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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 12, 2021 1:04:03 GMT -6
The growl kept growing in volume and pitch as Donner realized that Fiera was trying to challenge him (in his mind, at least). He scrabbled his feet against the ground until he was standing again, his former laziness forgotten completely. “Come on Donner, screech!” Fiera said, trying to set the command word. As she did, he finally replied with a high pitched scream of his own in reply. Just what she was looking for! He even let go of the branch on accident as he did so, causing Fiera to go stumbling backwards with a big smile on her face. “Oh, good screech!” Fiera complimented him, tossing the seeker a piece of jerky for his troubles. He growled at her again, his hackles still raised, but took the jerky regardless, darting forward to grab it. Fiera knew him well enough to know he’d never turn down a piece of food.
Fiera 6 Donner 29.1/14.6 Screech 6
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 12, 2021 1:05:08 GMT -6
Once he ate it though, it was back to work. Now that he was all riled up, Fiera knew it wouldn’t be too hard to make him screech again- though doing it on command might take a bit of effort. So... she tried to poke him with a stick. Every time she jabbed forward he leapt back, giving a warning snarl. Every time she did this he’d get a little bit louder and a little bit louder, until finally he was screeching with each jab. Fiera was glad she had a whole stick’s length between them- she didn’t want to get close to those jaws with how angry he was right now. Now that he was screeching however, she tossed him a treat for each time he made the sound. After he finished eating, she’d go at him again with the stick, ducking at weaving in order to upset him.
Fiera 7 Donner 29.2/14.7 Screech 7
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 12, 2021 1:05:33 GMT -6
After several rounds of this and repeating the command, Fiera backed off a bit to avoid stressing Donner out too much. He was panting with effort now, his sides heaving as he glared angrily at Fiera. She figured she was done with the stick now- it was time to see if he could screech on command now. She tossed the stick behind her and Donner immediately seemed to relax, his fur settling down some. “Ok Donner... screech!” She called, giving the new command a try. Donner tilted his head a little, as if trying to remember what that meant before opening his jaws and letting out a quiet, warbling screech. It... was not his best work, Fiera had to admit. But it was something! A nice start! And it certainly meant that he knew to make noise on command- she just needed him to build it up to the top volume she knew he was capable of.
Fiera 8 Donner 29.3/14.8 Screech 8
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 12, 2021 1:05:54 GMT -6
“Good job, Donner!” She said eagerly, tossing him another piece of jerky. He quickly snapped it up and his fur relaxed even more, as if he was starting to understand what was actually going on here. She let him finish before giving them command again. “Screech, Donner!” She emphasized, and he seemed a lot more confident this time, letting the sound build up in his throat before rattling out, a long, irritating screech. Fiera had to admit, it hurt HER ears... but she still thought he could do better. Despite that however, she tossed him two pieces of jerky this time, increasing the reward for behavior closer to what she wanted. He hopped upon them even more eagerly, wolfing them down as quickly as he could, as if someone was going to steal them out from under him. By the time he finished he was looking at Fiera expectantly for her next command.
Fiera 9 DOnner 29.4/14.9 Screech 9
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 12, 2021 1:06:13 GMT -6
Well, she was more than happy to give it. “Donner, screech!” She called out, hoping for the best. And to her relief, Donner gave it. A rumbling in his throat started right away, building into a terrible, ear piercing, metallic screeching noise. Fiera couldn’t help but clap her hands around her ears, hissing to herself. That was enough to give any creature pause regardless of their size, and even she found herself stunned for a moment. Once she managed to shake some of the ringing out of her ears however, she looked down to find Donner sitting in front of her, eagerly awaiting his treat. She chuckled slightly as she tried to flick her ears to rid them of the tinnitus, the laugh coming out more as a cough than anything. But she still gave Donner his jerky and told him he did a good job- because that was absolutely what he’d need to do in the field of battle.
