Dare to be Different

A few weeks ago during dog training class we were working on the "up" command. "Up" means that you have to put your two front paws on something and you have to keep them there until your puppyraiser gives you another command or says "release". I'm getting pretty good at doing "up", but class was kind of tough because were doing scary "ups"... we had to do them on a rod iron fence... that moved!

I was towards the back of the line of dogs. So, I watched one dog after the next walk confidently up to the rod iron fence and, after their puppyraiser said "up", each of them effortlessly placed their two front paws on the top bar of the fence. They even held it as the fence swayed to and fro. Then, it was my turn. My puppyraiser and I walked up to the fence. My puppyraiser said, "up". I looked at the fence thoughtfully. And, finally I did what came most natural to me. Instead of doing what all of the other dogs before me had done, I slowly placed each of my paws on the lowest bar of the fence. I've gotta admit that this wasn't exactly an easy thing to do cause my head hit the bar above it. But, I still held my position proudly until my puppyraiser told me "off".

I was a little worried that maybe I didn't do the command right. But, my puppyraiser bent down, gave me the biggest hug, and said, "Carlo, you are such a good boy!” It made me so happy!

Later that day I told my puppyraiser that I felt like I wasn't as good as the other dogs because I did the "up" differently. My puppyraiser said that I did exactly what I was supposed to do and it didn't matter if I did it a little different. She said it would be a mighty boring world if everyone did things the same way. She said if dogs all did things the same way, they would not have done the things they did to change the world...

• Ten Dogs that Changed the World


• Heroic rescue dogs of the World Trade Center


• List of Famous Dogs

My puppyraiser said that if I dare to be different, I may very well change the world... or, at the very least, make a big impact on someone's life. My puppyraiser can be a little overly dramatic sometimes. But, I do love it when she rambles. And, it was fun researching all of the famous dogs. So, to show my appreciation, I wagged my tail and planted a big wet kiss on her cheek.