GMT -6
Pauline had learned her basic obedience tricks very easily. Fiera supposed that made not a small amount of sense- houluh were creatures made for the 'goddess of order', whoever that was. That meant, she assumed, that they were used to taking orders. In a person, Fiera wouldn't find that worth celebrating but she had to admit, in a pet it certainly made training a lot easier. Definitely better than her red imp or sarane, which were absolutely miserable to train with under most circumstances. Algol was... friendly, sure, but he didn't have much of a separation between 'friend' and 'food'. Decima on the other hand was probably as smart as Fiera was, and trying to 'train' her was a terrible idea to start with. Pauline was, comparatively, a little angel. She never fussed or growled or bit, and seemed to pick up on tricks like she had always known them.
Fiera 1 Pauline 4.1/8.1 Tolerance 1
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Jan 22, 2020 9:14:30 GMT -6
Unless... they involved touching her directly. After playing around with her for several minutes, Fiera had found something strange. Pauline really didn't like it when Fiera messed with her limbs or face. She had never been aggressive, no growling or attempted bites (and lets be honest, Fiera could take her in a fight anyway), but she always shied away whenever Fiera tried to grab her. Unless it was connecting something to her collar or petting her, Pauline hated being touched. That had to change, of course. Being able to move her pet around and touch it would be useful for not only medical checkups, but for teaching future tricks. There were a lot of things Pauline could learn that she just wouldn't hit on the right behavior for without Fiera moving her into it first. Things like shaking a paw or standing in a specific position would be impossible for her.
Fiera 2 Pauline 4.2/8.2 Tolerance 2
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Jan 22, 2020 13:29:45 GMT -6
So that was definitely something Fiera had to fix. She refilled her pocket full of treats- she was definitely going to need them in a minute. Pauline looked at her quizzically as she turned away, and Fiera tried to not seem suspicious as she turned back around. The humanish figured that there would be a couple of problem areas that she'd need to focus on. She needed to be able to manipulate all four of Pauline's feet and her toes, her tail, her face (including checking ears and teeth), and to be able to lift the whole creature without it struggling. That last one would probably be the most difficult, both because Pauline would hate it and because Fiera's back wasn't quite what it used to be. She groaned at the idea but, well... it wasn't like Pauline was going to enjoy it either. "Let's get this done..." Fiera grumbled, approaching her pet.
Fiera 3 Pauline 4.3/8.3 Tolerance 3
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Jan 22, 2020 22:00:43 GMT -6
The best place to begin, she supposed, would be to start with touching Pauline in a way she found familiar and work her way up from there. That meant that she could identify problem areas as they came up in addition to the ones she already knew were going to be trouble. So she started petting Pauline, which the houluh was more than willing to oblige. She dragged fingers through silky fur, around the pup's dark cheeks and down her straight, white back. Pauline sighed happily at the attention, and Fiera gave her a treat to reward her nice behavior. Hopefully she'd be able to keep that up, tolerating more and more invasive touches. Fiera would hopefully be able to show her, through gentle touches and plenty of treats, that she wasn't going to hurt her no matter where her hands ended up- that these touches were just short and temporary.
Fiera 4 Pauline 4.4/8.4 Tolerance 4
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Jan 22, 2020 22:04:48 GMT -6
Pauline soon seemed to ignore the touches altogether, her tail slowing to a stop and her body just leaning into Fiera as her hands explored. Every so often, Fiera would break off another piece of treat and drop it for the houluh to snatch up. Now that she was calm though, she figured that it was best to start working her way up. The humanish gently scritched further down her back until she reached Pauline's tail- arguably not the greatest place to pet. She started easy, scritching the base of it, but then slid her hands down it and started manhandling it. Pauline whined and tried to snatch it away, but Fiera gave her some more food in an attempt to placate. Hesitantly, Pauline kept letting her owner examine the appendage, gently lifting it and moving it in different directions. She found herself able to do this for a solid minute so long as she kept Pauline fed.