Fiera 10 Donner 30.0/15.0 Screech 10
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 12, 2021 1:07:07 GMT -6
With screech done, it was time for Fiera to move on to the next trick. Or… ability, as it were. It was a big enough deal that she had gone all the way back to her kennels for extra supplies to teach it. Hardy was pretty standard as far as battle abilities went. If Donner was going to be able to compete properly with his opponents, he needed to not be scared of them. Granted, seekers weren’t easily spooked to start with. In fact, they were pretty stubborn beasts. Still, she was sure that he could be cowed by SOME things at least, so it was for the best to make sure he’d keep surging forward and striking even when his better instincts were telling him to give up the ghost and try again on some easier opponent. Which… wasn’t exactly an option in a pit fight, so teaching him hardy it was.
Fiera 1 Donner 30.1/15.1 Hardy 1
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 12, 2021 1:07:29 GMT -6
Of course, hardy was about strength in both body AND mind. But Fiera had seen and felt how strong Donner was before, so she didn’t think that “body” was something she really needed to work on for the time being. But mentally? Yeah, he could do with some sharpening. And that led Fiera to the… supplies she had brought with her. A refresher on his preferred jerky treats, of course. That was a given. But she also brought a little helper with her. Desert was Fiera’s savannah thundergug, a little angel as far as she was concerned. Or at least, a very big angel. The point was that he was very large and very intimidating, but not likely to hurt Donner or let Donner hurt him. He was essentially a very large, very scary brick wall, here to graze on the training area’s newly growing grass and shoot Donner the occasional glare.
Fiera 3 Donner 30.2/15.2 Hardy 2
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 12, 2021 1:07:51 GMT -6
She had a few treats to “encourage” Desert to behave properly though, of course. He could easily just stomp over the fence and leave, after all. For now though he was quite content to graze. Donner on the other hand, seemed appropriately scared of him. Not that he let it show- from an outside observer, it just looked like a long haired seeker and an orange thundergug sitting in the same pen, with the thundergug placidly grazing near the middle and the seeker picking around along the border. Fiera had sat here watching them long enough to notice that Donner was pointedly avoiding Desert, however. She hadn’t seen him peel himself off of the fence once since she had led him in here, and even when she tried walking around him, he preferred to hug as close to her as possible as opposed to getting any closer to that… THING.
Fiera 3 Donner 30.3/15.3 Hardy 3
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 12, 2021 1:08:05 GMT -6
Fiera would find it funny if she wasn’t trying to train him AWAY from that behavior. After all, how amusing was it that a formerly unflappable, invincible seeker was scared of a big softy like Desert? She found it amusing at least. Still, she had to convince him to get closer somehow so he could stop being so scared of him. She supposed she’d try treats first- that was always the easiest way to get Donner to do anything. Fiera gave the package a little rustle in her pocket as she casually strolled toward Desert, just to get Donner’s attention. It worked, and she noticed the seeker glancing up to follow the noise despite himself, although he didn’t move just yet. Finally Fiera came to a stop near the savannah thundergug, giving him a brief scritch behind the ear for his trouble. He huffed contentedly in response, not bothered at all by the nearby predator.
Fiera 4 Donner 30.4/15.4 Hardy 4
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 12, 2021 1:08:26 GMT -6
If only Donner could be so unruffled. Unfortunately for her, he seemed QUITE ruffled over there, his fur bristling and making him look a bit like a fluffy baby bird, which probably wasn’t what he was going for. “Donner! How about you come over here, buddy.” She said enticingly, holding up a strip of jerky for his trouble. The seeker licked his lips but didn’t budge, staying firmly attached to the fence he had found himslf next to. “Ok! That’s fair.” Fiera said calmly, holding up her hands in an act of mock understanding. “But could I change your mind for… two pieces of jerky?” She said, holding up another strip. She could see her seeker nearly drooling at the sight of it all, staring daggers at his owner for doing this to him. Finally, slowly, he set a hesitant foot forward in her direction and she stifled a great big grin.
Fiera 5 Donner 31.0/15.5 Hardy 5
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 12, 2021 1:08:52 GMT -6
“That’s it Donner, you can do it!” She called gently, beckoning him forward with both hand and food. Slowly but surely, as if it physically pained him, Donner crept closer to Fiera, lowering his head nervously as Desert’s massive form loomed higher and higher above him. When he got close enough to his owner the seeker darted forward, snatching the jerky from her hand before she could hand it to him. Once he had it, he quickly scuttled away back to the far side of the pasture again, chewing on it loudly while glaring at Fiera some more. She was stunned at his speed, but couldn’t help but laugh. “Ok, fair! Good job, Donner!” She said with a chuckle before sorting around in her pocket for more treats so they could try again. He got the bravery up to approach Desert. Now she just needed him to do it without QUITE as much fear.
Fiera 6 Donner 31.1/15.6 Hardy 6
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 12, 2021 1:09:11 GMT -6
She pulled out another strip of food for her snowtracker and held it up. “Donner! Look over here!” She said, as if he had ever looked away. He hissed at her angrily in response. “Oh, don’t give me that.” She drawled, waving the jerky around some more. “We both know you want this, so come and get it!” Slowly and painfully Donner began to approach her again, but this time he picked up a bit of speed halfway through, as if he remembered that he knew this path already and was trying to retrace his footsteps now that he knew he was “safe” if he did it just like this. Soon he was at Fiera’s feet and not feeling nearly so aggressive about it all, so Fiera was able to safely drop the jerky down for him. He grabbed it instantly and strafed away, not backing away quite as quickly but still keeping a wary eye on Desert.
Fiera 7 Donner 31.2/15.7 Hardy 7
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 12, 2021 1:09:26 GMT -6
Fiera noted that he didn’t retreat nearly as far either- a good sign to be sure. “Good job, Donner!” Fiera called out, making sure he knew that he was doing the right thing. She wanted to keep this ball rolling though, so she took out another piece of jerky right away, holding it up for him to see. The seeker began approaching again, but still watching Desert cautiously, flicking his head from side to side to watch him, his hackles only half raised. When he reached Fiera she dropped it down for him to take, and he did… but not before giving Desert a curious sniff. The thundergug finally took notice of him then, turning to sniff him right back. Donner, not expecting a response, skittered backwards as if he had been struck, nabbing the meat before sprinting back to the fence again, hissing the whole way there. Looked like his bravery still only went so far.
Fiera 8 Donner 31.3/15.8 Hardy 8
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 12, 2021 1:09:43 GMT -6
Still, he was definitely getting the hang of this, and Fiera wasn’t about to stop now. “Come on Donner, come back! You can do it!” Fiera encouraged, holding up another treat. Donner groaned lowly and looked between the fence and Fiera. Finally, he sighed and walked back over to Fiera, coming as close to stomping indignantly as he could. Fiera smirked, as that was actually a good thing- it was much better for him to show irritation and anger instead of fear. “Good job, Donner!” She said as the seeker approached, and Desert turned to look at him again as well. To Fiera’s delight however, her snowtracker seeker didn’t seem terrified this time, and instead bravely marched right up to sniff at Desert’s head, getting hot air snorted back in his face in return. The seeker grunted at that and shook his head and mane, but didn’t run away again.
Fiera 9 Donner 31.4/15.9 Hardy 9
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 12, 2021 1:10:01 GMT -6
“See, Donner? He’s not so bad!” Fiera chortled, throwing down another treat again. Donner accepted it graciously, but didn’t retreat this time. To Fiera, it looked like he had learned his lesson. He wasn’t scared of Desert, and as far as she knew this would be a lesson that could be applied to any sufficiently scary enough opponent in the pit. He wasn’t filled with an overly large amount of bravado either, pacing around Desert logically, as if looking for a weak point. If anything, THAT was the sign that they were done with this trick. Fiera wanted to teach Donner to not be intimidated by larger opponents, but she wasn’t about to let him start hunting her existing pets either. “Ok Donner, let’s wrap this up.” She said, gently picking up his leash along with Desert’s lead. It was about time to pack this up and bring her thundergug back to the kennel.
Fiera 10 Donner 32.0/16.0 Hardy 10
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