Fiera 5 Pauline 5.0/10.0 Tolerance 5
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Jan 22, 2020 22:08:51 GMT -6
Satisfied with her progress, Fiera finally released Pauline's tail. The houluh seemed relieved in a sense, but Fiera was quick to give her praise and treats for letting Fiera touch her like that. Especially considering that they still had so many body parts to go through, still. Spinning a random wheel in her head, Fiera landed on paws next. So, she got down on her protesting knees (man, she really needed to get out of this cold soon) and sat down in front of her slightly confused houluh. Pauline gave her a tentative lick, and Fiera chuckled and patted her on the head. Then, she gently took one paw in her hand. Pauline whined, and Fiera released it and praised her before she could pull it away. Then, she repeated the process, holding the paw a little longer and a little tighter each time, eventually working her way to being able to examine each claw.
Fiera 6 Pauline 5.1/10.1 Tolerance 6
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Jan 23, 2020 8:45:01 GMT -6
Fiera was able to repeat that with each foot until Pauline was... well, still a little huffy but not freaking out. Finally, she released the last foot and gave her a couple more treats and a couple more praises. One more body part down! She glanced at Pauline, who was looking at her wearily. "Sorry sweetheart, I'm afraid I have to do a bit more still." Fiera said, and then moved her hands toward her head. She started out by rubbing around the jawline, which Pauline even seemed to like, but then moved on to gently touching around the face and eyes, which she definitely didn't like. Fiera kept her placated with enough treats to tolerate it though. Soon she was able to move on to even being able to look in her ears and mouth, checking the ears for infection and the teeth for rot. Or at least she would be, if she were a trained medical professional.
Fiera 7 Pauline 5.2/10.2 Tolerance 7
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Jan 23, 2020 10:47:02 GMT -6
As far as she could tell, everything looked good, so she let Pauline close her mouth and gave her one more treat for good behavior. The houluh accepted it begrudgingly, but her wagging tail belied the fact that she didn't really mind THAT much. Now that she was familiar with Fiera touching all of her body parts, it was time to try positioning them. Fiera first grabbed one leg and pulled it slightly forward, placing it in an odd but not painful position. "Stay." Fiera ordered, pointing at the leg. Pauline gave her a funny look, but obeyed and Fiera gave her a treat for her trouble. Then, she moved several legs- Pauline could still stand up, but it was strange. "Staaaay." She reiterated, and while Pauline trembled a little, the order was obeyed. "Good girl!" Fiera cheered, and Pauline seemed to relax all at once. Fiera happily gave her a treat for her efforts.
Fiera 8 Pauline 5.3/10.3 Tolerance 8
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Jan 23, 2020 11:06:28 GMT -6
Then, there was the last thing she had to get Pauline used to- being picked up. Ideally, the houluh would move under her own power at all times, but Fiera knew that that wasn't always an option. Sometimes she needed to be lifted onto a veterinary table, or in an emergency, out of a building or other areas. Fiera cracked her knuckles in anticipation- she wasn't the beefiest creature in Pethia, so this was going to be a task. "Ok, be good Pauline." She said gently as she reached out, putting one arm around her back legs and the other across her chest, letting her legs dangle. Pauline wiggled a bit, whimpering slightly, but Fiera gently shushed her with gentle tones. Thankfully, she had thought to palm one more treat before she lifted her pet, and was able to offer it to her now. Pauline ate it, and slowly but surely calmed down.
Fiera 9 Pauline 5.4/10.4 Tolerance 9
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Jan 23, 2020 11:24:33 GMT -6
Fiera held her like that for a while, gently bouncing the houluh until she was fully calm. Once that happened, she gently set the creature back down again, and Pauline was eager to have her paws under herself again. Fiera then went over all of the parts she had tried to teach Pauline not to react to, one after the other. Tail, paws, head and movement. Pauline let her do each and every one, even without the siren song of treats to encourage her. Even the most uncomfortable positions. Fiera breathed a sigh of relief. That was one more trick down- and all the better, because she wasn't sure how much more houluh lifting her back could take. She was sure Pauline was fine with that too however- she was sure Pauline didn't know how much more of that SHE could take either. At least now, they could both relax for a bit.
Fiera 10 Pauline 6.0/12.0 Tolerance 10
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